Match Preview :- Worksop Town - Saturday January 28th, 2006 (15:00:00)
Celtic are off on their travels again on Saturday as they travel south of Sheffield to visit Worksop Town with a 3pm kick-off. Worksop are currently in freefall after dragging themselves up to tenth, they have suffered four straight defeats and have plummeted to sixteenth nine places and nine points behind Celtic having played three games more.

Worksop?s last wins were at the start of November when they beat Leigh and Redditch away, and overcame Barrow at home. That home Barrow win was the latest of only three home wins this season, their other two being Harrogate at the start of the season, and Hucknall Town in mid-October. Their last four games have seen them lose to Alfreton, Workington, Gainsborough and Moor Green. To top it off, Celtic have also beaten Worksop once already this season, in the 2-1 victory at Bower Fold. We played their twice last season, drew in the league and beat them in the GLS Cup.

Worksop have failed to score in five games, three of which came at home, and they have kept four clean sheets, two of which were at home. Two of the games in which they failed to score came recently, over the New Year period, and since Christmas they have scored only three goals, conceding nine. This is an average of 0.6 goals scored per game and 1.8 goals conceded per game. Over the course of the season they have an average of 1.1 goals scored and 1.5 conceded per game.

Their joint top scorers are Anthony Jackson and Ben Saunders with five apiece, putting them at joint thirty-fourth in the Goal Scorers chart. Both of these last scored in Worksop?s last win, away at Redditch. Just over half of their goals this season have come in the second half, but by far and away their most dangerous time is on the half hour, when they have scored eight of their twenty-eight goals this season. The second half also sees them concede more than the first, with twenty-seven of their thirty-eight goals conceded in this period.

Celtic, in comparison, have won four of their last six, won their last two away matches (at Hyde and Workington), with our last away loss coming back at the start of November. We have scored in all of our last ten matches, failing to score in only three matches all season (all away). We have also conceded in most matches this season, keeping only two clean sheets (both away); both of these clean sheets came in 0-0 draws. In Lee Ellington we have the league?s top scorer with sixteen goals, though Paul Sykes is no slouch on eight putting him joint sixteenth; in case either of these are having an off day, Neil Prince?s seven goals also squeeze him into the top twenty on joint eighteenth. Celtic?s scoring pattern is quite even, though we have scored sixteen of our forty-three goals this season in the last twenty minutes. We score an average of two goals per game (1.4 away), and concede 1.5 goals per game (1.6 away).

To add to this fearsome front line (the second best in the league behind Northwich), has been added the goal-machine that is Garry Kharas, who is available for selection against Worksop.

Worksop will be without one of their top scorers, as Ben Saunders was only on loan from Doncaster. Depending on when the red card defender Michael Simpkins kicks in, they could well be without him also. In their last match, the 2-1 defeat away at Alfreton, Worksop lined up as:
1. Adam Sollitt
2. Stephen Nicholson
3. Kevin Davies
4. Michael Simpkins
5. Paul Dempsey
6. Miles Thorpe
7. Barry Miller
8. Tony Crane
9. Mark Wilson
10. Anthony Jackson
11. Blake Norton

In Celtic?s last match, the 6-1 demolition of Leigh RMI, Celtic lined up as:
1. Paul Pettinger
2. Grant Black
3. Scott Maxfield
4. Mark Barnard
5. Mark Haran
6. Chris Price
7. Ben Smith
8. Paul Sykes
9. Lee Ellington
10. Jody Banim
11. Neil Prince

The form book over the last five games shows Celtic topping it and Worksop propping it up, pointing to a Celtic win, as does the automated prediction algorithm, going for a 3-1 win for Celtic. Celtic shouldn?t be complacent though: Worksop are only three points for the drop zone and will be fighting to stay up, as Hednesford did against Lancaster on Monday night. If Droylsden fail to win away at Vauxhall and Hucknall Town fail to win against Hinckley at home, and Celtic do win, we will get into the play-off spots for the first time this season. There?s all to play for and it will be a more difficult game than the stats suggest.
Directions
Distance: 48
Time: 1 hour and 15 minutes

Head up Mottram Road towards Mottram.
Join Mottram Road towards Hollingworth.
At the traffic lights with the A57 Woolley Lane towards Glossop, continue straight ahead towards Hollingworth and Tintwistle.
After the lights the road becomes the A628.
Stay on the A628 and it will become the Woodhead pass.
After about 14 miles, you will reach the Flouch roundabout.
Turn right (exit 3 of 4) to join the A616 (signposted M1).
After 9 miles you will reach another roundabout, go straight across (exit 3 of 5) to stay on the A616.
After 1 1/2 miles you will reach the M1.
Join the M1 going southbound towards London.
Stay on the M1 for 41 miles to junction 26 (Nottingham).
At the roundabout at the end of the slip road, turn right (exit 3 of 4) to join the A610.
After 2 miles, take the slip road (signposted for Ikea) At the roundabout at the end of the slip road, turn left (exit 1 of 4) onto A6096 (Gin Close Way).
After 1/4 of a mile, there is a roundabout bear right (exit 2 of 3) to stay on the A6096 (Awsworth and Crossal By-pass) After nearly a mile there is a right turn (the first right after the roundabout), turn right here onto Newtons Lane.
This road immediately becomes Awsworth Road, and the ground is the only building on the left hand side.