Burnley U18s v West Ham United U18s
FA Youth Cup fourth round, The County Ground, Tuesday 24 January, 7pm
West Ham United U18s continue their quest to lift the FA Youth Cup with a fourth-round tie away to Burnley on Tuesday.
The Irons are in outstanding form this season, winning all 12 of their U18 Premier League South matches to go 16 points clear at the top of the table, and will seek to translate that to the Youth Cup this weekend.
Having defeated Sheffield United 3-1 on the road in the third round, Kevin Keen's side travel north again to face U18 Professional Development League North opponents Burnley, who themselves defeated Norwich City 7-6 on penalties in the previous round.
Originally supposed to be played on Saturday 21 January, this fourth round contest was postponed due to a frozen pitch and will now take place on Tuesday 24 January, with a 7pm kick-off at The County Ground; the home of the Lancashire FA.
The winners will travel to Stoke City, who compete in U18 Premier League North and beat Manchester United in the fourth round, in last-16. The tie must be played on or before Saturday 11 February.
Read on for all you need to know about the FA Youth Cup fourth round tie…
Tickets…
Tickets will be available on the gate on Tuesday, priced at £3 for Adults and £1 for Concessions.
For fans driving to the game, the postcode for your satnav is: PR25 2LF. However, the car park at the ground is for players and officials only. Supporters can find free on-street parking, or use one of the several nearby pay and display car parks in the town.
How to Follow…
Coverage of Tuesday's FA Youth Cup clash between Burnley and West Ham United will be available via a live blog at whufc.com, starting an hour before kick-off at 6pm.
Full highlights will be available on Wednesday morning on the Club’s YouTube channel, on the official West Ham United app, and at whufc.com.
Reaction from lead coach Keen and the squad will also be available across Tuesday evening and Wednesday on the Club website.
Team News…
This season’s FA Youth Cup is open for players who were born on or after 1 September 2004, and before 1 September 2007.
With the fixture being postponed to mid-week, Kevin Keen may be able to call on the U18s players who featured in Friday's Premier League 2 match against Manchester United, including the likes of Kaelan Casey, Divin Mubama and Ollie Scarles.
Forward Callum Marshall is the leading scorer for the U18s this season with 13 goals in ten matches in all competitions, while captain Gideon Kodua has also chipped in with ten goals. Mubama and Favour Fawunmi each have six goals this season at U18s level, while Lewis Orford has netted five.
Our FA Youth Cup history…
West Ham United have won the FA Youth Cup on three occasions since the tournament’s inception. The first came in the 1962/63 season when the Hammers defeated Liverpool 6-5 across two-legs, before a second trophy was lifted in the 1980-81 campaign after a 2-1 aggregate win over Tottenham Hotspur.
The most recent win came in the 1998/99 season when the young Irons beat Coventry City 9-0 across two legs with a team that contained the likes of Joe Cole, Michael Carrick, captain Izzy Iriekpen and Bertie Brayley.
The Hammers have also been runners-up on four occasions; in 1957, 1959, 1975 and 1996.
Opposition…
Burnley secured their place in the FA Youth Cup fourth round thanks to a penalty shoot-out win over Norwich City.
After coming from behind to secure a 2-2 draw over 120 minutes, the Clarets claimed victory in a thrilling shootout, with goalkeeper Charlie Casper saving two penalties and scoring one of his own!
Burnley play in the Professional U18 Development League and currently sit third in the table after 13 matches played, with five wins, three draws and five defeats.
A Category Two Academy, Burnley's U18s are coached by former Clarets striker Tony Philliskirk, who is best known for his time with Bolton Wanderers in the early 1990s.
