Boston United welcome bottom-of-the-table Gateshead to The Jakemans Community Stadium on Tuesday evening with both clubs searching for an end to their winless National League runs. The Pilgrims have gone six league matches without victory, while Gateshead have collected just four points from their opening 13 games.
Paul Hurst’s side suffered a third successive league defeat on Saturday, losing 4-2 at Eastleigh despite twice coming from behind during an eventful first half. Lenell John-Lewis converted a penalty to cancel out Aaron Blair’s opener before Jake Rooney made it 2-2 with a powerful strike from the edge of the area. Dion Rankine restored Eastleigh’s lead after the interval and Blair completed his hat-trick in stoppage time.
Boston had opportunities to take something from the match, with Ollie Bostock denied by goalkeeper Nick Townsend and Ken Aboh having an effort disallowed for handball. The defeat followed losses to Southend United and Yeovil Town, the latter a 6-0 reverse at Huish Park. Their last league victory came against Forest Green Rovers in September.
Gateshead have not completed a National League fixture since losing 4-1 at FC Halifax Town on 10 October. Freddie Issaka put the Heed ahead with his first goal for the club, but Raheem Conte scored twice after half-time, with Conor Carty and Ben Tollitt also on target as Halifax overturned the deficit. The result extended Gateshead’s run of successive league defeats to seven.
The visitors have since been involved in cup fixtures against Wolverhampton Wanderers Under-21s and Stafford Rangers, but those results do not count towards their league form. Gateshead’s previous National League outing had also ended in defeat, with Worthing winning 2-1 at the Gateshead International Stadium.
Boston have enjoyed the better of the clubs’ recent league meetings, winning three of the last four. They completed a league double over Gateshead in 2025/26, winning 3-1 away in October before Tom Cursons scored the only goal in a 1-0 home victory in February. Gateshead’s most recent league success against the Pilgrims came in September 2024, when they won 2-0 at home.
The Pilgrims enter Tuesday’s fixture 21st with 12 points from 14 matches, eight ahead of Gateshead, who remain 24th with four points from 13 games. Both clubs have struggled to turn scoring opportunities into results, making this a meeting between two sides seeking their first league victory since September.
