Post by Keithsson on Apr 7, 2024 11:05:05 GMT
Second time lucky to get this game on, we don't want three games in the last seven days!
It's a huge week on the road for us and a huge week in the wider play-off race.
We have the luxury of finishing the regular season at home against a team with nothing left to play for who'll be playing us their fourth game in seven days, Weston. These two games though will decide what we have left to play for that day. A bye for the QF's and home advantage in all games?, a bye for the QF's but away in the final?, home advantage in the QF's? or the toughest of all, an away game only path to promotion?... all options are on the table as we enter the final fortnight.
Whilst we'll of course be following what Maidstone, Braintree, Hampton and Bath are doing elsewhere, all of that counts for nothing if we don't do our business. As the team currently in last place of the 'four team mini-league' fighting for the best play-off places, our job is simple, we have to win. Drop five points behind Braintree and/or Maidstone and it's effectively 'Goodnight Vienna' for avoiding the QF's.
Match Centre - Link
Match Tickets - DFC Website
Coach/Minibus - Stand By! There's nothing on the table as yet but as mentioned on the Yeovil thread "Gary is looking into it".
Ground Guide - Princes Park
Last season we did the 'double top' against The Darts. We won 3-0 at home in January (Rodari, Pearce, OG) and on our last visit to Princes Park in the opening month of our NLS career we won 1-2...
Dartford v WFC highlights (27/08/22) - YouTube
Back in November we shot ourselves in both feet and both knee-caps with one of those 'you just couldn't make it up' performances we've become accustomed to periodically. Ordinarily I'd pass on sharing the footage of such an embarrassing self inflicted defeat, but as we need to approach this trip with zero complacency it does serve as a very timely warning. Viewer discretion is advised though as it contains scenes of 'self inflicted harm'...
WFC v Dartford lowlights (14/11/23) - YouTube
Darts started the season sort of OK. They were bobbling along in lower mid table, even hitting a season high of 9th on match 16. But from December they slid off a cliff with a return of just 6 points from a possible 33! Now you think it'd be bad enough to do that just once in a season. However following a win on match 31 they then picked up just 3 points from the next available 33 points.
You'd think that would be fatal for them, but all season this league has been as tight at the bottom as it has been at the top. And so it is that despite only their first win in eleven matches yesterday (albeit 1-2 at Havant) remarkably they are still in the race for survival. They're just one point off safety in 20th place. And with crisis club Torquay and crazy fixture congestion duo Truro and Taunton still 'blowing out of their hoops' down there, their great escape is still on.
NLS Table - Link
Form i'll come to but it might not mean much given the circumstances. If we're now in a three game mini-league for 2nd or 3rd, they're in one for survival. They have us at home, Yeovil away, but a by then totally 'on the canvass' Truro at home in the last game. Make no mistake they will throw absolutely everything they have at our fixture, all energy will be targeted at us to give them a shot still. Why? because all they can hope for at Huish Park on Saturday is that Yeovil will have secured their promotion on Thursday (by beating Truro remember!) and will be 'on the beach' and still pished on Champagne.
Truro have three games this midweek, two against relegation rivals. The relegation battle could go anywhere after our game and they have no control over it. But they can influence things against on Tuesday. To have any chance for that last game, as well as many other results going their way, they must have beaten us.
So that's why form pretty much means Jack Shizzle now, they're in backs to the wall last stand territory. But for posterity here's where it is...
Three wins on the spin and we rise to the dizzy heights of 7th with 10/18. Darts are 19th with 5/18. Away from home we're 5th with 12/18 and Darts are 23rd with just 2/18 on their patch (1-1 draws with Taunton and Hemel).
NLS Form table (last 6 H&A) - Link
We must be as focused and driven at Princes Park as we were at Huish Park, anything shy of that and we risk shooting ourselves in the foot again.
Squad wise it'll surely be tempting to rotate with hard yards and tired legs from yesterday and a tough trip to St Albans on Saturday. How hard and how deep the rotation goes though could be dangerous, we risk losing momentum if he cuts the guts out of the 'Lions of Huish'. KLF may be available again, Nicky Wheeler probably not as he was awaiting a scan.
All midweek fixtures...
Monday
Truro City v Torquay United
Tuesday
Braintree Town v Taunton Town
Dartford v Worthing
Hampton & Richmond Borough v Bath City
Maidstone United v Weymouth
Weston-super-Mare v Chippenham Town
Wednesday
Havant & Waterlooville v Welling United
Truro City v Eastbourne Borough
Thursday
Farnborough v Chippenham Town
Taunton Town v Slough Town
Truro City v Yeovil Town
No red, only green... the only way is up, come on you Rebels!
It's a huge week on the road for us and a huge week in the wider play-off race.
We have the luxury of finishing the regular season at home against a team with nothing left to play for who'll be playing us their fourth game in seven days, Weston. These two games though will decide what we have left to play for that day. A bye for the QF's and home advantage in all games?, a bye for the QF's but away in the final?, home advantage in the QF's? or the toughest of all, an away game only path to promotion?... all options are on the table as we enter the final fortnight.
Whilst we'll of course be following what Maidstone, Braintree, Hampton and Bath are doing elsewhere, all of that counts for nothing if we don't do our business. As the team currently in last place of the 'four team mini-league' fighting for the best play-off places, our job is simple, we have to win. Drop five points behind Braintree and/or Maidstone and it's effectively 'Goodnight Vienna' for avoiding the QF's.
Match Centre - Link
Match Tickets - DFC Website
Coach/Minibus - Stand By! There's nothing on the table as yet but as mentioned on the Yeovil thread "Gary is looking into it".
Ground Guide - Princes Park
Last season we did the 'double top' against The Darts. We won 3-0 at home in January (Rodari, Pearce, OG) and on our last visit to Princes Park in the opening month of our NLS career we won 1-2...
Dartford v WFC highlights (27/08/22) - YouTube
Back in November we shot ourselves in both feet and both knee-caps with one of those 'you just couldn't make it up' performances we've become accustomed to periodically. Ordinarily I'd pass on sharing the footage of such an embarrassing self inflicted defeat, but as we need to approach this trip with zero complacency it does serve as a very timely warning. Viewer discretion is advised though as it contains scenes of 'self inflicted harm'...
WFC v Dartford lowlights (14/11/23) - YouTube
Darts started the season sort of OK. They were bobbling along in lower mid table, even hitting a season high of 9th on match 16. But from December they slid off a cliff with a return of just 6 points from a possible 33! Now you think it'd be bad enough to do that just once in a season. However following a win on match 31 they then picked up just 3 points from the next available 33 points.
You'd think that would be fatal for them, but all season this league has been as tight at the bottom as it has been at the top. And so it is that despite only their first win in eleven matches yesterday (albeit 1-2 at Havant) remarkably they are still in the race for survival. They're just one point off safety in 20th place. And with crisis club Torquay and crazy fixture congestion duo Truro and Taunton still 'blowing out of their hoops' down there, their great escape is still on.
NLS Table - Link
Form i'll come to but it might not mean much given the circumstances. If we're now in a three game mini-league for 2nd or 3rd, they're in one for survival. They have us at home, Yeovil away, but a by then totally 'on the canvass' Truro at home in the last game. Make no mistake they will throw absolutely everything they have at our fixture, all energy will be targeted at us to give them a shot still. Why? because all they can hope for at Huish Park on Saturday is that Yeovil will have secured their promotion on Thursday (by beating Truro remember!) and will be 'on the beach' and still pished on Champagne.
Truro have three games this midweek, two against relegation rivals. The relegation battle could go anywhere after our game and they have no control over it. But they can influence things against on Tuesday. To have any chance for that last game, as well as many other results going their way, they must have beaten us.
So that's why form pretty much means Jack Shizzle now, they're in backs to the wall last stand territory. But for posterity here's where it is...
Three wins on the spin and we rise to the dizzy heights of 7th with 10/18. Darts are 19th with 5/18. Away from home we're 5th with 12/18 and Darts are 23rd with just 2/18 on their patch (1-1 draws with Taunton and Hemel).
NLS Form table (last 6 H&A) - Link
We must be as focused and driven at Princes Park as we were at Huish Park, anything shy of that and we risk shooting ourselves in the foot again.
Squad wise it'll surely be tempting to rotate with hard yards and tired legs from yesterday and a tough trip to St Albans on Saturday. How hard and how deep the rotation goes though could be dangerous, we risk losing momentum if he cuts the guts out of the 'Lions of Huish'. KLF may be available again, Nicky Wheeler probably not as he was awaiting a scan.
All midweek fixtures...
Monday
Truro City v Torquay United
Tuesday
Braintree Town v Taunton Town
Dartford v Worthing
Hampton & Richmond Borough v Bath City
Maidstone United v Weymouth
Weston-super-Mare v Chippenham Town
Wednesday
Havant & Waterlooville v Welling United
Truro City v Eastbourne Borough
Thursday
Farnborough v Chippenham Town
Taunton Town v Slough Town
Truro City v Yeovil Town
No red, only green... the only way is up, come on you Rebels!
