It was less than a fortnight ago when Carlton last travelled to Grange Park to face Long Eaton in the league. The Blues nabbed a point at the death on Bank Holiday Monday in a game in which Carlton dominated large parts and possibly felt like they should have taken all three. That said, they didn’t and it was credit to the endeavour of the home side to keep going to the end and salvage something to add to their solid start in the division.
Since then, Carlton recorded a superb win against Step 3 Cleethorpes in the 1Q round of the FA Cup, the 3-0 scoreline in no way flattered the Millers and it’s that level they need to be at if they are to progress.
Long Eaton by contrast lost to Kettering last week in the FA Cup so will be looking to recover some confidence and form and progress in the FA Trophy.
The home side lost at this stage of the Trophy last year to Stafford Rangers whilst Carlton progressed via penalties against Rugby Town before falling to Coleshill in the following round.