The Opposition - Key Facts
Full name: Ilkeston Town Football Club
Nickname: The Robins
Founded: 2017
Ground: New Manor Ground
Capacity: 3,029
Chairman: Andrew Nally
Manager: Ian Deakin (since September 2023)
Last season: 6th/22 (NPL Premier)
Journey distance: 11 miles

The Opposition - History
Ilkeston Town F.C. was formed in July 2017 after Ilkeston F.C. folded. Registered as Ilkeston Town F.C. Ltd on 30 June 2017, the club was purchased by Alan Hardy in July and admitted to Division One of the Midland Football League for its inaugural season.
They finished second in 2017–18 with 95 points to earn promotion, then won the Midland League Premier Division title in 2018–19, securing a second successive promotion after an 8–1 final-day victory over Loughborough University F.C..
Hardy sold the club to manager Mark Clifford in October 2019. Clifford later restructured the club, appointing Martin Carruthers as manager, and in 2021 handed control to David Hilton and Andrew Nally, who oversaw major ground improvements, including a new 3G pitch at the New Manor Ground.
In 2021–22, Ilkeston won the Northern Premier League Division One Midlands title and were promoted, later being placed in the Southern Football League for 2022–23. In June 2022, a two-year sponsorship deal with Microlise renamed the ground the “Microlise New Manor Ground.”

The Opposition - This Season
The Robins started the season with two wins out of three but then lost seven of their next eight (including an FA Cup defeat to Spalding United) to sit just outside the relegation zone after ten matches.
Something clicked on the 20th of September as they embarked on a run of six victories from seven matches but after this they flipped again, losing six on the bounce.
A 5-1 win over Rushall Olympic on Boxing Day was followed by a good point at Hyde United and victory against Morpeth Town and after defeat at Whitby Town they bounced back by defeating Lancaster City comfortably.
They failed to win any of their next three matches but come into the match tonight off the back of a home win over Guiseley on Saturday.

League (11th/21): P 30 W 11 D 4 L 15 F 40 A 42 Pts. 37
Cups: P 4 W 2 D 0 L 2 F 6 A 4
FA Cup: Exited at First Qualifying Round (Spalding United)
FA Trophy: Exited at Second Round (Curzon Ashton)
County Cup: Still in (play Belper Town tonight!)

Top goalscorers (NPL only): Harvey Kirby-Moore (9), Samuel Parker (7)
Most minutes played (NPL only): Rooney Youmbi (2,120)
Biggest victory: 4-0 vs. Stockton Town (1st November) and 5-1 vs. Rushall Olympic (26th December)
Heaviest defeat: 0-5 vs. Hebburn Town (18th November)
Highest home attendance: 526 vs. Hyde United (25th August)
Average home attendance (NPL): 387 (18th/21)
Most consecutive wins: 4
Most games without a win: 7
Most consecutive defeats: 6
Most games without a defeat: 7

The Nailers
Belper had a great start to the NPL campaign, not losing until matchday ten but did exit the FA Cup at the first hurdle, Kidsgrove Athletic winning in Staffordshire.
There was an early exit from the FA Trophy as well, Rugby Town coming from two goals down to win 3-2 and the league form was up and down after this match, with two wins followed by two defeats and then another two wins before a draw and a defeat!
November was much better with three wins from four matches and the concession of just a single goal.
December started well with four further matches without defeat but it ended with reversals to St. Neots Town and Long Eaton United.
The Nailers have struggled to get any momentum in 2026, with a draw at home to Basford United on New Year's Day followed by a win in the County Cup but then an NPL defeat to Corby Town.
After ending Wellingborough Town's fantastic run with victory in Northamptonshire, Belper drew at home to Coleshill Town and slipped to a 3-1 defeat at Carlton Town on Saturday but midweek saw a comprehensive win at Rugby Town.
On Saturday the Nailers thought they had won it with an Ioan Evans header in the 85th minute but a Martyn Waghorn penalty for Anstey Nomads secured them a point.
Appearances wise, two players - Kev Bastos and Curtis Burrows - have appeared in every match this season.
In terms of goals, Bastos leads the way with ten, closely followed by Liam Moran and Jacob Gratton with nine. Jacob Fenton scored four before his move away from the Raygar Stadium while four players sit on four goals. Five players have three goals or fewer.

Head to Head
Belper have only met the current incarnation of Ilkeston Town on four occasions and are yet to beat them.
Two draws were played out in the 2019/20 campaign and two seasons later - when both sides would end up being promoted - a 2-2 draw at the Raygar Stadium was followed by a 3-1 Ilkeston win at the New Manor Ground.
Ilkeston would go on to be placed in the Southern League, making tonight the first competitive meeting in just over four years.

Overall, from a Belper perspective the record reads: P 4 W 0 D 3 L 1 F 4 A 6.
(All NPL Step 4)

101 fixtures were played between Belper Town and previous versions of the club between 1952 and 2015.
Of these, 12 were in the Derbyshire Senior Cup including the final in 1953 (Ilkeston won 4-2) and 1999 (a two-legged affair won by Ilkeston 4-1 on aggregate).
The most recent DSC meeting was in 2010 when the Nailers won 1-0 to reach the final where they would lose to Matlock Town.

Form Guide (all competitive matches)
Belper Town: LWDLWD
Ilkeston Town: LWDLLW

Team News
Full team news will be announced at 7:00pm.

Permutations
The winners of the tie, which will go straight to penalties if level after 90 minutes, will face the winners of the other semi-final - Glossop North End vs. Mickleover (also being played tonight) - in the Derbyshire Senior Cup Final.
That match is scheduled for Tuesday, 21st April at Pride Park Stadium.

Match details
Belper Town vs. Ilkeston Town
Go Cardless Derbyshire Senior Cup Semi-Final

Tuesday, 17th February 2026 - 7:45pm kick off

Raygar Stadium
Bridge Street
Belper
Derbyshire
DE56 1BA

Admission prices: Adults £11, Concessions £7, U16s £0 All-pay fixture - Season Tickets not valid
Please note U16s must be accompanied by a paying adult if they do not hold a BTFC Season Ticket or Youth Membership.

Follow the match
Full coverage of the match:

• Audio commentary with Tom on Radio Belper Town
• Full text coverage on X and Facebook.
• Match reports on the website (all matches) and in the Non-League Paper (Saturday matches only)

Derbyshire Senior Cup fixtures
Belper Town vs. Ilkeston Town
Glossop North End vs. Mickleover FC