Matty Brown sees no reason to fear Southend United and wants to help the Blues sprinkle a little FA Cup magic down at Roots Hall.

Liverpool-based defender Brown, 24, follows Everton and has special memories of his team lifting the famous cup in 1995, even though he was aged just five at the time.

Southend are seventh in League Two and firm favourites but the FA Cup continues to throw up surprises and create unlikely heroes, and Brown hopes that he and his team-mates can fill that role on Saturday (3pm).

Brown said: “Most of my memories are from watching in Everton and obviously them winning it in 1995. I haven’t had many memories myself but I’m still young and I’m looking to make some memories for myself and hopefully that will be with Chester this year.

“You watch the football we play at times and I don’t think there’s many teams that are prepared to play the football we play

“We’re brave in possession and we play it out from the back and if we go there and start the game without fear and be brave then who knows what can happen?

“Southend are only a league above us and a good team but I’ve got no fear going down there and hopefully we can cause an upset.

“Even if it was a league game it wouldn’t be any different but with that added pressure of the FA Cup, I know it sounds cliché but it’s that magic of the FA Cup and everybody wasn’t the underdog to win

“We will go there with no pressure and play our own game and I’m confident we can get through, that’s what we want.”

Club captain Brown, who finished last season on loan from Chesterfield before joining permanently in the summer, started the first five games of the season before being sidelined with a calf problem.

Michael Kay struck up a good partnership with Kieran Charnock in his absence but the former’s red card in the fourth qualifying round win at Stockport let in Brown.

He returned to the starting side for the 3-2 defeat at Eastleigh on Saturday and put in a solid performance at the heart of defence in an otherwise under-par team display.

Brown said: “I’ve been out injured and I’ve had to be patient. Kayzy and Charny have been unbelievable. I’m not one of them who’s sitting on the line with a cob on and the two of them have been brilliant.

“The thing is in football you get chances and all I can do is hope to keep improving. I’ll just play my own game and hopefully that keeps me in the team.”