News

AFC Totton v The Shots: match preview

The Shots continue their pre-season preparations with a friendly against AFC Totton on Tuesday night.

Kick-off at the Testwood Stadium is 7.15pm, with admission £5 for adults and £3 for concessions. Children under 16 are admitted free.

Gary Waddock is again expected to field a combination of first-teamers and trialists against the side who last season finished 19th in the Evo-Stick Southern League Division One South and West – a division won by Hereford with 107 points and a goal difference of +76.

Waddock has confirmed that Jack Cook, Frazer Shaw and Foday Nabay will again feature, after playing against Brentford, with another new trialist due to join them in the squad. All players will then head from Totton to Bath University, for a three-day training camp before facing Hampton and Richmond Borough on Saturday.

The Stags are managed by Louis Langdown, a former Head of Sports Science at AFC Bournemouth who also leads Aldershot Town’s team of match analysts based at Solent University. They too began their pre-season schedule last weekend, with a 1-0 defeat against Fawley AFC on Saturday.

2016-17 top scorer Nathaniel Sherborne begins his 11th season with the Club, whilst youngsters Connor York and Curtis Young have signed permanent deals after their release from AFC Bournemouth, having spent time on loan at Totton last season – deals described by Langdown as “the best double signing I have ever made”. Winger Jack Masterson has joined from Eastleigh, whilst Craig Feeney (Winchester City), Callum Chugg (AFC Fawley), Pip Nolan and Tobi Adekunle (both Team Solent), Shane Murphy (Dorchester Town) and Alfy Whittingham (loan from Havant and Waterlooville) have also arrived at the Testwood Stadium over the summer.

The Shots last met Totton AFC in the 2010 Hampshire Senior Cup Final, as The Stags won 4-0 at AFC Bournemouth’s Dean Court before going on to retain the trophy the following season. Previously, The Stags reached Wembley in 2007, losing to Truro City in the FA Vase Final, and then the FA Cup second round in 2011-12, where they hosted Bristol Rovers.

The Testwood Stadium has a capacity of 3000 and is located on Salisbury Road in Totton, postcode SO40 2RW, via junction 2 of the M27.