Newport County skipper Mark Byrne insists the FA Cup has lost none of its magic

John Sheridan’s side visit Barnet today knowing that stretching their unbeaten run to ten games will mean being in the hat for the third round draw and a shot at the big boys, with the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool entering the competition.

And Byrne is adamant that the FA Cup retains all of its magic, especially with the financial incentives available, Cambridge United estimated to have made £1 million from visiting Old Trafford last season.

“The FA Cup is still special for players, you want to draw a big team away and be in the third round draw,” Byrne said.

“For us there is also wanting to keep our unbeaten run going as well.

“It’s good to remain in a winning habit.

“It’d be good for the club, it would mean more money for the club and the Trust, having just taken over.

“We want to be in there with the big boys, with the big teams.

“It’s a chance to make history for the club as well, I didn’t know it had been thirty years since we got to the third round, that’s obviously a long wait!

“Hopefully we can go there and get the win. They haven’t been in the best run of form, but we have.

“We want to go as far as possible in the FA Cup.

“For me personally, I’d want to draw Manchester United away. I’m a Man United fan, so that’d be the one for me. But we have to get past Barnet first.”

Byrne has no mixed-feelings as he heads back to his former side, having played well over 100 games for the Bees over the course of four seasons.

“I will still have a few friends at Barnet from my time with the club, but I will be one of the happiest people in the ground if we can go there and beat them! There are no mixed feelings!

“I have nothing against the club whatsoever, but I’d just be delighted to get the win,” he said.

“There is no extra motivation for me because it’s Barnet, any game in the FA Cup is massive.”

Byrne admits he believes the signings made by boss John Sheridan have completely changed the look of the County squad.

“Scot Bennett has been one of our best players, I look at him and think ‘how was he not playing for Notts County? He explained.

“We’ve signed some experienced players and they’ve made a big difference for us.

“The gaffer has been exactly what we needed, he’s got us on our toes 24/7 and he’s always on at us, never giving us any peace! From start to finish in the game, you can hear him on the touchline.

“Even 3-0 up against Luton, he was on our case! But we needed that.

“We were accepting things too easily at the start of the season, now we are more collectively helping each other out.”