Two short months ago, two dozen or so committed Histon fans made the 134-mile round trip to Rugby Borough on a bitterly cold January day to watch the Stutes take on the side laying 3rd in the UCL Premier South. Through the mist and gloom that had descended on the local area just prior to kick-off, some of them caught the faint outline of Connor Barnes darting between two orange-shirted defenders and the on-rushing goalkeeper to head in the only goal of the game. The supporters huddled against the cold at the opposite end of the ground will not have seen the goal being scored through the fog, but the record books show the final score to have been Rugby Borough 0 Histon 1
That victory at Rugby is understandably described by Chris Nunn in Saturday’s programme notes as our best win of the season. On Saturday, the two sides meet again at Bridge Road, but this time, if the meteorological office is to be believed, we will be watching the game under a bright blue sky and with the Spring sunshine on our backs. But while the weather may be a far cry from the almost arctic conditions in Rugby last January, one thing that has not changed is that Rugby Borough are still third in the league table and are still a very good side.
Rugby Borough come to Bridge Road with the best away record in the league. They had won all nine of their games away from home up until late January when they went down 4-0 at Aylestone Park. In fact, since our victory on their all-weather surface, they have only managed one league victory in six attempts, despite having progressed to the semi-finals stage of the Sports Ground Development UCL Cup. Could it be that we are meeting Rugby Borough at just the right time?
Theo Braham missed the game against Hinckley last weekend through sickness but is now fully recovered. Likewise, Pharrell Anderson felt no reaction following his latest comeback from injury, so both players are in the reckoning for Saturday’s game. The news on Danny Setchell is also encouraging as it is felt his injury at work is not as serious as first thought. We may even see him back in a Histon shirt again before the end of the season.
Our match sponsors on Saturday are the Hog Roast Company and we will welcome the Histon Hornets Under 14s as our mascots. The turnstiles will be open from 1.00 with live football on the TV in the club bar. Entry to the ground is £10 for adults, concessions £6 and Under 17s £2. Accompanied Under 12s are admitted free.
But if you just can’t wait until Saturday, the Histon Under 18s side are in action at Bridge Road tonight (Thursday) in a game which could see them crowned as champions of their Division of the Thurlow Nunn Youth League. They take on Haverhill Rovers who are second in the table and just four points behind our U18s with three games left to play. What promises to be a tense but enthralling affair kicks off at 7.45pm with admission at £3.00 for all.
