AFC Totton
VENUE: Snows Stadium, Salisbury Road, Totton, Southampton SO40 2RW
Saturday 21 December 2024 | Kick-Off 3:00pm
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SNOWS STADIUM IS SET for a Christmas cracker of a football match this weekend, when local rivals Sholing come to visit in the second Southampton derby of the 2024/25 Southern League Premier Division South season on Saturday 21 December (kick-off at 3:00pm).
Last time out, The Stags snatched a 91st-minute winner away to 10-man Tiverton Town, thanks to Tom Blair’s strike, leaving them in second place but still well-placed to challenge the current league leaders, Merthyr Town.
SHOLING – THEIR SEASON SO FAR:
Sholing currently sit 10th in the table, with 25 points from 19 games. The Boatmen began their campaign in good form, with just one defeat in their opening six fixtures – that solitary loss came courtesy of AFC Totton’s 3-0 victory at the Mortgage Decisions Stadium in August.
Sholing also lost 0-3 to Merthyr Town in early-September, before progressing in the Hampshire Senior Cup at the expense of Combined Counties Premier Division side, Alton.
A heavy 1-4 defeat at home to Weymouth ended their involvement in the Emirates FA Cup at the Second Round Qualifying stage, but Paul Doswell’s team initially maintained their good form in the league with a draw at Basingstoke Town and victories over Hanwell Town and an impressive 5-1 thumping of Havant & Waterlooville.
However, The Boatmen’s good form ground to a halt when Hungerford Town knocked them out of the Isuzu FA Trophy in Third Round Qualifying, prompting a run of nine games in which their only win was against Baffins Milton Rovers in the Hampshire Senior Cup.
But back-to-back wins in their last two outings – a 4-1 victory over Bracknell Town, in which the Wembly-born former AFC Wimbledon and Chesham United striker Michael Folivi struck all four goals, and a late comeback 2-1 win at home to Plymouth Parkway on Saturday in which Folivi struck another one – suggest Sholing’s confidence will be renewed when they come to face Jimmy Ball’s AFC Totton side at the weekend.
AFC TOTTON – LAST FIVE:
Lewes (Away) | FATr2 | Won 2-0
Swindon Supermarine (Home) | SLPDS | Won 2-1
Chertsey Town (Home) | SLPDS | Won 3-0
Biggleswade Town (Away) | FATr3 | Drew 1-1*
Tiverton Town (Away) | SLPDS | Won 1-0
*Biggleswade Town won 3-2 on penalties
SHOLING – LAST FIVE:
Gloucester City (Home) | SLPDS | Drew 1-1
Walton & Hersham (Away) | SLPDS | Lost 0-1
Winchester City (Home) | SLPDS | Lost 0-1
Bracknell Town (Away) | SLPDS | Won 4-1
Plymouth Parkway (Home) | SLPDS | Won 2-1
IN THE REVERSE FIXTURE…
AFC Totton travelled across the Itchen Bridge to take on Sholing at the Mortgage Decisions Stadium on Tuesday 13 August for the first league encounter of the season between these two sides, in front of a bumper crowd of just over 1,000.
GET IN THERE!: Skipper Scott Rendell celebrates putting AFC Totton ahead from the penalty spot when The Stags won 3-0 at Sholing in the Southern League Premier Division South in August.
Totton won convincingly; Scott Rendell opened the scoring from the penalty spot, and Luke Hallett doubled The Stags’ advantage with a headed goal midway through the second half. Then, winger Ethan Taylor stepped off the bench to put the icing on the cake for the visiting fans with a glorious long-range strike a minute from the end to seal a handsome 3-0 away win.
STAGS RADIO:
If you can’t make it to the Snows Stadium on Saturday, you can listen to all the action as it unfolds on our official X account on StagsRadio. Our LIVE coverage commences from 2:45pm with Lead Commentator Benjy Rees, who will be alongside Co-Commentator John Duncalf. It should be a great game, so be sure to tune in!
By Joshua Cole
Image courtesy of Sayers Sports Photography
