Uhlsport United Counties League, Premier Division South
Tuesday February 21st
HISTON v MK Irish
Kick Off 7:45pm
Match Sponsored by Bill and Corrine Parker, in memory of Stephen Parker.
Histon will be looking to extend their unbeaten record to five games this evening, when MK Irish pay a first visit to Bridge Road.
Lance Key’s men turned in another fine performance to see off Oadby Town on Saturday, as a fourth successive victory was gained, with The Stutes jumping up two places into 6th on the back of their 5-0 win. At the same time in Northamptonshire, MK Irish were surprisingly held to a 1-1 draw at the relegation threatened Rothwell Corinthians and as such dropped into 5th spot, now just a point ahead of their hosts.
The two sides previously met back on October 29th when the hosme side managed to cling on to a 3-2 victory, leaving The Stutes to rue missed opportunities, whilst also feeling aggrieved that major decisions appeared to go against them. Having conceded two goals in as many minutes, skipper Ollie Brookes looked to get The Stutes back into the game with his glancing header from a Max York long throw. A third Irish goal from a break came with the hosts regaining their two goal advantage. Luke Lindsay fired home after 62 minutes to reduce the arrears, before Charlie Tunnell appeared to have drawn the visitors level, but for the assistant referee’s offside flag. Despite coming under some severe pressure late on the hosts clung on to record the win in the first meeting between the sides.
The Irish have faced 3 fixtures against the 4 sides currently above them in the league table. The latest came on Boxing Day, when a 1-1 draw was played out with neighbours Newport Pagnell Town in front of a bumper crowd of 391 at The Irish Centre. Defeats were suffered on the road at Rugby Town (3-1) and Coventry Sphinx (4-1). With 5 further tricky ties ahead against the top 4, The Irish run in looks to be the most challenging of those seeking to sneak toward second place.
The biggest attacking threat posed by the visitors has so far come from Ryan Smith who has scored 12 times from 26 appearances in all competitions. His side have scored 42 goals compared to The Stutes 52, although his sides defence has proven somewhat tough to break down, with just 28 goals allowed in comparison to the 37 that have been conceded by Lance Key’s men.
Within their 4 game winning streak Histon have not conceded a goal, whilst finding the visitors net on 12 occasions. The Irish are also unbeaten in their last 4, having drawn 2 and won 2 times. A 2-0 away win was collected at Easington Sports, before Long Buckby were beaten 2-1 at The Irish Centre. Successive 1-1 draws followed against Desborough Town and Rothwell Corinthians.
An interesting 90 minutes awaits, with the possibility of a victor making ground into 4th place come 9:30 or so.
Cash and card are still accepted at the turnstiles, with admission prices available below:
Tickets continue to be available to purchase ahead of matchday using the link below:
Histon v MK Irish | Histon FC Web (ktckts.com)
