YORK City assistant manager Micky Cummins thinks that this weekend’s FA Cup tie will be a “nice distraction” from the club’s National League North campaign.

For the first time this season, York failed to hold on to a half-time lead - as given to them by Kallum Griffiths’ opener - in Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Kidderminster at Bootham Crescent.

York remain top of the table and are yet to lose a game this season - including in the FA Cup, where they have recorded three straight victories.

Sunday sees the first-round visit of Altrincham, a side City defeated 3-1 on the opening day of the season away from home.

“It’s a nice distraction from the league,” said Cummins of the game. “We’ve done well in the previous three games and it’s another FA Cup game at Bootham (Crescent).

“We’re playing an Alty team who scored in the last minute against King’s Lynn (in a 2-2 draw). They’ll be buoyant after that.

“They’re similar to Kidderminster. They like to keep the ball in midfield and rotate it around there. There is homework to do on them.

“It’s a tough game next week and then Curzon Ashton the following week. We’ll rest, recuperate and then focus on this game."

York fell short at the weekend of the high standards that they have set so far this term but retain their eight-point lead at the summit thanks to Brackley Town, who held second-placed Chester to a 1-1 stalemate.

Cummins spoke of the disappointment in the dressing room after the game and said of the shortcomings during the game: “We’ve got to better with the ball. We’ve got to be quicker and we’ve got to be sharper.

“Our end product from wide areas has got to be better too. We just didn’t do that.

"We had a conversation with the lads and they’re as disappointed as we are.

“But, if you look at the results around us, they’ve been kind to us again.

“We’ve got a longer break now with the extra day until Alty. We’ll reflect, have a look how we are in terms of bodies for next week and go again.”