By Andrew McDonnell (@AndrewSJourno)
Northern League Division One
Venue: Craik Park, Morpeth Common, Morpeth, Northumberland, NE61 2YX
Date: Saturday, August 12, 2017
Kick-Off: 3:00pm
Updates: @MorpethTownAFC
Morpeth Town will welcome newly-promoted side Billingham Synthonia to Craik Park on Saturday afternoon – their first home league game of the season.
The Highwaymen were last in action at home at the end of July as they eased past North Shields to win the JR Cleator Cup for the first time in their history.
Last season, Nick Gray and Dave Malone’s side won 20 of their 21 home games in the league, and will be looking to continue their fine run of form against the Synners.
It’ll be the first time the clubs have met in over two years, with Morpeth beating Billingham 4-0 on the final day of the 2014-15 season the relegate them to Division Two.
The Synners are yet to play a league game this season, but the Highwaymen got their league campaign underway with a convincing 3-1 win over Stockton Town on Wednesday evening.
Team News
Liam Henderson is back in the squad after sitting out the first three games of the season due to injury, and could feature against Billingham.
Ben Sayer is unavailable for the game, while Keith Graydon serves the final game of his suspension on Saturday.
The Manager’s Views
Co-Manager Nick Gray said: “There’s 41 games left, it’s a long season. It’s the next game, it’s the most important game.
“They’ve just come up and they’ll be wanting to start the season well, as does every team. We had a good record at home last season, so we just want to try continue that this year.
“If we play like what we did against Stockton (on Wednesday), we should be alright.”
The Opposition
It’ll be the second time in as many games that Morpeth will go up against a side that come up from Division Two last season.
The Synners finished third – behind Stockton and Team Northumbria – last season, winning 30 of their games and scoring 89 goals along the way.
Conor Winter finished top-scorer for Billingham last season with 14 goals, and manager Conrad Hillerby has recruited new players this summer in preparation for the season ahead.
Hillerby’s side haven’t been in league action yet, with their midweek game against Marske United called off due to an Emirates FA Cup replay.
However, they were in action themselves last weekend, with the Synners losing 2-0 to Bridlington Town in the FA Cup.
Admission Charges
Prices for the game with Billingham on Saturday are £6 for Adults, £4 for Concessions and £1 for Kids.
Last Meeting
Saturday, April 11, 2015 – Morpeth Town 4-0 Billingham Synthonia
Overall Record
The two sides have played each other 33 times in all competitions since 1996, and the overall record stands at:
Morpeth: 15
Draws: 6
Synthonia: 12
