On Saturday, Celtic travel across Cheshire to Nantwich. Nantwich are currently one point and one place above Celtic in eighth on fifty-one points. Kick off 3pm.

After a rocky end to 2023, in which Nantwich won twice in twelve games, including a loss at Bower Fold, they fell to within a whisker of the drop zone. 2024 has seen them turn their fortunes around and so far this year, they have lost three games in fifteen, only one of those losses at home, when Leek beat them 3-1. Third in the form chart, Nantwich are unbeaten in six matches, with five wins and a draw and have won their last four home games, though it took a stoppage time winner from Troy Bourne to snatch the points against Hednesford.

In their last four home games, Nantwich have scored thirteen goals, conceding four, with two clean sheets. Byron Harrison is topping their league goal chart, with fourteen goals, putting him joint sixth in the overall league golden boot. On average, they score 1.9 goals per game at home from 1.6 overall, scoring thirty-two of their fifty-two goals at home this season. With eighteen off their forty-one goals conceded coming at home, they are strong defensively, too. Nantwich have the joint second home attack, behind Leek, and the fifth best home defence. Six of their eleven clean sheets have come at home, and they have only failed to score at home twice this season, the last time at the start of December when Widnes beat them 2-0.

We have played them at Bower Fold this season, winning 3-2 after a storming finish to come from 2-1 down for Darius Osei and Jack Irlam to take all three points. Our last visit to Nantwich saw us win 4-0, at the start of 2023, with DJ Pedro, Chris Dagnall, Theo Bailey-Jones and Kyle Harrison all finding the net in a comfortable game for Celtic. Nantwich had won the previous six encounters, three of them at home, with Celtic previously winning there in 2018. In our last eleven visits, Celtic have won five and lost six.

In Nantwich’s last match, the 3-2 home win over Hednesford, Nantwich lined up as:
1. Ben Garratt
2. Timi Sobowale
3. Sean Lawton
4. Jonathon Moran
5. Troy Bourne
6. George Milner
7. Joel Connolly
8. Nathan Okome
9. Byron Harrison
10. Paddy Kay
11. Kai Evans

In Celtic’s last match, the 1-0 home win over neighbours Mossley, Celtic lined up as:
1. Luke Hewitson
2. Ethan Vaughan
3. Cole Lonsdale
4. Greg Wilkinson
5. Connor O’Grady
6. Max Leonard
7. Aaron Dwyer
8. Jordan Butterworth
9. Benito Lowe
10. Joseph Robbins
11. Jordan Burton

A win for Celtic could lift us to sixth, hovering around the play-off spots, with Witton (at home to Newcastle) three points clear, and Widnes (away at Kidsgrove) one point above us. Clitheroe (at home to Hanley) are one point behind and Avro (at home to Leek) are two, meaning we could drop to eleventh with results going against us.