HAYDEN Mullins says his Colchester United players are excited about the prospect of taking on non-league neighbours AFC Sudbury in the FA Cup in front of the nation.

The U’s head coach says there is a buzz within his squad, as they prepare for their first-round clash with their Suffolk neighbours, on Friday night.

Colchester head into the tie, which will be screened live on BBC2, as favourites but Sudbury are aiming to spring a surprise, in front of the watching millions.

Mullins says they will give total respect to their Pitching In Isthmian League division north neighbours, as they aim to avoid falling victim to non-league opposition at this stage of the competition for the second successive year.

Mullins said: “There’s definitely a buzz among the players and there’s a lot of excitement.

“It’s a TV game and there won’t be many times that we’ll be live on TV, this season.

“It’s a chance for the lads to show what they can do to the nation.

“There’ll be a lot of people watching and they’ll be tuning in for an upset, we know that.

“It breeds loads of excitement.

“It’s a different ground and it’ll be a different sort of challenge, the pitch will be different.

“The magic of the FA Cup pits us against a local side a couple of divisions below us.

“Everyone’s looking for them to beat us and cause a bit of an upset, so the challenge is there for us to go out and be professional and try and win the game.

“We need to show professionalism and respect the team we’re playing.

“They’ll be good at what they do.

“They’ve reached this round of the FA Cup, not by being lucky but by playing well and doing what they do well.

“We’ll respect them as a team and as a football club.

“They’ll have our respect and we’ll go there as strong as we can and try and win the game.”

Colchester head into the game on the back of an important 2-1 triumph over Scunthorpe United in League Two, last weekend.

The U’s do not have another league game until November 20 and boss Mullins insists all of their focus is now on progressing in the FA Cup.

He said: “It’s a welcome distraction, it really is.

“The week has felt different and it’s a different game, we all know that.

“It’s going to be a different challenge but the boys have responded really, really well.

“For us, it’s exciting and it’s a different distraction from the league and one that the players are very much looking forward to.

“A win always breeds a little bit of confidence.

“The group are a little bit louder and buoyant, which is good.

“It’s nice obviously with us not having a game next week in the league to end it with a win, after the Forest Green game was called off due to international call-ups.

“It was good to win the game and I thought we put in a good performance.

“The second half was always going to be a little bit bitty - it was pleasing that we still went on and hit the crossbar but I’d have liked a few more goals.”