Emyr Huws has insisted Ipswich Town’s woeful FA Cup record does not weigh heavily on the current squad.
The Welshman could captain the Blues this evening as they bid to end a record of 15 winless FA Cup matches, dating back to 2010, as they return to the scene of a 2017 humbling which saw Town dumped out by non-league Lincoln in front of a watching television audience.
Huws signed for Ipswich two weeks after the exit to Lincoln, while only Luke Chambers, Cole Skuse, Freddie Sears and Andre Dozzell remain at the club from the side who played that night.
While the past is not a motivating factor, Huws and the rest of the squad are determined to win this evening and progress as far as they can in this competition.
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"It's probably about time Ipswich had an FA Cup win," Huws said.
"We're a big club and our record should be better than that.
"I only just heard about the club's poor record and it's quite weird really. It comes down to fixture and squad sizes in the past. Ipswich have just used the FA Cup to try to save the squad's legs.
"But it's a big cup and it would be nice to get through the rounds, keep the momentum going and see what we can do.
"We want to get through at Lincoln. I remember watching the replay at Lincoln before I came to the club and we'll be doing everything we can to make sure it doesn't happen again.
"Obviously, the league is the most important thing. I'd be lying if I said otherwise, but it would be nice to go on a journey in the FA Cup. It would be really cool. It won't be an easy game but we're going there looking for a win."
Huws skippered Ipswich in the first staging of this tie, making him one of six men to wear the armband so far this season.
"The manager told me at the team meeting that I was going to captain the side, so there was no advance warning," Huws said.
"It was a nice gesture by him and something I had never done before in my career, well not in a proper men's game. The ref's meeting was a bit rubbish, a bit pointless, but other than that I still played my normal game. It was nice to lead the boys out at Portman Road.
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"The responsibility didn't change that much, other than the ref wanting to pull me aside and me knowing I was the one who was in his ear the most. It was a nice little touch and I enjoyed it.
"The first game was a game of two halves, really. They were the better team in the first half and we got to grips with what they were doing.
"We were the better side in the second half in my opinion and we looked like winning the game."
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