Today’s first-time visitors to Victoria Park sit one point and one place above GFC in the Southern Combination Premier Division table, having played three games more than the Green Lions.
Roffey have won seven, drawn four and lost five of their fixtures to sit ninth and as that records suggests, ‘The Boars’ have blown hot and cold so far this season.
They were resounding 5-1 winners over AFC Varndeanians in their most recent league outing, but have also lost by the same scoreline this month away to Seaford Town, so they are hard to predict.
Much the same could be said about the Green Lions, though.
Their last league victory was the ridiculous come-from-behind 7-6 win at Shoreham over a month ago.
They followed that up with a comfortable home victory over Staplehurst Monarchs in the FA Vase, but they have since been knocked out of that competition and also lost to top-three sides Horsham YM and Haywards Heath Town in the league.
‘We need a reset because we have had a couple of poor performances and results – albeit playing against some of the top sides – so having a home game for that reset will hopefully prove a positive. This is the only home game in November, so we have to embrace it,’ said GFC manager Tony Vance, who believes last week’s postponement of their scheduled trip to Bexhill United might have been a blessing in disguise.
‘I feel we have kind of lost our way a little of late with the way we have had to patch a team together based on who has been available, so that break last week allowed me to have a little rethink. Our last few training sessions have been a bit of a refresher for everyone and a refocus.
‘We had moved away from what I want to achieve – which has been no-one’s fault, it has literally been a personnel issue – but I want us to be in a position of strength where I am picking a team and a formation from a squad, and then it is down to me.
‘We have definitely got to start making some inroads because we have dropped down the table. Yes, we have got games in hand, but you have to win them.
‘Nothing has changed from my point of view because while I did not expect to be winning the league this year, we need to be in the play-offs for me to consider it a positive season.’
GFC against Roffey kicks off at 2pm at Victoria Park.
