Canvey Island will want to put a disappointing Christmas behind them as they host Bowers & Pitsea in the Isthmian League Premier on New Year's Day.

Our Opponents
Bowers have endured a challenging start to life back in the Isthmian Premier, following on from their playoff winning Isthmian North campaign last season. The club are currently marooned at 21st in the table at the time of writing, six points adrift of safety with an inferior goal difference. Their task for survival was made all the harder just before Christmas as manager James Collins handed in his resignation, leaving the club searching for a new manager going into 2025.

After a respectable 2-2 draw with former tenants Hashtag United, they were brought back down to earth on Saturday with a 3-1 defeat away at Chatham Town.

Academy manager Adonye Gogo-Ibiama has taken charge of first team affairs temporarily as the club searches for a new manager, and he still has a squad assembled able to take on the task at hand. Keeper David Hughes has now returned between the sticks after a loan spell to bring him up to fitness, with other popular faces like Geofrey Okonkwo and TQ Addy a consistent presence in the side. Up front, they have the experience of Alex Teniola to hunt for goals.

The two sides have already met once this season back on the August Bank Holiday, where the Gulls recorded their first three points of the season in a 2-1 win at the Len Salmon Stadium. Chris Harris and Finlay Dorrell were the goalscorers in the day.

The Gulls
Canvey meanwhile, will also want to put a difficult Christmas period behind them following on from a 1-0 defeat at home to Dartford on Saturday.

A solitary goal just before half time condemned the Gulls to a third straight defeat, though they will count themselves unlucky not to have taken a point from the game after a plucky 2nd half.

Still, having fell short against 3 of the top 6 across the Christmas period has meant they have plummeted to 16th in an extremely tight table. They now face a bust 2/3 weeks, where they will face 3 of the bottom 6 in quick succession, as well as a mid table Potters Bar Town and an Essex Senior Cup Quarter Final against Brightlingsea Regent - hectic times for Brad Wellmen's side.

***
Yellow Army, a big thank you to those of you who've come out to support the side over the holiday period. We'd like to take this opportunity to wish all our supporters a happy new year 2025, and we hope the new year brings much prosperity and happiness for you all.

We still have half a season to go and in a competitive division, it's still all to play for. The boys will need your support in a busy start to the new year, and we hope you can all shake off those champagne hangovers to join us on New Year's Day!

Come on you Gulls!

Kick Off - 3:00pm

Admission Prices
Adults - £12
Concessions - £8
U16s - £3*

*Accompanied by an Adult.

Match Sponsorship
This match has been sponsored by getitprinted.com.

We thank them for their sponsorship of this game. Find out more about the company in the link below:
https://www.getitprinted.com

Merchandise
We'll have a range of club merchandise on sale in the clubhouse, including the new 24/25 kits!

Parking
Parking at the Steves Taxi's Stadium is free to all but limited to first come / first serve. Additional parking can be found on the adjacent side roads, but please be mindful of our neighbours if using this option. Parking on Park Lane itself is also strongly advised against.

In The Clubhouse
We have a wide range of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks stocked in the clubhouse.
Hot food and drink is also available in our outdoor kiosks. Please remember that these kiosks are currently cash only

We also have live football from the Premier League and EFL Championship on our big screens, including:

12:30pm - QPR vs Watford

5:30pm - Brentford vs Arsenal