If Sevenoaks Town are going to lift the Southern Counties East Premier title this season, then they are going to have to win on the road, as all but two of their remaining fixtures are away from the comfort of The Bourne Stadium and their 3G pitch.
Sevenoaks experienced a rather healthy March though, narrowly missing out on a full house as they lost 2-1 away at title rivals Whitstable Town.
However, with wins against AFC Croydon Athletic, Beckenham Town, Croydon, Hollands & Blair and Rochester United they have certainly put the Championship race in their own hands.
It was also a good month for Town’s goal difference as they managed to score 24 goals, with only five hitting the back of their own net, and even one of those was an own goal.
This has given Town a comfortable lead of 10 points going into the final matches of the season, and although Crowborough and Whitstable have games in hand, it is Sevenoaks’ title to throw away.
They now must play their eight remaining fixtures in a little over three weeks due to recent postponements, the latest being the match at Crowborough Athletic on Easter Monday, which incidentally has been rescheduled as the last game of the season. It could be a very important one!
The way in which Whitstable Town are performing at present suggests that they may not drop anymore points this season, if that is the case then Sevenoaks’ target must be 90 points, which means they can only afford to drop three points from the eight games.
One point to make though, is that Whitstable do have to play 12 games in the same three-week period as Sevenoaks, which may lead to a slip up somewhere.
Fitness is key
In recent weeks it has been noticeable how player fitness levels are different from team to team, with Sevenoaks players seemingly outlasting their opposition, not just on the odd occasion either.
This fitness is helping them play for the entire 90 minutes with many goals coming towards the end of the game. Kenny Pogue, a player who is now embedded within the club, has scored 13 goals in 11 appearances. Eight of these goals coming in the last 15 minutes. Overall this season, Sevenoaks have scored a total of 75 goals in the league, a third of these (25) have come in the last 20 minutes of the match.
However, with only eight matches to go, and only three weeks of the season left, we are hoping that Sevenoaks do not leave it until the last minute to win the title, it could be a touch nervous otherwise!
