Former Walsall star Darren Wrack has warned the Saddlers they must step out of their comfort zone to beat Stourbridge.

The former midfielder was part of the side embarrassed 2-1 by Slough in the 2004 FA Cup first round.

Now Chris Hutchings’ men face a potential banana skin on Saturday when they play the Glassboys – 95 places below them in the Southern League Premier Division.

Wrack, currently at Blue Square Premier outfit Kettering, knows the Cup pitfalls all too well and warns Walsall they must be ready for anything.

He said: “It’s going to be hostile. Stourbridge will be used to it and Walsall have to get their heads around it and do their jobs.

“Expect the unexpected. I know for a fact some non-league teams don’t have the heating on and have cold showers to make things a little scarier for teams.

“When we turned up at Slough the pitch looked lovely from the outside, but when you got on there it was all bobbly and the changing room could barely fit 11 players. It was a typical non-league ground.

“I wouldn’t say we didn’t prepare properly but it wasn’t what we expected.”

Saturday’s 3-2 comeback win at Wycombe on Saturday has put the Saddlers in battling mood and Wrack insists they must be in the right frame of mind to progress to the second round.

He said: “It will be a difficult tie. Chris Hutchings will drill it into his players that they’re not going to be in for an easy ride.

“They are professional players but have to go there to do the job and I’m sure Walsall will be looking forward to it.”

Wrack scored the equaliser in the defeat at Slough under Paul Merson and reckons the Saddlers must take their chances to avoid more painful memories.

He said: “We didn’t play too badly on the day and we created chances, but didn’t put them away.

“We were devastated because we all expected to win and it didn’t happen. They were celebrating like they’d won the FA Cup.”