Barnes travel to South East London on Sunday to take on bottom of the league Peckham Cosmos in their next division 7 match.
Peckham Cosmos currently sit at the bottom of the table with 6 points whilst Barnes are hovering above the relegation zone, 2 places above their opponents, in 8th with 8 points bit with a game in hand on their opponents.
This could be a key turning point for both teams if they are able to walk away with the 3 points. There are just 4 points separating the bottom 4 teams and the positions change weekly after some very mixed results.Barnes will hope to find some consistency and good form to help them move further up the table with a game in hand.
Earlier in the season, Barnes lost 2-4 to this Peckham side in the reverse leg of the league fixture. Very little can be draw from that game to predict the outcome of this impending fixture though as just 4 players from that matchday squad of 14 men will feature in this weekends match. "We've had a big turnover in players this season so we're going into this weekend with a very different look team than the last time we face Peckham. They may well have a different line up themselves," said manager Tom Jackson "But at the end of the day, the last few games our new lads have been growing in confidence and stature and I'm looking for the team to keep growing and building on their performances each week".
With 6 goals in the last league match and similarly high scoring results in previous seasons' meetings, this game offers to be an entertaining one, especially after Barnes managed to score 5 in their last match against a well drilled Arantes team. "We might be missing one or two players from the 5-3 win at the weekend but I'm confident in the lads that will be starting on Sunday that they will bring their shooting boots with them once again", said Jacko.
With last games' MOTM, Michael, facing a late fitness test after a sprained ankle, it will be up to a few old returning faces to step up and find their feet in the team again to fill the void of the tricky winger. After a number of players returning from injury, Barnes hope to bring back a few familiar faces but the final matchday squad is yet to be decided and training will play a part in selection. "Look, it's no secret we've got a big squad but with the number of injuries we've had, we've needed to have this size squad. Sunday will be a tough selection for us but we'll be taking everything into consideration to pick what we think will be our best team" said co-manager Harry Cooper.
Whoever plays on Sunday is sure to be in for a good game, goals are certainly in the pipeline given the number of goals that both teams have conceded. Barnes just edge Peckham though having scored more and conceded fewer. Let's hope it's Barnes who storm to victory!
Come on you Stormers!
Sunday 22nd January 2022
10:30AM KO
Peckham Rye Football Pitches
Colyton Road
SE22 0NE
Spectators Welcome!