Carling Cup draw

[YateleyRoyal]

Two years time we could be getting Truro in the League Cup 1st Round - now that'd be an away trip worth having on a Tuesday night.

With the legend that is Barry Hayles playing for them

[Barry the bird boggler]

I've got a mate who drinks Carling and he's told me the draw's already been done and we've got Southend away.

[Winnershroyal]

I've got a mate who injects heroin in his eye and he's told me the draw's already been done and we've got Southend away.

[leww_rfc]

I've got a mate who injects heroin in his eye and he's told me the draw's already been done and we've got Southend away.

[Barry the bird boggler]

I've got a mate who works for Carling and he's told me the draw's already been done and we've got Southend away.

According to the RFC OS, the draw takes place at 10am tomorrow morning (16 June) and the club will notify us of the lucky opponents on the website shortly after.....

[EASTENDER MARKY]

I've got a mate who works for Carling and he's told me the draw's already been done and we've got Southend away.

According to the RFC OS, the draw takes place at 10am tomorrow morning (16 June) and the club will notify us of the lucky opponents on the website shortly after.....

That's what the club and football league want you to believe, my mate done the draw himself yesterday morning.

[T.R.O.L.I.]

That's what the club and football league want you to believe, my mate done the draw himself yesterday morning.

Similar to the league fixtures being "drawn" about a week before the publishing date in order to iron out anomalies etc.

[Red]

That's what the club and football league want you to believe, my mate done the draw himself yesterday morning.

Similar to the league fixtures being "drawn" about a week before the publishing date in order to iron out anomalies etc.

That's fine for league fixtures when everyone plays everyone anyway - but for a cup draw this smacks of a fix to me.

Say a local derby is thrown up and the police decide they don't want the hassle - will the teams be redrawn?

I call SHAMBLES.

[royal-ross]

Swindon, Oxford, Aldersh*t away for me

[Row Z Royal]

That's what the club and football league want you to believe, my mate done the draw himself yesterday morning.

Similar to the league fixtures being "drawn" about a week before the publishing date in order to iron out anomalies etc.

That's fine for league fixtures when everyone plays everyone anyway - but for a cup draw this smacks of a fix to me.

Say a local derby is thrown up and the police decide they don't want the hassle - will the teams be redrawn?

I call SHAMBLES.

Perhaps it was the "rehearsal".

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

That's what the club and football league want you to believe, my mate done the draw himself yesterday morning.

Similar to the league fixtures being "drawn" about a week before the publishing date in order to iron out anomalies etc.

What "anomolies" exactly could you have with a cup draw?

League fixtures are never a draw, nor do they ever claim to be. They are worked out to avoid home clashes between local rivals etc.

[T.R.O.L.I.]

League fixtures are never a draw, nor do they ever claim to be. They are worked out to avoid home clashes between local rivals etc.

Hence the "drawn" in inverted commas.

I fully understand the process for sorting out the league fixtures - by way of a computer programme with a hell of a lot of rules i.e. you can't play at home (or away for that matter) three times in a row, can't be at home at the same time as your "paired club", season broken up into 5 groups (hence why you sometimes play the same team twice within a few weeks) etc. and then a lengthy ratification with clubs / police / FL / councils etc.

Still technically a "draw" though.

[Svlad Cjelli]

League fixtures are never a draw, nor do they ever claim to be. They are worked out to avoid home clashes between local rivals etc.

Hence the "drawn" in inverted commas.

I fully understand the process for sorting out the league fixtures - by way of a computer programme with a hell of a lot of rules i.e. you can't play at home (or away for that matter) three times in a row, can't be at home at the same time as your "paired club", season broken up into 5 groups (hence why you sometimes play the same team twice within a few weeks) etc. and then a lengthy ratification with clubs / police / FL / councils etc.

Still technically a "draw" though.

Yep - it starts with each club and each police force putting in a list of dates where a club can't be at home (e.g Reading on Festival weekend, Shrewsbury Town when it's the Shrewsbury Flower Festival etc etc - there are hundreds of these things). Then the fixtures run is done by computer, until a possible set of fixtures is produced, meeting as many of the objections as possible. Each clubs is paired with another (one home whilst the other is away) so this reduces the options available.

After that there is human check, and limited changes are made to try and minimise long trips on certain days (Dec. 26th, 31st or Jan. 2nd). Then there's a final round where someone attempts to minimise long midweek away trips -but usually this is impossible, as moving one fixture impacts so many other.

Personally, considering the constraints they're working under I'm amazed they ever are able to produce valid fixtures.

[Big Ern]

Away to Real Madrid please

[T.R.O.L.I.]

Then there's a final round where someone attempts to minimise long midweek away trips -but usually this is impossible, as moving one fixture impacts so many other.

This is the one "rule" that I wish they'd get shot of - last season we had away trips to Millwall, Cardiff and Bristol City midweek when a weekend trip would have been far more "appealing".

[Silver Fox]

TBF that might have been what the computer decided

[Winchester Royal]

Then there's a final round where someone attempts to minimise long midweek away trips -but usually this is impossible, as moving one fixture impacts so many other.

This is the one "rule" that I wish they'd get shot of - last season we had away trips to Millwall, Cardiff and Bristol City midweek when a weekend trip would have been far more "appealing".

I'd rather those than a weekday trip to Middlesbrough or Hull tbh.

[Compo's Hat]

Then there's a final round where someone attempts to minimise long midweek away trips -but usually this is impossible, as moving one fixture impacts so many other.

This is the one "rule" that I wish they'd get shot of - last season we had away trips to Millwall, Cardiff and Bristol City midweek when a weekend trip would have been far more "appealing".

I'd rather those than a weekday trip to Middlesbrough or Hull tbh.

'greed. The midweek fixtures were well thought out for all teams last year apart from one round of fixtures.


Personally think it's about time the football league streamed the 1st round draw online or did it on Sky Sports News.

[SpaceCruiser]

Away to Real Madrid please

That'll be Leeds United then.

[RoyalJames101]

I'm quite excited about the draw for some reason...