Ridsdale is wary of Stourbridge shock in first round of cup

By Plymouth Heral

PLYMOUTH Argyle will not find it easy when they face non-league club Stourbridge in the FA Cup first round at Home Park on Saturday, chairman of football operations Peter Ridsdale has warned.
Ridsdale knows the visitors from Staffordshire will be determined to "upset" the side at the bottom of the Football League.

 So he believes it is important Argyle try to make the most of home advantage, and secure a victory which would earn them £18,500 in prize money.
Stourbridge, who are in seventh position in the Southern League Premier Division, have won four qualifying games to reach the first round proper of the FA Cup for the second time in three years.
The Glassboys lost 1-0 at home to Walsall in 2009.
Ridsdale told Herald Sport: "The first thing you want in any FA Cup draw is to be at home, and we are at home.
"The next thing you want is to move through to the next round, and the only answer to that will be at 10-to-five on November 12.
"Stourbridge have got this far (in the FA Cup) so they are clearly on form.
"What we have got to do is use the FA Cup as an opportunity to start winning some home games if we can, but it won't be easy.
"The most difficult thing, I find, about playing teams like Stourbridge is you can't find out a lot about them.
"You don't know what to expect so it's going to be very tough, but we are at home. Let's see what happens on the day."
Ridsdale remembers one FA Cup tie during his time as chairman at Cardiff City, when they travelled to non-league club Chasetown for a third round in January 2008.
Although Cardiff ended up winning the televised match 3-1, they did suffer an early scare.
He said: "I remember going to Chasetown with Cardiff and everyone was telling me it would be easy, but they scored first.
"There is no easy tie in the FA Cup. Stourbridge will come here and treat it like a massive opportunity to upset the team at the bottom of League Two.
"We have got to make sure they don't do that."
Argyle sent a scout to watch Stourbridge when they drew 3-3 at home to Kendal Town in the FA Trophy second qualifying round on Saturday.
Kendal scored a late equaliser in a stormy tie, during which Stourbridge had midfielder Aaron Drake sent-off in the first half.
Stourbridge now face the prospect of a Trophy replay in Cumbria tonight, before travelling to the opposite end of England this weekend.
Argyle player-manager Carl Fletcher will study a DVD of Stourbridge's draw against Kendal as part of his preparations for the FA Cup tie.
He said: "We will treat them just the same as we would do any other team we play."
Stourbridge boss Gary Hackett is a former professional footballer, who had spells at Shrewsbury Town, Aberdeen, Stoke City and West Bromwich Albion, among others.
He is relishing the prospect of Stourbridge's trip to Home Park.
Hackett said: "We would have liked a home draw, of course, but this is an attractive tie against a club with an impressive history and strong fan base."
Meanwhile, an Argyle XI including some first team squad members will play the Nike Academy at Home Park tomorrow (2pm).
The Academy is funded by the sportswear multi-national, supported by the Premier League and based at Loughborough University.
It operates a dedicated high level programme aimed at helping 18 to 21-year-olds make their way in the professional game.
The Academy offers young players a chance to enter or re-enter the professional game through full-time coaching and weekly fixtures.
FORMER Argyle chief scout Andy King has taken up a similar role at Championship club Ipswich Town.