Two August Bank Holiday weekend matches in three days give Isthmian League Premier Division clubs a good early season test of their squads.

There are plenty of derbies amongst the fixtures, especially on Monday. However. a mouth watering prospect on Saturday takes place when Welling United host Ramsgate at their Anthony Martin stadium, Park View Road. So far this term, the Wings have won three and lost one while their guests have won two and lost two.

Last weekend, Welling went to Dartford and beat them comfortably. There was no scoring until a minute before half time when the Wings went ahead through Nathan Bertram-Cooper. Five minutes after the break, Nahum Melvin-Lambert made it two and Fumnaya Shomotun scored just shy of the hour mark to ensure that there would be no come-back.

Meanwhile, Ramsgate were enjoying an even more emphatic win at home to St. Albans City. Billy Munday put them ahead in the sixteenth minute before Callum Jones scored his fifth league goal of the season to give the Rams a two goal lead. Just after half time Rowan Liburd added a third and Bivesh Gurung rounded off the scoring midway through the second period.

When the two teams met in the league at Welling last September, the visitors enjoyed an emphatic victory. Mitchell May put the away team ahead in the sixteenth minute and Alfie Paxman scored a second eleven minutes before half time. Donvieve Jones added a third ten minutes into the second period. Although Greg Cundle pulled one back with quarter of an hour remaining, Joe Taylor added a fourth for Ramsgate eight minutes from time.

Since that match, both clubs have had two managerial changes so there has also been a lot of player movement. Current incumbents, Welling’s Ryan Maxwell and Ady Pennock of Ramsgate, know each other, and their preferred way of playing, very well so there could be an intriguing tactical battle.

Image courtesy of Kieran North