Grimsby Borough Vs Barton Town - Match Preview
A look at what lies ahead in Tuesday night's meeting with the Swans.
Grimsby Borough Vs Barton Town - Match Preview
Borough step up their preparations for the upcoming Northern Premier League Division One East campaign this week with two friendlies at the Technica Home of Boro, the first of which sees Barton Town make the short trip down the A180 for a Tuesday evening clash.
Boss Tom Claisse and his assistant Liam Dickens will be relishing the opportunity of seeing their new look side in action once again, having opened up their pre-season schedule with a home win over Thornaby at the beginning of the month, followed by an in-house fixture on Friday evening as the Wilderness Boys continue to put in the hard yards in the warm July temperatures.
Having put together a strong squad, with a mix of experience, physicality, pace, and dynamism, Borough may again look to run the rule over the trialists who have impressed recently as they push to add further quality to their ranks ahead of another exciting-looking year ahead at step four.
Having missed the Thornaby match, the likes of goalkeeper Heath Richardson, defenders Paul Walker and Alfie Taylor, and attacker Jack Barlow could feature as Claisse's men look to make it two friendly wins on the bounce and build momentum.
Barton, nicknamed the Swans, currently ply their trade in the Northern Counties East League Premier Division, and head into 2026/27 having fallen just short of promotion to the NPL last time out.
Finishing fifth at step five, Anthony Bowsley’s side lost out in the play-off semi-final at Beverley Town, the hosts progressing thanks to a second-half McCauley Snelgrove penalty in front of a large Norwood Park crowd.
The Swans amassed 70 points last season, becoming one of the divisions top scoring teams (70 goals in 38 games), while also boasting one of the meanest defensive records, with only champions Liversedge and third-placed Sheffield FC conceding fewer than the 44 Barton restricted their opponents to.
Key players in last season’s strong showing include attackers Lewis Stephens, Thomas Waudby, and Ali Aydemir. While midfielder Craig King, defender Fraser Pappril, and goalkeeper Charlie Dixon-Brown, among others, also played notable roles.
Along with retaining all of the above, and much of the squad as a whole, Bowsley has also added the experienced Andy Norfolk, attackers Danny Earl and George Dawber, winger Joe Wood, and midfield man Prince Haywood to their ranks as they look to go one better in the campaign ahead.
The recent head-to-head record between the sides shows a 2023 pre-season draw at Bradley, with Adam Drury and the aforementioned Waudby on target for their respective teams who’d meet again just a few weeks later at the Barton Town Stadium in the FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round, with Borough running out 3-1 victors this time thanks to goals from Jack Richardson and Reece York (x2).
Barton have begun their summer with a 3-2 victory against Winterton Rangers and a 1-1 draw with Beverley Town, as well as taking part in the James Hitchcock Memorial Match against Bridlington Town, and will undoubtedly provide the Wilderness Boys with a stern test as both sides search for rhythm and fitness.
We look forward to welcoming the players, staff, officials, and supporters of the Swans to Grimsby, and hope to see plenty of the Borough faithful in attendance once again for what will be an entertaining evening at the Technica Home of Boro.