With the fixture list now out and the season only just over 3 weeks away the thoughts of Southern League football fans will start looking to the season ahead and how the fixtures pan out for them.
For Yate Town fans, following the exciting and successful season last time round, when the Bluebells secured the Southern League Division One South title against Didcot Town in front of over 1500 fans at the South West Interiors Stadium at the end of April, it will be some new grounds to visit and some new teams to see at the South West Interiors Stadium.
The first two home games against Sholing on Saturday 9th August and then two weeks later against Chertsey Town see teams that have both graced Wembley Stadium in recent years with Sholing winning the FA Vase in 2014 and Chertsey Town in 2019, when they were both in Step 5.
Between those 2 games are away trips to both Taunton Town and Hanwell Town before a visit to Hungerford Town on August Bank Holiday Monday rounds off five tough fixtures to start the season and culminating with an FA Cup game ending the month of August.
New opponents will be Walton & Hersham, Uxbridge, Berkhamsted, Farnham Town and Basingstoke Town and it is over 30 years ago that the Bluebells played Chertsey Town in an FA Vase tie in February 1992 but the Bluebells have played all the other teams before, having previously played both Havant and also Waterlooville before the teams merged.
It will be strange not to have any football on Boxing Day or New Years Day; due to the way the calendar sits this season, but Yate travel to Evesham on Saturday 27th December and Hungerford Town visit the South West Interiors Stadium for the first fixture of 2026 on Saturday 3rd January.
Easter sees the Bluebells travel to Chertsey Town on Good Friday with Evesham visiting the South West Interiors Stadium on Easter Monday and after that, the end of the season sees a trips to Gosport Borough, then it’s Gloucester City at home, followed by a visit to Havant & Waterlooville for the final game of the season – possibly a tough end to the season.
You can pick your stand out games, the places you wish to visit but the Bluebells will need all the support that they can get over the coming months, through thick and thin, as after every promotion it is a challenging time for those clubs new to a higher level and we look forward to seeing all you Bluebell fans for the opener against Sholing on Saturday 9th August to support their team – so, see you then at the South West Interiors Stadium!
And of course, who knows what will happen in the FA Cup and the FA Trophy!