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First Team

Eastleigh: 10 Things

Posted by FC Halifax Town
Posted on Thu 22 Feb 2018
Posted in First Team

This weekendโ€™s Vanarama National League action sees FC Halifax Town travel down the country to take on Eastleigh.

The game will be a curtain opener to the Jamie Fullarton era as the clubโ€™s manager.

The Shaymen will be looking to make it 2 wins out of 2 following their 2-0 victory over Hartlepool United on Tuesday night.

Here are 10 interesting facts about our opposition in the next fixture:

  1. Originally named Swaythling Athletic, before changing to just Swaythling, the club was formed in May 1946 by Derik Brooks and his contemporaries at the Fleming Arms public house.
  2. The club moved to Ten Acres in 1957, today known as the Silverlake Stadium, which has been their home ever since. They relocated to the ground after spending some time playing at Walnut Avenue.
  3. The record attendance currently sits just shy of the 5,192-total capacity of the stadium, at 5,025 for Eastleighโ€™s FA Cup Third Round fixture against Bolton Wanderers in January 2016. Those present were nearly treated to a shock victory as the home side led their esteemed opponents, but a Darren Pratley goal late on saw the game go to a replay.
  4. Their current manager is Andy Hessenthaler, who replaced Richard Hill shortly before Christmas, after a stint as his predecessorโ€™s assistant. The 52-year oldโ€™s resume includes teams like Gillingham and Leyton Orient.
  5. Eastleigh were involved in a game that featured the first live testing of goal line technology. The match in question was the 2011/12 Hampshire Senior Cup final against AFC Totton, in which the Spitfires came out of as 2-0 victors.
  6. Since 2005, the club have had the nickname of the Spitfires. The name was decided upon following a competition won by fan Mike Wimbridge, referring to the fact the Spitfire was first flown from Eastleigh Aerodrome.
  7. There are two international footballers currently playing for Eastleigh. Full back Gavin Hoyte has been capped 3 times for Trinidad and Tobago, while Rรฉda Johnson has made 12 appearances for the African nation of Benin.
  8. The club is based within the Hampshire town of Eastleigh, which is not far from Southampton. In 2006, it was named the 9th best place to live in the UK by Channel 4.
  9. Notable names of people from the town of Eastleigh include BBC Radio 1 DJ Scott Mills.
  10. Fancy meeting and greeting an alpaca? TripAdvisor has ranked Hensting Alpacas, a place which allows you to feed and walk the South American creature, as the number 1 thing to do in Eastleigh.

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