After two cup fixtures, we are back to the bread and butter of league action today as we make the trip down the M4 to Wiltshire to face Chippenham Town.

The Paul Barnes era has had a perfect start to date, with two wins out of two against lower-league Margate and Athletic Newham in the FA Cup and London Senior Cup respectively, but today represents a much sterner challenge, as we attempt to end the winless run which currently stands at seven games, including defeats in the last five. That run of results has seen us drop to 22nd in the early table, although a win today could help us move to 16th if other results go our way.

Goals are starting to flow following seven across the last week, with Danny Mills joined at the top of the scoring charts by Dan Smith and Nana Owusu following their braces in midweek, meaning the trio have netted three each. George Porter and Ibby Akanbi are now up to two as well, joining Jayden Clarke on that number.

Our hosts begin the day six points and nine places better off than us in the fledgling table, and will be eyeing a return to the fringes of the playoff places with a win today. It has been a relatively goal-shy start to the campaign for the Bluebirds, netting just five times in their opening eight fixtures, with only Hungerford netting fewer than Gary Horgan's side this season.

However, the goals certainly flowed during their FA Cup win last Saturday, as like the Hamlet, they dispatched lower-league opposition, with Jordan Young, Luke Russe and Harvey Greenslade netting in a 3-0 victory over Southern League side Sholing. Young is the top scorer so far with three goals in all competitions, whilst goalkeeper Will Henry is able to boast five clean sheets to his name. So far, they have picked up ten points from their four home games, and, including the FA Cup, have only conceded once at Hardenhuish Park this season, that honour going to Dartford's Maxwell Statham.

Last season's fixture at Hardenhuish saw us lose 2-0 in April, with goals from Joe Hanks and Kieran Parselle helping Chippenham continue their push for that final playoff place, which they ultimately claimed on the last weekend of the season. Overall, we have met each other ten times in our history, and we boast a good record at their ground, winning three of the five games played there. However, we have not beaten Chippenham in our last four attempts, since Danny Mills and David Ijaha scored goals in an FA Trophy win at Hardenhuish Park in November 2019.

Overall Record v Chippenham: P10 W4 D4 L2 GF20 GA14
Away Record: P5 W3 D1 L1 GF14 GA8
Biggest win: 8-2 (A) FA Amateur Cup Round 1, 1927-1928
Biggest loss: 0-2 (H) National League South, 17th October 2020; 0-2 (A) National League South 23rd April 2022