Woking take on Bromley at the Kingfield Stadium on Wednesday evening, in the first eliminator round of the National League playoffs.
The winners will then travel to the Technique Stadium to take on Chesterfield in the semi-final this Sunday.
Match preview
© Reuters
Woking finished fourth in the National League after a solid season, but they may be a little disappointed they were unable to secure a top-three finish, having been in a very strong position to do so prior to a 1-0 defeat against Halifax Town in their last home game.
The Cards secured a 1-0 victory away at Solihull Moors last time out, but it was not enough to leapfrog Chesterfield in the table, as the Spireites recorded a comfortable 4-0 win against Maidstone United at home.
Darren Sarll's side finished two points behind Chesterfield, meaning it will now be a lot tougher to reach the final at Wembley on May 13th, but they have home advantage on Wednesday night, which could work in their favour.
That said, Woking actually recorded the majority of their 82 points on their travels during the regular season, and they have won just one of their last five matches at Kingfield Stadium, which does not bode well heading into the game.
However, the Cards defeated Wednesday's opponents in both league matches this season, most recently running out 2-1 winners near the end of February, and that record should give them confidence heading into the game.
Indeed, Bromley struggled against Woking during the regular season, however they head into Wednesday's game in better form than their opponents, having been on a nine-game unbeaten run.
The Ravens secured their spot in the playoffs with a 2-0 victory against Chesterfield in late April, which should be a morale-boosting result heading into Wednesday's encounter, while most recently they drew 1-1 away at Oldham Athletic.
Andy Woodman's side have been very solid on their travels recently, winning three and drawing three of their last six games, going undefeated since their last visit to the Kingfield Stadium, and they will be eager to set the record straight.
Although Bromley finished on 11 fewer points than their opponents, they have improved considerably in the second half of the season, and have actually picked up more points than Woking over the last 20 games, so it is likely to be a very closely-contested encounter.
Team News
Rhys Browne has been Woking's main attacking threat this season, scoring 20 league goals, the fourth-highest amount in the division, and the 27-year-old is poised to lead the line, alongside Padraig Amond.
Amond has experienced success in the National League playoffs before, having scored for Grimsby Town in the 2016 final against Forest Green Rovers, and the striker's experience could be valuable for the Cards.
Ricky Korboa scored his first league goal of the season after being brought on as a substitute against Solihull Moors last time out, and the forward may be utilised off the bench again, if Sarll's side are trailing.
With their place in the playoffs already confirmed, Woodman made a few changes to his Bromley side at the weekend, so Corey Whitely, Louis Dennis and Michael Cheek should all return to the starting lineup.
Cheek is in a rich vein of form at the moment, scoring five goals in his last six games, and the Englishman is set to lead the line once again.
Woking possible starting lineup:
Jaaskelainen; Moss, McNerney, Cuthbert, Casey; Nwabuokei, Kellerman, Ince, Daly; Browne, Amond
Bromley possible starting lineup:
Charles-Cook; Elerewe, Reynolds, Sowunmi, Topalloj; Stirk, Bingham, Fisher, Dennis; Whitely, Cheek
We say: Woking 0-1 Bromley
Woking did the double over Bromley during the regular season, but Bromley are an in-form side, and they have been particularly impressive away from home in recent weeks.
As such, we expect the visitors to emerge with a narrow victory in a very tight contest, which could even end up going all the way to penalties.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Dominic Lund
