Newcastle United League Cup draw: What's a Gillingham?

Newcastle United were drawn with League One side Gillingham FC in the second round of the League Cup (also known as the Capital One Cup) yesterday. They will travel to Gillingham, located in the South East of England, to play the match, which will be held during the week of August 25th in between Premier League dates with Aston Villa (away) and Crystal Palace (home).

Gillingham are in their second year in League One, having survived relegation with a 17th place finish in their promotion season. They defeated Yeovil Town in the first round to advance, and they started their league campaign last weekend with a 2-4 defeat at the hands of Milton Keynes Dons. The Gills are notable to Newcastle fans for having been the developmental club of (Secret Agent) Steve Bruce, who went on to play more than 200 games for the senior squad and is now in the team's Hall of Fame.

Newcastle were slated by fans last season for not taking cup competitions seriously, but surely nobody would blame them for fielding a completely second-choice squad given the long trip and level of competition. This won't be a litmus test, in other words, that should tell us if the cup philosophy has changed.