Ricky Ravenhill is already licking his lips with anticipation for the new season after seeing the Carling Cup draw earlier this week.

The midfielder joined County in May from League Two rivals Darlington and, if selected, he will be going head-to-head with Doncaster Rovers for the first time since leaving the Keapmoat Stadium in 2006 after the teams were paired together in the competition for the second season running.

Ravenhill made over 100 appearances for Rovers between 2002 and 2006 and played a very significant part in their promotions from the Conference and League Two during that time.

After witnessing the Cup draw on Tuesday morning he has already been inundated with text messages and phone calls from a number of his former team-mates at Rovers.

Born-and-bred in Doncaster and brought up a Rovers fan, Ravenhill still lives in the area and it is fair to say he will be subject to a lot of media attention in the build-up to the tie.

He said: "From a personal point of view it is a very nice tie and one I'm really looking forward to, but from Notts County's point of view it is great to be at home against a Championship side.

"It will be the first time I've played against Doncaster since I left them, and given I still live there it will be a strange experience but obviously one to look forward to.

"I have quite a few good mates there - Brian Stock and James Coppinger - so it should be an interesting night!

"Before that though we have a tough pre-season schedule to get through and I'm looking forward to coming in and meeting my new team-mates on 1 July."