Preview: Matlock Town vs Warrington Town

Warrington Town face a difficult assignment this weekend away at fellow Northern Premier League promotion hopefuls Matlock Town.

The two sides are five points and four places apart in the league table, and the Gladiators know that a win could see them move into the play-off places, depending on the outcome of the day’s other matches. 

Mark Beesley’s side will be aiming to do a league double over their hosts, having ran out comfortable 3-1 winners in the reverse fixture at Cantilever Park in October. 

The Yellows will also hope to stretch their unbeaten run to 12 matches and climb up to second in the division. 

Team news

Left-back Andy White is a doubt, having missed Tuesday’s 2-0 victory over Lancaster City with an ankle injury. 

Midfielder Jay Harris also misses out through suspension. 

Mark Beesley preview

Manager Mark Beesley says his players will need to maintain their recent performance levels ahead of Saturday’s trip to Derbyshire.

Matlock’s form has improved drastically since the arrival of new boss Martin Carruthers.

There has also been a high player turnover, with a number of new faces bolstering their squad in recent weeks. 

“All games are tough, different challenges,” Beesley said. “We’re going to an in-form team with a new manager who has a different way of playing. 

“They’re right on our tails so we’ve got to be ready for it and dust ourselves down.”

Tom Hannigan preview

Warrington Town’s squad cannot afford to get ahead of themselves as the club looks to continue its recent run of form, according to defender Tom Hannigan. 

While admitting confidence is building as the squad continues to further generate momentum, Hannigan insists the squad cannot afford to lose sight of the bigger picture. 

“It’s been spoken about, us having a small squad, but with that comes togetherness,” he said. 

“It also means everyone is getting minutes, there’s no passengers and everyone trusts each other on the pitch. 

“As ever, we can only take care of our results and then see what other teams do. 

“We’re in a good position but it’s still tight in and around the play-offs. Football has a funny way of biting back if you think you’re doing well, so we’ve got to ensure we do everything right to keep this momentum up.”

Read more here!

Match information

Saturday’s Northern Premier League fixture at the Proctor Cars Stadium kicks off at 3:00pm. 

Match tickets, available to buy online and at the turnstiles, are priced as follows:

• Adults: £12
• Concessions (Over 65s): £8
• Students (with valid NUS card): £7
• 16-18yrs: £5
• 10-15yrs: £3
• Under 10s: Free

For supporters who cannot attend, live audio coverage will be available via the Yellows Mixlr channel. 

Buy tickets for Saturday’s trip to Matlock Town!