Exmouth Town welcome Yate Town to their Circle of Care Stadium this Saturday and will be hoping that the weather improves following the cancellation of their match last Saturday against Bishops Cleeve due to a frozen pitch, writes John Dibsdall.

When the sides met in the reverse fixture back in October, the visitors were also struggling in the league but a 4-1 victory saw them draw clear of Town and they have recently strengthened their side with two signings from National League South side Taunton Town.

One of the signings, Nick McCootie, has scored in each of the three games he has played, as Yate are unbeaten in 2024 with wins over Mousehole, Bemerton Heath and Larkhall and draws against Malvern Town and Bristol Manor Farm. They are currently eleven points above Town, having played a game more.

Having won 2-0 at Tavistock in their last game, Town were hoping to continue that form against Bishops Cleeve but the effect of the cold spell meant the pitch failed the referee’s inspection.

Having lost to Town, Tavistock then somewhat surprisingly hammered second in the table Frome Town 6-2 last Wednesday evening.

The weather curtailed most of the games in the League last Saturday and, apart from Yate’s win at Mousehole, Bristol Manor Farm and Bashley played out a 0-0 draw.

The results mean that Town remain five points adrift at the foot of the table with their nearest rivals Paulton Rovers having played one game less and Bashley have two games in hand.

Town’s recent signings, 20 year-old midfielder Merson Ham and 23 year-old defender Jacob Mead, should feature in the squad. Both have Western League experience with Street and Bradford Town respectively.

Town were also due to be in action last night at Newton Abbot Spurs in the quarter-finals of the Devon St. Luke’s Bowl.