FC United host second place Stockport County – match preview

FC United will be without manager Neil Reynolds as we welcome local rivals Stockport County to Broadhurst Park at three o’clock this Saturday because the boss will be on a pre-booked mission to Singapore on behalf of the Department of Education.

Having been identified as one of the leading headteachers in the country, Reno will be attending a meeting in Singapore for the government. Being selected for international duty is something he and the club should be extremely proud of but it’s obviously tempered with the disappointment of missing an important match.

He said: “Unfortunately, I will be conspicuous by my absence at the Stockport match. I have a pre-existing commitment with my day job, which I made the club aware of when we very first discussed me joining as manager.

“It’s unfortunate that it has fallen on a weekend where we have a big game like this, but there’s never an ideal time. Rest assured that the team will be in safe hands under Mike Faulkner and David Chadwick’s direction. I’ll be joining the Armchair Army on the radio this week, and I look forward to being back in the dugout next Saturday at Boston.”

The Reds remain third from bottom and are three points (plus inferior goal difference) away from safety. This will be the third time in a month that we have come up against the second placed team in the division after a Boxing Day fixture against now league leaders Chorley and then Bradford Park Avenue two weeks ago.

After four consecutive defeats, two against Chorley, and one each to Spennymoor and Chester, FC United looked to have bounced back with an unlikely 3-2 victory at Bradford two weeks ago. However, the resurgence was short lived because last weekend we slipped to a 1-0 defeat at second-from-bottom Ashton United.

Life has been quite the opposite at Edgeley Park recently. The Hatters will arrive in Moston in search of their eighth straight victory in all competitions. In the league, they have won five out of their last five matches and are unbeaten in nine, a run that stretches back to 20th November when they surprisingly became unstuck 3-2 at Blyth Spartans. How FC United would love to put that kind of run together.

Reynolds has rung out the changes since taking over in October. Last Saturday, there were just five players in the Reds’ starting XI who began the season at Broadhurst Park. The new look team must now repay the faith the manager has shown in them by picking up some priceless points in an unforgiving league with some really strong opponents.

Stockport are flying high, will be backed by passionate supporters who travel in numbers, and they will be expecting another victory. However, in a local derby, at home, with the FC United faithful in good voice, the Reds might just have enough to tear up the form book and throw it out of the window.

The two clubs have met nine times since 2015 and there have been some pulsating encounters. It’s currently five wins for Stockport, three for United and one draw. The Reds would love to take a step towards levelling that record tomorrow.

FC United of Manchester versus Stockport County is at the supporter friendly kick-off time of three o’clock and it’s pay on the gate for home supporters. Get yourself to that football ground, cheer on your club and let’s give Reno something to smile about in Singapore. Bring on United.