All you need to know ahead of Alfreton game
WHERE? Kenilworth Road of course and don't forget the Oak Road's open for this match. Click here for further details on this move. And click here for further information on ticketing at home matches - remember to arrive in good time!
WHO? Alfreton Town, aka the Reds. The club were formed in 1959 – the year the Town got all the way to the FA Cup final. Alfreton play their home games at the Impact Arena, aka North Street and were promoted to the top level of non-league football in 2011.
RAPID RISE. The Reds were playing in the Midland Counties League as recently as 1982 and the Northern Counties East in 2002. The club won the NCE division in 2002 before rising up through the Northern Premier League to the Conference North, which they won the title of in 2010/11, finishing 10 points clear of nearest challengers AFC Telford, scoring 97 goals in the process.
TROPHY CABINET. Alfreton’s trophy cabinet is also bursting at the seams with further league and cup titles, including eight Derbyshire Senior Cup titles. They have been runners-up in that particular competition a further eight times.
IN CHARGE. Greenwich-born Nicky Law is the man at the helm at the Impact Arena. As a player he spent lengthy spells with Barnsley, Rotherham and Chesterfield. His first job as a manager was with Chesterfield, who he helped guide to promotion from Division 3 (now League 2) in 2000/01. After short spells at Bradford and Grimsby he took over at Buxton, where he earned back to back championships in the Northern Counties Leagues. He joined Alfreton in 2007, and won the Conference North title in his third season in the hotseat.
HOW THEY DOING? Very, very, very, very well. It was well documented in the summer Alfreton’s decision to go part-time but the performances from the Reds have been nothing short of fantastic. As the table stands, Saturday’s visitors sit in fourth place and have a strong chance of extending their season in the Play-Offs come April. Law’s side have taken 57 points from their 33 matches so far and lie point below second-placed Cambridge. They also have a four-point buffer between themselves and the sides outside the top five.
ON THE ROAD. The Reds have an excellent record on their travels – as you would expect from a team challenging for promotion. Law’s side have won seven, drawn one but lost 10. Their goal difference away from the Impact Arena stands at minus 11 but their overall record on the road is the ninth best in the Skrill Premier. Their home record, on the other hand, is the fourth best in the division.
LAST TIME HERE. It was December 2012 when Alfreton last visited Kenilworth Road, a day when comedienne Miranda Hart was at Kenilworth Road to film a feature on a documentary about her comedy hero Eric Morecambe. Miranda witnessed a three-goal burst inside five second half minutes as JJ O’Donnell, Jonathan Smith and Andre Gray found the net.
HEAD-TO-HEAD. Alfreton will be looking avenge the 5-0 defeat the Hatters inflicted on them back in December. The Town stormed into a four-goal lead inside 18 minutes to help record their third win over the Reds. Alfreton have won just once against the Town and that came last season in a dominant 3-0 win at the Impact Arena. Alfreton will also be looking to record their first point on Bedfordshire soil on Saturday. The Town won the first competitive meeting between the two clubs in January 2012 when a George Pilkington penalty have the Hatters a 1-0 victory.
EX FACTOR. Alfreton took Lathaniel Rowe-Turner on-loan this season but the defender has since returned to Kenilworth Road but the Reds will have a former Hatters in their ranks on Saturday in the shape of Godfrey Poku. The midfielder, who played 29 times for the Town, is currently on-loan from Mansfield.
TOWN TEAM NEWS. It’s going to be as you were for the Hatters against the Reds with no fresh injury worries for Town boss John Still.
PRAY FOR ALFRETON.On the official Alfreton website Nicky Law was asked if he was planning any special tactics for the game. “Pray!” was his answer. He also joked that he may have to resort to a “9-1-1” formation. “Luton are going to win this league by a long shot,” said Law. “They are way, way above this level looking at the resources they have got, the players they have got and the good manager they have got. John Still has come in and changed a lot of people’s attitudes towards Luton, they are getting respect and earning respect in the right way.”
LIVE & DIRECT. We’ll have all the news as it happens from Kenilworth Road. Pre-match build-up, team news, live text and audio commentary, a report, reaction, photographs and interviews. Remember to keep it lutontown.co.uk, Hatters Player and check out our ever-growing Facebook and Twitter feeds. And keep an eye on our Instagram, Vine and YouTube accounts too for good measure #COYH.