An excellent first half display in front of 920 returning supporters, set up Aldershot Town for victory against Dagenham & Redbridge on Saturday.
Goals from Mo Bettamer and Harry Panayioutou gave The Shots’ a 2-0 half time lead – one that they held on to until Dean Rance’s 89th minute strike for the visitors. On Tuesday evening, FC Halifax Town come to the EBB Stadium, on the back of successive five-goal victories.
In association with LV BET, Rob Worrall previews the game:
Shots Squad:
Aldershot Town announced the signing of former Peterborough United & Bradford City Midfielder Jermaine Anderson on Saturday and he made his debut from the bench in the second half. Shots Manager Danny Searle has also extended the loan of Goalkeeper Brad James, from Middlesbrough, to the end of the season. Whilst Lewis Kinsella and Craig Tanner continue their recovery from long term knee injuries and Ross McCormack (Achilles) remains unavailable, Captain Jamie Sendles-White has now fully recovered from a calf strain and fellow Centre-Back Alex Finney should be available again soon.
Opposition:
Name: FC Halifax Town
Founded: 2008 (following the demise of Halifax Town AFC)
Nickname: The Shaymen
Manager: Pete Wild
Stadium: The MBI Shay Stadium
2019/20 Final National League position: 6th (Lost in Play-off Eliminator)
2020/21 Current position: 15th
The Gaffer:
Pete Wild was appointed manager of FC Halifax Town in July 2019. Wild – a lifelong Oldham Athletic fan – was running their Academy side when suddenly propelled into the role of Caretaker-Manager in December 2018, after the sacking of Frankie Bunn. Incredibly, he guided the struggling Athletic side to back-to-back wins and then an FA Cup victory over Premier League Fulham before standing aside after eight games, with the appointment of former Manchester United start Paul Scholes. Scholes famously lasted less than a month in the role, so Wild found himself once again in temporary charge, only to stand down for personal reasons in May 2019. Wild made a great impact early on at The Shay, guiding Halifax to three straight wins and taking them to the top of the early National League table last season. They were unable to sustain a tilt at the title, but did secure a place in the play-offs, only to go out (2-1) to Boreham Wood at the Eliminator stage.
Departed:
There were several key departures from the Shay at the end of last season. Strikers Dayle Southwell (Kings Lynn) and Toby Sho-Silva (Sutton United) moved on, as did Midfielders Charlie Cooper (Woking) and Cameron King (also Kings Lynn). Defensively, as Halifax move closer to a full-time model, they also lost the services of Matty Brown (Chester) and Josh Staunton (Yeovil Town).
Retained:
8 players stayed at The Shay, including; Goalkeeper Sam Johnson, Centre-Back Nathan Clarke, Winger Danny Williams and Forward Jamie Allen.
Arrived:
As Wild continues to put his own ‘stamp’ on the Halifax playing squad, there have been 13 additions, plus the recent loan signing of Stockport County forward Nyal Bell. Perhaps the most ‘eye-catching’ are the additions of Woking Striker Jake Hyde (16 National League goals last season) and Wrexham midfielders Luke Summerfield.
Form:
The Shaymen had a relatively slow start to this season, but have burst into life over the last week, in particular, scoring five-goal victories in each of their last two National League games, against Barnet (5-2) and Weymouth (5-1).
Referee:
Tuesday evening’s referee is Aaron Jackson, who has refereed 2 National League matches so far this season, showing 9 Yellow Cards and 0 Red Cards.
Match Coverage:
The match will be streamed and available on ‘Shots TV Live’ with Presenter Mark Butler, Match Commentator Rob Worrall and they will be joined by Special Guests; Craig Tanner and Lewis Kinsella in the studio at The EBB Stadium. You can sign up for the stream HERE. The live commentary will also be available online, via BBC Radio Surrey Sport or the BBC Sport App, from 7:35pm.
