AFC Stoneham are back at home after 17 days away where they face Baffins Milton Rovers in the Quarter-finals of the Wessex League Cup.

AFC Stoneham:

Stoneham will look to get their 2023 back up and running on Tuesday following three postponements on the bounce, with a Semi-final awaiting the winner of this clash.

The Purps found the 10-men of Brockenhurst tricky to navigate in the previous round of this competition, scraping past the Badgers 3-2 thanks to a stoppage-time free kick from Cade Dyer.

Due to the unsolicited weather, Stoneham have been unable to play since January 7 th where they just edged out Cowes Sports 2-1, so they will be hoping for a more convincing performance this time around to beat a strong Baffins side.

Stoneham Lane has been somewhat of a fortress for The Purps this season, losing just two at home in all competitions, a trend they hope will continue on Tuesday in order seal their place in the Semi-finals.

Baffins Milton Rovers:

Baffins come into this game off the back of playing their first league game in 35 days, but a 2-0 loss at home to Bemerton Heath Harlequins means that they start their 2023 with a disappointing loss.

In addition, the away side will be without their top scorer Tom Vincent, who has 13 goals and club captain Jason Parish for this clash, with both players receiving red cards in their last outing. However, Baffins are arguably the most deserving team to play in this round of the competition, previously beating table-topping AFC Portchester in the second round, handing them only their third defeat in all competitions this season, with the other two being against teams in divisions above.

The Rovers will know that the fixture history between the two teams does not make good reading, however they have already knocked out the favourites for this competition so will be as hungry as ever to make it one round further than they did last season.

Last Five Meetings:

16/08/22 Baffins Milton Rovers 0-3 AFC Stoneham (PREM)

16/02/22 Baffins Milton Rovers 2-3 AFC Stoneham (PREM)

26/10/21 AFC Stoneham 3-0 Baffins Milton Rovers (PREM)

02/09/20 Baffins Milton Rovers 1-2 AFC Stoneham (FA CUP)

03/03/20 AFC Stoneham 3-2 Baffins Milton Rovers (SWLC)

By Freddie Dorman