Newcastle and Palace U21s reach EFL Trophy knockouts as Cambridge hit six

Newcastle United and Crystal Palace booked places in the EFL Trophy knockout stages on Tuesday as their under-21 teams won away at senior opposition. BBC Sport reported that Newcastle beat Rotherham United 1-0 and Palace defeated Newport County 2-1, while Cambridge United secured first place in their group with a 6-0 victory over Brighton's youngsters.

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Kyran Thompson scored the only goal at Rotherham, sending Newcastle through from Northern Group C alongside group leaders Bradford City. The result also ended Rotherham's involvement in the competition. Newcastle's pre-match club announcement had identified this final group fixture as an opportunity to reach the knockout rounds for the first time since the 2018/19 campaign, with a win guaranteeing qualification.

That success followed Newcastle's earlier 3-1 comeback victory at York City. The club's report of that match recorded second-half goals from Thompson and Afner Ca, both scoring for the under-21 side for the first time. Goalkeeper Roman Dowell featured in that win, which Newcastle said was their first EFL Trophy victory inside 90 minutes since November 2018.

Palace also advanced by a single-goal margin, with David Angibeaud scoring the winner at Newport. Their 2-1 success ensured passage from Southern Group E alongside Plymouth Argyle. Both Palace and Newcastle secured their qualification against League Two hosts, but the evening produced a very different outcome for another Premier League academy side.

Brighton Under-21s were eliminated after conceding six at League One Cambridge in Southern Group G. Ben Barclay, the visitors' 30-year-old over-age player, was dismissed for deliberate handball before half-time. Isaac Heath converted the penalty, and Cambridge added five more goals over the next half-hour. Callum Stead scored twice as the home side completed three wins from three group matches.

In the night's other fixture, Doncaster Rovers won 4-1 away to Rochdale in Northern Group H. According to BBC Sport, that result eliminated both Rochdale and Liverpool Under-21s. Liverpool can no longer finish above third, ending their prospects of progressing even though they were not involved in Tuesday's match.