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Leyton Orient midfielder Charley Barker will reportedly play in a friendly match for Notts County on Tuesday, according to Gloucestershire Live. The 19-year-old recently spent time on trial at Cheltenham Town, making three appearances for their reserve team. According to the local outlet, Barker is unlikely to feature in the Robins' Central League fixture at Plymouth Argyle on Tuesday, with County keen to have a look at him. Barker is on the books of the National League side as a third year scholar, but is believed to be attracting interest from several Football League clubs. Orient boss Justin Edinburgh is quoted by Gloucestershire Live as saying: “Charley has been made aware he will not be getting a pro deal at Leyton Orient. "So what we are trying to do is give him and others an opportunity to get ahead of the game and try to secure themselves a contract elsewhere." Magpies boss Kevin Nolan spent time in charge of Orient in 2016 and his assistant Richard Thomas was Barker's youth team coach at the East London club. Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Kevin Nolan has revealed he is trying to keep pre-match preparations as normal as possible for Notts County amid the increased media interest ahead of their televised FA Cup second-round meeting with Oxford City. The game has been moved to a 12:30pm kickoff and will be broadcast on BT Sport as the high-flying Magpies take on the National League South side, who beat Colchester United in the first round of the competition. Nolan is well aware that the disparity in league positions between the two teams has led to people "expecting us to win" but is also aware that complacency will lead to "one big bite on the bum". “It’s another game, it’s the next one that’s on the fixture list," Nolan told the Nottingham Post. "We’re on BT, so that’s a bit of difference – shall we say the glamour that brings, a lot more media stuff to do and lots more things to be involved in. “We’re trying to keep it as normal as possible for the lads and keep everything the same so they know how important this is moving forward, making sure that we apply ourselves in the right manner to get through to the next round. “If we don’t, and these have already beaten a good side in Colchester, who we all saw last week and are more than capable, and are going to be good in this division taking us right to the wire. For them to have that scalp already – they’ll coming here with no fear, to enjoy the experience. “A lot of it is going to be a lot different to what it normally is on a match day. What my lads can’t do is be distracted by that, or get taken away from the actual thing which is the football game and that’s what everyone is here for – for the football game. “We’ve got to make sure that we remain focused on solely that. Enjoy all the rest of it, but at the front of your mind is what goes on, on Saturday afternoon at 12:30pm. It’s about making sure what we do and if we do that, I’m very confident we can be in the next round. “Everyone’s expecting us to win, I know that’s not the reality. If we apply ourselves, if we play to the best of our abilities and the way we have then it gives us a fantastic opportunity of getting through to the next round. If we don’t, we’ll be in for one big bite on the bum. Every one of them will be on the top of their game, they’ll be raring to go.” Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans. Fancy showcasing your brand or business on Pride of Nottingham? Click here to find out more about sponsorship and advertising opportunities with us.

Transfer sagas are usually the domain of clubs in the upper echelons of the football pyramid. Virtually all the players currently in the middle of the annual soap opera currently play for one top team and are rumoured to desire a move to another top team. Will David de Gea move to Real Madrid? Will Diego Costa return to Atletico Madrid? And so on and so on. It's basically the sort of cliche love triangle storyline you get in your typical soap opera / reality TV show, but adapted to the beautiful game. But a similar "love triangle" is now taking place in the slightly less glamorous surroundings of League Two, and the three parties involved are Liam Noble, current squeeze Forest Green Rovers, and the ex, Notts County. So the soap opera storyline is as follows: Noble was a bit of a bad boy back in the day, let Notts down on multiple occasions due to his disciplinary record, and so he was turfed out, clothes metaphorically chucked out the window and all that. Noble then winds up at Forest Green, where former Magpies manager Mark Cooper - who had previously said the midfielder would not be allowed anywhere near Meadow Lane following one red card incident - was now at the helm. And lo and behold, Noble gets his act together, weighs in with a modest seven goals and a gargantuan 21 assists, winds up becoming captain, and helps get FGR promoted. Oh, and his prior Achilles heel was no longer a problem - just eight yellow cards all season. Now, you'd think a player whose career has been revived thanks to this club, and in turn has helped said club get into the Football League, would be buzzing from a personal and also a team perspective, and would be raring to go in League Two next season, maybe even show the ex what it's missing when it comes to the relevant matchdays. But here comes the twist: Notts have tried to get Noble back, and Noble is reportedly eager to return to Meadow Lane - and FGR are having none of it, with Cooper publicly admitting the club had turned the initial bids for him down. And of course, all this is being played out in front of the public. The Notts fanbase is still split over the prospect of Noble returning. The Remain (at FGR) camp says ex-players should never return to pastures old, or haven't forgiven his previous indiscretions on the pitch, maybe even worrying whether he might return to the red card habits of old, while the Leave camp thinks his spell at FGR has changed him and he would be a much improved player this time round. So what's PON's opinion on this? Well, Noble's had a barnstorming season, his goal tally is decent enough and his assist tally is amazing, and it looks like he's managed to get his act together on the disciplinary level. But the point that sticks is the reported transfer fee - £100,000. Which in League Two / non-league, is frankly too high. For that amount of money, you would expect a player to be unanimously accepted by the fanbase as a player that, in terms of how proven and reliable he will be, is as close to "guaranteed" as you can get. And let's face it, even though he's had a great season, fans cannot be blamed for having doubts over his temperament and whether he would be the same player under Kevin Nolan as he was under Cooper, as well as the fact that League Two is markedly more difficult than the National League, and faced with tougher opposition, frustration may set in again - and we all know how that turned out. So it's a gamble, a big big gamble, and at £100k, a risky one too. Surely for that amount of money we can get one or even two quality players who come with no prior baggage at Meadow Lane? Just our opinion here, but whether this saga rumbles on well into August (or a future transfer window) or it comes to a tangible conclusion either in the form of a contract extension at FGR or the player standing in front of the cameras at the Lane holding a shirt with his name on the back and talking about how he's got unfinished business and wants to prove himself with this second chance bla bla bla... it's one that will continue to keep the Notts faithful talking. Share your thoughts on this feature article by signing up for free to the Pride of Nottingham forum and joining in the conversation.

Notts County goalkeeper Scott Loach has expressed surprise that Vadaine Oliver did not remain at Meadow Lane or switch to another Football League club in January. Oliver completed a loan switch to the Magpies at the start of the season, but returned to parent club York City early in the year after one goal in 25 appearances. Since then, he has scored five times and recorded four assists in 14 outings for the Minstermen, who are in the National League. Loach, who has made a loan switch to Bootham Crescent, told the York Press: “I can’t believe Vadaine didn’t stay at Notts County or isn’t playing at another League club, but there are some good players at this level when you look at the likes of Newts (Sean Newton) as well. “Dagenham also had some decent lads on Saturday, as do clubs like Lincoln and Forest Green. But that’s football - where you play can sometimes come down to other circumstances. “Not only is Vadaine a good target man, but he also works hard and keeps going. If he doesn’t win the first header, he goes for the next one and I think it will be good for him learning off Jon Parkin, who’s a similar player, but has been there and done it.” Share your thoughts about this news story on Pride of Nottingham by signing up to the website, visiting the forum and joining in the chat with hundreds of fellow Notts County fans.