It’s tense and nervous at top and bottom- could today be crucial?

Our top two, separated by two points at kick off, both find themselves on the road.

Leaders Ramsgate, with one defeat in ten- and indeed only three all season- head to Mid Sussex (if you’re going by train, remember, Wivelsfield is your station) to take on Burgess Hill Town. The Hillians have rather fallen on their face lately, taking only one point from their last six matches, but with such a young team there was always likely to be a blip after a positive run prior to that, and they’ll be focused on giving the Rams a difficult afternoon. It’s just over two months since the sides met on the Kent coast, a match which saw Hill take a two goal lead only to fall to a four-two defeat- and they don’t have a good recent record against our leaders, losing their last four. Ramsgate also fell two goals down against Beckenham Town last time out, but came back to score five.

Cray Valley PM have lost only once all season, and it’s perhaps fair to say that it isn’t that defeat that sees them second but the seven draws they’ve delivered along the way, so close has it been between our top two. The Millers and Ramsgate are actually tied in third in our ten match form table, and neither side can really afford to drop points at this stage- particularly as the nine point gap between the two sides and Sittingbourne suddenly looks rather less insurmountable given the Brickies fabulous form. Cray Valley are taking a trip to the Isle of Sheppey, the Ites of Sheppey United their hosts. United have slipped to eighth, ten points away from a top five spot albeit with three games in hand over fifth place Chichester City, and after losing their last two- and indeed taking only three wins from ten- they’ll be desperate to turn around their form and mount a challenge. The three meetings between the sides since the Ites elevation to our level have seen the Millers take seven points- and they won their initial meeting of the season three-one.

Third place Sittingbourne are top of our ten match form table after nine wins and only one defeat from ten matches. That certainly looks like promotion form, and although they start the weekend nine points away from top spot we doubt they’ve given up on automatic promotion yet. The Brickes are back on their own patch this afternoon, as thirteenth place Broadbridge Heath make the journey to Woodstock Park. The travelling Bears haven’t been all that good at travelling this season, losing nine of their fifteen matches on the road, but by the same token each of the Brickies four defeats have come on their own patch, so read into that what you will! Heath are three unbeaten, and indeed have lost only three of their last ten, so they’ll be confident that they won’t be the latest victim of the Sittingbourne juggernaut. The Brickies won the opening match between the sides, in January, by two goals to nil.

Now we move firmly onto what looks like a six way fight for the last two play off places. With two points between fourth place Lancing and seventh place Herne Bay, and with Sheppey and Hythe Town further back but with lots of games in hand- SIX in the case of the latter- Lancing have little room for manoeuvre, and with only one win from five probably need to rediscover that winning feeling sooner rather than later. The Lancers welcome an Erith and Belvedere side who have won only one of their last seven and start the day four points from safety, and who will be very determined to take something from the match and prevent their survival hopes being further diluted. The Lancers defeated the Deres three-nil in January.

Fifth place Chichester City will be doing something rather unusual this weekend, heading WEST along the A27 to take on Horndean, should a pitching inspection at 11 AM be successful. City have gone five matches without conceding a goal, winning the last four of them whilst scoring ten of their own, and know that anything less than another victory could leave them vulnerable to Three Bridges and Herne Bay, both two points further back and both with a game in hand. The Deans are down in fourteenth, nineteen points behind City but having played five games fewer, but have shown some decent form of late with three wins from five- and they have already defeated City at Oaklands Park this season, three-one, so will be looking to do the double.

Three Bridges, in sixth place and two points away from a play off spot, make the long trip to Kent to take on Hythe Town. Bridges look to have rediscovered their mojo and make the trip with a five match unbeaten run under their belts, whilst Hythe’s unbeaten run was unexpectedly ended when they were thrashed four-nil on their own patch by Horndean last weekend. The Cannons are eleven points from a top five spot with six games in hand, a backlog partly caused by their FA Trophy run but mainly by them being far from enthusiastic participants in our ongoing game of postponement bingo. They’ve had terrible pitch problems which they’ve invested a lot of money to resolve, and here’s hoping they can now get on and play some football! This looks, in many ways, like it could potentially be our match of the day. This will be the first meeting between the sides this season- they are scheduled to meet again on April 9th.

Herne Bay are on the road to Merstham. Bay are two points away from a top five spot but have gone three games without a win, and they may not be able to allow that run to continue, so tight is the play off battle. The Moatsiders have seen a good run of their own come to an end with two successive defeats, but have opened up a ten point gap between themselves and the danger zone so at least have some breathing space. Bay won two-nil when the sides met on the Kent coast.

Sevenoaks Town, victors in a seven goal thriller at Sheppey United last weekend, have perhaps left a play off push too late, given they are eleven points away from fifth place with only one game in hand. That said, we’re sure they aren’t prepared to write off their chances, and they will be hopeful for three more points as bottom side Beckenham Town come to call. Becks are nine points from safety- albeit with two games in hand- and really can’t afford for that chasm to grow any larger. They have delivered some improved performances of late, but one win from ten isn’t going to get them out of trouble, so they need points to go with those improvements.

Ashford United have this week announced that they will have new owners by the summer, but the Nuts and Bolts, who start the weekend in eleventh place, will want three new points in the meantime, as Littlehampton Town come to call. With two wins from ten, and seven defeats- including the last two- this has been a rather mediocre campaign from the side, but they are still ten points better off than their Sussex visitors, the Golds still in danger at the wrong end of the table, albeit six points better off than second bottom Erith and Belvedere. Town have only one win from eight, and have lost their last three, so will have an even more pressing need than their hosts to pick up some points.

Finally, Phoenix Sports welcome East Grinstead Town. Sports start the weekend four points clear of the drop zone, the Wasps three points further up, so this match could be important for both sides come the end of the season. Sports ended an eight match winless run with victory over Merstham last time out, but have only one defeat from four so are showing improvement; whilst the Wasps will be buoyed by their five-one thumping of Littlehampton Town last weekend, a result which emphatically ended a run of five defeats. Town have won three of the last four meetings between the sides, the only exception a one-one draw in January which saved both of its goals until the very last moments.

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