Match Preview: Baffins v Moneyfields

It's now one of the stand-out fixtures on the Wessex Premier Division calendar.

Since meeting for the first time ever in a competitive match at Fratton Park in the Portsmouth Senior Cup final, Baffins and Moneyfields have locked horns four times in league action - at three different venues.

Rovers have officially only travelled to Moneyfields once - the dramatic 3-2 victory at Dover Road in January 2022. The away fixture last campaign was held at Westleigh Park, as a result of the uncertainty around the building of the John Jenkins Stadium.

Baffins lost both league matches against their postcode rivals last campaign, with five goals in total across the two fixtures. The first was held at PMC Stadium and despite an early opener from Joe Johnson, it was the visitors who earned the bragging rights as Charlie Bell, Jack Chandler - now at Baffins - and Jack Lee all struck the target.

Late heartbreak was on the cards for Rovers in the reverse fixture in April, as Callum Glen - now of newly-promoted Petersfield Town - decided a closely-fought battle with a last-gasp winner.

There were 627 spectators across both matches, and the meeting between the two sides here during the 2021/22 season saw the biggest-ever crowd here at Baffins for the 3-1 victory, under the guidance of former boss Shaun Wilkinson.

Moneyfields have began their 2023/24 campaign brightly, with three victories in a row, including an eye-catching four-goal triumph at Hythe & Dibden on opening night.

A 1-0 victory over Westbury United followed to secure passage to the Preliminary Round of the Emirates FA Cup, before Glen Turnbull’s side progressed in the Hampshire Cup with James Franklyn and Cal Laycock on the scoresheet at Andover New Street.

Tickets for the clash can only be purchased on the turnstiles on Wednesday evening and are priced £7 adults and £4 concessions. Printed matchday programmes are available for just £2 on the turnstiles.