Malvern are in fantastic form, winning 10 of their last 12 games which sees them currently in fourth place, five points behind leaders Frome. Only Frome have a slightly better record of late in Division One South. The Hillsiders came agonisingly close to promotion last season, losing out to rivals Evesham in the playoff final, so will be looking to go one better this time.

Bideford though are one of only five teams to beat Malvern in the league this season, a 3-1 victory at the Sports Ground back in October, which will give them hope of a repeat this Saturday at Langland Stadium. It will be a different challenge on the 3G surface, as Bideford have lost in four of their five games played this season on artificial turf. Interestingly, five teams who make up the current top six in Division One South play their home games on 3G which does highlight a significant advantage over those who mostly play on grass.

The Robins have improved their overall form of late, winning four of their last seven games, the latest being a 3-2 success against Mousehole. Bideford have shifted up the division to 14th place and eight points clear of the relegation zone.

There have been six previous meetings between the sides, Bideford have won three of them with the other three ending in a draw. The last meeting at Langland Stadium ended in a 2-2 draw back in November 2024 with Jamie Hearsey and Finn Roberts being on target for the Robins that day.

Bideford’s last six (WLWLLW) Pos 14th Pld 25 W7 D5 L13 Pts 26
03/01/26 Bideford 3 Mousehole 2 (League)
27/12/25 Exmouth Town 5 Bideford 3 (League)
20/12/25 Bideford 0 Larkhall Athletic 3 (League)
13/12/25 Westbury United 0 Bideford 2 (League)
06/12/25 Bideford 1 Hartpury 2 (League)
02/12/25 Bideford 3 Bashley 2 (League)

Malvern’s last six (WWWWDW) Pos 4th Pld 24 W17 D2 L5 Pts 53
03/01/26 Malvern Town 4 Hartpury 1 (League)
27/12/25 SC Inkberrow 1 Malvern Town 1 (League)
20/12/25 Malvern Town 4 Didcot Town 2 (League)
13/12/25 Mousehole 1 Malvern Town 2 (League)
06/12/25 Malvern Town 5 Tavistock 1 (League)
29/11/25 Exmouth Town 2 Malvern Town 4 (League)

A Brief History of Malvern Town FC
Originally founded in 1946 as Barnards Green, the club first played in the Worcester League before progressing to the Worcestershire Combination League in 1955. As Malvern Town, the club won the league title at the first attempt and went on to win the Worcestershire Junior Cup three years in a row. A fourth Junior Cup would follow in 1961/62. The Worcestershire Combination League would be renamed the Midlands Combination League in 1968. Malvern won the Worcestershire Senior Urn three years in a row in the 1970’s, going on to win it eight times in total as of 2015. In 1979 the Hillsiders transferred to the West Midlands Regional League where they remained until being relegated to Division One in 1992. Despite finishing in 9th place in 1993/94, the club were promoted back to the Premier Division for the 1994/95 season. Malvern were Premier Division champions in 2003/04 which earned them promotion to the Midlands Alliance League and a 3rd place finish in 2005/06 saw them promoted again to the Southern League in Division One Midlands. Malvern were relegated back to the Midlands Alliance League in 2009 and relegated again in 2011 back to the West Midlands Regional League. In 2019 the club transferred to Division One West of the Hellenic League and based on their results during the two abandoned seasons in 2019/20 and 2020/21 (due to the coronavirus pandemic), they were promoted to the Premier Division. Malvern finished 3rd in 2021/22 and after finishing runners-up in 2022/23 were promoted to Southern League Division One South via the play-offs. Their first season in the Southern League saw them finish in 10th position, and last season they were 4th before losing the play-off final to rivals Evesham United.

Malvern Town FC
Langland Stadium
Langland Avenue
Malvern
West Midlands
WR14 2EQ
Website: https://www.malverntown.co.uk
Twitter: @MalvernTown1946

Previous meetings:
18/10/25 Bideford 3 Malvern Town 1 (Southern Div 1 South)
08/02/25 Bideford 3 Malvern Town 3 (Southern Div 1 South)
02/11/24 Malvern Town 2 Bideford 2 (Southern Div 1 South)
07/09/24 Bideford 2 Malvern Town 0 (FA Trophy Q1)
23/12/23 Bideford 3 Malvern Town 1 (Southern Div 1 South)
12/08/23 Malvern Town 2 Bideford 2 (Southern Div 1 South)