Glen Harrington
3:32pm, Thu 23rd Dec 2021
Aldershot Town vs Woking
Vanarama National League
Sunday 26th December 2021
Woking will be hoping to put a dent in two unflattering recent records when they make the short trip to local rivals Aldershot Town for the pair’s traditional Boxing Day clash.
The Cards were closing in on a surprise 1-0 win at Yeovil Town in last weekend’s FA Trophy meeting, only for three late goals to dump Alan Dowson’s side out of the competition in dramatic fashion and leave the visitors to dwell on what might have been. Dowse and his team have now lost 10 of their last 13 outings, excluding the Surrey Senior Cup, whilst the Shots are unbeaten in six, winning five, since a 5-0 home thrashing by Wrexham at the start of last month. Woking fans will also be all too aware of their recent record against their Hampshire rivals, having lost seven of the last eight meetings, with the one success coming in the FA Cup last October.
Dowse’s squad is littered with problems, with Jamar Loza still banned, and no update on the fitness of Kyran Lofthouse, Solomon Nwabuokei, or Jermaine Anderson, who were all absent last time out, whilst Max Kretzschmar, Tyreke Johnson, and Rohan Ince all picked up slight niggles against the Glovers. The Cards have added the versatile defender/midfielder Shane Dunne to the squad, with the Irishmen making his debut from the bench last weekend.
Opposition Watch
Aldershot have endured a challenging season. Former manager Danny Searle was sacked in September after losing five of the club’s first seven games of the season. He was replaced by former Weymouth and Southend United boss Mark Moseley, who was himself seemingly under pressure after a string of poor results, which included just one win from his first eight games and defeat in the FA Cup by minnows Bowers & Pitsea.
The festive period has been kinder however, with wins over Grimsby, Torquay, King’s Lynn, Eastleigh, and a draw with Altrincham, elevating the Shots to 18th in the league table with 20 points from 19 games, just four fewer than the Cards and five clear of the bottom three. Last weekend they beat Kingstonian in the FA Trophy and they now face a home tie with Bromley next month.
Their current squad includes former Woking midfielders Toby Edser and Jayden Harris, whilst striker Corie Andrews, on loan from AFC Wimbledon, is one to watch out for with the youngster having bagged seven goals so far this season. Notable recent additions include former Oldham Athletic player Mohamed Sylla, veteran midfielder Scott Wagstaff, previously with Charlton Athletic and most recently Forest Green Rovers, and on loan winger Ryan Glover from AFC Bournemouth.
Recent Meetings
• Woking
0-1 Aldershot Town – 2nd January 2021, National League
• Aldershot Town
3-0 Woking – 26th December 2020, National League
• Aldershot Town
1-2 Woking – 24th October 2020, Emirates FA Cup (Davison, Kretzschmar)
• Woking
0-1 Aldershot Town – 6th August 2019, National League
• Woking
1-2 Aldershot Town – 1st January 2018, National League (Ferdinand)
On the Day
Aldershot’s home ground is the EBB Stadium. The postcode is GU11 1TW.
Ticket information can be
found here. The cost is £20 for Adults, Concessions £16, Under 17s £7.
