Bolton begin what would hopefully be their FA Cup run tomorrow with a home tie against Stockport.
It should be a good tie. A local derby of sorts, with the added spice of Antoni Sarcevic returning just a couple of weeks after he surprisingly left the club, and they’re taking a good following.
IAN EVATT | Manager ahead of Stockport County Emirates FA Cup tie – YouTube
Team news
Amadou Bakayoko could be available after a spell out injured. Xavier Amaechi is back in training but won’t be rushed back. Harry Brockbank has had a calf injury and Josh Sheehan has missed some training after a sore back from the Rochdale match, but neither have been ruled out.
Possible XI: Gilks; Isgrove, Almeida Santos, Johnston, John; Williams, Lee; Kachunga, Thomason, Afolayan; Doyle
Previously…
Our last home match against Stockport was back in April 2001, en route to our eventual promotion from Division 1. Colin Hendry gave us an early lead, but we were ultimately held to a 1-1 draw with Shefki Kuqi equalising mid-way through the second half.
The opposition
Stockport sit ninth in the National League, five points off the play-off spots. They seem to making some statements of intent recently though, with Dave Challinor brought in from League Two Hartlepool to become their new manager this week. All eyes will be on Antoni Sarcevic for obvious reasons, but it’s the players in front of him that will equally need attention. Paddy Madden managed seven goals in 14 games after joining from Fleetwood in March, and has four goals this season. Tall and pacey Scott Quigley has only scored once in the league since joining in the summer, but was Ian Evatt’s top scorer in Barrow’s promotion season in 2019/20.
Prediction
Could be a tricky afternoon for us, but we should hopefully make it into the hat for the second round draw. 2-1.