In the second part of our Bank Holiday double-header, we are looking forward to welcoming Potters Bar Town who travel the short distance down the Great North Road to the Maurice Rebak Stadium on Bank Holiday Monday for a 3pm kick off. On Saturday, both teams tasted victory, including a dramatic last minute winner on our travels in another 3-2 result for the Blues. After Monday's game we travel to Thame United on Saturday in our first taste of FA Cup action.
Our Opponents
Potters Bar Town ended last season in 15th position, with 51 points from their 42 matches, sandwiched between our last two opponents; Folkestone Invicta and Canvey Island. This was a very similar outcome to the Scholars' previous two seasons where 53 points in both 2022/23 and 2021/22 saw them finish 13th in both. In recent years, it was their FA Cup exploits that made headlines, forcing a replay against Barnet FC live on BBC in 2019/20 in front of over 2,000 fans at the Lantern Stadium.
Did you know?
Work is underway at The Lantern Stadium to install a 3G pitch by the end of 2024 and therefore Potters Bar are playing their home fixtures at King's Langley until at least November. We hope to see plenty of visiting Scholars fans on Monday, and look forward to potentially being one of the first visitors to the new 3G surface on New Year's Day!
Head To Head
Last season our first clash against Potters Bar came at the Lantern Stadium on Boxing Day. An Ahmet Biler goal gave us a one goal lead at the break before the home side scored twice to take the lead shortly after the hour mark. Zack Newton levelled the scores just two minutes later before former Blues forward Darnell Goather-Braithwaite scored at the death to give the home side all three points in a 3-2 win, a scoreline that Blues fans are all too familiar with this season!
In the run-in last season, as the Blues closed on a playoff position, we settled the scores, taking a 3-1 victory at the Maurice Rebak Stadium thanks to goals from Ruben Carvalho, Alex Solomon and Ben Frempah.
Last Time Out
The Scholars have had a mixed start to the season with two wins and two defeats so far, recovering from an opening day 8-0 defeat at the hands of Dover Athletic to sneak a 1-0 victory at fellow relegated side Dartford before a narrow 3-2 defeat at Horsham on the road. On Saturday, Potters Bar secured their first victory in their temporary home with an impressive 2-0 win over Hastings United.
The early season form is giving the Blues the title of the league's entertainers, with plenty of goals and lots of drama in our opening three (completed) matches, starting with a 3-2 home win over Dulwich Hamlet, with goals coming from an Ogo Obi brace and Ryan Lowe's dramatic late winner. At Carshalton, we drew level through Luke Deslandes and Ben Frempah, before Carshalton scored the winner and saw out the final half an hour to take the tie 3-2. On Saturday, we fought back from being behind twice in Canvey Island, before Destiny Oladipo scored his second of the day to steal all three points in added time.
Players To Watch
With four goals in his opening four games for the club, Steve Cawley looks to be the key player to watch for Potters Bar. The prolific striker has been on the non-league circuit for many years, scoring over 200 career goals (source - Wikipedia!) for clubs such as Concord Rangers, Hitchin Town and Chesham United across steps two and three of the non league pyramid. Meanwhile Ben Ward-Cochrane is a familiar face, having played a handful of games for the Blues at the start of 2023/24 and now returning to Potters Bar where he had some success in previous years, including a goal in the replay of the aforementioned FA Cup game against Barnet.
For Wingate & Finchley, wing back Ayo Tanimowo, signed in the summer, has proven to be an excellent addition so far, contributing with his pace and bagging a couple of assists already. Meanwhile, centre back Ben Frempah has now passed 50 appearances for the Blues, and is likely to be a vital component of the defence as we play the second of our two matches in quick succession.
Tickets can be purchased in advance here including add-ons for a London Brewing Co pint and/or Pukka pie for just £4! On matchday, all draught pints are available for £4.50 if purchased before 2.15pm so make sure you get down early to make the most of the Bank Holiday sun!
Photos courtesy of Martin Addison.
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