Talk of a fixture pile up has been rumbling away for a couple of weeks, but the severity of the situation could see us cramming an awful lot of games into April.
Our postponed match with Sutton has been rearranged for March 28th, just three days after we play FGR on TV. March will almost certainly see us play Saturday and Tuesday every week, and even then we may still have games to fit in.
Our penultimate month kicks off away at Aldershot on 4th, followed by a Tuesday night trip to Braintree on the 7th. On the 11th Chester visit the Bank, and thus far we have no game on Tuesday 14th; neither do Dagenham and I suspect our match scheduled for FA Trophy quarter final day will take place then.
Saturday 18th sees us visit Maidstone United, and we are back down south three days later to visit Boreham Wood. Saturday 25th is the FGR clash, and now the following Tuesday we’re away at Sutton. I make that seven games, without factoring in the FA Trophy.
If we progress in the Trophy then the games against Chester and Maidstone will have to make way as the two-legged semi-finals take place on the 11th and 18th. That would leave us entering April with two games still to factor in.
Terry demonstrates how many more games than everyone else we have to play
We’re currently free on Tuesday April 4th which could accommodate one game, but Tuesday 11th is the same week as Good Friday. We play Good Friday and Easter Monday, so possibly we could have another rearranged fixture on April 11th, just 7 hours ahead of Torquay’s visit. If not, we’ll find ourselves with an extra games to play going into the final week.
For all the excitement about Macclesfield at home or Southport away, there is a distinct possibility that we could host Chester on April 25th, in a move that would echo our previous Conference campaign. Originally the 1987/88 fixture list did not have us playing Wycombe on May 2nd, fixture congestion caused a change for the whole league. Is there a possibility that an unforeseen fixture could suddenly become a pivotal day in our history?
All of this speculation doesn’t take into account the FA Cup either. If we manage a draw at Turf Moor the replay would likely clash with York at home on February 28th, meaning another home game to try and crowbar in sometime in April. Even if we somehow win our trip to Turf Moor first time out, then the quarter finals would take place on the weekend of March 11th, meaning our home trip to Chester would be again be in doubt, as would any potential FA Trophy semi-final as well.
Essentially my advice is this: if you’re a Chester fan don’t buy a train ticket just yet, because there is only a one in three chance the game will even go ahead. If you’re a Lincoln fan, don’t make too many plans for April either – it could be a monumental month of football.
The Stacey West Blog 