Town earned a spectacular three points last time out at Staveley, as well as a third consecutive clean sheet. A run of seven points in the last three matches has propelled The Greens up to ninth, level on points with everyone above them up to fifth

Opponents Retford are a very new football club, only having been founded ten years ago in 2015. Established by Kevin Swannack and Chris Woodhead, the aims of the new club were to develop local players whilst competing at the highest possible level and standard in non-league. Retford have had a fairly successful existence so far, as they have competed at step six since the 2019/20 season, after they had been promoted the season prior to the NCEL D1. The Choughs then transferred to the UCL D1 at the start of the 24/25 season. They made an instant impression, narrowly missing out on the title in second place, before losing in the playoff final to Blackstones.

This campaign, the visitors find themselves just outside the playoffs in sixth and on the same points as Sleaford but have a game-in-hand over them as well as the top 5. They have so far beaten Dunkirk, Dronfield and Radford, as well as a draw against Grace Dieu and a loss to Pinxton.

Ahead of the game, club captain Jonathan Timmins has shared his thoughts, and began by praising Sleaford’s recent defensive qualities; “Not only am I personally delighted that we’ve kept three clean sheets and picked up seven points in three games, but as a defensive unit, even more so” he says, “We’ve worked really hard on our defensive shape during pre-season and in recent weeks, so it’s great to see all that effort paying off.” Timmins adds, “Moving forward, I’m confident in our solidity, so hopefully we can build on these good performances in the weeks to come”.

Though one could describe Sleaford’s opening three before finding form as having been inconsistent, the skipper believes differently; “I wouldn’t call it an inconsistent start, I’d describe it more as us finding our feet at Step Six” he suggests, “A lot of new players joined over the summer, and likewise, some moved on, so there was always going to be an initial bedding in period where players had the chance to take their opportunity and show what they’re capable of in a competitive setting”.

The defender is now confident of Town’s progression; “Now that transition period has passed, you can feel the togetherness growing stronger week by week, with everyone in the group proving a point to themselves and those around them” he states, “Like I said last time, it’s a great group with great young men and the characters to go with it, and I’m delighted to be a part of it”.

Ahead of facing Retford, Jono knows The Greens have to keep their feet on the ground; “We know it will be a tough test, but it’s one we’re more than ready for. They were in the playoffs last year for a reason and have started the season well again”.
Despite this, he believes that full attention on themselves will give Sleaford the best chance; “ We’re putting more emphasis on ourselves and trying not to focus too much on the opposition, because if we turn up and perform like we know we can, we’ll give anyone in this league a real test — as we showed on Saturday.”

“Fundamentally, we’re really excited for the game and looking forward to testing ourselves against one of the favourites in the league.”

The appropriate details for the fixture are available on Sleaford Town FC’s relevant social media pages.

Written by Olly Burton