The 2012–13 Football League Trophy, known as the Johnstone's Paint Trophy for sponsorship reasons, is the 32nd season in the history of the competition. It is a knock-out tournament for English football clubs in League One and League Two, the third and fourth tiers of English football.
In all, 48 clubs will enter the competition. It is split into two sections, Northern and Southern, with the winners of each section contesting the final at Wembley Stadium. Chesterfield are the defending champions, having beaten Swindon Town in the previous year's final, 2–0.
First round The draw for the first round of the competition took place on 18 August 2012. Sixteen clubs were given a bye into the second round, and the remaining 32 clubs, including the holders, were divided into four geographical regions.
Northern section
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendanceNorth-West 1 Rochdale 2−2 Fleetwood Town 1,256 Rochdale won 4 – 2 on penalties 2 Carlisle United 1−1 Preston North End 3,471 Preston North End won 1 – 3 on penalties 3 Accrington Stanley 0−2 Morecambe 1,049 4 Port Vale 2−0 Tranmere Rovers 2,702North-East 5 Rotherham United 0−1 York City 3,975 6 Chesterfield 2−1 Oldham Athletic 2,384 7 Coventry City 0−0 Burton Albion 5,437 Coventry City won 10 – 9 on penalties 8 Scunthorpe United 1−2 Notts County 725
Southern section
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendanceSouth-West 1 Oxford United 1−0 Swindon Town 7,746 2 Bristol Rovers 0−3 Yeovil Town 2,810 3 Portsmouth 2−2 Bournemouth 5,979 Portsmouth won 4 – 3 on penalties 4 Exeter City 0−0 Aldershot Town 1,944 Aldershot Town won 4 – 3 on penaltiesSouth-East 5 Southend United 2−1 AFC Wimbledon 1,925 6 Dagenham & Redbridge 3−2 Stevenage 981 7 Northampton Town 1−0 Milton Keynes Dons 3,444 8 Crawley Town 3−2 Gillingham 1,249
Byes
Northern section Bradford City, Bury, Crewe Alexandra, Doncaster Rovers, Hartlepool United, Sheffield United, Shrewsbury Town, Walsall.
Southern section Barnet, Brentford, Cheltenham Town, Colchester United, Leyton Orient, Plymouth Argyle, Torquay United, Wycombe Wanderers.
Second round The draw for the second round of the competition took place on 8 September 2012, with matches played in the week commencing 8 October 2012.
Northern section
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendanceNorth-West 1 Shrewsbury Town 1–2 Crewe Alexandra 2,063 2 Rochdale 1–1 Bury 2,826 Bury won 5 – 4 on penalties 3 Morecambe 2–4 Preston North End 2,577 4 Walsall 2–2 Port Vale 2,845 Port Vale won 6 – 5 on penaltiesNorth-East 5 Doncaster Rovers 1–0 Chesterfield 4,030 6 York City 0–4 Coventry City 2,771 7 Notts County 1–4 Sheffield United 2,082 8 Hartlepool United 0–0 Bradford City 1,777 Bradford won 3 – 2 on penalties
Southern section
Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendanceSouth-West 1 Portsmouth 1–3 Wycombe Wanderers 7,292 2 Cheltenham Town 2–4 Oxford United 1,236 3 Torquay United 2–2 Yeovil Town 1,280 Yeovil won 5 – 4 on penalties 4 Plymouth Argyle 2–1 Aldershot Town 2,580South-East 5 Northampton Town 2–1 Colchester United 1,561 6 Leyton Orient 1–0 Barnet 1,404 7 Brentford 1–0 Crawley Town 2,739 8 Southend United 2–0 Dagenham & Redbridge 2,965
Area Quarter-finals The draw for the Area Quarter-finals was made on 13 October 2012, and the matches will be played in the week commencing 3 December 2012.
Northern section Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendance 1 Crewe Alexandra 1–1 Doncaster Rovers 1,892 Crewe Alexandra won 5 – 3 on penalties 2 Bury 3–3 Preston North End 2,023 Preston North End won 5 – 4 on penalties 3 Port Vale 0–2 Bradford City 2,789 4 Coventry City 1–1 Sheffield United 10,162 Coventry City won 4 – 1 on penalties
Southern section Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendance 1 Northampton Town 0–3 Leyton Orient 1,752 2 Southend United 2–1 Brentford 3,052 3 Yeovil Town 2–0 Wycombe Wanderers 1,771 4 Plymouth Argyle 1–1 Oxford United 2,383 Oxford United won 3 – 1 on penalties
Area Semi-finals The draw for the Area Semi-finals was made on 8 December 2012, and the matches were played in the week commencing 7 January 2013.
Northern section Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendance 1 Coventry City 3–2 Preston North End 12,665 2 Crewe Alexandra 4–1 Bradford City 2,935
Southern section Tie noHome teamScoreAway teamAttendance 1 Oxford United 3–3 Southend United 2,882 Southend United won 5 – 3 on penalties 2 Leyton Orient 1–0 Yeovil Town 2,755
Area finals The area finals, which serve as the semi-finals for the entire competition, were contested over two legs, home and away.
Northern section
Crewe Alexandra won 3–2 on aggregate.
Southern section
Southend United won 3–2 on aggregate.
Final
References
External links Official website