Chelmsford City FC V Weymouth FC, National League South, Melbourne Community Stadium, Saturday 10th February 2024, 3pm kick-off.
Chelmsford City will hope to return to winning ways at Melbourne Community Stadium this weekend, when Robbie Simpson’s side welcome in-form Weymouth to Essex.
Last Saturday’s defeat against Havant & Waterlooville, plus a midweek win for playoff rivals Maidstone, means the Clarets have dropped from 3rd to 4th place in the National League South table.
Meanwhile, The Terras will arrive in Chelmsford sitting 14th in the league standings. Bobby Wilkinson’s side can close the gap between themselves and City to seven points if they record a 5th consecutive league victory this weekend.
Here’s all that Clarets supporters need to know ahead of the game…
Team & match stats:
· Weymouth are joint-second in the National League South form table for the last six matches; only St Albans (14) have picked up more points than the Terras have picked up (13) across this recent run.
· There have been more than 2.5 goals scored in each of the last seven competitive clashes between City and Weymouth.
· Robbie Simpson’s side are on a three-match winning streak against the Terras, who are also without a clean sheet against in their last seven competitive games versus City.
Opposition:
Strong form since December has allowed Weymouth to climb up the National League South table in recent weeks, and head into this weekend’s match as one of the division’s in-form teams. Bobby Wilkinson’s side have tasted defeat just once in their last nine league games, and the upward trajectory the Terras find themselves on has offered a welcome change from the relegation battles which the club has faced in recent years.
The Dorset-based side’s improvement this campaign is underlined by the fact they are only seven points shy of matching their points tally from the entirety of last season. The club defied expectations by avoiding a second consecutive relegation last season, when they stayed up by the thinnest of margins. A 2-0 final day win against Dover Athletic helped the Terras climb out of the drop zone for the first time in 487 days, with this two-goal win allowing them to pip Dulwich Hamlet to National League South survival on goal difference.
This time around, Weymouth have enjoyed a much more stable campaign during manager Bobby Wilkinson’s first full season in the dugout, underlined by their points tally and midtable position at present. This weekend, Wilkinson’s men begin a run of six games against sides currently in the top 10 of the National League South table, with this season-defining run of fixtures likely to make or break any aspirations Weymouth have to have to push higher up the league standings.
If they are to do so, the Terras will need main goal threat Brandon Goodship to keep up his impressive recent form. Now in his third spell as a Weymouth player, forward Goodship has scored 10 National League South goals this season, including four in his last four games.
Another key man for Wilkinson’s side as of late had been centre back Joe Cook. Cook arrived at the Bob Lucas Stadium on a short-term loan deal that began in early December. He quickly impressed in a Weymouth shirt, earning a place in the National League South Team of the Week after scoring the only goal of the game in the Terras’ 1-0 away win at Dartford at the end of January. However, Cook’s return to parent club Dorking Wanderers was confirmed earlier this week, meaning Wilkinson will need to replace a player who had started in every league game since signing.
Team News:
Jermaine Francis’ fitness will be assessed ahead of Saturday’s game, after the attacker was forced off with a knock last week against Havant & Waterlooville.
New signing George Alexander will be pushing for his first start in a Clarets shirt, having got his first taste of action as a City when he was used as a second half substitute in last week’s game.
Ticketing information:
Ticket prices online:
Adult – £14Concession/Senior (65+) – £9Student (17-24 with valid ID) – £4Youth (12-17) – £4Under-12s – Free
Supporters can also buy tickets on the day at Melbourne Community Stadium. Matchday turnstile prices are as follows:
Adult – £17.00Concession/Senior (65+) – £12.00Student (17-24 with valid ID) – £6.50Youth (12-17) – £6.50Under-12s – Free
How to follow the game:
Radio Clarets will provide live audio commentary of proceedings at Melbourne Community Stadium.
Clarets fans can find pre-match coverage of Saturday’s match and live updates of proceedings in Essex by following the club’s X (formerly Twitter) page: @OfficialClarets and Instagram page: chelmsfordcityfc.
Post-match reactions will be found on the club’s website, official social media channels and on ClaretsTV.
Words by Jake Dixon.
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