NEWPORT County AFC have been placed in a group with Plymouth Argyle and Swindon Town for the 2018-2019 Checkatrade Trophy.

The group will be completed by one of eight under-21 sides when the draw is made on Wednesday.

County will be drawn against an academy side from either Arsenal, Brighton & Hove Albion, Chelsea, Fulham, Southampton, Swansea City, Tottenham Hotspur or West Ham United in the southern section.

The 48 EFL clubs have been placed into pre-determined groups, with consideration given to ensure travel time is minimised for supporters and recovery time is maximised for players.

In addition, if there is a situation where two teams meet in the group stages for a second successive season, then the club who was at home in 2017-2018 will play away in 2018-2019.

All EFL clubs will play two of their three matches at home in the group stages.

Southampton under-21s will be prevented from being drawn with Portsmouth, and Newcastle United under-21s will avoid Sunderland in round one, as the EFL has committed to work in conjunction with the police to avoid high-profile clashes in the group stages.

The format for this year’s competition is much the same as last season, with only a couple of small changes to the regulations.

Players from EFL clubs who are out on loan in the National League and below are now eligible to feature in the competition, while invited teams have been restricted to fielding two players over the age of 21 and more than 40 first-team appearances.

Former Trophy winner Gregor Robertson will help conduct the draw, which will take place from 1pm on Wednesday.

For full details efl.com/news/2018/july/checkatrade-trophy-round-one-draw-information/