Whickham FC vs Guisborough Town – Match Preview
Whickham will be looking to continue where they left off in mid-week, with an away victory against Guisborough Town.
The Lang Jacks are currently top of the form table, with five wins in their last six league games, following a 2-0 home victory against West Auckland last Saturday.
Tony Fawcett’s team also notched up an impressive 3-0 victory against Birtley Town in the Durham Challenge Cup on Tuesday evening.
Whickham will make the one-hour journey south to face Guisborough, who are currently sitting in 16th place in the league.
The home side were on course to grab a point last weekend; but conceded in the final few minutes, losing the match 3-2 against West Allotment Celtic.
Guisborough have not recorded a league victory at the King George V Ground since late August.
The home side are also looking for their first win and clean sheet in the league since the start of November.
Whickham defender Ryan Bolton, who has recently completed a move from Gateshead is relishing the challenge Guisborough will pose. The right back notched his first goal for the club in mid-week said: “We’ll go there to win, be in their faces and cause some problems.
“We need to stay disciplined and any factors on the day we’ll be ready. For us we need to stay compact, stay as a team and stay positive.”
Whickham have won six of their last seven games under Tony Fawcett’s guidance in all competitions.
The new management team have created a resilient team keeping five clean sheets in seven matches, conceding only four goals in 630 minutes.
Whickham will be without captain Ross Peareth due to suspension. The Lang Jacks are also waiting to hear if top goalscorer Zak Atkinson is available, after the club appealed his sending off against West Auckland.
Defender Jack Moody will face a late fitness test prior to the match, following a knock picked up during mid-weeks win.
The Lang Jacks otherwise have a full fit squad to choose from. Dom Agnew and Dave Below were both cup-tied in midweek, and therefore missed the victory against Birtley Town. While Scott Jasper will also return to the squad for Saturday’s trip to Guisborough.
Whickham will be hoping to keep up their winning momentum. The club will be hoping to keep the pressure on the teams sitting above them in the league.
Bolton commented on Whickham’s ambitions moving into the New Year, he added: “We want to do the best we can, you can’t really label where we’ll finish the league.
“We are going to keep pushing in each game, giving it our all, and we’ll see where that gets us. I’m sure Tony, will be very pleased as long as we’re giving our all and getting results.”
