FA Cup: Wrexham comfortable with 'underdog' status against Shrewsbury - Phil Parkinson
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Wrexham are third in the League Two table, two points behind league leaders Stockport
Wrexham manager Phil Parkinson says rivals Shrewsbury Town are favourites for their FA Cup third-round clash.
The two sides will renew their cross-border rivalry for Sunday's sold-out tie, with League One Shrewsbury a division higher than Wrexham.
This will be the first meeting between the sides in almost 16 years, since Town's 3-0 home League Two win in 2008, external.
"It's going to be a great cup tie. There's a lot of elements that add excitement to the day," said Parkinson.
"But, purely from the football side of it, it is a good test for us and a good benchmark.
"The importance of this game for the supporters of both clubs is out there. The lads will have a clear understanding of that. But it's also about having a clear game plan of how to get through to the next round.
"This is what the FA Cup is all about. A team from a higher division and a local rival. Our supporters have backed us incredibly well over the Christmas period and it is a game to go and enjoy."
The mind-games have been in full flow ahead of this first meeting since April 2008.
"Whether it is a local derby or not, they are a League Two team," said Shrewsbury defender Tom Flanagan.
"Who owns them, what they wear, who they are, has no bearing on the game whatsoever."
Wrexham boss Parkinson has happily accepted underdog status for Sunday's game, but his side are used to dealing with high expectations - and will be aware that, in the last round, Shrewsbury went to Meadow Lane and knocked out Wrexham's National League promotion rivals last season Notts County.
"He is only saying that they are League One and we are League Two, and that's a fact," said Parkinson.
"Of course, the team mid-table in League One and doing reasonably well are going to be favourites against a team a division below.
"We've got to go there with that underdog mentality and understand that to get through we need to reach the levels we did on New Year's Day [against Barrow] and probably above that.
"We're a team that is used to playing with expectations on our shoulders, we feel we've created a team with the mentality to cope with that and this will be no different.
"The reality is we're playing a team with established League One players who will have been hoping at the start of the season to push towards the play-off places so we know it is going to be a huge challenge."
Tempers flared between Sheffield United's Billy Sharp and Wrexham in the FA Cup fourth round last season
Victory for Wrexham would take them to the fourth round of the FA Cup for a second straight year, having bowed out at that stage against Sheffield United last season.
Wrexham, who were then in the National League, forced a replay against the Blades and were still in the replay at Bramall Lane before a mistake from defender Max Cleworth gifted a goal to Billy Sharp in injury time.
Cleworth has impressed since returning to the Wrexham starting line-up in December, and the 21-year-old identified that Sheffield mistake as a turning point for him.
"I've added that maturity and learnt from making mistakes, the Sheffield United game was a big moment to learn from," said Cleworth.
"In general I believe in myself a bit more now which at times before I didn't.
"Now I'm playing my game, being free when I'm on the pitch, and being positive while doing the defensive side of the game right.
"I've taken more responsibility on my shoulders to impact the game. Ultimately that comes from yourself, you have dips in form and ups and downs, but having that consistency is what makes you a good player and that's what I'm aiming for."
Cleworth has been part of the Wrexham set-up since the age of 12 and knows more than most players in the squad the importance of Sunday's game against rivals Shrewsbury.
"The atmosphere between the two sets of fans will be a big one, quite heated," said Cleworth.
"We have to try and use that but not get over the top with that."