National Two South: The front runners aim to continue their charge

With the top three all winning last weekend, Cambridge, Taunton and the Old Albanian will be hoping to continue their good recent form as they set their sights on promotion to National One.

And its not just the top three who want to progress as high as they can. Clifton host Bishops Stortford in an intriguing clash this weekend, while like in National Two North, there are some crucial looking games towards the bottom of the table.

Old Elthamians v Cambridge

League leaders Cambridge travel to the Old Elthamians this Saturday as look to push on at the top of National Two South. Cambridge have won their last six matches and have lost just once this season – that coming in Round Two away at Bishops Stortford.

It won’t be straight forward for Cambridge as they are welcomed by the Old Elthamians to Kent this weekend. The OE’s are going very well at the moment with just one defeat in their last seven matches.

The OE’s are deservedly 6^th in the table and have won all four of their games at home so far this season and they also edged out Cambridge 27-26 in this fixture in last campaign.

Taunton Titans v Redruth

Taunton Titians remain hot on the heels of Cambridge and any mistake the ‘Blood and Sand’ make will likely be capitalised upon by Taunton. The 2^nd placed side have also lost just once this season, but are just one point behind Cambridge as we near completion of the first third of the campaign.  

Taunton will be hoping to continue their excellent recent home form where they have lost just two of their last 20 games at Hyde Park.

In terms of their opposition , Redruth sit  7^th in the table and have suffered just one defeat in their last four matches.

The Reds have won six games this season – three at home and three away – and those victories on the road is something Redruth can be pleased about considering they won just twice on their travels throughout the whole of last season. It won’t be a surprise to hear then, that Taunton won this fixture 24-17 in October of last year.

Canterbury v Old Albanian

There is no rest bite for Taunton and Cambridge as the Old Albanian continue to crank up the pressure on the top two with consistent performances each week. The OA’s have won four of their last five matches and have won three of their away games so far this season as they go in search of an immediate return to National One.

As for Canterbury, they were mixing it with the likes of the OA’s at the start of the season after beginning the campaign with three straight wins, but now the City Men have lost their last six games and sit two points above the relegation zone. Canterbury’s only home win this season came against Launceston in Round Two of the season so all the signs point towards an away win this weekend.

Clifton v Bishops Stortford

I have taken it upon myself to brand this fixture as ‘Game of the Week’ in National Two South as 4^th place Clifton host 5^th place Bishops Stortford.

Clifton are performing above most people’s expectations this season after a 12^th place finish last year as they have won six of their nine games so far this campaign. They have also won all five of their home matches so this will be a stern test for Stortford who also suffered defeat to Clifton in this fixture in September 2014.

The visitors, who were amongst the pre-season favourites for promotion after losing in the play-off last term, are struggling to find consistency so far which has hampered any strong progress they can make towards those promotion goals. Stortford have won three of their last five games, but haven’t won away from home since they beat Chinnor at the end of September.

Launceston v Southend Saxons

Even though we are nine games into the season, Launceston may already be thinking the worst. They sit bottom of National Two South with just three points to their name and are yet to pick up a draw, let alone a victory.

Their quest for their first win is becoming more crucial as each week passes as they are now 11 points off safety and they will be hoping that victory comes in front of their home supporters this Saturday.

They will be up against 8^th place Southend who have lost just once in their last four games. The Saxons have improved after their near escape from relegation last season and continue to be in the top half of the table.

They have won four of their nine games this season – two of which have come on their travels. Southend also won 21-22 in this fixture against Launceston last season.

Barnes v Bury St Edmunds

Last year both of these sides were the top two in National Three London and South East and now they have settled down very nicely in National Two North.

Barnes were promoted via the National Three South play-off last season and were on a four game winning run before that ended last weekend against Southend. They are a place above Bury St Edmunds in the table and have won 14 of their last 18 games at home.

In terms of Bury, they clinched the National Three London and South East title on the final day of last season after losing to Barnes 28-27 the week before. Fast-forward seven months and I think they will be satisfied with the start they have made to life in National Two.

Having said that, their recent run of form may put have put a seed of doubt in a few of the Bury minds considering they have won just once in their last four matches. They have also tasted victory on one single occasion away from home so far this campaign, but having clashed with Barnes last season, they may fancy their chances to double their tally this weekend.

Redingensians v Dorking

The Redingensians will come into this fixture with Dorking full of confidence after picking up a vital victory against Launceston at home last weekend.

The Rams have won just twice this season after promotion last year, with both victories coming at Old Bath Road and they will be looking to improve on that this Saturday as they aim to move out of the bottom three.

As for their opponents Dorking, their difficult 2015 continues as they currently languish in 11^th place with just three wins from their nine games so far. They have also won just once on the road this season with that coming against Launceston.

One thing to note is that with Barnes and Bury St Edmunds facing each other this weekend and  with them being just above Dorking the table, Dorking may well seize that opportunity to steer themselves towards the top half of the table.

Worthing Raiders v Chinnor

After both of these sides finished in the top six last season, many thought they would be challenging for promotion this time around, but it just hasn’t been that way so far.

Worthing clocked up 100 points last season and finished 5^th just 12 points off a play-off place, but now, that is a distant memory for the Raiders. Currently, they are 13^th and just two points clear of the drop zone with just three wins to their name this season.

Worthing won 11 games at home last campaign, but have won just two so far this term and are currently joint bottom of the form table after suffering five straight defeats.

In terms of Chinnor, they finished a place behind Worthing last season, but with just one win all campaign this time around, they find themselves second from bottom after eight defeats already this season.

Chinnor lost just 12 matches last year and will be hoping their fortunes can turn around sooner rather than later as they go in search for their first away of the campaign on Saturday.