Neil Cox confirmed that Jon Meades will be in the squad for tomorrow night's Checkatrade Trophy group match against Luton Town.
Meades (pictured) took a big step on the comeback trail after knee surgery by getting an hour under his belt for the development squad last week and he could get more game-time tomorrow (7.45 pm kick-off at the Cherry Red Records Stadium).
Following the previous Southern Group F wins in the competition so far against Barnet and Tottenham Under-21s, young players will also be handed more opportunities.
"Jon Meades will be in the squad," said Neil. "It's a bit too soon for Kwesi, as he needs to do more fitness work and then we will see how he is. We will be looking to get as many of the young boys into the team as we can, but some of the other players also need a game. It gives a chance to players who have not been playing lately. We will have a look to see how the squad is, as we have a few knocks and bruises. Barry Fuller is really badly bruised after Saturday and we have a couple of others with knocks. We will have a look at it tomorrow and see what the strongest side is that we can put out."
With an FA Cup tie against Lincoln City coming up on Saturday and our U-18s also in FA Youth Cup action on Wednesday, Neil added that it's a significant week for the club.
"It's a big week," said Neil. "We have got the FA Cup tie and we are looking forward to it. It will be a good test. We went to watch Lincoln the other night and they are a good side. The Under-18s also play in the FA Youth Cup, so it's a big week for the football club.
"We were a little bit disappointed after the game on Saturday. We've just had a look at the DVD of the game with a few of the boys. A lot of positives came out of it, but we were looking to get points on the day, so it was disappointing."
Rob Cornell's full interview with Neil Cox is now on our iFollow channel.
Below is a reminder of player eligibility for EFL clubs in the Checkatrade Trophy this season:
• A club can play any goalkeeper in the competition;
• The revised requirement of Rule 7.3 – '4 qualifying outfield Players from 10'.
A qualifying outfield player would be:
Any player that meets the current criteria (excluding goalkeepers), includes those who:
• Have started the previous or following first team fixture.
• Are in the top 10 players at the club for starting appearances in league and domestic cup competitions for the current season.
• Have made 40 or more first team appearances in their career.
• Are on loan from either a Premier League or Category 1 academy club.