Bradford (Park Avenue) will travel to the North East for the fourth consecutive week on Tuesday evening, as they take on West Auckland Town at Darlington Road, with kick-off set for 7:45pm.
The Avenue will be hoping to extend their record-breaking unbeaten start to the season to 18 games and will head into the fixture at the top of the table, two points clear of Dunston, who host Lincoln United at the same time.
It was a week of unexpected upheaval for Bradford, with manager Craig Elliott appointed by Darlington FC on Friday afternoon. However, led by Assistant Manager Ryan Toulson and Academy Director Craig Large, the Avenue responded in emphatic fashion on Saturday, producing a stunning performance to secure a 4-0 victory over promotion rivals Blyth Spartans at the Horsfall Community Stadium. Goals from Luke Parkin, Scott Duxbury, Marcus Carver and Jake Thompson sealed an impressive afternoon for the Green Army.
West Auckland Town, nicknamed ‘West’, are newcomers to the Northern Premier League East Division following their promotion from the Northern League Division One via the play-offs last season.
However, West have made an admirable start to life at their new level, sitting 11th in the table and just one point adrift of a play-off position. They are among the division’s in-form sides, having collected 13 points from a possible 18 in recent weeks.
Their latest success came on Saturday, with an impressive 2-0 away victory over promotion hopefuls Matlock Town. Fin O’Gorman and James Harrison were on target, with the visitors scoring once in each half. O’Gorman, who has now netted four times in his last six appearances, will be a player the Avenue defence will need to keep a close eye on.
West Auckland Town are best known for being proud winners of the first world cup (The Sir Thomas Lipton Trophy). Many years before the official FIFA World Cup began, philanthropist Sir Thomas Lipton donated a trophy for an international football competition held in Turin, Italy. When the English FA declined to enter a team, West Auckland, an amateur team of miners from County Durham, was chosen to represent Great Britain.
Despite having to sell their personal belongings to fund the journey, the team achieved an incredible victory, beating Stuttgart 2-0 before defeating Switzerland’s F.C. Winterthur 2-0 in the final. They returned home as champions, having won the trophy without conceding a single goal. Two years later, in 1911, West Auckland entered the competition again and surprisingly reached the final, beating the famous Italian side Juventus 6-1. After winning the trophy twice, West Auckland were allowed to keep it forever. More than a century on, this remarkable achievement remains a huge source of pride for the town and an important part of its identity and football heritage.
Tuesday evening will mark the first meeting between the two sides since September 2010, when they faced each other in the FA Cup First Round Qualifying at West Auckland Town’s Darlington Road stadium. The Green Army will be hoping for a better outcome this time around, having been knocked out of the competition on that occasion following a 3-1 defeat.
Another huge test awaits the Avenue on Tuesday evening as they face another in-form side in West Auckland Town. With top spot to defend and their sights set on an 18th consecutive game unbeaten, Bradford will be determined to rise to the challenge and continue their remarkable start to the league campaign.
Match preview by Ste Grimshaw
West Auckland Town vs. Bradford (Park Avenue)
Pitching In Northern Premier League East Division
Tuesday 10 November
Kick-off: 19:45pm
Adults £9 / Concessions £7 / Under 16 £4
Northern Metal Recycling Stadium
Darlington Road
West Auckland
DL14 9HU
Live coverage
Match stream – Depending on technology, we plan to live stream Tuesday’s trip to West Auckland Town, back to the Len Shackleton Bar at the Horsfall Community Stadium. We’ll try our best to make the tech work. The bar will be open from 7pm, with food and refreshments available for supporters who are unable to make the journey to the North East.
Audio commentary – We’ll provide live commentary on AvenueOnAir from 7:35pm.
X updates – We’ll be posting in-game updates on our official X account (@BPAFCOfficial)