Testing start to new season
Bath City’s promotion credentials will be tested from the get-go as their National League South fixtures have been unveiled. The Romans will start at home, for only the second time in ten seasons, when Dartford come to Twerton Park on Saturday, August 4. The Kent outfit finished runnersup behind Havant & Waterlooville following a dramatic final day last term. Come the next Tuesday, August 7, City will then face a meeting with former boss Gary Owers and his Torquay United outfit, who remain a full-time outfit despite dropping down from the National League’s top tier. A first Saturday away day of the campaign will take place at Hampton & Richmond Borough, last season’s losing play-off finalists, on August 11. City will travel to the other side relegated from the National League, Woking, on October 27, and host the return fixture on March 30. Over the festive season, the Romans will travel away to Chippenham Town on Boxing Day, before a swift turnaround for the New Year’s Day reverse fixture. Sandwiched in between on Saturday, December 29 is the scheduled visit to Somerset derby rivals Weston-super-mare, the fixture oftpostponed throughout recent seasons. The Easter bank holiday double header begins with a Saturday, April 20 visit to Hungerford Town, before an Easter Monday home tie against Oxford City. The season comes to a close at Isthmian League champions Billericay Town on April 27. City will play at newly-promoted Dulwich Hamlet on January 5. Other highlights include the return home game with Torquay on Saturday, January 19, and West Country derbies against Gloucester at home on Tuesday, August 14, and away on January 26. Regardless of their opening opponents, Romans chief Jerry Gill is prepared to take on all comers at any time. “A game is a game there to win,” he said. “We know the league is going to be tough. “It’s interesting what Gareth Southgate says at the moment about England. Asking who do you want to plot yourself against, he just says he wants to win every game that’s put in front of him. I think we’re the same. “Myself and Jim [Rollo, assistant manager], we sit down and try to work out the best strategy and plan to win every game we can. “We don’t ever come up to any team and think to ourselves ‘ooph, we could struggle in this one’ or shall we go for a draw; that’s just not our mindset. “All we know is that we’re chomping at the bit to start and we’re really looking forward to that first game on August 4, because one thing’s for sure: we’ll be prepared and we’ll be ready. “Then who knows. You’re never guaranteed a win in football and as Jim often says, no-one owes you anything in the game. “But if you put the work in, the effort in like we have through the summer, and then you do it again pre-season, you stand a good chance of doing all right. “We can’t dictate what’s going to happen, but we’ll be ready and I’m really looking forward to it.” City’s pre-season friendly against Reading under-23s this coming Saturday has been brought forward to 1pm due to England’s World Cup quarter-final.