On Tuesday, Celtic face Gainsborough. Trinity are currently on thirty-one points in seventeenth, two places and three points below Celtic having played a game more. Kick-off is 7:45pm. Tickets are available on the gate or online.

Trinity had a terrible start to the season with six losses in their opening ten matches, but have turned it around in their last ten, having lost three. Although they haven’t lost as many, they have won just twice in that period, drawing five. Away from home, they have won just once all season, when they beat Lancaster City 2-0 at the start of October. Since that win, they have drawn three and lost their other five away matches. Their last away game was a 2-0 loss at Radcliffe, whilst their last match saw them draw 1-1 at home to Stafford.

Trinity have the worst attack in the league scoring twenty-three goals all season, however, away from home they only have the second worst attack in the league with Atherton having scored fewer away from home. Defensively, they have the third worst away backline in the league, with Witton and Grantham the only teams who have conceded more. On average, they score 0.8 goals per game (0.6 away from home) having failed to score nine times (seven of which were away). Defensively, they ship 1.3 goals per game on average (1.9 per away game) and have kept two of their eight clean sheets while on the road. Their top scorer this season is Bradley Grayson, with six, double his closest rivals of Toby Gould and Jevon Makama.

It’s fair to say we’ve met Gainsborough more than any other league team. Although we visited them three times since the lockdowns and curtailed season, the last time they visited us was at the end of the 19/20 season, when they won 2-1. That was one of their only three victories here since 1988, the others coming in 2009 when they won 2-1 and in 2006 when they won 2-0. In their last 27 visits, they won three, Celtic have won eighteen and there have been six draws. Celtic’s last win over them was in 2018, when we won 2-1. The highest scoring match between the two teams was the rollercoaster 4-4 back in 2015 when Celtic needed that point to avoid the drop.

Trinity’s last match was a 1-1 draw at home to Stafford, when Gainsborough lined up as:
1. Matt Yates
2. George Hornshaw
3. Isaac Rice
4. Neal Bishop
5. Lewis Carr
6. Callum Minkley
7. Alex Wollerton
8. Elicha Ahui
9. Jovon Makama
10. Bradley Grayson
11. Cieron Keane

In Celtic’s last match, the 2-0 away win over Bamber Bridge, Celtic lined up as:
1. Liam Hughes
2. Matthew Liptrott
3. Ashley Smith-Brown
4. Sam Wedgbury
5. Connor O’Grady
6. Kennan Quansah
7. Callum Harris
8. Charley Doyle
9. Raul Correia
10. Ntumba Massanka
11. Justin Johnson

Lewis Carr will not be in the line-up for Trinity, having left the club. Scott Bakkor got some pitch time against Bamber Bridge, though new signing Gedeao Varela, remained on the bench. A win for Celtic could see us rise to twelfth, with Atherton, Basford and Radcliffe all within three points of us. A win for Gainsborough could see them draw level on points with us, whilst Ashton (at home to bottom club Witton) could overtake us, dropping us a place to sixteenth.