Dowson craves selection dilemna
https://www.kentonline.co.uk/dartford/s ... ma-294659/
Dartford manager Alan Dowson could get selection dilemma he craves with Tommy Block, Max Statham and Sam Odaudu in contention for National League South trip to Chippenham.
Dartford manager Alan Dowson is looking forward to having a selection headache sooner rather than later.
His injury-hit squad have limped through the opening two months of the campaign and were also knocked out of the FA Cup by neighbours Welling.
But the likes of Tommy Block, Max Statham and Sam Odaudu could all feature in their National League South trip to Chippenham this Saturday.
“I’m dying for a selection headache, it’s the one thing I haven’t had so far all season,” said Dowson.
“That’s exactly what we need. The team has picked itself so far so if I can get a headache now I’ll be delighted.
“The injury list has been non-stop and everyone can see that. But the two games against Gillingham B and then in the London Cup on Saturday were good for us.
“It’s been handy. It’s been the right time to have a break from league football but we’re really looking forward to getting back into it now.
“Dartford’s record at Chippenham isn’t very good recently. It’s a tough place to go and they got a result last Saturday but I think if we play well then we’re capable of winning there. It’s up to us.”
Odaudu came off injured in the league win over Tonbridge last month but returned to training this week while Statham and Block got minutes under their belt in a 1-0 London Senior Cup win over Harrow last Saturday.
Block came off in the first half but Dowson stressed that he was being extra cautious.
“It’s not a reoccurrence which is good news,” he said. “He got a whack on his hip flexor but it was more a precaution to take him off then as I wanted to get into this weekend with a bit more.
“He’s played minutes, Max Statham got through 45 minutes without any problems, Sam Odaudu was due to train this week with an eye on Saturday so I feel that we’re starting to get a few back to fitness.
“Maxwell was a big part of our team last year and to get Sam back in there as well will make us look a lot stronger all round.
“The first 10 games we planned to do better than we have. We had a bad run after Christmas last year so I’m just hoping we’ve got it out of the way now. There’s been some bad luck in it as well but there’s been some bad performances.”
While Dowson remains in the market for one or two new faces to “freshen things up a little bit”, he’s in no rush despite losing on-loan Oxford defender James Golding.
He was recalled and then sent out on loan to Maidenhead last week, featuring against Chesterfield last Saturday.
“There was a lot of interest in him but we got him here for a couple of months,” said Dowson.
“Then the opportunity came for him to go higher at Maidenhead and we cannot stand in his way. He did a good job so I will always keep an eye on him.
“You never know what will happen further down the line, if it works out with Maidenhead then brilliant for him but if it doesn’t then you never know what’s around the corner.”
One player who won’t be remaining at Dartford, though, is Kevin Gonzalez, who featured against Harrow.
The wideman has previously been at Hemel Hempstead but Dowson is unable to guarantee him regular gametime.
“We’ll not be pushing that one anymore,” stated Dowson. “It was a case of looking at a few things but we won’t be looking at that.
“He wants to play regular football but we can’t offer that at the minute so I wish him well.”
Dowson craves selection dilemma - 06/10/23
Re: Dowse Interview - 06/10/23
Parky - you could just save your time and say " refer to previous posts " as nothing changes ::::::