GILLINGHAM manager Andy Hessenthaler knows his side will have to be on top form to beat Charlton in the FA Cup, third round, tie against Charlton at Priestfield on Saturday.

And Hessenthaler is also aware his opposite number, Alan Curbishley, has vowed not to take Gillingham as lightly as his side did when the two clubs met in a pre-season friendly two years ago.

The Addicks trailed 3-0 at the Priestfield Stadium in August 2001 before goals from Jonathan Fortune and Jason Euell made the scoreline more respectable.

And the Charlton boss - despite seeing his resurgent team win back-to-back London derbies against Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur - says his players will not be underestimating the First Division outfit.

"We went there in a pre-season game maybe not taking it as seriously as we should have and they walloped us," said Curbishley. "We will not be going into this game with that kind of attitude. Gillingham are a good, well organised side and we know that we've got a game on our hands.

"We want to do well in the FA Cup. I think a Premiership team will win the competition and there's no reason why it shouldn't be us."

Curbishley, now in his 12th season in charge at The Valley, also explained how he will not be using Saturday's tie as an opportunity to rotate his squad despite the hectic recent schedule.

"I won't be resting players for the Gillingham game," he said. "It's another derby game for us - our third in a row, and I will be putting out my strongest side. We don't have a great record in cup competition in recent seasons and I won't be fielding a weakened side.

"But I will have to see what develops in terms of players coming back. Luke Young is back in full training now and Kevin Lisbie is also on his way back so we'll have to see what happens."

Charlton's last decent run in the FA Cup was back in the 1999/2000 season, when an Eidur Gudjohnsen goal was enough to take Bolton Wanderers into the semi-finals.

But since then the SE7 side have been knocked out in the early stages by Spurs, Walsall and, most recently, Fulham.

"It's a record we want to improve on," said Curbishley. "It's difficult to put your finger on what's gone wrong for us in the cups in recent years but it's certainly not lack of effort.

"We want to do as well as we possibly can in every competition we enter and hopefully we can do ourselves justice this season."

Hessenthaler is confident he will have recovered in time from a calf injury to include himself in the tie. The injury forced Hessenthaler off at half-time against Millwall.

He said: “If we can get a good result against Charlton, then we can progress and make some big money."

Curbishley could spring a surprise with his selection. Tough-tackling Paul Konchesky, who has just returned from a spell on loan at Tottenham, could feature in the starting line-up.

Gillingham go into the tie with history stacked against them, with Charlton defending a 100 per cent record against their neighbours who have not beaten them since the Second World War.

The two clubs last met in a competitive match in 1981 when goals from Paul Walsh and Kevin Smith gave Charlton a 2-1 win on their way to promotion from Division 3.

Curbishley insists he is paying no attention to history. “I go down to Priestfield pretty regularly and I know Gillingham are a good Division 1 side,” he said.

“Home advantage will help them but we have a good away record this season so it might not work against us. With so many of our supporters coming from the Medway and Maidstone areas we’re assured of a good following, which will be important.”

Should a replay be necessary, it will be at The Valley on Tuesday, January 13, kick-off 8pm.