Half-Term Review: Progressive improvement undermined by continual undercurrent of fragility19/12/2022 We're haven't quite reached the exact half-way stage of the season in terms of games played due to our progression in the FA Cup and the recent freezing conditions causing postponements that will consequentially create a backlog in the new year but, in the midst of our longest break between league fixtures all season spanning 23 days, it is nonetheless an opportune time to reflect upon where we are currently at. The first few months can be divided into distinct phases but the overriding assessment is: from the confounding residue of a confounding injury crisis emerged a transformed and re-energised Dagenham side, which redeemed yet far from excused an abject start that ought to have signified the end for Daryl McMahon, but we've slightly digressed since albeit aided by strong misfortune. We are still on a more positive trajectory than not, though, with pros superseding the cons. However, that we've only really succeeded in going from lower to higher mid-table without ever threatening the play-off places casts its own irrefutable aspersions over a campaign in which quality across a sustained period has been highly elusive, while admittedly not telling the whole story because we possess up to three games in hand on those above us. McMahon has always maintained that the only thing which matters is where you finish, yet we will have to improve our overall standards enormously in order to prevent another year of failure. Going back to the 1st October at Dorking, It is impressive that he somehow managed to restore us to a state of equilibrium from what was the lowest ebb in a turbulent managerial reign characterised by brief glimpses of promising brilliance interspersed within more frequent underachievement - passed off the pitch by part-time divisional newcomers for a 5-1 demolition that finally seemed to have eroded the infinite patience towards him. Worse still, it wasn't even their heaviest loss thus far, that unceremonious accolade being mercilessly inflicted in early-September by a Notts County outfit that were stratospheres ahead in every single department. Along with shipping four goals at Wrexham directly afterwards, it emphatically demonstrated how astonishingly far we were from the best at this level, compounding an underwhelming start in which other low points included conceding a last-minute equaliser at Eastleigh and handing a woeful Yeovil side their first triumph. There were some decent wins interspersed within, like back-to-back home wins against Altrincham then Barnet, but then came the Dorking debacle. As the atmosphere among supporters at that game escalated to embittered new levels of toxicity reflecting the disunity on the pitch, where visibly disinterested players had clearly stopped applying themselves fully if even at all, it was blatantly obvious that something had to give. Indeed, that miserable afternoon around a picturesque Surrey hillside would prove a turning point in a way nobody would have predicted because Daggers immediately embarked on a largely brilliant run of form, hoisting themselves from the proverbial abyss represented by one of the most embarrassing results in their recent history. An inquest-ridden three days later came a stunning ascent from that rock bottom pit as Chesterfield were sliced open 3-2 on their own patch having not long celebrated a club record start to a season, for Daggers' first away win no less. They had always been capable of unearthing an exceptional result from nowhere but this felt different, as it was such a compelling performance truly befitting a title contender let alone one struggling to get near the play-offs. Rather than merely a standalone one-off, this Derbyshire delight formed the foundation of what followed. That transformation in half a week underlined the erratic unpredictability of a team capable of freely fluctuating between extremes, who had now been dubbed one of the league's primary entertainers after a staggering forty goals featured in their seven games ending with that one at Chesterfield, yet that tag is only advantageous if it's merely a characteristic behind winning football rather than a partial saving grace from the opposite. Our next defeat, Halifax away, was nowhere near as disgraceful as the preceding example. In fact, showcasing commendable defiance instead of crumbling amid the almost impossible circumstances of suffering two severe injuries to important first team players inside the opening half an hour was somewhat encouraging in an unusual way. Their fate felt pre-determined after an astonishing eight consecutive losses at the Shay before the latest, and the bitter misfortune outlined above virtually confirmed it, but we went down fighting. Once again, the result would prompt an unlikely upturn thereafter. Through adversity, the team were galvanised. To go as far call McCallum's absence a blessing in disguise would be enormously disrespectful to a man who maintained an almost one-in-two record here, but the enforced front two of Josh Walker alongside Junior Morias undoubtedly made us more fluid. Similarly, unforeseen defensive solution Harry Phipps continued to bring the best out of Manny Onariase, so there was enhanced coherence to a previously disjointed side, which will serve us well going into the new year. However, pinning hopes on notoriously injury-prone players at either end of the pitch in Phipps and Walker respectively could be dangerous. Our next six matches in all competitions fuelled belief that we can kick on to pursuing the play-offs, as we registered four victories sandwiched inbetween two draws, among which a stunning victory at high-flying Solihull Moors. December, though, has conversely delivered two seismic blows - reverses to bottom-placed Torquay United then Gillingham in an FA Cup replay with a lucrative incentive, both unjust in many ways but signifying an untimely return of that all-familiar mental fragility. It leaves us positioned in the centre of the table ahead of the final league outing this calendar year, though ironically the very thing the team have lacked most is perhaps a middle ground, the ability to tick along nicely; we constantly seem to drastically change direction in unpredictable fashion. Successful sides at this level tend to regularly grind out unspectacular yet effective results through grit and, Scunthorpe (H) aside, I struggle to remember us demonstrating that quality so it's something we need to find within ourselves. After 20 Games: This Season v Last
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