Dagenham & Redbridge vs Aldershot Town Match Preview – Saturday 26th January 2019
Shots returned to competitive action last weekend in the 2-0 defeat to Chesterfield after 18 days without a fixture. A double courtesy of former-Shots defender Will Evans saw the Spireites leapfrog above the Shots into 21st place in the National League. The Shots travel to Dagenham & Redbridge this Saturday boosted by the return of fans favourite Bernard Mensah after his loan move from Bristol Rovers was confirmed on Monday. Chris Woods previews the action.
Shots Squad:
The Shots continue to operate with a lengthy injury list, James Rowe and George Fowler could both be missing the remainder of the season. Jacob Berkeley-Agyepong and Shamir Fenelon remain a few weeks away from a return to action with skipper Karleigh Osborne and Jake Cole eyeing a return to the squad for the Shots next game against Eastleigh in two weeks time. Nick Arnold suffered a minor setback in his recovery period and his comeback has been put back a few weeks. Positive news comes in the form of Scott Rendell’s recovery, he’s returned to training and was involved in the warm-up against Chesterfield but Saturday’s game may be too soon, he’s been missing since mid-November after he went off injured against Salford City; Luke Howell also made his comeback from injury last week’s defeat and Dominic Bernard and Will Mannion extended their loan stays until the end of the season after their original deals were due to expire during the week.
Opposition:
Name: Dagenham & Redbridge
Nickname: The Daggers
Manager: Peter Taylor
Stadium: Chigwell Construction Stadium (Capacity: 6,078)
2017/18 National League position: 11th
Current National League position: 13th
Brief History:
Dagenham & Redbridge F.C. were formed in 1992 following the merger of two clubs Dagenham F.C. and Redbridge Forest F.C. who’s history can be traced back to 1888 following the merger of Ilford, Walthamstow Avenue and Leytonstone. The club took Redbridge Forest’s place in the Football Conference where they stayed until 1996 when they were relegated into the Isthmian League, the club returned to the Conference in 2000 establishing themselves as one of non-league’s dominant forces, regular occupying the top half of the table and play-off positions. The club were promoted to the Football League in 2007 under the leadership of John Still and promotion to League One followed in 2010 where they beat Rotherham United in a dramatic play-off final at Wembley Stadium. They spent one season in League One before relegation followed and they returned to non-league football in 2017. An American consortium lead by former Manchester United and Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard took over the Daggers this season as the East Londoner’s look to build for next season.
The Gaffer:
The Daggers are managed by the experienced Peter Taylor who took over at the club this summer where he succeeded John Still, Taylor named Terry Harris as his assistant. Taylor took caretaker charge of the England national team in 2000 where he famously named David Beckham as captain in his sole game in charge. Elsewhere he has enjoyed five promotions with four teams; Brighton & Hove Albion, Gillingham (where he’s been in charge on three separate occasions), Hull City and Wycombe Wanderers and he has also managed in the Premier League with Leicester City.
Daggers Playing Squad:
Dagenham & Redbridge had a squad overhaul in pre-season following their financial troubles, losing no more than 14 players, key departures included Fejiri Okenabirhie who joined Shrewsbury Town in the EFL and Michael Cheek who had several clubs chasing his signature, he opted to join National League rivals Ebbsfleet United. Craig Robson, Andre Boucaud, Charlee Adams and Dan Sparkes followed John Still to Barnet. They added the likes of Alexander McQueen and Lamar Reynolds in the summer with loan signings Ben Goodliffe and Will Wright also proving to be key players this season. Mid-season additions of Angelo Balanta, Shamir Mullings and Emmanual Onariase have also helped in Dagenham’s upturn in form from their early season slump.
Referee:
Saturday’s referee is unknown at the time of publication.
Commentary:
BBC Surrey Sport’s Rob Worrall and Steve Gibbs will be covering the game live on Saturday afternoon. Tune in to the BBC Sport website (or the BBC Sport App) from 2:50pm for full match commentary. To interact with the commentary team, tweet @RobShot66 or @SteveGibbsPR.
