2018–19 EFL Trophy

2018–19 EFL Trophy
Checkatrade Trophy
Tournament details
Country	England; Wales
Teams	64
Defending champions	Lincoln City
Final positions
Champions	Portsmouth (1st title)
Runner-up	Sunderland
Tournament statistics
Matches played	127
Goals scored	313 (2.46 per match)
Attendance	308,713 (2,431 per match)
Top goal scorer(s)	Dom Telford (7 goals)
	← 2017–18 2019–20 →

The 2018–19 EFL Trophy, known as the Checkatrade Trophy for sponsorship reasons, was the 38th season in the history of the competition, a knock-out tournament for English football clubs in League One and League Two of the English football system, and also including 16 Premier League and Championship "Academy teams" with Category One status. 127 matches were played in total.^[1]

Lincoln City were the defending champions, but were eliminated in the second round by Accrington Stanley. Portsmouth won the competition for the first time, defeating Sunderland in front of an EFL Trophy record attendance in the final. The total attendance for the tournament was 308,713^[1]

Participating clubs

48 clubs from League One and League Two.
16 invited Category One Academy teams.

Of the sixteen invited Category One academies, fourteen competed in the 2017–18 competition; only Arsenal and Wolverhampton Wanderers did not participate. Arsenal rejected an invitation to compete in each of the previous two tournaments,^[2] while Wolves were not invited to compete in 2017–18 competition after fielding a side in the 2016–17 edition.

Reading and Sunderland's academy sides missed out after participation in the previous two years; Sunderland's first team competed for the first time since the 1987–88 competition, however, following their relegation to League One. Barnsley and Burton Albion both returned to the competition after relegation; they last competed in the 2015–16 season, when Barnsley won the trophy.

Macclesfield Town competed for the first time since the 2011–12 edition, following their promotion from the National League. Fellow promoted side Tranmere Rovers returned after a four year hiatus.

Liverpool and Manchester United both rejected an invitation to compete for the third successive season.^[3]

	League One	League Two	Academies^[4]
Clubs	Accrington Stanley AFC Wimbledon Barnsley Blackpool Bradford City Bristol Rovers Burton Albion Charlton Athletic Coventry City Doncaster Rovers Fleetwood Town Gillingham Luton Town Oxford United Peterborough United Plymouth Argyle Portsmouth Rochdale Scunthorpe United Shrewsbury Town Southend United Sunderland Walsall Wycombe Wanderers	Bury Cambridge United Carlisle United Cheltenham Town Colchester United Crawley Town Crewe Alexandra Exeter City Forest Green Rovers Grimsby Town Lincoln City Macclesfield Town Mansfield Town Milton Keynes Dons Morecambe Newport County Northampton Town Notts County Oldham Athletic Port Vale Stevenage Swindon Town Tranmere Rovers Yeovil Town	Arsenal Brighton & Hove Albion Chelsea Everton Fulham Leicester City Manchester City Middlesbrough Newcastle United Southampton Stoke City Swansea City Tottenham Hotspur West Bromwich Albion West Ham United Wolverhampton Wanderers
Total	24	24	16

Eligibility criteria for players

For EFL Clubs^[5]

Minimum of four qualifying outfield players in their starting XI. A qualifying outfield player will be one who meets any of the following requirements:
- Any player who started the previous or following first-team fixture
- Any player who is in the top 10 players at the club, who have made the most starting appearances in league and domestic cup competitions that season
- Any player with 40 or more first-team appearances in their career
- Any player on loan from a Premier League club or any EFL Category One Academy club.
A club can play any eligible goalkeeper in the competition

For invited teams

Minimum of six players in the starting line-up who played at under-21 level, as at 30 June 2018.
Teams may only include two players on the team sheet, aged over 21, who have made forty or more senior appearances, as at 30 June 2018.
- A senior appearance will be defined as having played in a professional first-team fixture. A non-playing substitute does not count.

Competition format

Group stage

Sixteen groups of 4 teams would be organised on a regionalised basis.
All groups would include one invited club.
All clubs would play each other once, either home or away (Academies play all group matches away from home).
Clubs would be awarded three points for a win and one point for a draw.
In the event of a drawn game (after 90 minutes), a penalty shootout would be held with the winning team earning an additional point.
The top two teams would progress to the Knockout Stage.

Knockout stage

Round 2 and 3 of the competition would be drawn on a regionalised basis.
In Round 2, the group winners should be seeded and the group runners-up shall be unseeded in the draw.
In Round 2, teams who played in the same group as each other in the group stage would be kept apart from each other.

Group stage and Knockout rounds

Northern Section

Group A

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Sunderland	3	2	1	0	0	4	1	+3	8	Round 2
2	ACA	Stoke City U21	3	1	1	1	0	3	2	+1	6	Round 2
3	L2	Carlisle United	3	1	0	1	1	5	6	−1	4
4	L2	Morecambe	3	0	0	0	3	3	6	−3	0

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Carlisle United	3–2	Morecambe	Carlisle
19:45 BST	Glendon 13' Gillesphey 38' Yates 76'	Report	Oliver 6' Piggott 24'	Stadium: Brunton Park Attendance: 1,213 Referee: Andy Haines

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Sunderland	0–0 (4–2 p)	Stoke City U21	Sunderland
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 7,644 Referee: Martin Coy
	Penalties
	Sinclair McGeouch O'Nien Hume		Campbell Souttar Sørensen Szerető

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Morecambe	1–2	Stoke City U21	Morecambe
19:45 BST	Oswell 26'	Report	Shenton 9' Campbell 57'	Stadium: Globe Arena Attendance: 512 Referee: Anthony Backhouse

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Sunderland	3–1	Carlisle United	Sunderland
19:45 BST	Kimpioka 3' Robson 34' Honeyman 63'	Report	Nadesan 22'	Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 8,112 Referee: Ben Toner

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Carlisle United	1–1 (4–5 p)	Stoke City U21	Carlisle
19:45 BST	Sowerby 23'	Report	Campbell 34'	Stadium: Brunton Park Attendance: 882 Referee: Martin Coy
	Penalties
	Grainger Yates Jones Nadesan McCarron Miller		Dunwoody Campbell Thandi Clucas Jarvis Shenton

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Morecambe	0–1	Sunderland	Morecambe
19:45 BST		Report	Maja 90+1'	Stadium: Globe Arena Attendance: 2,377 Referee: Paul Marsden

Group B

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Rochdale	3	2	0	1	0	6	3	+3	7	Round 2
2	L2	Bury	3	2	0	0	1	6	4	+2	6	Round 2
3	ACA	Leicester City U21	3	0	2	0	1	5	6	−1	4
4	L1	Fleetwood Town	3	0	0	1	2	3	7	−4	1

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Rochdale	2–1	Bury	Rochdale
19:45	Clough 16' Matty Gillam 19'	Report	Lavery 70' (pen.)	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 1,582 Referee: Carl Boyeson

11 September 2018 (2018-09-11)	Fleetwood Town	2–2 (6–7 p)	Leicester City U21	Fleetwood
19:45	Long 33' McAleny 49'	Report	Loft 81', 90+6'	Stadium: Highbury Stadium Attendance: 504 Referee: Peter Wright
	Penalties
	McAleny G. Jones Garner Biggins Clarke Spurr Sheron Dempsey		Diabaté Choudhury Wright Dewsbury-Hall Knight Johnson Martis Loft

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Fleetwood Town	0–2	Rochdale	Fleetwood
19:45		Report	Williams 16' Cannon 16'	Stadium: Highbury Stadium Attendance: 669 Referee: Ross Joyce

16 October 2018 (2018-10-16)	Bury	2–1	Leicester City U21	Bury, Greater Manchester
19:45	Telford 4', 67'	Report	Shade 21'	Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 454 Referee: Ollie Yates

7 November 2018 (2018-11-07)	Rochdale	2–2 (3–4 p)	Leicester City U21	Rochdale
19:45	Andrew 6' McNulty 17'	Report	Pașcanu 28' Loft 66'	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 615 Referee: Thomas Bramall
	Penalties
	Clough Perkins Wilbraham Hoti Hopper Williams		Johnson Dewsbury-Hall Pașcanu Thomas Loft Kaba Sherif

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Bury	3–1	Fleetwood Town	Bury, Greater Manchester
19:45	Telford 21' (pen.) Dagnall 32' Adams 37'	Report	Dempsey 11'	Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 554 Referee: Anthony Backhouse

Group C

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Accrington Stanley	3	2	0	0	1	8	5	+3	6	Round 2
2	L2	Macclesfield Town	3	1	1	0	1	6	8	−2	5	Round 2
3	L1	Blackpool	3	1	0	1	1	7	7	0	4
4	ACA	West Bromwich Albion U21	3	1	0	0	2	4	5	−1	3

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Macclesfield Town	3–3 (5–3 p)	Blackpool	Macclesfield
19:45	Blissett 14' Rose 35', 78' (pen.)	Report	31' Guy 90' O'Sullivan 90+4' O'Connor	Stadium: Moss Rose Attendance: 639 Referee: Chris Sarginson
	Penalties
	Whitaker Smith Fitzpatrick Wilson Rose		Pritchard Taylor Heneghan Bola

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Accrington Stanley	4–1	Macclesfield Town	Accrington
19:45	Finley 35' Zanzala 63' Fitzpatrick 82' (o.g.) Barlaser 90+5'	Report	Vincenti 58'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 900 Referee: Thomas Bramall

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Blackpool	1–2	West Bromwich Albion U21	Blackpool
19:45	Davies 45'	Report	Azaz 3' Bradley 76'	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 717 Referee: Paul Marsden

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Accrington Stanley	2–1	West Bromwich Albion U21	Accrington
19:45	Clark 49' Sykes 90+2'	Report	Leko 62'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 772 Referee: Peter Wright

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Blackpool	3–2	Accrington Stanley	Blackpool
19:45	Dodoo 30', 41' Gnanduillet 67'	Report	Hall 17', 90+1' (pen.)	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 781 Referee: Oliver Yates

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Macclesfield Town	2–1	West Bromwich Albion U21	Macclesfield
19:45	Stephens 19' Arthur 24'	Report	Tulloch 14'	Stadium: Moss Rose Attendance: 411 Referee: Scott Oldham

Group D

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Shrewsbury Town	3	2	1	0	0	9	2	+7	8	Round 2
2	ACA	Manchester City U21	3	2	0	1	0	6	2	+4	7	Round 2
3	L2	Crewe Alexandra	3	1	0	0	2	6	9	−3	3
4	L2	Tranmere Rovers	3	0	0	0	3	3	11	−8	0

Source: EFL.com

28 August 2018 (2018-08-28)	Shrewsbury Town	1–1 (3–1 p)	Manchester City U21	Shrewsbury
19:00	Angol 51'	Report	Touaizi 90+2'	Stadium: New Meadow Attendance: 1,838 Referee: Paul Marsden
	Penalties
	Okenabirhie John-Lewis Loft Norburn Colkett		Touaizi Bernabé Matondo Dele-Bashiru

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Tranmere Rovers	3–4	Crewe Alexandra	Birkenhead
19:45	Harris 45+4' Stockton 45+10' Mullin 46'	Report	Porter 20', 85' Nicholls 73' Jones 86'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 2,174 Referee: Graham Salisbury

25 September 2018 (2018-09-25)	Crewe Alexandra	1–4	Manchester City U21	Crewe
19:30	Nicholls 51'	Report	Dele-Bashiru 2' Gonzalez 22' Richards 78' (pen.) Ogunby 90'	Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 810

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Shrewsbury Town	6–0	Tranmere Rovers	Shrewsbury
19:00	John-Lewis 11' Docherty 18' Beckles 23' Okenabirhie 56', 74', 90+1'	Report		Stadium: New Meadow Attendance: 1,379

30 October 2018 (2018-10-30)	Tranmere Rovers	0–1	Manchester City U21	Birkenhead
19:00		Report	Matondo 49'	Stadium: Prenton Park Attendance: 747

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Crewe Alexandra	1–2	Shrewsbury Town	Crewe
19:30	Bowery 79'	Report	Eisa 20' Gilliead 63'	Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 823

Group E

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L2	Port Vale	3	3	0	5	1	+4	9	Round 2
2	L1	Walsall	3	2	1	6	4	+2	6	Round 2
3	ACA	Middlesbrough U21	3	1	2	2	5	−3	3
4	L1	Burton Albion	3	0	3	1	4	−3	0

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Burton Albion	1–2	Walsall	Burton upon Trent
19:45	Myers-Harness 89'	Report	Morris 9' Gordon 28'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Attendance: 724 Referee: Rob Lewis

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Walsall	3–1	Middlesbrough U21	Walsall
19:00	Fitzwater 26' Kouhyar 31' Cook 89'	Report	Ward 67'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: 702

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Port Vale	1–0	Burton Albion	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45	Miller 65'			Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 601

16 October 2018 (2018-10-16)	Port Vale	2–0	Middlesbrough U21	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45	Miller 6' Rawlinson 66'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 554

7 November 2018 (2018-11-07)	Burton Albion	0–1	Middlesbrough U21	Burton upon Trent
19:00		Report	Hackney 87'	Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Attendance: 202

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Walsall	1–2	Port Vale	Walsall
19:00	Johnson 45+1'	Report	Quigley 4' Pugh 65'	Stadium: Bescot Stadium Attendance: 878

Group F

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Barnsley	3	2	1	0	0	5	3	+2	8	Round 2
2	L2	Oldham Athletic	3	2	0	0	1	8	5	+3	6	Round 2
3	ACA	Everton U21	3	0	0	2	1	4	5	−1	2
4	L1	Bradford City	3	0	1	0	2	3	7	−4	2

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Oldham Athletic	1–2	Barnsley	Oldham
19:30	Surridge 31'	Report	Adeboyejo 44' Moncur 82'	Stadium: Boundary Park Attendance: 1,786 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

25 September 2018 (2018-09-25)	Bradford City	1–1 (6–5 p)	Everton U21	Bradford
19:30	Miller 90+2'		Sambou 79'	Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 902 Referee: Paul Marsden
	Penalties
	Ball Gibson O'Brien Payne Miller Goldthorp		Lavery Charsley Adeniran Foulds Sambou Mampala

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Bradford City	1–4	Oldham Athletic	Bradford
19:30	Brünker 49'		Lang 10' Maouche 26' Surridge 57', 77'	Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 1,015 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

30 October 2018 (2018-10-30)	Oldham Athletic	3–2	Everton U21	Oldham
19:30	Clarke 53' Miller 57' Benteke 80'	Report	Markelo 6' Lavery 24'	Stadium: Boundary Park Attendance: 1,004 Referee: Darren Drysdale

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Barnsley	1–1 (4–2 p)	Everton U21	Barnsley
19:30	Hedges 40'	Report	Sambou 53'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 2,300 Referee: Matthew Donohue
	Penalties
	Moncur Brown Bähre Thiam		Adeniran Mathis Kiersey Lavery

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Barnsley	2–1	Bradford City	Barnsley
19:30	Moncur 28', 64' Jackson 77'	Report	Ball 8'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 2,925

Group G

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	ACA	Newcastle United U21	3	3	0	8	3	+5	9	Round 2
2	L2	Notts County	3	1	2	5	6	−1	3	Round 2
3	L1	Doncaster Rovers	3	1	2	5	7	−2	3
4	L2	Grimsby Town	3	1	2	4	6	−2	3

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Doncaster Rovers	1–3	Newcastle United U21	Keepmoat Stadium
19:00	Marquis 45+7'	Report	Allan 14' Roberts 65' Sørensen 86'	Attendance: 1,544 Referee: Matt Donohue

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Grimsby Town	2–1	Notts County	Blundell Park
19:45	M. Rose 69' (pen.) Hessenthaler 88'	Report	Alessandra 12'	Attendance: 746 Referee: Tom Nield

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Doncaster Rovers	2–0	Grimsby Town	Keepmoat Stadium
19:30	May 23', 57' (pen.)			Attendance: 1,420 Referee: Michael Salisbury

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Notts County	0–2	Newcastle United U21	Meadow Lane
19:45			Roberts 10' (pen.) Sørensen 56'	Attendance: 1,139

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Grimsby Town	2–3	Newcastle United U21	Blundell Park
19:45	Hooper 9' Cook 54'		Roberts 19' Sørensen 26' Longstaff 78'	Attendance: 547

14 November 2018 (2018-11-14)	Notts County	4–2	Doncaster Rovers	Meadow Lane
19:45	Dennis 15', 40', 64' (pen.) Boldewijn 26'		May 50', 70'	Attendance: 915

Group H

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L2	Mansfield Town	3	3	0	0	0	7	4	+3	9	Round 2
2	L2	Lincoln City	3	0	1	1	1	4	5	−1	3	Round 2
3	L1	Scunthorpe United	3	0	1	1	1	3	4	−1	3
4	ACA	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21	3	0	1	1	1	3	4	−1	3

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Lincoln City	1–2	Mansfield Town	Sincil Bank
19:45	Rhead 6'		Butcher 8' Walker 72'	Attendance: 4,205

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Scunthorpe United	0–0 (4–2 p)	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21	Glanford Park
19:45				Attendance: 874
	Penalties
	Goode Lund Colclough Horsfield Burgess		Pote Diallo Ennis Kilman

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Mansfield Town	2–1	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21	Field Mill
19:45	Mellis 4' Benning 47'		Pedro Gonçalves 75'	Attendance: 1,112

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Scunthorpe United	1–1 (1–3 p)	Lincoln City	Glanford Park
19:45	Colclough 56'		Anderson 84' Wilson 90+2'	Attendance: 1,878
	Penalties
	Novak Goode Lund Humphrys		Pett Rhead Frecklington Andrade

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Lincoln City	2–2 (4–5 p)	Wolverhampton Wanderers U21	Sincil Bank
19:45	Green 23', 42'	Report	Ashley-Seal 42' Giles 45+3'	Attendance: 2,723
	Penalties
	Akinde Rhead Toffolo Mensah Andrade Pett		Watt Pote Giles Ashley-Seal Ennis Iorfa

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Mansfield Town	3–2	Scunthorpe United	Field Mill
19:45	Blake 21' Butcher 55' Elsnik 90'		El-Mhanni 75' Dales 90'	Attendance: 928

Southern Section

Group A

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Portsmouth	3	3	0	0	0	8	2	+6	9	Round 2
2	ACA	Tottenham Hotspur U21	3	1	0	1	1	7	4	+3	4	Round 2
3	L1	Gillingham	3	1	0	0	2	2	9	−7	3
4	L2	Crawley Town	3	0	1	0	2	2	4	−2	2

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Crawley Town	1–1 (5–3 p)	Tottenham Hotspur U21	Crawley
19:45	N'Gala 59'	Report	Harrison 49'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: 1,403 Referee: Tim Robinson
	Penalties
	Young Poleon Randall Palmer Sesay		Binks Roles Bowden Maghoma

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Portsmouth	4–0	Gillingham	Portsmouth
19:45	Clarke 41' Close 43' Pitman 55' (pen.) Wheeler 90+1'	Report		Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 2,011 Referee: Alan Young

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Crawley Town	0–1	Portsmouth	Crawley
19:45		Report	Donohue 37'	Stadium: Broadfield Stadium Attendance: 1,268 Referee: Gavin Ward

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Gillingham	0–4	Tottenham Hotspur U21	Charlton, London
19:45		Report	Roles 44' Maghoma 57' Brown 83' Duncan 90+3' (pen.)	Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 308 Referee: Anthony Coggins

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Gillingham	2–1	Crawley Town	Gillingham
19:45	List 59' Stevenson 88'	Report	Poleon 18'	Stadium: Priestfield Stadium Attendance: 473 Referee: Darren Drysdale

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Portsmouth	3–2	Tottenham Hotspur U21	Portsmouth
19:45	Green 50' Evans 69' Hawkins 81'	Report	Patterson 20' White 90'	Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 3,138 Referee: James Linington

Group B

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L2	Cambridge United	3	2	1	8	4	+4	6	Round 2
2	L1	Southend United	3	2	1	6	3	+3	6	Round 2
3	L2	Colchester United	3	1	2	3	5	−2	3
4	ACA	Southampton U21	3	1	2	2	7	−5	3

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Colchester United	0–2	Southampton U21	Colchester Community Stadium
19:45			Barnes 26' Obafemi 90+4'	Attendance: 532 Referee: Charles Breakspear

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Southend United	3–1	Cambridge United	Roots Hall
19:45	McCoulsky 55', 64' Hutchinson 87'		Lambe 53'	Attendance: 1,421 Referee: Gavin Ward

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Cambridge United	4–0	Southampton U21	Abbey Stadium
19:00	Azeez 16' (pen.), 37', 88' Brown 50'			Attendance: 469 Referee: Trevor Kettle

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Colchester United	2–0	Southend United	Colchester Community Stadium
19:45	Kent 39' Collins 49'			Attendance: 1,516 Referee: Roger East

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Cambridge United	3–1	Colchester United	Abbey Stadium
19:00	Azeez 32', 81' Osadebe 90+3'		Pell 90+2'	Attendance: 598 Referee: Anthony Coggins

14 November 2018 (2018-11-14)	Southend United	3–0	Southampton U21	Roots Hall
19:45	Bunn 12' Kyprianou 17' Bwomono 24'			Attendance: 983 Referee: John Busby

Group C

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	ACA	Chelsea U21	3	2	1	9	3	+6	6	Round 2
2	L2	Newport County	3	2	1	5	1	+4	6	Round 2
3	L2	Swindon Town	3	2	1	4	4	0	6
4	L1	Plymouth Argyle	3	0	3	0	10	−10	0

Source: EFL.com

7 August 2018 (2018-08-07)	Swindon Town	0–4	Chelsea U21	Swindon
19:45			Brown 16', 58' Musonda 30' (pen.) Ugbo 89'	Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 1,569 Referee: Brett Huxtable

11 September 2018 (2018-09-11)	Swindon Town	1–0	Newport County	Swindon
19:45	Doughty 77' (pen.)			Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 1,301 Referee: Anthony Coggins

25 September 2018 (2018-09-25)	Newport County	3–0	Chelsea U21	Newport
19:45	Matt 36', 46' Semenyo 90+1'			Stadium: Rodney Parade Attendance: 1,525 Referee: Kevin Johnson

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Plymouth Argyle	0–3	Swindon Town	Plymouth
19:30			Richards 16' Anderson 38' Woolery 82'	Stadium: Home Park Attendance: 1,906 Referee: Brett Huxtable

30 October 2018 (2018-10-30)	Plymouth Argyle	0–5	Chelsea U21	Plymouth
19:30			Brown 20' Songo'o 37' (o.g.) Taylor-Crossdale 74' Anjorin 86' Redan 89'	Stadium: Home Park Attendance: 1,504 Referee: Anthony Coggins

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Newport County	2–0	Plymouth Argyle	Newport
19:45	Semenyo 35' Harris 45'			Stadium: Rodney Parade Attendance: 962 Referee: Brett Huxtable

Group D

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L2	Exeter City	3	2	1	0	0	4	0	+4	8	Round 2
2	L1	Bristol Rovers	3	2	0	0	1	4	2	+2	6	Round 2
3	L2	Yeovil Town	3	1	0	1	1	4	2	+2	4
4	ACA	West Ham United U21	3	0	0	0	3	0	8	−8	0

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Yeovil Town	0–0 (3–4 p)	Exeter City	Yeovil
19:45 BST		Report		Stadium: Huish Park Attendance: 1,518 Referee: Trevor Kettle
	Penalties
	Jaiyesimi Olomola Dickinson Pattison Patrick		Jay Collins Ogbene Abrahams Sparkes

18 September 2018 (2018-09-18)	Bristol Rovers	2–0	West Ham United U21	Bristol
19:45 BST	Jakubiak 57' Lockyer 82'			Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 1,021

25 September 2018 (2018-09-25)	Exeter City	2–0	West Ham United U21	Exeter
19:45 BST	Forte 20', 30'			Stadium: St James Park Attendance: 1,114 Referee: Brett Huxtable

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Bristol Rovers	2–0	Yeovil Town	Bristol
19:45 BST	Jakubiak 50' Rodman 85'			Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 1,179

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Yeovil Town	4–0	West Ham United U21	Yeovil
19:45 GMT	Johnson 11' (o.g.) Akinola 48' (o.g.) James 65' Mahmoutovic 83'	Report		Stadium: Huish Park Attendance: 720 Referee: Brett Huxtable

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Exeter City	2–0	Bristol Rovers	Exeter
19:45 GMT	Forte 50' Randall 81'			Stadium: St James Park Attendance: 873

Group E

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L2	Cheltenham Town	3	2	0	0	1	8	6	+2	6	Round 2
2	ACA	Arsenal U21	3	2	0	0	1	8	7	+1	6	Round 2
3	L2	Forest Green Rovers	3	1	0	1	1	6	4	+2	4
4	L1	Coventry City	3	0	1	0	2	1	6	−5	2

Source: EFL.com

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Forest Green Rovers	4–0	Cheltenham Town	Nailsworth
19:30 BST	Grubb 14' Campbell 48' Williams 85' Pearce 90'	Report		Stadium: The New Lawn Attendance: 1,074 Referee: Lee Swabey

12 September 2018 (2018-09-12)	Coventry City	0–3	Arsenal U21	Coventry
19:45		Report	Smith Rowe 4' Nketiah 77' Willock 90'	Stadium: Ricoh Arena Attendance: 2,375

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Coventry City	1–1 (4–2 p)	Forest Green Rovers	Coventry
19:45	Hiwula 3'	Report	Pearce 68'	Stadium: Ricoh Arena Attendance: 1,341
	Penalties
	Hiwula Bakayoko Camwell Kelly Hyam		Worthington Williams Grubb Archibald

30 October 2018 (2018-10-30)	Cheltenham Town	6–2	Arsenal U21	Cheltenham
19:45	Clements 8' Boyle 32' Maddox 48', 50' Mooney 84' Broom 90'	Report	Burton 7' John-Jules 35' Gilmour 62' (pen.)	Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 1,431

7 November 2018 (2018-11-07)	Forest Green Rovers	1–3	Arsenal U21	Nailsworth
19:00	Grubb 62'	Report	Willock 39' (pen.), 42' John-Jules 85'	Stadium: The New Lawn Attendance: 1,602

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Cheltenham Town	2–0	Coventry City	Cheltenham
19:45	Maddox 33' Boyle 48'			Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 1,296

Group F

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Oxford United (Q)	3	2	1	7	2	+5	6	Round 2
2	L2	Northampton Town (Q)	3	2	1	4	2	+2	6	Round 2
3	L1	Wycombe Wanderers (E)	3	2	1	3	4	−1	6
4	ACA	Fulham U21 (E)	3	0	3	1	7	−6	0

First match(es) will be played: 4 September 2018. Source: EFL.com
(E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Northampton Town	0–1	Wycombe Wanderers	Sixfields Stadium
19:45		Report	Kashket 11'	Attendance: 1,053

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Oxford United	3–0	Fulham U21	Kassam Stadium
19:45	Smith 31' Holmes 58' Spasov 58' (pen.)		Stahl 50'	Attendance: 1,116

18 September 2018 (2018-09-18)	Wycombe Wanderers	2–1	Fulham U21	High Wycombe
19:45	Samuel 3' Kashket 90+4'	Report	Thompson 54'	Stadium: Adams Park Attendance: 595

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Oxford United	1–2	Northampton Town	Kassam Stadium
19:45	Henry 24'		Van Veen 55' Pierre 65' O'Toole 90'	Attendance: 929

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Northampton Town	2–0	Fulham U21	Sixfields Stadium
19:45	Pierre 17' Hoskins 20'			Attendance: 1,059

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	Wycombe Wanderers	0–3	Oxford United	High Wycombe
19:45		Report	Brannagan 1' Browne 31' Smith 53'	Stadium: Adams Park Attendance: 1,313

Group G

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	ACA	Swansea City U21 (Q)	3	2	0	0	1	2	5	−3	6	Round 2
2	L1	AFC Wimbledon (Q)	3	1	1	0	1	6	3	+3	5	Round 2
3	L1	Charlton Athletic (E)	3	1	0	1	1	10	3	+7	4
4	L2	Stevenage (E)	3	1	0	0	2	5	12	−7	3

First match(es) will be played: 4 September 2018. Source: EFL.com
(E) Eliminated; (Q) Qualified to the phase indicated

28 August 2018 (2018-08-28)	Stevenage	5–0	Swansea City U21	Stevenage
19:45	Kennedy 44' (pen.), 45+1' Guthrie 69' (pen.), 81', 90+1'	Report		Stadium: Broadhall Way Attendance: 470 Referee: Kevin Johnson

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Charlton Athletic	2–2 (2–4 p)	AFC Wimbledon	Charlton
19:45 BST	Sarr 43' Mascoll 84'	Report	Hartigan 27' Soares 49'	Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 1,244 Referee: K. Johnson
	Penalties
	Ajose Morgan Lapslie Hackett-Fairchild		Appiah Hartigan Pinnock Hanson

18 September 2018 (2018-09-18)	AFC Wimbledon	0–1	Swansea City U21	Kingston upon Thames
19:45		Report	Lewis 90'	Stadium: Kingsmeadow Attendance: 306

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Stevenage	0–8	Charlton Athletic	Stevenage
19:45 BST		Report	Pratley 25' Stevenson 27', 59', 74' (Pen.) Ajose 34' Vetokele 48', 58' Lapslie 87'	Stadium: Broadhall Way Attendance: 793 Referee: L. Swabey

6 November 2018 (2018-11-06)	AFC Wimbledon	4–0	Stevenage	Kingston upon Thames
19:45	Appiah 1' Wordsworth 28' Garratt 68' Egan 79'	Report		Stadium: Kingsmeadow Attendance: 304 Referee: Gavin Ward

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Charlton Athletic	0–1	Swansea City U21	Charlton
19:45 GMT		Report	Marić 55'	Stadium: The Valley Attendance: 740 Referee: C. Breakspear

Group H

Pos	Lge	Team	Pld	W	PW	PL	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	L1	Luton Town	3	2	0	0	1	6	3	+3	6	Round 2
2	L1	Peterborough United	3	1	0	2	0	7	6	+1	5	Round 2
3	ACA	Brighton & Hove Albion U21	3	1	1	0	1	6	6	0	5
4	L2	Milton Keynes Dons	3	0	1	0	2	5	9	−4	2

Source: Sky Sports

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Luton Town	2–1	Brighton & Hove Albion U21	Kenilworth Road
19:45	Jarvis 5' Grant 79'	Report	Connolly 86'	Attendance: 1,318 Referee: John Busby

4 September 2018 (2018-09-04)	Milton Keynes Dons	3–3 (6–5 p)	Peterborough United	Stadium MK
19:45	Aneke 6', 45+1' Healey 33'	Report	Cooper 56' Walker 87' Godden 90'	Attendance: 2,404 Referee: Brett Huxtable

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Luton Town	3–0	Milton Keynes Dons	Kenilworth Road
19:45	Sheehan 17' Lualua 29' Grant 60'			Attendance: 875 (208 away) Referee: Craig Hicks

9 October 2018 (2018-10-09)	Peterborough United	2–2 (4–5 p)	Brighton & Hove Albion U21	ABAX Stadium
19:45	Godden 29' Cummings 52'	Report	Connolly 71' J. Davies 80'	Attendance: 1,872
	Penalties
	Godden Toney Ward Reed Dembélé		J. Davies Gyökeres Normann White Connolly

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Milton Keynes Dons	2–3	Brighton & Hove Albion U21	Stadium MK
19:45	Agard 6' Hancox 41'		Connolly 23', 69', 76'	Attendance: 1,018 (63 Away)

13 November 2018 (2018-11-13)	Peterborough United	2–1	Luton Town	ABAX Stadium
19:45	Daniel 19' Toney 36'		O'Malley 73' (o.g.)	Attendance: 2,107 Referee: Andy Woolmer

Knockout Stage

Round 2

The round 2 draw took place on 16 November with ties due to be played from the week beginning 3 December. Teams were drawn in a regionalised format, with the proviso that no teams from the same Group Stage group can meet. To ensure this, group winners from groups A to D were drawn against group runners-up from groups E to H in the same section, and vice versa. Teams listed 1st are at home and won their group in Round 1.

If scores are level after 90 minutes in Rounds 2, 3, and 4, the game will be determined by the taking of penalties.

Northern Section

4 December 2018	Newcastle United U21 (ACA)	1–1 (5–3 p)	Macclesfield Town (L2)	Newcastle upon Tyne
19:00 GMT	Sørensen 23'		Wilson 84'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 1,126 Referee: Ben Toner
	Penalties
	Bailey Roberts Gibson Watts Sangare		Smith Stephens Lowe Wilson

4 December 2018	Barnsley (L1)	3–3 (3–5 p)	Manchester City U21 (ACA)	Barnsley
19:30 GMT	Adeboyejo 17' Williams 61' Lindsay 65'		Matondo 45+2' Poveda 59', 74'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 3,070 Referee: Oliver Yates
	Penalties
	Moore Mowatt Thiam Brown		Sandler Richards Matondo Poveda Pozo

4 December 2018	Accrington Stanley (L1)	2–2 (4–2 p)	Lincoln City (L2)	Accrington
19:45 GMT	Brown 8' Clark 71'		Green 7' McCombe 61'	Stadium: Wham Stadium Attendance: 746 (154 away) Referee: Anthony Backhouse
	Penalties
	Hall Zanzala McConville Barlaser Clark		Gordon Chapman Green Rhead

4 December 2018	Mansfield Town (L2)	0–1	Bury (L2)	Mansfield
19:45 GMT			Telford 35' Dawson 85'	Stadium: One Call Stadium Attendance: 1,029 (27 away) Referee: Robert Lewis

4 December 2018	Port Vale (L2)	4–0	Stoke City U21 (ACA)	Stoke-on-Trent
19:45 GMT	Pope 6' Montaño 40', 42' Hannant 66'			Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 7,940 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

4 December 2018	Sunderland (L1)	2–0	Notts County (L2)	Sunderland
19:45 GMT	Jones 22' (o.g.) Sinclair 73' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 8,580 Referee: Graham Salisbury

11 December 2018	Rochdale (L1)	2–0	Oldham Athletic (L2)	Rochdale
19:00 GMT	Rafferty 90+2' (pen.) Adshead 90+3'		Maouche 51'	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 1,854 Referee: Oliver Langford

5 December 2018	Shrewsbury Town (L1)	2–1	Walsall (L1)	Shrewsbury
19:45 GMT	Gillied 24' Loft 72'			Stadium: New Meadow Attendance: 1857 (239 Away) Referee: Peter Wright

Southern Section

4 December 2018	Chelsea U21 (ACA)	2–1	AFC Wimbledon (L1)	London
19:00 GMT	Brown 37' (pen.) Redan 47'		Wordsworth 70' 88'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 1,906 Referee: Charles Breakspear

4 December 2018	Exeter City (L2)	0–2	Peterborough United (L1)	Exeter
19:15 GMT			Toney 67' Cummings 77'	Stadium: St James Park Attendance: 746 Referee: Alan Young

4 December 2018	Cambridge United (L2)	1–1 (2–4 p)	Northampton Town (L2)	Cambridge
19:45 GMT	Maris 9'		van Veen 89'	Stadium: Abbey Stadium Attendance: 648 Referee: Brett Huxtable
	Penalties
	Azeez Brown Amoo Lambe		van Veen Taylor Foley Waters McWilliams

4 December 2018	Cheltenham Town (L2)	1–1 (7–6 p)	Newport County (L2)	Cheltenham
19:45 GMT	Addai 68'		Amond 18'	Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 739 Referee: Andy Woolmer
	Penalties
	Thomas Forster Tozer Clements Jones Mooney Field		Amond Butler Labadie Sheehan Semenyo Demetriou Harris

4 December 2018	Portsmouth (L1)	2–1	Arsenal U21 (ACA)	Portsmouth
19:45 GMT	Pitman 10' Green 83'		Saka 66'	Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 3,109 Referee: Thomas Bramall

5 December 2018	Luton Town (L1)	1–1 (2–4 p)	Southend United (L1)	Luton
19:45 GMT	Read 81'		McLaughlin 88'	Stadium: Kenilworth Road Attendance: 1,545 Referee: Darren Drysdale
	Penalties
	Jones Sheehan Jarvis Hylton		Mantom Kightly McLaughlin McCoulsky

5 December 2018	Swansea City U21 (ACA)	1–2	Bristol Rovers (L1)	Swansea
19:45 GMT	Garrick 54'		Craig 58' Jakubiak 89'	Stadium: Liberty Stadium Attendance: 699 Referee: Chris Sarginson

18 December 2018	Oxford United (L1)	3–0	Tottenham Hotspur U21 (ACA)	Oxford
19:45 GMT	Raglan 12' Smith 18' McMahon 48'			Stadium: Kassam Stadium Attendance: 1,422 Referee: Kevin Johnson

Round 3

The draw for round 3 was held on Saturday, 8 December. Northern and Southern section teams were still segregated this round and will be brought together in the next round (the quarter-finals). No seeding is used from this point: all teams within their denoted section are in a blind draw.

Northern Section

8 January 2019	Rochdale (L1)	2–4	Manchester City U21 (ACA)	Rochdale
	McNulty 4' Dooley 29'		Bolton 50' Braaf 67', 82' Richards 84'	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 2,176

8 January 2019	Sunderland (L1)	4–0	Newcastle United U21 (ACA)	Sunderland
19:45	Watts 49' (o.g.) Wyke 52' Maguire 78' Kimpioka 86'	Report		Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 16,654 Referee: Tony Harrington

8 January 2019	Accrington Stanley (L1)	2–4	Bury (L2)	Accrington
	Clark 10' Kee 38'		Telford 55', 74' Maynard 57' Mayor 84'	Stadium: Crown Ground Attendance: 1,136

8 January 2019	Port Vale (L2)	1–1 (4–3 p)	Shrewsbury Town (L1)	Stoke-on-Trent
	Pope 83'		Sears 63'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 1,355
	Penalties
	Oyeleke Miller Pope Kay Hannant		Okenabirhie Gilliead Angol Eisa Barnett

Southern Section

8 January 2019	Southend United (L1)	0–2	Portsmouth (L1)	Southend-on-Sea
		Report	Dennis 2' Evans 45+1'	Stadium: Roots Hall Attendance: 1,649

8 January 2019	Cheltenham Town (L2)	1–1 (1–4 p)	Oxford United (L1)	Cheltenham
	Dawson 64'	Report	Brannagan 45+1'	Stadium: Whaddon Road Attendance: 1,288
	Penalties
	Thomas Clements Hussey		Mousinho Henry Graham Brannagan

8 January 2019	Northampton Town (L2)	1–2	Bristol Rovers (L1)	Northampton
	Crooks 76'	Report	Broadbent 45' Payne 58'	Stadium: Sixfields Stadium Attendance: 1,312

9 January 2019	Chelsea U21 (ACA)	1–3	Peterborough United (L1)	London
	Nartey 45'	Report	Dembélé 65' Toney 72' Maddison 74'	Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 2,671

Round 4 / Quarter-finals

Quarter-final pairings are determined by means of an unseeded draw. There are no further segregated sections of the draw.

22 January 2019	Portsmouth (L1)	1–0	Peterborough United (L1)	Portsmouth
19:00	Wheeler 85'	Report		Stadium: Fratton Park Attendance: 3,313

22 January 2019	Bristol Rovers (L1)	3–0	Port Vale (L2)	Bristol
19:45	Clarke 16' Nichols 62' (pen.) Rodman 68'	Report		Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 2,016

22 January 2019	Bury (L2)	5–2	Oxford United (L1)	Bury
19:45	Telford 16' Thompson 26' Moore 41' Mayor 55', 76'	Report	Henry 24' (pen.) Carruthers 51'	Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 1,238

22 January 2019	Sunderland (L1)	2–0	Manchester City U21 (ACA)	Sunderland
19:45	Watmore 22' Gooch 65'	Report		Stadium: Stadium of Light Attendance: 14,679 Referee: Michael Salisbury

Semi-finals

The four winners from the quarter-finals will contest the semi-finals, with the pairings determined by an unseeded draw. Matches will be played as one leg, and will advance directly to penalties if the teams are tied after 90 minutes.^[6]

26 February 2019	Bury (L2)	0–3	Portsmouth (L1)	Bury
19:45			Evans 61' Hawkins 64' Curtis 77'	Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 3,900

5 March 2019	Bristol Rovers (L1)	0–2	Sunderland (L1)	Bristol
19:45			Grigg 44' Morgan 47'	Stadium: Memorial Stadium Attendance: 6,699

Final

The two winners from the semi-finals, Portsmouth and Sunderland, contested the final at Wembley Stadium on 31 March 2019. Portsmouth won 5–4 on penalties following a 2–2 draw after extra time to win their first EFL trophy.

31 March 2019

14:30 BST

Portsmouth	2–2 (a.e.t.)	Sunderland
Thompson 82' Lowe 114'	Report	McGeady 38', 119'
Penalties
Evans Pitman Brown Lowe Hawkins	5–4	McGeady Cattermole Gooch Power O'Nien

Wembley Stadium, London

Attendance: 85,021

Referee: Dean Whitestone

References

^ ^a ^b Anderson, John (2019). Football Yearbook 2019–20. London: Headline Publishing Group. p. 581. ISBN 978-1-4722-6111-3.
^ "Tottenham and Man City enter Checkatrade Trophy". BBC Sport. 30 June 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "Checkatrade Trophy: Arsenal become latest Premier League side to enter under-21 team". BBC Sport. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "Invited Under-21 teams confirmed for 2018/19 Checkatrade Trophy". English Football League. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "Under-21s to enter Checkatrade Trophy". Arsenal Football Club. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
^ "EFL Official Website -". Archived from the original on 2018-05-18. Retrieved 2019-01-10.

External links

Official website

[ATT-1] Anderson, John (2019). Football Yearbook 2019–20. London: Headline Publishing Group. p. 581. ISBN 978-1-4722-6111-3.

[2] "Tottenham and Man City enter Checkatrade Trophy". BBC Sport. 30 June 2017. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[3] "Checkatrade Trophy: Arsenal become latest Premier League side to enter under-21 team". BBC Sport. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[4] "Invited Under-21 teams confirmed for 2018/19 Checkatrade Trophy". English Football League. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[5] "Under-21s to enter Checkatrade Trophy". Arsenal Football Club. 18 June 2018. Retrieved 8 July 2018.

[6] "EFL Official Website -". Archived from the original on 2018-05-18. Retrieved 2019-01-10.

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