Match Thread 18th & 19th December 2015

[Boz]

Friday 18th December
Braintree - Wrexham

Saturday 19th December
Aldershot - Guiseley
Cheltenham - Altrincham
Chester - Torquay
Eastleigh - Kidderminster
Halifax - Tranmere
Forest Green - Boreham Wood
Gateshead - Woking
Grimsby - Dover
Lincoln - Barrow
Southport - Bromley
Welling - Macclesfield

The Friday clash between Braintree and Wrexham looks like a good match between two footballing sides, if it goes ahead. Saturday offers a number of games that look like home bankers, with Grimsby v Dover one of the harder games to call.

If I don't drink too much at Friday night's work Christmas piss-up and the threatened downpour on Saturday doesn't bring about a postponement, then I'll be at the Shay for Halifax v Tranmere. On form, this looks like a home banker too, with the home side rejuvenated under caretaker boss and Rovers legend Jim Harvey. Gary Brabin's lucky dip approach to team selection hasn't worked recently and the supporters are starting to vent their frustration at the manager and team. Would still expect a reasonable away following around 600.

 

[dan_wrexhamafc]

Just hope are game is able to be played. Pitch inspection today

 

[Harrier94]

Can we skip the Christmas fixtures and get into January?

 

[Sparrow]

Actually quite a big mid-table game (is that even possible?) for us at Gateshead. We could go level on points with a win.

It'll probably get called off.

 

[GuiseleySteve]

Clash of the mid table wanabe's V Aldershot. We are still inconsistent, have lost our young loanee goal machine in Anthony Dudley and our best centre back is still injured.
A closer game than last time i think but no more than that.

 

[Sparrow]

Clash of the mid table wanabe's V Aldershot. We are still inconsistent, have lost our young loanee goal machine in Anthony Dudley and our best centre back is still injured.
A closer game than last time i think but no more than that.

You wouldn't make it eight in a row, would you?

 

[Nansan]

Actually quite a big mid-table game (is that even possible?) for us at Gateshead. We could go level on points with a win.

It'll probably get called off.

You will win, our home form is poor and we still have injuries to key players, forecast looks good so it should go ahead.

 

[DarkSithLord]

Well Absolute massive 6 pointer at home to Bradford PA tomorrow. We have the worst form of anyone in the divison over the past 8 games and BPA have one of the best so it wont be easy. Hopefully they will have half an eye on Mondays Trophy Game v Lincoln.

Its goes without saying though that the Signing of Fabian Speiss this morning who recently left Torquay doent fill me with much confidence at all!

Dont care how though just need the three points tomorrow. No excuses now. if not then i think its time up for Law.

 

[Railway Blue]

I'm hoping that we can re-start our season after a very poor run. Torquay concede a lot of goals and Ross Hannah is on fire at present, being ably supported by Danny Hattersley. Despite this we will concede, so I'll go for 3-1.

 

[Alty Pieman]

We will deserve to win, have no luck at all,.... and get stuffed at Cheltenham.

 

[GuiseleySteve]

You wouldn't make it eight in a row, would you?

Is it seven without a win for you guys? We might have an outside chance of a point then

 

[GuiseleySteve]

Pro

We will deserve to win, have no luck at all,.... and get stuffed at Cheltenham.

Probably just the last sentence

 

[DarkSithLord]

Surprise surprise Braintree v Wrexham is off!

 

[Back in the DHSS]

I'm off to Halifax tomorrow, more for the ale houses in the Halifax area than the game itself! If this game go's to recent form then I can see myself in the Three Pidgeons pub before the full time whistle.
Halifax is a club I've always been fond of, going back to the eighties when both clubs were in a constant battle to avoid the bottom 4 and re election in the old 4th division. The last time I saw Tranmere play at the Shay was on a Friday night in September 1988 with Rovers the eventual winners 3-2, Jimmy Harvey bossed the midfield that night and another former Rovers favourite Wayne Allison started for Halifax.
Tranmere have won the last 8 meetings, but I think if Halifax have any pace in their team they will be the most likely to win this one. Would be surprised to see more than 500 Rovers traveling given its pre Christmas and we're shite.

 

[Luke Imp]

Just Beevers missing for us through suspension. We've not played for two weeks, so Hawkridge is probably fit along with Nathaniel Brown.

 

[Master D]

Surprise surprise Braintree v Wrexham is off!

Tinpot, as usual. There's local council pitches better than theirs.

 

[dan_wrexhamafc]

Shocking the league needs to sort them out they have too many games called off. They said pitch is 90% good yesterday. No rain there last night or today and no its waterlogged? WTF

 

[slaphead]

Is it seven without a win for you guys? We might have an outside chance of a point then

We've lost 7 on the bounce. By the end of the Xmas period I fully expect it to be 11. Just can't see where the next goal is coming from, and we certainly don't look like keeping a clean sheet, especially with both our first choice centre backs out.

 

[Sparrow]

Is it seven without a win for you guys? We might have an outside chance of a point then

Oh no, not US, not Play-Off Bound Woking.

 

[DarkSithLord]

Shocking the league needs to sort them out they have too many games called off. They said pitch is 90% good yesterday. No rain there last night or today and no its waterlogged? WTF

It looks like its not been called off because of waterlogging but because of "concerns over player safety" whatever that means!

 

[GuiseleySteve]

It looks like its not been called off because of waterlogging but because of "concerns over player safety" whatever that means!

They must think Wrexham are 'cloggers'

 

[Reginald Fodstain]

It's the game before Christmas, we always lose. Even when top of league one a few years back, we managed to get dicked 5-0 by Swindon. I'll also be at Halifax tomorrow, weather depending, and since i) Halifax haven't kept a clean sheet all season, ii) Boz is going, I'm expecting a 2-0 defeat.

 

[Jemfy]

Sarcasm aside there really is a huge game for AFCR&D on Saturday as we visit Chalfont St Peter who currently sit 2nd in our league, behind Diamonds on GD.

So there you have it, the biggest game of the weekend (provided it actually goes ahead of course!). Winner goes top, in the event of a draw we stay top with 2 games in hand.

 

[Davidimp]

Surprise surprise Braintree v Wrexham is off!

Will Braintree play at home again before the spring????

 

[GuiseleySteve]

Will Braintree play at home again paddling in the spring????

Corrected for you

 

[Shotsfan1993]

We've lost 7 on the bounce. By the end of the Xmas period I fully expect it to be 11. Just can't see where the next goal is coming from, and we certainly don't look like keeping a clean sheet, especially with both our first choice centre backs out.

To be fair you also said that in the 46th minute at Dover and we all know what happened after that...

We've played reasonably well in our last 3/4 home games, but unfortunately have somehow contrived to lose all of them - Eastleigh last week summed up our form, we were by far the better team but got caught out by one hoof from our own free kick!

I may be clutching at straws here but I think we might be Guiseley's bogey team - we have played them twice (I dont think we played them before the FAT game in 13/14) and beaten them 3-0 and 4-0

 

[eightiesrobin]

3-0 or 4-0 to the Southern Robins tomorrow.

 

[GuiseleySteve]

To be fair you also said that in the 46th minute at Dover and we all know what happened after that...

We've played reasonably well in our last 3/4 home games, but unfortunately have somehow contrived to lose all of them - Eastleigh last week summed up our form, we were by far the better team but got caught out by one hoof from our own free kick!

I may be clutching at straws here but I think we might be Guiseley's bogey team - we have played them twice (I dont think we played them before the FAT game in 13/14) and beaten them 3-0 and 4-0

We have some better quality in the team now so SHOULD! Be a closer game. 1-1 away to Halifax last time out after they had thumped Gateshead and Dover in their previous two games.
Still not confident though

 

[CrazyImp]

Tomorrow will decide whether this is a temporarily blip on the way to an outside play-off tilt, or the start of the long dip down the table.

Looking at Barrow's away record, we should win. But we're Lincoln after all.

 

[EnglishRed]

Shocking the league needs to sort them out they have too many games called off. They said pitch is 90% good yesterday. No rain there last night or today and no its waterlogged? WTF

It's a farce. Every season they do this.