Altrincham Football Club host the Vanarama National League leaders Eastleigh at the J. Davidson Stadium on Saturday as they look to continue their promising start to the new season.
With two wins and one loss in their opening three games, the Robins have matched their best start to a National League campaign in 15 years.
Phil Parkinson led the squad to the club’s highest league finish this century, qualifying for the play-offs for the first time in its history, but despite not reaching their highest levels just yet, there is a huge potential that Alty can deliver another season to remember.
In a recently published open letter to the fans, Parkinson admitted that Altrincham “are still a work in progress” and thanked those who made two long journeys down south to support the team against Sutton and Maidenhead, a total travelling distance of almost 800 miles.
“We’re all hugely grateful to the 133 travelling fans at Sutton on Saturday, including a sold-out coach organised by Union Golf Road. To see 65 Alty fans at Maidenhead on Tuesday night, following such a heavy defeat, was a magnificent effort and we applaud every one of you!”
Saturday’s opponents give Altrincham a chance to repay the unrelenting loyalty of the fans by picking up three points against red-hot opposition.
Eastleigh are the only National League side that have won their opening three fixtures; their most recent triumph came against Solihull Moors, last year’s play-off finalists.
A win for the Robins would place them level with the Spitfires on nine points and indicate that last season wasn’t a one-off. Parkinson believes that his side are close to returning to their best, and who better to prove it against than the league leaders?
“I know when we click, we’ll be the team everyone associates with Altrincham. I can see signs of it already.
“I did say we are missing a couple of big players at the start of the season and when we get everyone back, we’ll look a different animal.”
In case facing the top of the league wasn’t enough reason to head to the J. Davidson Stadium on Saturday already, almost a year ago to the day, the Robins faced the National League leaders, Chesterfield, at home.
Galvanised by a passionate Alty crowd, the Robins became the first team to defeat Chesterfield (the eventual champions) in a remarkable 2-1 win, thanks to two late goals from Dior Angus.
Altrincham FC welcomes anyone in the local area to come and support the team, so make sure you don’t miss out on another inspired performance against the league leaders and head down to the J. Davidson Stadium on Saturday!
Tickets for this weekend's games are available from £1-£20 here.
