Non-league football returns to normal this weekend after a typically chaotic bank holiday. It’s a busy day on Saturday 23 April with some key games in the National League.
League-leaders Stockport Country will be expected to carry on where they left off with their extra-time 1-0 win over Solihull Moors when they travel to mid-table Yeovil Town. Only the champions of the National League will be automatically promoted to League Two and Stockport will aim to consolidate their position having already booked their place in the play-offs.
It’s widely expected that Wrexham and Halifax Town will also be sealing their places in the National League play-offs. Wrexham will head to Woking after their emphatic 4-0 victory over Altrincham on Monday, while Halifax face another unpredictable encounter at Southend following on from an excellent 2-0 home win over promotion hopefuls Chesterfield.
Other key games in the chase for promotion include high-flying Solihull Moors taking on lowly Aldershot Town, and Chesterfield who will be looking to bounce back with a win over bottom-placed Dover Athletic.
It’s down the bottom of the National League where things could get really interesting. The bottom three clubs will be relegated and Dover Athletic already sealed their fate in March. However, it’s the three-way battle between Aldershot, King’s Lynn and Weymouth that could be settled this Saturday.
With Aldershot facing a very difficult game at Solihull, Kings Lynn will have to win at Dagenham and Redbridge. Weymouth have an equally challenging prospect in a bid to get three points away at Notts County. While it would take some doing to catch up to Aldershot, stranger things have happened in non-league football.
It’s been a thrilling battle between Gateshead and Brackley Town in their bids to gain automatic promotion in the National League North. Gateshead currently have the edge following their recent win over Darlington, but they face an equally tough challenge this Saturday when they take on seventh-placed Kettering Town.
Conversely, Brackley Town will play against Darlington in a pivotal weekend in the National League North. Other teams in the play-off hunt include Fylde who face a tough game against Boston United and Kidderminster Harriers who should beat lowly Blyth Spartans.
Will this be the weekend where Maidstone United gain an unassailable lead over their rivals? Saturday will see Maidstone taking on the wildly inconsistent Hemel Hempstead and they could get a seven-point lead should Dorking Wanderers somehow come unstuck against the increasingly mediocre Concord Rangers.
Third-placed Ebbsfleet United have been in decent form recently and the team will be looking to boost their play-off chances against lowly Tonbridge Angels. Elsewhere, Dartford will be hoping to increase the pressure when the fourth-placed team entertain mid-table St Albans City. All of which should add up to another intriguing weekend of non-league football.
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