AFC Fylde are back at Wembley for the second time in just over a week in Sunday’s FA Trophy final, though what would normally be a momentous day in the club’s history has inevitably been overshadowed by the defeat against Salford City in the National League play-off final that dashed the ambitious Lancastrians’ hopes of promotion.

Everybody knows Fylde are in a hurry to gatecrash the Football League and to add insult to the injury they have to face Leyton Orient at Wembley, opponents who have just claimed automatic promotion for themselves. Dave Challinor will need all his motivational powers to gee up his players for the showpiece, which if last weekend’s result had been different would have been a joint party for two promoted teams.

“That was always a possibility but it turned out to be blue-sky thinking,” Challinor says. “We have every respect for what Orient have done this season, this is a tough league to get out of and they set a benchmark. They thoroughly deserved to go up and we would have loved to join them but we have to put those thoughts out of our mind at Wembley and try to enjoy the occasion.”

As a former Tranmere player Challinor will be keeping a close eye on Micky Mellon’s side as they attempt to achieve a second successive promotion in the League Two play-off final against Newport next Saturday. Two seasons ago Fylde and Tranmere were in the same division but though he clearly envies the upward mobility of rival teams Challinor feels his own side are still performing to schedule.

“The original plan was to reach the Football League by 2022,” he says. “Had we won last week we would have been well ahead of that but just giving ourselves the chance means we are more or less where we hoped to be at this stage. I just think the chairman’s eyes have been opened a bit in the last few years as to how competitive the National League is and how difficult it is to achieve promotion.

“The upside of that is that it gives you a fantastic grounding if you do manage to go up. I have no doubt at all Orient and Salford will be competitive in League Two and I truly believe we could hold our own, too. Promotion this season would not have caught us unprepared.”

Fylde’s players and fans know two consecutive weekends at Wembley is an achievement to be celebrated, though they could be forgiven for wishing the occasions had been the other way round. “We will just have to use our disappointment as motivation,” Challinor says. “At least we have experienced Wembley now. Hopefully we won’t freeze like we did last week. We won’t be able to use unfamiliarity as an excuse.”

Challinor feels Fylde were not at their best against Salford. “I won’t say we played poorly but a few players were nowhere near their normal selves,” he says. “We didn’t play badly but we played safe when we needed to be brave. It’s a learning process I suppose but it is a privilege to be going back again so soon.

“We tried to make light of the defeat last week. We had a few drinks and attempted to make a night of it but by the end of the evening it was starting to sink in what a chance we had lost.

“We can’t be dwelling on it forever, though. You do suffer disappointments in football but you have to dust yourself down and get ready to go again.”