Get the lowdown on our next opponents: Brackley Town.

The Opposition

Brackley Town have enjoyed a respectable start to life in the fifth tier, passing the halfway point in the season with 30 points to their name, and currently sit six points above the drop zone.

Promotion last term saw the Saints finally reach the National League at long last, having finished inside the play-off places in every season going back to 2017/18, but despite this they struggled at the final hurdle each time and were forced to return to square one on a multitude of occasions.

Five of those occasions included two appearances in the semi-final and three appearances in the final, losing to Harrogate Town, Kidderminster Harriers and Boston United, before at long last reaching the promised land with a 5-0 win over Farsley Celtic on the final game of the season, as goals from Danny Newton, Tyler Lyttle, Connor Hall, Tommy O’Sullivan and Scott Pollock sparked ecstatic celebrations at St. James Park.

Since then, former manager Gavin Cowan has led them to a remarkable start to the campaign with two defeats from their opening ten games in all competitions, and barring a streak of four losses in a row at the start of November, have remained largely consistent in their search to retain their National League status.

Key to their consistency has been the ability to find a settled a side, with eight players appearing at least 25 times. Connor Hall, Matt Lowe and Morgan Roberts have both maintained their fine form in attack alongside Matt Lowe, while Danny Waldron has added four goals since his move from Southend United.

Furthermore, Scott Pollock has been a consistent and creative spark in the centre of the park, while Riccardo Calder, Gareth Dean, Zak Lilly and Kyle Morrison have contributed to the Saints conceding the tenth least amount of goals in the division (34).

The Saints are suddenly set for a new era though, with Cowan departing Saint James’ Park just over 48 hours before their visit to Gander Green Lane to join Shrewsbury Town. Club Captain Gareth Dean will take care of first team affairs on a temporary basis while they begin the search for a permanent successor, indicating a fresh chapter for the Northamptonshire-based side.

The Manager

Gareth Dean

Club captain Gareth Dean has been at the club since the 2016/17 season, making over 350 appearances in all competitions for the club in a career which has spanned well over 500 games.

Although the bulk of his career has come at Brackley, he made over 100 appearances for Nuneaton Town, and spent a season at Solihull Moors beforehand, where he established himself as a reliable defender. Dean then joined Brackley in 2016 and quickly became a cornerstone of the squad, known for his leadership and consistency, and he has since become club captain and a stalwart at the heart of the Saints’ defence.

One of the standout moments of his career came in the 2018 FA Trophy final at Wembley, where he scored a dramatic added-time equaliser to help secure victory, something which has been dubbed as Brackley’s most famous goal. He was also named in the National League North Team of the Season in 2024/25, having led them to promotion.

Beyond his playing duties, Dean has most recently has been named as Gavin Cowan’s temporary successor, where he will will be assisted by Alastair Worby.

One to Watch

Morgan Roberts

Welsh forward Morgan Roberts was a key part of Brackley’s promotion-winning campaign last term, and has continued his fine form into the fifth tier by playing more times than anyone else so far this season.

Hailing from Northampton, Robets joined Northampton Town’s academy in 20009 and rose through the ranks across a nine-year stint in the youth setup, finally being promoted to the first team in 2018 when he was named an unused substitute in a League One clash with Blackpool. He later made his senior debut for the Cobblers in a 2-2 draw with Oldham Athletic as they closed out the campaign, before signing a new contract in the summer following their relegation.

The winger subsequently moved out on loan to gain experience, appearing a handful of times for AFC Rushden & Diamonds, Banbury United and Brackley Town, notably winning Man of the Match in two of his first three appearances for the former, before scoring his first senior goal against future club Banbury.

A successful 2020/21 campaign led to him joining the Puritans on a permanent basis, contributing 20 goals as they won promotion to the National League North for the first time in their history, and his form earned him a move back into the EFL with a switch to Swindon Town, having scored four goals in the opening month of the season.

He played seven times for the Robins before moving on loan to Aldershot Town in February 2023, before returning to Brackley on a permanent basis three years on from his brief loan spell at St. James Park. A successful individual season saw him named in the National League North Team of the Season, before helping the Saints to avenge their play-off disappointment at the hands of Boston United by winning the division the following year.

Internationally, he has also represented Wales in a training camp, having been selected for the Under-21s in March 2019.

Photo Credit: Josh Nesden/@josh.jpg/joshjpg.uk

Recent Form

Boreham Wood 5-2 Brackley Town

Brackley Town 0-0 Hartlepool United

Truro City 3-3 Brackley Town

Brackley Town 2-1 Yeovil Town

Walton & Hersham 1-0 Brackley Town

Boston United 1-2 Brackley Town

Last Time Out

Boreham Wood ran out 5–2 winners against Brackley Town, who were dumped out of the National League Cup at the quarter-final stage.

The hosts came straight out of the blocks and dominated from the off, taking the lead on four minutes with a brilliantly worked goal when some lovely interplay between Cameron Coxe and Zak Brunt ended with the former playing in Charlie O’Connell, who made a very good run before sending over an inch-perfect cross which Matt Rush headed home. Rush then got his second – and his 21st for the season – inside the opening 20 minutes, with the Wood scoring a deserved second when the former Sutton striker controlled the ball with his chest before an excellent finish from just outside the area.

Coxe nearly added a third minutes later with an excellent turn and shot which went just wide, but it wasn’t long before they did add their third as O’Connell played in Abdulmalik whose shot was deflected into the path of Femi Ilesanmi, who fired home, and send the Hertfordshire-based side into the break comfortably ahead.

While they nearly began the second half by conceding a consolation goal; Kian Harratt striking the upright, the Wood got their fourth with another excellent goal when Regan Booty played in Rush, who flicked the ball to Clayden, who found the net with a great finish.

Despite this, Connor Hall pulled one back for Brackley with a neat finish on the hour-mark to ensure it wasn’t all plain sailing yet for the hosts, and set up a somewhat nervy finale when they pulled another one back, as an inch-perfect cross from the left by Tyler Lyttle found Morgan Roberts, who fired home.

However, Boreham Wood continued to control possession in the final period of the game and didn’t give their opponents another sniff at goal, before adding gloss to the scoreline with a fifth goal in the final minutes of added time; an inch-perfect pass from Aaron Henry picked out Coxe, who then cut in on his left and put the ball into the top corner of Gregory’s net.

Photo Credit: Leonie Citron // Boreham Wood Football Club