……or which 4  teams will get the chop ?  “To be or not to be, that is the question”

All supporters, aficionados, pundits, reporters, “twitterers” – and all true Stratford Town supporters – will not need telling that, after the lads’  fine victory (and double)  over Biggleswade  on Saturday (and with most other “bottom 8” contenders losing or drawing), our league  position does look much better than a few weeks ago ! We could, in fact, overtake Redditch, who are sinking like a stone at present, which would be a lovely bonus indeed !

The commonly-held thought is that 47-50 is the required  points haul to stay up. So Carl’s recent assessment that 2 more wins should do it for us is probably about right. A win on Saturday at Kings Lynn (smarting from a 5-0 thrashing at Hitchin last time out) would be a great start obviously.

The points we have (41) see us 10 points above the highest relegation-threatened team, with a far healthier goal difference than all other contending teams. With teams having between 9-13 games remaining, the last 2 months of the season will see the “dog fight” of a contest really hot up as most of the contenders have to play one or another on 4-6 occasions. Town, in fact,have to travel to 4 of them and face 1 at home on the last day of the season !

The form guide over the last 6 league games shows Town 4^th= in the bunch, but – as we all know – stats and form really do mean nothing in regard to any prediction one could make. However, we all do like to ponder over Town’s prospects (and those of our close rivals) so here is a statistical look at “what’s what” – as at Monday 27 February..

Town

Points – 41

Games left – 10

Home –  Chesham, Banbury, Kettering, Dorchester

Away – Kings Lynn, Dunstable, Kings Langley, St. Neots, Hayes & Yeading, Cirencester

Current success rates – Home 40%/Away 35%

Form (last 6) – 33%

 

Dorchester

Points – 38

Games left – 11

Home –  Hayes & Yeading, Kings Langley, Hitchin, Kings Lynn, Basingstoke

Away – Redditch, St. Ives, Biggleswade, Cambridge, TOWN

Current success rates – Home 44%/Away 26%

Form (last 6) – 33%

 

Kings Langley

Points – 34

Games left – 9

Home –  Cambridge, TOWN, Merthyr, Basingstoke, Cirencester

Away – Dorchester, Weymouth, Leamington, Redditch, Hayes & Yeading

Current success rates – Home 28%/Away 33%

Form (last 6) – 11%

 

St. Neots

Points – 34

Games left – 11

Home –  Redditch, Slough, TOWN, Merthyr, Dunstable

Away – Leamington, Cirencester, Kings Lynn, Hayes & Yeading, Chippenham, Cambridge

Current success rates – Home 42%/Away 33%

Form (last 6) – 50%

 

Cambridge

Points – 31

Games left – 10

Home –  Frome, Cinderford, Dorchester, St. Neots

Away – Kings Langley, Cinderford, Weymouth, Merthyr, Cirencester, Kettering

Current success rates – Home 32%/Away 25%

Form (last 6) – 44%

 

Cirencester

Points – 30

Games left – 10

Home –  Hayes & Yeading,  St. Neots, Redditch, Cambridge, Chippenham

Away – Hitchin, Banbury, Kettering, Slough, Kings Langley

Current success rates – Home 28%/Away 28%

Form (last 6) – 33%

 

Hayes & Yeading

Points – 28

Games left – 12

Home –  Cinderford, Chippenham, Weymouth, St. Neots, Banbury, TOWN, Kings Langley

Away – Cirencester, Dorchester, Biggleswade, Dunstable, Merthyr

Current success rates – Home 31%/Away 24%

Form (last 6) – 33%

 

Cinderford

Points – 21

Games left – 13

Home –  Frome, Cambridge, Kings Lynn, Kettering, Leamington, Banbury, TOWN

Away – Hayes & Yeading, Chesham, Slough, Cambridge, Basingstoke, Dunstable

Current success rates – Home 35%/Away 8%

Form (last 6) – 55%

 

So, in the words of the car advert …….. “you do the maths”

It’s in Town’s hands. Hold on to your hats, folks !

Up the Town !