City's U18s are in FA Youth Cup Fourth Round action on Friday evening, taking on Bristol City.
The fixture will take place at Cardiff International Sports Campus on Friday, January 17th, with a kick-off time of 7pm.
The young Bluebirds claimed a 3-2 victory over Chesterfield in the previous round, with a brace for Dan Ola and a goal for Mannie Barton.
TICKET INFORMATION
Entry for Friday night’s match at Cardiff International Sports Campus will be £4 for adults and £1 for concessions.
Please note: Tickets for this fixture are only available digitally or to be printed at home.
PRE-MATCH | TOM HUTTON
Beginning by reflecting on the win over the Spirites, U18 head coach Tom Hutton said: “There was a lot of learning to take from the previous round, and in these types of games it is always important to capture that for the players. For the majority of it, the boys delivered the performance we were looking for, and we deservedly got ourselves into the lead. Chesterfield didn’t make it easy for us in the way that they defended but being goal down there was always going to come a time when they would open up a bit more to try and get something from the game.
"In this moment I felt we focused too much on trying to chase the second goal which lead to us forcing our possession and losing a bit of control in the game. Having said that the boys showed great character to win the game and get into the next round.”
Friday’s opponents, Bristol City, are flying high at the top of the table in the Professional Development League and recorded a 3–1 win over Sheffield Wednesday in the last round of the FA Youth Cup.
“Bristol City will pose a strong challenge to us,” Hutton continued. “They’re around the top of the league and doing really well results wise. We know we’re coming up against a competitive team and with it being a local derby, that always adds that bit of an extra edge to the fixture. As always the focus will be on us and we’re confident in the group that we’ve got and in the individual players as well.
"You only have to look at the U18s who have been training and playing with the First Team and also playing regular U21s football since they were first year scholars to know we have good players. When they do step back into U18s football, there is an expectation on these boys to perform, because they have in theory been playing and training regularly at a higher level but that’s because they are ready. Having them back in the team and back in the squad for the game will be a massive boost, but with that comes expectations within the group to make sure that we perform as positively as we can.”
PRE-MATCH | DAKARAI MAFICO
Midfielder Dakarai Mafico produced a fine performance in the win over Chesterfield and contributed to the side’s progression to the fourth round.
The Wales youth international has regularly been playing at U21 level this season, as well as training in a First Team environment.
“The win against Chesterfield was a good start to the tournament,” Dak told us. “Some of us haven’t been playing with the rest of the group, so it was good to get back together. We made a strong start and pressed them well. We made it more difficult than we needed it to be, but I’m glad we got the job done. Everyone played their part and stepped up.
“Whenever we play Bristol City, we always expect a physical challenge. If we can stop them playing long and control the ball in possession, we have more than enough talent in our team to win the game. The boys are confident going into the game and they should be. We know that what they’re doing is clearly working; they’re top of the league for a reason. But we all believe that if we play our game and stick to it, we can beat them.
“The FA Youth Cup is a big tournament. It’s the one competition that we all look forward to playing in. We will do our absolute best to go far into this tournament, because we can make a name for ourselves and the Club. With a good result against Bristol, we can use it as confidence in the league to keep performing like we have been at the top.”
REACHING THE GROUND
Supporters planning on attending should use the following address:
Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith Rd, Cardiff, CF11 8AZ.
The ground is located an 11-minute walk away from Ninian Park Station and a 32-minute walk from Cardiff Central Station.