PREVIEW | Alfreton Town V Southport

The games come thick and fast for Southport this Bank Holiday with Alfreton Town being the next test as the club look for their second win of the season.

After coming from two behind to earn a point on Saturday, Liam Watson will be hoping his side can build on that and come home with three points from their trip to Derbyshire, which will be the second league game in three days.

Opponents View

Alfreton have had a mixed start to the new campaign, with three wins, two defeats and one draw.

They started the season at home with a thriller against Kidderminster. It was a new-look side for the Reds, with nine debutants in Billy Heath’s side.

After falling behind to a Dan Bradley goal, one of the surviving squad members from last season, Tom Platt, popped up with an equaliser before Tom Denton put them ahead just before half time.

Kidderminster came back after the break, with goals from Richards and Ironside giving them the lead.

The points were to be shared though as Johnson converted from the penalty spot with five minutes to go, after Josh Wilde was brought down in the box.

Defensive problems would surface again in the Reds second game of the season, conceding three once again on an away trip to Brackley.

Following a 3-1 defeat to The Saints, Heath’s side would recover as they went on the road once again to York.

Two goals in quick succession, in the 13th and 14th minutes, saw Alfreton get their first win of the season with a 2-1 at Bootham Crescent.

The results have continued to be mixed, with a 1-0 defeat to Curzon Ashton and victories over Blyth Spartans (3-1) and Stockport County (1-0), in their last three games.

Their last win over Stockport was their first ever win away at Edgeley Park.

Watch Out

The danger man for the side has certainly been non-league journey man Tom Denton, who is back at The Reds for his second spell.

So far, the striker has scored five times in the opening six games of the season and will be looking to add to his tally against Southport.

This will be a pleasant sight for manager Heath, who took over in the summer.

Home Dugout

The 47-year-old enjoyed his most successful period as a manager with North Ferriby United, with two promotions and FA Trophy success.

He also enjoyed promotion with Halifax Town, before leaving by mutual consent earlier this year.

Past Battles

The two meetings between the sides last year saw a win each.

In the first fixture, early on last season, a single goal from Steven Schumacher was enough for the Sandgrounders to take all three points away from the stadium situated on North Street.

Meanwhile, it was Alfreton who got all three points in the reverse fixture, ending Southport’s five game winning streak.

Heading into Monday’s game Watson will hope his side can start a winning streak of their own, whilst Billy Heath will be hoping to get his third three points on the bounce.