Pontefract Collieries v Blyth Spartans Match Preview
Date: Tuesday, 15 September 2026
Stadium: The Hunters Stadium, WF8 4FU
Time: 7:45pm KO
Ticket Prices: £10 for adults, £7 for concessions, £4 for U16s.
Blyth Spartans prepare for their second away fixture in three days as they travel to West Yorkshire to face Pontefract Collieries.
Spartans will be in good spirits after their emphatic win in the FA Trophy as they defeated Wythenshawe 4-0.
First half goals from Jordan Hickey, Ewan McGowan and Dan Lanning had Blyth in control of the tie before Rio Joisce rounded off an excellent performance in the second half with The Ammies down to 10 men.
The Opposition: Pontefract Collieries
Pontefract Collieries, also known as The Colls, find themself in 16th one league position above Spartans having played one less game so far this season.
The Colls and Blyth have had similar openings to this season with prolonged cup runs limiting their league fixtures however Pontefract will now have full focus on their league campaign after exiting the FA Cup and FA Trophy to Ossett United and Prescot Cables respectively.
Pontefract have recorded some very impressive results this season with their free flowing attacking style, they defeated Parkgate 8-0, Padiham 7-0 and 2nd placed Liversedge 5-0.
From The Dugout: Jimmy Williams
Jimmy Williams took charge of Pontefract Collieries in May 2024, stepping up from being assistant manager to Craig Rouse.
His first season in charge saw The Colls finish 13th in the NPL East but last season was much improved as the West Yorkshire side missed out on a play off position by just a single point.
Williams will be driven to beat Spartans in this fixture after being left disappointed at Croft Park last season by the referee's decisions calling the officiating ‘borderline cheating’ in his post match interview.
Last Time Out: Blyth Spartans 2-1 Pontefract Collieries.
Spartans handed The Colls their first defeat in three months in what proved to be a pivotal three points towards the end of season survival push.
The Colls started brightly in the first half and were handed the opening goal of the game, a loose back pass was rolled into the path of Joe Lumsden who slotted home.
Spartans levelled the game from the spot on the stroke of half time, Jamie Clark was brought down inside the area and he sent the goalkeeper the wrong way from the resulting spot kick.
Blyth took control of the game after the restart and were awarded a free kick after the referee adjudged Colls forward Frankie Sinfield off diving.
From the free kick Dobson found Jack Foalle who’s effort crashed off the bar and fell to Paul Van-Zandvliet who tapped home into an empty net.
Blyth held onto the lead despite late pressure from The Colls who couldn’t extend their three month unbeaten run in Northumberland.
Media Coverage:
You can follow all of the action on Saturday afternoon via our social media platforms and BlythLive on Mixlr from 7:30pm.