Whilst the first team out of action, because the Hellenic League says so, the big games just keep on coming for the club’s other two sides as they get themselves fully embroiled in the business end of the season.

And they don’t come much bigger for the Reserves than this weekend’s home match against third placed Apperley & Tewkesbury Dynamos, who, once again, will henceforth be referred to as A&TD in order to attempt to save your correspondence from repetitive strain injury.  Thanks to the dubious contribution, last weekend,  of Northway to the Division Two season – a reasonable simile would be the role played, in improving road safety, by rabbits transfixed by the headlights of oncoming cars – the Reserves, following an excellent win at Northleach, found their goal difference advantage wiped out and their position at the top of the table assumed by Whaddon United, all on the strength of the 10-0 annihilation to which Northway succumbed at Whaddon Rec last Saturday.    Whaddon now visit Dowty Dynamos at the weekend – whose last point was against the Reserves a month ago and who lost away to A&TD last weekend – so, assuming that Whaddon will gain another three points there, the six pointer at Cheltenham Road assumes even more significance.  Bizarrely, it was Northway, would you believe, who inflicted A&TD’s last League defeat, when our visitors this weekend lost 3-1 at home on November 22^nd, which was, coincidentally, the same day on which the Reserves last conceded defeat, 2-1 at Charlton Rovers.  Since then, A&TD have tasted Cup defeat twice, firstly at the hands of the Reserves in the GFA Junior Cup, 3-0 on December 6^th and then, the following week, 2-1 at home to Whaddon’s first team in the Senior Charity Cup.  Recent form has been good, however, with 4 goals having been scored in obtaining wins on both of the last two Saturdays and the only disappointments, since the new year, coming as a result of drawn games at home to Bredon and away at Brockworth.  This mirrors the frustration experienced by the Reserves at the two points dropped against Dowty Dynamos a month ago and the side will be keen to build on the Cup Victory gained against the same opponents just before Christmas.

Meanwhile, the third team’s excellent victory over C & G, the Champions Elect of Division 5, last weekend will count for nothing unless they return from this weekend’s visit to The Burrows with all three points following their match with Belmore United Reserves.  This will be the first game between the two sides this season – the return is in a further weeks time – and, also, the first time that a team from Star FC has ever come up against a team called Belmore United.  Last season, the same team was known as Gaffers FC but the name change seems to have done little to improve their fortunes on the pitch.  Indeed, Belmore United Reserves currently sit one place off the bottom of the Division Five table, having taken just 10 points from their 17 games so far, and 7 points away from the safety represented by the total so far achieved by Sherborne Harriers.  Up until last weekend, when they picked up their first win, 3-1 over bottom team Charlton Rovers III, since a 4-1 triumph over Sherborne in January, their recent form had been dreadful, with 6-0, 7-0 and 5-0 defeats suffered at the hands of Gala Wilton, Falcons and A&TD3 in successive weeks from February 28^th following a preceding month that had been utterly devoid of League action.  Last season, whilst the thirds comfortably earned three points with a 3-1 win in the home encounter in January 2008, they contrived to lose the early season game at The Burrows, 5-3, having been 4-1 behind at half time.  There is no room for such self indulgence now, though, as the side now knows that five straight wins, from its last 5 games will not only guarantee, but are also what are required for, promotion.