Bristol Rovers have FA Cup business to deal with on Saturday when Rochdale visit in the Mem, but there is another club with Gas connections just a short drive along the M4 in first-round action, too.
National League South side Chippenham Town host Lincoln City at Hardenhuish Park at 3pm after beating Hendon in the final qualifying round last month, with Rovers loanee Harvey Greenslade as well as academy products Luke Russe, Alefe Santos and Tom Mehew all likely to play some part.
Of those men, it is the latter who has the strongest connection with the blue and white quarters. Not only was his dad, David, a fine player in a memorable era for the club in the early 1990s, but there was a time two years ago when it seemed a second Mehew midfielder was breaking through into the first team.
The EFL Trophy is often maligned, but it was a stage for the then-teenager to showcase his ability, and he took that chance. He scored a superb long-range goal in his first senior appearance for his boyhood club in a 2-2 draw with Walsall in September 2020, and he followed it up a month later with another goal in the competition against Oxford United.
Naturally, there was a clamour from supporters – watching at home due to COVID-19 restrictions – for Mehew to be given more opportunities in the first team, but by the time he left the club last summer, he had added just two more appearances to his tally.
But he has no regrets. He is proud to have played for the club and he is happy in life, continuing to develop his game in the sixth tier while working part-time for Bristol-based firm Boca Teamwear. He dreams of returning to professional football, though, and he and his teammates are relishing the chance to face League One opposition in Wiltshire on Saturday.
"For me personally and for a lot of the other boys, it’s the first time getting through to the first round," Mehew said. "It’s a good opportunity and something we’ve never experienced before.
"Our manager and assistant manager have had five or six between them and they say these are the days you look back on when you retire. An FA Cup tie, especially for a non-league player, is the highlight of your career if you get a good run. I think we’ve already sold 2,000 plus tickets. It will be great to play Lincoln and we’ll see what we’re really like against a proper league team.
"We haven’t been doing too well in the league, but everyone is really excited for this game. It’s exactly what we need, a week away from the league and a free hit.
"The pressure is on the league and we can enjoy Saturday and see where it goes from there. Hopefully, we can get a good result and that can kickstart our pre-season properly."
Mehew made one league appearance for Rovers, coming on as a substitute at Blackpool on the final day of a season that saw the club relegated to the fourth tier. With the stadium empty and the state of the club at the time, Mehew doubtless wanted for that to not be his only outing in the EFL.
But he played just once in his final season with the club, another EFL Trophy outing, with much of the season spent out on loan before he was released earlier this year. The 21-year-old is philosophical about how things played out, with instability in the dugout around the time he was starting to emerge not helping his cause.
"I was there since I was seven and the main goal was to play for Rovers," he added. "I made a couple of appearances and it didn’t quite work out.
"Being a professional footballer is definitely the best thing that’s happened to me. They were the best days you could ask for, it was the best job and the best thing you can do.
"It was probably about opinions changing with the managers. I got on really well with Ben Garner and he understood the pathway for me, but then new managers came in and I went on loan. One manager was having me and one wasn’t and that’s just the way football is, it’s just all about opinions.
"Things didn’t work out and it was a change of opinions. I went on loan at the same time to Bath and when you’re not in the face of a manager, it doesn’t always help.
"I did quite well on my loan spells but one thing led to another and you go on more loans and you’re further down the pecking order."
Rovers manager Joey Barton has lamented the lack of a development squad at Rovers, which was disbanded soon after the relegation of the first team in 2021, but Mehew does not believe that played a part in slowing his momentum.
"I would say it actually got the young pros training with the first team instead of training as a 23s group," he said. "It made a big step up and as soon as you started as a pro, you were training with the first team, which I think is a good thing instead of training on your own.
"Ultimately, you had to find a loan and do well, but that’s men’s football and what every player needs. I don’t think it was too big an influence because you had your games out on loan and you were still able to train with the first-team players."
With time very much still on the central midfielder's side, he retains ambitions of returning to the pro ranks, although he is content with life at the moment.
He explained: "That’s the plan with the manager and it was the reason I came in and signed for Chippenham. There is a plan, but at the end of the day it’s down to me. If I play well, hopefully it will work out but if I don’t play well, I guess I don’t deserve it. It’s up to me and I’ve got to produce the goods.
"I really enjoy my job, to be fair. It’s definitely a change but I’m not down or regretting anything. The plan is to play as high as I can. Whatever level that is, then whatever level that is. Hopefully, that will be a full-time team but if not I’ll happily carry on what I’m doing now."
Mehew has already had more than half a dozen loan spells, taking in stops at many of the West Country's non-league clubs over the past few years. Now at Chippenham player on permanent terms, he has seen a lot in the game at a young age.
One of the most significant moments was entirely unexpected. On August 13, Mehew was playing alongside another former Rovers teammate in Pablo Martinez. Both men were released at the same time and joined up with Chippenham in the summer.
Martinez, aged 22, headed a ball out of play against Chelmsford City with Mehew close by. The former West Bromwich Albion prospect then collapsed on the pitch and had a cardiac arrest and the game was abandoned.
Thankfully, he was treated immediately and swiftly transferred to the Bristol Royal Infirmary. A heart monitor was fitted and the 22-year-old was quickly on the mend, with Chippenham confirming he should be able to play again when he is ready.
Martinez will be in the stands at Hardenhuish Park on Saturday and Mehew says the players are eager to secure a memorable win for their teammate.
"It was one of the scariest things I’ve ever seen in person," Mehew admitted. "He’s headed a ball two yards away from me. It was the hottest day of the year and I’ve walked past him to get a bottle of water.
"I looked back and I saw his eyes roll into his head and I shouted for the physios to get on. For someone so close to me, I’ve known Pablo for two or three years, it was horrible to see.
"The most shocking thing was Luke Russe and I went to see him a couple of days after in hospital and he was absolutely fine. He didn’t really know what happened to him, but the recovery he made was insane. He was completely fine and that helped everyone’s minds to see how well he was.
"It proves how lucky we all are to play football. Pablo says how much he is missing it, so it helps us appreciate football even more. We’ll definitely be doing it for Pablo and the Chippenham fans."
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