Richard Thomas says the memories of last season's defeat at Stevenage are still in his mind going into this weekend's trip to the Lamex Stadium.
Notts were beaten 3-0 in March and the assistant manager is determined to avoid a repeat when the Magpies make the trip down the A1.
"We were walloped 3-0 down there last season and we've not forgotten that," said Thomas. "We want to get a bit closer to them this time around.
"I know Darren Sarll well, we've been friends for a long time.
"He will want to combine unbelievable hard work with good football, which is not a good combination to come up against.
"We've watched plenty of footage and I know they're a good side with plenty of threats."
With Notts sitting top of Sky Bet League Two for the third time this season, Thomas is hoping the players' past experiences of being at the summit can help them cope with increased expectations.
"We've spoken about dealing with the pressure of being top," he said.
"Teams and individuals will raise their game against the team who are top - it's a natural reaction.
"It's about our lads being prepared to face our opponents' best. We watch a lot of video footage, as every team does, and we are seeing teams perform far better against us than they did on video.
"It can be frustrating but it pushes our players on to new levels, which you want because it's better than us having to drag them to their best.
"If something is pushing them on a regular basis, whether it's one another in training or the opponents on a weekend, it should put us in a good place."