Words provided by Matt Friday - Falmouth Town

Falmouth Town will be hoping to complete a hat-trick of wins over Saltash United when they welcome the Western League Premier Division leaders to Bickland Park this evening (kick-off at 7.45 pm).

After knocking the Ashes out of the FA Cup with a 2-1 extra preliminary round win at Bickland back in August, Town came from behind to triumph 3-1 over the Western League table-toppers on their own patch on Boxing Day.

The latter formed part of an excellent run of games that saw Andrew Westgarth's side lose just once in 11 league outings over the tail end of 2022 and start of 2023, but that came to an end last week with two defeats to Buckland Athletic in four days.

That has seen Town drop to ninth position in the league, but a win on Wednesday would see them draw level with Ashton & Backwell United. A win for Saltash, meanwhile, would put them eight points clear of second-placed Mousehole, who will have four games in hand on the Ashes after Wednesday night.

Opposition view

Saltash, who are managed by Danny Lewis, are enjoying their second season in the Western League since the east Cornwall outfit were one of four Cornish sides to be elevated from the South West Peninsula League in 2021.

The Ashes finished a very respectable fourth last season and are on course to do better this time around, with Saltash sitting at the summit with 59 points from 26 games.

Lewis' side have suffered defeat just five times in all competitions, with two of those coming against Falmouth Town.

Saltash have scored 83 goals in all competitions this season, with Adam Carter leading the way with 17 strikes in 19 games, with Mike Smith, Harrison Davis and Dave Barker all having found the net seven times.

Westy's words

"It's the last game under lights at Bickland Park [this season]. It almost feels like we've got loads to go but we're not a million miles off, the end of the season isn't too far away. It's great to play under the lights at Bickland Park and obviously off the back of two disappointing results there's no bigger test than the current league leaders.

"You've got to enjoy the good moments and you've got to be prepared for the dark days. I suppose around the Christmas period nobody expected us to do what we did – you never know what can happen in football so we're certainly not going into the game feeling defeatist. 

"I know we've got personnel away and we're coming in off the back of two bad results, but we've still got a really good squad and Bickland is a fortress for us, so it'll still take something special to beat us.

"Games are coming thick and fast and it's going to be a big challenge for the squad and hopefully we can bounce back."

Last five games – Falmouth Town:

Feb 11: Falmouth Town 0-2 Buckland Athletic (League)

Feb 7: Buckland Athletic 2-0 Falmouth Town (League)

Feb 4: Clevedon Town 0-3 Falmouth Town (League)

Feb 1: Falmouth Town 3-1 Barnstaple Town (Les Phillips Cup)

Jan 28: Falmouth Town 1-0 Ilfracombe Town (League)

Last five games – Saltash United:

Feb 11: Saltash United 4-0 Wellington (League)

Feb 4: Saltash United 3-1 Sherborne Town (League)

Jan 31: Saltash United 5-2 Torpoint Athletic (Les Phillips Cup)

Jan 28: Cadbury Heath 1-3 Saltash United (League)

Jan 18: Saltash United 5-4 Wadebridge Town (Cornwall Senior Cup)

Stadium address

Bickland Park, Bickland Water Road, Falmouth TR11 4PB

Tickets

Adults: £6

Under-16s and concessions: £3

We advise that supporters arrive in plenty of time to avoid queues at the gate shortly before kick-off.

Matchday programme

Limited copies of our matchday programme will be available on entry to the ground for £1.

50:50 draw

A collection for the 50:50 draw will be made during the first half, with the winning ticket announced over the PA system at half-time. Each entry to the draw costs £1.

Refreshments and facilities

Once inside Bickland Park, food and beverages can be purchased from the serving hatch immediately to your left upon entering the ground.

Toilets can be found inside the clubhouse and in the hut at the far end of the ground.

Seating is available in the grandstand, with disabled access provided via a separate entrance at the top of the steps alongside the back row.