FMFA Manager

Group A

Dagenham and Redbridge v Darlington
Sunderland U23s v Bournemouth U23s

Group B

Leamington Spa v Scunthorpe United
Wolves U23s v Newcastle United U23s

Group C

Chippenham Town v Boston United
Tottenham U23s v Brentford U23s

Group D

Bromsgrove Sporting v Coventry City U23s
Liverpool U23s v Brighton U23s

Group E

Hartlepool v Everton U23s
QPR U23s v Leeds United U23s

Group F

Uxbridge v Derby County U23s
Leicester City U23s v Chelsea U23s

Group G

Buxton v Aston Villa U23s
West Ham United U23s v WBA U23s

Group H

Morecambe v Arsenal U23s
Manchester United U23s v Fulham U23s

Group I

Solihull Moors v Nottingham Forest U23s
Crystal Palace U23s v Manchester City U23s

Deadline Wednesday at 8

Drawn into Group 1 with two NL teams and Bournemouth. I think Bournemouth U23's are a shade better than our side but I don't know much about the NL sides. The group represents great opportunities for our young players to play against senior footballers and in fixtures where it will mean something to the opponents.

Truth be told I wouldn't mind another 5-0 either but we'll take what we can get, if what we can get is off to a good start in the U23 cup.

Wolves U23s v Newcastle United U23s

So we begin our journey in the national league cup where under 23s teams and national league teams will take part against each other as a chance to take a trophy. This will be good for the under 23 teams as it gives them opportunity to compete against seniour national league teams to see how they cope.

In our first game we face Newcastle at home. Newcastle played wel in their first league game so this won't be easy. We've got Lavia to come into the side after his arrival and also Bonswel who should help sharpen our defence. We wil be taking all compatitions seriously this season as we want players to have max chance of improving. We've got a very good under 23s side so I am confident we can get far in this compatition.

Solihull Moors v Nottingham Forest U23s

So we begin our cup journey against Nottingham forest u23s. We are in a group with all u23 teams so this is a chance to show what we can do against estabiished youth teams in higher leagues. We have a good young side who I am confident will be able to compete at this level. Nottingham forest have a very good reputation for producing young players so I am not expecting this to be an easy game. I am hoping that home advantage will help.

Chippenham v Boston

We've started well but cup games are always difficult. hopefully keep up the good performances and come away with 3 points to start in the Cup!

Solihull v Forest

Away to Solihull, I'm really interested in seeing how the NL teams do against the U23s so this could be a good experiment!

Buxton vs Aston Villa U23s

We start the new National league Cup against an unknown quantity in Buxton. It'll be very interesting to see how we go against a senior side and how the matchup plays out.

We had a very good record in the predecessor of this competition - the U23 league cup - making the final both times it was played although we never managed to win it. Hopefully this new format will bring us a bit more luck.

On paper we are probably the underdogs for this one. We have the better GK and defences are fairly even - it'll be very interesting to see how Lopez goes using all our allowed overrated slots. They probably edge the midfield and are far superior in attack. That could be the difference in the game.

We are not used to being the second favourites for an U23 game and it'll be a very good test for us. Hopefully our players can step up and show they have what it takes

Bromsgrove Sporting vs Coventry City U23s
As fairly local derby as things go with the two clubs not far apart. And another "opportunity" for me to face Will in this early season. *sighs*

On paper we have a stronger side and go into this one as favourites but youngster George - on loan from my Villa U23 side - worries me. We will need to keep him in check. We're pretty sure how Will is going to play and so we have to try and find a way to break it down.

Our side is pretty much fully recovered after our cup exploits last week so we can go full strength. Hopefully that will be enough to get us over the line in this one - but against Will I am always concerned