Get the lowdown on our next opponents: Aldershot Town.
The Opposition
Aldershot Town will be hoping to begin 2026 in a better state than the way they’ve ended 2025, though it seems they have hit a bit of form at the right time, scoring back-to-back league victories for the first time this term before the year is out.
Headed up by manager John Coleman, the Shots have largely struggled for form and consistency so far this term, and currently sit inside the drop zone in the National League, having won just twice in the league under their new boss, who joined the club back in October.
Having established themselves as a reliable presence at Step One, the Hampshire-based side entered their 12th successive season at National League level with a 16th place finish being secured last term, though they are at risk of dropping into the sixth tier for the first time in over two decades.
An exodus of players saw the likes of key players Jack Barham, Kai Corbett and captain Aaron Jones all depart the club in the summer, along with Jordi van Stappershoef, Christian Maghoma, Emmanuel Maja, Lachlan Byrd and Maxwell Mullins, while their manager followed them in the departure lounge when he opted to return to former club Eastbourne Borough, just four months on from guiding them to an Isuzu FA Trophy title with victory over Spennymoor Town at Wembley Stadium.
In his place, experienced boss Coleman arrived at the EBB Stadium with plenty of pedigree in October, having spent over two decades in the EFL with Accrington Stanley. He has so far struggled to have the desired impact though, and the Shots are currently four points adrift after tasting just two league wins since September, as well as being eliminated from the FA Cup and the FA Trophy at the hands of Weston-super-Mare and Eastleigh.
While they certainly haven’t struggled for goals, in fact, they boast the fifth best goalscoring record in the National League, their problems seem to lie at the back, conceding at a rate of over two goals per game, while only two teams have conceded more than the Shots.
The likes of Hady Ghandour, Kwame Thomas, Ryan Hill and the reliable Josh Barrett have all contributed in forward areas, with goals spread evenly around the whole team, but they have looked to plug the gaps at the other end of the pitch with the vast majority of their signings being defenders, including Ben Jackson (Brighton & Hove Albion), Will Nightingale (AFC Wimbledon), Ryheem Sheckleford (Chesterfield), Matt Penney (Altrincham), James Clarridge (Watford), Sam Inwood (Bolton Wanderers), Christy Grogan (Stockport County), Will Armitage (Southampton) and Charlie Penman (Brighton & Hove Albion).
With plenty of time still to go, the Shots will be aiming to turn the tide consistently sooner rather than later in their attempt to maintain their National League status for another year.
The Manager
John Coleman
With a managerial career stretching back to 1997, experienced manager John Coleman had established himself as Accrington Stanley’s longest serving manager with a 12-and-a-half-year stint at the Wham Stadium, prior to his move to Aldershot.
His football career began with a two-decade stint as a player primarily in non-league, turning out for Kirkby Town, Burscough, Marine, Southport, Runcorn, Halton, Macclesfield Town, Morecambe, Lancaster City and Ashton United, as well as a short spell in Wales with Rhyl, though his time in England saw him become one of the most prolific goalscorers in non-league history with over 500 goals, including the fifth most amount of goals in Southport history.
He then kick-started his managerial career when he took over as player-manager at Ashton United, before first joining Stanley two years later in 1999 with the club in the Northern Premier League First Division, and they went on to win three promotions as champions to enter the Football League in 2006.
At the time of his departure in 2012 he was the third longest serving manager in England behind Manchester United’s Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsenal’s Arsène Wenger, but he opted to join Rochdale AFC to begin a brief spell away from the Crown Ground. Further stints at Southport and Sligo Rovers followed, but he returned to Lancashire for a second spell in 2014 and subsequently guided them to the League Two title four years later, with the ‘Owd Reds remaining in League One until their relegation in 2023, with Coleman remaining at the helm throughout, racking up an association of more than two decades in total with the club.
He was subsequently dismissed from his role the following year though, and at the time of his departure, he was the longest-serving manager purely in the EFL, taking charge of 1,098 Accrington matches across his two spells.
Brief stints at Gillingham and League of Ireland side Shelbourne followed, before joining Aldershot towards the end of October, where he has so far picked up two wins in all competitions.
One to Watch
Ryan Hill
Versatile midfielder Ryan Hill has become an integral part of Aldershot’s team since signing from Dagenham & Redbridge last summer, filling in a host of positions and even captaining the side on occasion, while notching more goals than anyone else alongside Hady Ghandour and Kwame Thomas with five.
After beginning his career in Stoke City’s youth system, Hill moved to Beaconsfield Town and later and Hampton & Richmond Borough where he gained early non-league experience, with his form seeing him earn a move into Step One with Eastleigh. He spent three seasons at the Silverlake Stadium as a key midfielder, making his 100th appearance on the final day of the 2022/23 season, a century of games that included scoring six league goals across his stay in Hampshire.
However, the opportunity to join manager Ben Strevens in East London meant a permanent switch to Dagenham, and he added another 150 National League appearances and more during his time at Victoria Road. He went on to spend two seasons with the club, becoming a regular in midfield, and his efforts were recognised when he was voted Player of the Month in March 2025. After his contract expired in June 2025, Hill left the club to join Aldershot Town, having established himself as a reliable and influential presence in the Daggers’ midfield, and he has continued his form for a struggling Shots side, appearing 24 times – more than anyone else – and notching five goals this term.
Recent Form
Aldershot Town 1-5 West Ham United
Boston United 0-2 Aldershot Town
Eastleigh 2-1 Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town 2-1 Altrincham
York City 5-1 Aldershot Town
Aldershot Town 2-1 Fulham
Last Time Out
Aldershot ended their National League Cup campaign with a heavy defeat at the hands of West Ham United, who booked their spot in the knockout stage as group leaders after sealing a third win.
It took just six minutes for West Ham to pry open the Aldershot defence with some great build-up play between George Earthy and Callum Marshall, before Lewis Orford then played it to the extra man Josh Ajala who makes no mistake in giving the Hammers an early lead, and despite a good response from the hosts and a superb stop from Marcus Dewhurst, West Ham made it two moments later. After Dewhurst’s brilliant save, West Ham played it short from the corner, with the ball being worked to Orford on the edge of the box who drilled a low ball into the area for Airidas Golambeckis to apply a cute finish into the top near corner.
And it was three before the game had even reached the half-hour mark, with Orford driving through the middle before slotting it into the near post from just outside the box, putting the Hammers three goals to the good at half time, though they had survived a brief scare with Aldershot hitting the post twice in four minutes through Ryan Jones.
Aldershot did pull a goal back just after the break though, with substitute Kiban Rai striking from just outside the box where he watched on as his effort clipped the heal of Rayan Oyebade and wrong footed Tom Wooster, giving the Shots a lifeline. However, the visitors restored their three-goal advantage when Earthy etched his name onto the scoresheet, as a perfectly threaded ball from Marshall released Earthy who kept his cool and picked the perfect moment to roll the ball beyond Dewhurst.
They continued to dominate proceedings until the end, with Preston Fearon breaking free down the left wing and patiently waiting for his moment before feeding substitute Ryan Batturm to tap into an empty net at the far post, topping off a five-star display with the fifth and final goal in stoppage time, securing their place in the last eight as top scorers in the competition, while condemning John Coleman’s men to a ninth defeat under his watch.
