"Bucks looking to land important blow on Boxing Day"

Match Date : December 26th, 2024 3:00 pm
Competition : Southern League Premier Central
Ground : New Bucks Head
Kick Off : 15:00

The 3rd-placed Bucks host 2nd-placed Halesowen at the SEAH Stadium in a crucial clash this Boxing Day.

Last season marked the Yeltz’s return to Step 3, and they started well, going nine unbeaten in the league to start the campaign. However, results took a turn for the worse over the winter months, with the Yeltz enduring a run of nine defeats in 13, which saw them fall out of the promotion picture and cost Paul Smith his job.

Smith stepped down at the end of February to be immediately replaced by former Kidderminster boss Russ Penn. Penn guided Harriers back to Step 1 after playoff success in the 2022/23 season, but was sacked last January with Kiddie mired in a relegation battle. And Halesowen are a club Penn knows well, with his father Mark having been part of the Yeltz team that reached three FA Vase finals during the 1980s, winning two.

Penn’s arrival stopped the rot at The Grove, with the Yeltz eventually finishing seven points outside the playoffs in 8th. And during the summer, Halesowen made a number of signings that signalled their intent for the current campaign. Defender Ryan Wollacott and midfielder Reece Flanagan arrived from Redditch, Josh Smile came in from Gloucester City and now captains the Yeltz, while attackers Conor Tee (Rushall) and Adi Yussuf (Kettering) were also among the arrivals.

Penn’s new look side made a fast start to the season, picking up ten points from the opening five games. Their progress slowed in September though, at which point Penn moved to further strengthen his squad with the signings of Musa Ceesay (Redditch) and Jordan Ponticelli (King’s Lynn). Although the impressive Ponticelli has recently departed for Tamworth, the Yeltz have the league’s top scorer in 14-goal Kieren Donnelly, and they moved quickly to replace Ponticelli with Alex Cameron, who finished as Redditch’s top scorer last season.

The Yeltz are currently on a run of eight wins from their last 11 in the league, which has seen them climb up to 2nd, just one point behind leaders Kettering Town. Notably, Penn’s side have notched a number of late goals that have seen them turn defeats into draws and draws into wins, so the Bucks will need to remain switched on until the final whistle.

Positively for the Bucks, Kevin Wilkin’s men kept two clean sheets against the Yeltz last season en route to four points against the West Midlands outfit. The Bucks were perhaps fortunate to come away with a point when the two sides played out a goalless draw at the New Bucks Head in August 2023, but the 2-0 win at The Grove last Boxing Day was one of the Bucks’ best all round performances of the season.

The Bucks are currently four unbeaten in the league, but frustrating draws with Banbury and Stourbridge has seen Wilkin’s men slip just a touch behind the top two. The Bucks remain handily placed in 3rd though, and a win over on Boxing Day would see the Wilkin’s men moved to within a point of the Yeltz.

MATCHDAY INFORMATION

Tickets for Boxing Day’s fixture will remain on sale up until kick-off and are available for purchase online in advance. See our ticketing page for further details.