Words: James Whitbread
The Iron were held to a 0-0 draw on their midweek trip to Darlington, and will be looking to build on that result in an exciting top half clash with opponents Alfreton Town.
Last time out our opponents suffered a 4-2 home loss against South Shields. After taking an early lead in the game and going down to 10 men three minutes before the half time interval at 1-1, then conceding three in the second half, before bagging a 95th minute consolation goal.
Last season, the Iron managed to stay unbeaten against Alfreton over the two league fixtures, after a 2-2 draw away from home which saw Danny Whitehall and Danny Elliot net. In the reverse fixture on home soil, the Iron got a last minute winner thanks to a 95th minute header from Will Evans.
A key player this season for Town has been central midfielder, Jed Abbey. The 22-year-old is the visitors' top scorer with seven goals from 15 appearances. Jed is an academy product from Wolverhampton Wanderers, and joined Alfreton in the summer window after a season at South Shields, who Jed netted against in his last match late on.
Another important player for the Reds is 24-year-old central midfielder, Liam Waldock. With currently three goals and two assists in 17 appearances, Waldock is a threat to the Iron and will look to put Butler's side to the sword. The number 10 came through the ranks at Sheffield Wednesday, and joined Alfreton in the summer before the 2023-24 season from Gainsborough Trinity.
Alfreton have an ex-Iron player on the books in 21-year-old Billy Fewster. He joined Town before the 2023-24 season, and has netted two goals this season. Fewster’s spell at the Iron was a loan move from Nottingham Forest in the 2022-23 season.
Alfreton have picked up the majority of their points on the road, with 17 points picked up from nine games played away from home, only Curzon have picked up more points away from home (19 points). The nine games away from home has left Town with five wins, two draws and just two losses on the road.
Against a team who doesn't give many points away on the road, the Iron will need the fans behind them to make the Attis Arena a difficult place for our opponents.
