PADIHAM PREVIEW
No time to lick wounds, no time to fester and contemplate – straight back to it and straight back on the road for the second of our away games on the spin and it’s just a short hop up the A56 to Padiham on Tuesday night.
MATCH: Padiham v Ramsbottom United
VENUE: Ruby Civil Arena, Arbories Memorial Sports Ground, Well Street, Padiham, BB12 8LE
COMPETITION: North West Counties League Premier Division
DATE: Tuesday 4th September 2024
KICK-OFF: 7:45pm
ADMISSION: Adults £7 | Concessions £4 | Under 16 £1. Pay on the gate.
OVERVIEW:
Saturday was just one of those days. Where everything didn’t quite click. You will get games like that. We hit the bar, hit the post and had two chances cleared off the line. On another day – things are different. On that day, there was no late, late salvation like before and we come home with a shrug.
But there is no time to think back, only look forward! And our next mission is a short trip up the valley to our old friends from Padiham, who we have enjoyed battles with for nearly 20 years in the both the NWCFL and the NPL for a time.
Although any Rammy fan might just want to switch off and not read the next paragraph as this one is only for after the watershed!
Last season……. well, it didn’t really go very well. The Boxing Day visit to the Arbories was one to forget (Luke Sephton in action pictured above) and the reverse fixture in April, equally as difficult to digest as left over sprouts!
Back to this season and, well, we are still top of the table as we write this preview of the game. However, the games in hand for the teams below are building up and that top spot holding might just be shortlived. All the Rams need to do is put Saturday’s disappointment behind and move on to face a side who are unbeaten in their last five games – two wins and three draws.
One of those wins is their only league victory of the season, beating Glossop North End 4-3 at home on 20 August but they left it late to draw 2-2 at Burscough and South Liverpool held them 1-1 on Saturday.
The Storks sit in 17th place with seven points to their name but, they have been scoring goals – 13 to be exact – so they will pose a significent threat, as any side managed by former Rammy player Michael Morrison will – as was proven last season!
HISTORY:
This will be the 14th competitive meeting between the sides and the Storks hold an 8-5 lead and a 27-24 goal advantage too. However, it is 3 wins each at The Arbories over the years with the Rams winning the two previous meetings there until last Boxing Day!
The first meeting was a League Cup game on 11 November 2006 when an Eddie O’Neill strike gave the visitors a 1-0 victory at the Riverside while the first league meeting came on 28 October 2009 at The Arbories where the Rams scored all four goals in a 3-1 success. Lee Connell scored in his own net late in the first half but two goals from Matt Edgington sandwiched an Andrew Sensale goal to give the Rams a comfortable win.
STEVE WILKES SAYS:
“I was really disappointed with the performance on Saturday. We really let ourselves down all over the pitch and it wasn’t acceptable.
“Yes, we did hit the post and the bar and had one cleared off the line but I am not taking anything away from Longridge, who deserved the win.
“But we have to be better than we were and Padiham will be a very tough prospect. We have to bounce back and maintain our good start to the season otherwise we will start to lose ground.”
