This weekend we again visit the City of Leicester, this time to take on GNG Oadby Town at their Riverside Ground in Braunstone Lane East. In stark contrast to our last visit to Leicester when we played Aylestone Park, many within the Histon camp will be expecting nothing less than three points from this game given our respective league positions and our record of two wins and a draw in our three previous visits, but we all know that football is far from predictable, especially in the United Counties League.
Not only are we undefeated at The Riverside Ground, we have also yet to concede a goal in this fixture. Our first visit in 2023 ended in a 4-0 win and was followed in January 2024 by a 0-0 draw. Last season we came away with a 5-0 win which left Oadby struggling to avoid relegation. This season Oadby find themselves in relegation trouble once again, eight points from safety but having played five games fewer then third-from-bottom Northampton Sileby Rangers.
Oadby are without a win in their last nine league fixture but have drawn three of their last five games. They also progressed to the fourth round of the FA Vase, beating Nuneaton Town along the way, but their run came to a shuddering halt last weekend when they went down 6-0 at Coventry United. On Tuesday of this week they lost 3-0 at Daventry Town
Earlier this season, we recorded a 5-3 win against Oadby at Bridge Road with Danny Baulk, Jordan Foster, Max York and Connor Barnes (2) all amongst the goals. But despite all the positive indicators in our favour and the boost gained from our outstanding win at Moulton, Joint Managers Mark and Matt will be keen to expel any thoughts of complacency going into this game. They gave Joe Greenslade-Cross a place in the starting lineup against Moulton after the winger had missed the last three months with a rib injury. Academy products Guy Motley and Dexter Todd both got game time from the bench and a debut was given to our latest signing Ben Netherclift. The young New Zealander was signed up last week after training with the club since Christmas and receiving his international clearance from the FA. Ben will be available to sponsor over the remainder of the season should anyone wish to strike a deal with our Commercial Director Paul Smart.
Previous visitors to the Riverside Ground will be aware that the facilities on offer are basic, but you will need to go a long way to find a better vegetable samosa than the ones they serve from their food outlet. Admission is £6 for adults, just £3 for concessions, and the post code is LE3 2FD.
With seven wins in our last ten UCL away games, the Stutes are showing that your support on the road really does make a difference. Let’s give the boys our support again this weekend as we look to build upon last weekend’s win and bring all three points back to Bridge Road.
