Sam Ricketts previews Town's FA Cup tie with Bristol City.
Shrewsbury Town return to FA Cup action this weekend as the Shrews take on Bristol City.
Town will make the trip to Ashton Gate with a view to reaching the fourth-round for a second consecutive year.
Town Boss Sam Ricketts is expecting a tough test from the Robbins but hopes to see an FA Cup upset against the Sky Bet Championship outfit.
“We will prepare for the game similarly to every other game,” said Town’s boss. “An awful lot of our games are based on the same things. They are a good side but unfortunately have had some bad results recently.
“They change shape a little bit, sometimes they play a back three but generally it’s a back four. They have some really good players and they have recruited well. Not many would have heard of some of them as they are from abroad.
“They play a good brand of football with some experience in there. They have a real good mix of youngsters and experience. They have a good young manager but he’s been a manager for a number of years.
“They are an exciting team. They are a good side and will be ready trying to get into the next round. The players will be looking at that themselves. The FA Cup is a great competition that we have done well in recently.
“We are in a similar position this year getting into the third-round. That’s no mean feat. We now have an opportunity to get into the fourth-round – who knows where that takes you after that.”
The magic of the cup is not lost on the Town squad and Ricketts is hoping Town can cause an upset against the Sky Bet Championship side.
“It’s a tough competition for everyone. The higher up you go, some teams use the competition as a chance to rest players because of the sheer number of games and squad size,” said Ricketts.
“Football has a unique factor of balancing teams out with a level of enthusiasm, energy and work rate. When you are the bigger team in the FA Cup, there is no divine right - it’s harder to win those games.
“It’s going to be extremely difficult against a good Championship team. It won't be easy, but like any team, you always have a chance. We are still ticking over and we will be making sure we are ready.”