AFTER a gallant first attempt, Witton Albion will again try to cause an FA Trophy upset when they visit Chester for a first-round replay tonight.

And Anthony Brown believes his teammates should be buoyed by how close they came to knocking out higher-ranked opponents during a 1-1 draw on Saturday.

“The big worry beforehand was whether a three-division difference between us would be too much,” said the defender.

“But once the game got going, I don’t think there that much between us.

“If anything, we were a bit gutted afterwards because we had better chances than them.

“That should encourage us though, and to have a chance to play at their place is the reason why lads like us do what we do.

“We shouldn’t be scared; something our performance at the weekend backs up.”

Albion are likely to be boosted by the return of captain Anthony Gardner, who made an impressive cameo as a substitute during the second half at the weekend.

Indeed, he started a move that ended with Brad Bauress steering in an equalising goal to cancel out Jordan Chapell’s first-half opener.

However Paul Williams (knee) and Steven Tames (ankle) are both still ruled out by injury.

The victors, as well as banking £5,000 in prize money, will host Forest Green Rovers or Truro City in the last 32 next month.

Those two teams also replay later.

Brown said: “The prospect of another home game is an incentive, but to be honest beating Chester away from home is enough of one for us.

“We’ve come through four rounds to reach this stage, and Saturday wasn’t the first time we’ve performed like that against a team from a higher league.

“We didn’t panic after going behind, and that’s because we know we’ll always have a chance to score with the class we have up front.

“We back ourselves.”

Midfielder Ronan Eves is also available again after missing Saturday’s encounter while on duty for Cheshire FA in an FA County Youth Cup encounter with Suffolk.

They won 2-1.

Chester will be without Kane Richards, who serves a suspension as punishment for his dismissal at the weekend.

However manager Jon McCarthy hopes to welcome back Craig Mahon after illness prevented him from taking part on Saturday.

Kick off is at 7.45pm.

Adults pay £10 to watch the action, while entry for concessions is £8.

Admission for under 16s is £3.