The roar at the final whistle encapsulated the delight of the home crowd perfectly. This was a huge win, not only to put us within touching distance of being outside the dreaded drop zone, but to send out a powerful statement to the rest of our relegation rivals from whom we are slowly starting to move away. More results like this and we can slowly start to look up the league table rather than being consigned to it's surface. Of course, it wouldn't be a Daggers victory if there weren't a few worries and scares. For the first twenty minutes, we were dreadful and surely heading towards a heavy defeat - but this is exactly what makes the result all the more pleasing. Had this been a couple of months if not weeks ago, we would've crumbled yet now, all of a sudden, there seems to be a defiant level of belief instilled into the team, which is ideal if you're fighting relegation. However, it's important to remember that we spent a lot of the game on the back foot. Elliot Justham made some absolutely incredible saves and it was a regular occurrence for a defender, usually the fantastic Onariase, to bail us out just as it looked for all the world that Fylde's predatory instincts were about to show. But they never did. Even though Fylde kept the ball well and to their credit had quite a few opportunities, they never sliced us open aside from the opening goal. They were definitely the better team and through their sharp passing and quick movements, it was clear to see why they have been one of the best teams in the division for over a year now. Under Dave Challinor, they have a very talented outfit and the glue that holds it together is Danny Rowe. He's a very unique striker in the sense that he's everywhere - at times he was racing towards our goal, moments later he'd be defending his own goal yet I'm proud to say we kept him largely quiet. To say we were vastly inferior, though, would do our boys a lot of discredit. This was a side with a lot of money invested into it whereas, aside from Balanta, the foundations of our side were essentially scraps, young and inexperienced players. The fact that we were so clinical against them and managed to see out the game without there really being a massive 'heart in mouth' moment is a testament to particularly the improvements we've made in the last few weeks. The big test, now, is how we approach the next game which is an away clash at Bromley. The last time we played on an artificial surface was obviously at Sutton and that was a bitterly disappointing occasion so hopefully we adjust better this time. Beating Fylde is mightily impressive so it would be frustrating for an instant reality check to bring us back down to earth. With that, I'll leave you with five observations from what turned out to be a very good Saturday and the perfect way to celebrate the life of our amazing former chairman Dave Andrews. 5 OBSERVATIONS FROM DAGGERS 2 FYLDE 1: WE'RE NOT THAT FAR AWAY | I'm not going to pretend that we could match the technical attributes of a very talented Fylde side who weren't even at their best, yet it's also clear to see that we're making steady progress. In the last few weeks, we've played three very good teams in Harrogate, Sutton and Fylde - we have two wins from that very tricky spell of fixtures which is hugely impressive and stands us in great stead ahead of a potentially defining few weeks prior to Christmas. Even when we were disappointing against Sutton, there wasn't a single point in the match where we were outplayed or even looked vastly inferior to Paul Doswell's outfit. Our away form is something that needs improvement but having ended both Fylde and Harrogate's unbeaten away records, it's clear to see that things are slowly getting better. The next few games, particularly that six-pointer against Havant at Victoria Road, will prove whether this is merely a good run of form or the beginning of our future.
THE NEW SIGNINGS HAVE MADE A BIG DIFFERENCE | Before we made our recent influx of signings, we had only found the net more than once in a fixture on a single occasion out of a possible 16 attempts, and we wouldn't have even managed that were it not for the fact that our opposition that day, Maidenhead, were reduced to ten men. Since Balanta has signed we've done it three times in just four games and it's clear to see that we're distinctly more confident when going forwards. Though the former Boreham Wood attacker has failed to break his duck in a Daggers shirt, he's laid on two assists for team-mates (already the joint highest in the side) and gives us an extra dimension going forwards. Elsewhere, Manny Onariase has joined on loan in defence and has quickly outlined that he's a class act with his ability to read the game better than most on the pitch. Another addition, admittedly also on loan, is Conor Wilkinson, who took just 28 minutes to cap his debut with a goal; he's another who has definitely bolstered the squad. It may seem like minor tweaks but these additions could be the difference between staying up or not. JACK MUNNS IS QUALITY | We've had to wait a long time to see Munns in action but it's been well worth the wait and you wonder where we'd be if he had come into the side just a month earlier than he did. I've spoken about the impact of Balanta and Onariase but the most influential of the lot has been this man, and now he's got his first goal we may see another gear from him in the next few weeks. He's a nightmare for defenders, nippy, energetic and just a pest. The perfect centrepiece linking defence and attack, he's been thriving in an attacking midfield role where he can compliment our strike-force very well. However, one thing clear about Munns is that he's definitely not a left winger which is where he started against Fylde. We need him in the hole - that's where he makes a difference. LET'S NOT GET TOO CARRIED AWAY | While we're having a decent few weeks, everything can change in an instant in the National League and this was demonstrated perfectly when we won two on the bounce earlier in the season, only to lose five consecutive games after that. You can't deny that victories over Fylde and Harrogate indicate much promise, but lots of things are going for us at the minute. Justham is producing outstanding saves left right and centre, opposition forwards are missing sitters and we're getting away with a lot of last-ditch clearances, which won't happen every week. Quite how we even won this game after the first twenty minutes is incredible but there's no way we'll survive onslaughts like that frequently. Nine times out of ten, Fylde would kill teams off but, as luck would have it, they kept us within touching distance and then we scored out of nothing. If we get a bit of fortune every week then that's brilliant, but it's bound to even itself out in coming weeks. WE'RE STILL HEAVILY RELIANT ON LOANEES | It's all well and good seeing Onariase slide across the grass to pluck the ball from the feet of an onrushing striker, Goodliffe clear one off the line and Conor Wilkinson rattle a low strike into the bottom corner - but these aren't our players. At the minute, the core of our defence are loan players and that's dangerous because all it takes is one phone call for that player to be gone and for your hopes to be thrown into disarray. We have six loan players on our books and many of them, like Wright or Mullings, will probably be rotting on the bench for the foreseeable future. January could be a huge month if parent clubs decide to either keep these players or loan them out higher up in the league pyramid. It would be so much better if we had more permanent options especially as money is now available, otherwise we're relying on favours.
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January 2024
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