Chelmsford City continue their Vanarama National League South campaign on Tuesday 27th September (7.45pm kickoff) with another trip to a promoted side away from home in the shape of Hampshire outfit Farnborough FC.
Chelmsford have had an excellent start to the season with just 1 defeat in 10 games played in all competitions so far. Their league form has shot them into the playoff positions, with 18 points from their opening 9 league games, which sees them in 4th place in the nascent Vanarama National League South table. They also have a winnable Emirates FA Cup tie upcoming on Saturday 1st October against Essex Senior League side Romford FC.
Opposition
Farnborough have found life tough in their first Vanarama National League South campaign since the 2014-15 season. Farnborough have been down to the Southern League First Division and then back up again, winning promotion last campaign after winning the Southern League playoff final against Hayes & Yeading. The Yellows are in 19th place in the Vanarama National League South with 7 points from their opening 9 games although they have been tougher to beat at their home stadium, Cherrywood Road. They beat Taunton 1-0, drawn with Dulwich and lost to Bath and St Albans by the odd goal. Away from home they have lost to Hemel, Ebbsfleet, Havant and Tonbridge with their only win away from home so far coming at Cheshunt. Their defensive record is not too bad with 12 conceded in 9 games but they have struggled at the top end of the pitch with only 7 goals scored. Manager Spencer Day addressed this and said they are trying to get players in but he said the fact that they are in the FA Cup still means that teams do not want to loan players out as clubs do not want their players cup-tied.
In terms of players, in goal they former Staines and Slough keeper Jack Turner, an experienced keeper at this level. In defence their club captain is Kevin Lokko, who has appeared for Dover, Dagenham, Aldershot and Harrogate. At full-back they have a familiar face in Freddie Grant who has been around the league with Bath, Slough, Hemel, Oxford, and has rejoined Boro after playing in their last National League South season. In midfield they have another familiar face in the shape of Sam Deering, who has played for amongst others, Cheltenham, Ebbsfleet, Billericay and Dagenham. They also have former Wycombe youngster Oliver Pendlebury. In forward areas they have dangerous winger Omar Rowe, who they picked up from former division rivals Hayes & Yeading. They also have former Hemel and Woking wide-man Reggie Young who is a creative player. In the attacking third they have a player who needs no introduction to Chelmsford fans, Ricky Holmes. Holmes scored 67 goals in just over 200 appearances between 2006 and 2010 for the Clarets and was part of our Isthmian Premier title winning side. Since then he has played as high as the Championship with Sheffield United, but mainly in League One or League Two with Charlton, Portsmouth and Northampton among others. Holmes is 35 now and was on the bench Saturday but it would not surprise if he started the game against one of his first clubs. Up front they also have Liam Ferdinand who they picked up from Met Police and youngster Hisham Kasimu who scored 30 goals for AFC Totton last campaign and scored their goal in the defeat on Saturday against St Albans.
Manager Spencer Day, who has been in charge since 2011, said after Saturday’s defeat to St Albans, “I want to apologise to our fans for the 1st half, it was an absolute disgrace. We were second to everything and we were getting yellows all over the place which culminated in a sending off for two stupid, petulant yellows and we gave a penalty away but it was blatantly outside the box. I let them know what I thought at half-time. Second half with 10 men we dominated it. What a shift they put on but we ran out of legs. I thought we were unfortunate as it was a complete fluke to lose it and our keeper hasn’t had another shot to save. We’ve got to step up massively to compete with Chelmsford. We’ve played all that time with 10 men and even though they’ve had a long journey to Taunton, we’re in bits in there and people need to be honest to say that they’re ready for Tuesday. I think you’ll find Chelmsford will be the biggest side in the league, absolute giants, 6’4″, 6’5″ all over the pitch. Every game is a jump for us and we need to learn and learn quickly.”
Previous meetings
Chelmsford haven’t played Farnborough since April 2015 when Joe Ward, Mark Hughes and Mason Spence scored in a 3-1 victory. City memorably beat Boro in January of the same season 6-2 after the pitch was cleared of snow. West Ham loanee Jaanai Gordon scored twice in that big win. A win against Farnborough was Mark Hawkes’ first game in charge of the Clarets in November 2013 when Joe Ward scored his first Chelmsford goal, Sam Long and Bertie Brayley with the others in a 3-1 win. This snapped a run of 7 games in a row lost by the Clarets, including losing 6-0, 5-0, 4-0 & 3-0 in 4 consecutive league games! The last time City lost to Farnborough was away in October 2013 when Scott Donnelly scored for Borough and Danny Webb scored into his own net in a 2-0 Clarets defeat.
Team News
Chelmsford picked up an injury to captain Dave Winfield on Saturday which means that he is a doubt for the game having come off against Taunton on Saturday, which means City may have to reshuffle their back-line. Cameron James picked up his 5th booking of the league season on Saturday but it does not kick in yet so he is available although Robbie Simpson intimated in his post-match on Saturday that he may need to look at bringing a defender in. Jamie Yila started his first league game for the Clarets and Kai Yearn and Tom Blackwell impressed off the bench so Simpson has options in forward areas.
Ticket details…
Tickets are available to be purchased in advance of the 7:45pm kick-off on Tuesday evening and can be bought by clicking this link.
Adult – £12 + £1 booking fee
Concession – £10 + £1 booking fee*
*Spectators over 60 or Disabled are admitted as a Concession
16-21 – £6 + £1 booking fee
Under 16s – FREE*
*Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult
Entry can also be purchased at the turnstiles on the day at the Easy As HGV Stadium, where both cash & card is accepted.
Ticket prices on the day:
Adult – £12
Concession (65+) – £10*
*Spectators over 60 or Disabled are admitted as a Concession
16-21 – £6
Under 16s – FREE*
*Under 16s must be accompanied by an adult. Children 12 and under must also be accompanied by a responsible adult.
In the event of a Postponement and a refund requested, the administration/booking fee will not be refunded.
Parking is available for a £2 fee (supporters are advised to bring the correct amount of change).
A programme will be available to purchase on the day for £2.50.
Disabled Facilities:
Any visiting disabled fans are requested to contact Farnborough directly by calling 07950 394150 at least 48 hours prior to the match so that arrangements can be made to make sure their visit.
Wheelchair users will pay the entrance cost appropriate to their age/status and if the attendance of a carer is required, the carer will be admitted free of charge.
Where to follow the game…
The Club will be providing coverage of the game on Twitter (@OfficialClarets) using the hashtag #TheClarets.
There will also be live audio commentary from Radio Clarets which can be found here
Post-match reports and interviews will be found on the club website, social media and ClaretsTV following the game.
How to get there…
From Chelmsford take the M25 to the junction with the M3 and then leave it at Junction 4 and take the A331 signed to Farnham. After a few hundred yards exit at the second slip road – signed A325 Farnborough – turn right at the roundabout and cross over the dual carriageway and a small roundabout.
There is a Supporters Coach to the game. Prices are £30 for adults and £20 for Under 18s. It departs Melbourne Stadium at 4pm and 4.15 from the County Hotel. Phone 07582797001 or tweet @CCSC_Coach
Referee….
The referee is Aaron Farmer from Colchester, assisted by Simon Parbery (Beaconsfield) and Stephen Hawkes (Aldershot).
Weather…
The weather is set to be a chilly 11 degrees for the 7.45pm kickoff, dropping to 9 degrees by the end of the game. It is set to be a clear night though.
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