"Bucks meets Ravens with both teams out to protect unbeaten runs"

Match Date : January 23rd, 2024 7:45 pm
Competition : Southern League Premier Central
Ground : New Bucks Head
Kick Off : 19:45

Kevin Wilkin’s men will be hoping to return to action this Tuesday night, when Coalville Town will be the visitors to the New Bucks Head.

The Ravens came within a whisker of winning the Southern League Premier Central last season, losing out to champions Tamworth on goal difference alone. Coalville and Tamworth had identical records at the end of the campaign, but the Ravens’ goal difference of 50 was three less than that of the Lambs. And after that incredibly near miss, Town subsequently lost on penalties in the playoff semi final to eventual winners Rushall.

Coalville have consistently featured towards the top of the table since the creation of the Southern League Premier Central’s creation for the 2018/19 campaign, and the Leicestershire club have placed 3rd and 2nd in the last two campaigns.

With a largely settled squad, it’s something of a surprise then that the Ravens have been very up and down this season. While Coalville have the league’s joint-best attack, they also conceded 40 goals in their 23 games, meaning that they currently find themselves in 13th place, albeit with games in hand on most of the teams above them. Results have ranged from hammering Berkhamsted 9-0 and Long Eaton 6-0, to being thumped 6-1 by Needham Market and a 3-0 home defeat to AFC Sudbury. That said, Coalville seem to have found some consistency in recent weeks and are currently on a seven-match unbeaten run – a run that has seen them progress to the Fifth Round of the FA Trophy.

The man in charge of Coalville is Adam Stevens, who returned to the Owen Street Sports Ground in May 2018 after a three-and-half-year spell at Grantham Town. Stevens had previously managed the Ravens for seven seasons between 2007 and 2014, and his current squad includes the division’s top scorer. Tim Berridge was among the league’s best last sseason and he already has 15 goals this campaign. Meanwhile, experienced heads Leroy Lita and Scott McManus have both recently arrived from Nuneaton to bolster the Ravens’ ranks.

The two sides did, of course, meet earlier this season in the FA Cup, with Coalville running out 1-0 winners at the New Bucks Head. Wilkin’s men have been much improved since then though, and will be looking to make amends with all three points on Tuesday night.

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MATCHDAY INFORMATION

Tickets for Tuesday’s fixture will remain on sale up until kick-off and are available for purchase online in advance. See our ticketing page for further details.