Former Shrewsbury goalkeeper Scott Bevan believes Town will come out “like a house on fire” against his current club Torquay – in a bid to forget their FA Cup humiliation.

Town were beaten 1-0 at home by Blue Square South side Staines Town in last weekend’s first round tie, but Bevan expects them to be a very different animal in Saturday’s League Two clash.

And Bevan, who has had his Torquay appearances limited this season by a calf injury, thinks both clubs could be promotion contenders come the end of the season.

“It’s unfortunate that they got beat by Staines because I’m sure they would have liked a good Cup run, but the League will be their priority,” said Bevan.

“It will be interesting to see how they respond – confidence could be low but it could also work the other way.

“I’m sure they’ve had stick from the manager and the fans and they will come at us like a house on fire.

“They’ve got enough experience in that dressing room to get over that and push on.

“I want Torquay to win on Saturday of course, but it would be nice if both teams are up there at the end of the season.

“The way we’ve played so far this season, we’re confident someone will take a bit of a spanking off us soon.”

Bevan played in Torquay’s 3-1 win over Cheltenham in the FA Cup on Saturday because regular No 1 Michael Poke, who is on loan from Southampton, was not available.

But he expects to be back on the bench at the Prostar Stadium this weekend as he continues his long battle to get back to full fitness.

The 6ft 6ins 30-year-old is looking forward to returning to his old stomping ground, even though his time in Shropshire was frustrating.

“I enjoyed my time at Shrewsbury but I didn’t get as many games as I wanted,” he said.

“The people I was good friends with, like Ben Davies and Ben Herd, have left, but I was gutted for them when they lost at Wembley last season (in the play-off final).

“I got a good run of games at Torquay though, and it was great to be promoted back to the Football League.”

By CHRIS HUDSON