County are back on the road again this weekend as we travel down to Hertfordshire to take on Boreham Wood at Meadow Park, looking for a first ever victory against ‘The Wood’ to close the gap at the summit of the National League.
With Sutton and Hartlepool both picking up big wins last Saturday, and Torquay claiming another three points against Woking in midweek, our draw with Maidenhead at Edgeley Park saw us lose ground at the top as we slipped seven points behind the top three.
Home defeats for Notts County and Chesterfield however meant we actually increased our advantage over some of the sides immediately below us, with Chesterfield going on to lose at home again on Tuesday night. We currently remain fourth, three points above Halifax in fifth and seven above Notts County, who sit just outside the play-off places.
Unlike County, Boreham Wood were in action in midweek as they were held to a frustrating 0-0 draw at home to bottom side Barnet, a result that extended an extraordinary sequence that has seen them draw 11 of their last 14 National League games.
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Since we last met:
The spoils were shared when the two sides met at Edgeley Park back in January, John Rooney’s spectacular early free-kick was cancelled out by a Kabongo Tshimanga equaliser in the second half, in what was Dave Conlon’s only game in charge as interim manager.
That point meant County remained in fourth, with Boreham Wood sat seven places and five points further back in 11th, albeit with a game in hand. Fast-forward to today, and whilst both sides remain in exactly the same league position, much has changed for both teams since then.
Despite being tipped by many to build on last season’s impressive 5th place finish, Luke Garrard’s side have won just four of their subsequent 21 league games since that meeting, including that incredible sequence of draws, to leave their play-off hopes up in the air with just seven games left to play.
Despite moving up to eighth in February following a 3-2 win away at Altrincham, their only win in 14 games since came against 10-man Wealdstone just two weeks ago – whilst the Stones are also one of just two sides to beat them in that run, alongside Yeovil last weekend.
They have however continued to showcase their ability to frustrate the top teams in the division in recent weeks, with Torquay, Sutton, Hartlepool, Notts County and Chesterfield all dropping two points when visiting Meadow Lane since March.
Although they’ve struggled for goals lately, with none in their last three, County will be wary of Boreham Wood’s main man up front.
Kabongo Tshimanga is the second top scorer in the National League this season with 15 goals, and has found the net four times in his last three appearances against County, including two in our only previous trip to Meadow Park last season.
Match Stats:
- This will be just the fourth ever meeting between the two teams, with County winless against The Wood so far – losing both meetings last season before that January draw at Edgeley Park.
- County have picked up one point more from away games this season than they have at Edgeley Park, gaining 30 points from 17 games on our travels – the third best record in the division.
- County sit top of the National League form table over the last ten games with 22 points, whilst also scoring more and conceding less than any other team in that time.
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