"Bucks travel to Mickleover in the FA Trophy First Round"

Match Date : October 26th, 2024 3:00 pm
Competition : FA Trophy
Ground : Don Amott Arena, Station Road, Mickleover, Derby, DE3 9FB
Kick Off : 15:00

The Bucks head to Derbyshire this weekend to take on Mickleover in the FA Trophy First Round.

Mickleover were, of course, in the Southern Premier League Central last season, and notably kicked off that campaign with 11 league wins in a row. But having spent almost the entire season in the top three, Sports ultimately finished the campaign in 5th after they were dealt a 12-point penalty for fielding an ineligible player. That meant the Sports faced the Bucks in the playoff semi final, with Kevin Wilkin’s men running out 2-0 winners that day.

There was a fair amount of change at the Derbyshire club over the summer, with manager John McGrath ending an eight-year spell with the club and leaving for Buxton, while Sports were switched to Northern Premier League.

The new man in the dugout is Gareth Holmes, who has previously had spells as a youth coach with Burton, Forest, Birmingham and Derby. And Holmes has had to rebuild his squad after a number of high profile departures. Up and coming midfielders Ben Sault and Will Trueman joined McGrath at Buxton, impressive young defender Ethan Mann departed for Stockport County (and then joined Buxton on loan), while star forward Oliver Greaves left for Newport County.

New faces include experienced midfielder Curtis Weston (Buxton) and young defender Daniel Benson (Matlock), while club stalwart Andy Dales remains as one of Mickleover’s key attacking threats. The Sports squad contains two former Bucks in the shape of Jake Bennett and Mickleover captain, Ryan Wilson.

Sports haven’t found life in the Northern Premier League as easy, though. They currently sit in 14th, with 17 points from 14 games so far. Mickleover are four without a win in the league, but they did beat Leek Town 1-0 to progress to this round of the Trophy.

The Bucks won an enthralling game 1-0 when the sides met at the Don Amott Arena back in January, and Kevin Wilkin’s men will be aiming for a similar result this time around. The Bucks underwhelmed in Monday’s 3-1 defeat at Redditch, and will be looking to bounce back with a strong performance this Saturday.

MATCHDAY INFORMATION

Website: www.mickleoverfc.com

Ground Address: Don Amott Arena, Station Road, Mickleover, Derby, DE3 9FB