WANDERERS Under-18s are enjoying the Premiership treatment in the build-up to tonight's FA Youth Cup tie at Sunderland.

The current crop of youngsters, rated one of the best the Academy has ever produced, travelled to the North-east yesterday and will train on Wearside today ahead of the fourth round tie at the Stadium of Light.

Assistant academy director, Peter Farrell, said: "We treat the FA Youth Cup very seriously. Our preparation has been very detailed. We are travelling up the day before and training in the north-east on the day of the game.

"Hopefully the level of detail we put into our games - just like the first team - will help us progress."

Tonight's tie pits together two in-form teams, Wanderers having won seven of their last eight games and having won at Sheffield Wednesady in the last round, while Sunderland, victors over Preston in the third round, have only lost once in 14.

Farrell said confidence was high in the Academy camp.

"We have some talented boys at the club - probably the best group of lads we have ever had - and we are confident of doing well in this year's competition," he said.

Although they have high hopes for the U18s, Wanderers believe standards will improve even more when they transfer to their new development at Lostock later this year.

Farrell added: "The progress made by the Academy in recent years has been phenomenal and with the development of the new facility at Lostock, later this year, will take us onto another level.

"The progress of homegrown players has to be the way forward for a club like Bolton and a greater emphasis will be on all of us to bring through the next generation of players that can cut it in the higher echelons of the Premier League."

Wanderers Youth squad: Robert Lainton, Matt Cassidy, Mark Ellis, Mark Charlesworth, Chris Stokes, Scott Jamieson, Leslie Thompson, Robert Sissons (captain), Temitope Obadeyi, Sam Sheridan, Nathan Wolfe, Michael Roddy, Tom Brocklehurst, David Gbemie, Tom Brooks, Stuart MacDonald.