A return to Wembley is on the line for both clubs when Newport County AFC face Salford City in the Semi-Finals of the Leasing.Com Trophy.
The Exiles and the Ammies each reached their respective Play-Off Finals last season, with Salford achieving promotion. County can put league form to one side as they bid to continue their fantastic cup run to the very end.
The match is an evening kick-off at Rodney Parade, with the winners facing either Portsmouth or Exeter City in the final.
Here, you can find all the facts and statistics ahead of this Leasing.com Trophy Semi-Final…
Tickets
ONE game from a Wembley Cup Final.
Just £5 tickets for Adults!
Just £1 tickets for Under-16's!
Salford City’s Leasing.com Trophy journey so far
Salford City remain undefeated in this season’s competition after winning both of their group matches. In their group was Aston Villa U21s and Tranmere Rovers, who were both seen off 2-0.
Two 3-0 victories in their Third and Fourth Round ties against Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s and Port Vale set up a meeting with League One Accrington Stanley.
Stanley went 1-0 up in the 11th minute, the first goal that City had conceded in the tournament, however goals from Cameron Burgess and Tom Elliot recovered the match for the Ammies.
Salford and Newport will now play for a place in the final of the Leasing.Com Trophy.
One to Watch – James Wilson
New signing James Wilson comes to Salford with a point to prove after his career so far.
He made his debut for Salford on Tuesday, where he scored a brace. This was something that he had previously managed in his Premier League debut for Manchester United.
The 24-year-old is looking to get his career back on track after a number of loan moves, but with his current form he looks certain to be a threat for any opposition he faces.
Manager – Graham Alexander
Graham Alexander took over at Salford in 2018 and in his first season, guided them to promotion to League Two via a 3-0 win in the Play-Off Final.
Since promotion, Alexander has seen Salford to 11th place in League Two, where they have gained 44 points from 34 matches.
The 48-year-old was previously caretaker manager of Preston North End, and has been in charge of Fleetwood Town and Scunthorpe United.
The Scot also had a long and distinguished playing career, amassing 833 total club appearances, along with 40 international caps for Scotland.
Officials
Referee: Anthony Backhouse
Assistant Referee 1: Craig Taylor
Assistant Referee 2: Sam Ogles
Fourth Official: Kevin Johnson
This is Backhouse’s third season as a Football League referee and in those three seasons, he has officiated County twice.
This season he has refereed 25 matches, including Newport’s 1-0 loss at Bradford. These 25 games have seen him produce 83 yellow cards and three reds.
Last season, Backhouse officiated 39 matches, including County’s trip to Grimsby that ended in a 3-0 loss. In all, he awarded 105 yellow cards and 5 red cards.
Can’t make the match?
You can follow along on social media using @NewportCounty on Twitter, or via the Club’s official Facebook and Instagram pages.
A LIVE showing of this fixture will occur on Sky Sports from 7:30pm on Wednesday night.
Due to the match being broadcast LIVE, no commentary will be available to iFollowExiles subscribers on the day of the match.
An on-the-whistle match report of this match will be provided on the Club website upon the end of the game.
Michael Flynn’s post-match analysis will appear on the website the day after the game, while you can watch all of Flynn’s post-match press conference as-well as two County players by subscribing to iFollow Exiles now.