Even at the advanced stages of their careers, ex-professionals can very quickly become cult heroes in non-League football.
And for a rejuvenated Grays Athletic side, enjoying a recent upturn in fortunes following the loss of their stadium and relegation into the Ryman Premier League, the FA Trophy presents an opportunity to continue their progression as a club.
Hampton & Richmond v Grays Athletic
FA Trophy First Round Qualifying
Beveree Stadium
3pm Saturday 1 November
Winning side gets £2,700 from The FA prize fund
It appears that for fans' favourite Glen Little the two work hand-in-hand, with the former Crystal Palace and Reading midfielder churning out impressive performances time and again.
Club chairman Keith Burns admits he has been left in awe of Little, who even at 39, continues to impress both on and off the field.
"His influence in the changing room and on the pitch is something that we cannot appreciate enough," Burns told TheFA.com.
"It's not a surprise that when you look at the statistics from this season, we perform a lot better with Glen in the side.
"Unfortunately he's been out injured for a few games this campaign and unsurprisingly it's had a major effect on our results."
“We played very well in the league meeting but this is a different game altogether”
Keith Burns
Grays Athletic chairman
Dismissing this occasional drop in form, Grays still remain on the fringes of the play-off places in the Ryman Premier Division, the seventh tier in the football pyramid, with games in hand on the teams around them.
"Any teams at step three of non-league football are in the Trophy to perform well and progress as far as they can," Burns insists.
"The league is our main focus the majority of the time, but while we're in the Cup we need to make that our focus."
Grays travel to fellow Ryman Premier Division side Hampton & Richmond Borough in First Round Qualifying on Saturday.
And, despite running out comfortable 4-0 winners in the corresponding league fixture earlier in the campaign, Burns isn't taking anything for granted.
"We played very well in the league meeting but this is a different game altogether," he added.
"They've got a new manager and several new players, so we're in for a tough test if we want to progress to the next stage."
