On Saturday, Celtic make the long trip to Lincolnshire to face Grantham Town. Grantham are currently bottom on twenty-six points, five places and twelve points below Celtic having played a game more. Kick off is 3pm.
Grantham are the unlucky recipients of the worst home defeat of the season so far, when Lancaster beat them 7-2 at the start of the season. They have won two home games all season, but with Celtic’s usual excellent timing, both of those games were in their last three home matches, beating Ashton United 4-3 and, in their last home match, Morpeth Town 3-2. They did lose their last match, away at Bamber Bridge, who beat them 2-1. Grantham started the season with a win away at Radcliffe, but went onto get seven losses and three draws in their next ten, putting them at the foot of the league from that point on. In their last seven matches, they have only lost twice, something of a turnaround, getting them as many points as they had in the previous eighteen matches.
Grantham have the worst defence in the league, conceding sixty-nine goals this season, thirty-seven of them at home, which is also the worst home defence in the league. They are conceding at a rate of 2.2 goals per game at home and 2 goals per game overall. They have yet to keep a clean sheet at home, though they have kept three on the road. Scoring-wise, six teams have scored fewer than their thirty-nine goals this season, with twenty of those goals coming at home, again six teams have scored fewer. Their top scorer is Ricky Miler with seven, but they have had more goal scorers than any other team this season, with goals coming from twenty-one different scorers. They score an average of 1.2 goals per game and have failed to score in four home games and ten overall, the last time they failed to score at home was back in December when Atherton beat them 1-0, since then they have scored in all six of their home games.
We played Grantham earlier in the season at the start of October at Bower Fold, when we won 5-0 with goals coming from Justin Johnson, Kennan Quansah, Scott Bakkor and a brace from Jake Burton. Our last visit in what transpired as our last game of the curtailed season, saw an uninspiring goalless draw. Grantham’s only win over us at their place came the season before when they beat us 2-0 with two late goals. Our last win was the season before that when we beat them 1-0 home and away, Andrew Scott’s first half goal taking their points in our visit there. In four visits we have had two goalless draws a win for Celtic and a win for Grantham.
In Grantham’s last match, the 2-1 away loss to Bamber Bridge, Grantham lined up as:
1. James Pollard
2. Sisa Tuntulawana
3. Ellis Storey
4. Shane Clarke
5. James Williamson
6. Ashton Hall
7. Ali Aydemir
8. Harry Wood
9. Lee Shaw
10. Elliott Durrell
11. Steven Leslie
In Celtic’s last match, the 3-0 home defeat to Warrington Town, Celtic lined up as:
1. Grant Shenton
2. Danny Adigun
3. Stephen O’Halloran
4. Sam Wedgbury
5. Kennan Quansah
6. Shane Killock
7. Sam McLintock
8. Matty Jones
9. Charley Doyle
10. Callum Harris
11. Justin Johnson
Stephen Brogan, Liam Hughes, Raul Correia, Connor O’Grady and Matty Liptrott all missed the Warrington match through injury. Liam and Connor probably won’t play again this season though the others may be back may be back.
A win for Celtic, as well as a welcome end to a run of five defeats, could see us rise three places, with Basford (away at FC United), Radcliffe (at home to Morpeth) and Nantwich (away at Gainsborough) all within reach. A loss, however, could see us drop three places into the bottom three, with Gainsborough (at home to Nantwich), Mickleover (at home to Matlock) and Hyde (at home to Witton in a relegation dog-fight) all within three points of us, it is likely only two are going down due to further restructuring, but finishing in the bottom three will want to be avoided.
Take the Woodhead Pass (A628) to the M1 and join south bound at junction 35A.
Stay on the M1 for 13 miles to junction 31 (A57, Worksop).
At the roundabout at the end of the slip road, turn left (exit 1 of 4) onto the A57.
Stay on the A57 for 14 miles to the A1 roundabout and join the A1 toward Newark and Lincoln.
Stay on the A1 for 34 miles to ther A607 exit (Grantham, Melton Mowbary).
At the roundabout, turn left (1 of 4) onto Swingbridge Road.
After half a mile, at the roundabout, turn left (1 of 3) onto Trent Road.
After half a mile, at the roundabout, turn right (2 of 3) and the club is here.