County can take a big step towards qualifying from their Bristol Street Motors Trophy group on Tuesday night, as we host Everton U21s at Edgeley Park.
After winning our opening group-stage game 4-1 at Accrington Stanley a fortnight ago, another victory here would leave Dave Challinor’s side top of Group A and in the driving seat for a place in the knock-out stages of the competition.
We can’t quite qualify on the night, but three points for County coupled with either a draw or Accrington victory in their game against Tranmere Rovers on October 8th, would see us secure a top two finish in the group with a game to spare.
Everton U21s, meanwhile, could also put themselves on the brink of the knock-out stages with a win, having beaten Tranmere in their opening group game at Prenton Park. The Toffees trailed in that game through an early goal from Josh Davison, but scored three times in the final five minutes to emerge with all three points – with £25 million, 26-year-old striker Beto scoring twice.
Things you need to know:
- Tickets in the Danny Bergara Stand and Cheadle End are still available for this fixture, priced at just £10! Click here to order yours today!
- As part of our County Collective programme, we aim to make Edgeley Park a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone who visits. Click here to see a full list of new initiatives that have been introduced at the ground this year!
- Please note that the County Courtyard will be closed for this game. We will be back open for our game against Leyton Orient on Saturday 21st September.
- Coming to the game on Tuesday? Click here to view our Fan Information pack, containing all you need to know ahead of your visit to Edgeley Park.
- Tuesday’s game will be available for overseas supporters to stream over on Stockport County Live, featuring live commentary from Jon Keighren and Liam Richardson. Audio commentary will also be available for supporters based in the UK. Click here to purchase your video and audio match passes today.
- We’d like to remind supporters that all under 14s must be accompanied by an adult (over 18), and they must be sat together in the ground. If a child under 14 attends without an adult, they will not be allowed entry and their parents/carers will be called to collect them.
Our Opponents:
Everton U21s are looking to reach the knock-out stages of the EFL Trophy for just the third time since academy teams were first introduced to the competition in 2016 – having previously managed to get through the group stage in 2019/20 and 2022/23.
Their best finish in the Trophy came two years ago, getting as far as the last 16 before going down 4-2 away at Lincoln City. They will be looking to improve on a disappointing campaign last season that saw them finish bottom of their group with three points, beating Mansfield Town but losing to Burton Albion and Doncaster Rovers.
It was also a challenging season in the league for the young Toffees, who compete in the 26-team Premier League 2 division. The team, managed by former Crewe Alexandra and Bristol Rovers striker, Paul Tait, finished 25th, ahead of only Derby County, with 17 points from 20 games. They scored 25 goals in those games, five of which came from top goalscorer Francis Okoronkwo, who is now on loan at Salford City.
They have enjoyed a positive start to the new campaign with a victory over Blackburn Rovers U21s and that win away at Tranmere in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy. They followed that up with a credible draw away at Chelsea U21s, but then suffered a heavy 5-0 defeat at Manchester City U21s.
More recently, they went up against Watford U21s in the Premier League Cup, a competition which County’s academy are also taking part in for the very first time this season. Despite trailing 1-0 heading into injury time, the Merseysiders produced a stirring comeback to win 2-1 thanks to goals from Harvey Foster and Jacob Beaumont-Clark.
With Everton’s first-team also in action on Tuesday night, against Southampton in the Carabao Cup, it is unclear as to whether there will be any first-team involvement for the side on Tuesday night, as there was at Prenton Park last month. Much like County though, they come into Tuesday’s game knowing a win will leave them with one foot in the last-32 heading into their final group game at Accrington.
Match Stats:
- If selected, midfielder Odin Bailey will make his 50th appearance for Stockport County in this game.
- Since returning to the Football League, County have yet to win against an U21s side in this competition – losing 2-1 to Wolves in 2022 and drawing 1-1 with Manchester United in 2023, losing the subsequent penalty shoot-out.
- County have won seven of their last eight games at Edgeley Park in all competitions – with our only defeat in that time coming against Blackburn Rovers in the Carabao Cup.
