"Telford take on high flying Linnets"

Match Date : August 17th, 2019 3:00 pm
Competition : National League North
Ground : New Bucks Head
Kick Off : 15:00

King’s Lynn Town (Home) – Saturday 17th August 2019

Preview – King’s Lynn Town (Home)

Having faced Kettering Town on the first day of the season, Telford take on another of the newly promoted teams this weekend.

The Bucks lost that opening day clash of course, and this weekend face a King’s Lynn Town side that finished 14 points behind Southern League Premier Division Central champions Kettering Town. The Linnets have made a better start to life at a higher level than the Poppies though, including beating the Northamptonshire side 2-1 in their second game of the season.

The two sides actually met in the FA Trophy in 2012, which King’s Lynn won 3-1. But a lot has changed since then, of course.

The man currently in charge of the Linnets is former Norwich City stalwart Ian Culverhouse. First appointed in 2017, Culverhouse led King’s Lynn to a second-place finish in his first season in charge before briefly joining Grantham Town. However, he returned to Norfolk last November and guided the club to a second successive second-place finish. From there the Linnets swept past Stratford Town and Alvechurch before overcoming Northern Premier League playoff winners, Warrington Town, in the decisive super final – Michael Gash’s goal deep into extra time earning the Norfolk club a 3-2 win and promotion.

After an opening day defeat at Guiseley, the Linnets have picked up seven points from three games and sit 7th in the embryonic standings.

King’s Lynn’s dangerman is Adam Marriott. The tricky forward was the top scorer in the Southern League Premier Division Central last season with 24 goals. And he’s continued in a similar vein this season having found the net twice already, including a late leveller at Brackley on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, midweek also saw the Bucks suffer a second away defeat of the campaign, but Gavin Cowan’s men have impressed on home soil both this season and last. Telford are yet to concede at the New Bucks Head this term and will be looking for more home comforts this weekend.

Tom Carter