Next Match – Farnborough (A)

Bath City travel to Farnborough this Saturday full of hope for their second away fixture this week. Tuesday’s 0-0 draw at Hemel Hempstead would have been a win on most days, but it was still another away point and a third consecutive clean sheet – Jerry Gill’s 93rd shut-out, a post-war record for any City manager. The Romans will also take confidence from being the National League South’s joint-top away scorers, with 17 on the road this campaign.

But while City are unbeaten in four, with three wins and a draw, Boro’s 0-3 loss at home to Worthing on Tuesday night – though their first NLS home defeat this season – was their fourth in five. Their cause has not been helped by striker Alfie Pavey moving to Woking two months ago. He’d already scored eight goals by then.

Their manager, Spencer Day, is the longest-serving in the division, having taken the reins in November 2011. He saw Boro relegated in 2015 and demoted to Step 4, but got them back up to the NLS via the play-offs in 2022. They finished 12th last season, which is where they are now.

And the league is what they have left to concentrate on. They lost at Slough last Saturday in the FA Trophy, home to Weston-super-Mare in the FA Cup in October, and against Folland Sports in the Hampshire Senior Cup in September when, in protest at being kicked out of the competition last year, Day fielded a team that included just a handful of first teamers, alongside fans, club staff and trialists.

City won last season’s fixture 1-0 in August, courtesy of Alex Fletcher, but Farnborough redressed the balance with the same scoreline at Twerton Park in January with Mason Bloomfield on target. That result ended a run of seven consecutive wins for the Romans against Boro’. Those seven wins are the difference in our overall head-to-head record, with City coming out on top 14 times in 25 meetings to Boro’s seven. 

The fixture tends to produce goals – an average of 3.64 per game, more than with any other opponent we face in the NLS this season. That record was boosted considerably in 2014-15, when City won 7-4 at Twerton Park and 7-2 in Hampshire, which is City’s biggest away win in the division.

Farnborough’s last home win over City was on Boxing Day 1996. City drew 1-1 in the FA Trophy ten years later, and have won all four games they have played there since.

There are spaces on the Supporters Coach so come along and give the players further encouragement during this fine run of form!