United take on League One outfit Doncaster Rovers at the Keepmoat Stadium on Tuesday night (7pm kick-off), with trips to Grimsby Town and Notts County to follow over the next two months.
Newcastle – one of 16 Academy sides taking part in the competition – made their Checkatrade bow last year, when they were knocked out at the first hurdle despite beating Crewe Alexandra in their opening group game.
For Dawson, though, later defeats to Port Vale and Oldham Athletic provided just as much food for thought as their victory at Gresty Road, and the Magpies’ coach acknowledged that his charges will have to be wary of the quality possessed by Donny, who have got off to an encouraging start in the third tier.
“I thought it was terrific for us last year, I really did,” he told nufc.co.uk. “We’re probably not so sure about the group we have at the moment, but previously, we’ve had players who think they should be out playing first-team football, and I think it’s always a good barometer for them to test themselves against some seasoned pros. A lot of these lads have played at the top level and they’re dropping down the leagues, or they’ve played at that level for 400 or 500 games.
“I thought it was a really good test for our group last year, and it’ll be an even bigger test this year, which will be good. We obviously had two great performances in our first two games – we were excellent against Crewe, who like to play the same kind of football we do, and against Port Vale, we just couldn’t score. We had a lot of the ball in their half, particularly in the second half. The step up against Oldham – League One opposition – was a real jump in quality, and I think it opened a lot of the lads’ eyes as to how good the level is.
“We’re expecting the same this time ‘round. Doncaster is just down the road. Cliff Byrne is there as a coach – he was with Sunderland’s Under-23s last year and he’ll know a lot about us. Notts County have changed manager, but I’m sure they’ll know a lot about us too, having had Kevin Nolan and Shola Ameobi there in the past. And Grimsby, I know (manager) Michael Jolley and his assistant, Anthony Limbrick, from the courses and qualifications I’ve done. I’ve got an idea of what kind of football they’ll be trying to play, but I’m sure Mike will have the same idea as to how we’ll try and do things.”
Tickets for Tuesday’s clash are priced at £5 for adults and £1 for under-17s. Under-7s can attend for free. Commentary of the game, provided by BBC Newcastle’s Matthew Raisbeck and John Anderson, will be available for free on NUFC TV.
