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Juniors' Cup Clash Down By The Riverside
Written by Newcastle Utd
Coach Dave Watson insists his Newcastle youngsters are ready for Thursday's FA Youth Cup fourth round tie at Middlesbrough
By Dan King - Newcastle United Digital Editor
Newcastle face Middlesbrough in the fourth round of the FA Youth Cup on Thursday night, with coach Dave Watson roaring: "Bring it on."
Kick-off at the Riverside Stadium is 7pm, with United hoping to do even better than last year when they reached the quarter-finals before losing 3-2 after extra-time to eventual winners Chelsea.
The Teessiders are currently top of the Barclays Under-18 Premier League North and won 1-0 when the two sides met at Rockliffe Park in September.
But Watson - who hopes to have Callum Roberts available after the 17-year-old made his senior debut in the FA Cup defeat at Leicester last weekend - is confident that his side can see off Boro, whose coach, Craig Liddle, was in the Darlington dugout when United beat the Quakers 3-0 in the FA Youth Cup third round third round in December 2011.
"We've had a good week to have a run at it after the Christmas break and all that so we're all ready; bring it on," Watson told nufcTV.
"It's a tough draw - Middlesbrough are going well in the league - but our lads have been magnificent recently. We've been scoring lots of goals, creating lots of chances and it's been good to see.
"Defensively we've tightened up as well so overall, as a team, we're in the right place at the moment.
"It's a derby match and I'm sure there'll be a big crowd there and with it being at the proper ground, it's fantastic for the kids. The experience they'll get from that will stand them in good stead for the future."
Boro came from behind to beat Southend 4-3 in a dramatic match at Roots Hall in the third round, while Newcastle overcame Millwall 3-1 at The Den.
A Roberts penalty opened the scoring before Sean Longstaff and Ben Drennan added further goals and Watson said: "We applied ourselves really well and the attitude of the lads was fantastic throughout the game.
"I felt we were always going to win it - it was just a case of when we scored the goals. Overall we were quite comfortable but they still applied themselves really well, the kids, and that's the important thing."
Admission at the Riverside Stadium is £3 for adults and £1 for under-18s and over-65s. Tickets can be bought from the main ticket office to the right end of the West Stand. Car parking is £2 on a first come, first served basis.