After Bradford's goalkeeper substitution after just three minutes, why has the EFL Trophy descended into farce? 

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Bradford's 2-1 victory over Bury last night may not seem like the kind of game that would hit the headlines.

However it's done just that, mainly because of Bradford's attempts to bend the rules of the Checkatrade EFL Trophy, which was overhauled this year, by subbing off their goalkeeper with just three minutes on the clock.

The Bantams took off goalkeeper Colin Doyle and replaced him with Rouven Sattelmaier, much to the confusion of the watching crowd at Coral Windows Stadium.

Bradford keeper Colin Doyle is replaced by Rouven Sattelmaier after only three minutes in their Checkatrade EFL trophy match with Bury

But what exactly happened last night? And what changes have been made from last year's Johnstone's Paint Trophy that have caused such a stir? Read on to find out more...

Why did last night's fiasco happen?

Bradford's early substitution appeared to be a bid to bend the rules of the newly-formed Checkatrade EFL Trophy, which state that League One and Two clubs must field a minimum of five first-team players - either the five highest appearance-makers in the team, five players who played the preceding fixture or five who play in the next league match - in games. 

'I thought Doyle had a poor 45 seconds,' said Bradford's assistant manager Kenny Black

Doyle, who played in the 1-0 victory over Chesterfield on Saturday and so qualified as one of the Bantams' 'first team players', ensuring that his side hit the competition's quota.

'I thought he [Doyle] had a poor 45 seconds' Bradford's assistant manager Kenny Black said, somewhat sarcastically, after the match.

Woah, woah, woah... go back one step, what's background here?

The competition was revamped over the summer for the first time since the trophy's inception in 1983, and 16 Category One Academies associated with some of the biggest teams in the country were invited to participate. The academies invited were :Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle United, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Swansea City, Tottenham Hotspur, West Bromwich Albion and West Ham United. 

The Johnstone's Paint Trophy has been re-formatted with a new sponsor for this season

Arsenal, Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur all turned down the chance to enter, leaving 10 Premier League clubs involved in the revamped event along with six Championship academy sides.

According to the EFL, the changes were made to 'help' produce more homegrown players and 'reinvigorate the competition for the benefit of League One and Two clubs as it was widely felt that it had lost some of its purpose in previous seasons.' 

So what exactly are the rules of the competition now?

48 clubs from League One & Two and 16 invited Category One Academy teams are involved in the competition in a group stage and knockout format. The teams are organised into 16 groups of four on a regional basis, and each group includes one invited club and at least one club from each of Leagues One & Two.

The usual points are awarded, although in the event of a drawn game (after 90 minutes), a penalty shootout will be held with the winning team earning an additional point. The two top teams from each group will progress to the knock-out stages.

The first round of 32 will remain regionalised before the last 16 and quarter-finals are drawn completely at random. The semi-finals will also be a free draw and will consist of single ties played at the stadium of the club drawn first in each tie. The EFL have said they will confirm arrangements for the Semi-Finals and Final in due course following further consultation.

OK, that all seems relatively straight forward if somewhat controversial, so how does that tie in with what happened last night?

Not only have the EFL changed the structure and the participants, it's also laid out some very strict guidelines over exactly who can play. As mentioned EFL Clubs must field a minimum of five 'First Team' players in the starting 11 and 6 of the starting 11 for the invited clubs must be under 21. 

The aim here, according to EFL Chief Executive Shaun Harvey is to 'help us deliver more and better home grown players'. 

It's a good thing that it's designed to produce better English youngsters, right? The managers must be loving it.

Erm, not quite. MK Dons boss Karl Robinson described the competition changes as 'rubbish'.

MK Dons boss Karl Robinson is an outspoken critic of the Checkatrade EFL Trophy

'How can we have a development trophy for Premier League teams who can do what they want, yet we can't develop our own players in it?' he told the BBC.

It's also worth noting that Portsmouth, Accrington Stanley, AFC Wimbledon, Hartlepool United and Luton Town have all released statements to confirm they voted against the trial.

Is it here for good?

Fortunately not. The competition is a one year trial. An EFL spokesman said: 'The revised format of the Checkatrade Trophy, which is a one-year pilot, is part of the EFL's long-term commitment to help the nation produce more and better homegrown players.'  

That means there is scope for change next season which, judging by what happened last night, many clubs will be pushing for. 

Do even small clubs not care about it anymore? 

There is scepticism amongst the lower league clubs and their fans  that the competition is merely a way to lay the groundwork for Premier League clubs to have their B teams introduced into the English football pyramid. 

Given Bradford's attempts to seemingly get around the rules, the answer here is up for debate at the very least.

Do the fans care about it?

This is a pretty easy one to answer. That would be a resounding... no.  Just 392 fans watched Fleetwood take on Blackburn's development squad in the first round, and just 461 were at AFC Wimbledon to see them play Swansea Under-23s. Port Vale recorded their lowest attendance, 1,198, for 30 years for their clash against Derby.

Attendances for the competition have been poor so far this season

Fans on Twitter react to last night's action using the #BTeamBoycott hashtag

That may just be down to supporters being wary of a 'new' competition, however given the popularity of the '#BTeamBoycott' hashtag on Twitter that some fans are using to vent their frustrations, the chances of that are slim. 

So the whole competition is a bit of an embarrassment then? 

Well, Checkatrade would probably say there's no such thing as bad publicity, and the competition bearing their name is certainly a major talking point at the moment. 

But the reaction from fans and managers alike means that, as it stands, the 'one year trial' that's currently underway is unlikely to be extended, which would be something of a publicity own goal given the opposition it faced before a ball had been kicked.

The owner of Checkatrade has conceded that the competition is potentially flawed

Indeed, in a recent Twitter exchange, the owner of Checkatrade admitted that the format of the competition was flawed by conceding that it would 'not be ideal' if the final is played out by two invited academy sides.

Is this now a pointless competition? 

Although not glamorous, the old Johnstone's Paint Trophy was many clubs' only shot at silverware and a trip to  Wembley each year. Now with the introduction of Premier League developmental teams, not only have lower league teams' chances of winning lessened, but the feeling of 'can't we have anything nice to ourselves?' must be exacerbated. 

However, fans and clubs won't be complaining if the competition yields a handful of promising youngsters that can be developed and either lead their teams to trophies or be sold at a high price. 

For now, at least, this question is yet to be answered.....