Dorking Wandering
The Dorking Wanderers FC Fans Forum
Our first Tuesday night game at Meadowbank since early November awaits tomorrow as we face an Aveley side currently sitting in 22nd place in the league. The Essex side are currently 10 points off safety, albeit with 2 games in hand on Welling, but did win last time on Saturday against Farnborough. The visitors were also 3-1 winners when we played them at Parkside back in September.
Not much update in terms of injury but I would expect the likes of Brooking, Camp and Norman to miss the game after the weekly update from Marc last week. Francomb was at Hornchurch on Saturday but did not make the bench so he might be in contention to come back in to the squad.
Predictions:
Dorking 4-1 Aveley (Carter x 2, Rutherford, Murphy)
1,391 att. (38 away)
Foulkes
Gallagher Craig Milsom
Briggs Williams McManus Muitt
Carter
Rutherford Murphy
Subs: Norville-Williams, J.Taylor, Pybus, Young, Prior
A very difficult XI to predict, mainly because of how many games we have coming up so I would surely expect to see some rotation to help us keep players fresh through this period.
Josh Taylor played 90 mins on Saturday and with him only just back from injury, it wouldn't surprise me to see him not feature from the start for this one. Williams and McManus only played 45 mins each on Saturday so I would expect them to both be fresh and start for this one.
The back 3 is pretty set at the moment unless Francomb is back from injury. Muitt played 90 mins on his return at the weekend so there is a chance he is rotated with JNW for this one as well. We also need to be careful with Prior and manage him properly over this period so wouldn't surprise me to see Murphy play the first 45-55 mins or so and rotate with JP later on. That being said, Marc very rarely rests Prior if he's not injured so he will probably still start.
So important we don’t drop points tonight. Looking like a dry evening,hopefully that wind disappears too.
I’m fancying a 2-0 home win with goals from Carter and Briggs.
Dorking (1) 1 Aveley (0)0 Prior - 1,301 - 39 from Essex
Dorking Wanderers 1-2 Aveley.
We go 1-0 up and sit back and then they get 2 in the second half to win the game. Classic away team tactic. I hope not, but I can see it coming.
As for prediction, I'm optimistic that we can kickstart our home form (Gawd knows we need to), and romp home tonight:
Dorking 5:0 Aveley
(Rutherford x3, Carter. Briggs)
@MatthewPont loving your optimism, but I have seen too many @JacksonFairweather outcomes!
If 58 crosses don’t work maybe they will try going through the middle? I am sure Priority will start but he has played a lot of minutes so I would like to see more of Murphy.
Even if we draw a blank, let’s at least not lose. Am predicting a nervy 1-0 win. TC header from a corner.
Lots of games postponed tonight. A 2-0 win (or more) should put us 2nd or 3rd
"Why would I leave to join a League Two club? We're going there anyway!" - Marc White
That was a brilliant second half performance after a solid first half which lacked a bit of quality with the final ball. Would not like to watch Aveley hoofing it long every week. Dan G did a great job again at RB but best part of game for me was seeing Williams in midfield being prepared to fizz passes into feet of Murphy, who was clever on the turn and always dangerous with his shooting. That gives the team a whole new dimension to attacking play. Second goal was a work of art - lovely!
With Young and Pybus to add to the midfield mix as the games come thick and fast, and Josh Brooking not too far from being back, we should be in a strong position to push for a high place by the end of the season. COYW!
I thought Dorking were terrific last night.
And Aveley definitely stepped it up for a 20 minute period before the sending off (what a body slam by the way! 🤣 ), their subs were really good they played much faster for a spell. Jackson Brown is a great player for them.
Couple of shout outs, What a fantastic few weeks Prior has had, never say he can't play 90 mins twice in a week, he is playing really well and regularly getting goals. And Tony Craig, superb. One word, QUALITY. Player of the season for me. Mr Consistent.
"Why would I leave to join a League Two club? We're going there anyway!" - Marc White
I'll echo David's comment. Great all round performance, really professional and it feels like we're building a head of steam now.
For me, Josh Taylor may have just shaded MoM, but agree Tony Craig is consistently excellent - and not just the play, it's the encouragement of the players around him too.
Good performance although we still didn't look as ruthless as I think we can be in the final third, especially in the first half. It was a great positive step forward in turning around the home form though.
Penalty was very soft on second viewing as it doesn't look like there was any actual contact with Josh Taylor from the Aveley lad. Not complaining though as we've had many a penalty shout not given since our last penalty 11 months ago away at Alty...
Red card was mental though, not sure what sport he thought he was playing...
Some stats:
Possession: Dorking 66% - 34% Aveley
Shots (On Target): Dorking 11 (5) - 3 (1) Aveley
xG: Dorking 1.64 - 0.07 Aveley (Lowest xGA of the season so far)
Duels %: Dorking 63% (Highest of the season so far)
Crossess: Dorking 24 - 8 Aveley (Not quite 60 this time!)
Top Performer: Rob Milsom [7.8]
Anyone seen an official attendance from the game yet?
