National League South, Twerton Park, Tuesday 22 October, 19:45 BST
The calendar doesn’t stop, does it, Terras fans?
We have no time to rest after our crucial point against Chesham United, with just three days between our match at the weekend and tonight’s trip to Bath.
Although we haven’t yet lifted ourselves from the foot of the National League South, Saturday’s result ensures we have lost just once in our last four league games.
Tonight’s West-Country opponents are Bath City, who sit seven places above us with an extra nine points.
However their form has been stop-start under Jerry Gill’s seventh full season in charge, winning just two of their last six league games, with an FA-Cup exit away to Aldershot Town in-between.
LAST TIME ROUND
We most recently warred with The Romans in March this year, at Twerton Park for the 192nd time.
We were looking to dismantle their empire after they humiliated us with a 5-1 loss earlier that season on our own turf.
Jason Matthews transitioned from his position of then-goalkeeping coach into a brief spell as interim boss, this game being his first (since 2017) of two in the dugout before Mark Molesley took charge.
The hosts drew first blood in the 22nd minute when Jack Bates nodded the ball to Joe Raynes, who scrappily slid the ball into an open net.
However, with just over 10 minutes of regular time on the clock, Ezio Touray chested the ball down and thumped in a half-volley from a tight angle, earning us a vital away point.
HEAD-TO-HEAD
Having played 192 games against Bath, our historically similar league positions means there are not many teams we have faced more in our history.
The hosts have come out on top on a slightly more regular basis, with their 80 wins compared to our 63.
Adding to this statistic, only ONE out of our previous TEN contests against The Romans have given us three points, drawing three and losing six during that time.
Our sole win was a 1-0 victory to help us towards our Great Escape two seasons ago, a late Tom Bearwish penalty making the difference.
Our record makes no further improvement when analysing our recent record at Twerton Park; with just two wins in our last 19, this is hardly a hunting ground for us.
In fact the last time we won on this ground was on 21st October 2003; The Sugababes were top of the UK charts with their single, “Hole in the Head.”
What is slightly more comforting is that our gaffer is unbeaten in the two league games he faced tonight’s opponents as a Weymouth manager, drawing twice in the 2019/20 season on our way to the National League.
Another interesting head-to-head tonight involves two goalkeepers who are set to start, Will Buse and Bath’s Harvey Wiles-Richards.
What is especially intriguing about the two shot-stoppers is that they both played in March’s fixture for the other team!
IN THE DUGOUT
Leading Bath’s managerial team is the long-serving Gill, who has been in charge since October 2017.
Much like our man in charge the last time these two sides met, Gill has also spent time at both clubs in some capacity.
Admittedly his stint at Weymouth lasted 44 days, even less than Liz Truss’ tenure at 10 Downing Street, by six days!
Like the former-Conservative Party leader, the less said about his spell with us the better, with him winning just one game in nine matches.
Thankfully for Bath fans his time in Somerset has been far more fruitful, now spending 13 years at Twerton Park as either a player or manager.
When he joined his old side seven years ago, in October 2017, he had impressed football chairman Paul Williams with his “vision and plans for the future.”
THE GILL PERIOD
His first campaign in their dugout ensured stability, as they finished the 2017/18 National League South season in ninth place, just six points off the play-offs.
The following two seasons The Romans show exactly why Mark Molesley called them “one of the league’s consistent performers,” finishing fifth and fourth respectively.
Bath supporters were evidently eager to watch their exciting team, as attendances has risen “from 612….to 1,142” within two seasons.
But despite Gill’s revolution, both campaigns ended in quarter-final play-off heartbreak; first with a 3-1 defeat to Wealdstone, followed by a 2-1 defeat to Dorking Wanderers.
It seemed that The Romans’ empire appeared to fall at the last hurdle too many times, as their next three seasons displayed mid-table mediocrity.
Though it would be harsh to critique their 13 league games in a 2020/21 league campaign that COVID-19 ultimately cut short, their 18th-place finish the following season was disappointing by their high standards.
With only nine points and three places above the drop zone come the year’s end, this was a far cry from the team who were just a play-off away from competing in England’s fifth tier for the first time since 2012.
Though there were signs of upswing on the final day, when they came back from two goals down to salvage a 3-3 draw with play-off-finishers Oxford City.
Gill said in his post-match interview that this season would prove to be “a learning curve for…all,” alongside his belief that he would “learn more out of this [season] than the two play-off finishes.”
Thus, their redemption rebuild would begin.
It would prove to be a slow process, finishing 11th the next year, although by the time they last faced the mighty Terras they were promotion hopefuls once again, sitting in 10th-place, just one point behind St Albans City, who were in the play-offs.
Their point against us proved vital, as they qualified for the subsequent quarter-finals by a single point.
But, once again hearts would be broken at that very stage, this time Braintree Town being the inflictors of damage by a single goal.
This campaign has been a little more stop-start than Gill or his side would have liked, winning just two of their last six league games, with an FA-Cup exit away to Aldershot Town in-between.
Their most recent contest ended in a goalless draw away to Hornchurch; however, this match may have seen another defeat added to their five in the league had it not been for a last-minute stop by Romans shot-stopper Harvey Wiles-Richards (remember him?) to deny Liam Nash.
Still, their recent form has done little to concern Gill, who puts their current situation down to having a “small squad” with several “injuries.”
HOW TO FOLLOW
We are pleased to announce that Robert Santonna will be back in the commentary booth this evening; click HERE to access his in-game thoughts.
Live updates will also be posted on our social media accounts; footage and reaction will also be uploaded after the final whistle.
