Our Young Whites are in Premier League 2 Play-Off action at Motspur Park on Monday evening (7pm kick-off), with Nottingham Forest the visitors.
The regular PL2 campaign came to its conclusion last weekend, with Hayden Mullins’ side finishing third and therefore setting up a home tie in the Round of 16 of the Play-Offs.
The Play-Offs: Explained
This season, all Category One academies were put into a 26-team league. Each team played 20 league matches during the regular season, with the top 16 teams qualifying for the Play-Offs.
Teams have been drawn against each other based on their league position, with the highest-placed side facing 16th, second playing 15th, etc.
As we finished third, we’ll be facing the side who finished in 14th, which was Nottingham Forest.
The winner of our Round of 16 tie will face Reading away in the quarter-finals between Friday 10th May and Monday 13th May.
By finishing in the top 12 in PL2, we have also qualified for next season’s Premier League International Cup.
Form
Fulham: LWWDW
Forest: LDWWD
A Look At Forest
We didn’t play Forest during the regular season, but they qualified for the Play-Offs having suffered just six defeats from their 20 games.
Forest also reached the Semi-Finals of the Premier League Cup. They led Tottenham 3-0 at half-time in their last four tie, before losing 4-3, meaning we will face Spurs in the Final later this month.
The Reds have enjoyed a good run of form ahead of the Play-Offs, with Warren Joyce’s side unbeaten in their last six league outings.
One To Watch: Jack Thompson
Forest’s season has been built off a solid defensive structure. They conceded 33 goals across their 20 PL2 fixtures – a record better than six of the teams who finished in the eight spots directly above them.
Four clean sheets in their last nine league outings also represents a solid return – and defender Jack Thompson has featured in eight of those games.
He has been nominated for PL2’s April Player of the Month, alongside fellow teammate and goalkeeper Aaron Bott.
