The Shop is open for a Cup cracker! Cobblers face task of snuffing out Grimsby's striker cult hero John-Lewis

Football fans have a habit of conjuring up the odd amusing nickname. ‘One Size’ Fitz Hall, Brian ‘Choccy’ McClair or Papa ‘The Wardrobe’ Bouba Diop spring to mind.
On Saturday, Aidy Boothroyd’s Northampton Town will have to find the key to unlocking ‘The Shop’ when they face Grimsby Town in the second round of the FA Cup.

Grimsby striker Lenell John-Lewis has no connection with a certain department store — the nearest branch of which lies 60 miles from Grimsby in Sheffield — but must surely have one of the best monikers in football.

Open for business: Grimsby Town forward Lenny John-Lewis, aka 'The Shop' is hoping to knock Northampton Town out of the FA Cup

Upset in store? John-Lewis wants to fire Grimsby into the FA Cup third round

‘I can’t complain,’ says the 24-year-old, laughing. ‘It’s just my family’s surname: I wish I had a link to the actual shop!
‘The fans started calling me it at Bury and it stuck. The Grimsby fans have noticed it and so I’ve brought the song with me, which is really nice.’



A place in the third-round FA Cup draw is at stake after Grimsby brushed aside Rushall Olympic 3-0 and then knocked local rivals Scunthorpe United out after a second-round replay, a victory which saw former Grimsby boss Brian Laws sacked by Scunthorpe.
Just five places separate Grimsby, fourth in the Skrill Premier, from Northampton, second from bottom in League Two, but Paul Hurst’s side are keen to exploit their title of underdogs.

Potential banana skin: Northampton boss Aidy Boothroyd will be hoping his side avoid defeat to Grimsby

On the ball: Northampton striker Clive Platt, seen here trying to get away from Chesterfield's Ian Evatt, will be aiming to fire his side past Grimsby

A trip to Blundell Park, after all, is not something many teams relish.
But the side who play home games out of Grimsby in neighbouring Cleethorpes, plan to use this to their advantage.

‘That’s it, isn’t it?’ says John-Lewis. ‘Nobody wants to come to Grimsby. It’s not as bad as everyone says it is but I think our home form has been pretty good this season.
'We are definitely the underdogs because they’re in the league and we’re not, but that’s where we’re  striving to be.’

The television cameras showing extended highlights of Saturday’s game will bring a welcome £10,000 windfall for a club who fell from the second tier into non-league football in just seven years.

Time to shine: Grimsby Town's Craig Disley will be looking to help his side beat Northampton

Putting the hard work in: Grimsby Town prepare for their FA Cup match with Northampton on the training ground

But the allure of the FA Cup still burns brightly in Lincolnshire.
Promotion back to the Football League is the priority but the suggestion the FA Cup is a distraction is treated with disdain.

Striker Ross Hannah played with his Sheffield Wednesday hero Chris Waddle at Worksop Town after being released by both Sheffield clubs as a youngster.

Now 27, the former Bradford City striker has scored six goals in his last six league games and wants to rekindle some of the FA Cup memories he remembers from his own youth.

Up for the cup: Grimsby Town striker Ross Hannah is relishing going up against Northampton

‘The Cup is definitely not a distraction,’ said Hannah. ‘We do want promotion, that’s the main aim, but the FA Cup is a massive part of a footballer’s career.

‘If we could look back and think we were part of a good FA Cup run would be special.
'I got to the third round with Bradford and at Gainsborough Trinity we played Barnet in the first round and I can tell you the feeling that we have for this competition is as strong as ever.

‘Everybody wants to be a part of it. We’re excited. The Scunthorpe game was massive, but you look back at some of the great games and upsets over the years and think, “We’re only  one round away from playing against the likes of Arsenal or Manchester United”.
‘Those days don’t come round too often.’