Only one
Football League club, the recently re-elected
Lincoln City, was required to enter this season's tournament in the qualifying rounds. Entered in the fourth qualifying round, Lincoln lost to
Crewe Alexandra in their one and only match, which meant this would be the first time that only non-league qualifiers progressed to the first round since
1891-92 (the season before the introduction of the
Football League Second Division). The 12 clubs winning through were
Stoke,
Watford,
Bishop Auckland,
Shrewsbury Town,
Carlisle United,
Workington,
Accrington Stanley,
Southend United,
Chesterfield,
Coventry City,
Leyton and
New Brompton. Of these, only Southend United was featuring in the main draw for the first time, although Leyton's previous appearance at this stage had been back in
1877-78. At the other end of the qualifying stages, the extra preliminary round had grown to include 44 teams this season. Most of these clubs were from the north of England or from the North Midlands, with only 10 of the sides based in towns or villages south of Birmingham.
Elsecar Main,
Atherton and Heanor United all reached the third qualifying round stage. ==First round proper==