Turn 24 It's tight at the top

Will Newcastle be the winter champions and who is fit to challenge them?

Arsenal  (2) vs  Liverpool (3)

A good game for Newcastle, Liverpool are suffering a dip in form at the moment but the deadly duo somewhat suspiciously reunited by the former manager (s) of Arsenal should make it a one team race.

Arsenal 3 Liverpool 1

 

Wycombe (7)  Chelsea (4)  

 

Two teams in form , at last you may say, Llorente seems to be kicking up a fuss at Chelsea despite starting almost every game this season.   Wycombe don't have the depth to deal with Chelsea, many people feel that 92 rated Drogba writes his own SM rating scoring only 6 goals per season in RL in the last 3 years.  However the German wall will keep them at bay.

 Newcastle have an easy romp over Stoke.

 In reality this should leave Newcastle, Arsenal and Chelsea challenging for the top spot in the New Year. Happy 2015!

SCUNTHORPE TELEGRAPH

SCUNTHORPE TELEGRAPH

IRON PRINCE SAVES XMAS

The Scunthorpe Xmas party nearly turned into a Xmas nightmare this week but thankfully new coach PMW saved the day.

PMW thought he’d treat the players and their WAG’s to a luxury trip to the South of France for their Xmas party and so booked an exclusive 5 star hotel and spa for 2 days.

All were set to leave on Friday morning when the Prince remembered he had told the local dog home that the players would come round and walk the dogs to generate some much needed publicity for the shelter ...............and the club.

“an opportunity that couldn't be missed………or cancelled”

claimed the prince later.

At first this didn't seem a problem as PMW and the ‘girls’ jetted off  to France in his private jet with the players set to follow later that day. However, things took a turn for the worse at the dog shelter when several Yorkshire terriers broke free………

“and a Chihuahua”

 Angel Di Maria

……and a Chihuahua,  and barred the players exit. The lads where trapped for several hours until staff managed to control the dogs and therefore missed their flight. shame.

Thankfully though PMW had a plan B should something go wrong….

“the boss  always has a plan B, real smart guy, Xmas would have been ruined without him”

Dries Mertens

….he had booked a local pub ‘The Blarney Stone’ in the city centre, JUST in case something happened!

“Luckily the girls got away OK”  said Mario Mandzukic

 “as the boss made the rare mistake of only booking the pub for 30 people! talk about a crystal ball!!”

Meanwhile in the South of France, PMW and the WAG’s enjoyed their time at the Hotel and Spa without the guys.

“The girls and I made the most of a bad situation and had a blast, they didn't leave me out of anything” claimed the prince

“they took me with them to the Spa and we all enjoyed a massage, the sauna, a mud bath and we even had a sleep over, BEST XMAS EVER!!!! Pity the lads missed it”

Preview Matchday 22

Match day 22 Division 1

Grimsby vs Swindon

14pts vs 7 pts in the last 6 games , surely we are looking at 3rd vs 12th, but no it's 12th vs 3rd.

Grimsby on the rise, Swindon falling faster than Newton's apple.

Swindon continue to do well in the table , but haven't got the squad for long term success. Despite a great start they don't have the keeper at the back or sufficient fire power up front, to challenge all year long.
They haven't done well against the big boys recently,

Grimsby have Mata and Adebayor upto and the ageing legs of Terry at the back. Recent form is great. Tactically they are one dimensional , but whatever works , works. Retrospectively I would mirror their tactics if I had a better squad, but Swindon don't have that advantage and as such will struggle.
Grimsby 2 - 1 Swindon.

Preview Match Day 21

Division 1 Match of the round Game week 20

Newcastle vs Wigan. 2 v 7

Following last weeks victory over leaders Swindon, Newcastle must fancy their chances of going top as Swindon face Chelsea who rarely give much away.    Newcastle have won 4 / 5 recent meetings with the Latics but crucially lost the most recent encounter. Wigan are outlcassed in theory but have a great scorer this year with Defoe. The new formation is going well and Wigan would be advised to skip the midfield to expose the vunerable Newcastle back line. Wigan have some key injuries though and while maybe not the star players , the depth players missing will leave them with little in reserve,

The Toon have to win or get swallowed back into the pack , so looks like a 3 - 2 win.

Balotelli Signs 20 season contract while on mid-season break in Cleethorpes

Beddows has been so delighted with the form of Manchester United this season that he and the club have treated the players to a mid-season break to Cleethorpes.

The squad (the majority of who were invited including Robin Van Persie) arrived in Cleethorpes by boat on Sunday afternoon and are expected to leave later this evening.


Captain Milner on team night out

Howedes poses for a selfie on Skegness beach

However the break has not been without controversy with Balotelli being courted by many teams including The Gunner, aaron mc , Kevin KAMPL and Anand Kr1sh(((... to name just a few. As a result Beddows has moved hastily and in the caravan that Balotelli had been sharing with Cleverley and Sanchez a new 20 SM season control was signed meaning Balotelli will remain at Old Trafford until past his 30th birthday.

Understandably the people of Cleethorpes have been mesmerised by their
visitors with many Grimsby and Boston fans claiming that they will now follow United.


Cleverley enjoying the sun











Balotelli Meets.... David Marsden

Welcome to Balotelli Meets… a series of interviews where Mario Balotelli’s takes the time to go and speak to EC2’s finest.

Today, we are in Division 1 and the manager is David Marsden. He has been in EC2 since 2008 and has been in charge at Grimsby for 835 games.

DAVID  - PERSONAL PROFILE

Full Name: David Marsden
Born: Tralfamadore  
Favourite football team: Manchester United
Favourite film: Looking for Eric
Car: A red one 
Best sport to watch: Football, Moto GP
Phone, tablet or laptop to play SM: Phone, laptop
If you could have any job in the world what would it be: None
If you could attend any sporting event in the world what would it be: 1999 CL Final  

(1) MB:  Thanks for inviting me to your local in Grimsby David, so tell about your dedication to Grimsby? Do you have cod blood flowing through your veins? Are you just descended from fishermen? Or is it something else?

DM: I was brought up near Grimsby, and later lived there and in Cleethorpes. So I always pick Grimsby Town if they're available in these kind of football manager games. Or Bolton, where I studied. Personally, and like most Grimbarians, I prefer haddock to cod, but I have never caught a fish in my life.

(2) MB: Have you ever been tempted to leave Lincolnshire? It must have been very difficult in the beginning? It is hard to imagine that you have never been approached or offered more appealing roles? What would it take you to leave? 

DM: I have been tempted to leave Lincolnshire, as it's a god awful place, Grimsby in particular. So the virtual commute suits me just fine (and Juan Mata, too).

(3) MB: Who is your longest serving and most loyal player at Grimsby? And if you had to pick your all-time favourite 6 a side Grimsby team from past and present who would they be and why?

DM:  No idea. It would nice if SM held this kind of historical info. Currently, maybe Miguel Britos, or Claudio Bravo? Or Juraj Kucka? Include those with your pick from Mata, and former stars Ryan Giggs, Erik Lamela, Mario Mandzukic (big mistake selling him when I did), Wesley Sneijder, Lukas Podolski and Mamadou Niang (who scored a hatful of goals).

(4) MB: You personally have been here more than 800 games through the highs and the lows, (first high being the Season 8 Div 4 title) what was for you the lowest point for example? And did any particular player help you get through that time?

DM: The lowest point was undoubtedly our struggle to get out of D3, which took way too long. I changed my strategy a few season's ago, though, and it's paid dividends.

(5) MB: Before this afternoon’s meeting I rang around all of my Manager’s friends… Syed, Libaan, Scott, Adriano, Aaron, Michael (couldn’t get hold of Ian though) and no one had anything but praise for you… so as opposed to asking you about Grimsby’s and your own personal rivals in EC2, which current and past manager do you admire the most and why?

DM: EC2 is a great league to be in because it's so very competitive with so many active, opinionated and ambitious managers. You have to give due respect to what Doncaster have achieved from humble beginnings, and really no one else comes close in terms of building a successful club from the bottom up, and over many seasons. Ian's not one to blow his own trumpet or put other managers down, either, which is nice. He's really the only one to consistently challenge and then knock Scott off his perch, also. But I have to give special mention to my old mate Michael and his achievements at Darlington. He's built a great, young and successful squad, and always makes very astute signings. Should be regular title contenders over the coming seasons.

(6) MB: If you could have changed anything from those early EC2 seasons with Grimsby what would they be and why?

DM: I would have paid more attention to what was going on in the wider football world in real life, and the transfer market in EC2. But I was probably too busy with other things.

(7) MB: On 7^th April 2014 – Grimsby v Huddersfield – English Shield Final? Talk us through what that meant to the fans at Wembley?

DM: All I remember is feeling desperately sad for Huddersfield, who got relegated, too, I think.

(8) MB: Earlier this year – You delighted everyone involved in SM and EC2 with achieving promotion to Division One… talk us through those moments after the final whistle blew, that game and the night after? How did you react? And how did your players react? Were there any tears? Players going crazy because they’d bet on Grimsby to win the league and had just won their seasons wages in a day?

DM: To be honest, after gaining just 4 points from our first six games last season, we went on to totally dominate that league, although Swindon did put up a challenge towards the end before they faded and just scraped over the finishing line. So, we really knew we were up a long time before the end, although you always worry you might go on a run of defeats and blow it. So a mixture of relief and satisfaction.

(9) MB: And then only a few days/weeks later you did it again… winning the SMFA Shield. What a fabulous game and moment in your career. What are your memories of the match? Who scored etc?

DM: I honestly don't member who scored! But it was a great victory against a very strong Chelsea team, for whom even Messi could not find a way past my two rocks, Britos and Bravo!

(10) MB: One of the new managers Lee Adams at Bournemouth has claimed that his chairman has promised to build a new 70000 seater stadium to match with the clubs ambition. How is your own relationship with the board at Grimsby? Has it ever been strained? Have they supported you since you got promoted to Division One?

DM: I am fortunate that my Chairman has very low expectations!

(11) MB: Many people raised an eyebrow when you signed John Terry earlier this season… some were quietly critical of both yourself and Beddows for the deal, tell us how he has settled in and more importantly how are you managing to keep him under control? Is he allowed at club social events with the other player’s wives for example? Obviously it was reported by Matteo DF (former Liverpool manager and magician) that after a match earlier this season against Liverpool that John had to be forcibly removed by Micah Richards from Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s wife afterwards. Is that true? What happened?

DM:  I don't talk about the players' private lives. John Terry is still one of the best defenders in the game and he is very important to Grimsby this season. Let's just say that for a defender, he scores regularly, and he is very handy in the tackle. 

(12) MB:  Finally, the last question that Balotelli asks all managers, if you could have your pick of any club in the EC2, who would you like to manage and why?

DM: After so long with Grimsby, I couldn't manage another team.

 

Deal of the Century - Will it happen ?

Is Messi on the Move Again? EC2 deal of all time. Would you do the same deal?

"Messi on his way out of Anfield!! Argentine forward Lionel Messi is currently on his way to north London this evening for a medical after Arsenal and Liverpool both agreed a deal in which sees Messi join Arsenal and both Sergio Aguero, Mercelo and 50mil go in the opposite direction!"

"In a statement to LFC TV manager Baggio said 'we didn't want to let lionel go but when the 'ars' came in we cudnt just ignore an offer that suits both on the pitch with 2 world class players coming in and in the bank balance'. The deal is believed to be the biggest the world has ever seen and might ever see again!"

Darlington Win the Youth Cup

michael h was in floods of tears as Coutinho lifted the trophy

Coutinho, Markovic and Barkley were a scene to behold in Darlington on Sunday night as they joined their teammates and michael h on a night out in Newcastle.

Whilst chatting to a group of girls Williams and Moore commented "michael h is our hero, he might be Irish and susceptible to drinking Guinness but every day on the training ground he is there helping us learn, improve and win..."

Some journalists noticed Sir Scott Anderson trying to mingle with the Darlington players, despite being manager at Plymouth on the South coast it is believed that Sir Scott Anderson still has a strong influence on comings and goings at Newcastle and that he would love to see Barkley as a Magpie.

It was later reported by a national newspaper that Darlington senior players, Antonio Di Natale (michael h love child) and Nacho Monreal had to forcibly remove Sir Scott Anderson as his advances to the Darlington youngster on behalf of god knows which club were becoming a little to much.

michael h's greatest moment in this cup run surely came back in the 1st Round as his team defeated the mighty Walsall supported by Putin of all people, but the penalty defeat of Everton was also a special moment.

michael h will be hoping that his Darlington side will be admitted to the forthcoming Youth League 2 where Rotherham will be looking to defend their title.

Full Outline of how they did it:

Fri 5 Dec		[A]	2	-	1	Walsall (English Championship 2)			View Match
Sun 7 Dec		[A]	3	-	2	West Bromwich Albion (English Championship 2)			View Match
Tue 9 Dec		[A]	0	-	0	Everton (English Championship 2)			View Match
Darlington 1883 win 5 - 4 on penalties.
Thu 11 Dec		[H]	4	-	0	Leicester City (English Championship 2)			View Match
Sat 13 Dec		[A]	2	-	1	Swindon Town (English Championship 2)			View Match

Division 1 Match day 19 Tie of the round.

Wycombe vs Doncaster.              

It would be easy to look up at the Swindon Newcastle game but surely their is more intrigue in this fixture.

Two teams in the top 10 but with 2 wins between them in the last 6 and a 4 game losing streak to boot from Wycombe. The tired 3 5 2 of Wycombe is just too predictable There is a rumour that the manager Mendieta is facing the sack anytime now.  Drogba needs more support than Portillo or Naismith can offer. Rodrigo Lima is going stale on the bench and should be pushed back into the firing line perhaps in a supporting role behind the great man. In fact Doncaster should be more worried should that happen as the Wycombe assistant manager is full of great ideas.

Doncaster are a powerhouse side who don't have to play anything under a 92,  The recent thumping of Wigan must be a boost to a season that was going down the pan, again though a once reliable formation is letting them down should any side choose to counter it. Many blame the keeper as Courtois as one of the lowest ratings amongst the top keeper. With the likes of Costa, Kruse and Falcao surely this is a one way road to the job centre of the Wycombe boss, sure is if he lasts that long.

Wycombe 1 Doncaster 3.

Division Three - Match of the Day

Gillingham (0) Man Utd (1)

A mere 10000 people turned out to watch Mr Linder's Gillingham face Man Utd yesterday evening at Priestfield with the failure to attract a massive crowd surely a worrying sign for the new manager whose new signing appear to be failing to light Kent's imagination.

In fact it was rumoured by one member of the Gillingham club shop that most of the 'extra' tickets that they sold late on were to Man Utd and Balotelli fans, all hoping to get a glimpse of the star attraction in EC2 at the moment.

Beddows had been disappointed with a lack of form in recent matches and restored Perriera and Cleverley to their preferred positions which had produced so much promise in the early part of the season and with Khacheridi brought into the back 3 for his first start of the season and Casillas restored in goal there was much more solidity in the Man Utd ranks.

The game itself was an end to end classic, chance after chance for both teams, Ayew, Mulgrew and Larsson all playing very well for the Gills, and United testing the keeper through Balotelli (obviously), Sanchez and Milner it was the keepers who it appeared would take all of the plaudits from the press, Linder will be particularly happy with Sorrentino who was magnificent.

But as Linder feared it is almost impossible to stop Balotelli at the moment and sure enough in the 87th minute Balotelli found the breakthrough to extend United lead at the top of Division 3 to 8 points!

Sorrentino beaten by Balotelli

Super Mario removing his shirt for the Gillingham fans post-match

Wolves (2) Preston (1)

 

A first game in charge for EC2 Legend Roman Pavolvich ironically against his former club Preston where he is 'adored' by millions but he broke their hearts last night as his Wolves side ran out 2-1 winners against the star-studded yet debt-ridden Preston.

 

Blackburn (4) Portsmouth (2)

 
Frank Hirst was left bewildered and angry as his Pompey side continued their run of indifferent form. it was rumoured pre-match that he'd beat $25000 on Diego Reyes to score first only for Gastaldello to beat the Mexican to it and then for his side to throw away a 2 goal lead to lose 4-2. To say that he refused to speak to the press post match is an understatement.





 



Frank Hirst was beside himself post-match

Plymouth ease past Scunthorpe

Plymouth Argyle 3 - 0 Scunthorpe

Matteo DF watched his side cruise to a comfortable win over Scunthorpe on Wednesday night as the greens look to push up the table.

Giovinco scored a goal and was later voted man of the match for his performance. However, he had to come off injured after 60 mins and it is feared that the injury maybe a serious one. Yet another injury for such a talented player may mean a long time out on the treatment table yet again for the lightening quick Italian.

injury prone giovinco

A customary goal for Arda Turan as usual made it 2 before Doumbia rounded off a comfortable display. The new Scunthorpe manager seems to be failing to change his sides style of play as the defense were hitting up long balls every time they had possession. There has been no such problem for Matteo, as his passing tiki takka style has been adopted by the Plymouth players with ease. The new Scunthorpe manager PMW was visibly frustrated with his side throughout the game. PMW's frustration was highlighted this evening as he refused to shake hands with Matteo DF after the final whistle and was seen storming straight down the tunnel.


the green warrior arda turan

Post match comments:

"I'm the Plymouth manager, I'm not here to talk about Liverpool. They have a new manager ask him about Liverpool! I'm here to talk about Plymouth and a good victory for my team. Hopefully now we can kick on and take this great club with a history of great managers back into the champions league. I certainly believe in the quality of this group, now it's just about showing the quality, (that I know they have) every week on the field home or away".

Matteo DF thumbs up to his players for a solid display against a good side

Division 1 Match day 18

Tie of the round.

Newcastle vs Chelsea.

Newcastle are in superb form at the moment. They are a powerful attacking side with a strong defensive midfield heart. Their leading scorer with 11 in young Alberto Palocshi with 11 goals and a rating of 7.65 per game which makes him hard to drop in exchange for more highly rated colleagues.  Any weakness lies at the back , despite a good and reliable keeper in Mandanda, Newcastle let in more goals than most, hoping that the powerful attack will knock 1 more in.

This is their weakness against Chelsea who have the best defensive record in the league and are perfectly able to score against any team .  A rock like defensive midfield and strong midfield sit on the foundation of the best keeper in the league.  If Chelsea go one up early doors this will most likely be a one sided affair , however if Newcastle go against the grain and play defensive we go well see just one or 2 in it. I see it as Newcastle 1 Chelsea 2.

PAPER HEADLINES

The 'daily Mirror' leads with the appointment of PMW as the new coach of EC2 division 1 side Scunthorpe.

inside, the new boss tells how he dosen't know any Icelandic but will have to learn fast!! and what he thinks of 'Sunny Bunny'

'He scares me'

The new 'man of steel' hopes to bring success and silverwear to the club during his time there and promises the fans that

'exciting times are ahead......once we sell all those bloody Icelanders!!!!'

Daily Balotelli - 5th December 2014

Daily Balotelli:

Mario Balotelli has been unusually quiet recently but today was seen on ‘Songs of Praise’ who were filming their annual Christmas special on location in Scunthorpe where he spoke to Aled Jones, he said “Christmas is a very special time of year for me and my family, it is a time of forgiveness and new beginnings.”

He added, “many people believe that I love to be the centre of attention, but this is not true I just want to be the greatest goalscorer in a single SM EC2 season ever… I am the greatest (again quoting his hero) and I want to prove the Manchester United are the greatest team”

Scunthorpe with a large Icelandic migrant population due to previous questionable management at Glanford Park meant that the BBC had taught the native audience to say “við óskum þér gleðilegra jóla” to help them feel at home. Mario Balotelli it has been reported had difficulty with the pronunciation though.

Afterwards reporters spotted Mario doing some Christmas shopping in his favourite supermarket, Iceland before leaving for Manchester by boat with some Icelandic fishermen.

Balotelli attended this Church

Balotelli was seen leaving for Manchester by boat



Balotelli shopping after Songs of Praise



English Championship 2 Youth Cup 1 - Big Kick Off and Preview

Youth Cup – The Draw

This morning at St George’s Park near Burton on Trent the draw for the First Round of the English Championship 2 Youth Cup 1 took place. The guest of honour was the elusive Matteo DF himself, the former Liverpool manager said to the BBC cameras that he is always delighted to check in on the progress of EC2 and his former team Liverpool. While Matteo DF drew the home teams it was another EC2 legend, tebthereb who drew the away teams.

St George's Park - where the draw took place this morning

It was also announced that the First Round would take place on Friday 5^th December at 10pm UK time as planned, with the Final scheduled for Wembley on Saturday 13^th December. Games will happen every 2 days.

Remember IF you LOSE you are out. I will do more of these moving forwards, including a league again.

The Draw in full:

West Ham United		-		Gillingham
Rotherham United		-		Middlesbrough
Blackburn Rovers		-		Hartlepool United
Everton		-		Blackpool
Leicester City		-		Huddersfield Town
Grimsby Town		-		Wigan Athletic
Cheltenham Town		-		Port Vale
Sheffield United		-		Queens Park Rangers
Chelsea		-		Chesterfield
Newcastle United		-		Norwich City
Walsall		-		Darlington 1883
Plymouth Argyle		-		West Bromwich Albion
Carlisle United		-		Charlton Athletic
Rochdale		-		Liverpool
Maccabi Haifa		-		Portsmouth
Swindon Town		-		MANCHESTER UNITED

The favourites according to ‘FrankBet’ –

FrankBet,  Frank Hirst  EC2's leading bookmaker quickly published the odds for the Youth Cup on their website and post draw saw a flurry of bets for Rotherham, who were quickly installed at 5/2 favourites.

Rotherham 5/2
Liverpool 3/1
Walsall 6/1
Darlington 8/1
Huddersfield Town 10/1
Chelsea 10/1
Manchester United 13/1
West Brom 13/1
West Ham 13/1
Sheffield United 15/1

The others:

Queens Park Rangers 25/1, Portsmouth 28/1, Rochdale 33/1, Newcastle United 28/1

Swindon 35/1, Charlton Athletic 35/1, Everton 40/1, Blackburn Rovers 45/1,

Middlesbrough 45/1, Cheltenham 50/1, Carlisle United 50/1, Norwich City 66/1

Chesterfield 66/1, Leicester City 66/1, Port Vale 80/1, Grimsby 100/1
 Gillingham 150/1, Wigan Athletic 150/1, Blackpool 200/1, Hartlepool United 200/1, Plymouth Argyle 250/1

Sir Scott is baffled by the odds on Plymouth

Jake Bullet is disappointed with an away draw
 

 

The ties of the round –

Pre-tournament the TV rights were sold to various companies including Balaji Telefilms in India, CBS in the USA and the BBC have all won rights to show the games live and exclusive.

Rotherham v Middlesbrough (Balaji Telefilms) (Friday at 10pm)

Defending Youth League Champions Rotherham United were an obvious pick for the Indian broadcaster, Youth League Star Man Santi Mina will be hoping to play a starring role again and Anand Kr1sh(((ManUtd))) will have the likes of Shaw, Varane and Jones at his disposal as he looks to launch an assault on the Youth Cup. In his way stand a resolute Adriano Borges who will be hoping that Conor Wickham can fire his team past Rotherham.  

Santi Mina - Best Player of Youth League 1

 

Walsall v Darlington 1883 – (CBS) (Friday at 10pm)

Without doubt when tebthereb drew Darlington 1883 to face Walsall the crowds at St George’s Park drew in gasps from the audience as this clearly was a stand-out tie. Both managers, Kevin KAMPL and michael h have aspirations to win the tournament, and with Vladimir Putin expected at the Bescot Stadium as guest of honour to watch his countryman Kevin KAMPL the pressure will surely be on the Walsall manager but he said “I respect the opponent. We will play on defense. We have a chance to win”

It is not clear whether michael h has invited Darlington fan and US President Barack Obama due Obama’s Irish heritage, but he is surely confident that Barkely, Markovic and Countinho have the quality to beat Koke and co.

But regardless of who is in attendance it is sure to be the battle of the ‘youth’ super powers on Friday night.

Obama on the phone to michael h 



Putin is expected at the Bescot on Friday

 

 

 

 

 

 

Swindon v Manchester United – (BBC ) (Friday at 10pm)

British TV audiences will be treated to an intriguing tie between Youth League runners-up Swindon and the mighty Manchester United. Swindon under the new leadership of cal cal since the departure of Davide Sepp Mourinho Piero Beckenbauer Baggio Bierhoff Blatter Platini Cooper have the likes of Kelvin and Kaikai to call up while Manchester United will look to the likes of Oar, Mendler and new signing Redmond to take them safely through what is a tricky away tie. But it is the young Japanese defender Iwanami who impressed most in the Youth League with the ever present defender winning pludits from fellow managers and the press alike.

Kaikai - top scorer in Youth League 1

Iwanami - Man Utd Defender

What the other managers say:

Everton Manager, Liam Daniels  said ahead of the first team trip to Wigan tonight “I don't have very big expectations but will just see how the youngsters perform”

aaron mc manager at Bramall Lane is pleased with a home draw and commented “Sheffield United will reach the final with their rising stars, they are the team to look out for in this competition, I'm hoping Luis Suarez will be the top scorer!”

john vinicombe meanwhile doesn’t seemed phased by a trip to Division One Chelsea,  “we are totally confident going to Stamford Bridge on Friday that we can overturn Chelsea in the first round of the youth cup.....I have briefed his boys and think that a beautiful game will ensue.... there is a lot of wonderful talent in the Chesterfield United 21’s and we will give everyone a game to remember, hopefully we will come out on top in a feast of football......the lads are raring to go and cannot wait to kick off...as ever we will play with a smile on our faces and teeth gritted!`....tremendous!.” The gathered members of the press were mesmerised by john vinicombe’s words, never having seen such as eloquent manager in the Spired city.

Syed Shah’s very young Port Vale team with lots of players involved with the first team have been drawn away to Cheltenham, he said: “I think it may be a good draw because we both have good squads or I might edge it and I am hoping that some of my youngsters will push for a place in the first team.”

“I feel our youngsters can beat anyone on our day! we're in this competition for a bit of fun, but will be looking to go at every opponent with everything!” were the words of Pompey manager, Frank Hirst, as he spoke to the press whilst engrossed in a game of online golf. The Pompey fans only hope that the players put in as much effort of the field as Frank does into his golf.

The Linder at Gillingham and despite the difficult draw away at West Ham said on Radio Gillingham:  "This is a great opportunity for the younger players - we're in it to win it, as always."

And finally recently appointed Blackburn boss Coach Manyol was very clear, "I'm sure the young squad of Blackburn Rovers will try our best to be the winner in this competition"

BY YOUTH CUP CORRESPONDENT STEPHEN BEDDOWS