Tuesday 27 August 2013 17:08, UK
Padraig Amond insists Newcastle hold no fear for Morecambe as they take on Alan Pardew's men in the Capital One Cup.
The Shrimps will have their evening in the spotlight on Wednesday with a record crowd expected at the Globe Arena for a second-round clash which will also be televised. They face a Magpies side who are yet to score this season and once again likely to be without unsettled midfielder Yohan Cabaye, injured striker Loic Remy and suspended defender Steven Taylor. While the 25-year-old Amond knows whatever starting line-up Pardew opts for will pose a serious challenge, he believes Morecambe should not be overawed by their opponents. Amond said: "I actually watched the game the other night against Man City (when Newcastle lost 4-0) and obviously Steven Taylor got sent off so it looks like he could be missing and they've picked up a couple of little injuries. "They're obviously a really, really good team with Premier League experience for a number of years now so it's going to be a very tough game, but there's no pressure on us, all the pressure's on them, they're expected to beat us. "There's no-one really that we're scared of or anything like that. We're just all really looking forward to the game." Asked if Morecambe would like to capitalise on a difficult first few weeks for Newcastle, Amond added: "We'd like to take advantage of it. But there's no pressure on us at all. "A couple of things have gone our way with the Cabaye interest (from Arsenal) and things like that and you don't know who's going to play, but whatever team Newcastle is going to put out is going to be an extremely good team. "It would be silly if we said they're understrength and took them lightly. We're not going to do that because they're a Premier League team at the end of it all. Every player has Premier League and European experience so it would be quite silly just to dismiss it because there's quite a few players injured, but it's just a game we're really, really looking forward to. "Playing in front of a big crowd and playing live on Sky again should inspire the lads and, you never know, it could be a great day for Morecambe." The exploits of Bradford, a League Two club at the time, in this competition last year has provided belief for all of those Davids meeting Goliaths this season. Amond was keen to also highlight how their cup run bred success in the league too. He said: "You never know what's going to happen. If you'd have said this time last year Bradford City would be in the cup final, a lot of people probably would have laughed at you. "But as it turned out they had a great cup run, and they were able to bring it into their league form at the end of the season."
