JOHN Sussex insists Basildon United will not underestimate Framlingham Town when the two sides meet in the preliminary round of the FA Cup tomorrow.

Framlingham ply their trade in the Eastern Counties League Division One North.

And Sussex is keen for his Isthmian North outfit not to be on the wrong side of an FA Cup upset at the Cousins Car Wash Stadium.

The Bees’ boss said: “We had Framlingham watched on Tuesday night and they are a reasonable side capable of causing problems.

“We will give them plenty of respect.

“Although we will be the favourites to progress, we cannot afford to underestimate them.

“It goes without saying that we will be taking nothing for granted because anything can happen in cup competitions and there are numerous upsets in the FA Cup every season.

“Hopefully we will not be among those sides on the receiving end of an upset.

“If we play to our potential, we will get a result.”

The FA Cup tie comes just 48 hours before Basildon will make the short trip to Grays Athletic for their latest Isthmian North fixture.

And Sussex confirmed the action-packed Bank Holiday weekend will result in fringe players needing to step up to the plate and take their opportunity.

Sussex added: “We’re facing two games in 48 hours, so we have got to manage the squad.

“We have some injury concerns as well and we will be looking at those before the game.

“Adam Vyse will also be unavailable as he starts a three-match ban following his red card on the opening day of the season.

“But I wanted to make sure we had strength in depth for moments like this.

“We made numerous signings during the summer and we are in a much better position than we were when I took over in March.

“I feel as though we have more than able deputies to come in whenever players are injured and suspended.

“Our squad will be well used over the course of the two games as some players may find it difficult to play twice in a short space of time.”

Basildon will head into tomorrow’s clash with Framlingham having recorded a thumping 6-0 victory over Romford in midweek.

Ayo Olukoya claimed a first half hat-trick as the Bees registered their first win of the campaign.

And Sussex is pleased to see that Basildon are more of a threat going forward this term.

Sussex admitted: “One of the biggest problems when I took over as manager was that we weren’t scoring goals.

“But Ayo has scored four goals in his first two games since joining us in the summer, Vysey scored twice in midweek and we have plenty of other options going forward.

“We beat Romford 6-0 after taking the game to them and we did ourselves proud.

“It was a great result and performance, so it’s up to us to build on that.”