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The Greens were fixtureless last Saturday afternoon meaning they’ve had plenty of time to stew on a frustrating 1-1 draw at the Haydon Whitham Stadium against Lincolnshire rivals Deeping Rangers. The Greens created the best of the chances in a first half played out in Baltic conditions, and could have been ahead inside 10-minutes were it not for a fine hand from Dan George - pushing Rodrigo Goncalves effort around the post. The introduction of Finlay Armond in place of the injured Ryan Rushen injected some control into a so far, frantic occasion, and he instigated the Greens next presentable opportunity when he lofted a ball forward for Akeel Francis whose deft lay-off was scooped over George and onto the post by Joe Smith. Francis was involved again just a few moments later when he squandered the games clearest chance to date – somehow lofting the ball over the bar from a few yards out following a Mitch Griffiths cross. A tame second half looked destined to result in a 0-0 draw, particularly when the woodwork was rattled once again by Tom Ward who’d broken through the Deeping defence, but the hosts soon shook things up when Will Bird benefited from Liam Flitton’s misjudgement of the bounce to nip in and slot into an empty net. The Greens mustered a fine response though and were level just two minutes later when Joe Braithwaite powered home Mitch Griffiths’ corner to restore parity and ultimately see the spoils shared.

Player/Manager Tom Ward will check on the fitness of top scorer Ryan Rushen who left the field after 20-minutes at Deeping with a niggling muscle problem. Ward will also check on the fitness of Max Ward after he was involved in the warm-up at Deeping, that being his first involvement of any sort on the field since hobbling off at Heanor Town over six weeks ago. Rodrigo Goncalves was involved from the start in South Lincolnshire without any repercussions and will be hoping to continue his involvement following his return from long-term injury. The only major doubt for Ward to contend with remains in the form of midfielder Carl Adiku who hasn’t featured for the Greens since being on the end of a tackle during the Knockout Cup Quarter-Final against Newark & Sherwood United.

Opponents AFC Mansfield meanwhile have suffered a disastrous season to date and arrive at The Longwater Stadium under the stewardship of their third manager of the campaign. Paul Rockley departed the Forest Town Arena following the heavy 4-0 defeat to Kimberley Miners Welfare a fortnight ago, with legendary former player Phil Buxton drafted in to try and keep the Bulls out of a relegation dogfight they are swiftly falling into. A 5-0 thrashing at Deeping Rangers in midweek has done little to alleviate the worries of relegation - particularly with the two sides below them, Selston FC and Heather St. Johns, beginning to pick up points and the Bulls in the midst of a 9-game run without a victory. It is likely that the two league meetings with Heather St. Johns over the next few weeks will define the Bulls season, but even that looks a mammoth task for a side that has won only three league games all season.

All three of those victories arrived at the Forest Town Arena with the Bulls yet to register an away league victory all season. That is not to say they haven’t proved dogged opponents on the road in places - they’ve picked up five draws over the campaign on the road including recent back-to-back efforts against Selston FC and Leicester Nirvana. There were also away points gained at Heanor Town and at Kimberley Miners Welfare before the festive period, while they also proved frustrating opponents for higher ranked Corby Town in the FA Cup as the Nottinghamshire side escaped Steel Park with a 0-1 win in the Extra Preliminary Round in August. They enjoyed a run through two rounds of the Knockout Cup too and recorded some morale boosting triumphs in the process, defeating St. Andrews 0-6 and Easington Sports 4-0, before defeat to Newark & Sherwood United in the 3rd round.

The Greens well know the risks that face them on Saturday afternoon though as the Bulls recorded one of their three league wins at the expense of the Greens back in November. A slow start on a difficult pitch had already yielded the opener for the Nottinghamshire side when Brontae Wint was on hand to tap home following Liam Flitton’s save from Mohammed Barre. The Greens task then got considerably more difficult when Akeel Francis was dismissed, but despite that set-back the Greens did equalise on the half-hour mark when Ryan Rushen tapped home Mitch Griffiths’ cross. The sucker-punch arrived in the 86th minute though when Kamani Wilson made the most of Liam Flitton’s fine initial save to blast the Bulls in front and record them just a second victory of the campaign. The Bulls have visited Lincolnshire once before too for an FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round tie at the beginning of the 2019/20 season – Mansfield again the victors on that occasion by a massive 7-0 scoreline.

As always we’ll have live match updates on Twitter and once again these are sponsored by the wonderful team at Sleafordian Coaches. Admission to The Longwater Stadium is priced at £6 for adults and £3 for concessions. Copies of our popular matchday programme, ‘The Green Army’ will be available on the turnstiles for the usual price of £1.50 and this week feature an interview with Captain Charlie Ward as he is set to make his 200th appearance for Sleaford Town!
Words: Oliver Atkin