Today’s Conference Fixtures

After a long wait over the summer, today sees the return of competitive football with the start of the 2014/15 Vanarama Conference season.

Barnet will of course kick off their camapign with a trip to Chester, who finished in 21st place last season but were handed a reprieve following the off-field problems of both Hereford United and Salisbury City.

The season officially gets underway at 12:45, with Bristol Rovers – facing life outside of the Football League for the first time in nearly a century, taking on last year’s play-off semi-finalists Grimsby Town at the Memorial Stadium in the day’s early kick-off live on BT Sport.

Torquay United, the other team to be relegated from League Two last time out, will start life in the Conference with the longest journey of the season as they travel to Gateshead, who narrowly missed out on promotion last season after losing 2-1 to Cambridge United in the Conference Play-Off Final at Wembley.

Meanwhile, the two Conference new-boys both start with games away from home, as Eastleigh travel to Nuneaton and AFC Telford visit Welling United.

Full list of Vanarama Conference fixtures for Saturday 9th August:

Bristol Rovers v Grimsby

Aldershot v Altrincham   

Alfreton v Woking   

Chester v Barnet   

Dartford v Wrexham   

Dover Athletic v Halifax   

Gateshead v Torquay

Lincoln City v Kidderminster   

Macclesfield v Braintree   

Nuneaton v Eastleigh   

Southport v Forest Green   

Welling v Telford