Checkatrade Trophy: Three teams to back for Tuesday night's action
There's an almost full fixture list in the Checkatrade Trophy on Tuesday night. Tom Carnduff has picked out three best teams to back.
Doncaster (v Newcastle U21) - 21/20
Grant McCann put out strong teams for Peterborough when he managed them in last season's tournament, and he is set to do the same here.
Posh progressed to the latter stages before being knocked out by eventual winners Lincoln City. They progressed top of their group having not lost a game, with seven points from a possible nine.
It's a tournament that Rovers will view as one that they can win, and a victory over the u21 side in their group will be the perfect start.
Speaking to doncasterroversfc.co.uk, McCann said: "We’re in it to win it, I want to play as strong a side as I can really, if I can bring on some young players then great, but I want us to go far and my focus is 100% on making sure we progress as far as we can.
"There’s a lot been made of the Checkatrade Trophy and I know that a lot of people have had an opinion on it, but as you progress through the stages, the fan interest increases and hopefully we see that here too."
They're odds-against for victory on Tuesday night, and Doncaster look good value to pick up all points on offer.
Grimsby (v Notts County) - 6/4
Notts County may have made a managerial change recently, but their current situation should mean that this competition will not be seen as priority.
Harry Kewell comes in to a team who find themselves bottom of the Sky Bet League Two standings, despite starting the season as favourites for the title.
The Checkatrade Trophy may have to take a back seat here, as they look to improve on their league position.
On the other side of things, Grimsby boss Michael Jolley isn't happy with the way their season has started as is looking for a response.
"I think we should have more points than we’re sat here with at the minute, and I’m not happy about the number of points that we’ve got," he told grimsby-townfc.co.uk.
"We need to improve – we need to perform consistently, and pick up more points.
"We were all disappointed with how we played, certainly in the second half, so we need to try and decide what the best plan is to attack the game against Notts County.
"And once we’ve done that, then we’ll come up with a team to try and win that game."
Despite home advantage, Grimsby are available to back at 6/4 which seems decent value given how this competition is viewed by both managers.
Tranmere (v Crewe) - 17/20
They may have been expected to struggle to start with having promoted back to the Sky Bet EFL this summer, but Tranmere sit in the top-half of the table with three wins and a draw.
They come up against a Crewe side who have only managed to beat Macclesfield and Morecambe so far (two teams in the bottom three) and they travel to Prenton Park as the outsiders for victory here.
While many do see the Checkatrade Trophy as an inconvenience, Rovers boss Micky Mellon is eyeing up another trip to Wembley, having won the National League play-offs there in May.
"It’s a great opportunity and get another game of football under our belts so it’s certainly something that we are taking very seriously," Mellon said to tranmererovers.co.uk.
"I think it is a fantastic tournament. It is another opportunity for us to play football."
That should mean a strong Tranmere outfit, and one that will be aiming for victory in front of their own fans.
Back the treble - 17/2
EFL title sponsors Sky Bet have enhanced the odds on Doncaster, Grimsby and Tranmere all to win on Tuesday night.
Odds correct at 1450 BST (04/09/18)
Follow Sporting Life on social media - find us on Facebook here or tweet @SportingLife
Related football links
MOST READ FOOTBALL
FOOTBALL TIPS
