Taunton Town are back at the Cygnet Health Care Stadium this Saturday as they take on Hanwell Town, with the Peacocks looking to build some momentum and take a big step towards securing their Step 3 status over the final eight games of the season.
After a strong 2–0 win at home against Plymouth Parkway, the last couple of away trips have been tough to take, with narrow defeats at Chertsey Town and Poole Town despite some really positive performances. The lads pushed both sides all the way and got themselves on the scoresheet in each game, but ultimately came away empty-handed. That’s why the chance to get back to TA1 is such a big one, and there’s a real feeling around the club that home form could be key in these final weeks. Dan Koita has made the switch from Dorchester Town to bolster the attacking ranks, and the forward is well known for his impressive performances at Tiverton over the past couple of seasons.
Hanwell come into the game sitting 13th, just two wins ahead of the Peacocks and only four points above the drop zone, so there’s plenty on the line for both sides as the season moves into its decisive phase. There’ll also be a familiar face in the away side, with former Peacock Seidou Sanogo now lining up in midfield after his time with Truro City came to an end. Hanwell picked up a solid 1–1 draw last time out against Havant & Waterlooville, stopping a run of back-to-back defeats.
Going forward, Alfie Pendlebury and Charlie Woodcock are the main threats, with nine and seven goals respectively, so Taunton will need to be switched on at the back. The defensive trio of Nick Grimes, Jamie Richards and Jack Matthews will be aiming to keep things tight and hopefully secure another home clean sheet as the Peacocks look to get back to winning ways.
Lloyd’s Thoughts:
“We’re very much looking forward to Saturdays home match with Hanwell, we’re unbeaten at home since Gary has come in and we’re looking to continue that. We know how important this game is, everyone around us has been picking up positive results which has added to the task. Without making excuses we’ve had a terrible run of luck with injuries, which has caused selection headaches for the wrong reasons, but we’re hoping this weekend we could have a selection headache for the right reasons for the first time with a few players coming back into contention, along with Dan joining us from Dorchester.
“I’m sure anyone that has been to any of our last few games will agree that despite the results the performances are so close to being where we need them to be, we’ve switched off for small patches of matches and been punished, but we’ve competed very well with some strong teams near the top of the division and should have come away with points.
“Our supporters have been great, even when the results haven’t been positive, I feel they can see the progress and the effort that’s going in, and they also know we’re not far away from where we need to be. We need continued support right the way through now, we have 6 home games left so please come down and get behind the boys and make the Cygnet a tough place to come, as you have been. Our home games will ultimately determine our fate, so let’s pack the Cygnet. As always we appreciate your support.”
Hanwell Town Tickets:
Supporters can purchase tickets for Saturday’s Southern League Premier South fixture online through FanBase here.
- Adult – £14.00
- Concession (State Pensioners + Students) – £11.00
- Juniors (16 and under) – £5.00
- Under 6 free with a paying adult – £0.00
Match Coverage:
We will provide live updates across our social media channels throughout each game, along with post match interviews. You can also listen live to Rich Wilcox and Jon Reed’s excellent match commentary from 10 minutes before kick off: Peacocks Radio.