BRIDPORT will have to raise their game this weekend if they want to avoid a third successive league defeat and consecutive losses to rivals Sherborne Town, according to Bees’ boss Trevor Senior.

Reverses against Odd Down (Bath) and Street saw Bridport lose ground on the teams in the top half of the Toolstation Wes-tern League Premier Divis-ion before last Saturday’s encounter with Brislington was rained off.

And although the Bees beat Sherborne in the first league meeting between the two in September, Senior admitted they were well off the pace during a 1-0 defeat to the same opponents in the Dorset Senior Cup last October.

A win for the north Dorset outfit at Raleigh Grove this Saturday (3pm) would see them leapfrog Bridport in the table, while the Bees could shoot back into the top six if they secure the three points.

While Ryan Dovell remains on the sidelines for Bridport, Senior is set to welcome Chris Senior, Jamie Symes, Chris Clarke and Sean Stewart back to first-team action after a combination of work commitments and injuries.

“I thought we deserved to beat them in the league earlier this season while they were the better side in the cup,” said Senior.

“We were disappointing in the cup game and didn’t play very well at all.

“We have got to be better than we were that day, and we need to play better than we did in our last two league matches.

“I thought we were off the pace and didn’t get close enough to the opposition to close them down.

“I know Sherborne are going to be up for Saturday and if we play like we have been then we’ll get a good hiding.

“There is always a bit of spice with it being a local derby.”

When asked what the Bees can expect from Sherborne, he added: “They are pretty direct and like to get forward quickly to support their strikers.

“We’ll be working in training on ways to combat their style.

“We’ve got four players coming back into the squad which will no doubt help our chances of getting a result.”

Bridport and Sherborne are two of eight teams in the middle of the table separated by just five points, and Senior knows a good run of results will propel his charges towards the summit.

Bees (from): Weeks, Condliffe, Clarke, Morley, Evans, Senior, Ry Hayter, Stewart, Filkins, Wise, Richardson, Rh Hayter, Byerley, A Symes, J Symes, Hill