BRIDGWATER Town's Buildbase FA Vase fourth round tie at home to Tavistock has been brought forward by 24 hours.

The match had been due to kick off at 3pm on Saturday, but with the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, taking place at that time, the Football Association is recommending that no games take place between 2.45pm and 4.15pm on that day.

And so Fairfax Park will now stage the cup tie on Friday (April 16, 7.45pm), with the winners of the match to host either United Services Portsmouth or Christchurch in the next round, on Saturday, April 24.

Ahead of the cup tie - which will be played behind closed doors, along with all sporting fixtures until May 17 - the Robins stepped up their preparations with a friendly fixture against Wincanton Town on Saturday.

The only goal of the game came after 37 minutes, with Bridgwater being awarded a penalty and Jake Llewellyn slotting in from the spot.

Goal-line clearances from Wincanton defenders prevented Josh Williams, Sam Crumb and Sam Towler from increasing the hosts’ lead.

So now it's on to the clash with Tavistock, and Robins co-manager Dave Pearse knows that they will be a real test for his side.

“It will be a tough, tough game for us, as they’ve been up near the top of the league the last two years,” he told the Mercury.

“They’re very strong, they’ve got good players and they score a lot of goals.

“So we need to be at our best. If we perform we’ve got a chance, as we’ve got a good side too.”

He added: “We’ve had three months off [since the last competitive fixture last December], but they’re in the same boat, so it comes down to who performs on the day and takes their chances.

“Saturday will be strange without supporters in the ground, but we’ve prepared well and the lads look fit.

“There’s still a buzz around the club from everything that’s going on off the field, and we’re looking forward to it.”