It’s time to preview another Robins match in the Newcastle Flooring Senior Cup, this time against our old Coast Road rivals, Whitley Bay. The trip to Hillheads Park, with a final at St James’ Park in the pipeline, is sure to be an event full of passion and fight.
Hillheads Park is going to have a pressure cooker atmosphere tonight; the lads need your support more than ever to reach the semi-finals. Last time we went to Hillheads, we came out with a 1-0 win thanks to the quick thinking of Stephen Hall.
This time, Whitley Bay won’t be as risky when passing the ball out from the back, and we’ll have to find more answers in attack.
Whitley Bay currently sit third in the EBAC Northern League Division One, four points clear with two games in hand. Over the last few weeks, Whitley Bay’s form hasn’t been great, despite their 2-1 win last weekend over Kendal Town. They’ve only won two of their last five matches, including losses to Crook Town in the league and West Auckland Town in the Brooks Mileson League Cup.
The reason Whitley Bay still sits third in the league is partly down to our results. Brian Smith’s Robins have been on fire in 2026. We have beaten every team around us in the table over the last few weeks.
This includes 4th-place Kendal Town, 5th-place West Auckland Town, 6th-place Boro Rangers, and 8th-place Easington Colliery (we sit in seventh). Apart from the blip at home to Crook Town, North Shields have won every game in the last month to date.
It has been a late resurgence in attack that has found our Robins good fortune. The team has been told over the last few weeks to play more directly, rather than in a possession style of football.
The ball over the top has seen us get the best out of our faster players, namely Stephen Hall and Jordan Lashley, and with the returning Jamie Holmes and Ryan Carr, it’s a devastating combination any team would struggle to manage.
Everything looks like it’ll be a derby that lives up to the name, and with one win in our name already, the Seahorses will be looking to even the score before our final derby this season at the Daren Persson Stadium. We hope to see you at Hillheads this evening, and as always, thank you for all of your support!
MATCH DETAILS
Whitley Bay FC vs North Shields FC
Newcastle Flooring Men’s Senior Cup Quarter Final
Tuesday 24th March
Kick Off – 7:30pm
Hillheads Park, Rink Way, Whitley Bay, NE25 8HR
Concessions – £8/£6/£5
*BE ADVISED TO GET TO THE TURNSTILES EARLY FOR THE SMOOTHEST MATCHDAY EXPERIENCE*
