Saturday September 5
SATURDAY 5th SEPTEMBER
Banstead Athletic v Lydd Town
Croydon v Sheppey Sports
FC Elmstead v Rochester United
Greenways v Hythe Town
Halls v Bridon Ropes
Lewisham Borough v Lordswood
SC Thamesmead v Minster
Staplehurst Monarchs v Stansfeld
Welling Town v Tooting Bec
A full programme of nine SCEFL First Division fixtures takes place on Saturday, with leaders Rochester United looking to bounce back from a Bank Holiday weekend that saw the chasing pack close the gap.
Rochester remain top on 13 points despite collecting just one point from their two Bank Holiday games, and Saturday presents an intriguing top-versus-bottom encounter as they travel to FC Elmstead.
Elmstead are still searching for their first league victory after five matches, while Rochester will be looking to rediscover the form that brought four straight wins at the start of the campaign.
Just two points behind the leaders are unbeaten Croydon, who welcome Sheppey Sports. The Trams have three wins and two draws from five games and moved up to second with Monday’s 2-0 victory over Elmstead. Sheppey have drawn two of their opening three matches and are one of only two sides yet to register a league win.
Perhaps one of the most interesting fixtures comes at Greenways, where Hythe Town put their perfect record on the line.
Hythe have played fewer league games than anyone else in the Division, but have made every one count. Three matches have produced three victories, including Monday’s 3-1 success at Lydd, leaving the Cannons just four points off top spot with three games in hand on Rochester. Greenways have taken four points from their two Bank Holiday outings and will provide another test of Hythe’s 100% start.
There is a fascinating contest inside the top five as Lewisham Borough host Lordswood.
Both clubs sit on ten points, with only goal difference separating them. Lewisham enjoyed an outstanding Bank Holiday weekend, following their stunning 5-1 win over Rochester with victory at Banstead. Lordswood, meanwhile, took four points from their two games without conceding, beating Bridon Ropes before drawing 0-0 with Rochester.
SC Thamesmead are another of the Division’s form sides and will look to continue their rise when they host Minster. Thamesmead scored nine unanswered goals over the Bank Holiday weekend, winning 5-1 at Elmstead before ending Staplehurst’s perfect record with a 4-0 away victory. Those results have lifted them to third.
That first defeat leaves Staplehurst Monarchs seventh, but with nine points from only four games they remain well placed. They will look for an immediate response when Stansfeld visit Jubilee Sports Field. The visitors arrive in good form themselves after back-to-back victories over Lydd Town and Welling Town.
At the other end, Halls AFC host Bridon Ropes. Halls are still looking for their first win, while Bridon will arrive with renewed confidence after climbing off the bottom with an extraordinary 6-2 victory over Tooting Bec on Monday.
Banstead Athletic and Lydd Town will both be looking to respond to disappointing Bank Holiday weekends when they meet. Banstead suffered two defeats without scoring, while Lydd’s previously unbeaten start ended with successive losses to Stansfeld and Hythe.
Completing the programme, Welling Town host Tooting Bec with the sides level on four points. Both have one win from five games and will see Saturday as an opportunity to begin climbing the table.
With just four points separating the top seven, Rochester facing the bottom club, Hythe defending the Division’s only remaining 100% record and two members of the top five going head-to-head, there is plenty of potential for another shake-up in the First Division standings.
All nine games kick off at 3pm, with live scores and match updates available throughout the afternoon via our usual Football Web Pages links.