North Wales Crusaders will prepare for their trip to Thatto Heath Crusaders in the fourth round of the Challenge Cup the same way they would for any other fixture, according to head coach Anthony Murray.
The Wrexham club were rewarded with a trip to Thatto Heath after seeing off fellow League 1 side London Skolars in the third round.
And Murray is wary of the threat Thatto Heath will pose in the battle of the Crusaders.
“We’ve treated Thatto Heath the same as any other professional side we play in League 1,” he said.
“We’re fully aware that we’ll need to be at our best on the day because it’s by no means going to be easy.
“They’ve been one of the leading amateur sides for years and there are probably five or more players in their team who could easily play at League 1 level.
“They’ve also got plenty of experience in their coaching staff so they’ll be well-prepared for the match.
“I’m expecting them to make a real fist of it because they’ll be at home, there’ll be a good crowd there and all amateur clubs always want to cause an upset in the cup.”
Despite the 24-22 defeat at Keighley Cougars last time out, Murray believes his side aren’t too far away.
“There are some things we can’t influence that didn’t help us, but we have to look at the things we can control,” he said.
“We had a lot of good ball in the first-half and we definitely should have put a bigger score on Keighley by half-time.
“When we were in those good areas of the field, we didn’t use the ball well enough.
“I know Keighley had a short turnaround to prepare for this season, but we’ve been in a similar position in the past and it can bring people together.
“I think Keighley is going to be a difficult place to visit this season.
“The encouraging thing is that we’ve been in every game and led in a lot of them.
“We’ve not really had any blowout scorelines, but we need to get better in some areas to make sure we pick up the wins.”
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