Carlisle United boss Mark Hughes will now do his homework on Harborough after hectic week
Mark Hughes will only now get the chance to sit down with his Carlisle United coaching staff to do his homework on Harborough Town ahead of Saturday's huge FA Trophy tie at the Bee Hive after a hectic week for the Cumbrians.
Mitch Austin and his players will go into Saturday's encounter off the back of two weeks without any competitive action following the postponement of their trip to Bishop's Stortford on Saturday.
But it is a very different story for Carlisle, who were beaten 4-1 at Sky Bet League One side Blackpool in FA Cup second round on Sunday, and then lost 3-1 at home to Woking in the Enterprise National League on Wednesday night, missing the chance to go top of the table.
And that was a bitter blow for former Manchester City, Fulham and Wales boss Hughes.
"We wanted to be sitting on top of the league, and that would have been a reflection on how well we have done up to this point," said the former Manchester United and Barcelona striker.
"But that wasn't to be and we now have to pick ourselves up and go again.
"We have the FA Trophy on Saturday and then we have big games after that, so we have got to get back to winning ways very, very quickly."
The Trophy clash at Harborough sees Step 3 high-flyers hosting Step 1 title challengers, and Austin's side will be aiming to secure a giant-killing and grab the headlines.
As for Hughes, he is expecting his players to produce better than they did against Woking in midweek, and admits that if they do that, he expects Carlisle to be too good for the Bees.
"I haven't really reflected on Harborough yet, we have got a couple of days leading into the game where we will get the work done and we will see who rocks up for us," said the 62-year-old.
"On the evidence of Wednesday night, a few might have to go again.
"Saturday will be about performing better than we did against Woking, and if we do that then we should progress."
With Carlisle having played twice in the space of three days ahead of their trip to Leicestershire, it could be that Hughes may rotate his squad to rest some weary legs, but he was non-committal on whether that will be the case.
Asked if the game may be a chance for some fringe players to get game time, he said: "It might be, but it might not be."
A record crowd is expected at the Bee Hive for Saturday's clash, which will see 350 Carlisle supporters making the long trip south.
The current record attendance for a match at Harborough is the 1,813 that turned our for the FA Cup fourth qualifying round tie against another National League side in Altrincham on October 14.