Preview: Broadbridge Heath v VCD Athletic
Hayden Smith previews this afternoon's Pitching In Isthmian South East clash
Broadbridge Heath will look to continue their relatively positive start to the campaign on Saturday (November 1) as they host early strugglers VCD Athletic at the BodyMould Mattresses Stadium (3pm KO.)
The Bears know that a win here would close the gap to the play-off places, as they perhaps look for a promotion tilt this season after two relatively stable years so far in this division.
They finished ninth two seasons ago in their first spell at this level, and came 13th last year. And they come up against a VCD Athletic side who are taking a bit of time to re-adjust to Step Four.
The Southern Counties East League play-off winners from last season currently sit 19th in the 22-team league after only 13 games played, yet know that a victory here could take them as high as 16th. They come into this in awful form though, having lost their last five league games (and the last two without scoring) and they haven’t won in the league since late September.
As for Broadbridge, they come into this off the back of a disappointing defeat at Hassocks last Saturday, but that was preceded by a great run of form which saw them win three games on the bounce, including 5-0 and 5-4 wins against Eastbourne Town and Sheppey United respectively.
Manager Chris Simmons is under no illusion of the task that they'll be facing - stating that a play-off charge was the internal aim at the start of the season. Ironically, this will be the first ever recorded league meeting between the two sides - as they have both interlapped divisions in the last couple of seasons- but Simmons doesn’t really feel as if that will affect proceedings, saying that: “I don’t think it’s any advantage, from the video footage we have nowadays.”
He continued: “Lots of teams in this league are really strong at the front end, so it’s down to us to tighten up our back end and ensure that we are ready for the game.”
Therefore that will ensure an intriguing contest - as the Vickers look to arrest their torrid slump, and Broadbridge look to bounce back from a tiny blip.
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