Our lads will give it their best shot

THE FA Cup third-round clash with Liverpool is upon us and this week has been about training normally in order to avoid getting too caught up in the hype.

It was important to just get on with things because as soon as we roll into Anfield the significance of the occasion will hit the players.

There is no point in panicking them so we have tried to take off the pressure by going about our business as usual.

That doesn’t mean we are not all looking forward to it. The first thing to tell the players tonight is to go out and enjoy themselves, because those 90 minutes are going to fly by.

In reality, some of the lads won’t get the opportunity to play at Anfield again.

The biggest game of their careers is going to be over before they know it. They have to make the most of it.

The lads mustn't let themselves down. The last thing we want is for them to go out there and be in awe of their opponents. They have to make sure they are a part of the game and make a positive contribution. We want them to have a go at Liverpool and make it a good match. Hopefully everyone who is connected with the club will enjoy the occasion.

Before we could even think about Liverpool we had two important league matches to tackle.

The 3-2 home victory over Notts County was a topsy-turvy game, with Zander Diamond grabbing a dramatic late winner for ourselves.

It was just the boost we needed after the home defeat at the hands of Hartlepool.

We took that momentum into our trip to Chesterfield 48 hours later but, after starting brightly, we fell behind to a sucker punch on the break.

It is something from which to learn because we ambled back too slowly from their clearance.

But we gradually got back into the contest and big Matt Smith — who has been as good as gold waiting patiently for a start — popped up with the equaliser.

We should have been awarded at least one penalty, but the 1-1 draw was probably a fair result because Chesterfield had a couple of chances near the end.

Finally, just a quick note to say it is great to have Robbie Simpson back in the fold after he rejoined the club from Huddersfield.

He brings an extra dimension to our attacking game and his all-round play is excellent.