Worthing to visit Carlisle in National League bow

Worthing will face Carlisle United at Brunton Park in the Sussex club's first ever National League game [Shutterstock] Newly-promoted Worthing will travel to Carlisle United in the first National League game in their history on the opening weekend of the season on Saturday, 8 August. The Rebels will be playing fifth-tier football for the first time in the 2026-27 campaign after winning the National League South title last season. It will be a second season in the division since relegation from League Two for the Cumbrians, who have appointed former Gateshead boss Rob Elliot to replace Mark Hughes as head coach. Elsewhere, National League South play-off winners Hornchurch, who are also in the fifth tier for the first time , host National League North play-off winners Kidderminster Harriers. Beaten National League play-off finalists Boreham Wood welcome Tamworth, while Robbie Savage's Forest Green Rovers start at home to Halifax Town. Harrogate Town and Barrow, who were both relegated from League Two after six years each in the EFL, will face Solihull Moors and Hartlepool United respectively. National League North champions AFC Fylde will host Wealdstone. The regular season will end on Saturday, 24 April, with teams finishing between second and seventh to contest the play-offs, culminating in the second promotion spot being decided in the play-off final at Wembley on the weekend of 8 May. All of the two opening rounds of fixtures will be televised on streaming network DAZN, with the traditional 15:00 TV blackout not in force on those weekends. National League fixtures National League opening day fixtures in full Saturday, 8 August AFC Fylde v Wealdstone Altrincham v Southend United Boreham Wood v Tamworth Boston United v Aldershot Town Carlisle United v Worthing Eastleigh v Gateshead Forest Green Rovers v FC Halifax Town Harrogate Town v Solihull Moors Hartlepool United v Barrow Hornchurch v Kidderminster Harriers Scunthorpe United v Yeovil Town Woking v Sutton United All games are scheduled to kick off at 15:00 BST Second round of fixtures Saturday, 15 August Aldershot Town v Hartlepool United Barrow v Hornchurch FC Halifax Town v Boreham Wood Gateshead v Woking Kidderminster Harriers v Eastleigh Solihull Moors v Boston United Southend United v Scunthorpe United Sutton United v Altrincham Tamworth v AFC Fylde Wealdstone v Harrogate Town Worthing v Forest Green Rovers Yeovil Town v Carlisle United All games are scheduled to kick off at 15:00 BST Final day fixtures Saturday, 24 April, 2027 Aldershot Town v AFC Fylde Barrow v Woking FC Halifax Town v Eastleigh Gateshead v Boreham Wood Kidderminster Harriers v Boston United Solihull Moors v Hornchurch Southend United v Hartlepool United Sutton United v Carlisle United Tamworth v Forest Green Rovers Wealdstone v Scunthorpe United Worthing v Altrincham Yeovil Town v Harrogate Town All games are scheduled to kick off at 12:30 BST History for Worthing and Hornchurch Daryl McMahon, pictured front left, led Hornchurch to promotion to the National League for the first time in their history last season [Shutterstock] Not in 145 years since the original Hornchurch Football Club was founded, nor since its reformation in 2005, have they played in the fifth tier of English football. For Worthing, the 140-year wait to reach the top rung of the non-league ladder is over and the reward is a 720-mile round trip to play in front of up to 17,000 fans at Brunton Park. The average attendance in National League South last season was about 1,300. Hornchurch were playing in the Isthmian League Premier Division in 2023-24 but two promotions in three seasons under manager Daryl McMahon have propelled them into new territory. Worthing's journey is not too dissimilar, rising from the eighth tier in 2016 right through to the National League. Hornchurch will visit Carlisle in matchweek three on 22 August - the two clubs were separated by four tiers in the pyramid just three seasons ago. They welcome the Cumbrians to the Hornchurch Stadium - the smallest ground in the division with a capacity of 3,500 - for the reverse fixture on 27 February, 2027. Among Hornchurch's coaching staff in the new campaign will be former West Ham United defender Anton Ferdinand after the 41-year-old joined the club in June.