NEWPORT County AFC are giving their players the VIP treatment as they attempt to cause another seismic shock in this weekend’s FA Cup fourth-round tie at Middlesbrough.

Michael Flynn’s men, who beat former Premier League champions Leicester City in the third round earlier this month, take on Championship promotion hopefuls Boro at the Riverside Stadium on Saturday.

And, with a 540-mile round-trip ahead of them, County are doing everything possible to ensure that the players are in the best possible shape to cause another upset.

The Exiles will begin their journey north today as they head to The Belfry Hotel, the host venue for four Ryder Cups where twin rooms start at £155 and suites cost up to £330, for an overnight stay just north of Birmingham.

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They will then enjoy the use of the first-rate facilities at St George’s Park, the home of the English FA near Burton-upon-Trent, as they train on Friday morning before heading to their Teesside hotel.

The club has made more than £450,000 from this season’s cup run and they see the extra cost for this trip as a sound investment towards another potentially money-spinning result.

But Flynn is keen to keep the pressure off for his players and he insists they will be treating this as a regular game.

“We’re going up early to give the boys more of a relaxed journey up,” explained the manager.

“We’ll train on Friday and then make our way up to the hotel.

“It’s like any other away game then; it’s a 3pm kick-off on a Saturday and after Thursday it’s normal preparation.

“I’ll pick the team that I think can get us a result up at Middlesbrough,” added Flynn, whose team beat Leeds United and took Tottenham Hotspur to a replay in last year’s FA Cup adventure.

“It’s going to be tough, but we’ll give it a go.

“The boys keep raising the bar and they deserve all the credit that they’re getting for what they’ve done in the FA Cup over the last 15 months.

“It’s been a phenomenal set of results and we’re going to go up there and give it our best shot.

“We haven’t got the advantage of our home crowd and our home comforts but it’s a football pitch with two goals and 22 players.”

Exiles chairman Gavin Foxall may be hoping for a draw and the chance to welcome Tony Pulis’ men to Rodney Parade, which could bring in more TV money, but Flynn wants to get the job done on Saturday.

“I don’t care what the chairman fancies, I want to be in the next round,” he said.

“I don’t want another game on a Tuesday night. We’ve got enough of them coming up with a small squad.

“I want to win. I don’t ever play for a replay.

“And I think we can win. Anybody who thinks we can’t, there’s no point in them travelling.”

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