Brackley boss Johnson wants to put on a show in two huge derby clashes

The Saints and the Puritans will meet in competitive action for the first time in over 10 years when they collide at St James Park today (Boxing Day, midday kick-off) before they face off again in the return clash at the Banbury Plant Hire Community Stadium on New Year’s Day.

A 13-match unbeaten run, 12 of which have been under the Johnson regime following the departure of previous boss Kevin Wilkin, has catapulted Brackley into contention at the top end of the Vanarama National League North table.

They will head into the Boxing Day home clash sitting two two points behind leaders Darlington with a game in hand.

Johnson is aware of how big these two games with Brackley’s local rivals are.

But he insists the bigger picture for him is to “kick on” in the race for promotion.

“It’s a great fixture, it’s a massive fixture,” Johnson said as he looked ahead to Boxing Day, which will be Brackley’s first match action since the 0-0 draw at Leamington on December 6 after big games with Scarborough Athletic and King’s Lynn Town were postponed due to the recent cold snap.

“I have heard a lot of noise around the club about the fans not getting along that well so it will be a tasty affair, I’m sure.

“With us not having had a game for a while, we will be raring to go.

“It’s two games, the first at home and the second at Banbury and we will be looking to put on a show and take maximum points. You have to stay in the real world but that’s what we will be going for.

“We want to kick on over the Christmas period and going into January.

“We want to gather as many points as possible to ensure we can be in the running come the end of the season.”