Reece Barrett
Salisbury FC will finally face Highworth Town in the Wiltshire Premier Shield quarter finals, after being forced to rearrange the fixture twice due to frozen pitches and adverse weather conditions.
The Whites make the hour-long journey across the county to The Elms Recreation Ground on the back of five consecutive losses – and will hope to turn their form around by picking up a win against lower-league opposition.
Manager Brian Dutton was determined not to underestimate the opposition though, saying: “It’s a game that I’ll be playing a strong team for.
“We’ve got lads chomping at the bit who need the gametime, so it’s a game we’ll be taking very seriously. We want to get that win, and try to get a bit of momentum from it.”
Neither side has ever won the Wiltshire Premier Shield since the 14-team competition was established in 1927, although Salisbury City, the current Salisbury FC’s predicesors, winning it on several occasions. Southern Premier South outlet Swindon Supermarine winning most recently in 2021-22
Salisbury travel after beating last season’s finalists Corsham Town 3-1 in the first round – where Brandon Goodship scored a brace as a substitute, and Devon Arnold headed home to secure the win late on.
Sam Roberts started in their last Premier Shield match in early December but will be suspended for the quarter-final tie after receiving a straight red card for the denial of a goalscoring opportunity against Gosport Borough one week ago.
On the other hand, this will be the first game for The Worthians in the competition this season, as they were one of the lucky teams given a bye past the first round.
Highworth are currently 16th in the Southern League Division One Central – one tier below Salisbury – and have the worst home record in the league, winning just two out of eight fixtures.
They are in better form since the turn of the year, though, only losing in one of their four games so far in 2023, whereas the Whites have lost each of their four games since Boxing Day.
The winners will play either Westbury United, Melksham Town or League Two’s Swindon Town in the semi-finals on March 7th.
Andy Munns
