Dartford hope to take full advantage of relegated Basingstoke Town this weekend in a bid to reach the National South playoffs.
The race for what looks like the remaining playoff places is tight. Just four points separate fourth place Truro City and tenth place Concord Rangers. The Darts are sitting in sixth, level on points with fifth place side Maidenhead United.
Dartford will feel confident after all but ending their local rivals title challenge. A penalty scored by Elliot Bradbrook against his former club and an excellent first goal from Nathan Ferguson gave the Darts a 2-1 win over Maidstone United. Manager, Tony Burman who had missed the last few matches through illness returned to the dugout which will give his players a lift.
His return will be hard work as the Darts boss continues to have a selection headache after goalkeeper Deren Ibrahim dislocated his shoulder. It’s likely Ibrahim will be out for the remainder of the campaign, Burman told www.kentonline.co.uk: “His shoulder’s come out and gone back in and he’s got some swelling there and some fluid which is going to make it very difficult for him”.
Luckily, Burman signed Dean Gardikiotis on deadline day but also has academy goalkeeper Tony Coxall available, he added: “Dean’s been training with us for the last three months, looking for a club, and he’s been very patient. I signed him before the deadline”, he continued: “We’ve got an academy keeper as well in Tony Coxall but he’s a young lad”.
Outfield player Lee Burns played the reminder of the match against Maidstone United in goal replacing Ibrahim as a substitute. Earlier in the game Danny Harris went off injured with a hamstring problem. Tom Bradbrook is suffering the same fate and missed the last game, Jack Simmons is recovering from an ankle injury and Callum McNaughton has a fractured metatarsal. Paul Lorraine edges ever closer to fitness after a long term injury, the defender is still waiting to make début.
Victory on Saturday put the 3-0 loss at Truro City behind them. Together with recent wins over Maidenhead United and Bishop’s Stortford, plus the draw at league leaders Ebbsfleet United, Dartford hope momentum will continue to build.
Back in December, the Darts continued their good form against Basingstoke Town with a 1-0 win in windy conditions. An Elliot Bradbrook strike made sure the Darts recorded their fourth win in a row against the Hampshire side.
The last meeting between the clubs at Princes Park was in the National South playoff semi-final. Dartford followed up a 1-0 win at the Camrose with a 2-1 victory. In the league fixture that campaign, Danny Harris scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 triumph despite turning up late after taking an accountancy exam, Tony Garrod scored the other.
Now managed by Terry Brown, Basingstoke Town have not added to the squad since his appointment. The former Margate boss feels he has enough to work with as he looks to rebuild the club’s fortune, in the Southern Premier League next season.
Having been in charge for less than a month, Brown has released two coaches along with experienced midfielder James Harper and Ryan Case. The 63 year old decided that squad rotation until the end of the season will allow him time to assess his players before the summer.
That assessment began at home to Oxford City, the last win recorded by Basingstoke Town. Since then, the Hampshire side have lost to Concord Rangers, played two fixtures against Weston-Super-Mare gaining a point and were beaten by Gosport Borough on Tuesday night. Dan Wooden, Jason Bennett and Adam Wildde scored the goals to officially send the Dragons down even though Liam Enveer-Marum and Manny Williams netted for Basingstoke Town.
Enveer-Marum has been one of two bright sparks for Basingstoke Town this term. Along with Chris Flood, the pair have scored 28 goals between them in a struggling campaign. Flood top scored for the Dragons last term whilst former Ebbsfleet United and Braintree Town striker Enveer-Marum has averaged a goal every other game for the club.
Head to Head
Dartford wins: 10 / Basingstoke Town wins: 3 / Draws 4
Current League Form
| Dartford (WLWDWL) | Basingstoke Town (LDLLWL) | ||||
| Maidstone United | A | 2-1 | Gosport Borough | A | 1-3 |
| Truro City | A | 0-3 | Weston-Super-Mare | H | 2-2 |
| Maidenhead United | H | 2-0 | Weston-Super-Mare | A | 1-2 |
| Ebbsfleet United | A | 1-1 | Concord Rangers | H | 0-2 |
| Bishop’s Stortford | H | 3-1 | Oxford City | H | 2-0 |
| Havant & Waterlooville | A | 0-2 | Whitehawk | A | 0-1 |
Last League Meeting at Princes Park
27 February 2012 – Dartford 4 Basingstoke Town 1 – attendance 783
Goalscorers: Harris (43, 53, 81), Garrod (78); Lake (56)
Darts lineup – Louis Wells, Matthew Jones, Adam Green, Tom Bonner, Luke Wilkinson, Tom Champion, Lee Noble, Jon Wallis, Jacob Erskine, James Rogers, Danny Harris (subs used: Tony Garrod, Ryan Hayes, Richard Graham)
Previous Meetings (* – National South playoff semi-final)
| 12.12.2015 | Basingstoke Town | o | Dartford | 1 |
| 06.05.2012* | Dartford | 2 | Basingstoke Town | 1 |
| 02.05.2012* | Basingstoke Town | 0 | Dartford | 1 |
| 27.02.2012 | Dartford | 4 | Basingstoke Town | 1 |
| 03.09.2011 | Basingstoke Town | 3 | Dartford | 2 |
| 12.03.2011 | Basingstoke Town | 2 | Dartford | 2 |
| 01.03.2011 | Dartford | 1 | Basingstoke Town | 0 |
Stats
A Dartford win will beat the record of three consecutive wins against Basingstoke Town. Last time they won three in row was between 1976 and 1980
4 – Dartford have won their last four home matches against Basingstoke Town
8 – The Darts have never lost to Basingstoke Town at home in eight games, picking up 6 wins and 2 draws going back to 1975
On This Day
A total of eighteen goals have been scored in the last three Dartford games on 16 April, that’s six goals per game. Three years ago, the Darts recorded a rare victory over Forest Green Rovers in the National League on the penultimate day of the season, goals coming from Danny Harris and two from Elliot Bradbrook. Dartford played another one of their bogey teams five years ago and were easily beaten 4-1 by Boreham Wood in the National South. The Darts thrashed Tilbury 6-2 in 2005, four days after former player Paul Sykes passed away. Other notable wins include a Southern Premier League triumph over Waterlooville which ended 5-1 in 1991 and an 8-0 victory in 1969 against Hastings United, Les Burns, John Stevens and Dougie Webb all scored braces in the Southern League First Division fixture.
Match Preview written by Stuart Maidment