MELKSHAM Town are set to raise the curtain on their new stadium by hosting top-of-the-table rivals Bristol Manor Farm next month.

Work began on Melksham’s new Woolmore Farm home, which will also house the town’s rugby club, in August 2015 but after a building process hampered by a number of delays, is due to be completed imminently, with the site being handed over to Wiltshire Council next week.

Darren Perrin’s side, who are currently second in the Toolstation League Premier Division table, have been pencilled in to play their first match at Woolmore Farm when they host current leaders Bristol Manor Farm on Saturday, January 14.

Supporters that attended October’s game against a team of Manchester United Legends, which was originally intended as a curtain-raiser for the new ground, will be able to gain free entry with retained tickets, and Melksham chairman Dave Wiltshire is looking forward to his team finally taking up residence in their state-of-the-art facility in the new year.

“We could have moved in over Christmas but that’s not the easiest time to do it, so it’s going to be the first week of January,” said Wiltshire.

“The first match is going to be against Bristol Manor Farm.

“We play them in the FA Vase the week before but we think that the game on January 14 is going to be a great one and hopefully we have a big crowd for it – that’s what we’re hoping for.”

With Melksham always due to move grounds at some point during the current campaign, they have already played all but two of their away fixtures for the season and in October, they temporarily returned to their old Conigre ground for home matches.

After winning the league for the first time in the club’s history in the 2014-15 season, Perrin’s men were denied promotion as construction on Woolmore Farm, which will meet ground requirements for the Southern League, was delayed due to the discovery of a colony of protected newts.

Alongside Manor Farm, Buckland Athletic, Clevedon Town and Street, Melksham have again formally applied for promotion to step four of the National League system.

Wiltshire said: “It’s something that you have to do to go up – with the facility we’ve got, we aspire to be in the Southern League at least.

“Last season, the team that finished highest out of the ones that applied went up but we’re led to believe that there may be a chance that two from our league will go up this season, and that there will be clarification on that in March.”