Two Aussies and a Kiwi sparking $15m minnow's epic FA Cup run

Two Aussies and a Kiwi will take on the might of club world champions Chelsea in the ultimate David and Goliath FA Cup quarter-final in London on Sunday (AEST).

Tiny Port Vale are enduring a miserable season in League One, England's third tier professional competition behind the Premier League and Championship.

The 'Valiants' are stone cold last of 24 teams, all but certain to be relegated after winning just seven of their 38 league games so far this season.

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But it's a different story in the FA Cup.

Port Vale are the fairytale story of this year's knockout competition, reaching the quarter-finals for just the second time.

In 1954 - a mere 72 years ago - they reached the semi-finals where they were knocked out by eventual champions West Bromwich Albion.

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Port Vale booked a ticket to Stamford Bridge by stunning mid-table Premier League club Sunderland in the fifth round.

New Zealand striker Ben Waine scored the only goal in the 1-0 home triumph and celebrated with Alan Shearer's trademark right arm salute.

Waine, a Newcastle United fan, was paying homage to Shearer against their bitter rivals and the great man took notice.

"I heard his interview," Shearer said.

"He said 'I never really saw him live because I'm a bit too young' and I'm thinking, f---ing hell! But I'm really pleased for him. It was a great header and it's great for Port Vale.

"We couldn't have Sunderland going further than Newcastle. Even just looking at the pitch, they're bottom of League One, so brilliant for them. They put on a show and I thought they were worthy winners to be honest."https://x.com/alanshearer/status/2030669022618910737?s=20

Travelling Sunderland supporters booed every Waine touch from then on but the home team hung on, thanks in part to saves from Port Vale's Australian goalkeeper Joe Gauci.

"I knew that he was a Newcastle fan," Gauci told Stan Sport.

"But to have the presence in the moment - which is obviously such a historic moment for him - to be able to pull out Alan Shearer's celebration... If I'd scored, I would have just been going crazy. I know that he was copping a bit of stick but to have the final say, the last laugh, what a special moment for him."

Waine continued his hot form by scoring in New Zealand's 4-1 upset of Chile at Eden Park on Monday.

Gauci and Waine are loving being on the same team after their previous battles in the A-League.

Gauci, 25, is on loan from Aston Villa and has played eight games for the Socceroos.https://omny.fm/shows/added-time/the-king-the-crisis/embed?style=Cover&media=Audio&size=Wide

But he is currently out of favour as national boss Tony Popovic prefers Patrick Beach as his third shot-stopper behind captain Mat Ryan and Paul Izzo.

Some FA Cup heroics on what should be a busy night against Chelsea's world class attackers wouldn't hurt his World Cup selection hopes.

"The FA Cup is obviously such a historic tournament, and even back home, there's a lot of people that are tuning in," Gauci said.https://x.com/StanSportFC/status/2038889282472173709?s=20

"And I'm sure, you know, coming up against Chelsea, there will be even more... I don't really know how much preparation you can do. You know you're going up against a good side, that are going to play good football, that will likely control the game and, want to play the game on their terms."

More than 60 places separate Chelsea and Port Vale on the England football pyramid.

According to Transfermarkt, Chelsea's entire squad is valued at $1.91 billion. Port Vale? $15.31 million.

"Everyone will dream of doing a 'Cupset' and really taking this run even further and going to Wembley," Gauci said.

"You can't even put it into words, can you? So, yeah, of course. But we know the quality and the size of a top Premier League team, a team that's had a lot of success. It's going to be a challenging game, but it is more or less a free hit and it's a great occasion for us as players, as individuals, as a team to go toe-to-toe with some of the best players in the world."

Masterminding Port Vale's unlikely cup run has been another Aussie - little-known manager Jon Brady.

The 51-year-old from Newcastle (NSW, that is) has carved out a life in football in England, Wales and Norway after he was spotted by Brentford as a teenager.

Brady played 477 senior games in various leagues but didn't represent Australia after under-17 level.

He moved into management in 2009 and took the reins at Port Vale - part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent - in January.https://x.com/StanSportFC/status/2040202938392412509?s=20

Brady joked that the FA Cup run was a "pain in the bum" as he fights desperately to try and stave off relegation.

Port Vale beat Maldon and Tiptree, Bristol Rovers, Fleetwood and Bristol City before stunning Sunderland.

"It sort of galvanised the fans, galvanised the town, made everyone dream a little bit I suppose," Brady told Stan Sport.

"I'm not sure many believed we could beat Sunderland at home and the atmosphere after that game was incredible. It was great to feel that connection with the fans...

"I feel what it's done is build a belief level within them that, they're better than what they think they are - they can perform better than what they think.

"It's just consistently they need to do that and that's probably a frustration of mine - because they do have the ability."

Brady has his fingers crossed for more Waine heroics against Chelsea.

"He's a real opportunist. He's a good finisher. He reads when chances will fall on the box," he said.

"He's always on the move and I think he's watched a lot of Alan Shearer and hence his celebration against Sunderland. So he's following a good striker. It'd be nice to have one at Stamford Bridge like that, wouldn't it? New Zealand will need a goal scorer going to the World Cup and there'd be no prouder moment."

Brady also hoped Gauci could catch Popovic's eye.

"Physical stature, he's got a great profile for a goalkeeper (194cm)," he said.

"He's played for the Australian national team. He's hopeful still that something might happen, he could be taken to the World Cup, but at the moment, he hasn't been in that recent squad. He's done very, very well for us and been very consistent."

So what will Brady's message to his players be before kickoff?

"I want them to enjoy themselves, but enjoy themselves with a performance they can be proud of. The world club champions, can't get much harder than that. We expect one of the biggest challenges of our lives, but we have to try and be up for that challenge," he said.

"We want to make sure we put in a performance that does the club justice."