Doug Shulman's introduction to Salisbury City.

United travel south for a crucial clash with Salisbury City on Saturday. The play-offs are now out of reach for Nick Holmes' eleventh-placed side after their 3-1 loss at Altrincham last weekend, but he will want to finish the season strongly. Therefore, United should be aware of the threat they pose when visiting the Raymond McEnhill Stadium.

Salisbury added the 'City' to their name in 1992 and, by 1997, had moved into their current home. The tidy new surroundings are located in Old Sarum just north of the city itself, commanding a total capacity of 3,740, whilst the stadium houses a supporters bar and offices. The U's will most probably be allocated the stand running along one side of the pitch, which affords open terracing.

Seeds of Success

The club resided in the Southern League and its lower tiered Eastern Division for many years, until 2002 when off-field financial problems led to an unfortunate parting of the ways with long-serving Manager Geoff Butler, who had been at the helm for seventeen seasons. A humbling relegation followed and the club came close to liquidation but, thanks to a local consortium, they were saved. Current boss and former Southampton midfielder Nick Holmes (pictured) was enticed from his coaching job in the USA in July 2002, and before long he had guided them to the FA Cup First Round and a trip to Sheffield Wednesday. The League side ran out 4-0 victors, but the seeds of future success had clearly been sown.

In the 2003/2004 season City gained promotion, via the play-offs, from the Dr Martens Eastern Division, and were elevated into the Isthmian Premier League, which ended their 36-year association with the Southern League. 2004/05 produced mixed fortunes and, despite persuading former Southampton defender Tommy Widdrington to join from Port Vale as Holmes' coach, results undulated until a healthy run-in to the season left them mid-table. The 2005/06 campaign proved wholly successful as the Whites romped to the Championship by a clear twelve points, meaning a first ever tilt at Conference South life. The season was also noteworthy for a fine FA Trophy run to the quarter-finals before finally being defeated by Exeter City.

Joyous Promotion

Last season proved momentous, with the Whites topping the table before extended success in the FA Cup hampered their League form. A 3-0 win at Fleetwood Town set up a televised Second Round tie with Nottingham Forest, and City did not disappoint the BBC as they held the League One side to a 1-1 draw. They lost the replay 2-0 in mid-December, but then remained unbeaten in the Conference South until late March; a run that saw them occupy the upper echelons of the table.

At the campaign conclusion a play-off spot was secured and, after seeing off the semi-final challenge of Bishops Stortford, they faced Braintree Town in the showpiece final at Stevenage's Broadhall Way Stadium. Matt Tubbs made the headlines with the only goal of the game six minutes from time, notably his 30th of the season, and the Whites were left to celebrate a berth in the newly named Blue Square Premier.

Turned Professional

The Club joined the professional ranks last summer, with Tubbs being the first to sign a full-time deal. The move also allowed Holmes to lure higher quality reinforcements in preparation for their debut at the top of the Non-League pyramid. He invested shrewdly as the squad was fine-tuned, with former Mansfield and Hartlepool midfielder Darrell Clarke the first to climb aboard. The 31-year old has been a mainstay this season, additionally delighting the fans with four goals.

Also counter-balancing a wave of released players was Andy Sandell, who accompanies Clarke in midfield, along with long-serving City legend Wayne Turk, and has contributed three goals to date.

The back-line, which boasts the experience of journeyman full-back Matt Robinson, was strengthened thanks to the two-month loan capture of towering defender Luke Oliver from Stevenage, who joined influential club Captain Aaron Cook in the centre, whilst flank player Liam Feeney was snapped up from Hayes. The youngster has bagged an all-important eight goals to date, so will need to be watched carefully on Saturday. Up front Holmes seemed more than satisfied with his stock, so kept faith with the striking trio of Marvin Brown, Robbie Matthews and England C side International Matt Tubbs.

Eye-catching Form

City started the season in fine fashion, with the opening five games producing consecutive home wins over Ebbsfleet, (2-1) Crawley, (4-1) and Woking, (2-1) whilst draws were gained at Droylsden and Farsley. Back-to-back defeats at Histon and Torquay burst the bubble but, a further four-game unbeaten spell, which included the impressive 3-0 triumph at Forest Green amongst three wins, lifted them into an eye-catching sixth place.

Unfortunately four straight defeats unfolded, their poorest spell of the term, but a mere three further League losses were served up before Xmas. Two of those defeats came against promotion hunters Aldershot and Stevenage, though, and Holmes will have been proud of the fact that his side sat mid-table at the turn of the year, despite early exits in all three cup competitions.

Unbeaten Run

The new calendar year saw the commencement of a stunning fourteen game unbeaten run that included attention-grabbing away victories over Stafford, Weymouth, Kidderminster and in-form Northwich, whilst play-off residents Torquay and Burton left fortress Raymond McEnhill Stadium with a draw and defeat respectively. Tellingly, the upturn in from coincided with the arrival of Luton loanees Rob Sinclair, a midfielder, and defender Ed Asafu-Adjaye. This long sequence kept them in ninth place, with only the form of the top five stopping them from sniffing a play-off spot.

However, a last-minute 3-2 loss at Woking finally broke their resolve, and form since then has undulated. Aldershot pocketed a 2-1 home success over City, with Altrincham picking up their aforementioned victory last Saturday, but of significance to United will be the recent wins over Exeter and Stevenage in front of the Wiltshire faithful. In fact, the last time they suffered a home loss was at the beginning of December against Aldershot, so the U's will have to be on top form if they want to emerge victorious.

Injury Woe

The form of Matt Tubbs this season has caught the eye, with the 23-year old bagging seventeen goals to date. Furthermore, he is admirably backed by striking colleagues Robbie Matthews and Marvin Brown who have nineteen between them. Matthews will be missing through injury on Saturday, so Holmes is likely to use Nick Eastham in some capacity. The young forward has recently completed an impressive loan spell with Dorchester, so will be itching to don the white shirt. Accompanying Matthews on the physio's couch is Andy Sandell, who is struggling to play again this season.

Previous Meetings

Our only recorded meeting with City was on 20 October of the current season. U's striker Scott Rendell opened the scoring after just eight minutes but, despite dominating for long spells, United could not capitalise on possession.

United became increasingly sloppy in the second-half as City grew in stature and, almost inevitably, the Whites equalised through Marvin Brown with four minutes remaining [report].

Doug Shulman

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