Chelmsford City play at Melbourne Park for the 4th consecutive Saturday when they take on mid-table Eastbourne Borough in the Vanarama National League South on Saturday 29th October (3pm kickoff). City will try to recover from their first defeat in 9 matches after a 1-0 loss at Tonbridge Angels on Tuesday night.
The opposition
Eastbourne Borough sit in 16th place after 13 games in the Vanarama National League South this season. They have won 5, drawn 1 and lost 7, scoring 25 goals and conceding 22 in the league campaign so far which all adds up to 16 league points so far. They are on a 3 game losing run in all competitions after back-to-back home defeats to Hampton & Braintree and they were also knocked out of the FA Cup by National League Maidenhead United. Eastbourne haven’t played an away league game in over a month with their last one coming on 27th September when they lost 2-1 at Dartford. However they have won at Concord and Oxford on their travels in league games this season.
In terms of players, Eastbourne have extremely experienced former Chelmsford, Maidstone and Tonbridge keeper Lee Worgan, now 38, in goal who has appeared in all 13 league games so far. Worgan played for City in the Covid disrupted 2020-21 season. In defence they have former Colchester and Portsmouth defender Alex Wynter along with vice-captain Mitch Dickenson. The rest of the defence is made up fomer QPR full-back Kai Innocent and ex Chesterfield and Barrow player Bradley Barry. In midfield they have a number of promising youngsters such as Leone Gravata, Shiloh Remy and Jaden Perez, coupled with some experience in the former Lewes man James Hammond as well as former Chelmsford, Stevenage and Peterborough winger Chris Whelpdale. Up front they have Colchester United loanee Jake Hutchinson as well as the more experienced former St Albans striker Charlie Walker and also the ex Woking and Hull man Greg Luer. Their top scorers in the league are Hammond and Hutchinson with 4 each and Gravata, Remy and Luer all have 3 apiece.
Eastbourne’s boss is the former Worthing and Eastbourne United manager Danny Bloor who took over from Lee Bradbury in November 2019. Bloor led his side to a 6th place finish last year and a playoff spot but they lost 2-0 at Oxford in the 1st playoff round.
Previous Meetings
City haven’t beaten Easbourne in their last 4 meetings with the Borough winning both encounters last season by the odd goal. City also helped out Eastbourne by scoring an own goal in both meetings against them. For the last win for City against Eastbourne at Melbourne you have to go back to November 2018. City raced into a 3 goal lead inside 40 minutes thanks to 2 from Scott Fenwick and 1 from Anthony Church. However Dean Cox pulled one back from the spot in the first half and Ryan Hall made it a nervy finish in the 87th minute but the Clarets held on. The last victory over Eastbourne was a 4-0 trouncing at Priory Lane, a game where City could only name 3 subs due to illness and injuries. However Whelpdale, Jeffers (pen) and two from Sam Higgins helped City to victory. Current Clarets boss Robbie Simpson had to play as an emergency central defender that day.
Team News
Khale Da Costa and Louis Dunne both missed Tuesday night’s defeat against Tonbridge due to slight injuries. After a defeat on Tuesday and currently 9 scheduled games for November, Robbie Simpson may rotate from Tuesday night’s team.
Ticket News
Tickets are now available to be purchased in advance of the 3pm kick-off on Saturday and can be bought by clicking this link.
Adult – £13
Senior (65+) – £9
Concession – £9
Full-Time Student – £5
Youth (12-17) – £5
Under-12s – Free
Entry can also be purchased at the turnstiles on the day at the Melbourne Community Stadium.
Ticket prices on the day:
Adult – £15
Senior (65+) – £10
Concession – £10
Full-Time Student – £5
Youth (12-17) – £5
Under-12s – Free
A programme will be available to purchase on the day for £3 or a digital subscription to The Claret can be purchased here.
Where to follow the game…
The Club will be only providing coverage of the game on Twitter (@OfficialClarets) using the hashtag #TheClarets.
There will also be live audio commentary from Radio Clarets.
Post-match reports and interviews will be found on the club website, social media and ClaretsTV following the game.
Attractions at the game
Following the success of bringing real ale back to the club at last week’s game, we have increased this week’s offering.
Brewers Gold will again be available in the Clarets Bar and Yakima Gold will be available at the outdoor Wheel Em’ Inn bar both priced at £4.50 a pint and £2.50 a half.
It is set to be a mild day with 20 degrees expected at kickoff with no rain forecast!
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