In it’s latest and vain attempt to flog its dead horse of a competition, the Football League has truly excelled itself. And, by which, we mean balls it right up. The suits at Football League HQ have an “interesting” idea of what constitutes a winning new formula for its Trophy competition. To us, it seems like a little bit of a mess. A pelanty shoot-out if you draw? And then there’s the whole bleedin’ issue of these “invited” teams. Not that the Premier League teams seemed inclined to send their kids into battle against League Two’s finest after all…
The Paint Pot or whatever we’re obliged to call it now, to us at BoroGuide Towers, is a distraction from more important matters. League Two, for example, being the prime example. But here we are. We have to throw our resources at the Trophy, if only to be saved the bother of having to pay a fine for not doing so. So, let’s go then. The first game of this newly-implemented group stage format. And it’s a trip back down to Leyton Orient. We’re fresh from a pasting at Grimsby and depleted by international call-ups. The only way is up, baby.
Leyton Orient v Stevenage: A Feeling Of Déjà Vu?
Now, if we were to go down 3-0 and there’s no-one in the Matchroom to see it – does it really happen? Sadly, there’ll be at least a few people in attendance for this game (we reckon), so it’s going to stand in the record books. Somewhere. Our last three visits to the home of Leyton Orient have been wounding. Eight goals scored, none of them by us. That’s the long and short of it. You’ll have to forgive us for not being bullish about our chances. You could take the other view. It was in this tournament that Boro’ last got the better of Orient.
After our trouncing at Grimsby, how do we go into this one? You can’t have Dale Gorman. You can’t have Ben Kennedy. And you can’t have Jobi McAnuff. Nor can you have Tom Conlon or Steve Schumacher. So, if you were the gaffer, you’d find yourself with precious little room in which to move. But, perhaps it gives the lads who turned out at the weekend a chance to put things on the right track. Who knows. And maybe who cares. It’s the new-look Checkatrade Trophy and it’s proving mighty difficult to grab the imagination. Or maybe it’s just us?
When’s the Anglo-Italian Cup coming back?
BoroGuide’s Leyton Orient club profile – it hasn’t changed in the last two weeks y’know…
