Bradford (Park Avenue) return to the Horsfall Community Stadium this Saturday 7 November, for a clash of the Green Armies, as they welcome in-form Blyth Spartans for a 3pm kick-off.
Despite a challenging run of four consecutive away fixtures, the Avenue have collected 10 points from a possible 12, maintaining their record-breaking unbeaten start to the league season and extending their run to 16 games.
Their most recent success came in the form of a 2-0 victory over fellow promotion hopefuls Morpeth Town. The result saw Bradford return to the summit of the Northern Premier League East Division, moving two points clear of Dunston, albeit having played a game more.
Craig Elliott’s side produced an impressive performance at Craik Park, applying themselves superbly and dominating large spells of the contest. A Robbie Fox penalty shortly after half time gave Avenue the lead, before Marcus Carver sealed all three points six minutes from time with a glancing header into the bottom corner. The victory also brought an end to Morpeth’s own impressive 12-game unbeaten run.
Despite returning to home soil this Saturday, Bradford will face yet another of the division’s in-form sides. After a slow start to the campaign, which saw Blyth Spartans fail to win any of their opening four fixtures, the Spartans have enjoyed a remarkable turnaround and head to West Yorkshire having won nine of their last ten matches.
Blyth Spartans will undoubtedly arrive at the Horsfall full of confidence, further boosted by their most recent outing, a convincing 5-1 victory over Beverley Town. Ewan McGowan led the scoring with a hat-trick, while Paul Dudgeon and Dan Lanning also found the net. The Bradford defence will need to pay particular attention to Lanning, with the Spartans attacker having scored in each of his last three appearances and has five goals to his name across his previous seven outings.
However, there is more encouraging reading for Avenue supporters when it comes to Blyth’s away form, with the Spartans having won just two of their seven matches on the road this season. Bradford will be hoping to take full advantage, with their own strong home form providing further reason for optimism ahead of Saturday’s encounter.
The Avenue will also draw confidence from last season’s meetings with Blyth Spartans, having completed a league double over their opponents thanks to late winners in both encounters. In September 2025, an 89th minute strike from Louie Chorlton secured a 1-0 victory at Croft Park. The sides met again at the Horsfall Community Stadium in December, where Bradford found themselves trailing deep into the second half. Connor Shanks equalised with 12 minutes remaining, before assistant manager Danny Ellis came off the bench to snatch a dramatic 94th minute winner and send the Avenue faithful into raptures.
Saturday promises to be a huge encounter at the top end of the table, with two of the division’s in-form sides going head-to-head. Both teams boast plenty of quality, setting the stage for an enticing contest at the Horsfall. The Avenue will be determined to extend their remarkable unbeaten run to 17 league games and further strengthen their position at the summit of the division, whilst the Spartans will be hoping to cut the gap at the top and strengthen their own promotion bid.
Match preview by Ste Grimshaw
Bradford (Park Avenue) vs. Blyth Spartans
Pitching In Northern Premier League East
Saturday 7 November
Kick-off: 15:00pm
Adults £10 / Concessions (65+) £7 / Blue Light, Forces, Students £5 / Youth (12-18) £3 / Juniors (U12s with accompanying adult) £1