Fareham face Bath selection 'headache'

Matt 'Alf' Ramsay, back with Fareham after a spell at Birmingham University [photo Will Palmer]

Fareham head coach Ben Barnes admits he has some “very tough selection decisions to make” ahead of Sunday’s visit to Team Bath Buccaneers (1pm), a match which marks an important second phase of the season for the club in the National League’s Western Conference.
Barnes is boosted by a confident 4-0 win at Eastern Conference side Teddington and the arrival of several newcomers, including the return of right wing-back Matt “Alf” Ramsay, pictured by Will Palmer, who has spent the past three seasons at Birmingham University.
Fareham are also poised to announce what manager Nigel Cook describes as a “marquee signing” ahead of the trip to Bath, which they must win to boost their prospects of a key top six finish in the league.
Fareham ended their pre-Christmas programme on a high, beating Chichester 4-3 before sharing the spoils 3-3 in a Cardiff Met thriller.
Captain Alex Boxall, Jack Gilbert and Niall Stott all missed the 4-0 Teddington win, all the goals coming from open play which pleased Barnes.
Phil Larcombe, the Davey brothers Chris and George, and Martin Gough got the goals.
“It was a really important game to get us up to speed. I was pleased with the overall performance and would have taken 4-0 before the game in a heartbeat,” Barnes said.
Now Fareham will want to transfer that friendly form into a victory over Team Bath, whom they’ve never previously beaten.  The sides drew 3-3 at Henry Cort and 4-4 in the EH Cup just before the winter break.