STOCKPORT TOWN PREVIEW
Christmas shopping or watching football? Do you really have to ask that question as it is a 100% no brainer – it’s a trip to Stockport Town for the final league game before the festivities as the Rams look to continue their outstanding unbeaten league run which stands at 14 games.
MATCH: Stockport Town v Ramsbottom United
VENUE: Stockport Sports Village, Lambeth Grove, Woodley, Stockport, SK6 1QX
COMPETITION: North West Counties League Macron League Cup
DATE: Saturday 21st December 2024
KICK-OFF: 3:00pm
ADMISSION: Adults £6 | Concessions £4 | Special Admission (EPL/EFL/Nat League STH’s,NHS/Emergency Workers) £3 | 13-16 years £2 | 5-12 years £1 | Under 5s FREE
OVERVIEW:
Prepare yourselves for the ‘big day’ on Wednesday by escaping the last Saturday shopping hoards! A trip down the M66 and M60 await the Rams as they head down to Stockport Town looking to maintain their impressive league run.
While the break for Macron Cup action has seen the Rams drop to third in the league, they do have games in hand on the side ahead in league leaders Chadderton and second-placed Bury – the boot goes on the other foot as both have been chasing the Rams for a while with their games in the bank.
Both of those sides are on the near horizon – Bury on Boxing Day and a home game with Chadderton in the second week of January – but focus is firmly on Saturday’s tricky visit to Cheshire, who are in ninth place with 42 points from 27 games, just four points from the play-off positions.
They come into this game having achieved something not many sides do and that’s go to FC Isle of Man and win, which they achieved last Saturday with a 2-1 success across the Irish Sea. It broke a run of just one win from their previous five including loses to Colne, Abbey Hey and West Didsbury.
However, they will be dangerous on their own patch, as they proved by beating Chadderton 3-2 in early November and with five wins and two draws from their 12 games on the Sports Village pitch, this is not a game to be taken lightly.
Not that manager Steve Wilkes would have it any differently as his charges are putting their 14-match undefeated league run on the line and, whilst not looking past this fixture at all, Thursday’s trip to Gigg Lane is one where he would like to walk in with a 15-match unbeaten run instead.
Kick-off is at 3pm at Stockport Sports Village – you know it’s better than shopping!
HISTORY:
This is the first ever league meeting between the Rams and Stockport Town although we have met twice before.
They were formed in 2014 and went straight into the NWCFL but our paths didn’t cross in competitive action until August last year in the FA Cup Extra-Preliminary Round when Matthew Dudley’s 52nd minute strike was enough to separate the sides (action from that game pictured above).
However, we did meet in a friendly just over four years ago. The crowd number was zero as it was a behind closed doors affair as both sides warmed up for a hopeful restart to the league campaign with the country still gripped by Covid-19. It didn’t happen but the Rams are recorded to have won 2-1.
STEVE WILKES SAYS:
“We enjoyed a really professional performance on Friday night last week in the cup, that was our best football of the season I thought.
“Cup matches are all about getting through the game and we did that well but we will now focus on a really tough game with Stockport Town on Saturday. They are a decent side who are having a good season in ninth place in the table so we have to be at our professional best again.”
