CAFC vs Melksham Town – Preview
Carshalton Athletic take on Melksham Town FC in the third qualifying round of the FA Cup on Saturday at Colston Avenue.
Robins Review
For Peter Adeniyi’s side, the journey in the FA Cup has been relatively plain sailing so far with victories over Haywards Heath and South Park Reigate respectively. Even though the Robins face yet another team a step below them, Adeniyi will be under no illusions as to the magnitude of the task ahead. Carshalton suffered defeat at this stage last season, taking a step 4 Cray Valley side that would eventually reach the first-round proper to a replay, losing 2-1. The lads will have hopes of following in the footsteps of Kilby’s Robins team that defied expectations to progress through to the first round proper in the 1997-98 instalment of the competition.
Melksham Town FC
Melksham Town FC, step four of the English Football Pyramid, overcame Premier Southern Central’s Banbury United 3-2 to secure passage to the third qualifying round and a one step cup set after an away replay. In the club’s 100th FA Cup campaign, they have equalled their best-ever cup run for the first time in 67 years. The last time the Black and Yellows reached this stage was the 1957/58 season, where they were thumped 6-0 by Trowbridge Town at the Conigre.
After the Wiltshire-based side held Banbury to a 1-1 draw at the Oakfield Stadium, a replay ensued the following Tuesday at the Spencer ground. The Puritans opened the scoring inside 11 minutes through a penalty that was saved, before an alert Prince Henry slid home the rebound. However, deep into the final third of the half, Melksham cancelled out their lead thanks to the set-piece brilliance of Jake Andrews, who used his left boot to curl the ball into the top far corner from the left of the penalty area. Approaching the hour mark, Nathan Davis’s long throw produced a pinball-like scramble that eventually ensured that Mark Cooper could convert at the back post to give Town the advantage. With three minutes until full time, Cooper propped up again, turning in a Davis long throw in almost identical fashion to the second goal. Yaw Ofosu tapped in from close range to inspire hopes of a comeback in the dying embers of the game; however, by then it was too late and the visitors held on to progress through.
On the historical moment, manager Mark Collier said: “Unbelievable really, they started particularly well and came flying out the blocks, made a couple of chances and they got a penalty, Alfie makes the save and then they get the follow up, which is disappointing from our point of view. We managed to get a foothold in the game, and Jay manages to come up with a fantastic free kick to go into halftime 1-1. Just before that or 20 minutes into the first half, we managed to get a foothold in the game. I said to the lads, I didn’t think they were that forceful on us in the last 20 minutes of the first half, so if we could get another foothold in the second then we could go on and win the game, that’s how it turned out to be. We made a little tactical change, get another man in the midfield, 2-1, 3-1, you would like to think it’s done then but this is Melksham Town and next minute it’s 3-2. Melee in the box, lots of size and presence there and suddenly it’s 3-2 with six minutes to go. We’ve managed to see it out, so it’s a fantastic result for the football club, we are grateful to the supporters for turning up. Credit to the lads, they stuck together against a team don’t forget that are in the league above us, 20 or so places above us in the pyramid, we’ve gone toe to toe with them across two games and I believe we deserved to come out on top in both.”
Melksham’s FA Cup journey began in early August with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Welton Rovers in the extra preliminary round. Following that, the preliminary round against Shaftesbury ensued, and after a goalless draw a replay took place with the Black and Yellows where they ran out 4-1 winners on August 19. And, last time out, Melksham sealed a narrow 1-0 win versus Bideford in the first qualifying round. As for their 2024-25 league form, Collier’s side currently languish eighth in the Division One South of the Southern League on eight points. Two wins, which includes a 6-1 hammering of Cinderford, and two draws mark an unbeaten start to the season. In fact, Town are 11 games unbeaten, and on their fantastic record Collier said: “It’s an incredible start really, pre-season was good for us, the spirit the lads have built in the dressing room is fantastic and that helps our cause.” Wiltshire Senior Cup triumphs in 2012-13 and 2013-14 were built upon the following campaign when they won the Western League Premier Division. Delays to ground improvements unfortunately meant the Black and Yellows were denied promotion. They would win the Senior Cup again the next season before finishing runners-up in the league in 2017-18, earning promotion to Division One South. The last couple of years has seen Melksham consolidate themselves as a mid-table outfit, that being said in 2023-24 they could only achieve a 16th place finish, three places above the relegation zone.
Likely line-ups
Carshalton Athletic
Foley, Sankho, Atewologun, Hamstead, Read, Saraiva, Vose, Bradford, Ifeanyi, Saunders-Henry, Goather-Braithwaite
Melksham Town FC
Kelsey, Summerfield, Andrews, James, Cooper, Graham, Sady, Hallett, Davis, Haffenden, Lynden
Team News
Carshalton Athletic
Kwaku Frimpong remains the robins only long-term absentee.
Melksham Town FC
Town are expected to have a fully fit squad at their disposal.
Pre-Match Analysis
As mentioned above, Melksham have enjoyed a stellar start to the season, currently on an 11-game unbeaten streak. Across those games, Town have been extremely free scoring having netted 23 times and only conceded eight. Therefore, offensively and defensively they have been very strong. Nathan Davis’s long throw has also recently emerged as an effective tactic for the Wiltshire club, grabbing them two goals in the second qualifying round against Banbury, with centre-back Mark Cooper the main target. So that is certainly something Carshalton will need to be weary off and actively look to subdue. Finally, a reoccurring pattern is that the Black and Yellows are partial to the late equaliser often suffering from a lapse of concentration, Helston and Banbury prime examples, perhaps Peter Adeniyi could look to capitalise.
Key Player
Only one man could be labelled Town’s Key Player, and that accolade goes to Banbury Man of the Match Mark Cooper. Cooper may be a centre-back and even though he has contributed to a defence that has kept four clean sheets, conceding just eight, the defender has been one of Melksham’s main attacking threats, having registered an impressive five goals, 21% of the total scored by the club so far in the 2024-25 campaign. He claimed a brace in the second qualifying fixture against United, taking advantage of Davis’s long throw into the box on both occasions. Cooper told the Southern Football League website: “I was happy with my own performance, but I’ll take winning the tie over everything. Progressing in the FA Cup means everything to the club, in terms of the prestige, revenue and keeping our unbeaten run going. I’m on five goals already this season, not bad for a centre back, so hopefully I can add a few more as we go along and help the team continue to progress in every competition that we are involved in.”
The Gaffer
An experienced and successful non-league manager, Mark Collier stewarded Chippenham Town to their highest position in the football pyramid following promotion to the National League South, winning the Southern Premier League. He also guided Wiltshire neighbours Swindon Supermarine to the FA Cup Second Round Proper where they faced off against League Two’s Colchester United, ultimately suffering defeat. Initially appointed in an interim capacity following the resignation of Richard Fey after a tumultuous period for the club, Collier was given it full time in late November 2022. The former Purton, Chippenham Town, and Swindon Athletic player signed a contract extension with the club in May 2023.
Match Details
Date: Saturday, September 21, 2024
Venue: Colston Avenue
Kickoff: 03:00 PM
Admission: Admission: £11, £8, £5 (online prices) on the gate is a pound dearer.
Tickets: Online Tickets here
