Next up – AFC Dunstable
Tuesday, 10th March at Creasey Park Stadium, Creasey Park Drive, Dunstable, Beds. LU6 1BB
Pitching in Southern League, Divison One (Central); kick off 7.45pm.
Admission
Adults £10, Concessions £5, Under 18 £3, Under 12 Free, Programme £2.
Our opponents
Formed in 1981 as Old Dunstablians (the ODs) the club moved to Totternhoe in 1994 where the facilities enabled them to join the South Midlands League. Renamed AFC Dunstable and with the benefit of moving to Creasey Park, the ODs were promoted to division one of what was now the Spartan South Midlands League in 2012. Following a further promotion the ODs won the premier division and thus gained entry to the Southern League. They have been there since the 2016/7 season and reached a play-off semi-final on three occasions.
Outside league games they have won the Bedfordshire Senior Cup twice. Their best performance in the FA Cup has been to reach the third qualifying round in 2020/1
An earlier postponement means this is the first meeting between the two clubs this season. It will also be our last visit to them following the announcement of their merger with Dunstable Town.
Form guide
AFC made a good enough start to the season with an away FA Cup win, a home draw then an away win in the league which took them to fifth in the table. However, news then came of their merger for next season with Dunstable Town. This will inevitably take the new club down to Step 5 or, as looks possible with Town also in a relegation fight, to Step 6. It would appear that the playing budget was cut perhaps to reinforce Town’s relegation fight and since then it’s been a steady decline with just one more league win. A largely young side is currently on a losing run of nineteen games. The ODs are bottom of the table with 10 points from 29 games and are 22 points from the safety that life after a merger will make irrelevant. Progress in the FA Trophy including an away win at FA Cup heroes Maldon & Tiptree now seems a long time ago.
Ware’s return to form against Barton Rovers despite the absence of Jack Grosvenor and Sami Moutawafiq will have reinvigorated the side. Tuesday’s game against a team struggling without a point since October and which has conceded forty-two goals in its last seven matches, that’s an average of six a game, doesn’t bode well for the home side. It may not be that easy for Ware but sad as it is for the ODs this is a game we ought to win comfortably. This is not the way a club that has done so well at Step 4 should end its days but hopefully the combined Dunstable club has a brighter footballing future to look forward to.
Previous Meetings
After five friendlies in our first meetings, Ware’s transfer to the Southern League brought us into competitive meetings of which we have won four, lost two and drawn three. The most significant was the play-off semi-final of 2022, which we won on penalties after a goalless draw. We also had the best of a later home FA Cup meeting winning 2-1 with goals from Mitch Hahn and Theo Ofori (pen.).
Last season both games were drawn, 2-2 at home (Stef Georgiou and Gucci Soulya-Osekanongo) and 0-0 away. The ODs finished fourteenth in the 2024/5 table.
Commentary
Pete and Symon will be at the game. You can hear their commentary from 7.40pm at https://90minuteslivefootball.mixlr.com/events/4847631
Match Officials
Just as AFC Dunstable haven’t crossed our path so far this season so too the officials. The referee for this match is Adam Jackson and the assistants are Daniel Jones and Sam Waterhouse.
