Watching from the sidelines as Town Under 18s prepared for their Professional Development League campaign with a 3-3 draw against West Brom in the West Midlands last Saturday, Mark Lillis can scarcely have envisaged he’d be in the heat of a Championship battle at Cardiff seven days later.

The way the last six days have panned out has been a surprise to all, but as Town continue their search for former manager Mark Robins’ replacement, they know they have steady hands on the tiller in Lillis, Steve Thompson and Steve Eyre.

Lillis and Eyre were at the helm in between Simon Grayson’s departure and Robins’ arrival early in 2013, and piloted Town to a vital win in their first Championship game at home to Crystal Palace.

That stint also included a home clash with Cardiff, held goalless at the John Smith’s Stadium on their way to the Championship title.

Malky Mackay, among those now being linked with Town, was the Welsh club’s manager then, but Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is the opposite umber Lillis is now trying to get the better of in a battle of Manchester United and City old boys.

Solskjaer arrived in January, and while it’s said the supporters don’t blame him for relegation from the Premier League, the pressure is on to mount a serious bid for a quick return.

This will be Cardiff’s first home game of the campaign, after a league draw against Blackburn and a Capital One Cup win over Coventry, and Solskjaer will be desperate for his reshaped side to claim all three points.

Lillis, who once scored all Town’s goals in a 4-0 home win over Cardiff (in October 1982) said ahead of Town’s cup-tie against Chesterfield that a win could kick-start a run.

He also demanded hard work, and having also shown some grit and composure to come back from two down to finally win 5-3 after extra time, Town will surely need all those qualities once again to return to England smiling.

Cardiff have lost big hitters like Chilean ace Gary Medel, who has joined Inter Milan, Steve Caulker, Jordan Mutch and Huddersfield-born Fraizer Campbell.

They also have doubts over three of their new signings in Federico Macheda, Kagisho Dikgacoi and Javi Guerra.

But Solskjaer can still field an impressive side, and in a partisan atmosphere, Town face a real test.