HALSTEAD Town return to football action on Saturday when Harwich and Parkeston are the visitors to the Milbank Stadium for a Thurlow Nunn League first division game.

This will be the Humbugs' first game since they lost by the odd goal in seven to Newbury Forest, two weeks' ago.

That defeat was Halstead's latest of four in a row and resulted in the team dropping further down towards the wrong end of the table.

This was not in the club’s plans at the start of the season.

Both teams will go into this game desperate for a win and both will believe they can achieve it.

For Halstead it will be an opportunity to get their season back on track with the three points needed to get themselves moving in the right direction back towards the promotion places.

Harwich will just be hoping for a victory after failing to win any of their previous ten games this season.

The Shrimpers' team is likely to feature a number of players who have previously worn the black and white shirt of the home side.

Rocha Fosker featured for the Humbugs last season, usually as a sub, and Karl Andrade and Adam Hampson will be remembered for their successful season for the club in 2017-18.

That year, they made more than 70 appearances between them and scored 23 goals.

But manager Mark McLean knows he has to focus on the players at the club now and will be hoping for good news on the injury front before picking his starting line-up.

He will also have to consider that his team face another game four days later when they make a midweek visit to neighbours Coggeshall United, for another important league game.

Halstead Reserves reinforced their position at the top of the Thurlow Nunn Reserve League on Saturday with a 5-0 victory at home to Thetford Town Reserves.

Tom Cook, with a hat-trick, together with Marcus Dunn and Jamie Baker were the scorers.