Key occasions
Peep! Anthony Taylor is that this the person with the whistle, and Sone Aluko kicks issues off for Ipswich.
By the way, the BBC are predicting a 4-3-3 formation for Maidstone, consisting of …
Covolan; Hoyte (capt), Fowler, Appiah, Kyprianou; Berkeley-Agyepong, Bone, Corne; Sole, Duku, Reynolds
It appears to be like a high-quality, cool and crisp ol’ day at Portman Highway. Ipswich will likely be thrilled to be at house for this, with Maidstone taking part in on a 3G floor on the Gallagher Stadium.
Immanuelson “Manny” Duku is of big curiosity as we speak – he arrived earlier this week from Gibraltan aspect Manchester 62, having been at York Metropolis final season, and has been thrown straight in by his new supervisor George Elokobi.
Duku has 20 golf equipment to his identify, together with a number of to thrill non-league aficionados – Chesham United, Hemel Hempstead City, Kings Langley, Banbury United, Hayes & Yeading …
Beautiful contact from Ipswich within the lead-up to kick-off. As a toddler of a dementia sufferer, it’s a guidelines all too acquainted.
The Stones entered this yr’s event within the second qualifying spherical … thus far they’ve needed to see off Steyning City, Winchester Metropolis, Torquay, Chesham and Barrow earlier than their raucous 1-0 victory over League One Stevenage by way of a Sam Corne penalty.
An enormous upside to promotion from League One was that Ipswich joined affairs within the third spherical this time round – they entered the fray on the first-round stage final season. Earlier this month they defeated League Two AFC Wimbledon 3-1 – a Josh Davison own-goal was adopted by an effort from former Manchester United graduate Axel Tuanzebe and Jack Taylor’s Ninetieth-minute clincher.
Maidstone midfielder Bivesh Gurung is on the bench as we speak … however he has a high-quality story to inform. Within the run-up to as we speak’s recreation Will Unwin caught up with him.
Nobody would have anticipated us to get to the fourth spherical however we believed within the camp. There’s a actual buzz going across the place. On Saturday one of many pickup factors earlier than the sport was the bottom and you possibly can see all of the folks queueing as much as purchase their tickets for the Ipswich recreation – the queue didn’t appear to cease. The help has been surreal.
All the time a nail-biting second for followers of groups dealing with relative minnows … Ipswich have made 10 adjustments from the aspect that drew at Leicester on Monday, together with between the sticks. Christian Walton is available in for his third look of the season, having featured towards AFC Wimbledon within the final spherical.
Maidstone are captained by Gavin Hoyte, a one-time Arsenal prospect who had spells at Brighton and Watford, and amongst 5 adjustments from final trip they welcome again full of life midfielder Jacob Berkeley-Agyepong, the Grenada worldwide who was felled for the decisive penalty that noticed off Stevenage within the final spherical.
Groups
Ipswich
Walton; Ball, Tuanzebe, Edmundson, Humphreys; Morsy (capt), Taylor; Hutchinson, Aluko, Sarmiento; Broadhead
Subs Slicker, Clarke, Woolfenden, Davis, Burns, Travis, Harness, Chaplin, Buabo
Maidstone
Covolan; Hoyte (capt), Fowler, Bone, Appiah, Kyprianou; Duku, Berkeley-Agyepong, Sole, Corne; Reynolds
Subs Ezennolim, Greenidge, Earle, Court docket, Smith, Gurung, Iandolo
Preamble
Correct! Welcome to what is going to variously be described as good-old-fashioned and romantic, however what we hope will merely be a cracking recreation between two sides presently separated by 99 locations within the soccer pyramid.
Ipswich host, in a markedly totally different period from the Bobby Robson-helmed days that introduced them the FA Cup in 1978 and the Uefa Cup three years later. They’re, nonetheless, second within the Championship and as they chase a second successive promotion, have two 1-1 attracts towards that division’s leaders Leicester amongst a run that has solely seen them overwhelmed as soon as since 25 November.
Sixth-tier Maidstone have misplaced to Havant & Waterlooville and Slough this month, however their supervisor George Elokobi received’t be too anxious about that, and can as an alternative be harnessing his expertise as a high flight centre-back in declaring that loads of sides have shut the Tractor Boys out just lately. Ipswich have 5 wins for the reason that begin of December, but additionally 5 attracts.
Anyway, league type be damned. Cup!
Workforce information is imminent. Kick-off at Portman Highway is at 12.30pm GMT.
