Suffolk v Cambridgeshire
The FA County Youth Cup
The Final
3pm, Saturday 19 April 2008
Portman Road, Ipswich Town FC
Click here for this season's results

Cambridgeshire FA's U18s manager, Alan Elbrow, says his side will have to get out of the blocks quickly in their FA County Youth Cup Final against Suffolk FA.

“We’ll have a slightly different look about us than we did in the League game,” Elbrow explained.

“We use our League matches to prepare for The FA County Youth Cup, a good run in this Cup is what we aim for each season, so our League fixtures are made up of players from our U16s team and those who are on the fringes of our U18s team.

“Rarely do we put players who are in the Cup team into the League team. The reason is that we want to get a feeder system going in the county, so the lads in the League team now will be more accustomed to the level of football ready for the national challenge next year.”

The system certainly appears to be working. Cambridgeshire romped through the competition on a tidal wave of goals, scoring 23 times on their way to The Final, averaging more than four goals per game.  But despite his side’s net-busting campaign so far, Elbrow expects the clash at Portman Road to provide the stiffest test yet.

“On paper it’s looked like we have had quite a comfortable campaign, winning the first three rounds, at home, by big margins. But in the games we seemed to start slow in the first twenty minutes, but had the ties wrapped up by half-time.

“Once the boys get going and get into the swing of things they play some really good stuff, but we need to come out of the blocks quick as we might not get away with it against Suffolk.

"We know what they are like, they are a good side and Andy Gould has them playing as a solid team and they look difficult to beat.

“The boys have done so well to get this far. We’ll tell them to just go out and enjoy this chance, relax, play the football they have been this season and try not to get nervous. If they produce the same performances they have done all season, then I can’t ask any more of them.”