Chesham United's Taskmaster guru Alex Horne writes club's FA Cup song for first round

Taskmaster Alex Horne will miss Chesham United’s biggest game in 45 years tonight because his band has a long-standing gig 400 miles away in Edinburgh.

But the Generals director, creator of the hit Channel Four comedy game show, has instead recorded the club’s own song - normally the province of finalists who reach Wembley - which will be premiered before their first-round date with Lincoln City.

Since Horne was co-opted on to the board at Chesham, three divisions and 77 places below the Imps on the ladder, the National League South minnows’ rise has been one of football’s feelgood stories. After he brokered a deal for Taskmaster to sponsor the club’s kit, sales of replica shirts rose from around 40 in 2022-23 to almost 2,000 last season and gates have doubled.

Now the Generals have set their hearts on their best Cup run since reaching the third round in 1980, and 4,000 fans will pack their quaint Meadow ground for a tie live on ITV4.

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But the catalyst will be on stage at the Edinburgh Playhouse with his freewheeling band The Horne Section, and he said: “I can’t believe I won’t be there for one of the great nights in Chesham United’s history.

“I’m tempted to hit the fire alarm so I can check my phone for score updates, and if it’s tight with 15 minutes to go at the Meadow, maybe we can extend the interval at our show so I can watch the closing moments backstage.

When we booked the gig for a Monday night in November months ago, who could have known it would clash with an FA Cup tie live on TV where the whole nation can see what we’re about as a club?

“It’s probably a bit premature to get the players measured for their cup final suits, but I’ve tried to enter into the spirit of it. We’ve recorded our own FA Cup song, based on Ian Dury and the Blockheads hit Reasons To Be Cheerful Part Three - except our version is called Reasons To Be Chesham Round One.

“I hope it might get its first airing before kick-off at the game, but I don’t want to deflect any attention from the team, who have done the town proud. I don’t want the players to think I’m piggy-backing on their success or flaunting it.

“It’s amazing to see so many people wearing Chesham shirts with the Taskmaster logo - two of my biggest sources of pride - but the players and managers are the ones who should take the credit. They stay behind for an hour after every game, signing autographs and mixing with fans in the bar, and there is a real affinity between club and community.

“We used to be that funny little club at the bottom of the hill with a novelty value - but now I sense the town is proud of Chesham United and it’s really nothing to do with me. I’m not taking the credit or responsibility for what’s happened here over the last 18 months because I don’t put money into the club directly, but it’s gratifying if the Taskmaster connection has made a difference.”

Joint managers James Duncan and Michael Murray have been at the club five years, and their double act is the Clough and Taylor partnership of non-League football.

Murray isn’t sure which one’s which, but he said: “The key thing about me and James is that we share the same thought process about the game and we trust each other 100 per cent.

“If one of us believes strongly about something, the other rarely disagrees. We don’t get into a position where we play scissors-paper-stone to settle a selection dilemma. Very rarely do we battle against each other.”