Newport County AFC will be looking to kickstart their 2020 with a Third Round victory in the Leasing.com Trophy when they welcome MK Dons to Rodney Parade.
This is already the Exiles’ best campaign in this competition since its 2016 rebrand, so they will be hoping to secure their first victory of the new year.
Here, you can find all the facts and statistics ahead of this Leasing.com Trophy Third Round tie…
MK Dons’ Leasing.com Trophy journey so far
MK Dons progressed from Southern Group G as group winners, collecting two victories from their three games.
It took the Dons just two matchdays to progress to the knock-out rounds after wins against Stevenage and Fulham U21s. They were unable to defeat Wycombe Wanderers in their final group game, nevertheless they were confirmed as group winners.
Coventry City were the visitors at Stadium MK for their second round tie and with goals from Kieron Agard and Joe Mason, the Dons progressed to the next round.
One to Watch – Regan Poole
Someone especially well-known to the County faithful after his two spells at the club, Regan Poole could make his first Rodney Parade appearance in the opposition dressing room.
The Welsh centre-back joined the Dons in the summer after leaving Manchester United, and has made 19 appearances so far this season in all competitions.
Poole was also included in the Wales squad for the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifiers against Slovakia and Croatia in October.
Manager – Russell Martin
Taking on his first managerial job, Russell Martin initially joined MK Dons as a player earlier this year. However, after the departure of Paul Tisdale, Martin stepped in to take over at Stadium MK. Since then, they have picked up 4 wins and 2 draws from 11 games.
Martin had an accomplished playing career, making 125 Premier League appearances for Norwich City, scoring 8 goals.
The former Scotland international only turned 34 on Saturday, making him the youngest manager currently in the EFL. We’ll be hoping for no late birthday presents come Tuesday evening.
Officials
Referee: John Busby
Assistant Referee 1: Andrew Laver
Assistant Referee 2: Sam Ogles
Fourth Official: Savvas Yianni
John Busby will take charge of his second Leasing.com match involving Newport County this season on Tuesday, his first being the eventful 4-5 loss to West Ham U21.
Busby has refereed 25 games so far this season, producing 98 yellow cards and 5 reds.
Last season, Busby officiated 43 games, including the League Two Play-off semi-final between Tranmere and Forest Green, brandishing 98 yellows and 6 red cards throughout the whole season.
Other Leasing.Com Trophy fixtures that night (All 7:45pm kick-offs unless stated)
Fleetwood Town vs Accrington Stanley
Salford City vs Port Vale
Tranmere Rovers vs Leicester City U21
Walsall vs Portsmouth
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.
Despite the game being a cup match, a live showing of this fixture will occur on iFollow Exiles if a Match Pass is purchased. However, commentary by Charlie Brown and Richard Shepherd can be found at the Match Centre from 6:45pm.
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.