- Royston Town have won two, drawn one, and lost two of their last five Southern League Premier Division Central 2025-2026 matches.
- St Ives Town are without a win in their last five league games, drawing two and losing three.
- St Ives Town have won three, drawn three, and lost 13 of their 19 away league games this season.
No clear winner evident in Royston
With Royston Town 21st and St Ives Town 19th on 25 and 34 points respectively after 38 games of the Southern League Premier Division Central 2025-2026 season, it’s clear that both teams are underachievers by their own high standards.
Steve Castle has been a figure of stability at the Royston Town helm since 2016, preferring to set his side up in a compact shape that can work from the back and build a methodical attack from the defense. While this structure-first approach has served him well in some seasons, it has proved insufficient for the 2025-2026 campaign in which his side have managed just two wins, six draws and 11 defeats in 19 home league matches.
St Ives Town come into this Monday’s clash after successive defeats in which they were outplayed. A 4-3 away defeat to Stourbridge was followed by a 2-1 home defeat to Harborough Town. Royston bounced back impressively with a 2-1 away win at Banbury United on Saturday.
Royston Town have failed to win either of their last two home league meetings with St Ives Town, suggesting there is a mental barrier to overcome at the Garden Walk, but we think the hosts have enough to see off the St Ives side on Monday.
St Ives will try to win the set-piece battle
The visitors are a more attack-minded side, preferring to look to get midfielders on the ball in the final third, release their wingers and get men in behind the defence. They rely on set-piece specialists to create goal-scoring chances, whether it’s from dead-ball kicks or long throws.
St Ives are in poor form at the moment and have conceded two goals per game on average when on the road, which could leave them vulnerable in this close encounter. The bookies have them at 67/50 to take all three points against a Royston Town side that is 147/100 and the draw at 64/25.
We think it should be a close game because of the desperation both teams will be feeling to get some points on the board this late in the campaign. Matches between these sides are often a tactical chess match won or lost in midfield or via set-piece plays. As both sides will be looking to press and then sit back, we can see the game being decided by a bit of individual quality or a set-piece.
There’s a good chance that both will score, which is priced at 11/20, but we will just edge towards St Ives because they are slightly higher in the league and have had the better of Royston Town in recent seasons.
