James Knowles feels Dungannon Swifts will benefit from being underdogs when they face Crusaders in today's Irish Cup semi-final.
Knowles accepts it will be a tough test at Mourneview Park for the Swifts against the cup holders.
But the midfielder sees no reason why they cannot go and thrive in the situation with all the pressure on their opponents.
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"There is a freedom for us in the game as no-one is expecting us to go and win," said Knowles, who has lost his two previous Irish Cup finals whilst at Cliftonville and Ballymena United.
"Crusaders won it last year and have done very well in the competition over the last few seasons.
"So there's no pressure on us, no-one is expecting us to win, but I'm confident we'll go there, keep it tight and why can we not reach the final?
"I keep saying to the group, why can we not go there and beat Crusaders?
"We have played well against them at their home patch but come out on the wrong side of the result a couple of times when we have been the better team.
"It's on grass as well at Mourneview, a different venue, we can go there and get something, I'm confident about that."
It has been an inconsistent season to date for the Swifts.
The highs of their cup run have been accompanied by the lows of slugging it out in a relegation battle.
Knowles admits it has been tough to deal with at times, but praised his teammates for their reaction to the difficult situations they have faced.
"It's been a really difficult period," he said.
"One week we're going away and winning at Newry, then the next we're getting beat at Portadown.
"One week we're high, the next we're on the floor.
"We've reacted well to those disappointments though and our group has stuck together.
"If we can continue that swing of winning and losing hopefully we'll be on the right end of it on Saturday.
"It is really, really difficult as a player to experience those highs and lows, and it can hit your confidence.
"It's up to the squad and the management team to bring the confidence back up in training and come with a game plan."
The double success over Cliftonville has boosted Dungannon's confidence, and Knowles insists they have to use that against the Crues.
"We needed that performance, it's in the back of our minds that we can compete against the best teams in the league," he said.
"It's a big occasion for us and we have nothing to lose. We will go into the game with no fear and hopefully we can do the business."
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