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Marine boss Mark Collier believes a top-half finish would be the icing on the cake for what has been a "remarkable" campaign at Hunts Copse. In what was tipped to be a season of struggle, it's fair to say Marine have defied all the odds in the Southern League Premier Division. Even the most ardent supporter would not have predicted Collier's side going into the final game of the season safe from the threat of relegation. But as they travel to Banbury United, that is exactly the situation they find themselves in, and although Supermarine have nothing to play for tomorrow, it suits Collier just fine.
He admitted: "It's a nice fixture to end the season with, but anything's nice when you're safe from relegation. "Everyone thought we would struggle and we were one of the favourites to go down, but we've had a good season and if we win on Saturday we could finish ninth or 10th. "This season has been quite a remarkable achievement for a club our size, and to finish in the top half would be superb. "One of the committee said before the season that if we can stay one place above the dotted line it will be a job well done. Well we've done that, and we've done it quite comfortably. "We've grown in stature over the course of the season with a small squad. "As the season went on we became more and more competitive and signed some influential, experienced players. "And once Christmas was out of the way we started to think we could end up with a decent finish."
Leigh Henry returns from suspension to bolster Marine's back line, but striker Jason Welsh is still missing through illness. With neither side having anything to play for tomorrow, there is a danger the fixture could end up as a damp squib. But, in contrast, Collier believes that Banbury's similar style may mean Marine's travelling faithful are treated to a feast of free-flowing football. "They're a decent side who try to get it down and play," he said. "We like to play football as well, and if the surface is good it could be an open game as we've got very similar styles. "They (Banbury) have got the same criteria as us to be in the top half of the table, so I suppose you could say there's something riding on the game. "They've had some great results over the season and are a big non-league club, but we've competed with plenty of big clubs this season and we'll do it again on Saturday."
By Anthony Marshall Posted Friday April 25th 2008
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