Papa John’s has serious prize money on table now
THE Papa John’s Trophy has taken on a seriousness scarcely previously seen at the Pirelli Stadium this season and Burton Albion will be going all out to continue their progress when they face Tranmere Rovers at home in the second round tonight (7pm).
After failing to progress previously since the competition has had round robin group stages, the Brewers have sailed through this season, beating Leicester City Under-21s, Sheffield Wednesday and Bradford City.
The money on the table means more to a club of Burton’s size than others, especially with a transfer window looming, and they have made £50,000 so far – a £20,000 participation fee and £10,000 for each win.
There is another £20,000 for tonight’s winners and that rises to £40,000 for the next round and £50,000 for the quarter-finals.
That is without taking gate money into account, although the competition has yet to threaten to attract a good-sized crowd and probably will not tonight.
“I will put our best team out to win the game,” said manager Dino Maamria, whose side follow up tonight’s game with their FA Cup second round tie against Chippenham Town on Sunday. They banked £41,000 for beating Needham Market in the first round and will chase £67,000 more on Sunday, along with the hope of a more lucrative third-round tie. “I mentioned it to the players after the game (on Saturday),” said