Ben Smith is confident his players will handle the occasion when Ramsgate face Woking in the FA Cup First Round.

Rams will be cheered on by 3,000 home fans at Southwood on Saturday (3pm) in what has been billed as the biggest game in the club’s history.

It’s just the third time they’ve reached this stage of the competition but, unlike in 1955 and 2005, home advantage adds to the size of the occasion.

Woking - 12th in the National League after finishing fourth last season - operate three levels above Smith’s Isthmian South East high-fliers.

They are heavy favourites but Ramsgate, with experienced players such as Joe Ellul, Mike West and Lee Martin in their ranks, won’t be overawed.

“I don’t see us freezing on the day,” said boss Smith.

“If we lose it will be because we’ve not been good enough, not because of the occasion.

“We’ve got players who’ve played in bigger occasions than this, so we can deal with that side of it.

“We won’t lose through freezing or lack of effort, it will come down to whether we’ve got the quality to mix it with them on the day.”

Ramsgate’s 3,000 home tickets sold out in 24 hours and Smith says they could have sold 5,000 for a tie that will see the winners earn £41,000 in prize money.

Indeed, should they beat Woking and be drawn at home in the Second Round, the club will look to install a temporary stand to increase capacity.

Woking are no strangers to playing in front of big crowds but Smith hopes Ramsgate can use the home support to their advantage.

He said: “We’ll have the proverbial 12th man thing that can give you an extra 10%, which we’re going to need.

“We could have sold 5,000 tickets, in truth, if we’d had agreements in place with the relevant authorities, but I guess the turnaround was too quick to be able to get temporary standing in place.

“If we get through, and get another home tie, there will 100% be a temporary stand in for the next round.

“We’ve got the space for it. There’s loads of space.

“The fact it’s a home tie makes it the biggest game in the club’s history. Everyone you talk to is excited about it.”

Woking are a non-league club with a rich FA Cup history, famously beating West Brom of the old Second Division - now the Championship - 4-2 at the Hawthorns in 1991.

Five years later they drew 1-1 at then-Premier League Coventry before losing the replay 2-1.

Fast-forward to the present day and the Cards - managed by former Stevenage and Yeovil boss Darren Sarll - present a significant challenge for Ramsgate.

“We’re preparing well,” said Smith. “Three National League clubs have given us their info on Woking, which was nice of them, and we’re going through that.

“All the reports we’ve had on them say they do what they do incredibly well.

“We’ve got to look at maybe some weaknesses and be on our A-game to try and expose them.

“It’s going to be a tough ask but we’ve got to give it a go.

“There's a big gap between the divisions.

Ellul: We don't fear anyone

“They’ve probably got over triple our budget but the biggest thing is the training.

“I don’t know how many times a week they train - but for their players it’s their day job.

“Forget budgets, it’s the ability to train three mornings or three nights and not have a day job to worry about.

“Physically, it will be a big test for us.”

Centre-back Dan Johnson is the only Rams player definitely ruled out.

The former Herne Bay man has had an operation on a throat infection.

Rams are up to fifth in Isthmian South East after goals from Alfie Paxman and Joe Taylor in a 2-0 win over Horndean last Wednesday and still have up to four games in hand on sides above them.

A hectic schedule of Saturday-Tuesday football is the price to pay for their FA Cup exploits and Smith feels there should be more flexibility in the schedule.

He said: “All eyes are on Woking but, for me, I’m thinking about Merstham on Tuesday.

“We have one hell of a schedule over the next month or so.

“I try and deal with it in two-week blocks but when you sit down and look at the games we’ve got coming up, it really is crazy.

“You have this league rule where postponed games have to be rearranged within six weeks but there’s so much time after Christmas where we could put games in.

“It would be nice if there was a bit of flexibility to support a team that’s flying the flag for the league.

“People talk about budgets but, as I’ve said, there’s other teams in this league with good budgets.

“If we do well in the league this year, it’s a good achievement considering the situation we’re in.”