Match Preview :- Chorley - Tuesday December 2nd, 2014 (19:45:00)

On Tuesday, Celtic face Chorley in the FA Trophy replay. Chorley are still in the mix for automatic promotion. They are currently third in the table, seventeen places and eighteen points ahead of Celtic and have a game in hand on us and Guiseley (who are just one point ahead of them). There will be a match centre for this game.

In the league, the last time we beat Chorley at Bower Fold was a 2-1 win over them in 1991. We had to wait a decade to beat them here again, and in 2001 beat them in the League Cup. However, Chorley have never won at Bower Fold, and their last two visits here in the league, in 1998 and 1992, were both draws, a 1-1 and 3-3 respectively. Admittedly a lot has changed since their last visit! Their last win over us was in the league, earlier this season, when they won 2-0 at their place.

Chorley's start to their first season in the Conference North is, as to be expected, great. They've scored thirty-three goals (twenty at home), conceding just twenty-two (and only seven at home). Their top scorer this season is (unsurprisingly) James Dean, who has found the net eight times in the league, five of which he scored at home. Darren Stephenson is right up there with him, on seven, and in total they have had thirteen different scorers so far this season. They are most prolific in the first half, mainly around the twenty-five minute mark, and most vulnerable in the dying moments. Chorley have only been losing at half time once this season, but did go onto lose, whereas in the eight matches they've led at half time in, they've gone onto win them all.

Away from home Chorley have lost three and drawn three, and won three. Pleasing symmetry, but shows they lack the consistency away from home that they have at home, which should give Celtic fans hope. The relative recent league form of the two teams is Celtic have lost four of the last five at home, drawing the other, and Chorley have won one in the last five, losing two and drawing two.

In their last match, the 2-2 home draw against us in the Trophy, when they scored in the dying seconds to set up the replay, Chorley lined up as:
1. Aaron Grundy
2. Kyle Jacobs
3. Paul Jarvis
4. Mark Ross
5. Andy Teague
6. Jack Lynch
7. Chris Almond
8. Dale Whitman
9. Chris Simm
10. Darren Stephenson
11. Jake Cotterill

Todd Jordan is ineligible to play under the terms of his loan, and in the same match Celtic lined up as:
1. Lewis King
2. Oliver Crowley
3. Nathan Heath
4. Alex Mudimu
5. Matt Regan
6. Stefan Galinski
7. Kevin Holsgrove
8. Scott Kerr
9. Ben McKenna
10. Charlie Ennis
11. Liam Dickinson

As well as a tidy four thousand pound prize available to the winners, there is also the sarcastically tempting chance to go to Guiseley in the next round. Or Rushall Olympic, but we all know it will be Guiseley if we get through, and Olympic if we don't!

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