“We've heard messages from those boys; how they've kind of kicked on in their careers from that occasion, how much they've really cherished it, and we all agree that we want to recreate that so we get that kind of platform to build on for ourselves.
“Anything can happen in a cup game. You can't underestimate anyone, and just knowing it's a must-win game means you have to do anything you can to win.”
Oxford-born Whitwell has been boosted by the words of wisdom from those former Baggies academy players who he’s looked up to for their previous achievements in the tournament.
But the 19-year-old knows there’s only one way his young colleagues can show they’ve taken the words of advice onboard - by overcoming QPR in Solihull on Monday evening to keep their cup run going.
“Looking at the last league game against Man United, it was not at our usual level at all,” Harry continued.
“We really dropped off in the first half and we're a team who pride ourselves on being robust but, ultimately, we let five goals in.
“It was a a positive reaction in the second half, but there’s some important games coming up. If we drop below our standards again, then we're not going to win so we just have to make sure we're at the levels we set ourselves at the start of the season.