Crawley Wasps hope to sting Watford in cup following rare league defeat
Watford will look to bounce back from just their second defeat of the season when they host Crawley Wasps in the FA Cup second round on Sunday at Grosvenor Vale.
Their 3-2 defeat to Billericay Town last Sunday was their first home loss of the season, ending the Golden Girls’ perfect record at Grosvenor Vale which lasted five games in all competitions.
A win for the Wasps would see them progress beyond the second round for just the second time in their history.
However, the away team would have to produce a shock to progress. The side have just one win in all competitions this season, in the FA Cup against fifth-tier Moneyfields.
Both Watford and Crawley ply their trade in the third-tier of English football. To this point in the season, the two National League Southern Premier Division sides have had differing fortunes.
Watford sit second, and missed the opportunity to move within two points of top-of-the-table Oxford United with a game in hand following their defeat to Billericay.
In comparison, the Wasps are winless in the league, sitting bottom with just three points to their name.
The two team have faced off already this season, when the Golden Girls travelled to West Sussex in early October. They made their trip back up the M25 with three points, having dominated the Wasps in a 4-0 victory.
It seems the Golden Girls will use their defeat against Billericay as a motivator to get back on track in both the league and the cup.
Head coach Damon Lathorpe believed the parallels between that defeat and their first defeat of the season away at Portsmouth offered hope.
The Hornets went undefeated, scored 34, and won seven out of eight games between the Portsmouth and Billericay fixtures.
He told the Watford FC website: “We’ve had it before at Portsmouth, and we got a great response off the back of it.
“It sort of highlighted a few things that we really needed to work on in that last defeat, and I feel like we may be falling into that little trap again.
“It’s an opportunity to bounce back.”
After their first round victory, Crawley Wasps manager Charlie McCarthy was full of praise for his side as they came from 1-0 down at half-time to turn things around and earn their first win of the season.
He was optimistic post-game, saying in his post-match interview: “Second round here we come.”
Both teams will see this as an opportunity to relaunch their season, with a potential big name in the third round just a further incentive.
There will be plenty on the line when the whistle blows for kick off at 1pm.
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