Dave Rihoy is set to make his 250th appearance for Guernsey on Tuesday night as they head to South Park for their final midweek away trip of the season.
Rihoy will become the only the fifth player to reach the milestone after Dominic Heaume, Jamie Dodd, Matt Loaring and Ross Allen. He currently has 79 goals for the club.
Ben Acey serves the final match of his suspension.
Despite it being the Green Lions’s 30th match of the season, in which a point could take them up two places to 12th in Isthmian South Central, it is their first meeting with South Park due to postponements.
It is our first meeting with the Sparks in nearly four years, after previously meeting regularly in the Combined Counties Premier Division and the Isthmian South Division. The Sarnians initially had the upper hand, winning three of the first four meetings, but the Surrey side have won five of the last six, including the most recent in April 2018, when a last-minute goal snatched away what would have been a deserved draw for GFC. Matt Loaring got our goal in a 2-1 defeat. Ross Allen has 10 goals against South Park. Two more for him, or anyone, tonight would put Guernsey on 900 goals in their 11-year history.
Guernsey are also looking to ease away from the play-off/relegation play-off spot (17th) over next few weeks. They currently have a six-point cushion, and a positive result on Tuesday will set them up nicely for five consecutive home games as they chase down a possible spot in the top 10.
South Park confirmed the signing of several new players within days of the postponement of the original fixture at the start of the month. This has coincided with a change in fortunes for them as they have won three on the spin to go ninth in the table. Their target for the rest of the season will be to overhaul Binfield in eighth. They have had nine days off since a 1-0 win over Chalfont St Peter. Adam Aziz is their top scorer with 18 for the season.
Wednesday’s match kicks at Whitehall Lane kicks off at 7.45pm. Fans back in Guernsey can catch the action live on GFCTV, and are encouraged to gather at ‘Le Lion Vert’ at the Guernsey Hockey Club at Footes Lane to watch it together, although we asked that you achieve a negative LFT result before attending. Highlights and a full match report will follow.
