Harrogate Town v Bromley FC: Improving Sulphurites face another tall order

Having managed to take points off two of the division’s other promotion hopefuls in the shape of Cambridge and Chesterfield recently, the struggling Sulphurites will be aiming for more of the same at the weekend.

And, the fact that they managed to follow up those impressive results with a 1-0 midweek success over Barrow means Simon Weaver’s team will head into Saturday’s fixture full of confidence.

But, not only do Bromley sit top of the pile after 32 matches, they also boast the best away record in the whole of the league.

They are also arguably the biggest and most powerful outfit that League Two has to offer this season, and the Town boss knows that his players are in for a serious examination at Wetherby Road.

"Bromley have got good energy about them, and a massive, physical squad,” Weaver told BBC Radio York.

"There is evidence of that in every single game. I watched their match against Cheltenham the other night, and Cheltenham didn’t half have to defend right.

"From set-pieces, everything is launched into the box, and to good effect because they have got seven six-foot-four players in there, and you have got to defend that.

"But you have to play as well against them because if it just becomes a basket ball game, they have got bigger players than every team. And it erodes people’s desire to keep going.

"But, that cant happen to us, we have to stay in the fight and pick our moments to play. It will be a big test, but we can’t be daunted by Bromley, we can’t be intimidated by anyone.”

Bromley have come out on top in nine of their 16 fixtures on the road so far this term, losing just four times. And their recent away form is even more impressive.

Since going down 3-1 at Walsall at the end of November, the Ravens are unbeaten on their travels in seven outings, and have tasted victory in six of those games.

Last time out on the road, they won 2-1 at Fleetwood, following on from a comprehensive 4-1 triumph at Gillingham.

Town, by contrast, sit rock-bottom of the League Two home table having accrued a meagre 10 points from their 16 matches at Wetherby Road to date.

They have won just one of the 11 previous games played on their own turf, but crucially, that victory came against Cambridge last time out at home, and ended a sequence of 10 consecutive losses in front of their fans.

Goals have been a problem for the Sulphurites all season, and not only are they the lowest scorers in the entire division, they also sit in last position when it comes to the amount of times they have found the back of the net at home.

To make matters worse, Harrogate have lost all of their previous three Football League meetings with Bromley, going down by a 2-0 score-line on each occasion.

Indeed, their only competitive win over the South-East London outfit in seven attempts came in a National League fixture back in March 2019 when Jack Muldoon’s stoppage-time penalty sealed a 1-0 success.