Leeds will be forced to make several changes tomorrow, and Simon Grayson is determined not to underestimate Kettering Town.
Andrew Hughes is unlikely to be fit to face the Poppies after limping out of the win over Orient in midweek, so loan signing Tony Capaldi could make an early Leeds debut left back. Simon Grayson told the official site "Tony's last game was the South Wales derby. He's got plenty of experience playing in tough games and I wouldn't have any problems throwing him in if I wanted to." But he didn’t confirm that Capaldi would be playing, as he also said "I thought Aidy White did well the other night when he came on in that role".
Capaldi is the only loan player available, because the main clubs of the other four have all refused permission for them to play, because they don’t want to have them cup-tied. Crowe and Becchio could return after both played the full 90 in the reserves in midweek, but Grayson will have to assess whether they are fit enough to withstand the rigours of an FA Cup tie.
On the face of it, this game is strikingly similar to the match at Histon last season, being a second round tie away to a side in the top five of the Conference, though without the same atrocious weather conditions. Leeds are determined to avoid a repeat of that humiliation, though it’s likely that only four of the players who faced Histon will be in action tomorrow. Grayson said "The players involved were very disappointed, but we have a group of strong characters here who won't let that situation affect them”.
“Everybody is looking for an upset, that's why the cameras are there. We're the highest ranked team playing against a Conference side, and a decent Conference side at that. We know it will be a difficult game but if we're anything like we have been over the past three or four months, and show the quality on the ball that we have, we know we can win the game. But we're under no illusion that it will be easy because it won't."
Kettering seem to have hit something of a bad patch in the last few weeks. In the wake of the council’s rejection of their new stadium plans, manager Mark Cooper decided to leave to take up the vacant manager’s job at Peterborough, taking big central defender Exodus Geohaghon along with him. Goalkeeper Lee Harper took as player manager, but Kettering have since suffered home defeats in both his games in charge.
Harper is unlikely to play tomorrow because of injury, but has been keen to outdo even Simon Grayson’s recent activity in the loan maket. Midfielder Craig Dobson, 25, has signed from Mansfield, with striker Kithson Bain, 27, coming from Tranmere, and two players coming from MK Dons in midfielder Ritchie Partridge, 29, left-back Sol Davis, 30. All except Dobson are available tomorrow and Harper told BBC Radio Northampton: "They've played at high levels. It won't faze them, and they will be good additions."
Other Kettering team news is that midfielder James Dance is Cup-tied and full-back James Jennings is still missing with a knee injury. But they will be able to call on our former striker Anthony Elding, who is back at the Northamptonshire club on loan after falling out of favour at Crewe. He told the Yorkshire Post. "We've got a lot of ex-league players and fast, attacking players and obviously Kettering did well in the cup last year and won't be frightened of Leeds and it's a great opportunity to get a result”.
But despite Elding’s optimism, I think Leeds will be too good for an out-of-form Kettering tomorrow. The Histon debacle occurred when Leeds were losing ground rapidly under Gary Mc.Allister, but a year on we’re a much stronger outfit under Grayson. Had Mark Cooper still been in charge of Kettering I’d have tipped them to take us to a replay, but in their present circumstances I think Leeds will be able to secure a victory at the first time of asking.