US Avranches v RC Lens
Lens ended 2013 on a sour note, as Antoine Kombouare’s side lost 2-1 at home to Istres which left them in third place going into the winter break, with Angers and Nancy hot on their tail as the race to Ligue 1 goes into the new year. Les Sang et Or’s first task will be to see off CFA side Avranches. This is somewhat of a local game, the side from France’s fourth tier are more used to playing the second string of Ligue 1 teams but now they will get the chance to try to catch Lens cold, and boost their campaign to make it into France’s third tier. This is the eighth time they have reached this stage in the competition, including three years in a row in the 2010-12 editions, but they have never been further.
US Avranches
Currently in third place in their CFA section, they are unbeaten in four games, have scored 21 in thirteen, and a packed house is expected at the Stade René Fenouillère on Saturday lunch-time. No one will expect lowly Avranches to cause any problems to the heavily-backed Ligue 2 side but young coach Richard Dezire has a few tricks up his sleeves. 24-year-old striker Vincent Crehin has played some years in both Ligue 2 and the Championnat National, and now with Avranches he has five goals in 11 games and is the man Kombouare should be most worried about. If the former PSG coach rests one too many players he could be in for a long afternoon.
Olympique Marcquois v Auxerre
One of the lowest ranked teams left in the competition, Olympique Marcquois from the popular Marcq-en-Barouel area of Lille is more known for its expensive houses and being the home of LOSC footballers such as Florent Balmont. Now the team from the 8th tier get their day in the sun, as they take on Ligue 2 side AJ Auxerre and although Bernard Casoni’s side have struggled to find form in the league they should have enough to see off the minnows.
Marcquois coach Anthony Herbault will believe in the power this cup can have and after defying the odds to beat Trembelay and Olympique de Neuille to get to the last 64, who knows what could happen on Sunday afternoon. Auxerre will be hoping to avoid a feeling of deja-vu, after losing last year to Bourg-Peronnas; after losing their last two games of 2013 surely things can only get better for the Burgundy side this year. Defeat to a side that is 6 tiers below them and made up of all amateur players would be unthinkable.
Saint Amand v IC Croix
Two sides from the lower levels of Nord-Pas-de-Calais region, and two sides that will be fully aware that one of them is 90 minutes away from a potentially massive game against one of French football’s big boys. Croix are enjoying a great season in the fifth tier, third in their CFA 2 group and with two games in hand, which looks promising for their ambitions to make it up to the Championnat National (third tier).
They are a side made up of some excellent young talent and experienced players who never quite made it to the highest level. Former Lille players Samuel Robail, Brian Obino and Julien Araujo feature regularly, and even Gregoire Debuchy, brother to Newcastle’s Mathieu, still turns out for the side in green. Unbeaten all season, their draw at home to Sedan on the 21st of December was the first time they dropped points in a league game, so they will fancy a place in the next round at the expense of Saint-Amand.
Saint-Amand FC
Their opponents have been enjoying a good run of their own this season, in fourth place and only three points off top spot in the District Honneur division, the sixth tier in northern France. Saint-Amand will be hoping the cup doesn’t cause a distraction in their quest to join Croix in CFA 2 if they can win promotion this season. Cup runs can sometimes have a great boost but can also be a momentum nightmare, but the prize of a big name tie should see both sides really go for it on Sunday.