The picture in the top half of the league table hasn't changed much in the past week after a number of draws for teams in the top half last weekend and another postponement for our fixture with Bognor Regis meaning that the midweek fixtures largely affected the bottom half.
As such, Saturday's match against Hastings United is yet another huge game as we move into March, continuing to sit in the playoff places but with Hastings just 2 places and 3 points outside of the playoffs themselves.
Our Opponents
Hastings United find themselves in 7th place in the league after finishing in eighth last season. Their league form has been fairly consistent throughout this season aside from a tough spell in the Autumn which saw the Us drop from 4th to 14th place and previous manager Paul Barnes departed to be replaced by former manager Chris Agutter. Since that point, Hastings have recovered and have remained firmly within the top half of the table. The recent form for Hastings has been a mixed bag with 3 wins and 3 defeats in the last 6.
Did you know?
The majority shareholding of the club was purchased by a local consortium led by former club captain and manager, Dean White during 2023.
Head To Head
Back in October our visit to Pilot Field was a successful one thanks to an excellent Elliot Long hat-trick in the space of 6 minutes either side of the interval. Hastings threatened to mount a comeback with two goals before the hour mark but the Blues held on to take all 3 points in East Sussex, this match turned out to be the final nail in the coffin for Paul Barnes in charge of the Us. Our last clash at the Maurice Rebak Stadium was in October 2022, in what turned out to be Marc Weatherstone’s last game in charge, a 4-0 defeat on that occasion.
Last Time Out
Hastings haven't played in the league since 10th February due to postponements against Hornchurch and Potters Bar in recent weeks. Prior to this Hastings had back-to-back defeats against Sussex rivals Horsham (2-0) and Lewes (3-1). The Us were also knocked out of the Velocity Cup back on 13th February, a penalty shootout defeat to Isthmian South East side Ashford United.
Our last 3 results have been draws, at Enfield Town (2-2), hosting Hashtag (0-0) and in Horsham (1-1). The Blues have proven difficult to beat in recent weeks as we look to cement our position amongst the playoff contenders this season.
Players To Watch
Hastings can count league top scorer Davide Rodari amongst their forward options. The 24-year old came to prominence at Hastings in his first spell as a talented prospect, before making a big step up to sign for League Two side Crawley Town. From there he had various loan spells including at National League Dorking Wanderers before returning to Hastings in the summer. He has 26 goals to his name already this season in all competitions.
For the Blues, Zack Newton made a goalscoring return to the starting XI last weekend and recent signing Joe Boachie made a brief debut cameo as a substitute after recovering from injury too. Both will be looking to fire themselves into the gaffer's plans for the run-in this season.
Adult tickets can be purchased in advance here. Concession tickets can be purchased on the gate and under 18s go FREE. Cash and card is accepted throughout the Maurice Rebak Stadium. For those not able to make it to Hastings, you can follow live updates from the club’s Twitter account and look out for a link on our social media to follow our live radio commentary available on the day.
Keep your eye out for two new special guests in the bar too..! A local IPA and an import from Seville!
Photos courtesy of Martin Addison.
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