FA Youth Cup Fifth Round Draw Update

The big prize

United will face another United in the Blades of Sheffield in a tie that will be played on the night of Wednesday 25th January in a 7pm kick-off at Brunton Park. The Yorkshire outfit, like Huddersfield Town who Carlisle defeated in the Fourth Round, play in the Premiership Academy Group D. The Blades are having a better season to date than the bottom-placed Terriers however as they currently sit third in the table, six points behind table-toppers Leeds United, having lost just five of their seventeen league games so far.

There have been a few Cup shocks so far, Chelsea were defeated by Brighton 2-1 in Round Four, Brentford beat Arsenal on penalties in Round Three and non-league Waltham Forest created the giantkilling act of the competition at the same stage when they beat West Bromwich Albion 1-0. Brentford and Waltham Forest then met in the next round where The Bees won through 2-0 to earn a home tie with Newcastle United in the last sixteen.

Burnley are the only other survivor from the Youth Alliance League North West Conference in which United return to action on Saturday morning against Preston North End at Frenchfields, just outside Penrith. The Clarets earned a plum tie against Liverpool after having already defeated Premiership opposition, in Fulham, in Round Four.

The draw has been unbelieveably kind to United so far with the youngsters picking up a home tie in all five rounds of the competition. Carlisle have beaten Macclesfield 3-1, Doncaster 5-3 on penalties, Chipstead 5-1 and Huddersfield Town 2-1 to date and have done very well to reach this far. Let's hope that they can once more raise their game for the Cup and make it an even more amazing season by defeating Sheffield United and making it through to the Quarter-Finals.



Fifth Round Draw As Follows :


Brentford v Newcastle United

Burnley v Liverpool

Carlisle United v Sheffield United

Crystal Palace v Watford

Blackburn Rovers v Brighton & Hove Albion

Nottingham Forest v Manchester City

Bolton Wanderers v Southampton

Manchester United v Charlton Atheltic


All ties to be played on or before Saturday 4 February 2006