Macc eye cup shock

Tuesday, 10/08/2010

by Shoot's Macclesfield blogger, Tom White.

Gary Simpson takes his Macclesfield Town team to the Walkers stadium tonight for the first round of the League Cup.

The two teams met at the same stage of the competition last season at the Moss Rose with the Foxes coming through with a 2-0 victory.

The Silkmen secured a 2-2 draw at Stevenage in the first game of the season at the weekend, and will tonight be looking to produce a cup shock to ignite their season.

Ex-Leicester hitman Ricky Sappleton will still be sidelined for Simpson’s men along with central defenders Paul Morgan and Hamza Bencherif.

However, from the starting XI on Saturday there are no fresh injury concerns and Simpson is expected to name the same side that impressed away at the weekend.

That means another first for new striker Tyrone Barnett who will make his first League Cup appearance just three days after playing and scoring in his first Football League game.

Barnett has highly impressed in pre-season and the ex-Hednesford man is striking up a lethal partnership with Emile Sinclair, who himself has been given a new lease of life in his new position up front after spending most of last season on the right wing.

The Silkmen faithful would be forgiven for having more than half an eye on their crunch league fixture on Saturday against Shrewsbury Town but will no doubt be dreaming of that cup shock every football fan optimistically believes their team can produce.

Sadly this dream may be a bridge too far for a young Macclesfield team still learning.

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