Following Good Friday’s 2-1 loss at home to Stockport County, Aldershot Town hit the road again on Easter Monday, for a National League fixture at Victoria Road, home of 17th placed Dagenham & Redbridge.
In association with LV BET, Rob Worrall previews the action;
Shots Squad:
Shots Manager Danny Searle has lost the services of Centre-Back Giles Phillips, who has returned to Wycombe Wanderers, after a second loan spell at the EBB Stadium. Alfy Whittingham is also out with a sprained ankle, picked up against the Hatters on Friday. At the other end of the pitch, with both Ricky Miller (hamstring) and Chike Kandi (eye) missing out on Good Friday, new signing Karlen Hinds made his Shots debut from the bench. The 23-year-old ex-Watford striker has represented England from u-16 upwards, playing and scoring for them in the u-20 World Cup. Alex Finney and Ross McCormack remain side-lined, whilst Craig Tanner is not too far away from a return to action.
Opposition:
Name: Dagenham & Redbridge FC
Founded: 1992
Nickname: The Daggers
Manager: Daryl McMahon
Stadium: The Chigwell Construction Stadium, Victoria Road (Capacity: 6,078)
2019/20 National League position: 18th
The Gaffer:
Born in Dublin, Ireland, 37-year-old McMahon is a name that National League fans will know due to spells with Boreham Wood, Eastleigh, Dover Athletic, Ebbsfleet United. McMahon was a midfielder in his playing days and represented his national team from u16-18 level. McMahon retired at the end of the 2014/2015 season.
His management career started with Ebbsfleet United as a caretaker manager in 2014 before being promoted to the manager position from 2015. He won promotion with Ebbsfleet in the National League South play-offs in 2017 before being appointed as manager of Macclesfield Town in 2019.
In January 2020, McMahon tendered his resignation amidst a financial crisis at Macclesfield who were ultimately expelled from the National League earlier this season. Within 24 hours of leaving Macclesfield, McMahon was appointed as manager of Dagenham & Redbridge.
Opposition Squad:
Elliot Johnson, Paul McCallum, Darren McQueen, Adrian Clifton, Jaden Brissett, Charlee Adams, Joey Jones and Scott Wilson are just some of the new faces at Victoria Road this season. Former Aldershot Town Captain’s Callum Reynolds and Dean Rance are now also Daggers. Liam Gordon, who left the club less than a year ago is now back again on loan from Bolton Wanderers. McCallum and Angelo Balanta are Daggers joint top scorers this season to date, with 7 goals apiece in all competitions. Most recent signings include Mo Sagaf and Mauro Vilhete.
Form:
Much like Aldershot Town, Dagenham’s form has been mixed throughout the 20/21 campaign and they currently sit one place and one point behind the Shots. More recently, they have become a little more consistent, winning 4, drawing 2 and losing just 2 of their last 8 National League matches. They are the third lowest scorers in the National League, with just 30 goals in their 31 matches to date.
Referee:
Monday’s referee is Lloyd Wood, who will be taking charge of his 9th National League match of the season. In his previous 8, he has shown 26 Yellow Cards and no Red Cards.
Commentary:
BBC Surrey Sports Rob Worrall and former Shot (& Dagger) Mark Bentley will be covering the game live on Saturday. Tune in to the BBC Sport website (or the BBC Sport App) from 2:50pm for full match commentary. The match will also be ‘live streamed’ by the home club. See their website for more details.
