B Team Preview: Orient vs Saints
It’s a return to the Papa John’s Trophy this week for Southampton’s B team, with a visit to Leyton Orient on Tuesday night.
THE MATCH
Leyton Orient vs Saints
Papa John's Trophy
Breyer Group Stadium
Tuesday 14th September, 7pm BST
Saints have had a frustrating start to their Premier League 2 season, having drawn one and lost three of their opening four games.
It will be a welcome shift in focus this week to the Papa John’s Trophy group stages, giving Dave Horseman’s young side another integral test.
Last season’s fixtures in the competition came with a mixed bag of results for the side after losing two before winning the final game of the group.
Kazeem Olaigbe scored a 93rd minute winner at MK Dons on final matchday following defeats at Northampton and Stevenage.
Orient are on the other hand having a bright start to their League Two season; sitting third after three wins, three draws and just one defeat.
Last season Kenny Jackett's side, then under the guidance of Ross Embleton, got to the second round of the Papa John’s Trophy, before being beaten 2-1 by Bristol Rovers at home.
Saints and Leyton Orient last met back in April 2011, when both sides were competing in League One.
Rickie Lambert gave visiting Saints the lead on 26 minutes, no surprises seeing Rickie Lambert get on the scoresheet.
The second came via Lee Barnard, who doubled the lead two minutes from time.
It proved a vital win for Nigel Adkins’ side on their way to League One promotion that season.
Tickets are available for Tuesday night’s curtain raiser in the Papa John’s Trophy at the Breyer Group Stadium, priced as follows:
- Adults - £5
- Under-18s - £1
To grab your tickets follow the link below:
Fans will also be able to watch Sunday's Premier League 2 game against Burnley at St Mary's.
Entry is free with details for fans looking to attend the game to be released in due course.
MANAGER’S NOTES
Firstly Horseman gave an update on the squad, after a brutal run of injuries in the last two weeks within his side.
“We’re down to the bare bones at the moments,” he said. “We hope Caleb [Watts] will be back for Tuesday. He had a groin problem but we hope he’ll be okay.
“Dare [Olufunwa] is not too far off. Unfortunately Tizz [Will Tizzard] played at Arsenal with a fractured foot which we didn’t know until afterwards so he did really well considering.
“We should get one or two back in the next couple of weeks, but the others are maybe four or five weeks off. So it will be another great challenge for our youngsters to play.
“I think it [the Orient game] will be different to the Fulham game, there should be a bit of a crowd in there.
“For our 16-year-olds it’s probably come a bit early but sometimes in football your opportunity comes and you have to take it. People like Kamari [Doyle] if they take it then they’ll keep their shirt and then they’re only one step from the first team.
“It’ll be a tough game obviously, but one we can’t wait to go into because they’re the best games to go into. We want to be playing in stadiums in front of crowds. We’ll recover and go again on Tuesday.”
