Back in August, newly promoted Felixstowe & Walton came out 3-1 winners against Bury Town in a close encounter that saw both sides reduced to 10 men for much of the game, writes Barry Grossmith.

This Saturday, the Seasiders visit Ram Meadow, five points behind Ben Chenery’s men and with a game in hand.

Last time out, Felixstowe & Walton went down 3-2 at Aveley, while Bury snatched a 94th-minute equaliser at home to Canvey Island.

Seasiders’ boss Ian Watson admits the clash for both sides is a big game.

“We’re playing with confidence at the moment despite dropping points last week,” he said.

“The squad has direction now and a bit of passion about them in a Felixstowe shirt.

“This is a local derby and a big game and I would like to see us challenging in a mini league with our rivals Bury and AFC Sudbury.

“Bury are a benchmark for us as they have established themselves at this level for some time now.”

The Blues have spent most of this season in the top half of Bostik North thanks in part to top goalscorer Ollie Hughes.

Bury attract large crowds to their games, particularly against local rivals and with Felixstowe’s impressive travelling support, a very sizeable crowd can be expected.

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As well as attracting more through the turnstiles, local derbies can also fire up the players.

Felixstowe & Walton assistant boss, Danny Bloomfield, however, feels his side won’t need any extra encouragement.

“We’ve made some fantastic progress over the last four games and to come away from Aveley disappointed, having not got something from the game is a good indicator of how things are now,” he said.

“We face a tough local derby this week but we simply just need to keep focusing on our own development. We have a long way to go until we are close to the standards we are working hard to achieve but, that said, the response from the whole group has been fantastic.”

This match has something about it which suggests this is not one to miss.