A second trip on the road in five days sees us travel to Scunthorpe United on Wednesday night as we look to preserve our unbeaten start to the campaign.
After securing promotion from the National League North following back-to-back relegations, a season of consolidation was the priority in Lincolnshire after a turbulent few years off the pitch. However, the Iron exceeded all expectations as they competed in the upper echelons of the division and finished in fifth place.
Callum Roberts’ strike proved to be the difference as they edged past Southend United in the play-off eliminator, before falling to a 2-1 defeat at Rochdale to deny Andy Butler’s side a shot at returning to the Football League.
A name who will be familiar to many, former Wood defender Will Evans will be at the heart of Scunthorpe’s promotion push.
He progressed through the youth ranks at Swindon Town where he spent time on loan at Hereford United to gain first-team action, before permanently departing the County Ground for Newport County in 2012.
Spells in the National League with Eastleigh and Aldershot Town followed before joining Chesterfield ahead of the 2018/19 campaign. Despite playing a key role in the Spireites finishing in the play-offs following a 20th-placed finish the previous campaign, he was released after three years in Derbyshire and signed for the Wood.
Starting in our memorable Emirates FA Cup visit to Everton in the fifth round, Evans departed for Scunthorpe in 2023 and tasted immediate success, guiding them into the National League while breaking divisional clean sheet records.
Following a successful playing career which saw him turn out for Scunthorpe on nearly 200 occasions, Butler is the man tasked with guiding the Iron back to the EFL.
The ex-Walsall and Sheffield United man enjoyed three separate spells at Glanford Park before taking charge of Doncaster Rovers’ women’s side at the start of 2020 in his first managerial post.
He was then headhunted by Scunthorpe in the summer of 2024, having also briefly stepped in as caretaker manager of Doncaster’s men’s side after previously holding the first-team coach role. Butler was instrumental in their National League promotion last year, beating Chester 2-1 in the play-off final.
The spoils were shared in a 1-1 draw in the first meeting of last season as Matt Rush broke the deadlock inside the first minute, only for Roberts to draw level 16 minutes from time.
Nonetheless, the Iron dominated the reverse meeting in January to end the Wood’s six-game league unbeaten run. Charlie O’Connell put the ball into his own net just before the half-hour mark, before Scunthorpe doubled their cushion courtesy of Roberts once again on 39 minutes.
The 29-year-old was their main attacking threat last term with 18 goals and eight assists, leading to his summer switch to Notts County. However, it was Zain Westbrooke who got on the scoresheet next, making it three in additional time with Luke Norris’ strike with six minutes remaining proving inconsequential.
The game kicks off at 19:45 and is segregated.
All tickets are available to purchase via the Scunthorpe United online ticketing system at the following prices:
Adults (21-64): £22.00
Concessions (65+): £17.00
Full-Time Students/18-21 (18-21): £17.00
Junior (12-17): £11.00
Child (Under 12): £0
Follow all of the action from the Attis Arena on the club’s official social media channels, with live updates on both X and Instagram, available at @boreham_woodfc. Don’t forget to turn your notifications on!
Written by Jack Patmore.
