Paulton Rovers and Bishop’s Cleeve meet for the second time this season on Saturday, November 18, this time in the Southern League South Division, with Cleeve travelling to the Athletic Ground after hosting an FA Trophy tie earlier in the season.
Cleeve will be hoping for a similar result to the 6-1 thumping that they handed to Rovers back in September, however manager: Paul Collicutt is well aware that league and cup matches are a completely different ball-game…
“We played them in the FA Trophy and they weren’t at the races that day, we were and we went on to win the game that day (6-1 at Kayte Lane).
“But, a league game is different, I would’ve much preferred to have had three points on the day.”
Both sides have gone on contrasting journeys in the two months since their last meeting, Cleeve have gone from a free-flowing side with an abundance of goals in their ranks to a much more assured side defensively, which has helped them to 9th place in the league table and to an unbeaten run in their last four matches.
A big part of that up-turn defensively has been the signing of Josh Nelmes who Collicutt believes is having a positive impact on the rest of the group, leading by example.
“I just said to Josh in the changing room that he has come in and done exceptionally well, I just hope he can grow with it.
“He looks like he’s enjoying his football, the lads around him appreciate what he has done and what he is bringing to the team and it has had a knock on effect throughout the team, so for me he has been a big, big signing.”
As for Paulton, their journey has been far from easy; losing four out of five of the matches that followed the 6-1 defeat.
However, that run led to a change in management with experienced striker Kyle Tooze stepping up to a player-manager role in his third spell at the club.
Consequently, Paulton have won two on the bounce and Tooze bagged himself a hat-trick last time out, which Collicutt is very wary of.
“Paulton on their own patch is always going to be a difficult game. They’ve had a change of manager and I believe he scored three goals (last week), so he has had a big impact on what’s going on there.
“It will be difficult, I know that for a fact”: he added.
With Paulton’s Athletic Ground having a grass pitch, it will be differeny to what the away side are used to on Saturday, usually playing on their luxury 3G pitch at Kayte Lane.
Visiting fans will be pleased to hear that their boss isn’t concerned about the change in surroundings, despite struggling at both Tavistock and Bristol Manor Farm in their two previous away matches, which were on grass pitches: “Well, their pitch from last season was a nice pitch and you could get the ball down and play and if we can do that then we give ourselves a big chance.
“We’re not a big team, so we do like to try and play it on the deck, so it should be an interesting game”.
It was an interesting game too for Cleeve last weekend, drawing 1-1 at home to Bashley in a game that witnessed heroic defending from Collicutt’s men.
He reflected with: “It’s one of those where we’ve gone 1-0 up and you think that you need that second goal and we created chances, especially in the second half and if we could’ve got a second then we probably would’ve gone on to win the game.
“We didn’t, they made two or three substitutions and they came at us.
“We defended well and then had a chance or two ourselves afterwards and as I said, the game was end-to-end and I’m pleased with a point.”
“We’ve had Will Emery cleared off the line with a header, Lewis (Clayton) has pulled off two or three very good saves, and we showed a lot of character out there today.
“So I’m well pleased and well happy because to me – that’s a point gained, not two lost. They’re not a bad side, not a bad side at all, it was quite an entertaining game to watch”.
