Neil McDonald has backed the West Ham United players to conjure a victory as the magic of the FA Cup with Budweiser begins at Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday.

The Hammers travel to Hillsborough for what promises to be a competitive tie against an Owls side flying high in the League One table and unbeaten at home all season.

West Ham returned to winning ways courtest of a 1-0 Championship success over Coventry City on New Year's Day and assistant manager McDonald said the squad would head to Yorkshire confident of securing their place in the fourth round.

"It was a the perfect time to get three points against Coventry and that three points has taken us joint-top of the league, so that's great," he told West Ham TV. "The confidence has been there even though we've had a little dip, but we've had suspensions and injuries and sometimes that harms you.

"We've moved on, which is great and we move on to Sheffield Wednesday and the FA Cup now. It's not going to be an easy tie and we've shown them a huge amount of respect by watching them three or four times.

"We know what they're all about and what their strengths and weaknesses are but we've just got to carry on doing what we're doing, which is winning games, if we possibly can."

McDonald himself enjoyed the thrill of appearing in an FA Cup final, only to end up on the losing side as Everton were beaten 3-2 by Liverpool at Wembley in 1989. Despite that disappointment, the 46-year-old knows the world's most-famous knockout competition is still held in the highest esteem throughout the football world.

With that in mind, he is relishing a trip to a 39,800-capacity Hillsborough that will be full to bursting for a good, old-fashioned cup tie this weekend.

"It's still a boyhood dream for everybody who plays football to try to win the FA Cup. If you get to the final and are lucky enough to win it, it's a memory you can keep for the rest of your life.

"We've got a good chance. We've got Sheffield Wednesday away and we'll be doing our best to get into the next round.

"It's a proper football club and a proper stadium and the boys will be pleased to go there. It should be full, which would be great, and to play in front of a big crowd every week is what motivates the players. With it being the FA Cup, that should motivate them even more.

Sunday's fixture will see a number of players stake their claims for a regular starting place in the npower Championship, with Winston Reid, Abdoulaye Faye, Joey O'Brien, Gary O'Neil and Sam Baldock all recently returning from injury, illness or suspension in the New Year.

"Every month is a big month but January is always special with the FA Cup and you've got to keep that consistency going, even with breaking the team for the FA Cup games. It's a big challenge for everybody.

"There is competition for places. We've got a few injured players coming back. We've got a thin squad but a competitive squad and some of them will be playing against Sheffield Wednesday and they've got to take their chance with both hands."