Papa John’s Trophy: Who could Bristol Rovers face in the second round? When will the next fixtures take place?

It’s been three weeks since Bristol Rovers beat Swindon Town to reach the knockout stages of the EFL Trophy. The Gas won Bristol Rovers player ratings: Two stars get 8/10s and plenty get 7/10s in Swindon victory">3-0 against the nine-men of Swindon with Ryan Loft, Harry Anderson and Luke McCormick all on target.

It had looked like Rovers would top the group but Plymouth Argyle scored a 91st minute winner against Crystal Palace meant that Joey Barton’s side had to settle for second spot.

The EFL Trophy acted as a platform for fringe players to get vital first-team minutes. It was also the start of an eight-game unbeaten run which started with a 2-0 win against Crystal Palace and finished with a 4-2 loss to promotion-chasing Derby County.

Attention now turns to who they will play next in the competition and when the matches will be played. Here’s everything you need to know about the next round of the Papa John’s Trophy and what it means for Rovers.

Who could Rovers face?

As a result of Bristol Rovers finishing second, they are all-but consigned to playing as the away team in the second round.

The Southern teams to have topped their group excluding Plymouth are: Ipswich Town, Chelsea Under-21’s, Forest Green, Stevenage, MK Dons, AFC Wimbledon, Colchester United.

All the Under-21’s teams have to play their games away from their home ground and so a match against them would be reversed to a home tie. The Blues are a familiar foe to Rovers having faced them in the 2020/21 and 2021/22 campaign.

When is the second round?

Ties are due to take place on the week commencing Monday, November 21, which is a day after the World Cup starts. Papa John’s Trophy matches are played in midweek and so the possible dates are either Tuesday, November 22 or Wednesday, November 23.

Rovers host Peterborough United on Saturday, November 19 before their EFL Trophy match. The second round of the FA Cup takes play on Saturday, November 26, where Rovers will host Boreham Wood.

When will the EFL Trophy draw take place?

The draw is to take place on Friday, November 11. The draw will take place on Sky Sports following the channel’s coverage of Birmingham City vs Sunderland.