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MATCH PREVIEW: Harrogate Town A.F.C. v Aldershot Town

Aldershot Town return to National League action on Saturday and hit the road north once again. The CNG Stadium – home of eighth placed Harrogate Town – is their destination.

Shots Squad:

Manager Danny Searle should have a fully fit playing squad to choose from, barring James Rowe, who is now back in training.

Opposition:

Name: Harrogate Town A.F.C.

Founded: 1914 (as Harrogate AFC)

Nickname: Town

Manager: Simon Weaver

Stadium: CNG Stadium

Final position last season: 6th in National League (made the play-offs)

Current National League position: 8th

Brief History:

Harrogate AFC were formed in 1914, but properly ‘kicked off’ after the war in the 1919/20 season. In 1948, the club were renamed Harrogate Town. They announced at the end of the 2016/17 season that they were going to become a full-time professional club and won promotion to the top tier of Non-League last season.

The Gaffer: Simon Weaver has been Town’s manager for eleven seasons and is one of England’s longest serving football managers. His biggest achievements, alongside promotion to the National League two seasons ago, include a fourth-place finish in the National League North in 2015/16 and an FA Cup 2nd Round appearance in 2012/13.

Squad:

Weaver’s main loss from last season was Centre Back Callum Howe, who signed for fellow play-off outfit Solihull Moors. He kept twelve players on from last season, including; Keeper James Belshaw, Defender Ryan Fallowfield (who signed an extended contract just this week), midfielders Warren Burrell (who scored a hat-trick against Shots last season) and Josh Falkingham, plus strikers Jack Muldoon and Mark Beck. In total, eleven new players have joined Weaver’s latest push for promotion to the EFL, including; Left Back George Smith from Chesterfield, Midfielder Brendan Kiernan from Welling (top scorer this season with five goals to date) and ‘evergreen’ striker Jon Stead.

Referee:

Saturday’s referee is James Bell, who has taken charge of 6 National League matches so far this season, showing 19 yellow cards and no red cards to date.

Commentary:

There will be live BBC Surrey Sport commentary of Saturday’s game, with Rob Worrall and former Shots Director Brian Bloomfield, from 2:50pm. To interact with the commentary team, tweet @RobShot66.