2016–17 EFL Trophy

2016–17 EFL Trophy
Country  England
 Wales
Teams 64
Defending champions Barnsley
Champions Coventry City
Runners-up Oxford United

The 2016–17 EFL Trophy, known as the Checkatrade Trophy for sponsorship reasons,[1] was the 33rd season in the history of the competition and the 1st since being rebranded from Football League Trophy. It was played as a knock-out tournament for English football clubs in League One and League Two of the English football system and for the first time was expanded to include 16 Premier League and Championship "B Teams" with Category One status as part of a trial.

In all, 64 clubs entered the competition. Barnsley were the reigning champions,[2] but were ineligible to defend their title following promotion to the Championship.[3]

Change in format

On 9 June 2016, the newly rebranded EFL announced that the 2016–17 EFL Trophy competition would include sixteen "category 1 Premier League academy sides" for the first time. The first knockout round would also be replaced with a new group stage, the sixteen regional groups each to comprise three League One/Two teams plus an academy side, with the top two teams from each group progressing to the knockout second round.[4]

Following the EFL's announcement of these format changes, many of the invited clubs declined to allow their academies to participate,[5] and their places had to filled by the academy sides of several Championship clubs.

Reception to the new format by League One and Two fans was overwhelmingly negative.[6] The opening rounds of fixtures were marked by record low attendances,[7] and the format changes were described as "a complete and utter failure".[8]

Participating clubs

  • Forty-eight clubs from League One and League Two
  • Sixteen invited Category One Academy teams.
  • Category One teams Relegated to League One however will miss out on having academies participating in the following tournament.
League One League Two Academies
Clubs
Total 24 24 16
Notes

Arsenal, Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur declined to participate.[9]

Category One teams Relegated to League One won't have academies participating in the following tournament but clubs promoted to the Championship will.

Eligibility criteria for players

  • For EFL clubs; a minimum of 5 'First Team' players in the starting 11 as defined under the competition’s existing rules.
  • For invited clubs – 6 of the starting 11 to be U21 (as at 30 June 2016).

Dates

The competition dates were announced in July 2016.[10]

Round Dates Number of teams
Round 1 (Group Stages) 29 August – 4 September 2016 64
3–9 October 2016
7–13 November 2016
Round 2 5–11 December 2016 32
Round 3 9–15 January 2017 16
Quarter-final 23–29 January 2017 8
Semi-Final 6–26 February 2017 4
Final 2 April 2017 (Wembley Stadium) 2

Group stage

  • Sixteen groups of 4 teams will be organised on a regionalised basis.
  • All groups will include one invited club and at least one club from each of Leagues One and Two.
  • All clubs will play each other once, either home or away (Academies play all group matches away from home).
  • Invited clubs will play one home game at the club's first team stadium.
  • Clubs will be awarded 3 points for a win and 1 point for a draw.
  • In the event of a drawn game (after 90 minutes), a penalty shootout will be held with the winning team earning an additional point.
  • The top two teams will progress to the Knockout Stage.

Northern Section

Group A

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L2 Cheltenham Town 3 2 0 0 1 4 3 +1 6 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Blackpool 3 1 1 0 1 3 3 0 5
3 ACA Everton Academy 3 1 0 1 1 4 3 +1 4
4 L1 Bolton Wanderers 3 1 0 0 2 1 3 −2 3
Source: EFL.com

Group B

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 ACA Wolverhampton Wanderers Academy 3 2 0 0 1 8 4 +4 6 Advance to Round 2
2 L1 Chesterfield 3 2 0 0 1 5 5 0 6
3 L2 Crewe Alexandra 3 1 0 0 2 5 5 0 3
4 L2 Accrington Stanley 3 1 0 0 2 4 8 −4 3
Source: EFL.com

Group C

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Bradford City 3 2 0 0 1 5 4 +1 6 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Morecambe 3 2 0 0 1 7 7 0 6
3 L1 Bury 3 1 0 1 1 6 4 +2 4
4 ACA Stoke City Reserves and Academy 3 0 1 0 2 2 5 −3 2
Source: EFL.com

Group D

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L2 Carlisle United 3 3 0 0 0 11 6 +5 9 Advance to Round 2
2 L1 Oldham Athletic 3 1 1 0 1 8 7 +1 5
3 L1 Fleetwood Town 3 1 0 0 2 3 6 −3 3
4 ACA Blackburn Rovers Academy 3 0 0 1 2 2 5 −3 1
Source: EFL.com

Group E

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L2 Doncaster Rovers 3 1 1 1 0 4 2 +2 6 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Mansfield Town 3 2 0 0 1 4 4 0 6
3 L1 Port Vale 3 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 5
4 ACA Derby County Academy 3 0 0 1 2 4 6 −2 1
Source: EFL.com

Group F

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Rochdale 3 2 1 0 0 5 3 +2 8 Advance to Round 2
2 ACA Sunderland Academy 3 2 0 1 0 4 2 +2 7
3 L2 Notts County 3 1 0 0 2 4 5 −1 3
4 L2 Hartlepool United 3 0 0 0 3 2 5 −3 0
Source: EFL.com

Group G

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Scunthorpe United 3 3 0 0 0 6 1 +5 9 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Cambridge United 3 2 0 0 1 3 3 0 6
3 L1 Shrewsbury Town 3 1 0 0 2 3 3 0 3
4 ACA Middlesbrough Academy 3 0 0 0 3 2 7 −5 0
Source: EFL.com

Group H

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Walsall 3 3 0 0 0 8 3 +5 9 Advance to Round 2
2 ACA Leicester City Academy 3 1 1 0 1 1 1 0 5
3 L1 Sheffield United 3 1 0 1 1 5 4 +1 4
4 L2 Grimsby Town 3 0 0 0 3 4 10 −6 0
Source: EFL.com

Southern Section

Group A

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L2 Yeovil Town 3 2 0 1 0 6 3 +3 7 Advance to Round 2
2 ACA Reading Academy 3 1 1 0 1 5 6 −1 5
3 L2 Portsmouth 3 1 0 1 1 6 6 0 4
4 L1 Bristol Rovers 3 0 1 0 2 2 4 −2 2
Source: EFL.com

Group B

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 AFC Wimbledon 3 2 0 0 1 5 3 +2 6 Advance to Round 2
2 ACA Swansea City Academy 3 2 0 0 1 4 4 0 6
3 L2 Plymouth Argyle 3 1 0 0 2 5 5 0 3
4 L2 Newport County 3 1 0 0 2 4 6 −2 3
Source: EFL.com

Group C

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Swindon Town 3 1 2 0 0 3 2 +1 7 Advance to Round 2
2 L1 Oxford United 3 1 0 2 0 5 3 +2 5
3 L2 Exeter City 3 1 0 1 1 6 7 −1 4
4 ACA Chelsea Academy 3 0 1 0 2 4 6 −2 2
Source: EFL.com

Group D

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Coventry City 3 3 0 0 0 11 5 +6 9 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Wycombe Wanderers 3 2 0 0 1 8 4 +4 6
3 ACA West Ham United Academy 3 0 1 0 2 3 8 −5 2
4 L1 Northampton Town 3 0 0 1 2 2 7 −5 1
Source: EFL.com

Group E

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 ACA Southampton Academy 3 2 0 1 0 6 1 +5 7 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Crawley Town 3 2 0 0 1 3 4 −1 6
3 L1 Charlton Athletic 3 0 1 1 1 1 3 −2 3
4 L2 Colchester United 3 0 1 0 2 2 4 −2 2
Source: EFL.com

Group F

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 ACA Norwich City Academy 3 3 0 0 0 15 2 +13 9 Advance to Round 2
2 L1 Milton Keynes Dons 3 1 1 0 1 4 6 −2 5
3 L1 Peterborough United 3 1 0 0 2 3 8 −5 3
4 L2 Barnet 3 0 0 1 2 3 9 −6 1
Source: EFL.com

Group G

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Southend United 3 2 0 0 1 3 4 −1 6 Advance to Round 2
2 ACA Brighton & Hove Albion Academy 3 1 1 0 1 3 4 −1 5
3 L2 Stevenage 3 1 0 1 1 7 5 +2 4
4 L2 Leyton Orient 3 1 0 0 2 3 3 0 3
Source: EFL.com

Group H

Pos Div Team Pld W PW PL L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 L1 Millwall 3 3 0 0 0 7 2 +5 9 Advance to Round 2
2 L2 Luton Town 3 2 0 0 1 5 4 +1 6
3 L1 Gillingham 3 1 0 0 2 4 4 0 3
4 ACA West Bromwich Albion U21 3 0 0 0 3 0 6 −6 0
Source: Sky Sports

Knockout stage

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

Round 2

The Round 2 draw was made on 10 November 2016.[13] The 32 remaining teams were drawn into 16 ties; each group winner will be at home to a runner-up from a different group within their own region.

Northern Section

Southern Section

Round 3

The Round 3 draw was made on 8 December 2016. The 16 remaining teams were drawn into 8 ties as a "free draw."

Quarter-finals

The Quarter-final draw took place on 12 January 2017. The 8 remaining teams were drawn into 4 ties as a "free draw."

Semi-finals

The Semi-final draw took place on 26 January 2017. The 4 remaining teams were drawn into 2 ties as a "free draw."

7 February 2017 (2017-02-07) Semi Final Coventry City 2–1 Wycombe Wanderers Ricoh Arena, Coventry
19:45 Beavon  11'
G. Thomas  19'		 Report Akinfenwa  55' Attendance: 11,672
Referee: Darren England
1 March 2017 (2017-03-01) Semi Final Luton Town 2–3 Oxford United Kenilworth Road, Luton
19:45 Vassell  72'
Hylton  82'		 Report Edwards  10'
Mpanzu  69' (o.g.)
Johnson  85'		 Attendance: 6,901
Referee: Nigel Miller

Final

Coventry City 2–1 Oxford United
Bigirimana  11'
G. Thomas  55'		 Report Sercombe  75'
Attendance: 74,434
Referee: Chris Sarginson

Match proceeds

After deduction of match expenses, all proceeds will be split:

  • 45% Home club
  • 45% Away club
  • 10% to the pool account

Notes

  1. ↑ Originally scheduled to be played at the Olympic Stadium, this game was switched as a result of West Ham's tenancy terms[12]

References

  1. ↑ "EFL Trophy: Checkatrade check in as trophy title sponsor". English Football League. 4 August 2016.
  2. ↑ Cartwright, Phil. "Johnstone's Paint Trophy final: Barnsley 3-2 Oxford United". BBC.
  3. ↑ Wembley, Rob. "Barnsley 3-1 Millwall". BBC Sport.
  4. ↑ "Premier League trial for the trophy". EFL. 9 June 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  5. ↑ Smith, Alan (8 July 2016). "Premier League clubs to opt out of revamped EFL Trophy". The Guardian. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  6. ↑ Shepka, Phil (14 June 2016). "EFL Trophy: 'Overwhelming majority' against Premier League under-21 sides joining". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  7. ↑ "Checkatrade Trophy: Low crowds & manager cameos". BBC Sport. BBC. 30 August 2016. Retrieved 31 August 2016.
  8. ↑ Ashdown, John (8 November 2016). "The revamped EFL Trophy is a complete and utter failure – and here's why". The Guardian. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  9. ↑ "Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool & Manchester City among EFL Trophy rejections". BBC Sport. 27 July 2016. Retrieved 27 July 2016.
  10. ↑ "EFL Trophy: Format Confirmed For 2016/17". English Football League. 6 July 2016.
  11. 1 2 3 "Fixture dates: EFL Trophy & Premier League International Cup". Reading Football Club.
  12. ↑ Casey, Jeremy (27 July 2016). "Cobblers draw West Ham, Coventry and Wycombe in EFL Trophy". Northampton Chronicle. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
  13. ↑ "Checkatrade Trophy: Round Two draw". EFL. 10 November 2016. Retrieved 10 November 2016.
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