A giant game awaits Barnstaple Town in the Western League promotion race

Barnstaple Town will step onto the pitch on Saturday for the biggest fixture of their season, hosting league leaders Clevedon Town in a Jewson Western League showdown that could decide the destination of the title.

With only a fortnight remaining in the campaign, Barum trail Clevedon by two points and sit third, a place behind Torpoint Athletic. The Easter programme has already underlined the resilience of Jon Martin’s squad: a 2-0 win at Bridgwater Town on Monday followed a hard-fought 4-1 victory over Wellington A.F.C. on Good Friday, results that dragged the promotion fight to the wire.

Monday’s success in Somerset came despite a threadbare squad. Josh Parry nodded in Gabby Rogers’ free-kick early on, and Oscar Knight’s late strike secured the points after a rearguard effort. Three days earlier, at Mill Road, Shea Mannings continued his prolific start to life in north Devon, drilling home his fourth goal in four appearances to open the scoring against Wellington. Tommy Rogers doubled the advantage from the spot, atoning for the penalty miss that had cost Barum victory over Torpoint four days earlier.

Wellington, aided by a stiff breeze, struck the woodwork and had a shot cleared off the line before the interval, but the visitors were unable to convert pressure into goals. Charlie Shearer did pull one back on 70 minutes, yet substitute Tre Davey restored the two-goal margin within four minutes of his introduction. Defender Neil Slateford completed the scoring five minutes from time, slotting in after the goalkeeper parried.

Those six points from the holiday fixtures have set up a nerve-shredding finale. Clevedon’s visit to Mill Road is effectively a title eliminator: a Barum victory would send them top on the head-to-head rule, while anything less keeps the destiny in Clevedon’s hands. After the euphoric cup run that took them to the last-32 of the FA Vase, Barnstaple now have 90 minutes to turn a season of cup heroics into league silverware.