THE manager of Walsall, Darlington’s opponents on Saturday in the FA Cup first round, has conceded that the atmosphere will be “edgy and a bit nervous”.

Darrell Clarke is under pressure to secure a win after seeing his team lose six matches in a row and sinking to third-bottom of League Two.

He acknowledges that Quakers deserve respect given that Alun Armstrong’s side have taken 19 points from the last 21 available.

“We’ll give Darlington the respect that they deserve,” Clarke told Walsall’s official website.

“Darlington are on a good run and they’ll raise their game by 10-15 per cent so if we come off it 10-15 per cent then we’ll come unstuck.

“It doesn’t change though; there are two goals, 11 men vs 11 men so it’s a game of football so we’ve got make sure we’re not on the end of a cup upset which I’ve experienced before so it’s about doing our jobs right and focusing on ourselves.

“It’s going to be edgy and a bit nervous I imagine, certainly with the fans not being happy we’ve got to try and put on a performance and try and get to the next round.”

Walsall observers believe their team put in an improved display last weekend in a defeat at Swindon Town Nonetheless, the 2-1 defeat means the Saddlers have conceded 14 goals during their six-match losing run.

Clarke admitted: “In the last six games, we’ve conceded a ridiculous amount of individual errors, blatant errors in my opinion, which you have to cut out.

“Any manager will tell you exactly the same that if you’re doing that, then your back is against the wall.”