House of Flying Daggers

[CFuller]

A terrible start to the season, Football League life isn't treating you well. However a man of your capabilities will surely turn it around. Good luck and lets hope for a better September

Things can only get better... and they have to, really. I can't see myself lasting much longer if we don't improve soon.

[CFuller]

SEPTEMBER 2024

The transfer window closed on the second day of September, and I was certainly tempted to bolster my flagging squad. However, I didn't. The only movement in or out of Victoria Road on deadline day concerned our reserve left-back Warren Barrett, who joined Grays Athletic on loan until the New Year.

 

Why did I decide to stick rather than twist, you ask? It's quite simple, really - I believed that my squad was capable of holding its own in League Two. The real question was whether the players believed that as well.

 

I continued to raise the lads' spirits before our away match with Leyton Orient - the closest thing we've got to local rivals in the league this term. The east Londoners were 10th after winning three of their first six league games.

 

7 September 2024: Leyton Orient vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Joel Honeyball made his first league start for the Daggers, and it could've have begun any better for him. With six minutes on the clock, the 17-year-old played a superb lob to Jamie Bell, who slipped in his first goal of the season from a tight angle!

 

We were 1-0 up, but Leyton Orient could've equalised three minutes later. Dagenham captain Aaron McEwan failed to cut out Hasney Little's pass to his fellow Orient frontman Brian Maun, who crashed a drive over the bar. After 13 minutes, some sloppy Daggers positioning allowed Matthew Wickham to play Maun through for another chance. This time, Reice Charles-Cook came forward and pulled off a tremendous save.

 

The subsequent Daggers counter-attack failed to produce anything, although Honeyball did hit the side netting in the 18th minute. Then, after just over half an hour, a mistake from our homegrown youngster cost us dear. Joel lost the ball to Maun deep in Dagenham territory, and Maun then squared the ball to Little, who applied a lethal finish from the six-yard box.

 

Our lead was gone, and in the 40th minute, Leyton Orient very nearly went in front. O's winger Frank Harper received an excellent long ball from Max Weatherstone and crossed to Maun, who was well placed to score. Thankfully, Thomas Tierney was on hand to block Maun's header and deflect it safely into Reice's hands. At the other end two minutes later, Daggers midfielder Mitchell Clark saw his free-kick tipped behind by Russell Griffiths. The scoreline therefore remained at 1-1 going into the second half.

 

Both teams had opportunities early in the second period. Maun smashed the post for Orient after 51 minutes, in between a couple of dreadful Dagenham efforts from Bell and Aaron McEwan. On 58 minutes, Ahletdin Israilov launched a Daggers free-kick into the Orient area. Little headed it clear, and Maun then went on a one-man crusade towards our goal. After a lung-busting run in which he hardly came under pressure from our defenders, the jet-heeled striker dealt us a heavy blow with the hosts' second goal.

 

Were we about to lose again? Not on Pablo Vázquez's watch. After 65 minutes, Griffiths made a couple of great saves to frustrate our midfield duo of Aaron Tshibola and James Dunne. His second save deflected the ball into the path of Vázquez, who tucked it away for our equaliser!

 

Bell then missed two opportunities to restore our lead in the 69th minute. Eight minutes later, Vázquez crossed the ball into Leyton Orient's area, hoping to find Honeyball. O's captain Connor Essam got there first, but his clearance was cut out by Dunne, who launched a stunning first-time shot that caught Griffiths unawares! Just like at Boreham Wood back in April, James was Dagenham's hero!

 

Leyton Orient didn't recover from that, and when ex-Daggers forward Lee Finnie half-volleyed wide in injury-time, we could relax. We were back to winning ways and out of the relegation zone again!

 

Leyton Orient - 2 (Little 31, Maun 58)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Bell 6, Vázquez 66, Dunne 78)

League Two, Attendance 4,709 - POSITIONS: Leyton Orient 13th, Dag & Red 19th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Tierney, McEwan, Purrington, Clark (Dunne), Tshibola, Israilov, Honeyball, Munn (Vázquez), J Bell (Dickson).

 

In many ways, that was a bigger result than when we beat AFC Bournemouth. This was our first league win away from home this season, and it really left us buzzing. We now felt that we could beat anyone in the division.

 

That new-found optimism would be put to the test the following weekend, when Bristol City came to Victoria Road. Many people were expecting City to win promotion at the second time of asking, and the Robins had started well, with six wins and just the one loss at Hereford United. They were under the management of Greg Abbott, who famously coached the Daggers between 2014 and 2019 and took them up to League One.

 

There was one notable absentee in the Dagenham ranks for this match. Belgian left-back Arno Andersen had twisted his ankle in training and wouldn't return for at least five weeks.

 

14 September 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bristol City

Ominously, Bristol City had three shots in the opening four minutes. Ian Giles dragged an effort wide after just 22 seconds, although Eddie Williams and Rob Matthews both went closer soon afterwards. In the 11th minute, Jamie Bell half-volleyed wide our first attempt at goal.

 

The Robins' dominance soon resumed, with Giles forcing our goalkeeper Reice Charles-Cook into a couple of saves in the 14th and 16th minutes. City finally broke through in the 17th via their captain Mark West, whose strike deflected into the net off Charles-Cook's right leg.

 

Former Manchester United trainee West almost followed up the visitors' first goal with a quickfire second, but Reice caught his header. There then followed a lull in play before we pulled ourselves together. After 26 minutes, James Dunne knocked down a wayward clearance from Robins defender William Ekong to Daggers winger Pablo Vázquez. The Mexican skillfully cut inside and then placed a left-footer beyond goalkeeper Simon Moore.

 

Pablo's equaliser got us believing that we could bounce back, but that belief disappeared after 30 minutes. Some poor defensive positioning from us allowed West to hammer Matthews' cross in off the bar and make it 2-1 to City.

 

Our crossbar would be struck again on the stroke of half-time. Williams got his head to a corner delivery from Frank Higgins, but Charles-Cook managed to tip it onto the upright and behind for another corner, which Vázquez cleared. Our luck was in on that occasion, and we were still in with a shout.

 

Both teams started the second half nervously, and after 55 minutes, Mitchell Clark bent a shot off target for the Daggers. Two minutes later, Matthews crossed for Giles in our six-yard box. Thomas Tierney inexplicably took Giles out, costing him a yellow card and us a penalty. There was only one candidate for the penalty, and West duly completed his hat-trick from 12 yards.

 

We now found ourselves 2-1 down, and when Tierney committed another stupid foul in the 61st minute, we were reduced to ten men. Tommy received his second yellow card for an unnecessary barge on West and headed down the tunnel in disgrace, with his sending-off having effectively killed the game off.

 

Vázquez was the only player who looked like creating anything for us going forward, but when he hit a poor shot after 78 minutes, I conceded that we were going to lose our sixth game in eight. Once again, we had followed up a morale-boosting win with a spirit-crushing defeat.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Vázquez 26)

Bristol City - 3 (West 17,30,pen57)

League Two, Attendance 3,661 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 22nd, Bristol City 1st

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech (Jack), Tierney, McEwan (Heffernan), Purrington, Clark, Dunne, Israilov, Hart (Tshibola), Vázquez, J Bell. BOOKED: McEwan, Tierney, Vázquez. SENT OFF: Tierney.

 

Bristol City went top of League Two as a result of that victory. As disgraced comedian and Robins fan Justin Lee Collins would say, it was "good times" for City. As far as we were concerned, these were very much "bad times".

 

Our midweek home game with mid-table Mansfield Town now carried much greater significance. If we lost another match at Victoria Road, we really would be at panic stations.

[CFuller]

SEPTEMBER 2024 (continued)

17 September 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Mansfield Town

Mansfield striker Jordan Burrow almost opened the scoring after five minutes, when he nodded Ryan Fraser's cross inches past the post. A minute later, Burrow lost the ball to Dagenham captain Aaron McEwan, who fed the ball to Yasser Ibrahim before watching the Egyptian find the side netting. Over the next six minutes, Aaron's defensive partner Wayne Coton narrowly missed the target with a couple of promising efforts.

 

Those chances came either side of an 11th-minute strike from Ahletdin Israilov, which was saved by David Croft. The Stags goalkeeper pulled off two more big saves, from Israilov and Coton, before the first 20 minutes were up.

 

Our next few attempts went wayward, although we were at least creating chances. We also did a fine job of shutting Mansfield out for the rest of what proved to be a goalless first half.

 

As our lone frontman, Willie Dickson was almost totally deprived of opportunities in the first half. When a punt from Mansfield defender Deniz Bakiroglu rebounded off Mitchell Clark after 57 minutes, Willie found himself with a rare opening. The Scot dribbled to the edge of Town's penalty area, but with no team-mates nearby, he was forced into attempting a long-range shot that drifted wide.

 

Dickson's opposite number and compatriot Joshua Turner was similarly wasteful from just outside our area in the 62nd minute. Mansfield's next opportunity came after 78 minutes, when right-back Kieron Freeman's cross was headed just over by substitute Jason O'Dea.

 

Then, with five minutes to go, the Stags bucked up their ideas. Captain Fraser laid the ball right to Turner, whose first-time through-ball found O'Dea. I was about to say something along the lines of "Oh dear" when Reice Charles-Cook got his gloves to O'Dea's strike and pushed it away.

 

That was followed by three pulsating minutes in which the action switched from end to end at a frenetic pace. The two best chances came our way, but Jamie Bell was denied by Croft in the 87th minute, and a very lacklustre Ibrahim pulled his shot wide a minute later. After 15 unsuccessful attempts at goal, we were disappointed to come away with a goalless draw. On the other hand, it was somewhat pleasing that we kept a clean sheet for the first time this season.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Mansfield Town - 0

League Two, Attendance 2,999 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 21st, Mansfield 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, McEwan, Coton, Heffernan (Purrington), Harding, Tshibola, Dunne (Clark), Israilov, Ibrahim, Dickson (J Bell). BOOKED: Dickson.

 

I demanded a much more clinical performance away to Stevenage, who were now the only winless team in League Two. Could we get sweet revenge in our first meeting with the Boro since they defeated us in the Conference Premier Play-Off Final two seasons ago?

 

21 September 2024: Stevenage vs Dagenham & Redbridge

The first 15 minutes were fairly dull, but in the 16th minute, we had a great opportunity to take the lead. Pablo Vázquez knocked a lovely through-ball to Jamie Bell, who hesitated to shoot before Stevenage defender Stewart Mahood made a crucial tackle. Vázquez then tried to convert the rebound, but only found the side netting. More disappointment followed when Ahletdin Israilov's attempt in the 23rd minute limped wide.

 

The first half was also a frustrating experience for Stevenage's strikers. James Wilson hardly got a sniff at goal, as Aaron McEwan and co limited him to a wild long-distance shot on 34 minutes. Wilson's Boro team-mate Aaron Bragg had nothing to brag about a minute later, as the Canadian winger bent the ball wide from 30 yards.

 

The game's first shot on target didn't come until the 40th minute, when Stevenage goalie Matty Miller pulled off a superb save from Bell. Mitchell Clark then won us a corner, but that fizzled out… much like the first half in general, really.

 

The second half didn't start promisingly for Bell, who blazed a shot high and wide in the 47th minute. Two minutes later, Jamie connected with a deep Vázquez cross on the edge of Stevenage's area. Bell's header looped over Miller and rustled into the net, giving us that long-awaited opening goal!

 

The hosts' first attempt to get back in the game was very unconvincing, as Wilson's piledriver in the 54th minute went miles over. Three minutes later, Reice Charles-Cook made his first save in the Daggers goal, catching Bragg's free-kick. Our defence looked surprisingly secure, even when Charlie MacGregor - a half-time substitute for Lee Heffernan - came off with a hamstring injury after 61 minutes.

 

McEwan was winning so many aerial balls that I had no qualms about us sitting back and defending deep for the last half-hour. One of Aaron's less convincing clearances fell to Macauley Bonne in the 79th minute, and the former York City forward struck a half-volley that Charles-Cook turned behind. Stevenage had one final attempt on goal in the 89th minute, but Nicholas Bates' strike cleared the bar. A 1-0 away win moved us four points clear of the drop zone and kept the Boro in last place.

 

Stevenage - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 49)

League Two, Attendance 2,678 - POSITIONS: Stevenage 24th, Dag & Red 20th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Jack, Heffernan (MacGregor (Dunne)), McEwan, Purrington, Harding, Clark, Israilov, Honeyball, Vázquez, J Bell (Munn). BOOKED: Jack.

 

Charlie MacGregor would miss at least a month after pulling his hamstring in the second half. That didn't sound too bad at first, but when Thomas Tierney broke his ankle in a reserves match a few days later, we suddenly found our centre-back options much more restricted. Tommy's injury was so bad that it would keep him out until 2025.

 

We followed up each of our previous two wins this season with very disappointing defeats. Would the same thing happen when we travelled to Swindon Town the following weekend? Swindon had started below-par by their expectations, as they sat in 14th place after 10 games.

 

28 September 2024: Swindon Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Ahletdin Israilov's dismal 25-yard strike in the fourth minute did not come close to drawing first blood for the Daggers. Five minutes later, it was Swindon who opened the scoring via 18-year-old Darren Wood. Connor Glover played the ball right to veteran full-back Jake Bidwell, who left Wood with an easy finish.

 

Wood would strike again two minutes later, as the on-loan Leicester City striker made the most of a superb right-wing cross from Steven Brown. After just 11 minutes, we found ourselves trailing by two goals to nil!

 

We desperately needed to get a goal back quickly, but Jamie Bell's header in the 14th minute went harmlessly wide. In the 22nd minute, Israilov fired a free-kick at goal, and Elliot Bond easily got hold of it. Swindon's goalkeeper also got his gloves to a close-range header from Aaron McEwan on 42 minutes. Bond then initiated a Robins counter-attack, from which Glover wasted a glorious opportunity for 3-0. Another goal would have effectively finished us off, but we weren't quite out of it by half-time.

 

Aaron Tshibola could have pulled one goal back for Dagenham shortly after the first minute of the second half. The midfielder dribbled towards Swindon's area before firing off target. About a minute later, Aaron followed up that costly miss with an even costlier foul on Brown. Bidwell's free-kick was unconvincingly cleared, and the former Everton left-back's follow-up cross took a deflection before being finished by Mike Donovan. It was 3-0 to the Robins, and a fourth goal looked inevitable.

 

Swindon's fourth didn't come in the 55th minute, when Brown cleared the crossbar. Swindon fans would have to wait another 20 minutes for the killer strike, which Brown set up for Donovan to score his second of the afternoon. After 75 minutes, our defenders' misery was complete... but the torture was only just beginning for our attacking midfielder Israilov.

 

Shortly after the restart, Willie Dickson spotted Ahletdin in space, but the Kyrgyzstani star sent his shot the wrong side of the post. In the 89th minute, Donovan made a firm tackle on Dickson just as he entered Swindon's area. The ball fell to Israilov, who agonisingly thumped the woodwork! When Willie provided Ahletdin with yet another opportunity less than a minute later, Israilov thankfully did not show the same profligacy. Nevertheless, that goal was scant consolation for a sorry Daggers display.

 

Swindon Town - 4 (Wood 9,11, Donovan 48,75)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 90)

League Two, Attendance 4,043 - POSITIONS: Swindon 10th, Dag & Red 21st

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech (Jack), Coton, McEwan, Purrington, Harding, Tshibola, Israilov, Honeyball (Ibrahim), Vázquez, J Bell (Dickson).

 

I'd been doing my best to encourage my players during our sticky start, but after that shocking performance, I felt they needed a reality check. This was our worst display of the campaign, as I made clear to the players in a dressing-room dressing-down.

 

I reserved my strongest criticism for our out-of-form full-backs, Ben Purrington and Tim Beech. Ben looked totally out of his depth in League Two to me, so I dropped him to the reserves and told him that he would be sold in January. I warned Tim that the same fate would await him unless he knuckled down in the autumn.

 

I'm not going to be Mr Nice Guy at Dagenham & Redbridge anymore. This team badly needs some tough love.

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of September 2024)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          Bristol City           12    9     1     2     24    8     +16   28
2.          Chester                11    7     1     3     20    16    +4    22
3.          Forest Green           11    7     0     4     24    15    +9    21
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Chesterfield           11    6     3     2     17    10    +7    21
5.          Bournemouth            11    6     2     3     22    12    +10   20
6.          Kidderminster          11    6     2     3     16    8     +8    20
7.          Leyton Orient          11    6     1     4     13    11    +2    19
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Rotherham              11    5     3     3     22    16    +6    18
9.          Wycombe                11    6     0     5     13    17    -4    18
10.         Swindon                11    5     2     4     17    12    +5    17
11.         Morecambe              11    5     2     4     15    14    +1    17
12.         Hereford               11    5     2     4     17    18    -1    17
13.         Port Vale              11    4     4     3     18    15    +3    16
14.         Mansfield              11    4     3     4     10    11    -1    15
15.         Bristol Rovers         12    4     3     5     13    17    -4    15
16.         Aldershot              11    4     2     5     20    23    -3    14
17.         Hartlepool             11    4     2     5     8     13    -5    14
18.         Barrow                 11    4     0     7     12    20    -8    12
19.         Cambridge              11    3     2     6     10    17    -7    11
20.         Luton                  11    3     1     7     14    22    -8    10
21.         Dag & Red              11    3     1     7     11    20    -9    10
22.         Dartford               11    3     0     8     14    16    -2    9
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.         Blackpool              11    2     2     7     11    20    -9    8
24.         Stevenage              11    1     3     7     10    20    -10   6

[CFuller]

OCTOBER 2024

October started off with a home game against Aldershot Town - one of League Two's least predictable teams. The Shots recorded a thumping 5-1 win at Hereford United in mid-September, and less than a fortnight later, Rotherham United destroyed them by the same score at the Recreation Ground.

 

1 October 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Aldershot Town

I gathered that Aldershot had a sluggish defence, so I looked to make our pace count early in this encounter. After six minutes, Neil Munn - a speedy striker who had been in fine form for our reserves - surged clear of Shots centre-back Stefan Courts and had a pop at goal. Jay Lynch pulled off a fine save to frustrate Munn, and he had to repeat that feat a minute later. Neil knocked the ball past the visitors' other centre-half Kyle Benedictus and then ran onto it, but Lynch denied him again.

 

In the 10th minute, Munn sent Pablo Vázquez clean through, only for the Mexican winger to be forced wide before losing the ball to Lynch. Adam Campbell created the Shots' first effort six minutes later, with a square ball that was deflected towards winger Gerard Hibbert, who fired it wide.

 

On 18 minutes, Ugonna Thompson crossed from the byline to Hibbert, who outjumped Daggers goalie Robbie Ryder and headed towards goal. Had Louis Jack not stepped in with a last-ditch clearance, we would've been staring at a 1-0 deficit. In fact, after 22 minutes, we were at the right end of that scoreline! When Yasser Ibrahim allowed Munn to burst through on goal yet again, Neil finally produced the finish for his first competitive goal in a Dagenham shirt!

 

Another Daggers player broke his duck in the 31st minute. Vázquez skillfully took the ball past Aldershot right-back Ben Jefford and crossed to Joel Honeyball, who popped his cherry at the ripe old age of 17! Joel then pretended to rock a baby like legendary Brazil forward Bebeto, celebrating a recent addition to his family. (I've got my own opinion about teenage parents, but this is not the place for it.)

 

By the 38th minute, Aldershot's travelling fans probably felt like crying. Another devastating Ibrahim cross was finished by Vázquez, who made it 3-0 with his third goal of the campaign. Pablo picked up a knock just before half-time and wouldn't return after the break, but he'd already done his bit for the Daggers cause.

 

Two minutes into the second half, we sensed a fourth goal. Aaron McEwan rattled the bar with a header from Ahletdin Israilov's corner, and Shots midfielder Jordan Keegan almost diverted the ball into his own net before Courts hacked it away!

 

After Aldershot weathered that storm, things calmed down at their end until the 66th minute. Munn played the ball through the defence to Israilov, who snatched at his chance. Mitchell Clark then had a couple of attempts at getting his name on the scoresheet. The midfielder firstly forced Lynch into saving a free-kick on 68 minutes, and he then narrowly missed the target with a fierce shot on 76.

 

Eventually, after 78 minutes, the Shots' defence caved in for a fourth time. Honeyball broke away from the visiting defenders to reach Israilov's lob and fire it past Lynch. Even after that, we still wanted more goals!

 

On 79 minutes, Lynch had to step in to deny Willie Dickson what would've been just his second competitive goal for us. Joel blazed over an opportunity to seal an unforgettable hat-trick after 89 minutes, and Yasser unluckily rattled the bar just before full-time. When the final whistle blew, though, the Daggers fans were still ecstatic at a stunning 4-0 victory!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Munn 22, Honeyball 31,78, Vázquez 38)

Aldershot Town - 0

League Two, Attendance 3,224 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Aldershot 17th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Coton, McEwan, Heffernan, Harding, Dunne (Clark), Honeyball, Ibrahim, Vázquez (Israilov), Munn (Dickson). BOOKED: Honeyball, Dunne.

 

That impressive win sure made people sit up and take note. Over the next few days, the national papers gave a decent amount of coverage to Joel Honeyball, who had shown a lot of promise in his first-team outings so far. The local lad was definitely coming good.

 

We played another mid-table team in our next match, which was against Hereford United at Edgar Street.

 

5 October 2024: Hereford United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

The match had barely started when Dagenham defender Wayne Coton made an excellent tackle to stop Ross Arkell's cross from finding Clark Mitchell in the six-yard box. Hereford cried penalty, but the referee allowed play to continue. The Bulls charged at us again in the fifth minute, when Mitchell headed wide from Seyi Opara's long ball.

 

Mitchell came much closer to scoring after 18 minutes, as Robbie Ryder turned his strike against the post. Robbie's opposite number Srikumar Mahendran made his first save for Hereford in the 28th minute, catching Pablo Vázquez's header.

 

While the hosts had dominated the early part of the first half, we would be on top in the latter stages. Willie Dickson half-volleyed just wide for us in the 36th minute, but his next effort three minutes later went much further from the target. Malaysian international Mahendran then caught another headed shot from Vázquez in injury time.

 

Hereford struggled early in the second period, and their attacking threat was reduced greatly when substitute winger Graham Burke tore his hamstring just nine minutes after coming on. The home fans could've had more reason to be concerned in the 59th minute, when Willie's free-kick narrowly missed their goal.

 

By the 66th minute, though, the Bulls were back on the attack. Coton couldn't intercept Mitchell's long delivery to Ryan Wilks, allowing the quick striker to race clear. Wilks only had to beat Ryder… but he couldn't keep his shot on target. Myles Gray also missed a fine opportunity for Hereford on 68 minutes, heading Adrian Bloomfield's cross over.

 

Two minutes later, Daggers winger Ahletdin Israilov was floored by a strong tackle from Arkell. Israilov was in some discomfort, so I took him off as a precaution. Hereford really upped the pressure over the final 15 minutes, winning five corners as they looked to claim victory. We withstood all of them and came away from Edgar Street with a precious point.

 

Hereford United - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

League Two, Attendance 3,575 - POSITIONS: Hereford 14th, Dag & Red 18th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Coton, McEwan, Heffernan (Purrington), Harding, Clark, Israilov (Hart), Honeyball, Vázquez (Ibrahim), Dickson.

 

I was satisfied with a goalless draw, which took us up to 18th - our highest position so far. I was also relieved to hear that Ahletdin Israilov's injury was not as bad as first feared. The versatile attacker had sustained a dead leg and would miss our next match, but no more.

 

Next on the agenda was the Football League Trophy. Earlier in the season, we had been given a bye to Round 2 of the South section, where Helen Chamberlain and her newest toy boy drew us away to Dartford.

 

When the draw was initially made, that looked like a godsend to us, because Dartford were - at that point - still pointless. Since then, though, the Darts had gone on a four-match winning run, which only ended when Leyton Orient beat them three days before our FLT meeting. It was hard to call a winner in this one.

 

I made a number of big calls regarding my starting line-up at Princes Park. Paul Hart started for the first time in just under a month, and Reice Charles-Cook returned to our goal before going on international duty with Jamaica. Also, although Lee Heffernan and Louis Jack had played on the left and right side of defence respectively in our last two games, I decided to swap the full-backs over for this one. My reasoning behind that was because Louis was more comfortable on his left foot than Lee, who would perhaps be better suited to the right-back slot.

 

8 October 2024: Dartford vs Dagenham & Redbridge

My risky decisions backfired quickly, as Dartford scored a soft opening goal after just three minutes. No fewer than three Dagenham players hassled Ryan Bishop on the outside of our penalty area, and they were completely caught out when Bishop played a weighted pass to his Darts team-mate Marc Keast. The Scottish midfielder then hit a first-time shot that squirmed under Reice Charles-Cook and found the net.

 

In the 8th minute, Pablo Vázquez set up our first scoring opportunity with a lob to Jamie Bell, who horribly miscued his header. Three minutes later, Paul Hart hit a more promising left-footed strike that Dartford keeper Dan Hales made a difficult save from. On 20 minutes, Paul played the ball short to Pablo, who took the ball forward and lashed it miles off target.

 

Hart's own shooting got progressively worse as the match wore on. The teenage midfielder thundered an effort over the bar after 27 minutes, and then missed a real sitter after 36.

 

Despite having a 1-0 lead, Dartford rarely threatened our goal after going in front. They did have an opportunity in the 40th minute, but Daggers captain Aaron McEwan made a strong tackle to stop Bishop from reaching Ryan Lloyd's pass into the area. In fact, McEwan went in so hard that 17-year-old Crystal Palace loanee Bishop was forced off with an injury.

 

We were still behind at the break, so I switched Lee Heffernan and Louis Jack back to their more traditional full-back positions. I also kept faith in Hart, whose bad day almost got a bit better three minutes into the second half. Paul hit a stunning shot from 30 yards out, and Hales just about tipped it over his bar.

 

That was as good as it got for Hart. He toiled through the rest of the 90 minutes, but his fellow underperformers Jack and Vázquez both came off just before the hour mark. My changes didn't help us much, as although Dartford picked up an incredible five yellow cards in the second half, they remained in control. They might have killed us off after 73 minutes, when Dale Bradburn struck an excellent volley, but Charles-Cook met it with an even better save.

 

The closest we got to an equaliser was Yasser Ibrahim's 83rd-minute drive, which Hales pushed away to the Darts' excellent centre-back Peter Docherty. Yasser's effort was the last of just four shots on target for the Daggers as we crashed out of the Football League Trophy.

 

Dartford - 1 (Keast 3)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Football League Trophy South Round 2, Attendance 898

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Heffernan, McEwan, Coton, Jack (Beech), Clark, Tshibola, Hart, Ibrahim, Vázquez (Honeyball), J Bell (Dickson).

 

I shan't say any more about the FLT this season. Let's move on.

[CFuller]

OCTOBER 2024 (continued)

We were scheduled to host Rotherham United on the weekend after our Football League Trophy exit. However, the FL postponed that fixture until November, as we had a number of players out on international duty.

 

Geraint Harding was in excellent form for Wales Under-21s, who defeated Sweden and Iceland in European Championship qualifiers. Joel Jones was slightly less impressive for Wales Under-19s as they crashed out of their Euro preliminaries. Meanwhile, Reice Charles-Cook was reduced to a bench-warmer as Jamaica's hopes of qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup ended in failure.

 

Back at home, our shooting coach Danny Keohane gained his UEFA B Licence and was rewarded with a new contract that extended his Daggers stay for at least another season.

 

We resumed our league campaign the following weekend at home to Port Vale. Darrell Clarke's side had started the season well before experiencing a slump that saw them fall to 14th.

 

19 October 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Port Vale

Dagenham left-back Arno Andersen's return from an ankle injury got off to an inauspicious start. After eight minutes, the Belgian hit a sloppy pass inside our penalty area that clipped Mitchell Clark's heel and fell to Port Vale striker Grant Harrison. The 19-year-old made the most of his chance, and the Valiants were 1-0 up.

 

Arno had another moment to forget in the 15th minute, when Port Vale winger Tendayi Darikwa beat him to Jordan Halsman's left-wing cross. Andersen's blushes were spared when Robbie Ryder caught Darikwa's header. Halsman then came close to doubling the visitors' lead with a free-kick in the 25th minute. Barely a minute later, that lead was gone, as Wayne Coton volleyed home from Ahletdin Israilov's cross!

 

We were buoyed by that leveller, and Israilov almost got us a second goal shortly after the second start. His close-range header from Pablo Vázquez's delivery was parried by Vale keeper Roscoe Fryatt, who - you may remember - played under me for three seasons at Romford. Port Vale then had a strong spell towards half-time. Ryder saved a 35th-minute effort from midfielder Aaron Wildig, and he watched Darikwa head wide four minutes after that.

 

With the scores still level at the break, I took off Vázquez and gave Yasser Ibrahim another chance to show what he can do. Less than half a minute after coming on, our Egyptian magician weaved his wand again. Ibrahim chipped a wonderful ball ahead of Jamie Bell, who chested it and beat Fryatt at his near post!

 

Yasser had helped to give us the advantage, and he almost doubled it in the 51st minute with a header that clipped the bar. Six minutes later, Ryder held onto a low shot from Valiants winger Halsman. On 69 minutes, the 33-year-old Scotsman swung in a cross that James Dunne could only head as far as Harrison. Vale's star striker hit the ball on the volley from 30 yards… and skimmed the crossbar!

 

Ibrahim then missed an opportunity to put us 3-2 up after 72 minutes, but he made up for that a couple of minutes later. Neil Munn was running the show surprisingly well in midfield, and he fed a lovely pass to Yasser, who took the ball forward and slipped it through Fryatt's legs!

 

The Valiants' spirit was broken, and when Harrison tore a calf muscle in the 78th minute, they were effectively finished. After Darikwa wasted a couple of chances to put Port Vale back in the game, we closed out an impressive 3-1 win.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Coton 26, J Bell 46, Ibrahim 74)

Port Vale - 1 (Harrison 8)

League Two, Attendance 3,601 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 16th, Port Vale 15th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, McEwan, Andersen, Clark, Dunne (Harding), Munn, Israilov, Vázquez (Ibrahim), J Bell (Dickson).

 

Three days later, we travelled all the way to the north-east for a meeting with Hartlepool United. The Monkey Hangers had just given their manager Chris Barker the chop - rather unfairly, I felt - after their seven-game unbeaten run was ended by Rotherham United.

 

22 October 2024: Hartlepool United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Dagenham & Redbridge midfielder Mitchell Clark narrowly missed the target from a free-kick in the sixth minute. Two minutes later, Hartlepool winger Luke James skipped past Lee Heffernan's challenge and hit a shot that Robbie Ryder could only divert to his far post.

 

The Pools soon launched another attack, from which they took the lead. Warren Daniels rose above Clark to head Terry Daly's right-wing cross on to midfielder Phil Shepherd. Ryder saved Shepherd's fierce effort, but Gareth Hyland converted the rebound to put Hartlepool 1-0 ahead after exactly eight minutes!

 

Jamie Bell's confidence then took a couple of batterings as he tried to draw us level in the 13th minute. Jamie blasted a piledriver over the bar before an excellent challenge from Pools captain Kristian Smart denied him another opportunity.

 

After those Daggers chances went begging, Hartlepool dominated the rest of the first half. Ryder caught a low drive from Hyland in the 21st minute, and he then watched home hero James fire a couple of long-rangers wide before the half-hour mark. In the last ten minutes before half-time, Hartlepool had no fewer than three chances to go 2-0 up, as Daniels, Shepherd and Hyland all missed the mark.

 

The early part of the second half was miserable to watch. After 64 minutes, things only became grimmer for those Daggers fans who'd travelled all the way up from Essex. When Shepherd tackled the ball off Clark's feet, Hartlepool went into counter-attack mode, as Hyland played the loose ball left to Daniels. The wideman crossed into our area, and although Wayne Coton made an interception, his header only went as far as Martin Smith. Smith nodded the ball to his midfield colleague Shepherd, who hammered a blistering shot into the net!

 

It looked all over for us at that point. Daggers substitute Willie Dickson looked like he couldn't get going, as his header in the 68th minute was comfortably caught by Billy McVitie. A minute later, however, Shepherd gifted us a lifeline by fouling Geraint Harding in the Pools area. Dickson had another opportunity to beat his Scottish compatriot McVitie, and he duly did so with an emphatic penalty.

 

When Dickson troubled McVitie with another shot in the 77th minute, we started believing that we could launch a full-scale comeback. Five minutes later, Willie played in Geraint, who struck first-time from the edge of the area. Sadly, the ball limped just wide, and a poor strike from Ahletdin Israilov later on ended our hopes of taking any points home. Although their right-back Daly came off with a damaged elbow late on, Hartlepool held firm to win 2-1 and continue their recent good form.

 

Hartlepool United - 2 (Hyland 9, Shepherd 64)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Dickson pen70)

League Two, Attendance 2,430 - POSITIONS: Hartlepool 14th, Dag & Red 18th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, McEwan, Heffernan (Andersen), Harding, Clark, Munn (Honeyball), Israilov, Ibrahim, J Bell (Dickson).

 

Our mini-surge in the league had been cut short, but we hoped to start another when we hosted Cambridge United. Rio Ferdinand's United team, who won the Conference Premier play-offs last term, would edge in front of us if they won at Victoria Road.

[CFuller]

OCTOBER 2024 (continued)

26 October 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Cambridge United

We kept the ball very well in the first half, but found it difficult to create any meaningful chances. James Dunne had an opening in the 12th minute until Cambridge midfielder Dylan McGeouch made an excellent tackle to prevent him from reaching Yasser Ibrahim's pass. The U's cut out another Ibrahim pass in the 26th minute, and they launched a counter-attack that ended with Gethin Hill firing over.

 

We then had a couple of half-chances in the closing stages of the first half. Yasser had a shot blocked by Cambridge right-back Mario Holcroft in the 41st minute, and James volleyed narrowly wide four minutes later. That marked the end of a cagey first half in which both sets of defenders excelled.

 

Cambridge tried to add some spark to their attack by bringing on Leeroy McKenzie at the break, but the winger smashed a shot off target after 56 minutes. A minute later, McKenzie's foul on Tim Beech gave us a free-kick in Cambridge territory. Although Willie Dickson couldn't create anything directly from the free-kick, he did set up our opening goal soon afterwards. Willie's slick pass was slotted home at the far post by Ahletdin Israilov, and we had the upper hand!

 

Dickson went close to doubling our lead in the 60th minute, when his 25-yard screamer hit the bar. The Scot missed the target with another fierce drive six minutes later. McGeouch went wide for Cambridge after 68 minutes, but the U's were gifted a better opportunity four minutes later.

 

Dagenham left-back Arno Andersen's attempted clearance came back off United forward Deale Flynn, and Arno compounded that error by knocking the ball towards Bill Owen. The Cambridge midfielder chipped the ball to his lightning-quick team-mate Joseph Sodiq, who got past Robbie Ryder and tucked away a simple finish.

 

We'd effectively thrown away two points, and Owen almost stole the other after 85 minutes, when his 30-yard strike went inches over the crossbar. By full-time, we were somewhat relieved that we had managed to scrape a 1-1 draw.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 58)

Cambridge United - 1 (Sodiq 72)

League Two, Attendance 3,420 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Cambridge 20th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, MacGregor, McEwan, Andersen, Harding, Dunne, Munn (Honeyball), Israilov, Ibrahim (Vázquez), Dickson. BOOKED: Beech.

 

Arno Andersen had made a big error of judgment against Cambridge United, costing us two home points. I therefore decided to reinstate the out-of-favour Ben Purrington at left-back for our next fixture.

 

October concluded with Dagenham & Redbridge's first ever meeting with Blackpool. 14 seasons ago, Bloomfield Road was hosting Premier League football. Now, its team sat rock-bottom of League Two with just 10 points from 17 games. Indeed, the Tangerines hadn't won a single match since they started off the campaign with back-to-back victories!

 

30 October 2024: Blackpool vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Blackpool didn't look like a team low on confidence to begin with. Their on-loan Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Sadettin Sarikaya drove the ball over our bar after just three minutes. Four minutes later, a terrible first touch from Dagenham midfielder Aaron Tshibola allowed the Seasiders to launch another attack. 18-year-old striker Reis Collins took the ball on and dribbled through our defence before opening the scoring.

 

The Tangerines' dream start got better still in the 13th minute. Blackpool right-back Stefan Powell's cross took a fortuitous deflection off Ben Purrington, and captain Ryan Lynch lashed in a spectacular volley to make it 2-0.

 

We now looked like the worst team in the Football League, and Lee Heffernan began to resemble a Sunday League defender. In the 22nd minute, Lee softly lost possession in a tackle from Collins, and Lynch took the ball forward before swinging in a cross. Daggers right-back Louis Jack did well to stop Matty Fletcher from heading the cross home, but our respite was brief.

 

A poor pass from Yasser Ibrahim saw the Egyptian forward squander possession in the 23rd minute. Heffernan's horror show then continued when he failed to intercept Collins' close-range shot before it beat Robbie Ryder. After less than a quarter of the game, Blackpool were well on course for their first victory in 17 matches!

 

Only at that point did we start to put up a fight. We won a couple of corners that didn't amount to much, and Yasser almost headed Paul Hart's 35th-minute cross into the net. Then, in injury time, the Tangerines found our net for a fourth time, as right-winger Lynch flicked home a long through-ball from Sarikaya. Lynch was miles offside, so that goal didn't count, but it couldn't disguise the fact that our defence looked all at sea on the Lancashire coast.

 

After a half-time rollicking in which I made all three of my substitutions at once, I sent the boys out all fired up for the second half. On 54 minutes, one of my subs - Jamie Bell - flicked the ball on to Willie Dickson, whose volley didn't really trouble young Blackpool goalkeeper Sullay Shaw.

 

Welsh forward Joel Jones has also come on for his league debut, and he showed some promise in the 66th minute. Joel moved into a channel superbly, only to follow up his run with a disappointing shot that went over. Tshibola also cleared the bar after 71 minutes as he attempted to repair at least some of the damage his earlier error had caused.

 

In the 78th minute, Tshibola played a lovely ball to Hart, who then fed it through the Seasiders defence ahead of Dickson. Willie's shot was parried by Shaw into the path of Bell, who slotted in what would be little more than a consolation for the Daggers. We never looked like getting one more goal, let alone two, so we went home with our tails well and truly between our legs.

 

Blackpool - 3 (Collins 7,23, Lynch 13)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 78)

League Two, Attendance 5,151 - POSITIONS: Blackpool 24th, Dag & Red 19th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, MacGregor, Heffernan (Coton), Purrington, Hart, Tshibola, Dunne, Ibrahim (J Jones), Dickson, Munn (J Bell). BOOKED: Hart.

 

That was a humiliating result, and I was particularly embarrassed for Lee Heffernan - one of the terrible trio who came off at half-time. Lee had made a disappointing start to his Dagenham & Redbridge career, so I told him on the trip back home that he would be playing for the reserves until further notice. Heff went into a huff, but I wasn't going to take any more risks with him before he had proven himself in a lower-pressure environment.

[edtheguy]

Ugh, nothing can undo a team like a defender who isn't up to the task - I get so frustrated with meltdowns like Heff's that tend to have a revolving door at central defender until I find ones that I trust.

Aside from that, it looks like the Daggers are starting to pull themselves up from their frightening start - keep up the good work, I'll be looking forward to see what happens next, as always!

[CFuller]

Ugh, nothing can undo a team like a defender who isn't up to the task - I get so frustrated with meltdowns like Heff's that tend to have a revolving door at central defender until I find ones that I trust.

Aside from that, it looks like the Daggers are starting to pull themselves up from their frightening start - keep up the good work, I'll be looking forward to see what happens next, as always!

Heff's really frustrating me. I really want him to have a great career with us, mainly because he's got high potential (apparently) and he's a Dagenham boy (at least by birth). Maybe I'm guilty of throwing him in at the deep end too soon, and that can be a particular problem with centre-backs, but that doesn't really excuse his poor performances, nor his attitude.

It's good that we're steadily climbing up the table, but doubts always seem to creep in whenever you lose to the bottom team. Let's hope this blip doesn't become anything more serious.

[CFuller]

NOVEMBER 2024

We would be getting very familiar with Bristol Rovers early in November. For us, the month began with (at least) two successive matches against the Pirates, who were under the management of former Daggers boss Seamus Conneely.

 

Our first encounter was at the Memorial Stadium in Round 1 of the FA Cup. We crashed out of the competition at that stage last year, so I really wanted us to go on a good run this season.

 

2 November 2024: Bristol Rovers vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Bristol Rovers set the tone for the first half with a fierce shot from striker Jack Sampson after six minutes. Reice Charles-Cook didn't have to do too much work to save that, but he faced a much sterner test in the 14th minute. Jack Marriott hit the ball upfield towards Sampson, only for Dagenham captain Aaron McEwan to intercept it and nod it back to Charles-Cook. Reice fumbled the ball as it bounced towards him, but he still managed to turn Sampson's rebound shot out of play for a corner!

 

Mitchell Clark won us our first corner five minutes later, after his free-kick was headed behind by Fearghal McDonald. Mitchell then got his head to Ahletdin Israilov's delivery, but he couldn't keep it on target. Bristol Rovers went back on the offensive soon after that, as Charles-Cook pushed away Marriott's first attempt at goal.

 

In the 26th minute, Charles-Cook turned another Sampson effort over his bar. The Jamaican international was having to work overtime to keep the deadlock intact. Thankfully for Reice, the hosts' shooting got worse in the final ten minutes of the first half. Sampson headed wide in the 37th minute, two minutes before Marriott spurned another chance.

 

Reice did have to catch another Sampson shot after 42 minutes, but that was the last save he would have to make in the first half. Despite the Rovers being utterly dominant, we still had our heads above water.

 

When Marriott found the side netting in the 49th minute, it looked like the second half would follow a similar pattern to the first. A minute later, Israilov swung a Dagenham corner into Bristol Rovers' area, where McEwan went down under a shove from Ed Creer. Jamie Bell stepped up to try and fire us into an unlikely lead from 12 yards… but Rovers skipper Angus Gunn chose the perfect time to make his first save of the match.

 

Jamie's confidence took a hit, and he horribly miscued a header from Arno Andersen's cross after 53 minutes. Two minutes later, Bell was tripped by 17-year-old Pirates substitute Ronnie Clarke as he tried to take the ball into the area. Mitchell readied himself to fire another free-kick at goal... and he fired it into the goal!

 

We were 1-0 up, and that advantage would be increased in the 60th minute, after Yasser Ibrahim won us a corner off McDonald. Israilov's inswinging delivery was headed home by Wayne Coton, who put us firmly in control at 2-0 up!

 

Six minutes later, the Pirates were sinking without trace. The defence dozed off again, as they allowed Ibrahim to latch onto Andersen's left-wing delivery and head it beyond Gunn's reach! It was now 3-0 to the Daggers, and the local Gasheads were looking really glum.

 

Bristol Rovers did get one goal back in the 73rd minute, as Sampson finished from Marriott's flick-on, but they would need a quick second to really worry us. When Sampson snatched at another chance three minutes later, the home fans started leaving in their droves. The Pirates couldn't get back into the game, so we booked our spot in Round 2 of the FA Cup.

 

Bristol Rovers - 1 (Sampson 73)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Clark 55, Coton 59, Israilov 66)

FA Cup Round 1, Attendance 3,495

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Coton, McEwan, Andersen, Harding, Clark, Hart (Tshibola), Israilov, Ibrahim (Vázquez), J Bell (Dickson).

 

Our reward - if you could call it that - was arguably the worst possible draw in Round 2. We were pitted away to Wrexham, who were top of League One and in magnificent form. We would need to produce a stunning performance in North Wales if our FA Cup run was to carry on into the New Year.

 

Bristol Rovers were in League Two action again in midweek, drawing 2-2 at home to Rotherham United. They then travelled to Essex to play us for a second weekend in a row. We were only a solitary goal ahead of the Pirates going into this match, but we had a game in hand.

 

9 November 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Bristol Rovers

Jamie Bell wasted a decent opportunity to put us ahead after just two minutes, when he headed wide from Yasser Ibrahim's flick-on. Two minutes later, Ahletdin Israilov, whose cross led to the opportunity, won a corner off Bristol Rovers veteran Andros Townsend. Alas, Ahletdin couldn't create anything from said set-piece.

 

Former Tottenham Hotspur winger Townsend almost created a goal out of nothing in the 13th minute, as his deep cross rattled Robbie Ryder's crossbar! We had another scare after 24 minutes, when Robbie just about got his hand to a fierce left-footer from Pirates right-winger Fearghal McDonald. A minute later, McDonald headed Townsend's cross on to Jack Sampson in the six-yard box. The Rovers stalwart had scored a late consolation for his team seven days earlier, but his attempt to head them into the lead was tipped over by Ryder.

 

Dagenham midfielder Mitchell Clark - who'd wasted a piledriver earlier in the game - then volleyed over Rovers' bar in the 31st minute. Wayne Coton also failed to find the target with his 37th-minute header from James Dunne's long throw, but Bell did at least trouble Angus Gunn a minute later. In a mirror image of our last meeting, we had the upper hand after the first half, yet the score remained 0-0.

 

Gunn saved another strike from Jamie four minutes into the second half. Four minutes later, former Wales Under-21s midfielder Theo Wharton snatched at a shot for Bristol Rovers. With the match still goalless after an hour, we decided to take the game to the Pirates.

 

Half-time substitute Joel Jones wasted a chance in the 64th minute, three minutes before Coton headed the ball into Gunn's capable hands. The Rovers captain also held onto a nodded effort in the 71st minute from Willie Dickson, who had replaced the ineffective Ibrahim. Like Yasser, Israilov was far from his best, as he showed with a terrible effort in the 77th minute. Gunn then made two more catches after 83 and 84 minutes to keep out headers from Bell and Geraint Harding.

 

Both teams missed opportunities in injury time, as Bell half-volleyed off target and McDonald found the side netting for their respective sides. Despite having more than our fair share of shots and possession, we were very disappointed to come away with just a point.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Bristol Rovers - 0

League Two, Attendance 3,561 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Bristol Rovers 20th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, McEwan, Coton, Andersen, Harding, Clark (Tshibola), Dunne (J Jones), Israilov, Ibrahim (Dickson), J Bell.

 

Those two matches against Bristol Rovers summed up how frustrating football can be. On one day, you could be absolutely clinical; on another, you could be incredibly wasteful. We really needed to find some consistency.

[tenthreeleader]

Good to see some positive results for the Daggers, better still to see them in your writing style. I trust you'll turn the corner with these gentlemen very soon.

[CFuller]

Good to see some positive results for the Daggers, better still to see them in your writing style. I trust you'll turn the corner with these gentlemen very soon.

Cheers again. We're not doing too great right now, but hopefully we can pull away from the danger zone in the near future.

[CFuller]

NOVEMBER 2024 (continued)

We didn't have any fixtures in midweek, when Ahletdin Israilov travelled all the way to Turkmenistan to win his 50th cap for Kyrgyzstan. Ahletdin played for nearly an hour in a 1-1 draw in Ashgabat, and he came back to the UK feeling rather tired. As a result, I decided that he could have the day off when we hosted Dartford over the weekend.

 

Dartford may have knocked us out of the Football League Trophy, but revenge wasn't the only thing on my mind when Carl MacAuley took his team to Victoria Road. The Darts were just a point behind us in 21st place, and a poor result against them would put us in deep trouble.

 

16 November 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Dartford

In just the second minute, Dagenham winger Pablo Vázquez intercepted an errant pass from Dartford right-back Lee Lumsden on the halfway line. Vázquez then jinked almost effortlessly into the Darts' penalty area, where he supplied a cross that Neil Munn could only head directly at goalkeeper Dan Hales. Pablo attacked the visitors again in the fifth minute, when his centre from the touchline flew straight into the net!

 

The Darts were stunned into action by that freak opener, almost cancelling it out after 10 minutes. Lumsden provided an excellent corner for Tom McInnes, who flicked it past the post. In the 23rd minute, Hales tipped over a promising shot from Munn that might have increased our lead. Pablo's resulting corner was met by an unconvincing clearance from Dartford midfielder Cledan Price, and a similarly poor shot from Joel Honeyball.

 

When the away team won another corner two minutes later, they took full advantage. Dartford skipper Conor McDonald hit a first-time strike from Lumsden's delivery, and Robbie Ryder could only push it on to Zach Clough, who poked in the equaliser.

 

In the 36th and 41st minute, Honeyball whacked over a couple of opportunities to restore our lead. It looked like we were going to head into the dressing room with the scoreline still at 1-1… until another Vázquez cross in the 44th minute caused Dartford more problems. Defender Peter Docherty could only head it as far as James Dunne, whose flick-on was finished by Munn. We were back in front!

 

Vázquez continued his sublime display in the opening minute of the second half. He played a fine pass to Munn, who evaded Docherty's challenge before firing the ball into Hales' hands. On 50 minutes, a weak clearance from Hales was intercepted by Dunne, who exchanged passes with Paul Hart and then narrowly missed the target.

 

Our bright start to the second period paid dividends three minutes later, as our winged wonders produced the goods. Yasser Ibrahim on the right flank swung a wonderful left-footed cross first-time to Pablo, whose right-footed volley rocketed past Hales to give us a 3-1 lead!

 

Yasser got close to adding his name to the scoreline on 69 minutes, but he could only find the side netting from close range. Two minutes later, Price chipped an excellent Dartford free-kick to McInnes, whose header clipped the outside of Ryder's right-hand post! In the 75th minute, Robbie made a superb save at his left-hand post to push Lumsden's vicious effort behind. Those would be key moments, as we held firm for the last 15 minutes and took the points.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Vázquez 5,53, Munn 44)

Dartford - 1 (Clough 25)

League Two, Attendance 3,840 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Dartford 21st

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, McEwan (MacGregor), Andersen, Harding, Dunne, Hart (Tshibola), Honeyball (Ibrahim), Vázquez, Munn. BOOKED: Hart, Andersen.

 

Could we build on that impressive performance when we took on Wycombe Wanderers at Adams Park three days later? The Chairboys would take some beating, as they sat just outside the automatic promotion spots.

 

19 November 2024: Wycombe Wanderers vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Four minutes into the game, our brave-hearted captain Aaron McEwan made a strong challenge on Wycombe forward Rick Draper to try and stop him from reaching a long ball. The Scottish defender twisted painfully on his ankle, and it was apparent almost straight away that he couldn't carry on.

 

Losing Big Mac so early was a big blow, and that allowed the Chairboys to take the initiative after 8 minutes. Draper's shot from Josh Falkingham's free-kick was blocked by Yasser Ibrahim, but Wycombe defender Kevin MacDonald pounced on the loose ball to score his first senior goal!

 

Ahletdin Israilov nearly cancelled Wycombe's opener in the 10th minute, only for home goalkeeper Tyrone O'Dea to make a tremendous fingertip save. Two minutes later, Israilov was involved in a skilful Daggers move that ended with Jamie Bell drilling in the leveller!

 

We were now looking to take full control, but Geraint Harding drove a shot wide in the 16th minute, and Mitchell Clark fired into O'Dea's grasp a minute later. The action then died down before the 33rd minute, when Falkingham's volley flew straight at Ryder. The Chairboys finished the half strongly, and Welsh midfielder Dylan Dixon came close to scoring with what would be the last kick before half-time.

 

After Neil Munn pulled a dreadful shot off target in the 52nd minute, I told my team to sit deeper and try to hit Wycombe on the counter if possible. Three minutes later, Chairboys substitute Stephen Husband attempted to breach our defence with a cheeky banana shot, but Ryder read it well. Husband then bent a free-kick just wide in the 63rd minute. When the Scottish midfielder tried to score from another set-piece six minutes later, he could only fire it into Ryder's hands.

 

After that, the likes of Wayne Coton and Louis Jack defended manfully to shut the Chairboys out. Our counter-attacking strategy didn't see us create a lot of scoring chances, although Willie Dickson did hit the bar from a Paul Hart cross in injury time. In the end, I considered a 1-1 away draw to be a decent result.

 

Wycombe Wanderers - 1 (MacDonald 8)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 12)

League Two, Attendance 5,763 - POSITIONS: Wycombe 4th, Dag & Red 18th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Coton, McEwan (MacGregor), Andersen, Harding, Clark, Munn, Israilov (Hart), Ibrahim, J Bell (Dickson). BOOKED: Israilov.

 

Aaron McEwan underwent a scan the following morning, and it turned out that had sprained his ankle. Our captain now faced at least six weeks on the sidelines. That was the last thing I wanted to hear before our longest away trip of the season.

 

Barrow were not a team in high spirits when we made the journey to Holker Street in Cumbria. The Bluebirds dropped back down to League Two this spring after a single campaign in League One, and Chris Basham's side were now facing another battle with relegation.

[CFuller]

NOVEMBER 2024 (continued)

23 November 2024: Barrow vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Our day out in Cumbria did not get off to the best start, as Barrow won two corners in the first four minutes. The second of those was swung into the box by Darren Carmichael and headed home by Lee Peachey, who sent the home fans into raptures!

 

Our travelling supporters became more annoyed four minutes later, when Ahletdin Israilov was denied a penalty for what he thought was a foul from Bluebirds left-back Connor Ogilivie. In the 13th minute, a weak shot from Carmichael bobbled across the turf before Dagenham keeper Robbie Ryder picked it up. The Barrow midfielder might not have scored, but he almost created another corner goal in the 26th minute, when Harry Jenks nodded his delivery against the post.

 

Carmichael and Israilov then picked up late knocks as the first half came to a scrappy conclusion. During the half-time interval, I decided to bring Ahletdin off and replace him with Jonathan Roche, who made his comeback after nearly three months out injured.

 

We didn't register a shot at goal in the first half, and Jamie Bell's long-range strike six minutes into the second period never looked like testing Barrow goalkeeper Luke Chambers. The former Southend United custodian would not have to make his first save until the 76th minute. Jamie's replacement Willie Dickson closed down Barrow defender Daryl Rowley superbly and then struck a shot that Chambers blocked superbly.

 

Willie's next effort in the 82nd minute was much less promising, as it almost flew out of the ground. Three minutes later, Chambers made two brilliant acrobatic saves to keep out headers from Dickson and Charlie MacGregor.

 

With Barrow's defence in such good form, it was no surprise that we came away empty-handed. Indeed, had Ryder not made a stunning save from Matt Partridge in injury time, we would have lost by two goals rather than the more respectable one.

 

Barrow - 1 (Peachey 4)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

League Two, Attendance 2,568 - POSITIONS: Barrow 21st, Dag & Red 19th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Coton, Clark (MacGregor), Heffernan, Harding, Dunne, Hart, Israilov (Roche), Vázquez, J Bell (Dickson). BOOKED: Hart.

 

That defeat kept us just six points above the relegation zone. We had a real chance to extend that gap when we played our game in hand - at home to Rotherham United. The Millers were in 7th place, but victory for them would move them up to 3rd.

 

27 November 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Rotherham United

In the 9th minute, Rotherham's newly-capped Wales winger Marcus Shephard floated in a delicate free-kick that his fellow countryman Chris Dawson headed at goal. Thankfully for us, Robbie Ryder was on hand to make a simple catch. Dawson had a pop from 25 yards out in the 22nd minute, and he easily cleared the crossbar.

 

Three minutes later, Aaron Tshibola was unlucky not to give us the lead with a snap-bender that curled just too late. Another Daggers midfielder went close in the 31st minute, as Paul Hart's drive was kept out by Millers goalie Billy Granger. Later on in that minute, Ahletdin Israilov got past Rotherham left-back Liam Ridehalgh and played a lovely cross to Yasser Ibrahim at the far post. Yasser could only head it into the side netting.

 

After 35 minutes, Willie Dickson got a fabulous header to Israilov's corner… but Shephard blocked it on the goal line. To cap off a frustrating first half, Ibrahim had a low drive saved by Granger in the 37th minute.

 

Rotherham boss Martin Foyle brought on Allan Robertson at the break, and the Scottish striker gave Ryder a real test exactly a minute into the second half. Robbie just about managed to kick Robertson's shot away. In the 50th minute, Tshibola stung Granger's palms with a fierce strike. Neil Munn ran onto the loose ball and fancied his chances of opening the scoring… but Neil struck the wrong side of the post!

 

Geraint Harding was much less accurate with our next shot a full 20 minutes later, while Ibrahim also failed to find the target in the 73rd minute. Yasser's was the last of 10 unsuccessful attempts at goal for Dagenham & Redbridge. Rotherham's final total was half that, although Jimmy Chester came mighty close to scoring from a free-kick in the dying moments of normal time. When the final whistle blew three extra minutes later, I was relieved that we'd saved a point.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Rotherham United - 0

League Two, Attendance 2,942 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Rotherham 6th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, MacGregor (Coton), Andersen, Harding, Tshibola, Hart, Israilov (Clark), Ibrahim, Dickson (Munn). BOOKED: Ibrahim.

 

Charlie MacGregor went back to Nottingham Forest straight after that match. Charlie had been a solid performer at the back during his three-month loan spell, even though he only played eight times.

 

One player whose long-term future remains at Dagenham & Redbridge is our Egyptian enigma, Yasser Ibrahim. Our highest earner accepted a small pay cut to extend his stay at Victoria Road until at least 2027. Yasser hadn't been outstanding by any means in the first half of this season, but I didn't want to see a player of his indisputable talent leave for free next summer.

 

Would Ibrahim inspire us to an incredible victory in our FA Cup Round 2 match at Wrexham? The odds were heavily stacked against us - Wrexham were top of League One by six points, and their Scottish hotshot Asa McLaughlin had already scored 21 goals in all competitions this season.

 

30 November 2024: Wrexham vs Dagenham & Redbridge

The opening stages were fairly quiet… and that was a good thing as far as we were concerned. The first shot on target didn't come until the 13th minute, when Dagenham winger Pablo Vázquez intercepted a poor throw from Wrexham's Kye Maguire. Vázquez took the ball inside, and although his first shot was blocked by Jonathan Ferrell, he had a quick second attempt that Grant Smith just about pushed away.

 

The Dragons had their first effort in the 21st minute. Dangerman Asa McLaughlin unleashed a stunning volley from Keith Corcoran's cross, but rock-hard Wayne Coton got in the way. Neil Munn fired over a 25-yarder for the Daggers soon after that. On 28 minutes, Neil played a one-two with Jamie Bell to give himself a better opportunity, which he took coolly! 1-0 to Dagenham & Redbridge!

 

That wasn't in the script for Wrexham fans, and neither was a 33rd-minute shot from our Welsh midfielder Geraint Harding, which he drilled just wide. Munn hit a less convincing effort in the 41st minute, but we remained on course to take an unlikely half-time lead. That was until injury time, when Tim Beech lost possession to Dragons left-winger Callam Pearson. Moments later, the home fans were celebrating an equaliser… and a 22nd goal of the season from McLaughlin. Had the tide turned?

 

Yes, it had. Wrexham found the net again three minutes into the second half, as Slovenian striker Fredi Horvat nicked the ball from Lee Heffernan's feet and fired it past Robbie Ryder. It didn't count, however. An eagle-eyed official had spotted McLaughlin tripping Heff as our defender tried to block Horvat's shot.

 

Horvat was later replaced with former Hibernian forward Robbie Kane, whose first long-range shot was caught by Ryder in the 53rd minute. Six minutes later, there was a 'stramash' in the Daggers penalty area, as Wrexham's Scottish strikers battled with our defenders to win the ball before McLaughlin poked it in off the post. The Dragons were 2-1 up, and our attempts to slay them seemed to have failed.

 

Kane chased a third home goal in the 62nd minute, when Ryder pushed his low drive away. Clark, Munn and Harding all missed the target for us midway through the half, although we remained in contention… right until the final 15 minutes.

 

After 76 minutes, Corcoran dispossessed Arno Andersen and struck a sweet effort that Robbie met with a stunning fingertip save. Three minutes later, though, Ryder was powerless to keep out Kane's delicate header from Pearson's cross. That goal, plus two cases of extremely bad luck, killed off our FA Cup hopes for another season.

 

We were reduced to ten men after 85 minutes, when Ahletdin Israilov hobbled off with a thigh strain that would keep him out of our next match. Four minutes after that, Willie Dickson struck the bar with a shot that might well have given us a route back into the game.

 

Wrexham - 3 (McLaughlin 45,59, Kane 79)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Munn 28)

FA Cup Round 2, Attendance 6,455

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, Heffernan, Andersen, Clark, Harding, Munn (Honeyball), Ibrahim, Vázquez (Dickson), J Bell (Israilov).

 

We'd put up a good fight against Wrexham, even if it was not enough to keep us in the cup. We must now concentrate on league matters, but after four games without a victory, can we get moving in the right direction again?

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of November 2024)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          Bristol City           22    14    5     3     38    14    +24   47
2.          Swindon                22    12    3     7     32    20    +12   39
3.          Wycombe                22    11    5     6     31    24    +7    38
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Chester                22    11    5     6     31    26    +5    38
5.          Mansfield              22    11    5     6     32    28    +4    38
6.          Rotherham              22    9     9     4     34    24    +10   36
7.          Hereford               22    10    5     7     39    29    +10   35
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Morecambe              22    10    5     7     32    26    +6    35
9.          Luton                  22    11    2     9     36    34    +2    35
10.         Hartlepool             22    10    4     8     24    29    -5    34
11.         Leyton Orient          22    9     5     8     22    20    +2    32
12.         Kidderminster          22    9     4     9     27    22    +5    31
13.         Forest Green           22    9     4     9     30    27    +3    31
14.         Chesterfield           22    9     4     9     31    29    +2    31
15.         Port Vale              22    8     6     8     34    35    -1    30
16.         Aldershot              22    8     5     9     41    47    -6    29
17.         Bournemouth            22    7     7     8     33    28    +5    28
18.         Bristol Rovers         22    6     8     8     26    30    -4    26
19.         Dag & Red              22    6     6     10    25    30    -5    24
20.         Cambridge              22    6     5     11    27    34    -7    23
21.         Barrow                 22    7     2     13    23    40    -17   23
22.         Dartford               22    6     1     15    30    38    -8    19
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.         Stevenage              22    4     5     13    22    47    -25   17
24.         Blackpool              22    3     6     13    27    46    -19   15

 

[CFuller]

DECEMBER 2024

Mitchell Clark had been struggling for form in recent weeks, so I planned to drop the midfield workhorse for a couple of games early in December. As fate would have it, I didn't really have a choice. Mitchell pulled his hamstring during a reserve match against Maldon & Tiptree, so he now faced an enforced absence of at least four weeks.

 

With Ahletdin Israilov also injured, and neither Aaron McEwan nor Thomas Tierney yet ready to return, we were nowhere near full-strength when we hosted mid-table Chesterfield. The Spireites had lost their last five games in all competitions, so my Daggers predecessor Johnnie Jackson was under some pressure to get a result on his return to Victoria Road.

 

7 December 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Chesterfield

We tested Chesterfield's goalkeeper Michael Hewson after just half a minute, when the Ipswich Town loanee had to block a low shot from Yasser Ibrahim. In the fourth minute, Hewson watched Willie Dickson fire a free-kick just past his left-hand post. The Spireites then had a questionable penalty claim waved away before Dickson put them behind in the 8th minute. Willie's finish from Tim Beech's cross got us off to a fantastic start!

 

We soon became rather nervy, though, as both Geraint Harding and Lee Heffernan got into the book after conceding fouls. Following Lee's yellow card on 13 minutes, Chesterfield's Jack Blake struck a dangerous free-kick that Robbie Ryder did well to turn behind. Our captain made further saves from Blair Davidson in the 19th minute, and then from Blake again three minutes later.

 

Robbie's saves would be crucial, as we had the momentum again by the 24th minute. Moments after striking the crossbar from a free-kick, Dickson found the net for a second time, as he headed a wonderful Ben Purrington cross beyond Hewson!

 

Chesterfield were now panicking, and their captain Brad Potts drove wide a couple of speculative shots shortly after the restart. Hewson was much more composed, as he caught another dangerous Dickson free-kick after 27 minutes. Both sides were evenly matched late on in the first half, but in the last minute of normal time, Yasser Ibrahim hit the side netting with a volley that might have put us three goals ahead. Would that be costly?

 

Sinan Bytyqi almost clawed a goal back for Chesterfield in the 47th minute, but his deft flick from Callum McConnell's free-kick was tipped over by the excellent Ryder. Dickson then had a couple more attempts to complete his hat-trick. Willie's 49th-minute free-kick was held by Hewson, and his 51st-minute effort unluckily hit the post.

 

When Dickson failed to score from further opportunities in the 69th and 70th minute, he perhaps felt that the match ball didn't have his name on it. Chesterfield felt that it wouldn't be their day when Potts and Bytyqi both fired well wide moments later. The Spireites were badly underperforming, though Hewson played quite well, to his credit. On 77 minutes, he punched away a close-range header from Wayne Coton to keep the scoreline down to 2-0.

 

Hewson's efforts to maintain respectability would prove to be in vain. With six minutes left to play, Tim hoofed a fabulous long ball from the halfway line and up to to Yasser, whose calm half-volleyed finish made it 3-0!

 

The points were safely ours, so I gave teenage defender Glenn Canham his first taste of league football as a replacement for Heffernan. Glenn had only just entered the field when, in the 89th minute, our other centre-back Coton hurt himself while trying to tackle Potts. Wayne came off clutching his side in total agony, and for the second game in a row, we had to finish a man light.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Dickson 8,24, Ibrahim 84)

Chesterfield - 0

League Two, Attendance 3,327 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Chesterfield 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan (Canham), Coton, Purrington, Harding (Tshibola), Dunne, Roche (J Jones), Hart, Ibrahim, Dickson. BOOKED: Harding, Heffernan.

 

A 3-0 win should've been reason to celebrate… but Wayne Coton's injury left me in a state of utter despair. Wayne would miss at least the next six weeks with fractured ribs. That meant we were now without our three best central defenders - Messrs McEwan, Tierney, and Coton.

 

I spent the next week sweating over who would partner Lee Heffernan at centre-back for the home game with Kidderminster Harriers. I thought about plugging that gap with James Dunne, Willie Dickson, or even Neil Munn… but I eventually decided to grant 17-year-old Glenn Canham his first senior start.

 

On a more positive note, we had Reice Charles-Cook back in the team. Reice had been away for a fortnight in Saint Kitts and Nevis, where his penalty-saving heroics won Jamaica a record ninth Caribbean Cup against Suriname.

 

Upon his return to the UK, Charles-Cook found that the in-form Robbie Ryder had usurped him as our number 1, so he was reduced to bench-warming duties against Kidderminster. The Harriers were in 10th place at the halfway point of the League Two season, and they boasted a strong record away from home.

 

14 December 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Kidderminster Harriers

The first half-hour was as ugly as anything. Save for a few corners, neither team looked like creating any meaningful chances to score. Kidderminster got their first in the 24th minute, when Mark Gibson's corner caused us a problem. Daggers midfielder Geraint Harding could only head it on to the Harriers' Scottish winger Jay Seeley, who fired an excellent shot that Robbie Ryder tipped away at his right-hand post! Gibson also went close on 33 minutes, firing just over the bar.

 

Tim Beech fired our first effort off target in the 35th minute. Our second came in the 44th, and Willie Dickson drilled it against the post. Kidderminster launched another attack a minute later, from which Ellis Leach missed the target by inches. Young Dagenham defender Glenn Canham's full debut wasn't going as badly as I feared, as we remained on course for a clean sheet at half-time.

 

The first 15 minutes of the second half was very encouraging from a Daggers perspective. After 48 minutes, Geraint Harding sent a fantastic long ball to Jonathan Roche, who took on the Harriers defence on his own and wasn't too far away from scoring.

 

Jonny's next shot in the 58th minute was less promising, as he snatched after cutting inside. Three minutes later, Seeley was booked for an ugly trip on our Irish winger. That was one of 11 fouls Kidderminster would commit in this match. We were on our best behaviour, only conceding one foul all game, but that wasn't necessarily a good thing. We seemed to lack any real fighting spirit, and our counter-attacks were often very ineffective.

 

The only save Harriers keeper Jamie Mowbray had to make was in the 71st minute, when he denied Ahletdin Israilov. Jamie Bell came on as a substitute for Yasser Ibrahim a minute later and had three shots at goal, but none of them were on target.

 

Kidderminster were much more threatening when they went forward. Robbie was kept on his toes late on, catching a couple of headers from Mitchell Warden and Anthony Ward after 80 and 84 minutes respectively. But with four minutes left to play, the rest of our defence buckled. Lee and Glenn were both too slow to react when Ward latched onto Warden's cross and fired it past an apoplectic Ryder!

 

As soon as the Harriers broke through, we knew we were beaten. Kidderminster added another late goal in injury time, with Seeley ensuring that the Worcestershire side would beat us 2-0 for the second time this season.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Kidderminster Harriers - 2 (Ward 86, Seeley 90)

League Two, Attendance 3,435 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Kidderminster 8th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, Canham, Purrington, Harding, Dunne, Munn (Israilov), Roche, Ibrahim (J Bell), Dickson.

 

That defeat really annoyed me, and it left me wondering how on Earth we could get some consistency going. There was, though, one thing that I was now certain of. Glenn Canham was not ready for first-team football, and he probably wouldn't ever be.

 

A week later, Thomas Tierney was fit enough to return from his broken ankle and slot into our defence for our next away game. Tommy and our other defenders would have their work cut out against a quick Morecambe attack, although the 3rd-placed Shrimps' poor home record gave us some encouragement.

[CFuller]

DECEMBER 2024 (continued)

21 December 2024: Morecambe vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Morecambe midfielder Ryan Smith fired a volley at goal in the second minute, and Robbie Ryder pushed it away. A minute later, Yasser Ibrahim struck the post for Dagenham. Yasser's next effort came in the 9th minute, as his header was caught by Declan Rudd.

 

The early stages of this match would see plenty of shots, mostly from Morecambe. The Shrimps were very wasteful, as Jimmy Stuart, Matt Grimshaw and Joe Goss all missed the target before the 20-minute mark. When Stuart fired another attempt off course in the 26th minute, the hosts began to get frustrated. We took full advantage a minute later, as Lee Heffernan tore their defence open with a stunning long ball to Jamie Bell. Jamie took it on, slipped past Rudd, and then finished to give us a 1-0 lead!

 

The Shrimps tried to respond in the 29th minute, but Ryder was equal to Mel Petty's long-range strike. A minute after that, we launched a devastating attack that almost resulted in our second goal. Willie Dickson couldn't quite find the net after weaving through a chaotic Morecambe defence, but he did provide the assist when we went 2-0 up after 34 minutes. Willie's first-time pass allowed Jamie to tap the ball home for the second time. We were almost in dreamland!

 

Petty gave us something to worry about in the 37th minute, when his drive narrowly cleared the bar. However, a surprisingly solid Daggers defence shut the hosts out brilliantly to maintain our advantage going into the second period.

 

Rudd prevented Bell from completing his hat-trick just 24 seconds after play resumed in the second half. The Shrimps goalkeeper also tipped over Jonathan Roche's 48th-minute curler before it could find its way into the net. Those early saves spurred Morecambe on to up their game, and by the 53rd minute, they'd halved our lead through George Barker.

 

Normal service was resumed three minutes later, as our two-goal cushion was swiftly restored. Dickson flicked the ball to Bell, who raced past Shrimps defender Marty Magee. Once Jamie went one-on-one with Rudd, there was little doubt that he would complete his treble.

 

Dickson then looked to get his name on the scoreboard in the 58th minute, but Rudd turned his shot behind. Shortly after that, Daggers midfielder Aaron Tshibola picked up a knock following a tackle on Petty. Aaron had to come off, so I sent James Dunne on in his place. While I was at it, I gave young winger Wayne Parmenter his league debut as a replacement for Roche. Big mistake.

 

After 65 minutes, Wayne gave the ball away to Morecambe left-back Haris Hodzic. The next Dagenham player to touch the ball was Ryder, who was picking it out of his net after Stuart had scored a freak goal from the touchline! We'd been pegged back again, and at only 3-2 up, the pressure was really on.

 

In the 68th minute, Willie chipped a free-kick into Morecambe's penalty area, with the aim of finding Lee's head. Rudd read the kick well, though, and punched it away before Heffernan could pounce.

 

Rudd may have had the beating of Dickson, but it was a different matter where Bell was concerned. Early in the 76th minute, Jamie used his pace to break through the backline again and latch onto another clinical through-ball from Willie. As soon as Rudd came off his line, Bell picked his spot and secured his FOURTH goal of the afternoon!

 

That goal finally killed the brave Shrimps off, and in the 84th minute, the hosts were fearing that Jamie would strike again. Bell half-volleyed just too high, but although he couldn't score for a fifth time, he'd already done more than I'd asked of him. After 87 minutes of thrilling football, Jamie was taken off to a standing ovation from both sets of supporters. His quartet of goals had fired up to 17th place - our best position yet - and moved us nine points clear of the drop.

 

Morecambe - 2 (Barker 53, Stuart 66)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (J Bell 27,34,56,76)

League Two, Attendance 4,660 - POSITIONS: Morecambe 7th, Dag & Red 17th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, Tierney, Andersen, Roche (Parmenter), Harding, Tshibola (Dunne), Ibrahim, Dickson, J Bell (Munn).

 

Thanks to Jamie Bell, who'd almost doubled his goal tally this season from 5 to 9, it felt like Christmas had come early for us. I let the Daggers players enjoy the holidays with their families, but it was straight back to business on Boxing Day.

 

Our last home game of the year was against Chester, who were in 5th place and chasing promotion to League One. The weather at Victoria Road was very rainy, so both teams were likely to find the conditions tough.

 

26 December 2024: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Chester

Chester's experienced frontline gave us a fright after five minutes. Former Burnley striker Danny Ings played a delicate first-time pass to Uche Ikpeazu, whose shot Robbie Ryder blocked with his legs. Two minutes later, Dagenham right-back Tim Beech played a fabulous cross to the far post, but Pablo Vázquez headed it over. Willie Dickson did trouble the target in the 11th minute, when his close-range free-kick was caught by Alan Page.

 

Both sides struggled in the rest of the opening half-hour as the Boxing Day showers got worse. When the weather eased off in the 32nd minute, things became a lot sunnier for the Daggers. Midfielder Geraint Harding played a corner into the six-yard box, where centre-half Lee Heffernan thrashed in his first senior goal!

 

Heff's hammer gave us a 1-0 lead, which almost became 2-0 shortly after the restart. Willie Dickson's header was brilliantly kept out by Page, and the Scottish target man was then tackled by Brad McKay as he tried to convert the rebound.

 

After 40 minutes, Ryder caught a low strike from Ikpeazu as Chester looked to finish the half strongly. Two-and-a-half minutes later, Robbie made another save from Matthew Harriott's free-kick. Steven Symington got to the loose ball just before it could cross the byline, and his centre deflected off Beech before Ings tucked it away.

 

The Blues were now level… but not for long. We won ourselves a penalty in the last minute of normal time after Heffernan was brought down by Symington. Dickson duly converted the spot-kick, and we were back in front at 2-1.

 

Both teams had injuries to worry about early in the second half. Ikpeazu's game came to an end after he collided with Thomas Tierney in the 50th minute. Meanwhile, teenage Daggers winger Wayne Parmenter picked up a couple of knocks, the second of which forced him off after 53 minutes.

 

Chester then came on strong after the hour mark. Their Northern Irish winger Bickram Cook was particularly threatening, as he showed Beech a clean set of heels before firing wide in the 64th minute. Another Cook shot went awry in the 67th minute, but the Blues did produce their second equaliser a minute later. Right-winger Aryn Williams' cross evaded the otherwise brilliant Heffernan and found midfielder Bob Lamb, who made it 2-2.

 

I subbed Jamie Bell off after that equaliser and sent Neil Munn on to try and restore our lead. Chester also made their intentions clear by bringing on the veteran attacking midfielder Ben Reeves, who drilled the ball inches wide in the 74th minute. Seven minutes later, another Blues sub - Derek Osman - went close from a free-kick. Close wouldn't be good enough for the visitors, as my decision to introduce Munn paid off after 86 minutes.

 

Neil received a pass from Tim just inside Chester's penalty area, and he promptly thrashed it beyond Page - to the delight of the home fans! We'd gone ahead for the third time, and with Ings unable to produce another leveller for Chester, we held on to take the three points!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Heffernan 32, Dickson pen45, Munn 86)

Chester - 2 (Ings 43, Lamb 69)

League Two, Attendance 3,001 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 17th, Chester 6th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech (Jack), Heffernan, Tierney, Andersen, Parmenter (Roche), Harding, Tshibola Vázquez, Dickson, J Bell (Munn).

 

We were now 11 points clear of the drop… and if we could win at Forest Green Rovers 48 hours later, we would suddenly be thinking about an unlikely push for the play-offs. With such a short turnaround between games, I decided to rest a number of key players for our trip to Gloucestershire.

 

28 December 2024: Forest Green Rovers vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Our visit to The New Lawn got off to a terrible start, as Forest Green scored after just four minutes. We were unable to clear Cameron Brannagan's right-wing cross before Austin O'Sullivan tapped it in to set the ball rolling for Rovers.

 

O'Sullivan threatened to score again in the 7th minute, but his free-kick was tipped over by Reice Charles-Cook, who was playing in his first league game since October. Five minutes later, Daggers veteran James Dunne was booked for trying to cut down FGR counterpart Liam Bridcutt. We won our first corner a minute later, but O'Sullivan cleared a poor delivery from Jonathan Roche.

 

In the 20th minute, Jonny swung in a much more promising corner to Geraint Harding at the near post. Home goalkeeper Russell Lawless flawlessly tipped Geraint's header over the bar, giving us another corner, from which Lee Heffernan nodded wide. Willie Dickson struck a terrible shot from the edge of the area on 22 minutes as our frustrations continued to grow. Six minutes later, we cried for a penalty after accusing Alex Kitching of handling Willie's free-kick into the area, but the ref saw nothing wrong.

 

Then, in the 39th minute, Forest Green midfielder Philip Kirkpatrick pounced on a woeful pass from Neil Munn. He lofted it forward to Ballard, whose flick-on was powerfully volleyed in by O'Sullivan.

 

Austin was overpowering us, and in the 42nd minute, he headed over a chance that should have that clinched his hat-trick. That miss became more significant in injury time, when Dickson's header from Dunne's throw pulled us back to just one goal behind.

 

After the interval, O'Sullivan took just 18 seconds to complete his treble. His headed finish from another sublime Brannagan cross made it 3-1 to Forest Green, and any optimism we had at the break withered away. Heffernan's woes in the Dagenham defence continued as he was booked in the 53rd minute before heading over in the 60th.

 

Then, after 61 minutes, O'Sullivan was involved in yet another Rovers goal. This time, he provided the assist for Zak Ballard, whose close-range finish pretty much did for us. There was surely no way we could fight back from 4-1 behind… but Dickson did not believe that.

 

After 68 minutes, Willie almost found the net with a fabulous curling free-kick, only to strike the woodwork. He fared much better two minutes later, slotting home from Roche's excellent long ball.

 

Dickson was now aiming to match O'Sullivan's three-goal haul, but his miscued header from Arno Andersen's 84th-minute cross kept him stuck on two. Roche also missed a chance late on in what proved to be a 4-2 defeat.

 

Forest Green Rovers - 4 (O'Sullivan 4,39,46, Ballard 61)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Dickson 45,70)

League Two, Attendance 2,385 - POSITIONS: Forest Green 11th, Dag & Red 17th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Jack, Heffernan, Tierney, Purrington (Andersen), Roche, Harding, Dunne (Israilov), Ibrahim, Dickson, Munn (J Bell). BOOKED: Dunne, Heffernan, Jack.

 

Without Willie Dickson, Forest Green would surely have blown us out of the water. Indeed, Willie's exceptional performances over the course of December would see him named as League Two's Player of the Month. Lee Heffernan received the Young Player of the Month award, in spite of his bad day at The New Lawn.

 

I can't really complain about how 2024 has finished. We're still 11 points above Blackpool and Stevenage in the bottom two, and if we can start 2025 well, a top-half finish is not beyond us. Bring the New Year on, I say!

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of December 2024)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          Bristol City           27    15    7     5     41    21    +20   52
2.          Wycombe                27    14    7     6     37    25    +12   49
3.          Luton                  27    15    3     9     48    39    +9    48
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4.          Mansfield              27    13    7     7     39    33    +6    46
5.          Morecambe              27    13    5     9     40    33    +7    44
6.          Chester                27    12    7     8     38    35    +3    43
7.          Swindon                27    12    6     9     36    26    +10   42
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Kidderminster          27    12    5     10    33    25    +8    41
9.          Leyton Orient          27    11    8     8     32    25    +7    41
10.         Hartlepool             27    11    7     9     29    34    -5    40
11.         Forest Green           27    11    6     10    39    34    +5    39
12.         Port Vale              27    10    8     9     40    39    +1    38
13.         Chesterfield           27    11    5     11    38    37    +1    38
14.         Aldershot              27    11    5     11    50    58    -8    38
15.         Hereford               27    10    7     10    45    39    +6    37
16.         Rotherham              27    9     10    8     38    32    +6    37
17.         Dag & Red              27    9     6     12    37    40    -3    33
18.         Bournemouth            27    8     8     11    36    35    +1    32
19.         Barrow                 27    9     3     15    30    46    -16   30
20.         Bristol Rovers         27    6     11    10    31    39    -8    29
21.         Cambridge              27    8     5     14    33    42    -9    29
22.         Dartford               27    7     4     16    40    46    -6    25
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.         Blackpool              27    5     7     15    33    54    -21   22
24.         Stevenage              27    5     7     15    27    53    -26   22

 

[CFuller]

JANUARY 2025

It may have been a New Year, but I didn't want to make a lot of changes in January - certainly not where my backroom was concerned. Coaches John Potter and Mike Jones each signed new two-and-a-half-year deals with Dagenham & Redbridge, as did chief scout Callum Donnelly.

 

Jonathan Roche also confirmed his commitment by extending his deal until next season, but he wasn't the only Irish winger to sign a contract with us in January.

 

Back in November, left-winger Gareth Flood signed a pre-contract agreement with us after rejecting an offer to stay at his hometown club Dundalk. The 18-year-old Republic of Ireland youth international completed his move on New Year's Day, and he went straight into the squad for our home match with in-form Luton Town.

 

After making a poor start to the season, Luton had shot all the way up to 3rd place in recent months. In their last 12 matches, Neville Powell's Hatters had picked up an incredible 32 points out of a possible 36! That exceptional run had given them a great opportunity to return to League One for the first time since 2008.

 

1 January 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Luton Town

When Willie Dickson had a shot saved by Luton goalkeeper Scott Flinders in the 9th minute, we seemed to have the edge. However, our shooting gradually got worse in what would be a torrid first half.

 

Aaron Tshibola blazed a shot over the Hatters bar in the 16th minute. After 23 minutes, Dickson threaded a fine pass to Yasser Ibrahim, whose shot also went over. By the 31st minute, it was Willie's turn to hammer a shot into the stands.

 

Luton also wasted chances, as Steven McGann went wide on 27 minutes, and Jerome Whiston headed over from close range five minutes before half-time. This match could only get better in the second period.

 

I got my lads fired up for the second half - but defensive midfielder Geraint Harding looked a tad nervous. In the 52nd minute, Geraint was muscled off the ball by the vastly-experienced Luton midfielder Luke Murphy. Joseph Cleaver took the ball and played it through to Hatters captain Simon Killeen, who somehow missed a clear chance! Nobody expected such profligacy from a man who'd scored over 100 league goals in his Luton career.

 

Killeen gave Robbie Ryder a more thorough test in the 65th minute, when Ryder stretched to keep out his next attempt. Robbie denied the former England youth international once again eight minutes from time, catching his header. That was followed moments later by a spectacularly wayward miss from Dagenham midfielder Ahletdin Israilov.

 

I would have settled for a 0-0 draw at that moment, but in the 88th minute, we launched one last counter-attack. Geraint hoofed the ball forward to Jonathan Roche, who attempted to nod the ball into the area. Hatters defender Calvin Knott intercepted it… but he got his back-pass all wrong, allowing Jamie Bell to rush forward and steal a victory for the Daggers! Jamie's 10th goal of the season had won us three invaluable points!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 88)

Luton Town - 0

League Two, Attendance 3,263 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 17th, Luton 4th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, Tierney, Andersen, Harding, Munn (Roche), Tshibola, Israilov, Ibrahim (Flood), Dickson (J Bell).

 

It was a superb way to kick off the New Year, and things got even better for me personally a couple of days later. For the first time in my career, I had been headhunted by another club. A big-name League One club had made a formal approach for my services, and they were offering good money in an attempt to prise me away from Dagenham. It was an attractive offer…

 

…but I deferred my final decision until after the Daggers' next two matches. First up was an away game against AFC Bournemouth, who were now directly below us in 18th place. This marked captain Aaron McEwan's first game since he sprained his ankle in mid-November.

 

4 January 2025: AFC Bournemouth vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Worryingly, Bournemouth nearly scored after only two minutes. Luke Gibbs fired a free-kick against the bar before our goalkeeper Robbie Ryder tipped it behind for a corner. In the 12th minute, a Dagenham counter-attack ended with Willie Dickson firing our first shot wide.

 

Willie was then booked for diving in the Bournemouth penalty area in the 17th minute. The big Scot made up for that two minutes later with a sublime through-ball to Jamie Bell, who was only denied the opening goal by a brave save from Cherries goalie Jak Alnwick. Dickson tried to fire in the rebound, but Alnwick kept out that effort as well.

 

After 30 minutes, Willie sought out a brilliant run from Jamie, whose skillful half-volley was blocked by Bournemouth defender Meshach Venables. That missed opportunity would be costly, as the Cherries bit us on the break moments later. Their captain Chris Sunderland inflicted the damage, weaving through our defence before slipping the ball past Ryder. Bournemouth had a slender 1-0 lead, but late misses from Aaran Barrett and Gibbs meant it was no more than that at the half-time interval.

 

I had some stern words for my players at the break, but they took a while to take effect. After 48 minutes, Sutherland went on the counter-attack for Bournemouth and played in Gibbs, who drilled the ball inches wide. Alfie Donaghue's header at goal a minute later was, thankfully, less concerning.

 

We launched a breakaway of our own in the 52nd minute, as Dickson half-volleyed the ball to Bell. Jamie darted past Bournemouth full-back Carl Nelson to go one-on-one with Alnwick, and the equalising goal duly followed!

 

In the 56th minute, we were looking good to take the lead. Young Irish right-winger Gareth Flood drilled a cross from the byline to Dickson, whose diving header was blocked by Alnwick's back before Steve Digby cleared.

 

We went dangerously close to going behind again three minutes later, as West Bromwich Albion loanee Frode Krovel's shot fizzed just past the post. The Norwegian missed another chance on 71 minutes - five minutes after Alnwick had pushed away an effort from Dickson. Neither team would seriously threaten the other in the closing stages, so a 1-1 draw was perhaps the right result in the end.

 

AFC Bournemouth - 1 (Sutherland 31)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 52)

League Two, Attendance 3,508 - POSITIONS: Bournemouth 18th, Dag & Red 17th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, McEwan, Purrington, Roche, Tshibola, Dunne (Hart), Ibrahim (Flood), Dickson (Munn), J Bell. BOOKED: Dickson.

 

We then had a home meeting with 15th-placed Leyton Orient. The O's had lost their last two games, conceding eleven goals in the process, so we fancied our chances against them.

 

8 January 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Leyton Orient

Dagenham & Redbridge veteran James Dunne struggled early on, missing the target twice with terrible shots in the opening nine minutes. Dunne also received a yellow card in the 14th minute for pulling on Max Weatherstone's shirt. At least James had a better time than Leyton Orient's right-back Dinesh Vaughan, who hurt his ribs while tackling Paul Hart and had to come off after just five minutes.

 

Vaughan's team-mate Brian Maun blasted the ball over our bar in the 16th minute, shortly after Willie Dickson had done likewise at the other end. Willie got closer to scoring after 21 minutes, when his free-kick was caught by Orient goalie Abou Magaye.

 

Six minutes later, the O's launched a promising attack of their own. The visitors passed the ball in and around our area before Maun lashed in a fierce strike that Robbie Ryder couldn't keep out. We'd not played well at all in the opening half-hour, so it was not surprising that we were 1-0 down.

 

It also surprised nobody that Dunne failed to find the target with another vicious drive after 34 minutes. Ahletdin Israilov and Jamie Bell were each off target later on as we went into the break still trailing by that single goal. Indeed, Weatherstone had come within inches of doubling our deficit in the 42nd minute.

 

Three minutes into the second half, Dickson fired an encouraging volley at goal, and Magaye only just kept it out. In the 54th minute, O's centre-back Leon Francis tested Ryder with a bullet that Robbie just about turned behind. The resulting Orient corner didn't produce anything, but we quickly launched a breakaway before Israilov headed Arno Andersen's cross wide.

 

Then, after 61 minutes, we opened Leyton Orient up with some incisive passing. Ahletdin laid the ball forward to 17-year-old attacking midfielder Paul Hart, who promptly scored the first goal of his Football League career!

 

We were level, but Orient almost restored their lead within two minutes. Maun curled a fine cross to substitute Lee Finnie, who headed just wide against his old club. Magaye then caught a 73rd-minute drive from Mitchell Clark before winning a one-on-one battle with Neil Munn moments later. By that stage, the O's had brought on Hasney Little as their third and final substitute. Little gave Ryder a big test on 74 minutes, but Robbie passed it with a strong save.

 

In the 78th minute, Leyton Orient put us under some extreme pressure. Captain Claudio McIntosh executed a brilliant tackle on Clark and presented Finnie with a fantastic opportunity to score. Robbie parried Lee's shot against his left-hand post, but the ball then bounced off the other post and fell perfectly for Little. 2-1 to Leyton Orient.

 

At that point, I pushed everyone forward and brought on Pablo Vázquez as my last substitute. An earlier sub almost drew us level with eight minutes remaining, but Munn's header from Israilov's cross was spectacularly tipped behind by Magaye. The Mauritania keeper made another big stop shortly afterwards, catching a deflected header from Aaron McEwan.

 

In the final minute, Vázquez was in a great position to score our second equaliser, but Francis tackled the ball off him at a crucial moment. Another key moment involving the Mexican came just as the match entered injury time. Vázquez sauntered past Francis and hit a shot that Magaye pushed straight back towards him. Pablo's rebound volley flew into the net, saving us a point from a thrilling encounter that could've gone either way!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Hart 61, Vázquez 90)

Leyton Orient - 2 (Maun 27, Little 78)

League Two, Attendance 3,755 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 17th, Leyton Orient 13th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Tierney, McEwan, Andersen, Harding, Dunne (Clark), Israilov, Hart, J Bell (Vázquez), Dickson (Munn). BOOKED: Dunne, Andersen, Harding, McEwan.

 

Now… about that offer I received. The team that inquired about my services was Derby County, who had fallen from grace since last winning the league championship 50 years ago. The Rams sat fourth-from-bottom in League One, although they had won their last two games since they first approached me.

 

I was very intrigued by Derby's approach, and my chairman Antonello Scolaro gave me permission to speak with them. So, on Thursday, I took the day off work, and travelled all the way up to Pride Park for talks.

 

I had very positive discussions with Derby chairman Fraser Marsh, whose enthusiasm and love for his hometown club shone through. Although County were battling to avoid dropping into League Two, Mr Marsh genuinely believed that he could lead his team back into the Premier League. They had the infrastructure, and they had the financial backing… they just needed the right manager for this 'exciting project', as he called it.

 

Mr Marsh then offered me a two-and-a-half-year contract worth £1,500 per week. If I took the job, I would have a January transfer budget of £200,000, and a weekly wage budget of close to £70,000. I could only dream of those sorts of figures at Dagenham & Redbridge.

 

The chairman then asked me, "So what do you reckon, me duck? Are you in?"

[edtheguy]

Aaah, the siren call of being wanted by the 'bigger club' is always hard to resist... especially when the resources are there.

Nice cliffhanger - I am anxiously awaiting the decision!

[CFuller]

Aaah, the siren call of being wanted by the 'bigger club' is always hard to resist... especially when the resources are there.

Nice cliffhanger - I am anxiously awaiting the decision!

Derby's offer was certainly a tempting one that I had to think long and hard over. They're really struggling in League One right now, but they have pretty much everything in place for a crack at the Premier League if they choose the right manager to turn it around.

True story: Derby approached me in-game just three days before I went on holiday to Derbyshire in real life! Talk about coincidence!

[CFuller]

JANUARY 2025 (continued)

I had a big decision to make. Derby County were after my services, and they were offering very attractive terms. My head said that it was a no-brainer. I had to take the job…

 

…but my heart said no. I couldn't leave Dagenham & Redbridge in the lurch now - not in the middle of their first season back in the Football League. I told Fraser Marsh that, while I was very flattered by his offer, it had come at the wrong time. I still had a long-term project back home in Essex.

 

The day after turning down Derby's approach, I continued to draw up my long-term plans for Dagenham. Two players whose contracts would run out in the summer were told that they could already look for new clubs.

 

Left-back Warren Barrett, who'd just returned from a loan stint at Grays Athletic, was given permission to speak to other clubs. After receiving several offers, he chose to sign a pre-contract agreement with Wingate & Finchley.

 

35-year-old James Dunne was also informed that he would not be retained, and he subsequently announced that he would retire from playing at the end of the season.

 

I then had another week to prepare for what was likely to be a very difficult away game at Bristol City. Greg Abbott's Robins had led the way for much of the campaign, only for Wycombe Wanderers to knock them off their perch in the last round of matches.

 

18 January 2025: Bristol City vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Although we were away to arguably the best team in League Two, we weren't afraid to attack early on. We won our first corner after only five minutes, but Ahletdin Israilov's delivery was cleared by Bristol City defender Gorka Franco. In the 10th minute, Robins keeper Stuart Moore caught a close-range header from Willie Dickson. That came about a minute after Daggers goalie Robbie Ryder made his first save to keep out Christian Embry's low drive.

 

City would give us sterner tests as the half wore on. Right-back Alexander Harris cleared the bar in the 18th minute, while former Manchester United winger Raouf Jaziri went inches wide in the 22nd. Three minutes later, Jaziri tried to claim a penalty after Arno Andersen tackled him in the Daggers penalty area. The decision went our way, and that riled the Tunisia international. On 29 minutes, Jaziri sent the ball across our goalmouth, and Bristol City captain Mark West tapped it in for the opening goal.

 

Once the Robins went ahead, a second goal was always on the cards. Robbie's fabulous save from Matt Peters' fierce drive in the 37th minute did little more than delay the inevitable. Three minutes after that, a slip from Arno allowed Jaziri to assist West for his and the Robins' second goal. Lawrie Anderson then went close to making it 3-0 in the 44th minute.

 

Harris flighted a free-kick just over the bar three minutes into the second period. City then eased off somewhat as we tried to find a way back into the match. Our path was blocked by Moore, who twice denied Dickson with saves in the 56th and 62nd minutes.

 

Willie's frustrations got the better of him after 65 minutes, when he pushed Robins defender William Ekong and got a yellow card. He was the second of three Daggers players to be booked on what would be an all-round bad day at the office. We struggled to create chances, we conceded far too many fouls, and our defending was laughable at times.

 

Frankly, it was almost a miracle that we only lost 2-0 against a top-class side. Ryder's 86th-minute block from Anderson's drive at least kept the final score respectable in what was a one-sided contest.

 

Bristol City - 2 (West 29,40)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

League Two, Attendance 7,219 - POSITIONS: Bristol City 1st, Dag & Red 18th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Heffernan, McEwan, Andersen (Purrington), Clark, Harding (Dunne), Roche, Israilov, Vázquez (Ibrahim), Dickson. BOOKED: Harding, Dickson, McEwan.

 

That was our first defeat of 2025, and I couldn't really argue with it. In all honesty, Bristol City were more than a cut above us, and I'd be very surprised if they were still in League Two next term.

 

I hoped for a closer battle in our next away game, as we took on another of the division's high-flyers - Mansfield Town. Paul Cox had been at the helm at Field Mill since 2011 and was the Football League's longest-serving manager.

 

25 January 2025: Mansfield Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Mitchell Clark went agonisingly close to getting us off to the perfect start in the second minute, when his shot fizzed past the upright. Willie Dickson worried Mansfield further in the 10th minute with an excellent 25-yard free-kick that was well caught by Remi Matthews. Willie tried another shot from distance two minutes later, and Matthews was equal to that one as well.

 

Following our bright start, the Stags knocked us down with not one but TWO killer blows. The first came after 16 minutes, when striker Joshua Turner latched onto a clinical threaded pass from winger Sol Mackey and drilled Mansfield into a 1-0 lead.

 

Eight minutes after that, former Falkirk and Dunfermline Athletic midfielder Joe McKee's well-taken free-kick saw us fall further behind. Centre-half Joe Khan met it with a sublime header that beat Robbie Ryder and left some Daggers fans screaming, "KHAAAAN!"

 

I felt like screaming and shouting at my players in the 27th minute, when Ryder had to tip Turner's curler away before it increased Mansfield's two-goal advantage further. Our defensive positioning was absolutely shocking, and you could say that about our shooting as well.

 

Geraint Harding's 34th-minute drive, which went well past the far post, was actually as good as it got for us before half-time. On 38 minutes, our left-back Ben Purrington was lucky not to concede a corner after bringing down Turner just inside the Daggers area. Ben was subbed at the break after a wretched display, as was our underperforming poacher Jamie Bell.

 

Neil Munn was one of the two players I brought on for the start of the second half. Three minutes into it, he had a great opportunity to get us a goal back after Dickson sent him one-on-one with Matthews. Sadly, Neil could only knock the ball straight at Matthews, who needed two attempts to secure it.

 

Over the next eight minutes, Mansfield spurned four chances to build a three-goal lead. Those misses would come back to bite the Stags in the bottom. Just as the 60-minute mark was about to be passed, Pablo Vázquez tried to search out Dickson or Munn in the Mansfield area. His cross was intercepted by Stags captain Lee Sweet, but the left-back's header fell to Ahletdin Israilov, who half-volleyed home at the far post.

 

I hoped that goal would spark us into life… but that wasn't to be the case. The hosts pushed forward again, with McKee going very close to reinstating their two-goal lead after 71 minutes. Two minutes after that, the Scottish midfielder swung in a corner that Jordan Burrow nodded wide.

 

We then had two chances to equalise in the 75th minute, but Dickson failed to hit the target, and Munn was denied by Matthews' fingertips. Five minutes later, the Stags finished us off with their third goal. Burrow's very last act before being substituted was to finish from Turner's cross and make it 3-1.

 

Mansfield found the net once again after 83 minutes, when substitute Terry Pratt's shot was deflected over the line off Khan's head. That deflection got the goal disallowed for offside, but the home fans still came away very happy, our fans less so.

 

Mansfield Town - 3 (Turner 16, Khan 24, Burrow 80)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 60)

League Two, Attendance 4,388 - POSITIONS: Mansfield 3rd, Dag & Red 18th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Tierney, McEwan, Purrington (Andersen), Harding, Clark (Hart), Vázquez, Israilov, Dickson, J Bell (Munn).

 

The optimism I had at the start of January had ebbed away. We've picked up just two points from our last four matches, and if that bad run carries on into February, we will surely be dragged back into the relegation dogfight.

 

Goalkeeper Daryl Ryan and defender Billy Kenyon gave us some extra depth after returning from their six-month loan spells at Boreham Wood and Ebbsfleet United respectively. Meanwhile, striker Joel Jones went on loan to our feeder club Dulwich Hamlet for the next four months.

 

There was one incoming loan at Victoria Road, with West Bromwich Albion's 19-year-old midfielder Courtney Watkins joining us for the remainder of this term. He previously had a short stint in Ireland with Shamrock Rovers.

 

Another temporary signing was that of former West Ham United and Hull City left-back Danny Potts, who signed a short-term contract until the summer. The 30-year-old Londoner has won eight caps for the United States, where his father - Hammers icon Steve - was born.

 

Danny's arrival means that there is no future at Dagenham for Ben Purrington, who will be leaving us this summer. Mexican winger Pablo Vázquez has already left after his loan stint from Portsmouth expired.

 

Will those changes in personnel make a difference as we bid to retain our Football League status?

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of January 2025)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          Bristol City           32    16    9     7     47    28    +19   57
2.          Wycombe                32    16    9     7     42    29    +13   57
3.          Mansfield              32    15    10    7     52    41    +11   55
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Morecambe              32    16    6     10    46    34    +12   54
5.          Kidderminster          32    16    5     11    38    27    +11   53
6.          Luton                  32    16    5     11    53    43    +10   53
7.          Chester                32    15    8     9     48    42    +6    53
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Swindon                32    14    9     9     44    30    +14   51
9.          Rotherham              32    13    11    8     50    35    +15   50
10.         Forest Green           32    14    7     11    51    38    +13   49
11.         Hereford               32    12    9     11    55    43    +12   45
12.         Leyton Orient          32    12    9     11    38    42    -4    45
13.         Aldershot              32    13    6     13    60    69    -9    45
14.         Port Vale              32    11    11    10    44    45    -1    44
15.         Hartlepool             32    12    8     12    32    42    -10   44
16.         Chesterfield           32    12    6     14    45    48    -3    42
17.         Bournemouth            32    10    10    12    40    38    +2    40
18.         Dag & Red              32    10    8     14    42    48    -6    38
19.         Barrow                 32    10    4     18    37    54    -17   34
20.         Cambridge              32    9     6     17    37    47    -10   33
21.         Bristol Rovers         32    7     12    13    35    47    -12   33
22.         Dartford               32    8     4     20    44    58    -14   28
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.         Blackpool              32    6     10    16    40    60    -20   28
24.         Stevenage              32    6     8     18    32    64    -32   26

 

[CFuller]

FEBRUARY 2025

February signalled the start of what you could call this season's third trimester. We had 14 games to pull clear from the drop and maintain our status in League Two, if not make a late charge for the play-offs.

 

First up was a real must-not-lose game at home to bottom side Stevenage. The Boro had won just two of their first 16 matches under new manager Jamal Fyfield, who took over from Simon Wormull in late October. A victory for them would drag us further towards the drop zone.

 

1 February 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Stevenage

Stevenage keeper Matty Miller pulled off a couple of early saves as we put the Boro under immediate pressure. Miller caught a header from Thomas Tierney in the 6th minute, and then tipped over another from Willie Dickson a minute later. He would deny Dickson again on 12 minutes, shortly after wing-back James Davies fired Stevenage's first effort wide.

 

Davies had a much better opportunity for the visitors after 14 minutes, firing Dave Rowley's through-ball against the bar. The ball then bounced off Daggers goalie Reice Charles-Cook's back and went out for a corner, but Aaron Bragg's delivery was nothing for the Boro to brag about.

 

Four minutes later, it was the visitors' turn to breathe a sigh of relief, as Ahletdin Israilov struck their woodwork! Gareth Flood got to the rebound and won a corner off Stevenage defender Ashley Eastham, but that too was a waste.

 

In the 28th minute, Davies intercepted a sloppy throw from our vice-captain Tim Beech. He took the ball all the way from the halfway line to our penalty area, where he pulled it wide. Three minutes later, Miller caught another Dickson header to keep the scoreline at 0-0. That hadn't changed by the break, as the first half had fizzled out completely.

 

Stevenage were quick to get going when play resumed for the second half. After 51 minutes, James Wilson played a lovely ball to his Boro strike partner Rowley, whose shot was turned behind by Charles-Cook. The subsequent corner didn't result in anything, but Stevenage won another shortly afterwards. Bragg's delivery to the far post was perfectly weighted for Rowley, who shrugged off McEwan and headed in the opening goal. We were 1-0 down at home to the division's bottom team!

 

Thankfully, there was no indication that we would be embarrassed any further. Canadian wideman Bragg didn't trouble the target with a poor shot in the 58th minute, and neither did former Aston Villa midfielder Gary Gardner two minutes later.

 

Bragg came off in the 72nd minute after picking up a knock in a tackle from Dagenham debutant Courtney Watkins. His exit would have a big impact as we took the game to Stevenage late on.

 

On 83 minutes, Dickson fed the ball to Daggers sub Jamie Bell, whose close-range shot was parried by Miller. Ex-Rangers defender Paul Hanlon blocked the ball before it could fall to Yasser Ibrahim, but Jamie reacted quickly and scored at the second time of asking! We'd salvaged one point - could we now save the other two?

 

In the final few seconds of injury time, Mitchell Clark headed Miller's free-kick to Bell, who passed first-time to Dickson. Willie took the ball forward, went for glory… and missed the target. We had to settle for a draw, but I knew it could have been a lot worse.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 83)

Stevenage - 1 (Rowley 52)

League Two, Attendance 3,344 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Stevenage 24th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Tierney, McEwan, Andersen, Clark, Watkins, Flood (Ibrahim), Israilov (Roche), Dickson, Munn (J Bell).

 

As soon as the final whistle blew, I shook hands with my Stevenage counterpart Jamal Fyfield, acknowledging that his team had deserved a point. After that, I headed down the tunnel… and then my mind went blank.

 

I woke up some time later, flat on my back on the floor of our dressing room. I was surrounded by my players and backroom staff, all of whom looked somewhat concerned. I asked what had happened, and my assistant Fabio Saraiva replied, "You passed out, gaffer."

 

I then went to see the club doctor. He concluded that I was suffering from exhaustion, and no wonder. I had worked ludicrously long hours on Friday night to get Danny Potts signed up before the deadline, and I was only able to have a few hours' sleep before the Stevenage game.

 

The doctor suggested that I should get some rest, so I took a couple of days off, with Fabio taking charge of training. I was then back in the dugout for the following Saturday's meeting with Swindon Town. The Robins had demolished us 4-1 at the County Ground back in September, so we looked to get our revenge when they paid us a visit.

 

8 February 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Swindon Town

Danny Potts didn't have the best start to his Dagenham & Redbridge career. In the first 15 seconds, young Swindon winger Louie Pears effortlessly got past our left-back and fired a shot into the side netting. The Robins' next attack was less threatening, as Darren Wood missed by miles in the 9th minute.

 

Our own shooting also needed some fine-tuning. Geraint Harding and Jamie Bell both went wayward with their efforts in the 12th and 19th minute. By the 27th minute, though, we were beginning to hit our stride. Winger Jonathan Roche troubled the Robins defence with a sublime cross to Yasser Ibrahim, whose header Michael Hewson had no trouble saving.

 

Robbie Ryder made his first save after 35 minutes, and it would prove to be a pivotal one from our goalkeeping captain. Wood looked odds-on to tap Connor Glover's cross into the net, but Robbie just about managed to smother the ball before Swindon could take the lead. We then launched a devastating counter-attack, and when Bell slipped his shot into the corner of Swindon's net, we were celebrating going 1-0 up!

 

By half-time, our lead had increased to 2-0. Robins full-back Marvin Walker's attempted clearance bounced off Roche's chest, allowing Jonny to race clear before enhancing our position further! As things stood, we were on course for a fabulous result!

 

We nearly went 3-0 up just two minutes into the second half, but Hewson did well to block Mitchell Clark's low strike. That chance had been created by Bell, whose 60th-minute shot was deflected behind for a corner. Nothing came out of that corner, and we soon found ourselves under the cosh.

 

The first warning sign came when Ryder narrowly managed to get his fingers to a shot from Swindon left-back Jake Bidwell in the 64th minute. Hewson pushed away a 75th-minute lob from Ahletdin Israilov that could have allayed our worries, but we would be firmly on the back foot in the closing stages.

 

Four minutes later, Wood nodded Hewson's long goal kick on to Pears. The 20-year-old ran through the space between Potts and Aaron McEwan, evaded Danny's tame challenge, and calmly finished to halve our advantage.

 

Two minutes after that, in the 81st minute, Potts really started to panic. Johnson Bassey's attempted long ball to his Swindon team-mate Paul Devine looked like it was about to drift harmlessly out for a goal kick… until Danny made a feeble attempt to head it back to Robbie. Northern Ireland midfielder Devine intercepted the back pass and headed it across goal - but not into the goal.

 

Wood also missed an opportunity to equalise for the Robins on 86 minutes, hammering the ball inches past Ryder's left-hand post. After hanging on for the last few minutes, we claimed our first win in six attempts and moved further clear of the drop!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (J Bell 35, Roche 45)

Swindon Town - 1 (Pears 79)

League Two, Attendance 3,295 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Swindon 10th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, McEwan, Potts (Andersen), Harding, Clark, Hart (Watkins), Roche, Ibrahim (Israilov), J Bell. BOOKED: Ibrahim.

 

We now had a three-week break before our next match. During that time, the chairman allowed me to work slightly shorter hours to try and keep my stress levels down. After all, nobody at the club wanted a repeat of my collapse against Stevenage.

 

The break was rather less relaxing for two of our players, who picked up injuries. Yasser Ibrahim would miss about a month with a back strain, and Lee Heffernan was sent to a specialist after damaging his neck in a reserve game.

 

Meanwhile, I received an offer from another club that wanted me as their new manager. Dundee - a Scottish Division 1 club owned by a Swiss consortium - had anointed me as their preferred successor to the much-travelled Danny Wilson. I didn't waste much time in turning them down.

 

After our much-needed rest, we were raring to go for the away trip to Aldershot Town. Aldershot had the worst defensive record in League Two - the 4-0 pasting we'd given them at Victoria Road in October didn't help matters as far as the Shots were concerned.

 

25 February 2025: Aldershot Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Just ten minutes into the game, we took the lead with our first shot at goal. Irish youngster Gareth Flood played a one-two with Jamie Bell before slotting the ball past Aldershot goalkeeper Jay Lynch. It was Gareth's maiden goal for the Daggers!

 

By the 22nd minute, though, the Shots had cancelled Gareth's strike out by scoring with their first shot! Toby Cook's cross was finished by veteran midfielder Kyle Benedictus, and it was level pegging.

 

Aldershot now had their tails up, and they were hungry for a second goal. After 30 minutes, Dagenham left-back Danny Potts had to make a superb interception to stop Stefan Courts' long ball from sending Adam Campbell through. In the 41st minute, Campbell was heavily involved in a home counter-attack that ended with Gerard Kelly firing wide.

 

Shortly after that latter miss, a mistake from Courts gifted Bell an opportunity to restore our advantage. Jamie raced clear, sidestepped Lynch… and hit the post. That miss ensured that we would go into the break with the scores level at 1-1.

 

Jamie's wasted opportunity was still affecting us early in the second half. Winger Gerard Hibbert had two opportunities to put Aldershot ahead in the 48th minute. He fired a free-kick against the Dagenham ball before heading Christopher Rodgers' long ball into Robbie Ryder's hands soon afterwards.

 

On 51 minutes, Shots midfielder Gearóid Morrissey narrowly cleared the bar with a fierce drive. The Irishman went much closer four minutes later - in fact, he headed compatriot Jordan Keegan's corner into the net to make it 2-1 Aldershot.

 

We were now staring at defeat, but our new star from the Emerald Isle was determined not to let that happen. After 68 minutes, Bell looked to hit the Shots on the break with a stunning run down the right flank. Just before reaching the byline, Jamie crossed to Gareth, who finished for his second goal of the night! Flood's heroics had saved us a point, although Jonathan Tymon nearly took it away with a fierce 81st-minute shot that just went beyond the post.

 

Aldershot Town - 2 (Benedictus 22, Morrissey 55)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Flood 10,68)

League Two, Attendance 3,361 - POSITIONS: Aldershot 14th, Dag & Red 17th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, McEwan, Potts, Harding, Clark, Hart (Watkins), Roche (Israilov), Flood, J Bell (Dickson).

 

And so, after just three matches, we finished the month unbeaten. We weren't completely out of relegation danger, though - and our battle to avoid the drop suffered a major injury blow just before March.

 

Aaron McEwan was in serious discomfort after a training session on the Thursday morning before our next match. The club physio Sam Cutler quickly diagnosed him with knee tendonitis. Aaron would have to miss the rest of this campaign, and possibly the opening stages of next season.

 

Big Mac will leave a big void in our team. Can we hold firm in our captain's absence?

[CFuller]

MARCH 2025

On the first day of March, we faced one of our longest journeys of the season - to the New York Stadium. That, of course, was in South Yorkshire, rather than across the pond. 5th-placed Rotherham United were likely to be very tough to beat at their home ground, where only two teams had beaten them in the league all season.

 

1 March 2025: Rotherham United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

I was quite happy for us to sit back against a quick Rotherham attack and look to hit the Millers on the counter. Unsurprisingly, the hosts would be utterly dominant in the first half. After 11 minutes, Allan Robertson was inches away from heading captain Graham Kane's corner into the net. Rotherham won another corner four minutes later. On that occasion, Marcus Shephard swung it deep to defender Tom Anderson, whose diving header didn't remotely worry Robbie Ryder.

 

Robbie had even less to do when Kane struck the ball off target in the 20th minute. Rotherham would have two more chances before half-time, but Alex Nimely headed wide after 32 minutes, and Kane missed the target once again four minutes later.

 

By the time both sides returned to their dressing rooms, Rotherham had registered seven shots on goal, compared to just one for us. That had come in the 23rd minute, when Ahletdin Israilov's long-distance effort was easily caught by Millers goalkeeper Billy Granger.

 

The home team again went close to scoring when the second half was barely a minute old. Nimely cut the ball back to midfielder Nigel Hilton, whose edge-of-the-area strike was turned away by Ryder.

 

Millers boss Martin Foyle kept faith in Nimely, but not his strike partner Robertson, whom he later replaced with Nicky Lawson. After 60 minutes, that substitution looked like a masterstroke. A poor first touch from Gareth Flood allowed Rotherham to set up their opening goal, which Lawson curled exquisitely into the top corner of Robbie's net from 25 yards!

 

It was a truly wonderful goal… but you couldn't say that about Lawson's next effort in the 66th minute. He got to Jay Bishop's superb cross to the far post, only to head it against the top of the crossbar! Three minutes after nearly going 2-0 up, Rotherham's lead was wiped out by some midfield magic from Courtney Watkins and Mitchell Clark. The Daggers pair exchanged passes before Courtney drilled home his first goal for the club!

 

Following that equaliser, I decided to bring on Willie Dickson in place of Bell. I also replaced Israilov with Paul Hart ten minutes from the end. Those substitutions would have a significant impact later on, but not before Kane half-volleyed wide for Rotherham in the 81st minute. That would prove to be a very costly miss for the Millers.

 

In the second minute of injury time, Hart intercepted a wayward pass from Bishop and played it up to Dickson. Willie got between Rotherham's center-backs Anderson and Jamie Richards, and then delighted the away fans with a wonderful finish! It was 2-1 to Dagenham & Redbridge, but there was still time for the script to be altered.

 

In literally the final few seconds, Nimely hit a 30-yard ball upfield to Jay Ashley… and the substitute headed Rotherham's 15th shot of the game into Ryder's hands. Despite our opponents having five times as many shots as us, we had claimed an invaluable win away from home!

 

Rotherham United - 1 (Lawson 60)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Watkins 69, Dickson 90)

League Two, Attendance 6,320 - POSITIONS: Rotherham 7th, Dag & Red 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, Tierney, Potts, Clark, Watkins, Israilov (Hart), Roche, Flood (Andersen), J Bell (Dickson).

 

In the circumstances, that victory was a truly fantastic result. We were now just four points off my target of 50 points, which I reckon would be enough to keep us up.

 

We would take another massive stride towards survival if we won our next home match against Hereford United. A victory could move us into our highest league position so far.

 

8 March 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Hereford United

Dagenham winger Gareth Flood tested Srikumar Mahendran in the third minute with a bender that the Hereford keeper did well to catch. Moments later, it was Robbie Ryder's turn to prevent an early goal. The Daggers captain brilliantly turned Bulls striker Clark Mitchell's header against his bar. Hereford's next few efforts were less worrying, as Kyle de Silva drilled a shot wide in the 11th minute before Ryan Wilks headed off target three minutes later.

 

We upped the tempo after 19 minutes, when on-loan midfielder Courtney Watkins skimmed the bar at the end of a thrilling move. We couldn't build on that momentum, though, as another Mitchell header went just over on 22 minutes. Six minutes later, Daggers left-back Danny Potts tried to use his head to clear Rob Dunkley's cross out of harm's way. Sadly, his clearance took a poor deflection off right-back Louis Jack, and Mitchell was perfectly placed to tap in the rebound.

 

1-0 Hereford was how the scoreline stayed at the break, although the Bulls could've been further clear by that point. Marc Bagan hit a poor volley in the 34th minute, and Wilks found the side netting just before half-time.

 

Hereford gained a greater foothold on proceedings after five second-half minutes. Mitchell Clark was robbed by United captain Steven Hewitt, whose introduction as a half-time sub would inspire his team. Hewitt found Dunkley in yards of space, and the winger's cross was duly nodded home by Wilks. That was Wilks' 26th goal of an incredible season, and it left us trailing 2-0.

 

Paul Hart had a quick opportunity to wipe out half of that deficit, but his woeful strike in the 52nd minute went miles wide. On 67 minutes, Paul set up a chance for Courtney, who fired narrowly over just moments after Dunkley had come within inches of further increasing our arrears.

 

Hereford again went tantalisingly close to a 3-0 lead after 72 minutes, when Ryder tipped a fierce Wilks drive onto his left-hand post and watched it bounce across goal. The woodwork was clearly determined to prevent the visitors from running riot, and so was Wayne Coton. The courageous centre-back was beastly in the air and was named man of the match, even though we would lose 2-0. Our last chance to change that nought was six minutes from the end, but it came to nought, as Hart could only fire straight at Mahendran.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Hereford United - 2 (Mitchell 28, Wilks 50)

League Two, Attendance 3,728 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Hereford 9th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Coton, Tierney, Potts, Clark (Harding), Watkins, Hart, Roche (Israilov), Flood, J Bell (Dickson).

 

We slipped to 18th after our fifth home defeat in the league this season, but we had an opportunity to resume our ascent just three days later. If we could complete a double over Port Vale by beating them at Vale Park, we would leap ahead of the Valiants.

 

11 March 2025: Port Vale vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Port Vale's squad included veteran striker Jose Baxter - a former Scottish Premier League winner with Hibernian. Baxter nearly gave his new team the lead with two excellent shots in the 10th minute. The first went out off the bar, while the second was tipped away by Dagenham keeper Reice Charles-Cook. Nine minutes later, Reice misjudged the flight of Rory Ferguson's byline cross, gifting Tendayi Darikwa an opportunity to head Port Vale in front. Fortunately, Darikwa could only find the side netting.

 

The Valiants carried on making chances, and they also continued to waste them. Baxter and Ferguson each went wide with shots in the 27th and 32nd minutes respectively, while some great defending from Wayne Coton prevented the hosts from posing an even greater threat.

 

Later on, we began to show Port Vale that they weren't going to have things all their own way. Jamie Bell's 34th-minute drive didn't get near the goal, although Ahletdin Israilov did trouble Roscoe Fryatt in the Vale goal eight minutes later.

 

Five minutes into the second period, Vale left-back Jordan Halsman slid the ball away from Mitchell Clark's feet. Ryan Jack laid the loose ball forward for Baxter, who cut outside Coton and hit a shot that Charles-Cook managed to turn aside. Six minutes later, Valiants substitute Sam Stanton opened up space for himself on the left flank. He received a great pass from fellow half-time sub Ron Peake, and then hammered the ball over.

 

We had another narrow escape after 59 minutes, when Charles-Cook came off his line to block Peake's powerful effort. A minute later, Dickson sent a wonderful header into the Port Vale area, where Jamie Bell struck a sweet left-footed half-volley. It would've been an incredible goal, but Fryatt's acrobatic save ensured it wasn't to be.

 

Another case of 'so near, yet so far' came when Mitchell Clark's 71st-minute free-kick went just the wrong side of Fryatt's left-hand post. Two minutes later, a poor tackle from Tim Beech on Stanton handed Port Vale a big free-kick opportunity of their own. Baxter curled his free-kick over the Daggers wall… and inches over the bar.

 

Baxter threatened us with another free-kick in the 87th minute, and that time, Charles-Cook did have to make a save. Shortly after that, the brilliant Coton headed the ball back to Clark, who played a long pass up to Dickson. Willie raced clear of Port Vale centre-back Lee Kilday, and then fired an unstoppable strike beyond Fryatt! I suspected that the offside flag would go up, but it stayed down, and we went mad in the Daggers dugout! For the second away game in a row, we had smashed and grabbed a victory in the dying moments!

 

Port Vale - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Dickson 87)

League Two, Attendance 3,717 - POSITIONS: Port Vale 16th, Dag & Red 15th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Coton, Heffernan, Potts, Clark, Watkins (Dunne), Flood (Andersen), Israilov, Dickson, J Bell (Munn). BOOKED: Dunne.

 

A few days later, I watched a team of youth candidates defeat our Under-18s in a trial match. After the game, I signed up five players from the successful team - goalkeeper Stephen Flood, full-backs Denis Bartley and Zac Johnson, midfielder Gordon Boyd, and striker Sotiris Giangoudakis. Interestingly, 15-year-old Stephen is the younger brother of our new first-team winger Gareth Flood!

[CFuller]

MARCH 2025 (continued)

Next on the schedule was a Sunday afternoon game at home to Hartlepool United. That match should've taken place on Saturday, but Hartlepool asked for it to be pushed back 24 hours - because their reserves were hosting a Durham Challenge Cup Semi Final against Esh Winning on the same day. Clearly, some county games take precedence over Football League fixtures!

 

A draw would take us to that 50-point target I had in my mind at the start of the season, while a victory would see us overtake the Pools in the standings.

 

16 March 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Hartlepool United

Dagenham midfielder Mitchell Clark didn't go far wide with a free-kick in the second minute, and neither did Luke James with Hartlepool's first effort just moments later. In the 12th minute, James skipped past a challenge from Wayne Coton and struck a 25-yarder straight at Daggers keeper Reice Charles-Cook. Two minutes after that, Reice watched Australian midfielder Jordan Gray hammer a shot wide of his goal.

 

While the Pools failed to make the most of their early opportunities, we edged closer and closer to taking the lead. Wayne agonisingly skimmed the bar with a header in the 16th minute, while Willie Dickson wasted another good chance in the 21st. When Ahletdin Israilov found an opening for Dickson two minutes later, Willie did not show the same profligacy. An emphatic low strike into the corner put us 1-0 up.

 

In the 27th minute, though, Hartlepool were back on level terms. James carved open our defence with a superb pass to his strike partner Mamadou Coly, who slipped the ball past Reice for 1-1.

 

Three minutes later, Pools midfielder Martin Smith created a rare opportunity for left flanker Warren Daniels, who hit the far post. After getting so close to taking the lead, Hartlepool lost their cool somewhat, with Smith and Gray both picking up bookings within the next five minutes. After 44 minutes, Dickson almost restored our advantage in incredible fashion from 30 yards out. Tim Coleman met his strike with a strong save to keep the half-time score level.

 

Jamie Bell had a quiet first half for us, but he came to life after the break. On 50 minutes, he volleyed Tim Beech's cross towards Coleman, who could only parry it towards Dickson. Willie couldn't quite get a clean-enough touch to punish Coleman, but we did go 2-1 up about a minute later. Ahletdin's right-wing cross took a fortunate deflection off Connor Peters' back, and Jamie finished the rebound!

 

Coly tried to restore parity for Hartlepool in the 55th minute, but the Senegalese forward didn't strike his second shot as well as his first. He also didn't pose as much of a threat to us as Dickson did to Hartlepool. The big Scot skimmed a low drive at goal after 69 minutes, and Coleman just about got his fingers to it.

 

Willie wasn't quite so close to the target with his next attempt in the 73rd minute, although he did find the side netting after precisely 80 minutes. Four minutes passed, and then Dickson got his best chance yet to score his second goal of the afternoon. It came after Daniels tripped Israilov just inside the Pools area, prompting the referee to point to the spot. Willie placed his penalty perfectly, and we were leading 3-1!

 

Dickson had claimed the headlines, and after 88 minutes, he set out to claim a hat-trick. Willie pounced on a dreadful first touch from Pools skipper Kristian Smart, but he could only strike the ball against the post before Coleman caught it. It didn't really matter, as three more points continued our good form and moved us up to 13th!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Dickson 23,pen84, J Bell 51)

Hartlepool United - 1 (Coly 27)

League Two, Attendance 4,049 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 13th, Hartlepool 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Coton, Heffernan, Andersen, Clark, Watkins (Harding), G Flood (Potts), Israilov, Dickson, J Bell (Munn). BOOKED: Clark, J Bell.

 

We had been playing in a more direct manner recently, and that was certainly producing the results. With seven matches still to play, we were 14 points clear of the drop. Only a collapse of epic proportions would send us back into the Conference Premier now.

 

International call-ups meant we had the following weekend off, but we did return to action on the last Saturday of March. We were away to Cambridge United, who were still firmly in a battle against the drop.

 

A couple of attacking players picked up injuries just before this game. Yasser Ibrahim would miss the next three weeks with a thigh strain, while Neil Munn was unlikely to play again this season after pulling his hamstring.

 

29 March 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Cambridge United

Cambridge launched a string of early attacks, but they didn't make them count. Winger Lloyd Howard and captain Rossi Millard both sent the ball wide before Joseph Sodiq skimmed the bar with a long-range strike in the 10th minute.

 

The pace then slowed down somewhat until the 24th minute, when Cambridge had two more chances to draw first blood. My heart was racing when Sodiq found Howard in a great position near the penalty spot, but much to my relief, Howard missed the target completely. Shortly after that, Millard put a 25-yard strike into the stands.

 

We first troubled the U's after 27 minutes, when Milton Bannister tipped over Jamie Bell's header from an excellent Jonathan Roche cross. In the 35th minute, Jonny floated another right-wing delivery perfectly for Willie Dickson, who unfortunately headed it against the bar. Cambridge quickly went back on the attack through Howard, who forced Dagenham goalkeeper Reice Charles-Cook into his first save of the match.

 

United may have had the edge as far as creating chances was concerned, but they were being very wasteful. In contrast, Dickson showed great prowess to give us the opening goal in the last minute of normal time. Willie chested Jonny's header into the penalty area, had a shot blocked by Cambridge defender Lubomir Satka, and then put the rebound away! The big Scotsman had scored his fifth goal in as many matches to send us into the dressing room with a 1-0 advantage!

 

Dickson looked to continue his excellent form in the 49th minute, when he intercepted a terrible back-pass from United's Brazilian midfielder Paco. Willie ran through to the edge of the area, where he completely miscued his shot. That looked like being a costly miss, as Cambridge upped their game over the next ten minutes.

 

After 53 minutes, Howard tested Charles-Cook's resolve with a long-distance free-kick… and Reice held it well. Four minutes later, Millard gave his left-hand post a whack from a tight angle. Charles-Cook's opposite number Bannister had to catch a header from Jamie Bell in the 60th minute, but that would be a rare Daggers chance in a half the visitors largely dictated.

 

Cambridge's skipper Millard continued to shoot wherever and whenever he could, and he was consistently inaccurate. After 10 shots that were either blocked or off target, he finally tested Charles-Cook in the 77th minute. Daggers fans were relieved to see Reice punch it away just before it could fly in.

 

They were also thankful that Wayne Coton was putting in another brilliant shift at centre-back. Wayne only made one mistake all game… and it would cost us the lead after 80 minutes. His heavy touch from Satka's long ball allowed Joshua Lamb to send Sodiq through for Cambridge's equaliser. Needless to say, I was absolutely furious.

 

Two minutes before Sodiq's leveller, Roche had wasted a fantastic opportunity to put us 2-0 ahead after Paco made another woeful pass in his own penalty area. In the past, losing our advantage moments after almost doubling it would've been a fatal blow. This time, we got off the canvas and hit back at Rio Ferdinand's side.

 

On 85 minutes, Willie muscled the ball off Lamb's feet and fired at goal. Bannister's parry could only send the ball straight to Bell, who made it 2-1 with a clinical finish! Incredibly, for the third away game on the trot, we had taken the three points with a late goal!

 

Cambridge United - 1 (Sodiq 80)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Dickson 45, J Bell 85)

League Two, Attendance 3,675 - POSITIONS: Cambridge 21st, Dag & Red 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech, Coton, Tierney, Potts, Roche (Watkins), Clark, Harding (Israilov), G Flood (Andersen), Dickson, J Bell. BOOKED: Flood.

 

Jamie Bell had scored for the 15th time this season - and his latest goal was arguably his most important. I glanced at the league table after arriving back home, and discovered that we were now 16 points ahead of 23rd-placed Barrow… who had just 15 left to play for!

 

With one month and six matches to go, we are already assured of safety!

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of March 2025)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.          Morecambe              41    22    7     12    59    39    +20   73
2.          Mansfield              41    20    12    9     69    53    +16   72
3.          Forest Green           41    21    7     13    65    45    +20   70
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Rotherham              41    19    12    10    68    44    +24   69
5.          Bristol City           41    19    11    11    56    37    +19   68
6.          Kidderminster          41    20    8     13    55    39    +16   68
7.          Wycombe                41    19    10    12    52    44    +8    67
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Chester                41    18    10    13    59    54    +5    64
9.          Hereford               41    17    11    13    75    53    +22   62
10.         Swindon                41    17    11    13    54    43    +11   62
11.         Luton                  41    17    7     17    65    64    +1    58
12.         Leyton Orient          41    15    12    14    52    59    -7    57
13.         Aldershot              41    16    9     16    72    86    -14   57
14.         Chesterfield           41    16    8     17    56    59    -3    56
15.         Hartlepool             41    16    8     17    45    59    -14   56
16.         Dag & Red              40    15    10    15    55    57    -2    55
17.         Port Vale              41    12    12    17    53    67    -14   48
18.         Bournemouth            41    11    13    17    44    45    -1    46
19.         Bristol Rovers         41    11    13    17    54    68    -14   46
20.         Dartford               41    12    7     22    57    69    -12   43
21.         Cambridge              41    11    8     22    51    63    -12   41
22.         Blackpool              40    10    11    19    56    69    -13   41
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.         Barrow                 41    10    9     22    42    65    -23   39
24.         Stevenage              41    8     12    21    46    79    -33   36

 

[EvilDave]

Great work on survival Mr Fuller, and with a winnable game in hand to boot by the looks of things. A good season and well-written as ever, keep it going!

[CFuller]

Great work on survival Mr Fuller, and with a winnable game in hand to boot by the looks of things. A good season and well-written as ever, keep it going!

It's great that we've crossed the line with time to spare. The play-offs are probably out of our reach now, but we can certainly break into the top half if we finish strongly.

[CFuller]

APRIL 2025

To be honest, there were times this season when I didn't expect to be taking things easy come April. However, a run of five wins and just one loss in our last eight matches had given us the freedom to relax. Relegation was no longer a possibility, and we would remain in League Two for another term, barring an incredible surge taking us into the play-offs.

 

Our excellent run in March almost led to me winning League Two's Manager of the Month award, but that instead went to Nigel Reo-Coker of promotion-chasing Forest Green Rovers. It was also a great month for defender Wayne Coton, who was a nominee for both Player and Young Player of the Month.

 

It didn't really matter anymore in terms of our league status, but could we keep up the good work in April? These were our final six fixtures:

2 April: vs Blackpool (H) - Blackpool were 22nd, and had won four away games in a row

5 April: vs Bristol Rovers (A) - Bristol Rovers were 19th, and had lost their last four matches

12 April: vs Wycombe Wanderers (H) - Wycombe were 7th, and had won just one away game this year

19 April: vs Barrow (H) - Barrow were 23rd, and had not won in 13 matches in all competitions

21 April: vs Dartford (A) - Dartford were 20th, and had lost just twice in nine games

26 April: vs Chesterfield (A) - Chesterfield were 14th, and had not won away from home since October

 

Some of our matches still had a potentially huge bearing on the relegation picture. The first of them was at home to a Blackpool side who had recently risen out of the relegation zone with four wins in their last six games. If the Seasiders could beat us for the second time this season, they would move five points clear of danger.

 

2 April 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Blackpool

There was an air of déjà vu at Victoria Road as, just like at Bloomfield Road, Reis Collins gave Blackpool the lead after just seven minutes. The teenage striker finished off a clever passing move from the Seasiders, and we were already on the back foot.

 

Blackpool captain Ryan Lynch almost added a second goal from a free-kick in the 12th minute, but his Daggers counterpart Robbie Ryder held onto it well. Two minutes later, our striker Jamie Bell miscued a header from Mitchell Clark's free-kick into the Blackpool area.

 

Wayne Coton got closer to the target with a header of his own after 20 minutes, but he was unfortunate to hit the bar. In the 28th minute, Willie Dickson got his head to Gareth Flood's left-wing cross… and it was third time unlucky again, as he found the roof of the net.

 

We would actually have one more aerial effort just before half-time. You won't be surprised to learn that Jamie didn't get a good connection to Jonathan Roche's cross. Our direct attacking game just wasn't working against Blackpool.

 

Our plight nearly worsened in the 50th minute, when Ryder had to catch Collins' header from Archie Love's wonderful long ball. Two minutes later, things did turn from bad to worse. Dickson pulled a hamstring after clashing with Seasiders defender Ronnie Potter, bringing his game - and his season - to an end.

 

17-year-old Joel Honeyball came on in Willie's place, and we had to ditch our long-ball approach for something more methodical. It looked to be working in the 61st minute, when Bell drove the ball just wide from the edge of the area. A minute later, though, Blackpool hit us on the counter. Their attack ended with Collins racing past Coton and hammering the ball beyond Ryder's reach. At 2-0, the Seasiders were well on course to record another heavy win over us.

 

Craig Connor nearly made it 3-0 in the 67th minute, while Ryder brilliantly kept out a low bullet shot from Love three minutes later. Three more minutes passed, and then Collins put a piledriver over, narrowly missing out on his hat-trick. To be honest, a third goal would not have flattered Blackpool. The fact we failed to get any of our shots on target against them tells you all you need to know about how shocking our performance was.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Blackpool - 2 (Collins 7,62)

League Two, Attendance 3,464 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 16th, Blackpool 20th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack (Beech), Coton, Heffernan (Tierney), Potts, Roche, Clark, Harding, G Flood, Dickson (Honeyball), J Bell.

 

It was perhaps just as well that we were already safe. Losing for a second time to relegation-threatened Blackpool, and losing Willie Dickson for the rest of the season, would have been two very difficult setbacks to recover from if we had still been in danger.

 

Next up was a trip to the Memorial Stadium, where we knocked Bristol Rovers out of the FA Cup earlier this season. A repeat result would further hamper the survival chances of a Rovers team who'd lost their last four games.

 

5 April 2025: Bristol Rovers vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Compared to our previous game, we started off much more positively. Ahletdin Israilov came within inches of firing us into the lead from a free-kick after just two minutes. Shortly after that, Paul Hart rode past a challenge from Bristol Rovers defender Oliver Kent and pulled a shot just wide of the post. Kent picked up a knock in his failed challenge, but he later resumed action. Hart also had to come off briefly in the 11th minute following a collision with Rovers midfielder Theo Wharton.

 

Our bright start continued after 17 minutes, when Israilov curled a fantastic corner to Wayne Coton in the Pirates' six-yard box. Coton swung a leg at the ball, and Angus Gunn was just able to block it. The home captain's hands weren't quite so safe five minutes later, as he gifted us the opening goal by pushing Israilov's byline cross into the net!

 

The Memorial Stadium went quiet, but the Gasheads livened up again after 31 minutes. Rovers winger Fearghal McDonald got to his team-mate Paul McInnes' cross just ahead of a sluggish Danny Potts, and his finish levelled the scores.

 

Three minutes later, Hart unleashed a fierce shot at goal as he sought to restore our advantage, but Gunn handled it well. Bristol Rovers then pressed forward again in a bid to move ahead for the first time. McInnes hit a poor strike from distance in the 39th minute, although McDonald almost scored from a similar range during injury time. Thankfully, his half-volley took a nick off Coton and deflected out for only a corner, so the score remained 1-1 at the interval.

 

Eight minutes into the second half, a soft giveaway from Hart allowed Bristol Rovers to go on the counter. Geraint Harding stopped the breakaway before it became anything serious, but fellow Daggers midfielder Courtney Watkins quickly lost us the ball again to Terry Dawson. Wharton then passed to McInnes, whose 25-yard bolt was held by our custodian Reice Charles-Cook.

 

There was little to comment on after that until Gunn diverted Geraint's 72nd-minute piledriver over the bar. Five minutes later, a Rovers attack appeared to break down when McInnes' pass hit McDonald in the back. However, McDonald recovered to take the ball past our substitute left-back Arno Andersen and hammer it at goal. Reice pushed it on to Wayne, whose assured clearance typified another strong display from the young centre-half.

 

Coton could have lent some advice to Charles-Cook about how to get the ball out of danger, as after 83 minutes, our keeper fired it straight at Wharton. Seconds later, Darren Holden played a stunning left-wing cross to Chris Atkinson, who headed wide what could've been the winner.

 

After that narrow escape, I took right-back Tim Beech off and gave 18-year-old Daniel Ward his league debut. That risky substitution would not cost us dear, as we were able to share the spoils with Bristol Rovers after a very close contest.

 

Bristol Rovers - 1 (McDonald 31)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 22)

League Two, Attendance 4,804 - POSITIONS: Bristol Rovers 18th, Dag & Red 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Charles-Cook, Beech (Ward), Coton, Tierney, Potts (Andersen), Harding, Watkins, Hart, Israilov, G Flood (Roche), J Bell. BOOKED: Hart.

 

Although I was happy to take a point away from Bristol, our failure to win all but mathematically knocked us out of the play-off race. Never mind...

[CFuller]

APRIL 2025 (continued)

I was not too fussed about where we finished in the table, as long as we stayed in the top 16. I was therefore willing to take a few risks for our home game with Wycombe Wanderers, which took place on the day after my 40th birthday.

 

Reserve goalkeeper Daryl Ryan marked his 20th birthday by making his first league start for us. 17-year-old Joel Honeyball replaced the out-of-form Gareth Flood on the left wing, while Gareth was joined on the bench by a handful of youth-team players.

 

12 April 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Wycombe Wanderers

Ahletdin Israilov didn't take long to give me a belated birthday present. In the eighth minute, following an excellent display of passing from Dagenham, Israilov drilled the ball towards goal. Visiting keeper Chris Dunn kept the initial shot out, but Ahletdin slid the rebound home for 1-0!

 

Five minutes later, Jonathan Roche sliced through the Wycombe defence with a sublime ball to Tim Beech, but the right-back's cross was headed wide by Jamie Bell. We could've paid the price for that miss when Wycombe counter-attacked in the 17th minute. Winger Tommy Thompson played a superb cross-field pass to Dylan Dixon, who drove the ball narrowly over from the 'D'. We attacked again two minutes later, when Dunn tipped Roche's effort over his bar.

 

Dunn was not needed when Bell pulled an ambitious shot off target after 21 minutes. Five minutes later, though, the 37-year-old Chairboys custodian was beaten again. Israilov outpaced former Daggers loanee Charlie MacGregor to connect with Roche's weighted pass and hammer it home!

 

Ahletdin's second goal left Wycombe with a mountain to climb... and the Chairboys began their long trek after 38 minutes. Jonny was punished for an untypically poor pass when the Wanderers' counter-attack was finished by a strong finish from striker Ross Draper. The visitors were back in it, and although Dixon and Jake Charles both missed chances to level late in the first half, we had reason to be concerned.

 

My worries were justified, as Wycombe reduced what had been a 2-0 Daggers lead to dust in the 53rd minute. Just like with the Chairboys' first goal, Thompson's low cross from the right was tucked away by Draper, and the play-off chasers were level.

 

The visitors' joy would be short-lived, as defender Kevin MacDonald conceded a free-kick just outside his area in the 57th minute. Mitchell Clark took the set-piece… and there was no way Dunn was going to keep it out of the top corner!

 

Four minutes after giving us our lead back, Mitchell nearly scored from another free-kick, but Dunn narrowly diverted that one over. Ahletdin swung the resulting corner to Lee Heffernan, whose bullet header cleared the bar. Then, in the 65th minute, it looked like history would repeat itself for a third time. Thompson's right-wing delivery was on its way to Draper just outside the six-yard box when Heffernan came in with a superb tackle. Draper looked to the ref, but there was no penalty call forthcoming.

 

Our rookie keeper Daryl Ryan had already conceded two goals, but in the 71st minute, he did brilliantly well to prevent a third from getting past him. Daryl's fantastic save from veteran midfielder Stephen Husband's fierce drive was the first of his competitive Dagenham career. He would make two more before the final whistle. Ryan caught Husband's free-kick after 74 minutes, and then turned over a close-range header from substitute striker Kevin Friesenbichler after 85. Those late saves secured us a home win that could easily have slipped away from us.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Israilov 8,26, Clark 57)

Wycombe Wanderers - 2 (Draper 38,53)

League Two, Attendance 3,617 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 13th, Wycombe 7th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Beech, Coton, Heffernan, Andersen, Clark, Watkins (Dunne), Roche (G Flood), Israilov, Honeyball (Martin), J Bell. BOOKED: Honeyball.

 

A week later, we hosted Barrow in our last home match of the campaign. The Bluebirds were second-from-bottom, and it looked like their nine-year stay in the Football League would expire unless they quickly ended a run of 13 games without winning.

 

This match served as a Victoria Road farewell for James Dunne, who made his final league appearance before retiring. Inside-forward Yasser Ibrahim returned from a thigh strain after three weeks out.

 

19 April 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Barrow

After 12 minutes, Robbie Ryder pulled off a magnificent save to push Barrow captain Kyle Bowker's shot across the byline. Moments later, he caught Joe Coyne's header from the resultant Frank Dix corner. Robbie hoofed the ball deep into Bluebirds territory, where Jamie Bell pounced on Connor Ogilivie's hopeless clearance and tucked it into the net!

 

The bell tolled for relegation-threatened Barrow again after 18 minutes. Jamie burst clear of his marker Coyne to fire Jonathan Roche's through-ball past Barrow keeper Tony Haywood, who was made to pay for straying from his line!

 

Ahletdin Israilov now wanted in on the action following Bell's quickfire double, but the Kyrgyzstani midfielder miscued a shot in the 19th minute. The Bluebirds then looked for a way back in the game through Bowker, who fired wide in the 20th minute after sprinting clear of Lee Heffernan. Three minutes later, Coyne hit a powerful shot from another Dix corner. Robbie palmed it aside to Wayne Coton, whose interception stopped Bowker from heading home.

 

The Cumbrian side's next real scoring chance came on 39 minutes. Former England Under-20s right-back Chima Gabriel crossed deep to Bowker, who got above Coton but still headed over. By half-time, we were on course to take the three points, which would move us into the top half for the first time.

 

Bell upped his game after the interval in a bid to complete his hat-trick. Less than a minute into the second half, he moved onto Israilov's deft chip, and unluckily pulled it into the side netting. Jamie was also off target in the 51st minute, but we did get our third goal three minutes later. Barrow forward Lee Peachey played a poor flick-on to Mitchell Clark, and his team-mate Niall Normington compounded the error with a sliding tackle that knocked the ball forward to Israilov. Ahletdin took the ball past Coyle, and then wickedly bent it into the far end of Haywood's net!

 

The next few minutes would be slightly less glorious for Israilov, who hit a poor long-range shot and also got booked just before the hour mark. I later brought on youth team left-back Ben Wordsworth for his senior debut. That was a big gamble, and after 67 minutes, I was wondering if I'd pulled the trigger too early. Tim Beech's poor clearance was nodded on by Normington to winger Dale Jennings, who gave Barrow fresh hope with a vicious strike.

 

We had another setback soon after that, with Ogilivie's strong challenge bringing an early end to Roche's match. When Ryder saved a couple of Bowker efforts in the 73rd and 75th minutes, it seemed that all the momentum had shifted the Bluebirds' way. Robbie also needed to keep out an 83rd-minute strike from journeyman midfielder Ravel Morrison.

 

We were up and running again by the 89th minute, when Jamie finished Barrow off by setting up our fourth goal. Haywood charged off his line to stop Bell from running onto his own flick-on, but he was made to look very silly when Jamie promptly laid the ball off to Israilov! Ahletdin did the rest, and we won by 4 goals to 1!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (J Bell 13,18, Israilov 54,89)

Barrow - 1 (Jennings 67)

League Two, Attendance 3,762 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 12th, Barrow 23rd

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, Heffernan, Andersen, Roche (Honeyball), Clark, Dunne (Jones), Ibrahim (Wordsworth), Israilov, J Bell. BOOKED: Israilov.

 

That was the perfect send-off to Victoria Road for this campaign, as we moved up to a new season-high of 12th place. We were also guaranteed to finish no lower than 16th. I certainly would've taken that after our shocking start to the season!

[oche balboa]

Good story

But you should have taken the Job at Derby, it may not get any better then that

[CFuller]

Good story

But you should have taken the Job at Derby, it may not get any better then that

Are you a Derby fan, then?

It was a very tempting job offer, but in the end, local pride won out over personal gain. I'm certainly not regretting it right now, as Derby look like they're going to join us in League Two next season.

[CFuller]

APRIL 2025 (continued)

With the 60-point barrier surpassed and our League Two future secure, we could now take things easy in our final away matches of the season. Star performers such as Mitchell Clark, Wayne Coton and Ahletdin Israilov would not be required again as I continued to blood some of our emerging talents.

 

48 hours after battering Barrow, I named a completely-changed starting line-up for our Bank Holiday trip to Dartford.

 

Right-back Daniel Ward and striker Pat Molyneux were given their full debuts, and out-of-favour Billy Kenyon appeared in our defence for the first time this season. On-loan midfielder Courtney Watkins was named on the bench and was in line to make his final appearance before returning to West Bromwich Albion.

 

21 April 2025: Dartford vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Daniel Ward demonstrated some early nerves when he was booked for sliding in on Dartford winger Dale Bradburn after nine minutes. Dartford's players were much more relaxed, having secured their survival two days earlier. Corey Archibald nearly scored from the free-kick Ward conceded, thundering it against the bar. The Darts did hit the bullseye on 12 minutes, when Tom McInnes headed home from Bradburn's cross.

 

Five minutes later, Daggers right-winger Paul Hart left Darts full-back Mark Gibson trailing in his wake with a stunning run and a promising cross to Joel Honeyball, who nodded it wide. Bradburn threatened to increase the hosts' lead in the 23rd minute, but he failed to hit the target following a strong run from the Darts' half to our penalty area.

 

Bradburn later stubbed his toe in another strong tackle from Ward, who had just been joined in the book by Gareth Flood. Lee Lumsden missed another chance to make it 2-0 in the 34th minute of what was already looking like a dire, one-sided contest.

 

We roared back to life shortly after the second half began. Daryl Ryan's goal kick forward was nodded on by Honeyball to another 17-year-old in Pat Molyneux, who skipped past defender Peter Docherty and goalie Calhan Peters to score his first senior goal!

 

Pat's moment of glory was nearly short-lived, as Lumsden struck the bar three minutes later. That early drama was followed by some pretty ordinary football from two teams who now had nothing to play for. One of the few players who looked up for it was Molyneux, who was denied a dream second goal by Peters in the 75th minute. Pat came off moments later to be replaced by Cypriot schoolboy Sotiris Giangoudakis, who made his Dagenham debut at the ripe old age of 15.

 

One of Dartford's substitutes nearly made a quick impact after 78 minutes. Wales Under-21s defender Tom Jarman got his head to an Archibald corner and was unlucky to send it over.

 

The Darts had another opportunity to win the game from a corner in the 89th minute. Lumsden nodded Archibald's hanging ball over, and a minor scramble ensured before Jarman buried a simple chance. We may have suffered a late defeat, but most of our players - in particular Billy Kenyon - came away from Princes Park with plenty of credit.

 

Dartford - 2 (McInnes 12, Jarman 89)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Molyneux 46)

League Two, Attendance 3,431 - POSITIONS: Dartford 21st, Dag & Red 14th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Ward, Kenyon, Tierney, Purrington, Hart, R Jones, Harding (Parmenter), G Flood (Watkins), Honeyball, Molyneux (Giangoudakis). BOOKED: Ward, Flood.

 

We rounded off the season at the Proact Stadium, where we had to beat Chesterfield to stand a chance of finishing in the top half. Top scorer Jamie Bell returned to the side, needing to score a hat-trick to match his 20-goal hauls from the last two seasons.

 

28 April 2025: Chesterfield vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Chesterfield striker Nathan Ricketts-Hopkinson was hopelessly off target with a couple of early chances in the first five minutes. In the 16th minute, Ricketts-Hopkinson took the ball off Dagenham right-back Louis Jack and cut inside before firing wide. Yasser Ibrahim had half-volleyed wide our first real chance to score three minutes earlier.

 

Our next scoring opportunity was much longer in coming, but it ended with a couple of exciting teenagers helping our most experienced forward out. After 37 minutes, Paul Hart picked out Joel Honeyball's run down the right wing, and Joel then crossed from the byline for Jamie Bell to head home.

 

Honeyball looked to follow his assist with a goal for himself two minutes later, but he couldn't hit the target. We maintained a slender 1-0 lead at half-time, although a twisted ankle meant Paul sadly couldn't return for the second half.

 

As you would expect, the last 45 minutes of our season were incredibly dull. We were quite happy to preserve our lead after the break, and Jamie never looked like adding to his solitary goal. At the other end, Chesterfield were really dire, and although they won a number of corners, they only registered one shot on target. That came in the 72nd minute, when Spireites striker Paddy Madden's shot from a tight angle was blocked by our young goalkeeper Daryl Ryan.

 

Daryl was able to keep a clean sheet without doing much more work, although Chesterfield winger Pelly Ruddock wasted a decent chance early in injury time. The final whistle blew three minutes later, but our win wasn't quite enough to get us into the top 12. We finished 13th - just behind Swindon Town on goal difference.

 

Chesterfield - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (J Bell 38)

League Two, Attendance 7,649 - POSITIONS: Chesterfield 15th, Dag & Red 13th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Jack, Heffernan, Kenyon (Tierney), Andersen, R Jones, Harding, Hart (Martin), Honeyball (Parmenter), Ibrahim, J Bell. BOOKED: Parmenter.

 

65 points, 65 goals scored, 65 conceded, 13th place - you don't get much more mid-table than that!

[CFuller]

MAY 2025

We had had an encouraging first season back in League Two, but we went home from the Football League awards empty-handed. Although Ahletdin Israilov did win April's Goal of the Month award for his fabulous first strike against Barrow, there were no annual awards coming our way.

 

Jamie Bell's final tally of 18 goals was nowhere near enough for him to win the League Two Golden Boot. Simon Killeen of Luton Town won it after scoring twice that amount, but his 36 goals weren't enough to get his team into the play-offs. Amazingly, none of the three players who topped 30 goals - Killeen, Hereford United's Ryan Wilks, and Bristol City's Mark West - were celebrating promotion once all had been said and done.

 

We didn't really need a striker who could destroy defences like those three. In fact, as a team, we had actually outscored the three play-off losers! I was perfectly fine with having Jamie lead the line again next season… but only if he could agree to a pay cut.

 

You see, we weren't just in a mess financially. We were losing so much money month-on-month that we were heading for a full-blown crisis.

 

By the time of our annual general meeting in mid-May, we were around £800,000 in debt. Our managing director Angelo Bosco said that the reason was simple - while we had the 7th-biggest wage bill in League Two, we also had the 7th-lowest average home attendance. No club can sustain themselves in that situation.

 

Chairman Antonello Scolaro gave me a stark warning. I had to slash the wage bill drastically from its current total of £28,500 per week, otherwise we were only going one way - towards administration.

 

Our three highest-paid players are Yasser Ibrahim, Mitchell Clark and Aaron McEwan. They all have a year left to run on their contracts, and I'll have to seriously think about cashing in on them while we still can. Wayne Coton is another star player who could be sold if our financial crisis worsens.

 

Willie Dickson is in the same boat, but I might have to sell the big forward anyway, regardless of whether we're rolling in money or drowning in debt.

 

Willie's agent was very reluctant to start contract talks, and he wanted a big payment to even begin negotiations. When I warned Dickson that I would place him on the transfer list unless he agreed to either sack his agent or take a pay cut, the Scot took umbrage. He accused me of pushing him into a corner and left my office in a huff.

 

I'm now facing the real prospect of having neither Dickson nor Bell in my team next season. It's not something that fills me with great hope.

 

Reserve left-back Warren Barrett had already agreed a summer move to Wingate & Finchley, and three more Daggers would confirm their exits before May was out. Another left-back - Arno Andersen - departed Victoria Road after just one season and signed for Aldershot Town, while midfielder Roy Jones flew the nest and signed for Isthmian South side Tooting & Mitcham United.

 

Our biggest loss so far is that of Reice Charles-Cook. I couldn't justify paying £1,500 a week to a goalkeeper who was no longer my first choice, so I placed him on the transfer list.

 

Newly-promoted Mansfield Town were the only club to make a formal bid. Although £9,000 was not as much as I had hoped for, I had little choice but to accept the offer. Reice will be challenging for the Stags' number 1 jersey in League One next season.

 

As far as incomings go, only one has been confirmed so far. Former England Under-21s left-back Matt Warren - a 27-year-old Londoner with a tremendous work ethic - has agreed to sign a two-season deal with us. Matt recently took a year out of professional football after being released by Newcastle United, where he came through the youth academy, and he's now ready to resume his career.

 

Three of our young midfield players have signed new contracts. Geraint Harding took a small wage hit to stay with us for two more seasons, Dean Martin turned professional on his 17th birthday, and Wayne Parmenter signed his first full-time deal just before turning 18.

 

None of my backroom staff had contracts up for renewal, so everyone was retained. At least that department will retain its stability in what's likely to be a hectic summer period at Dagenham & Redbridge.

[CFuller]

League Two Table (End of 2024/2025)

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C     Morecambe              46    25    8     13    69    44    +25   83
2.    P     Forest Green           46    24    9     13    74    47    +27   81
3.    P     Mansfield              46    22    13    11    76    62    +14   79
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Kidderminster          46    23    8     15    62    45    +17   77
5.    P     Rotherham              46    21    12    13    73    50    +23   75
6.          Bristol City           46    20    13    13    62    46    +16   73
7.          Wycombe                46    21    10    15    60    51    +9    73
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Luton                  46    21    8     17    83    73    +10   71
9.          Chester                46    20    11    15    67    60    +7    71
10.         Hereford               46    19    11    16    85    65    +20   68
11.         Hartlepool             46    19    9     18    53    63    -10   66
12.         Swindon                46    17    14    15    56    48    +8    65
13.         Dag & Red              46    18    11    17    65    65    0     65
14.         Leyton Orient          46    17    13    16    58    64    -6    64
15.         Chesterfield           46    18    9     19    64    65    -1    63
16.         Aldershot              46    17    10    19    81    100   -19   61
17.         Port Vale              46    14    14    18    59    71    -12   56
18.         Dartford               46    15    8     23    66    75    -9    53
19.         Bournemouth            46    12    15    19    46    49    -3    51
20.         Blackpool              46    13    12    21    60    75    -15   51
21.         Bristol Rovers         46    12    15    19    58    74    -16   51
22.         Cambridge              46    12    9     25    57    72    -15   45
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.   R     Stevenage              46    10    12    24    53    90    -37   42
24.   R     Barrow                 46    10    10    26    48    81    -33   40

 

[CFuller]

Dagenham & Redbridge Player Statistics (2024/2025)

(Includes stats from all first-team matches & 2 Essex Senior Cup matches)

 

GOALKEEPERS               APPS    CON  CLN  MOM  P%   TR   ST%  Y    R    AV RAT
Sam Bell                  1       0    0    0    61%  -    -    0    0    6.70
Reice Charles-Cook        17      27   3    0    76%  -    -    0    0    6.84
Daryl Ryan                3       4    1    0    69%  -    -    0    0    6.97
Robbie Ryder              31      42   7    1    82%  0.03 -    0    0    7.10
OUTFIELD PLAYERS          APPS    GLS  AST  MOM  P%   TR   ST%  Y    R    AV RAT
Arno Andersen             22 (9)  0    2    0    79%  4.64 -    3    0    6.89
Tim Beech                 36 (3)  0    4    1    77%  3.84 0%   3    0    6.96
Jamie Bell                33 (7)  18   6    5    73%  2.19 49%  2    0    7.13
Glenn Canham              3 (1)   0    0    0    65%  1.59 0%   0    0    6.27
Mitchell Clark            27 (5)  2    2    0    83%  4.64 30%  1    0    6.91
Wayne Coton               28 (2)  2    0    4    70%  2.46 50%  1    0    7.58
Willie Dickson            26 (16) 12   10   3    74%  2.15 49%  3    0    7.24
James Dunne               21 (6)  1    4    0    75%  5.35 24%  5    0    6.84
Reiss Edwards             0 (2)   0    0    0    50%  2.17 -    0    0    6.80
Gareth Flood              10 (3)  2    0    1    67%  3.46 80%  2    0    6.72
Sotiris Giangoudakis      0 (1)   0    0    0    75%  -    -    0    0    6.60
Geraint Harding           31 (4)  0    2    0    76%  4.84 19%  4    0    6.95
Paul Hart                 18 (6)  1    2    0    79%  2.19 42%  4    0    6.73
Lee Heffernan             25 (2)  1    2    1    72%  2.93 25%  2    0    6.87
Joel Honeyball            9 (7)   2    3    1    74%  1.94 13%  2    0    7.04
Yasser Ibrahim            26 (7)  3    4    0    74%  2.40 26%  2    0    6.75
Ahletdin Israilov         28 (9)  11   8    2    78%  3.12 46%  2    0    7.16
Louis Jack                15 (5)  0    0    0    74%  4.18 100% 3    0    6.94
Joel Jones                1 (4)   1    0    0    69%  2.28 37%  0    0    6.76
Roy Jones                 6 (1)   0    0    0    70%  2.34 50%  0    0    6.81
Billy Kenyon              2       0    0    1    58%  4.00 -    0    0    7.60
Charlie MacGregor         4 (4)   0    0    0    63%  1.80 100% 0    0    7.01
Dean Martin               2 (2)   0    0    0    71%  4.17 100% 0    0    6.72
Aaron McEwan              28      0    1    3    68%  2.57 14%  4    0    7.28
Pat Molyneux              1       1    0    0    61%  2.40 100% 0    0    7.20
Neil Munn                 16 (11) 5    3    2    73%  2.30 52%  0    0    6.83
Wayne Parmenter           2 (5)   1    0    0    77%  2.49 33%  1    0    6.90
Danny Potts               8 (1)   0    0    0    71%  3.14 -    0    0    6.89
Ben Purrington            15 (3)  0    1    0    72%  3.97 -    0    0    6.67
Jonathan Roche            19 (5)  1    5    0    76%  3.21 43%  1    0    6.82
Thomas Tierney            19 (2)  1    0    2    66%  3.08 75%  2    1    7.09
Aaron Tshibola            13 (7)  1    0    0    83%  4.01 36%  1    0    6.96
Pablo Vázquez             16 (8)  7    3    3    61%  3.17 52%  1    0    6.93
Daniel Ward               2 (1)   0    0    0    62%  3.85 -    1    0    6.90
Courtney Watkins          7 (4)   1    0    0    78%  6.60 50%  0    0    6.90
Ben Wordsworth            1 (2)   0    0    0    76%  2.20 0%   0    0    6.90

APPS - Appearances (Substitute apps), GLS - Goals, AST - Assists,
CON - Goals conceded, CLN - Clean sheets, MOM - Man of the Match awards,
P% - Pass completion %, TR - Tackles per 90 mins, ST - Shots on target %,
Y - Yellow cards, R - Red cards, AV RAT - Average match rating

 

[CFuller]

JUNE 2025

The Dagenham & Redbridge fans' best XI for the 2024/2025 season was as follows: Robbie Ryder, Tim Beech, Wayne Coton, Aaron McEwan, Arno Andersen, Geraint Harding, Mitchell Clark, James Dunne, Ahletdin Israilov, Yasser Ibrahim, Willie Dickson. Surprisingly, there was no room for leading scorer Jamie Bell.

 

Less surprising was the Daggers supporters' choice for Player of the Year. Wayne Coton had performed consistently well in the centre of our defence, showing maturity way beyond his 20 years. I'd love to keep him with us for another season - if we can afford to, of course.

 

Five more players joined the Daggers cause in June. They included a trio of teenage starlets, all of whom seemed destined for bright futures in the game.

 

We agreed terms with 18-year-old former Southampton centre-back Harry Gorman, who had been capped five times for the Republic of Ireland's Under-21s. At the same time, diminutive 17-year-old midfielder Lumumba McLean signed for us following his release from Arsenal.

 

The last of our young recruits was ex-Manchester City striker Gianluca Cecere, also aged 18. The Italian's signing was somewhat of a coup, as we persuaded Luca to sign for us rather than Championship newcomers Wrexham.

 

I also signed another striker with somewhat more experience. 24-year-old Troy Hands had only scored 17 league goals during his four-year spell at Yeovil Town, but I felt that the Lancastrian's pace and anticipation would serve us well.

 

Troy is a striker who can be very hot at the best of times… but he can get very hot under the collar when things don't go his way. He was sent off three times last season, so he'll have to control his aggression better if he wants to succeed at Victoria Road.

 

The last of our new arrivals, for the time being, was a loanee from Fulham. Our parent club had kindly allowed us to take on highly-rated youngster Dean Oliver on a season-long loan, without us having to pay any wages!

 

19-year-old Oliver is a brave, defensively-minded midfielder who can also play at left-back. Dean spent the first three months of this year playing in League One with Tranmere Rovers, but he really struggled there, and he's hoping that League Two will suit his game a bit more. We'll wait and see…

 

I eased our financial worries a little with the sale of Billy Kenyon. The out-of-favour defender went to Scottish Second Division side Greenock Morton, who paid £10,000 to get him.

 

Robbie Ryder wasn't going anywhere, though. With just days to go before his contract was due to expire, Robbie finally agreed to sign a two-year contract that would reduce his weekly wages from £1,300 to £800. The goalkeeper also accepted that he was likely to play a reduced role in the coming season, with youngster Daryl Ryan now ready to challenge for the number 1 jersey.

 

Sadly, another Daggers hero would not be staying on. Jamie Bell stubbornly refused to take a pay cut, so after five years, his time with us came to a rather bitter end.

 

There was no doubt that Jamie had been a wonderful servant to Dagenham & Redbridge, especially since I arrived. He was our top scorer in the league for three consecutive seasons, and his final record in all competitions read: 179 appearances, 70 goals, 21 assists. Thanks for the memories, JB.

 

Left-backs Danny Potts and Ben Purrington departed Victoria Road after failing to earn new contracts. It was a similar story for striker Joel Jones, who played just four times on loan at Dulwich Hamlet and hadn't developed as well as I had hoped. We also said goodbye to James Dunne, who confirmed his retirement after 532 career league appearances - 64 of which were for the Daggers.

 

Youth players Sam Bell, Glenn Canham, Pat Molyneux and Daniel Ward hadn't done enough to earn full-time contracts, so they too would be leaving.

 

Our remaining players returned for pre-season training just before the 2025/2026 League Two fixture list came out. We had ended the previous campaign at Chesterfield, and we will play host to Johnnie Jackson's side again on the opening day - 2 August.

 

Our first away game will be at Luton Town on 5 August. From a personal point of view, I'm really looking forward to visiting Pride Park again on 27 September, when we'll take on relegated Derby County - the team I turned down to stay with Dagenham.

 

The Daggers' previous stint in the Football League (between 2014 and 2022) saw them win promotion to League One in just their second season up. If we can start this campaign off well, I seriously believe that we'll have a real chance of repeating that.

[CFuller]

Romford watch: 2024/2025

Following the retirement of Tony Burman, Romford named former Burnley and Bolton Wanderers defender Tyrone Mears as their new manager. The 41-year-old had recently been sacked by Bedford Town after their relegation from the Southern League Premier Division. Mears' appointment didn't exactly fill Boro fans with optimism as Romford prepared to launch another promotion challenge.

 

Conference South: 3rd (Lost in Play-Off Final)

Mears made a solid start to his term at Romford, who began with a 4-1 victory at Oxford City before scraping past Milton Keynes Dons 1-0 at Ship Lane. The Boro went on to win four and draw the other five of their first nine games, never conceding more than one goal per match. The run was ended by a heavy 3-0 defeat at Dorchester Town, but that didn't derail their challenge. Romford only lost twice more until the New Year, when they sat 4th in the table and weren't far off challenging for automatic promotion.

 

A 1-0 home reverse to Dulwich Hamlet in their first match of 2025 was a sign of struggles to come. The Boro's form became much more inconsistent, and the defeats began to rack up. With five games to go, they were just outside the top five, and facing the prospect of missing the play-offs. That was when forwards Seidu Asante and Jimmy Boulter hit top form for Romford, helping them record four successive wins to book a play-off place. A 1-1 draw at Bath City in their final regular-season match ensured that they would finish in 3rd place.

 

Romford made the perfect start to their Play-Off Semi Final against Eastbourne Borough. Jason Forster and Kieron Gray gave the Boro a 2-0 half-time lead at Priory Lane, only for the hosts to turn things around and salvage a 2-2 draw. That dented Romford's spirits going into their home leg at Ship Lane, but Boulter soon raised them again. The Charlton Athletic loanee's goal in the 68th minute gave his team a 3-2 aggregate win, sending them into the Final, where they would be away to Canvey Island.

 

Canvey Island and Romford had both suffered plenty of play-off heartache in the last decade, but one of those Essex rivals would finally be celebrating after their meeting at Park Lane. After seven minutes, ex-Boro winger Dean O'Halloran haunted his old club with a quick opener for the hosts. Romford never recovered from that early blow, as they had just three shots at goal - none on target. When O'Halloran set up midfielder Oliver Norburn for Canvey's second goal in the 64th minute, the match was effectively over. Steve Tilson's Gulls finally flew into the Conference Premier, while Romford were consigned to a tenth straight season in the Conference South.

 

FA Cup: Qualifying Round 4

Romford laboured somewhat against Eastbourne Town in Qualifying Round 2, needing a replay to overcome the Isthmian South team. They made lighter work of another Sussex team - Whitehawk - in the next round before being drawn at home to Southend United. Sadly, the Boro's run ended in the final qualifying round, as Southend won 2-0.

 

FA Trophy: Round 2

After narrowly beating Workington to reach Round 1, Romford faced a surprisingly sterner test against Thamesmead Town. The Boro were held 1-1 at Ship Lane, but they won the replay by a single goal to book a Round 2 tie at home to Boreham Wood. They wouldn't go any further, losing 2-1 to the Conference Premier side.

 

Essex Senior Cup: Semi Final

This was by far Romford's best chance to win the Essex Senior Cup for a decade. They serenely swept aside Harlow Town, FC Clacton and AFC Hornchurch Reserves to reach the Quarter Finals, where they put four goals past Basildon Town without reply.

 

That led to a Semi Final showdown at home to Colchester United Reserves. When Asante gave Romford the lead on the stroke of half-time, their fans were dreaming of a first county cup Final since 2014. Sadly, U's midfielder Ronnie Pearce ended those dreams, with goals in the 60th and 64th minute sending Colchester through to the Final, where they took the trophy by beating Southend's reserves.

 

Best Players

Romford had the second-best defence in the Conference South, thanks largely to former Burnham goalkeeper Allan Bangura, who kept 15 clean sheets in 29 league matches. Another summer signing - Ian Wigley - impressed at right-back, while Boro fans will be relieved that captain Gray has signed a new contract, having previously stated that he wanted to move to a bigger club.

 

There's less certainty about the future of leading scorer Asante, who scored 16 goals in all competitions. Asante has yet to decide whether to stay with his hometown club for another season. Indeed, Romford could lose all of their three top scorers this summer, as Boulter is returning to Charlton, and Forster has been linked with Southend.

 

The Future

You can safely say that Romford are now perennial contenders for promotion to the Conference Premier. However, the Boro will need to show real character to bounce back from their latest heartbreak. Mears will also have to improve his team's midfield and bolster their firepower if the 2025/2026 season is to be the one where they finally break through.

[CFuller]

2024/2025 season round-up: Part 1

Premier League

A year after Manchester City beat them to all three major trophies, Manchester United exacted sweet revenge on their noisy neighbours. Roberto Donadoni's Red Devils were in ruthless form as they regained the Premier League and knocked out their bitter rivals to reach the UEFA Champions League Final. Damien King once again topped the scoring charts with 27 PL strikes, but the contributions of winger Grégory Lefevre and left-back David Alaba didn't go unnoticed. Despite having arguably the league's two best midfielders in Iván Guillermo and Alexandre Ricardo, City had to settle for runners-up spot, although they did retain the FA Cup.

 

Tottenham Hotspur returned to the Champions League by finishing 3rd, just ahead of Chelsea, who had an encouraging first year under young, methodical coach Ard van Peppen. Arsenal and Liverpool both recovered from terrible starts to complete the top six, with West Ham United unfortunately missing out. After replacing the retired Tony Pulis, Chris Powell guided the Hammers to 7th, equalling their best finish of this century.

 

Powell's old club Aston Villa, now managed by ex-Scotland midfielder James McArthur, sneaked into the top half on their first season back up. One of the Villans' big Midland rivals, Wolverhampton Wanderers, had a much more difficult campaign after losing their long-serving manager Mick McCarthy. Marco van Basten proved an utterly disastrous replacement as Wolves nearly got relegated, two years after finishing in the top four. The Molineux club will hope to go forward again next season under new boss Owen Coyle.

 

Brighton & Hove Albion's defence was far too leaky to keep them in the PL beyond one season. A similar malaise accounted for Wigan Athletic's top-flight demise after seven seasons. The last relegation place was decided on the final day, with five sets of supporters fearing the worst. In the end, it was the Southampton fans who were shedding tears, as a 2-2 home draw against Chelsea was not enough to keep them up. West Bromwich Albion and Wolves both narrowly survived on goal difference, while Reading and Watford also escaped the drop.

 

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C/CL  Man Utd                38    28    4     6     90    39    +51   88
2.    CL    Man City               38    26    7     5     99    42    +57   85
3.    CL    Tottenham              38    21    13    4     80    46    +34   76
4.    CL    Chelsea                38    22    9     7     71    43    +28   75
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.    EL    Arsenal                38    17    10    11    70    53    +17   61
6.    EL    Liverpool              38    16    10    12    52    44    +8    58
7.    EL    West Ham               38    15    11    12    51    51    0     56
8.          Fulham                 38    15    10    13    62    55    +7    55
9.          Everton                38    13    9     16    55    62    -7    48
10.         Aston Villa            38    13    9     16    48    56    -8    48
11.         Burnley                38    12    11    15    50    64    -14   47
12.         Newcastle              38    11    10    17    52    58    -6    43
13.         Watford                38    10    12    16    45    55    -10   42
14.         Reading                38    9     15    14    45    61    -16   42
15.         Sunderland             38    12    6     20    46    67    -21   42
16.         Wolves                 38    9     12    17    42    59    -17   39
17.         West Brom              38    9     12    17    43    61    -18   39
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
18.   R     Southampton            38    9     12    17    47    67    -20   39
19.   R     Wigan                  38    8     10    20    48    73    -25   34
20.   R     Brighton               38    6     6     26    38    78    -40   24

 

Championship

Nobody was surprised to see Norwich City blitz through the Championship with 107 points, 32 wins, and just three defeats (all away from home). Their rock-solid defence conceded just 31 goals - the same number as runners-up Nottingham Forest, who like the Canaries booked an instant return to the Premier League.

 

Huddersfield Town's bid to complete a promotion clean sweep for the relegated teams was ended in the play-offs by Stoke City. The Potters travelled to Wembley to face Peterborough United, who saw off Blackburn Rovers after sneaking into the top six. Peterborough then defied the odds again, with Graham Beech's 34th-minute goal enough to put them in the top tier for the very first time! What's more, they had done it with back-to-back promotions!

 

Swansea City's 10-point deduction for going into administration in January would ultimately cost them a play-off place. It was also a frustrating season for Leeds United, who threatened to challenge for a top-six finish before ultimately coming 10th. On a brighter note, Leeds striker Ian Neary's total of 29 goals was the best in the division.

 

After 23 successive years in the Championship, spent mostly as a mid-table club, Ipswich Town inexplicably fell apart and ended up rock-bottom! Rochdale's fairytale spell in the second tier came to a sad end, and Sheffield Wednesday also endured the pain of relegation to League One.

 

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C     Norwich                46    32    11    3     87    31    +56   107
2.    P     Nottm Forest           46    27    8     11    66    31    +35   89
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.          Blackburn              46    23    13    10    71    44    +27   82
4.          Huddersfield           46    23    12    11    79    58    +21   81
5.          Stoke                  46    23    9     14    75    56    +19   78
6.    P     Peterborough           46    21    13    12    67    54    +13   76
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.          Swansea                46    25    8     13    76    60    +16   73 *
8.          QPR                    46    21    9     16    67    56    +11   72
9.          Coventry               46    19    12    15    56    46    +10   69
10.         Leeds                  46    19    9     18    67    59    +8    66
11.         Crystal Palace         46    17    12    17    68    64    +4    63
12.         Notts County           46    18    7     21    63    72    -9    61
13.         Barnsley               46    15    12    19    61    66    -5    57
14.         Bradford               46    15    12    19    52    62    -10   57
15.         Sheff Utd              46    13    15    18    46    54    -8    54
16.         Hull                   46    14    12    20    50    65    -15   54
17.         Fleetwood              46    13    14    19    48    71    -23   53
18.         Leicester              46    13    12    21    52    66    -14   51
19.         Middlesbrough          46    13    11    22    48    63    -15   50
20.         Doncaster              46    11    16    19    48    67    -19   49
21.         Crewe                  46    13    10    23    50    72    -22   49
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
22.   R     Sheff Wed              46    11    11    24    46    66    -20   44
23.   R     Rochdale               46    10    10    26    43    68    -25   40
24.   R     Ipswich                46    9     10    27    36    71    -35   37

* Swansea deducted 10 points for entering administration

 

League One

It truly was a red-letter season for the Red Dragons of Wrexham, who won promotion to the Championship after an absence of 43 years. They narrowly missed out on the League One title to Bolton Wanderers, who are finally heading back in the right direction.

 

Play-off favourites Plymouth Argyle justified that tag with a superb comeback in their Semi Final against Scunthorpe United. That booked them a Final meeting with Colchester United, who edged out AFC Telford United on spot kicks. Plymouth lost the lead twice at Wembley before Julio Rocha finally gave them a 3-2 win - and promotion!

 

Burton Albion and Yeovil Town both paid the price for having impotent attacks with relegation to League Two. Tranmere Rovers and Derby County joined them on the final day, with Derby reduced to being a fourth-division club for the first time in their illustrious history.

 

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C     Bolton                 46    22    13    11    71    54    +17   79
2.    P     Wrexham                46    19    21    6     65    44    +21   78
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.    P     Plymouth               46    19    17    10    62    42    +20   74
4.          Colchester             46    20    13    13    71    56    +15   73
5.          AFC Telford            46    19    14    13    66    52    +14   71
6.          Scunthorpe             46    20    11    15    55    47    +8    71
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.          Millwall               46    17    19    10    55    43    +12   70
8.          Stockport              46    16    20    10    52    50    +2    68
9.          Brentford              46    18    13    15    52    48    +4    67
10.         Northampton            46    16    17    13    52    49    +3    65
11.         Walsall                46    18    10    18    50    51    -1    64
12.         Charlton               46    16    15    15    57    62    -5    63
13.         Exeter                 46    17    11    18    46    50    -4    62
14.         Cardiff                46    17    10    19    53    56    -3    61
15.         Oxford                 46    16    12    18    60    57    +3    60
16.         Gillingham             46    13    18    15    53    53    0     57
17.         Shrewsbury             46    13    16    17    51    57    -6    55
18.         Portsmouth             46    12    17    17    42    50    -8    53
19.         Birmingham             46    13    14    19    42    55    -13   53
20.         Oldham                 46    12    16    18    43    56    -13   52
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21.   R     Derby                  46    11    16    19    52    59    -7    49
22.   R     Tranmere               46    14    7     25    39    59    -20   49
23.   R     Yeovil                 46    8     21    17    34    49    -15   45
24.   R     Burton                 46    8     15    23    34    58    -24   39

 

League Two

League Two always produces some epic promotion battles, and there was nothing different about this campaign. Morecambe took the league title after finishing two points ahead of Forest Green Rovers, who won a first-ever promotion to League One, and four in front of Mansfield Town.

 

The drama continued in the Play-Off Semi Finals, where Kidderminster Harriers eliminated Wycombe Wanderers and Bristol City were stunned by Rotherham United. Rotherham took a while to get going in the Final, but late goals from Alex Nimely and Nigel Hilton earned the Millers a ticket straight back to League One.

 

Barrow won just one game after Christmas Day, and their shocking collapse left Cumbria without a Football League team. Also suffering relegation were Stevenage, who alarmingly conceded 90 goals in their 46 games.

 

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C     Morecambe              46    25    8     13    69    44    +25   83
2.    P     Forest Green           46    24    9     13    74    47    +27   81
3.    P     Mansfield              46    22    13    11    76    62    +14   79
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.          Kidderminster          46    23    8     15    62    45    +17   77
5.    P     Rotherham              46    21    12    13    73    50    +23   75
6.          Bristol City           46    20    13    13    62    46    +16   73
7.          Wycombe                46    21    10    15    60    51    +9    73
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
8.          Luton                  46    21    8     17    83    73    +10   71
9.          Chester                46    20    11    15    67    60    +7    71
10.         Hereford               46    19    11    16    85    65    +20   68
11.         Hartlepool             46    19    9     18    53    63    -10   66
12.         Swindon                46    17    14    15    56    48    +8    65
13.         Dag & Red              46    18    11    17    65    65    0     65
14.         Leyton Orient          46    17    13    16    58    64    -6    64
15.         Chesterfield           46    18    9     19    64    65    -1    63
16.         Aldershot              46    17    10    19    81    100   -19   61
17.         Port Vale              46    14    14    18    59    71    -12   56
18.         Dartford               46    15    8     23    66    75    -9    53
19.         Bournemouth            46    12    15    19    46    49    -3    51
20.         Blackpool              46    13    12    21    60    75    -15   51
21.         Bristol Rovers         46    12    15    19    58    74    -16   51
22.         Cambridge              46    12    9     25    57    72    -15   45
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
23.   R     Stevenage              46    10    12    24    53    90    -37   42
24.   R     Barrow                 46    10    10    26    48    81    -33   40

 

Conference Premier

AFC Wimbledon's stunning late run of seven wins in their final eight games allowed them to pip Boreham Wood to automatic promotion from the Conference Premier.

 

Wood demolished Torquay United 8-1 in the Play-Off Semi Finals, while Crawley Town needed penalties to end Stalybridge Celtic's dreams. The Final also went to a shoot-out following a 1-1 draw… but the luck was with the Hertfordshire club. Boreham Wood didn't miss a kick as they won their first promotion to the Football League!

 

Crisis club Accrington Stanley propped the table, with Salisbury City and Bury also plummeting into the regional Conferences. The final team to fall were brave Mossley, whose meteoric rise from the eighth tier came to a head.

 

                                   P     W     D     L     F     A     GD    PTS
1.    C     AFC Wimbledon          46    24    11    11    72    47    +25   83
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2.    P     Boreham Wood           46    24    10    12    67    49    +18   82
3.          Crawley                46    24    8     14    71    56    +15   80
4.          Stalybridge            46    20    17    9     59    41    +18   77
5.          Torquay                46    22    10    14    67    50    +17   76
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.          Southend               46    20    8     18    66    62    +4    68
7.          Chelmsford             46    19    11    16    65    66    -1    68
8.          Kingstonian            46    18    12    16    66    58    +8    66
9.          Carlisle               46    18    12    16    54    48    +6    66
10.         Farnborough            46    18    11    17    60    52    +8    65
11.         Lincoln                46    16    17    13    58    55    +3    65
12.         Eastleigh              46    17    13    16    52    55    -3    64
13.         Preston                46    18    10    18    48    51    -3    64
14.         Cheltenham             46    18    9     19    54    54    0     63
15.         Ebbsfleet              46    14    17    15    52    56    -4    59
16.         Barnet                 46    15    12    19    56    67    -11   57
17.         Southport              46    13    16    17    52    62    -10   55
18.         Darlington             46    13    15    18    51    53    -2    54
19.         Newport County         46    13    15    18    47    55    -8    54
20.         Grimsby                46    15    9     22    48    60    -12   54
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21.   R     Mossley                46    13    14    19    54    62    -8    53
22.   R     Bury                   46    10    17    19    43    61    -18   47
23.   R     Salisbury              46    11    12    23    44    60    -16   45
24.   R     Accrington             46    9     14    23    39    65    -26   31 *

* Accrington deducted 10 points for entering administration

 

Conference North

Promoted: Altrincham (1st, 79 pts), York City (5th, 70 pts).

Also in Play-Offs: Macclesfield Town (2nd, 77 pts), Gateshead (3rd, 73 pts), Sheffield (4th, 73 pts).

Relegated: Brackley Town (20th, 40 pts), Hednesford Town (21st, 35 pts), Cambridge City (22nd, 10 pts*).

* 10 points deducted

 

Conference South

Promoted: Bromley (1st, 78 pts), Canvey Island (2nd, 69 pts).

Also in Play-Offs: Romford (3rd, 69 pts), Eastbourne Borough (4th, 66 pts), Welling United (5th, 66 pts).

Relegated: Grays Athletic (20th, 42 pts), Aveley (21st, 41 pts), Weston-super-Mare (22nd, 38 pts).

 

Regional Premier Divisions

Promoted from Northern Premier League Premier: FC United of Manchester (1st), Blyth Spartans (5th).

Promoted from Isthmian League Premier: Brentwood Town (1st), Soham Town Rangers (2nd).

Promoted from Southern League Premier: Burnham (1st), Aylesbury United (3rd).

[CFuller]

2024/2025 season round-up: Part 2

Major Transfers

• Arsenal's failure to qualify for Europe led to a massive firesale, with £125million worth of talent being sold off in the summer. They made £23million from striker Burak Acikgoz's move to Manchester City, while captain Jack Wilshere joined Liverpool for a relatively cut-price £8.25million. Kingsley Aremu and Florian Ivancic both went to Real Madrid, and Marco Verratti was poached by Juventus.
• The transfer activity at the Emirates Stadium wasn't all one-way. Arsenal replaced Acikgoz with Scotland international Jack Smith - a £22.5million arrival from Fulham - and signed Italian left-back Tommaso Fiorillo from Ajax for £21.5million.
• Manchester United paid their highest transfer fee for a decade, with £33.5million taking Slovakia midfielder Rudolf Maslo away from Borussia Dortmund. Maslo would finish the season with 10 Premier League assists. United had earlier spent £19.5million on Sampdoria's 25-year-old left-winger Alessandro De Patre, who was briefly on Southampton's books as a teenager.
• Although Acikgoz scored 34 goals in all competitions for City, two other big-name signings had more difficult starts to life at the Etihad Stadium. Germany defender Harald Burkhard, who cost £25million from VfB Stuttgart, tore his hamstring twice in four months. Greek forward Panagiotis Ntarlas started just six PL games following his £21million purchase from Liverpool, and was mainly used as an impact substitute.
• In June 2023, Newcastle United signed rising Canadian star Alessio Giannoccaro from Toronto FC for a modest £350,000. Just 19 months later, the 22-year-old midfielder was bought by Bayern Munich - for £28million! That's not bad business at all from the Magpies!
• Bayern also spent close to £40million on a couple of United's South American stars in January. Paraguayan right-winger Néstor Sánchez, who originally made his name at Watford, and Colombia defender Jesús María Arregoces both swapped Old Trafford for the Allianz Arena.

 

Managerial Movements

• Chelsea didn't take too long to select a replacement for Barcelona-bound Miodrag Bozovic. The new number 1 at Stamford Bridge was Ard van Peppen - a Dutch former left-back who'd guided Eintracht Frankfurt into the Bundesliga's top four. The 39-year-old finished his first season as Chelsea boss with a trophy, specifically the League Cup, which the Blues won by beating Manchester City 3-0.
• A mad spell of chopping and changing in the Premier League began in mid-November, when West Bromwich Albion sacked Steve Round and hired Gary Rowett. The latter's old Everton job went to Nicky Bailey, who was replaced at Wigan Athletic by newly-sacked Arsenal boss Elvis Scoria. After Malky Mackay left Burnley to become the Gunners' first British manager in nearly three decades, the Clarets poached another Scot - Colin Cameron - from Hibernian. Have you caught up yet?
• Liverpool also opted for a mid-season change of boss by sacking Alan Pardew. His successor was former Arsenal failure Vitor Pereira, who'd just been sacked by Atlético Madrid after barely three months. Later on, Watford dismissed Owen Coyle and brought in Bobby Mimms from Reading. The Royals promptly persuaded ex-player Phil Parkinson to leave Queens Park Rangers and take over at the Madejski Stadium.
• By their high standards, Juventus' start to the Serie A season was a very disappointing one. Ciro Ferrara paid the price with his job, which was given to Borussia Dortmund's Ronald Koeman. Ferrara would later succeed Roberto Mancini as head coach of Granada.
• Last season's runners-up Borussia Moenchengladbach lost their boss just before the new season, as Gertjan Verbeek replaced the retired Jan Wouters as Holland coach. Die Fohlen gave the vacancy to Juan Manuel Lillo, who'd successfully guided Napoli back into Serie A. Frank Lampard then ended a two-year break from management to take over at the Partenopei, who went on to finish 12th.
• Former Arsenal and Manchester United striker Robin van Persie had three managerial jobs in 2024. He started the year at Swiss Super League outfit FC Vaduz, and was then poached by Sevilla, where he only lasted nine months before being sacked in November. van Persie bounced back a month later as the new manager of 1.FC Koln, whose previous coach Dirk Orlishausen had gone to Dortmund.

 

Other Major Stories

• After beating Manchester City in the UEFA Champions League Semi Finals, Manchester United hoped that their third successive Final would finally bring them joy. It was not to be, as Empoli held them to a goalless draw in Rome and won a dramatic penalty shoot-out 7-6. Empoli goalkeeper Edinson Aguilar saved potentially-decisive kicks from United duo Cheick Tigana and De Patre, and when Mitja Basa struck his left-hand post, the Azzurri went wild! Incredibly, Neil Lennon's men were kings of Europe!
• Real Madrid retained the La Liga title in the most convincing fashion, finishing 23 points clear of their three nearest rivals Real Sociedad, Barcelona and Real Betis! Indeed, Slaven Bilic's men only suffered one league defeat all season - away to Betis in January. Maxim Rybin won the Pichichi award with 28 goals, while ex-Arsenal stars Aremu and Ivancic also excelled for 'Los Merengues'.
• It was a funny old season in Scotland, where neither Celtic nor Rangers finished in the top three for the first time in exactly 60 years. Heart of Midlothian took the Scottish Premier League title, seeing off rivals Hibernian and dark horses St Mirren to end their 65-year championship wait. Holders Motherwell had a dreadful campaign, as they battled against relegation before coming 10th!
• Porto's eight-year stranglehold on the Primeira Liga was ended by Benfica, who won their first title for a decade. That moved Benfica back level with their great rivals on 35 Portuguese championships. Anderlecht were also ousted as Belgian champions after eight years, with AA Gent winning the Pro League for the first time in their 125-year history.
• FIFA World Cup holders Spain are struggling to qualify for next year's tournament in the United States. They lost a home qualifier to Bulgaria in October, and then suffered a humiliating 6-1 reverse in Sweden, where Marcus Ekberg bagged a hat-trick. European champions Czech Republic are also toiling, as they took five attempts to win a qualifying match. They're still doing much better than 2014 world champs Ukraine, who have already been eliminated after taking just one point from six games!
• Spain legend Javi Martínez, who won three World Cups and two European Championships during a glittering international career, retired from football after a year with Osasuna. Former England defenders Nathaniel Clyne and Chris Smalling also hung up their boots, as did compatriot Danny Welbeck, who will be very fondly remembered by Betis fans.

 

Cup Winners

FA Cup: Manchester City 2-0 Tottenham Hotspur.

League Cup: Chelsea 3-0 Manchester City.

Community Shield: Manchester United 1-0 Manchester City.

Football League Trophy: Exeter City 2-1 Burton Albion.

 

UEFA Champions League: Empoli 0-0 Manchester United (7-6 penalties) - at Olimpico, Rome.

UEFA Europa League: Valenciennes 3-2 Barcelona (aet) - at Signal Iduna Park, Dortmund.

UEFA Super Cup: Manchester City 2-1 Chelsea - at Stade Saint-Symphorien, Longeville-lés-Metz.

FIFA Club World Championship: Corinthians 1-0 Manchester City - at Stade Olympique, Rades.

 

Major European Leagues

Dutch Eredivisie: Feyenoord (1st), FC Utrecht (2nd), Ajax (3rd).

French Ligue 1: Paris Saint-Germain (1st), Rennes (2nd), Saint-Etienne (3rd).

German Bundesliga: Bayern Munich (1st), Hamburg (2nd), Borussia Moenchengladbach (3rd).

Italian Serie A: Roma (1st), Udinese (2nd), Juventus (3rd).

Portuguese Primeira Liga: Benfica (1st), Porto (2nd), Guimaraes (3rd).

Russian Premier League: CSKA Moscow (1st), Lokomotiv Moscow (2nd), Anji Makhachkala (3rd).

Scottish Premier League: Heart of Midlothian (1st), Hibernian (2nd), St Mirren (3rd).

Spanish La Liga: Real Madrid (1st), Real Sociedad (2nd), Barcelona (3rd).

 

Award Winners

PFA Player of the Year: Alexandre Ricardo (Manchester City).

PFA Young Player of the Year: Clive Johnson (Sunderland).

FWA Footballer of the Year: Iván Guillermo (Manchester City).

Premier League Manager of the Season: Chris Powell (West Ham United).

PFA Premier League Team of the Year:

• David De Gea (Manchester United and Spain)
• Gordon Hubbuck (Watford and England)
• Chad Gauss (Manchester City and Canada)
• Sunny Salami (Southampton and Nigeria)
• Jonas Saliba (Fulham and Sweden)
• Iván Guillermo (Manchester City and Argentina)
• Alexandre Ricardo (Manchester City and Brazil)
• Alison Brito Neves (Chelsea and Portugal)
• Marko Skopljanac (Arsenal and Croatia)
• Clive Johnson (Sunderland and England)
• Damien King (Manchester United and England)

 

FIFA Ballon d'Or: Iván Guillermo (Manchester City).

World Soccer World Player of the Year: Alexandre Ricardo (Manchester City).

European Golden Shoe: Maxim Rybin (Real Madrid).

UEFA Best Player in Europe: Iván Guillermo (Manchester City).

FIFA/FIFPro World XI:

• David De Gea (Manchester United and Spain)
• Nelson Parra (Paris Saint-Germain and Colombia)
• Emmanuel Guinazu (Barcelona and Argentina)
• Stuart Lindsay (West Bromwich Albion and England)
• Cristiano Magnolo (Juventus and Italy)
• Alexandre Ricardo (Manchester City and Brazil)
• Alison Brito Neves (Chelsea and Portugal)
• Iván Guillermo (Manchester City and Argentina)
• Guido Dri (Porto and Italy)
• Grégory Lefevre (Manchester United and Belgium)
• Mohammed Said (Empoli and Italy)

[CFuller]

JULY 2025

My fourth season as Dagenham & Redbridge boss began with a sense of quiet optimism. The previous campaign - our first since returning to the Football League - had culminated in us finishing just eight points off the play-off places. If we could continue where we left off in the spring, we would certainly be seen as dark horses for promotion back to League Two.

 

Of course, that wasn't going to be easy, considering our financial predicament. I had been forced to drastically cut my wage budget - and last season's top scorer, Jamie Bell, was a reluctant victim of those cuts.

 

Jamie's exit meant that there were now just four remaining players from the Daggers squad I inherited in 2022 - Tim Beech, Mitchell Clark, Yasser Ibrahim and Robbie Ryder. Robbie had already signed a new two-year contract, but the long-term futures of the other three players were less certain. They all had just 12 months left on their current deals, and if any good offers came in for their services, I would have to seriously think about taking the money.

 

Another complication we'll have to deal with this season is that we won't have Victoria Road all to ourselves. Brentwood Town are expanding their stadium after winning promotion to the Conference South, so they will be lodging with us until mid-February.

 

There was really no better way to welcome our new tenants to Victoria Road than with a friendly to kick off pre-season. The pitch was in pristine condition, although that definitely will not be the case come April!

 

Another new face linked up with the Daggers squad just in time for this game. 20-year-old centre-half Gavin Dalton joined us on trial after being released by his hometown club Northampton Town.

 

5 July 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Brentwood Town

Jonathan Roche nearly got our pre-season off to the perfect start after five minutes, when his half-volley was parried by Brentwood keeper Terry Southam. Three minutes later, Ahletdin Israilov had a great chance to score a free-kick from the very edge of the area, but he fired it into the Blues' wall.

 

Israilov gave Southam a sterner test in the 22nd minute, heading Dagenham newcomer Matt Warren's cross into the goalie's hands. Southam saved his team again on 27 minutes, stopping Willie Dickson's quickfire shot after a low centre from Yasser Ibrahim deflected off a Brentwood defender.

 

Although we were bossing possession and taking the game to our opponents, we were badly lacking a killer instinct. The Isthmian League champions could've punished us after 37 minutes, when striker William Myers broke away from our defence and headed Adam Pepper's free-kick over the bar. Pepper later came off with a damaged kneecap following a strong tackle from Tim Beech, but if we didn't up our game for the second half, he wouldn't be the only player on his way to hospital.

 

I asserted my authority on the Dagenham players at half-time, and they returned for the second half fired up. Substitute Paul Hart made a quick impact in the 50th minute, drilling a cross through Brentwood's defence before Yasser Ibrahim applied the finish.

 

Once Yasser scored, there was little doubt that we would win. Luke Mead's speculative long-range strike in the 55th minute, which sailed wide, would be Brentwood's one and only chance to equalise. The Blues defender later picked up a knock, as did another half-time Daggers sub. Dean Oliver only lasted until the 75th minute, when he played his part in setting up a chance that Hart pulled into the side netting.

 

Troy Hands took Dean's place, and it wasn't long before he made his mark. On 82 minutes, Hands stuck out his leg to bring down Julian Ridley, picking up a yellow card. Hands picked up a clever assist six minutes later, knocking Hart's corner on to Gareth Flood, who blasted the ball past Brentwood's substitute keeper Paul Woolley.

 

Troy was unlucky not to complete the game with an injury-time goal, as he first had a shot saved by Woolley before firing the rebound past the far post. Nevertheless, we still recorded a 2-0 win that could easily have been more comfortable.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Ibrahim 50, G Flood 88)

Brentwood Town - 0

Friendly, Attendance 1,279

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan (Ryder), Beech (Jack), Tierney (Dalton), Coton (Heffernan), Warren (Wordsworth), Clark (Oliver (Hands)), Harding (McLean), Roche (Parmenter), Israilov (Hart), Ibrahim (G Flood), Dickson (Munn). BOOKED: Hands.

 

Another Conference South outfit awaited us in our next friendly. Dulwich Hamlet had upset us 2-0 in our last meeting 12 months ago, so we went to Champion Hill looking to set things straight.

 

8 July 2025: Dulwich Hamlet vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Loanee Dean Oliver made an excellent start at left-back, as he played a superb pass to Troy Hands in Dulwich Hamlet's area after just two minutes. Sadly, Hands followed it up with a shot that blazed over the bar.

 

Troy went closer in the 8th minute, as he hit the post before Joel Honeyball scrapped for the loose ball, only for Dulwich defender Louis Green to make a vital tackle. Our spell of early dominance ended a minute later, with winger Gareth Flood heading over from full-back Louis Jack's cross.

 

Hamlet grew more confident midway through the half. Captain Will Bor went just wide from a free-kick in the 19th minute, and striker Darragh Kehoe had a header tipped over by Daggers goalie Robbie Ryder five minutes later. Gavin Dalton dealt with Bor's corner easily enough, and we were soon on the counter-attack. Geraint Harding did tremendously well to pick out teenage winger Wayne Parmenter, who couldn't quite keep his volley on target.

 

That had been a real chance for us to break the deadlock... and Dulwich missed a golden opportunity of their own after 35 minutes. Kehoe sent the ball across our goalmouth and found 16-year-old winger Dan Bates, who struck the side netting. With finishing like that, it was no wonder the first half ended goalless.

 

Both teams continued to struggle early in the first half, although Dulwich Hamlet looked more likely to make anything happen. After having a free-kick blocked by our brave defence in the 52nd minute, Bor set up a chance for teenage striker Brent Hill in the 64th. Hill's shot was caught by Ryder, whose replacement Daryl Ryan continued to keep the hosts at bay after coming on for the final 20 minutes.

 

Ryan made an incredible save after 75 minutes, palming the ball off his line just as Hill was about to volley Stephan Hamilton-Forbes' corner into the net! After that narrow escape, we looked to control possession a bit more as we tried to build up to a strong finish.

 

With four minutes to go, some steady build-up play unravelled Dulwich's defence. Willie Dickson threaded the ball to Jonathan Roche, who looked like he wasn't in the same postcode as any home players on the right flank. Roche then centred the ball to Dickson, but Hamlet centre-backs Daryl Hawthorne and Michael Zyambo both scuffed clearances, with the latter knocking his across the line! That bizarre own goal gifted us a 1-0 win we hardly deserved.

 

Dulwich Hamlet - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Zyambo og86)

Friendly, Attendance 454

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder (Ryan), Jack (Beech), Dalton (Tierney), Heffernan (Gorman), Oliver (Warren), Parmenter (Roche), Harding (McLean), Hart (Martin), G Flood (Ibrahim), Hands (Dickson), Honeyball (Munn). BOOKED: Hart.

 

Call the police - there's been a robbery in south London!

 

The fact we had won couldn't disguise what was a very mediocre performance. Frankly, we had to up our game several notches at home to Brentford, otherwise the Bees would swarm all over us.

 

12 July 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Brentford

Dagenham striker Joel Honeyball looped a volley into Brentford keeper Daniel Lincoln's hands after six minutes. About half a minute later, the Bees nearly got lucky. Their longest-serving player Bjarni Ólafur Einarsson's shot deflected off Wayne Coton's heel, and Wayne had to make a quick tackle to stop Chukki Palmer from burying the loose ball.

 

On 10 minutes, a firm tackle from Icelandic winger Einarsson left Daggers midfielder Troy Hands with a gashed leg, ending his game early. We struggled to recover from that blow, and in the 15th minute, Courtney Wade hammered Laurence Scopes' long ball home to put Brentford 1-0 up.

 

The Bees nearly went 2-0 up six minutes later, but right-winger Ross Armstrong hit the post after receiving an excellent cross from left-back Lee Jones. When Yasser Ibrahim forced Lincoln into his second save after 27 minutes, it seemed that we were getting back into the game. We sure looked comfortable in possession, but we couldn't get particularly close to the Brentford goal. Honeyball, Paul Hart and substitute Geraint Harding all failed to hit the target from long range in the closing moments.

 

The second half was similar to the first half, in that a Daggers midfielder came off early on with a leg injury. Palmer's challenge on Hart brought an end to Paul's match, and it also broke up any momentum we had.

 

After flicking a lob into Lincoln's hands in the 49th minute, Dagenham target man Willie Dickson had to wait nearly 20 minutes for his next opportunity. Willie's 68th-minute attempt was parried by Lincoln, and the magnificent Jones cleared the ball before Jonathan Roche could get a decent follow-up in.

 

Garry Rice missed the target twice for the Bees after 72 and 77 minutes, but the League One side would soon put a decisive second goal past us. It came with just four minutes left to play, as Roger Chambers emphatically finished from Jones' delivery. A frustrating afternoon for us ended with defender Thomas Tierney hitting the upright from an Ahletdin Israilov corner in added-on time.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Brentford - 2 (Wade 15, Chambers 86)

Friendly, Attendance 1,529

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan (Ryder), Beech (Jack), Heffernan (Gorman), Coton (Tierney), Warren (Oliver), Clark (Edwards), Hands (Harding), Hart (Roche), Honeyball (Israilov), Ibrahim (G Flood), Dickson (Cecere). BOOKED: Jack.

 

Paul Hart and Troy Hands would both miss the rest of pre-season with gashed legs. That double blow was far from ideal, considering we had two massive tests coming our way over the next week.

[CFuller]

JULY 2025 (continued)

Mitchell Clark was our highest-paid player, on £2,100 per week. Unfortunately, the defensive midfielder was not playing well enough to merit that salary, let alone the pay rise his agent was demanding. I now had to make a firm decision about Mitchell's future. Should I try to sell him for as much as I can… or should I keep him on, and risk losing him for diddly-squat in 12 months' time?

 

I sat Clark down in my office, and then told him, "I don't really want to do this, Mitch, but I'll have to put you up for sale. We badly need to raise cash to stay afloat, and your sale would help with that."

 

Mitchell was stunned. "I've been here for five years, through thick and thin, and now you're gonna chuck me out? At least let me see out my contract!"

 

I told Mitchell that, with the club's situation as it was, keeping him on such high wages was not really an option. He had to respect my decision and that was that. If anyone matched my asking price of around £100,000, then we would have to bid farewell to Clarky.

 

I would bite someone's hand off for a six-figure transfer fee, but Southampton had already sold £20million worth of talent following their shock relegation to the Championship earlier this year. They came to Victoria Road with a mighty team that still included the likes of ex-France striker Alexander Lacazette, Nigerian defender Sunny Salami, and Serbian midfield superstar Dejan Milenkovic.

 

15 July 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Southampton

In the fifth minute, Dagenham keeper Robbie Ryder played a long goal kick to Ahledtin Israilov, who flicked it forward to Neil Munn. Neil raced past a feeble slide from Southampton defender Shane Hussey and then slotted his shot… inches the wrong side of the post! Israilov created another opportunity for Munn four minutes later, but our young striker fired it wide.

 

Neil did hit the target at last in the 22nd minute, although Saints goalie Florin Mozacu only needed to make a routine catch. Over the next three minutes, Mozacu's Romanian compatriot Rares Ciobotariu brought out the best in Ryder, who kept out two efforts from the 24-year-old striker.

 

Then, in the 27th minute, we won a free-kick in a dangerous position after Dejan Milenkovic barged into Munn. Ahletdin floated his free-kick above the Saints wall… and struck the woodwork! Our dreadful luck in front of goal continued when Israilov glided past Hussey and Nathan Aké in the 37th minute, only to pull his shot off target.

 

Three minutes later, Alexander Lacazette went mightily close to putting Southampton the lead. That was a warning we did not heed, as right-back Louis Jack gave the ball to the hosts with a sloppy throw in the 44th minute. Within moments, Lacazette had opened the scoring with a clinical finish after Ciobotariu had been unfortunate to strike the post.

 

We didn't let that Saints goal on the stroke of half-time faze us after the break. In the 49th minute, not long after Dennis Perry had wasted a great chance to double Southampton's lead, Brazilian midfielder Marlon was forced to concede a corner to the Daggers. Israilov swung it to the near post, where Geraint Harding flicked in his first ever senior goal for Dagenham!

 

At 1-1, we thought anything could happen. What did happen was that Southampton grew stronger. In the 61st minute, Ciobotariu hit the frame for a second time after being superbly set up by Milenkovic. The Serbia midfielder went for goal himself a minute later, but Daryl Ryan pulled off his first save after replacing Ryder at half-time.

 

Daryl's clean sheet against the Championship side would last just a few more seconds. Milenkovic showed just why Southampton had paid £15.25million for him last summer with a superb corner, which was headed home by left flanker Jan Maly.

 

The Saints marched on in the 67th minute, as Ciobotariu provided Lacazette with his second goal, which increased our deficit to 3-1. That ended any aspirations we had of getting a shock result against a side who famously beat Barcelona in the first leg of a UEFA Europa League Semi Final just last April.

 

After 79 minutes, Southampton completed their second-half masterclass by making it 4-1. Majestic Milenkovic hit the ball upfield to 15-year-old winger Matty Keeley, whose header was volleyed in by another schoolboy - James Lester. It had been a sobering experience for all the Daggers players - particularly Yasser Ibrahim, who pulled his hamstring late on and would miss the start of the league season as a result.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Harding 49)

Southampton - 4 (Lacazette 44,67, Maly 63, Lester 79)

Friendly, Attendance 5,415

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder (Ryan), Jack (Beech), Dalton (Gorman), Heffernan (Coton), Oliver (Warren), Roche (Parmenter), Harding (Clark), Martin (Honeyball), G Flood (Ibrahim), Israilov (Giangoudakis), Munn (Cecere). BOOKED: Martin, Giangoudakis.

 

There's no shame in losing 4-1 to a team of Southampton's quality, but it could well have been a different result had Neil Munn taken even one of his golden chances early on. Neil was struggling to hit the back of the net, as were all our strikers for that matter.

 

Another frontman, Willie Dickson, had more than just his goal drought on his mind. He'd caught wind of some rumours linking him to a Championship club, and he was soon hankering for a transfer.

 

As much as I tried to persuade Dickson that he should stay at Dagenham, I could tell that his heart clearly lay elsewhere. After just one season at the club, I granted him a transfer request. Like Mitchell Clark, he would have permission to talk to another team if they stumped up enough cash.

 

I put Willie firmly in the shop window by starting him in our next home friendly against parent club Fulham. The Cottagers had finished at least 8th in five of the previous six Premier League seasons.

 

19 July 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Fulham

Fulham launched a string of early attacks, but they couldn't seriously threaten Daryl Ryan in the Dagenham goal. French teenager Rachid Zaidi headed well wide in the 9th minute, while Taxiarchis Fountas hit a horrible volley in the 17th.

 

Ryan was finally forced into action on 19 minutes, as he caught a 30-yard strike from the Cottagers' new American striker Kane Ball. Midfielder Liam Wood also attempted a long-range strike a couple of minutes later, but he couldn't hit the target.

 

Fulham keeper Stuart Burns made his first save after 26 minutes, catching Thomas Tierney's close-range header. Less than a minute later, Ryan got his gloves to Ball's flick-on just before Zaidi could turn it into the net. That was the last time either side would some close to breaking the deadlock before half-time.

 

Neil Munn had missed a multitude of great chances against Southampton - and he had another moment to forget in the first minute of the second half. Munn had acres of space after racing past Fulham defender Christopher Khan, but he drove his shot wide. Neil's next attempt, in the 62nd minute, was slightly better. At the end of a flowing passing move from Dagenham, the forward unleashed a fierce strike that Burns tipped behind.

 

Two minutes later, Daggers centre-half Gavin Dalton made one of many great interceptions to stop Fulham left-back Jonas Saliba's cross from finding Ball. Gavin soon had to make another, heading away a dangerous delivery by winger Jordan Holder.

 

Dalton was defending stoically, but Fulham would have several chances to break our resistance in the closing stages. Egyptian forward Hossam Said headed narrowly over in the 77th minute, and Lazaros Karaoglanidis saw his drive saved by Robbie Ryder two minutes later. Although young left-back Ben Wordsworth came off injured in the last minute of normal time, we remained tight and held on for a goalless draw against the Premier League side!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Fulham - 0

Friendly, Attendance 5,332

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan (Ryder), Beech (Johnson), Dalton (Coton), Tierney (Heffernan), Warren (Wordsworth (Giangoudakis)), Clark (Edwards), McLean (Harding), Israilov (Martin), Roche (Honeyball), Munn (G Flood), Dickson (Cecere).

 

After conceding seven goals in our previous two meetings with Fulham, that was a massive improvement. It just went to show how much we had improved over the years.

 

The bookmakers had clearly noted that improvement, as we were rated at a backable 20-1 to win promotion from League Two. The relegated quartet of Derby County (2-1), Tranmere Rovers (5-2), Yeovil Town (also 5-2) and Burton Albion (3-1) all had much shorter odds, but you certainly couldn't write us off as contenders.

[CFuller]

JULY 2025 (continued)

A couple of centre-backs signed deals with us following our stalemate with Fulham. Gavin Dalton had played superbly against the Cottagers, and the trialist was rewarded with a two-year contract. Although Gavin is only 20, he has good leadership skills, and he's also reasonably quick for a player in his position.

 

As for Wayne Coton, any fears I had about possibly having to sell him were soon quelled. Our Player of the Year from last season agreed to sign a new contract that would keep him at Victoria Road for at least the next three.

 

It looked like being a very different story as far as Mitchell Clark was concerned. Just before our next friendly, I received a call from Bolton Wanderers manager David Wotherspoon, who said that he was willing to pay our asking price of £100,000 for Clark. I quickly gave him permission to discuss terms with the midfielder.

 

While Mitchell travelled to Bolton to finalise his big move, the rest of us were on our way to Suffolk. Lowestoft Town had just been relegated to Isthmian League Division 1 North, which was four levels below us, so this was a great opportunity for our starving strikers to fill their boots.

 

22 July 2025: Lowestoft Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Joel Honeyball didn't take long to get something on his plate. After just six minutes, Honeyball deftly turned Gianluca Cecere's low cross into the Lowestoft net just before either goalkeeper Jason Drew or defender Christopher Duru could reach it.

 

Cecere almost found the net himself in the 9th minute, but his volley from Wayne Parmenter's flick-on was just wide. Gareth Flood did hit the target on 17 minutes after a clever one-two with Joel - but the offside flag denied the Irishman his goal. We racked up the corners later on as the Trawler Boys battled to keep the score down to 1-0. Between the 33rd and 35th minutes, Drew needed to make three top-drawer saves - two from Dean Oliver, and one from Gareth.

 

Lowestoft started to trouble our defence just before half-time, with David Hopkirk twice going close. The experienced Scottish striker hit the upright in the 41st minute, and then fired another effort just beyond the other post moments later.

 

Lowestoft continued where they left off in the second half, but their shooting was actually going farther away from the target. Tommy Cummins put a piledriver over the bar shortly after the restart, and Steven Platt scuffed a 25-yarder in the 51st minute.

 

After 57 minutes, Honeyball made an excellent solo run towards goal, only to mess up his shot at the final moment. Joel wouldn't get his second goal, though we did score again after 72 minutes. Gavin Dalton headed Ahletdin Israilov's free-kick against the bar, and Jonathan Roche was on hand to bury the rebound and double our advantage.

 

Three minutes later, Lowestoft registered what would be their only shot on target, but Cummins' effort was pushed away by Robbie Ryder. The Trawler Boys were then reduced to ten men in the 82nd minute after defender Alan Woods came off hurt.

 

That began a spell in which we had a host of chances to enhance our winning margin. Matt Warren and Geraint Harding went the closest, as they both hit the woodwork after 87 minutes. When the final whistle blew, I was wondering how the final score was still only 2-0.

 

Lowestoft Town - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Honeyball 6, Roche 72)

Friendly, Attendance 308

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder (S Flood), Jack (Johnson), Tierney (Coton), Gorman (Dalton), Wordsworth (Bartley), Parmenter (Roche), Oliver (Harding), McLean (Martin), G Flood (Warren), Honeyball (Israilov), Cecere (Munn). BOOKED: Warren.

 

Mitchell Clark's discussions with Bolton Wanderers dragged on and on for the next few days. Then, on the evening before our final friendly at Southend United, I heard that he'd turned them down. Apparently, Bolton could not meet his wage demands.

 

I was a little disappointed to see Mitchell's big move fall through, but I welcomed him back into the Dagenham team when we travelled to Roots Hall. Southend finished just outside the Conference Premier play-off places last season, and Shrimpers fans seem optimistic that their side may soon return to the Football League.

 

26 July 2025: Southend United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

The first 15 minutes were very cagey, but Willie Dickson did give Southend goalkeeper Kyle Blair a serious test in the 16th minute. Blair turned behind a fierce strike from his fellow Scot, and a minute later, he got his fingertips to Ahletdin Israilov's low drive. After 27 minutes, Israilov chipped a delicate free-kick to Geraint Harding, whose header touched the bar and went over.

 

During the opening half-hour, the Shrimpers had shown only fleeting glimpses of their attacking potential. In the 31st minute, that potential turned into something more substantial. After making an excellent run, Ian Lever fed the ball through to 16-year-old Philip Varty, who withstood Tim Beech's tackle and scored from a tight angle. Southend had taken the lead with their first - and indeed only - shot of the first period!

 

Having fizzling out during the closing stages of the first half, we were slow to get up and running again after the restart. Thomas Tierney went very close to heading in an equaliser on 57 minutes. Three minutes later, Dickson had a shot blocked by Southend defender Arron Fraser.

 

Two minutes after that, the impressive Shrimpers almost went further ahead! Winger Scott Nicholas played a slide-rule pass before the byline to Arthur Lindsay, and Daggers goalie Daryl Ryan had to quickly push the ball behind for a corner. Ryan later caught a header from Gareth Worby in the 68th minute, two minutes after Blair had kept out a close-range effort from our 16-year-old substitute striker Sotiris Giangoudakis.

 

Another young Dagger was left frustrated after 70 minutes, when Dean Martin blazed the ball high and wide. That was the last of 12 unsuccessful shots from Dagenham. Despite having just four attempts at goal (the last of which was a late hit-and-hoper from Nicholas), Southend had eked out a surprise victory in this Essex derby.

 

Southend United - 1 (Varty 31)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 0

Friendly, Attendance 1,535

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Beech (Jack), Dalton (Heffernan), Coton (Tierney), Warren (Bartley), Harding (Clark (Johnson)), Oliver (Martin), Honeyball (Roche), Israilov (Cecere), Munn (G Flood), Dickson (Giangoudakis). BOOKED: Heffernan.

 

I was very annoyed with that result, and to make matters worse, Mitchell Clark had come off with a damaged kneecap in the closing stages. He would have to miss the next four weeks as a result. That meant the start of Mitchell's season, and my plans to sell him, would have to be put on hold for the time being.

 

After a seven-game pre-season that bore just six goals, I was convinced that we still needed strengthening. To that end, I signed the veteran Welsh midfielder Theo Wharton, who'd spent the previous two seasons at Bristol Rovers, on a free transfer. I also recruited teenage striker Kenny Barber on a six-month loan from Norwich City.

 

As Kenny came in, no fewer than FIVE young Daggers went out on loan. Gianluca Cecere (Barnet), Harry Gorman (Eastleigh), Dean Martin (Oxford City), Neil Munn (Milton Keynes Dons) and Wayne Parmenter (Woking) will all be building up experience in non-league football over the next six months.

 

Also leaving Dagenham & Redbridge - on a permanent basis - was Willie Dickson. Championship side Hull City had offered £250,000 to sign our big Scottish striker. The Tigers would pay £75,000 up front, and the rest in small monthly instalments for the next four years. I wasted little time in accepting what would be the highest transfer fee our club has ever received.

 

Dickson's contract talks went well, as did his medical, so he completed his record-breaking move right at the end of July. After 42 games, in which he scored 12 goals and made 10 assists, our brief love affair with Willie was over.

 

Let's hope that the breakup isn't as bad as some fear it might be.

[CFuller]

Dagenham & Redbridge squad - Start of 2025/2026 season

(All ages correct as of 1 August 2025)

GOALKEEPERS

1. Daryl Ryan (age 20, Irish)

Daryl is now confident enough in his aerial ability to launch a bid for a regular starting place.

13. Robbie Ryder (age 27, English)

Agile shotstopper Robbie showed last season that he can be reliable at League Two level.

DEFENDERS

2. Tim Beech (age 23, English)

Right wing-back Tim is one of our most athletic players, but his tendency to go forward can leave us exposed.

3. Matt Warren (age 28, English)

I signed Matt, who can play at left-back or left-wing, for his exceptional fitness and his professional attitude.

5. Lee Heffernan (age 19, Irish)

Brave centre-half Lee may be highly-rated, but right now, he's not consistent enough to be a regular starter.

6. Thomas Tierney (age 21, American)

Thomas is a resolute character who rarely shirks a tackle in the centre of our defence.

14. Aaron McEwan (age 28, Scottish)

Captain Aaron will have to battle for his place again after five months out with knee tendonitis.

20. Wayne Coton (age 20, English)

Wayne continues to astound me with his incredibly mature performances at such a tender age.

22. Louis Jack (age 21, Scottish)

I can't question Louis' stamina, but the young right-back's positioning is a major issue at the moment.

28. Gavin Dalton (age 20, English)

Gavin's a selfless player with a good attitude, and his pace makes him a reliable covering defender.

MIDFIELDERS

4. Geraint Harding (age 21, Welsh)

You don't get too many bad performances out of Geraint, who is a strong presence in our midfield.

7. Jonathan Roche (age 22, Irish)

Winger Jonathan has good technical ability, although his lack of physical strength is a cause for concern.

8. Ahletdin Israilov (age 30, Kyrgyzstani)

You can always expect magical Ahletdin to be involved in goals, whether it's scoring or creating them.

11. Yasser Ibrahim (age 27, Egyptian)

League Two seems to be a step too far for inside-forward Yasser, who's often been lost in games.

12. Dean Oliver (age 19, English)

Fulham loanee Dean can play as a ball-winning midfielder or a left-back, so he should be a real asset.

16. Mitchell Clark (age 23, English)

There are strong doubts over solid holding midfielder Mitchell's long-term future at Dagenham.

17. Gareth Flood (age 18, Irish)

Gareth has a massive future ahead of him if he can be more creative on the left wing.

21. Paul Hart (age 18, English)

We may see a major breakthrough from attacking midfielder Paul if he can build up some confidence.

30. Theo Wharton (age 30, Welsh)

Creative midfielder Theo has played in over 400 league games, and he'll give us some extra experience.

FORWARDS

9. Troy Hands (age 24, English)

Theo is surprisingly versatile - he can either be a quick poacher or an aggressive midfield destroyer.

15. Joel Honeyball (age 17, English)

Joel's a great team player who can expect to feature more regularly for the senior side this term.

19. Neil Munn (age 20, English)

Neil seems to be a little goal-shy, so I've sent him off to Milton Keynes Dons until the end of January.

29. Kenny Barber (age 19, English)

Kenny is a strong finisher, so we should see some goals from him during his six-month loan from Norwich City.

 

RESERVE & YOUTH PLAYERS

Goalkeeper: Stephen Flood

Defenders: Denis Bartley, Harry Gorman (on loan at Eastleigh), Zac Johnson, Ben Wordsworth

Midfielders: Gordon Boyd, Reiss Edwards, Dean Martin (on loan at Oxford City), Lumumba McLean, Wayne Parmenter (on loan at Woking), Jeremiah Plummer

Forwards: Gianluca Cecere (on loan at Barnet), Sotiris Giangoudakis

 

BACKROOM STAFF

Manager: Christopher Fuller

Assistant Manager: Fabio Saraiva

Coaches: Mike Jones, Danny Keohane, John Potter, Steve Moss

Fitness Coach: David Wheater

Goalkeeping Coach: Scott Tynan

Physio: Sam Cutler

Scouts: Callum Donnelly (chief), Goma Lambu, Nicky Reynolds

[CFuller]

AUGUST 2025

On 2 August, Willie Dickson began his new life at Hull City with an away game against Championship big boys Stoke City, who were being managed by former England left-back Leighton Baines. As baptisms go, it couldn't be a fierier one for the former Dagenham & Redbridge hero.

 

Our season started with a rather less high-profile encounter at home to Chesterfield. We beat Johnnie Jackson's Spireites twice last term, including in the final game of the season, but our average pre-season form did not suggest that a third win on the trot was particularly likely.

 

2 August 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Chesterfield

Troy Hands recovered from a gashed leg to make his Dagenham debut, which got off to a promising start. In the 6th minute, he hit a fine low shot that Chesterfield keeper Jake Martin just about palmed away. Four minutes later, Spireites defender Ryan O'Reilly headed away a left-wing cross from Gareth Flood. Dean Oliver nodded the ball back towards Chesterfield's six-yard box, where Hands stabbed in the opening goal!

 

The Victoria Road faithful were ecstatic, and Oliver could've delighted them further in the 19th minute. Sadly, the on-loan Fulham midfielder couldn't quite keep his fierce strike on target.

 

Barely a minute later, our defence had a collective mare. Firstly, Chesterfield forward Jake Herring glided past Matt Warren to go through on goal. Daryl Ryan then came off his line to meet Herring, only to see the former Swindon Town hotshot bamboozle him with a shot that deflected off Warren. Wayne Coton then paid the price for failing to clear the loose ball before Pelly Ruddock stuck it into the net for the equaliser.

 

Chesterfield then threatened to go ahead on 24 minutes, but Callum McConnell blasted the ball high into the stands. Another Spireites midfielder - Sinan Bytyqi - came off injured six minutes later. On 36 minutes, Spireites defender Charlie MacGregor went down under a challenge from Ahletdin Israilov in the Daggers area. Chesterfield's penalty cries went unheeded, and Israilov went on to trouble Martin with a header in the 44th minute.

 

A minute after that, Ahletdin conceded a free-kick for impeding Nathan Ricketts-Hopkinson. McConnell's set-piece was promptly headed into the net by Ricketts-Hopkinson, but the striker's foul on Daryl meant that we avoided going 2-1 down.

 

We recomposed after our late scare and started the second half positively. Two minutes after the resumption, O'Reilly's woeful interception from Ahletdin's crossfield pass left Gareth Flood with a clear-cut chance to restore our lead. Amazingly, Gareth skewed it past the far post! Flood's next effort was a bit more accurate, as Martin caught the Irishman's 56th-minute header. However, that was not enough to save him from being replaced by Paul Hart shortly afterwards.

 

On 66 minutes, Ryan - another of our young Irish brigade - made no mistake in catching a header from Ricketts-Hopkinson. Daryl was somewhat more vulnerable when Chesterfield sub Robert Thomson drilled a 30-yarder just past his post in the 69th minute. Martin had made a superb save moments earlier to prevent Hart from putting us back ahead.

 

When Chesterfield lost another midfielder to injury with winger Blair Davidson's exit after 74 minutes, we began to strongly believe that we could take the spoils. Our big chance to stun the Spireites came with seven minutes left to play. Shortly after making a crucial tackle on Herring, our substitute defender Thomas Tierney played the ball forward to Paul, who flicked it aside to Hands. Troy's through-ball found Joel Honeyball… but the 17-year-old volleyed into the side netting.

 

Martin's confident 88th-minute save from a wicked shot by Hart left us feeling more exasperated. Our frustrations came to a head in added-on time. When Warren tried to close down Herring just outside our penalty, he left Ruddock criminally unmarked. Herring spotted this, and his pass to Ruddock was duly tucked into Daryl's left-hand corner. Ruddock had not scored in any of his previous 156 league appearances for Chesterfield, yet his unlikely double had given the Spireites a late win!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Hands 10)

Chesterfield - 2 (Ruddock 20,90)

League Two, Attendance 3,922 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 19th, Chesterfield 5th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Beech, Dalton, Coton (Tierney), Warren, Harding, Oliver (Wharton), Honeyball, Israilov, G Flood (Hart), Hands. BOOKED: Dalton, Coton.

 

Losing the first match of the season in added-on time is always frustrating, yes, but this was by no means a disaster. As last season showed, we didn't need to start off like Usain Bolt on steroids* to have a good campaign.

* DISCLAIMER: That was just a metaphor - I have no conclusive proof whatsoever that Usain Bolt has ever taken steroids.

 

While my players wondered how on earth they had lost to Chesterfield, I brought in another striker to beef up our attack. 24-year-old Sean Short joined us on a season-long loan from Bristol Rovers, where he had spent his entire career. Sean came through Rovers' youth set-up at the same time as Stuart Lindsay, who is now a key centre-back for Liverpool and England.

 

Short's surname is not very apt, as he's 6ft 2in and has a strong physique, making him a good target man. He can also play on the left wing, which is where he made his Dagenham debut at Luton Town. The Hatters finished 8th last season, even though Simon Killeen was League Two's top scorer with an unbelievable 36 goals!

 

5 August 2025: Luton Town vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Luton lost their first match of this season, and this game looked like going the same way after 13 minutes. Dagenham midfielder Paul Hart, who'd received a very early booking for diving, headed a delicious pass forward to Troy Hands up front. Troy got to the ball ahead of 35-year-old Luton defender Callum Morris, and then slipped it beyond 39-year-old keeper Scott Flinders for the opening goal!

 

Hart had helped to give us a 1-0 lead, and the starlet arguably should've made it 2-0 in the 19th minute. Paul's long free-kick was heading on target until winger Jonathan Roche scuffed a diving header wide.

 

Seven minutes later, Daggers captain Aaron McEwan marked his first match for five months with a moment that he quickly wanted to forget. McEwan stopped Guillermo Preciado's left-wing cross from finding the deadly Simon Killeen... but only because he diverted the ball into the net himself!

 

Luton had levelled, but we had two chances to go back in front before half-time. Louis Jack's effort curled comfortably towards Flinders in the 34th minute. Eight minutes later, Troy failed to get near Flinders' hands after capping off an excellent solo dribble with a finish that was anything but.

 

Luton were on edge at the start of the second half, as striker Joseph Cleaver and defender Calvin Knott both picked up yellow cards before the hour mark. As soon as Cleaver picked up his booking, he was replaced with 20-year-old Ikechukwu Babayaro. The local boy soon delighted the Kenilworth Road faithful by firing Luton into a 2-1 lead after 63 minutes.

 

We were fuming in the Daggers dugout, as Dean Oliver had been hurt in a rough challenge from Hatters midfielder Ross Jenkins in the build-up to Babayaro's goal. Ike threatened to give us another in the eye after 66 minutes, but his header was caught by Daryl Ryan.

 

In the 71st minute, Hatters captain Killeen went close to getting his name on the scoresheet with a free-kick. Inevitably, Killeen did hit the target nine minutes later. Big Mac made an unconvincing interception from Preciado's cross to Babayaro, and Luton's 36-goal hero from last season scored his first of the new campaign. 3-1 to the hosts.

 

Gareth Flood really could have used some of Killeen's killer instinct, as he stabbed wide a clear-cut opportunity for Dagenham in the 82nd minute. Had Gareth found the net after Troy sent him clear with a brilliant tackle on Luton right-back Andy Dalman, we might have been contemplating an unlikely comeback. As it was, we suffered our second straight defeat and slipped into the bottom two.

 

Luton Town - 3 (McEwan og26, Babayaro 63, Killeen 80)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Hands 13)

League Two, Attendance 6,917 - POSITIONS: Luton 10th, Dag & Red 23rd

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Jack, Dalton, McEwan, Warren, Harding (Oliver), Wharton, Hart (Honeyball), Roche, Short (G Flood), Hands. BOOKED: Hart.

 

Youngster Lee Heffernan didn't get off the bench against Luton, and with four centre-backs now ahead of him in the pecking order, I felt that he should go out on loan. Crawley Town - who are favourites to win the Conference Premier this season - swiftly came in an offer to take Lee for the next five months. I agreed, and so Heff was h-off to Sussex.

 

Back at Victoria Road, we looked to kick-start our season against relegated Tranmere Rovers, who drew each of their opening games 1-1. Chesterfield and Luton had both unravelled our short-passing game, so I hoped a switch back to long-ball tactics would turn things around.

[CFuller]

AUGUST 2025 (continued)

9 August 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Tranmere Rovers

We were fortunate not to concede a goal after just seven minutes, when John Morgan fired wide for Tranmere. Our relief didn't last very long, as in the 13th minute, our left-back Dean Oliver failed to control his interception from Richard Camp's attempted cross to Morgan. Camp promptly retook the ball, entered the penalty area, and calmly placed a shot into the net. 1-0 to Tranmere.

 

Troy Hands and Sean Short each had chances to equalise for Dagenham over the next seven minutes, but both of them were well off target. There would soon be worse to come for us.

 

In the 26th minute, Robbie Ryder stuck out his left leg to stop Camp from doubling Rovers' advantage. Dean then conceded a throw-in, which Tranmere right-back Joe Williams threw to Morgan just inside our area. Morgan threaded the ball through a crowd of Daggers players, and striker Andrew Davis slid it across the goal line. With just over a quarter of the game gone, we were already on course for a third consecutive defeat in the league.

 

Short nearly pulled a goal back for us in the 27th minute, but he could only find the side netting from Geraint Harding's long ball. Two minutes later, he got to Jonathan Roche's punt just before it could cross the Tranmere byline. Sean then floated in a first-time cross towards Troy… but it evaded both Hands and Rovers keeper Daryl Danby, and curled into the net!

 

A fluke goal can change any game, and that was definitely the case here. When Camp smashed over a long-distance shot in the 37th minute, I could tell that the visitors were rattled. A minute later, Tim Beech rattled them further with an excellent delivery to Short, who shrugged off centre-half Eddie Harvey and tucked away his second goal of the afternoon! Unbelievably, we'd come back from 2-0 down to level the scores!

 

Sean spurned an opportunity to complete his hat-trick just before half-time. Two minutes after the restart, he etched his name onto the match ball by completing our fightback. Short got past Tranmere captain Lenny Coleman to latch onto Jonny's weighted pass, and he then beat Danby for 3-2! Daggers fans had a new hero to cheer for!

 

The noise levels at Victoria Road increased by several decibels, and they did so again in the 53rd minute, when an excellent shot from Geraint Harding forced Danby into a difficult save. I then took off Hands to give a debut to 19-year-old Norwich City loanee Kenny Barber. After 57 minutes, Barber broke through Tranmere's offside trap to reach an excellent long pass from Theo Wharton. Kenny controlled it with his chest and drilled in a left-footer to increase our advantage to 4-2!

 

Our fourth goal riled Tranmere, who issued a quick response. Ryder made his first saves of the second half to keep out a powerful strike from Camp moments after the resumption. Robbie then held onto an ambitious shot from Davis in the 62nd minute. After Camp messed up a couple of drives midway through the half, we came close to unsettling Rovers even more.

 

Matt Warren's first-time cross in the 77th minute found Wayne Coton, whose header clipped the top of the crossbar. That would've given us a 5-2 win and a goal difference of zero, but we still registered our first three points of the season in incredible fashion!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 4 (Short 29,38,47, Barber 57)

Tranmere Rovers - 2 (Camp 13, Davis 26)

League Two, Attendance 3,941 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 17th, Tranmere 21st

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Dalton, Coton, Oliver, Roche, Wharton, Harding (Hart), Warren (G Flood), Short, Hands (Barber). BOOKED: Barber.

 

Throughout my time at Dagenham, I can't remember us ever coming back from two goals down to win a match, so this was a fabulous result.

 

We had shown tremendous fighting spirit, and that would be required again in our next match. We'd been drawn at home to Championship side Leicester City in Round 1 of the League Cup. Manager Craig Levein was in his third spell in charge of the Foxes, who'd won this competition three times, most recently in 2000.

 

12 August 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Leicester City

Unsurprisingly, Leicester asserted their authority early on. After just five minutes, goalkeeper Sebastian Helbig hoofed a powerful long ball to midfielder Sebastian Remme Berge. The Norwegian outjumped Dean Oliver to head it on to Armenian striker Viulen Ayvazyan, who hammered in the opening goal.

 

Four minutes later, the Foxes had a great chance to go 2-0 up. Ayvazyan played an excellent ball to the feet of Republic of Ireland midfielder Kane Ferdinand, who bent his effort wide.

 

Leicester didn't create too many opportunities during the remainder of the first half, but they were always firmly in control of the situation. Ayvazyan tested Robbie Ryder with a half-volley in the 31st minute, while defender Curtis Good headed wide just before half-time. At the break, we were rather relieved that we hadn't been blown away.

 

Ryder caught a 53rd-minute free-kick from José Joaquín Lobato to keep the deficit down to a single goal. A minute later, we had our first opportunity to equalise. Kenny Barber's cross was met by a stunning volley from Ahletdin Israilov, but Helbig beat it away just in time. Another minute followed, and then Israilov and Barber linked up for another Daggers chance. Ahletdin headed Geraint Harding's direct ball on to Kenny, who bulleted in an equaliser on his 20th birthday!

 

Sadly, Ayvazyan would play the role of party-pooper on 59 minutes. Tim Beech thought he'd saved us a goal when he blocked Ferdinand's cross to Lobato, but Ayvazyan proved him wrong with a fine finish.

 

Leicester were leading again, so I adopted a new formation for the final half-hour. My switch to a narrow 4-3-1-2 gave us a bit more solidity in the middle, but we were unable to fashion any more scoring chances.

 

Leicester ground out a 2-1 win to end our League Cup hopes, although they nearly finished with a third goal in injury time. Hélder Martins shinned Lobato's free-kick goalwards, only for Ryder to turn the ball behind just in time.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Barber 55)

Leicester City - 2 (Ayvazyan 5,59)

League Cup Round 1, Attendance 1,065

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Dalton, McEwan (Coton), Oliver, Harding, Hart, Warren, Israilov (Wharton), Short (Hands), Barber. BOOKED: McEwan.

 

I was satisfied with a narrow defeat, and our confidence remained high when we took on Cambridge United at the Abbey Stadium. Like us, Rio Ferdinand's men had lost their first two league matches before winning at the third attempt. They then went on to knock Willie Dickson's new Hull City team out of the League Cup on penalties.

 

Before this game, vice-captain Tim Beech agreed to extend his contract at Dagenham & Redbridge for another season. The right wing-back is now contracted to us until 2027.

 

16 August 2025: Cambridge United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Geraint Harding tested Cambridge's defence after just six minutes with a promising corner. Right-back Mario Holcroft headed it away for the U's, but he then had to come off briefly for treatment on a shoulder injury. Cambridge won a corner at the other end three minutes later, and Lloyd Howard's delivery was headed against the bar by midfielder Max Ashraf.

 

Meanwhile, our attacking players had mixed fortunes in front of goal. Sean Short was ineffective as our lone striker, and his woeful curling effort in the 14th minute would be his only shot of the first half. Troy Hands - playing in central midfield - fared slightly better in the 20th minute with a fierce drive that forced Cambridge goalie Milton Bannister into a quick reflex save.

 

Hands hit another strong shot on 31 minutes... but it went wide, and Sean was offside anyway when he flicked the ball to Troy. Neither team played well enough to threaten the other again before half-time, so the match remained goalless.

 

Hands came off at half-time, and I brought on Ahletdin Israilov in his place to give Short a bit more company up top. The move quickly paid off, as Israilov had two shots at goal in the first four minutes of the second half. Ahletdin bent his first one well wide in the 49th minute, but his second - later in that same minute - was much better. Geraint's crashing drive deflected off Sean and towards Holcroft, who could only slide the ball into Israilov's path. The Kyrgyzstan international slipped a delicate effort just past Bannister, and we were 1-0 ahead!

 

That lead quickly came under threat from a resurgent United team. In the 56th minute, Howard quickly played the ball ahead of striker Ashley Furniss, but Robbie Ryder came off his line to collect the ball before Furniss could connect with it. Robbie saved us again moments later with a comfortable catch from James Livingstone's strike.

 

We could've done with another goal to make us feel a tad more secure, and Israilov went close to getting one when his free-kick in the 67th minute narrowly cleared the bar. Short and Jonathan Roche then hammered attempts over the bar from just outside Cambridge's area after 72 and 73 minutes respectively.

 

I later sent Kenny Barber on to replace Sean and perhaps give us some more attacking energy in the closing stages. After 88 minutes, Barber drew a couple of Cambridge defenders out of position and played the ball to Harding in space. With Bannister out of his six-yard box, Geraint had plenty of time to pick his spot in a gaping goal. Alas, the defensive midfielder showed just why he'd never scored a competitive goal with a strike that sailed past the target.

 

Two minutes later, the U's missed a sitter of their own. When Matt Warren failed to do anything about Furniss' headed pass to Howard, the winger cut inside and fired the ball straight at Ryder. We seemed to have escaped with all three points… but Cambridge launched one final attack in injury time, and a poacher's finish from Livingstone salvaged a draw for the hosts. Urgh.

 

Cambridge United - 1 (Livingstone 90)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 49)

League Two, Attendance 4,485 - POSITIONS: Cambridge 18th, Dag & Red 15th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Dalton, Coton, Warren, Harding, Wharton (Oliver), Hands (Israilov), Roche, Ibrahim, Short (Barber).

 

Would that late kick in the stomach affect us in our next home game against AFC Bournemouth? The Cherries were directly above us in 14th, but many expected them to kick on and launch an early challenge for promotion.

[CFuller]

AUGUST 2025 (continued)

19 August 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs AFC Bournemouth

Ahletdin Israilov missed the target twice for us in the opening eight minutes, while Bournemouth winger Chris Sutherland went wide in the 11th minute. The first shot on target came after 20 minutes, when Daggers striker Troy Hands' fierce effort was met by a fantastic save from John Hamilton. The Cherries' Scottish keeper kept out another strike from Hands in the 23rd minute as the pendulum swung back and forth.

 

A minute after Hamilton's second save, former Celtic midfielder Josh Todd drove wide an effort for Bournemouth. That was followed by a poor long-range free-kick from Israilov, which flew straight into Hamilton's hands.

 

On 28 minutes, teenage Bournemouth midfielder Roy Carey opened our defence with a pinpoint pass to Sutherland, who beat Daryl Ryan at his near post. The Jamaican had given Bournemouth a 1-0 lead.

 

Hamilton retained the Cherries' strong position with another strong save to deny on-loan Daggers striker Sean Short in the 30th minute. With the visitors holding firm, we had been left with plenty of work to do in the second half.

 

Our centre-back pairing of Gavin Dalton and Wayne Coton came under pressure from the Cherries early in the second half. In the 52nd minute, a slip from Coton allowed Dave West to have a shot that Ryan could only divert towards Meshach Venables. The Bournemouth defender lunged at the ball to try and get it over the line… but he slid it away from the goalmouth!

 

A minute after that narrow escape, I subbed off Dalton, who had been booked in the first half. On 57 minutes, another Daggers defender played a key part in the game's second goal. Captain Tim Beech delighted the home fans with a superb cross that was headed home by Hands for the leveller!

 

Our supporters were delighted, but they were getting anxious again by the 61st minute. Daggers right-winger Jonathan Roche had to come off with a knock following a clash with Bournemouth left-back John Durie. We took a while to get going again after that. On 73 minutes, left-winger Gareth Flood nearly found Short with a fine centre that Hamilton punched clear.

 

In the 81st minute, a promising counter-attack from the Daggers ended with a disappointing shot from Troy. He would have one last chance to claim a brace, but not before West Ham United loanee Robin Gould almost struck a killer blow on 85 minutes. The 20-year-old midfielder struck from about 20 yards out, and Ryan held onto it comfortably. Daryl withstood one more Bournemouth attack in the 89th minute, catching Owen Hillier's header from Elliott Avery's long ball.

 

We then slowly built up an attack of our own before, in the last minute of normal time, Paul Hart floated the ball into the Cherries' six-yard box. Troy rose high above Ty Browning to connect with the cross, and his second headed goal of the game had given us a late win! This was the perfect way to bounce back after what happened in Cambridge!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Hands 57,90)

AFC Bournemouth - 1 (Sutherland 28)

League Two, Attendance 3,152 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 11th, Bournemouth 19th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryan, Beech, Dalton (Tierney), Coton, Oliver, Roche (Hart), Wharton, Israilov (Harding), G Flood, Short, Hands. BOOKED: Dalton.

 

We went from Victoria Road to Victoria Park for our next match, against Hartlepool United. The Monkey Hangers were in 9th spot after their first five matches.

 

23 August 2025: Hartlepool United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

We wasted no time in settling in after our long journey to the north-east. In the very first minute, Ahletdin Israilov hit a vicious shot that was blocked by Pools left-back Connor Peters. Yasser Ibrahim nodded the ball on to midfielder Paul Hart, and the teenager's half-volley made it 1-0 Daggers after just 40 seconds!

 

But just as quickly as they went behind, Hartlepool restored parity. After three minutes, Bram Pemberton played the ball forward to his strike partner Dougie Varley, who slid it across the line before defender Gavin Dalton could get a block in.

 

After such a blisteringly quick start, the action slowed down somewhat. Troy Hands fired wide our next opportunity in the 19th minute, while Pemberton spurned a decent chance for the Pools a minute later. Pemberton had another go in the 27th minute, but Robbie Ryder made a straightforward save.

 

Robbie's counterpart in the Hartlepool goal - Robert Hooper - would be thoroughly tested three times over the next six minutes later. Hooper tipped over a shot from Yasser just before the half-hour, and then pushed away a couple of dangerous crosses from Ahletdin and Troy. Hands did get the better of Hooper after 38 minutes, taking advantage of a mistake from Pools right-back Tom Smith to beat the keeper! Troy's fifth goal of the season gave us a half-time lead of 2-1!

 

Hartlepool took the game to us straight after play resumed. In the 48th minute, centre-back Daniel Stacey almost scored a blistering goal from around 30 yards out. Three minutes later, Stacey searched out Anthony Furlonge on the Pools' right wing. A first-time pass to Pemberton was followed by one to Kris O'Nien, who completed a superb team goal. It was such a well-worked equaliser that even some travelling Daggers fans were applauding it.

 

After 54 minutes, our supporters were Israilov for a decent free-kick that narrowly went over Hooper's bar. Five minutes after that, the Pools continued their second-half dominance by taking the lead for the first time. On-loan Middlesbrough winger O'Nien picked up Phil Shephard's direct ball and drilled in a cross that took a bad deflection off Dalton. As soon as the ball fell to David Moli, there was no doubt that the ex-Dartford striker would hit the bullseye.

 

Hartlepool were 3-2 up, but Moli's game would end on a sour note. After 70 minutes, he slid in hard on Geraint Harding, badly hurting his hip in the process. Moli was stretchered off, and the Pools had to hold on for the next 20 minutes to seal victory.

 

Despite our best efforts, we could not test Hooper in the closing stages, and so we went back home without any points. Our play perhaps deserved at least one, but that's how football is sometimes.

 

Hartlepool United - 3 (Varley 3, O'Nien 51, Moli 59)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 2 (Hart 1, Hands 38)

League Two, Attendance 3,760 - POSITIONS: Hartlepool 5th, Dag & Red 16th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, Dalton, Warren, Harding (Wharton), Oliver, Hart, Israilov (Roche), Ibrahim, Hands (Barber).

 

This was a missed opportunity, as we twice lost a lead that would've lifted us into the play-off spots instead of Hartlepool. Regardless, I still felt that we'd played quite well - it was just that the Pools had really upped their game after the break.

 

18-year-old midfielder Paul Hart certainly put in a performance to be proud of. After we returned home, I handed Paul a new four-year contract that nearly quadrupled his weekly wages. The Merseysider will now be staying at Victoria Road until 2029 - unless a bigger club buys him before then, of course.

 

The Daggers played host to Port Vale in our last match of the month. We beat the Valiants twice last season, but our visitors had won their previous two league games before this one.

 

30 August 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Port Vale

Just like in the previous weekend, Paul Hart was involved in a first-minute attack for Dagenham & Redbridge. Hart exchanged passes with Troy Hands, who drilled a shot wide exactly half a minute after kick-off. Troy's next effort, in the sixth minute, did at least force Port Vale keeper Roscoe Fryatt into a save. Geraint Harding swung the resulting corner towards Thomas Tierney, whose header bounced off the bar.

 

Yet another Dagger went close to scoring after 10 minutes, when Theo Wharton found the side netting. We then survived a 13th-minute free-kick from Vale winger Stan Harris before a major decision went our way three minutes later. Dagenham winger Jonathan Roche was caught by an elbow from Valiants left-back Lenny Smeaton as he entered the penalty area, prompting the referee to point to the spot. Hart took the penalty… and the teenager displayed nerves of steel to send Fryatt the wrong way!

 

We now led 1-0, but Tendayi Darikwa snatched at an opportunity to equalise for Port Vale in the 23rd minute. The veteran wideman missed another chance six minutes later, driving the ball just past Robbie Ryder's left-hand post. Shortly after that, our left-wing Gareth Flood gave Port Vale a bit of bother by cutting into their penalty area. Sadly, Flood bent his shot well wide, and our slender lead was not bolstered before half-time.

 

A sloppy throw from Tim Beech in the 50th minute allowed Port Vale to launch a swift counter-attack. After playing a clever one-two with Bernard Mulvaney, Vale substitute Max Davies raced through on goal… and hit the sponsor hoardings.

 

Our nervy start to the second half continued later on with a yellow card for Hands, who was booked for a needless shove on Lee Kilday. Troy was quickly subbed, as was the ineffective Gareth, whose replacement Yasser Ibrahim also got booked shortly after coming on. The ref brought out his yellow card for a fourth time in the 58th minute, when Smeaton slid in hard on Roche.

 

Once things calmed down, Port Vale put together a few more fast-paced attacks. On 62 minutes, Smeaton played a first-time cross to Davies, who headed wide. Davies' main weapon was his pace, which he put to very good use two minutes later. Darikwa played a perfect pass in space to Davies, and Ryder couldn't do anything to stop the striker's shot from finding the far end of his net.

 

Once the Valiants equalised, there was only one team left in this match. We struggled to contain the visitors' attacks, which continued with Davies sending a diving header into Robbie's hands on 72 minutes. With nine minutes to go, the excellent Darikwa set up a chance for substitute midfielder Joe Curtis, who couldn't hit the target from 25 yards.

 

When Curtis had a go from closer out in the 88th minute, he was more successful. Tyler Osmond's cross was flicked on by Darikwa to Davies, and it was the latter's pass that Curtis bulleted beyond Ryder. The Daggers fans fell very silent very quickly as yet more points slipped from our grasp!

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Hart pen17)

Port Vale - 2 (Davies 66, Curtis 88)

League Two, Attendance 3,342 - POSITIONS: Dag & Red 18th, Port Vale 10th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Coton, Tierney, Oliver, Harding (McLean), Wharton, Hart, Roche, G Flood (Ibrahim), Hands (Short). BOOKED: Hands, Ibrahim.

 

This was the second time we'd lost at Victoria Road to a team that we defeated home and away last season. Like Chesterfield, Port Vale had exacted sweet revenge on us with a winning goal in the dying moments.

 

Worryingly, we've already lost five points to late goals this season. If we stopped switching off after 85 minutes, we could easily be in the top seven rather than the bottom seven.

[CFuller]

SEPTEMBER 2025

The transfer window slammed shut on the first day of September, but not before I made one more signing. Gareth Flood's recent performances had suggested that, at 18 years of age, he was not yet mature enough to hold down a regular starting place. I needed to find a more experienced left-winger.

 

Step forward, Kristjan Miljevic - a 33-year-old journeyman who joined us until the end of the season. Miljevic was born in Sweden to a Serbian dad and a Greek mum, and his career had taken him all across Europe. After stints in Greece, Italy, Cyprus, Switzerland, Serbia and Scotland (where he played for Heart of Midlothian and Dunfermline), he has now decided to call Essex his home.

 

Just over 24 hours after joining the Daggers, Kris made his debut in our Football League Trophy opener. We'd been given a tough Round 1 draw away to Millwall, who were 7th in League One.

 

2 September 2025: Millwall vs Dagenham & Redbridge

After just three minutes, it already looked like Millwall were going to overrun us. Lions centre-back Daniel Wyatt played a perfect 50-yard ball to winger Danny Armstrong, who placed his shot powerfully past Daryl Ryan.

 

Millwall threatened to score another early goal in the 9th minute, but 18-year-old debutant Clive Russell's shot was blocked by Gavin Dalton. We tried to give the Lions a taste of their own medicine four minutes later. Jonathan Roche searched out Kenny Barber with a lovely long ball, but the striker could only pull his shot towards goalkeeper Adrian O'Keefe.

 

Then came a major scare in the 18th minute, as left-back Matt Warren had to nod Kadeem Blackwell's goalbound header off the line before the teenager could make it 2-0 Millwall. We would come under even more pressure over the next ten minutes. Daryl withstood the hosts' attacks, catching a trio of powerful efforts from Jim Holland, Russell and Armstrong. On 35 minutes, though, Ryan was unable to get to another shot from Armstrong that just fizzed past his post.

 

A minute after we almost fell further behind, we silenced The Den with an equaliser against the run of play. After picking up a pass from Roche, Paul Hart rode past Wyatt's sliding challenge to hammer in his third goal in as many games!

 

On-loan Daggers striker Sean Short went fairly close to grabbing us another goal in the 39th minute. We were feeling more confident about our chances going into the second period.

 

After a slow start to the second half, Millwall got back up to speed in the 58th minute. Russell's savage drive from just inside our area forced a difficult save from Ryan, who caught a header from Holland three minutes later.

 

There was real drama after 65 minutes, as Armstrong's free-kick hit our bar, and Russell stumbled as he tried to reach the rebound. As Hart put the ball behind for a corner, Russell protested that he had been tripped by Dalton, but the referee chose not to award a penalty.

 

The Lions' sense of injustice only grew in the 78th minute. Striker Karl Collier found the net with a delicate volley from midfielder Jon Williams' centre, only to be flagged offside. Millwall kept on attacking, and they racked up a 17th shot at goal when Collier's header was caught by Daryl after 87 minutes.

 

The Lions finished with more shots on target than we had shots of any kind, but neither team could be separated by goals. After 90 minutes, this Football League Trophy match would be decided by a penalty shoot-out.

 

Both sides converted their opening penalties - Hart for the Daggers, and Collier for the Lions. However, when O'Keefe brilliantly kept out our second spot-kick from Short, we found ourselves on the back foot. That would remain the case right up until Millwall's fourth kick.

 

With the shoot-out delicately poised at 3-3, Tony Johnston had the chance to put the Lions on the brink of victory. The Scottish midfielder placed his shot to Ryan's right... but Daryl went the same way, and his heroic save effectively sent the game into sudden death!

 

Troy Hands was next up for Dagenham. I had complete confidence in Hands' ability to score… but Troy didn't, as he pulled a tame effort directly at O'Keefe. We now needed Russell to make a mess of Millwall's fifth penalty. Unfortunately, he did not. His kick was too powerful for Daryl to keep out, and when it rustled into the net, our FLT dreams died.

 

Millwall - 1 (Armstrong 3)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Hart 36)

[Millwall win 4-3 on penalties]

Football League Trophy South Round 1, Attendance 1,774

PENALTY SHOOT-OUT: Hart 0-1, Collier 1-1, Short saved, Armstrong 2-1, Israilov 2-2, Stark 3-2, Roche 3-3, Johnston saved, Hands saved, Russell 4-3.

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, Dalton, McEwan, Warren, Roche, Wharton (Clark), Hart, Miljevic (Israilov), Short, Barber (Hands).

 

"That was a damn good effort, lads," I told the boys in the dressing room at full-time. We'd just pushed one of the competition favourites all the way, and there was no shame in losing on penalties.

 

We tried to pick ourselves up again when we resumed our league campaign at Burton Albion. The 6th-placed Brewers had former Uruguay and Liverpool midfielder Gastón Ramírez as their player/assistant manager. Fortunately for us, Ramírez sat this match out after playing in Burton's Football League Trophy game against Rochdale, which they won on penalties.

 

6 September 2025: Burton Albion vs Dagenham & Redbridge

Burton goalkeeper Roger Traslett received his first test in the 9th minute, when he caught a low shot from Sean Short. Two minutes later, the Norwegian watched Ahletdin Israilov fire a 20-yarder well off target.

 

Like us, Burton had a promising first shot at goal before following that up with a poor second attempt. In the 22nd minute, Brewers captain John Marquis nodded Mike Watson's cross on to Emmitt Hatton, whose strike was held by Robbie Ryder. Hatton had another go two minutes after that, but the on-loan Aston Villa midfielder couldn't keep his shot on course.

 

On 27 minutes, Israilov played a fabulous Dagenham corner to the far post, where Wayne Coton miscued his header. Neither team would come close to scoring again in a first half that delivered very little.

 

We adopted a counter-attacking strategy for the second half, and that nearly paid off after 50 minutes. Paul Hart played a fabulous through-ball for Short, but Sean managed to run over the ball instead of onto it, and Burton soon went on the attack themselves. Thankfully, winger Chris Shearing couldn't get his shot on target for Albion. Marquis went much closer in the 54th minute, nearly finding the top corner before Robbie tipped the ball over his bar.

 

Five minutes later, Short drove the ball ahead of Israilov as we launched a new offensive. Ahletdin skipped past a tame challenge from Burton defender Josh Charles, and when Traslett came off his line, our man from Kyrgyzstan took aim. To the shock of many at the Pirelli Stadium, it was 1-0 to Dagenham & Redbridge!

 

That slender lead looked comfortable enough until the 78th minute, when we tried to increase it. Israilov nicked the ball off Elliot Treadwell's feet near one of the corners, and he then drilled a cross into the penalty area. Short struck a stunning left-footed half-volley… but he hit the post! A few seconds later, Jonathan Roche fired our next effort wide for a goal kick.

 

Those misses seemed to affect us during the closing stages, when Burton had their best spell in the game. On 87 minutes, Treadwell floated a cross over our defence to Marquis, whose header somehow cleared the bar.

 

We continued to live dangerously in the last minute of normal time, when Paul Thomson found Marquis on the edge of our penalty box. The 33-year-old went for glory… and he smashed the ball inches the wrong side of the post! I was fearing that we'd lose yet more points late on, but we held onto the win, and our first clean sheet of the season.

 

Burton Albion - 0

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 59)

League Two, Attendance 2,575 - POSITIONS: Burton 12th, Dag & Red 15th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, McEwan, Coton, Warren, Roche, Clark (Wharton), Hart (Honeyball), Miljevic (Ibrahim), Short, Israilov.

 

Youngster Joel Honeyball made a brief appearance in the last few minutes after recovering from a pulled hamstring. Sadly, Joel would soon be back on the sidelines, as a sports hernia put him out of action for at least four weeks.

 

Next up for us was a midweek home game against Dartford. The Darts were in 14th place after making a much better start to this campaign than last.

[CFuller]

SEPTEMBER 2025 (continued)

10 September 2025: Dagenham & Redbridge vs Dartford

My heart was in my mouth after just 19 seconds, when Dartford left-winger Stuart Casey volleyed Corey Archibald's right-wing delivery into our side netting. Three minutes later, our own dangerman on the left flank gave the Darts a scare. Yasser Ibrahim dribbled past Conor McDonald and entered the penalty area, where he sent the ball inches wide.

 

Yasser had another chance much like that in the 11th minute, when he took the ball from our half to Dartford's box and again missed the target. When Ahletdin Israilov lashed a volley just wide after 13 minutes, we started to get flustered. Our annoyance only grew after 21 minutes, as McDonald powered in an excellent strike to give Dartford a surprise lead.

 

Over the next seven minutes, Ibrahim wasted two more opportunities, the second of which was saved by Calhan Peters. The Darts keeper also caught Paul Hart's header from an Israilov cross in the 33rd minute as we failed to wipe out our deficit. Indeed, Dartford could've been 2-0 up by the 39th minute. Striker Zach Clough nearly turned Archibald's first-time cross home, but Robbie Ryder tipped it over at just the right time.

 

Ryder saved us again three minutes into the second half, as he managed to get a hand to Cledan Price's low drive. Peters made a big save of his own after 52 minutes, pushing away an effort from Hart. Israilov would also be denied by the former Sunderland goalkeeper in the 60th minute, when his volley from Dean Oliver's incisive pass was pushed away.

 

In the 69th minute, Kristjan Miljevic - a half-time substitute for the woeful Ibrahim - hopped to mark his home debut for the Daggers with a stunning goal from 25 yards. It wasn't to be, as Peters read it well. Five minutes later, Miljevic played his part in an excellent passing move from Dagenham. The end result was a goal for Israilov, who turned past Darts left-back Mark Gibson and fired an unstoppable shot past Peters! It was 1-1, and we now felt we could complete the fightback!

 

In the 87th minute, Miljevic raced clear of visiting right-back Colm Carberry to connect with Tim Beech's wicked cross to the far post. I jumped off my seat in the dugout as Kristjan aimed a header at goal… but slumped back down when I saw that he'd sent it wide. After no fewer than 17 shots at goal, we had to settle for a 1-1 draw against a dogged Dartford team.

 

Dagenham & Redbridge - 1 (Israilov 74)

Dartford - 1 (McDonald 21)

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Beech, Dalton (Tierney), Coton, Warren (Clark), Oliver, Wharton, Israilov, Hart, Ibrahim (Miljevic), Hands. BOOKED: Dalton.

 

Our first nine games of the League Two season had seen 29 goals - 14 for, and 15 against. Only Hereford United, who scored 17 goals and let in 13 during their opening eight matches, could outdo us in the entertainment stakes. Appropriately enough, we played the Bulls next at Edgar Street.

 

13 September 2025: Hereford United vs Dagenham & Redbridge

The first quarter-hour of this game was an absolute nightmare. Firstly, a wasteful long ball from Daggers captain Aaron McEwan resulted in Hereford taking the lead after seven minutes. Big Mac's mistake was punished when former England Under-21s international Akin Chukwu turned Gavin Lee-Bulmer's cross into the net.

 

Two minutes later, Troy Hands missed an absolute sitter for us, messing up his diving header after receiving a great ball from Kristjan Miljevic. Two more minutes passed, and then some more sloppy Dagenham defending allowed Jamie Graham to bolster Hereford's advantage to 2-0. This time, Wayne Coton was at fault for failing to close down the 19-year-old Bradford City loanee.

 

At that stage, I abandoned our short-passing strategy for the long-ball game that had served us well in recent matches. That switch seemed to have an effect, as we had two good chances in the 13th minutes. Unfortunately, Srikumar Mahendran was on hand to tip over a powerful strike from Sean Short, and then Aaron's header from the subsequent Ahletdin Israilov corner.

 

In the 16th minute, Graham blazed over an effort that could've continued the Bulls' rampage. The tide then slowly turned our way, with McEwan hitting the post after 19 minutes. Short blazed a furious shot spectacularly high in the 22nd minute, but he showed much greater control with his next attempt eight minutes later. When Sean found the back of Mahendran's net with Troy's assistance, I urged my team to push forward for another goal.

 

Sure enough, Hands levelled the scores three minutes before half-time. Hereford captain Steven Hewitt couldn't make a clean interception from Jonathan Roche's cross, and Hands showed lightning-quick reactions to volley the ball home. From 2-0 down, we'd pulled it back to 2-2, and a repeat of our stunning comeback against Tranmere Rovers was a real possibility.

 

The last thing I wanted to happen early in the second half was to lose a key player early on. Unfortunately, that happened to in-form Israilov, who came off hurt in the 56th minute. Without Ahletdin, we found ourselves on the back foot again.

 

After 62 minutes, Graham floated in a Hereford corner that Short did well to head away. Sean's clearance went long to Ross Arkell, who played the ball back upfield and found Lee-Bulmer. I was fearing the worst, but luckily, the former Ebbsfleet United hotshot headed Arkell's ball over.

 

An anxious period continued with Short getting booked in the 67th minute for tripping young Hereford defender Greg Shenton. It took us until the 79th minute to get back in full swing. After entering the Bulls' penalty area, Hands briefly lost the ball before wrestling it back off Liverpool loanee Shenton's feet. Troy then played the ball short to substitute Yasser Ibrahim, who fired it past Mahendran to the delight of our travelling fanbase!

 

When Graham snatched at an opportunity to restore parity for Hereford on 86 minutes, we knew that we had tamed the Bulls. Another fantastic away win was ours!

 

Hereford United - 2 (Chukwu 7, Graham 11)

Dagenham & Redbridge - 3 (Short 30, Hands 42, Ibrahim 79)

League Two, Attendance 3,378 - POSITIONS: Hereford 19th, Dag & Red 10th

DAG & RED LINE-UP: Ryder, Jack, McEwan (Tierney), Coton, Oliver, Roche, Clark, Hands, Miljevic (Ibrahim), Short, Israilov (Wharton). BOOKED: Short.

 

We were now up to 10th - the highest position we had ever been in under my management. That was only the case for a few days, as everyone bar us and Dartford played in midweek. We subsequently dropped down a place, but remained in the top half.