As the festive season approaches, the Blues are back at the Maurice Rebak Stadium on Saturday as they play host to Lewes in another tricky clash against a side who had an excellent start to the season but have dropped out of the playoff places in recent weeks, and will be looking to force their way back with a good result on Saturday.
Our Opponents
Established in 1885, Lewes have been as high as the National League in the 21st century, being promoted into the top tier of non-league in 2006/07, having been denied on previous occasions due to the Dripping Pan not meeting league requirements. It was a short stay in the National League however, being relegated after one tough season. In 2010/11, Lewes were relegated to the Isthmian Premier League, and then relegated again into Isthmian South in 2015/16. It was a fairly quick return, being promoted back into the Isthmian Premier League in 2017/18, and since their return, Lewes have featured heavily in the playoff hunt in recent years, having finished sixth in 2022/23, missing out on a playoff spot on goal difference and seventh in 2021/22, six points adrift.
Last season was a similar story, as Lewes finished in 8th place, nine points behind the playoff places. The Rooks made a fast start last season, sitting in a playoff place at the end of August, before falling out of contention and never being able to force their way back into the top five.
Lewes made an even faster start this season, and were top of the table from August until mid-October. Recent form for the Rooks hasn't been up to the early season success, with only two wins in the last ten seeing them fall from top spot and are now sat 7th in the table with 30 points from 19 games (W8 D6 L5), level on points with the Blues going into this key clash.
Head to Head
Last season, the Blues managed to secure a double over the Rooks. On our trip to the Dripping Pan, we completed a late comeback in a 2-1 win. Tommy Wood gave the hosts an early lead, but Wingate & Finchley struck back through Ahmet Biler almost immediately before an Anointed Chukwu goal in the 87th minute gave the Blues all three points.
At the Maurice Rebak Stadium in February, it was a 3-0 win for the Blues. A brace from Elliot Long and a Ruben Carvalho goal gave the Blues all three points in a game that could've gone either way.
Last Time Out
The Blues have had a tricky run in December so far, first narrowly losing to Billericay Town 1-0 at home on the 7th, before a crazy match last weekend at Cray Valley PM where three late goals saw the Millers turn a 3-2 reverse into a 5-3 victory, and saw the Blues drop out of the playoff places for the first time since October.
For Lewes, their first game of December was against our most recent opponents Cray Valley PM and unfortunately was abandoned due to an injury to a Lewes player, with the game 2-0 to Lewes at the time. Since then, Lewes managed a 2-2 draw against Dulwich Hamlet and a narrow 3-2 defeat to Chichester City last weekend.
Players To Watch
In recent weeks, the main goalscorer for the Rooks has been Gianluca Botti, who signed in November and has already scored six league goals in the short time he has been at the Dripping Pan. In recent seasons, he has scored goals aplenty for Chertsey at Step 4 (31 goals in 23/24) and Camberley Town at Step 5 (29 goals in 22/23) before signing for Whitehawk this season where he netted 1 in 7 but has really hit the ground running since moving to Lewes.
A regular in the Lewes side this season has been midfielder Marcus Sablier, the 21-year old spent some time on loan at the Rooks last season from parent club Bromley. Sablier made his professional debut for Bromley back in September 2021 against Barnet but spent much of his time with the Ravens out on loan at this level with the likes of Cheshunt, Cray Wanderers and Bowers & Pitsea. In the summer, Lewes moved to sign Sablier on a permanent deal and he has been a vital part of the club's successful start to this season.
For the Blues, there were two new faces in the squad for our trip to Cray Valley PM last weekend, and they will be ones to watch this weekend. Firstly, Cain Keller was straight into the starting XI. The attacking midfielder has signed from Billericay Town. Having begun his career within Stevenage’s academy, Keller has had spells with the likes of Hendon, Biggleswade Town and Royston, before joining Billericay in the summer.
Another new face was left back Alex Kpakpé, who joins from Aveley. After coming through Chelsea's academy set-up, he joined Rangers B in 2022, who play their football in the Lowland League of Scottish football. After a brief spell with Rangers, he joined Hitchin Town last season where he impressed and secured a move to National League South side Aveley in the summer.
We look forward to welcoming you to the Maurice Rebak Stadium on Saturday. Our bar will be open from 1pm, and hot food will be served, including our limited edition festive hot dog 'The Bird & Berry'. Cash and card is accepted throughout the stadium and tickets can be bought in advance here, or on the gate on matchday.
Photos courtesy of Martin Addison.
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