The sharp recoil of Christmas crackers, the glowing grins of children struggling to contain their excitement, blankets of snow enveloping the calm skies, the indulging aroma of meat and potatoes wafting through every house, festive songs on a seemingly-endless loop, remnants of wrapping paper resembling debris after an earthquake, following the tearing open of Christmas presents and the annual visit of Santa. Then you have festive football, as intricately intertwined within archetypal seasonal celebrations as all of the above. Fierce local derbies demonstrating everything other than goodwill and generosity, watched by supporters who always have that extra slice of anticipation, such have been the celebrations of the previous 24 hours. At least, that's always what happens with the Daggers. And then we lose. Bragging rights are gone, and Christmas is tainted. Last year, though, all that changed. We toppled leaders Leyton Orient in an afternoon that will forever be remembered fondly by our supporters. It was a victory that epitomised how far we'd come under the guidance of the new American owners, and came in the midst of an incredible run of form during which we also notably won at Salford City, completed a surreal comeback away at Hartlepool and managed to defeat an in-form Fylde side at Victoria Road. One year on, we once again hurtle towards Christmas after a run of form that could prove defining to our season, however this time there will be a distinct absence of seasonal spirit. We've lost nine games from our last eleven in the league including four in a row, and this double-header against Ebbsfleet and Bromley is going to have huge repercussions for our season. Emerge from those games positively and we can enter the new decade with fresh hope, lose them and the scary threat of relegation genuinely appears. Ebbsfleet United at home does not induce quite the same excitement as playing Leyton Orient did; while Orient felt like an occasion, this is just any other game. Nonetheless it is an important one however as Ebbsfleet are bottom of the league but will see a fragile Dagenham outfit as one who are there to be shot at. They have some reasonably decent players but we should be wary of none more so than Tomi Adeloye, who will head to his former club with a massive point to prove. We need to get out of the mindset that we're simply too good to be dragged into a relegation scrap. As much as people seem optimistic that an improvement is just around the corner, we seem to be getting worse with every game and Hartlepool away on Saturday was demoralisingly poor. Injuries are a ready-made excuse for the freefall we find ourselves in, but it's not an excuse that will be tolerated if we're defeated by bottom of the league Ebbsfleet. Dagenham Predicted XI: Justham, Croll, Onariase, Clark, Wright, Luque, Brundle, McQueen, Kandi, House, Quigley Ebbsfleet Predicted XI: Holmes, Cordner, Obileye, Ekpiteta, King, Weston, Sutherland, Grimes, Payne, Adeloye, Reid Such is the intense schedule of the next few weeks, 4 games in 9 days, that we're back in action just 48 hours after the final whistle sounds on Thursday - a huge chance to build momentum if we're victorious on Boxing Day, but conversely it could prove to be a second consecutive defeat. It feels as if this game, a very difficult trip to Bromley, has been written off by many supporters as a routine home victory and, after seven straight defeats on the road, I personally fear a thrashing at the hands of a very potent strikeforce. Worse still, it's inevitable that we'll go there to put ten men behind the ball and frustrate them, without exhibiting much desire to win the game ourselves. Such an approach will not be suitable on Boxing Day, where it's vital that we take the game to Ebbsfleet rather then playing into their hands and letting them grow in confidence before eventually overcoming us due to a sloppy mistake or brief moment of hesitancy. Bromley Predicted XI: Huddart, Wood, Winfield, Holland, Kizzi, Coulson, Bingham, Raymond, Mekki, Cheek, Williamson Dagenham Predicted XI: Justham, Stevenson, Clark, Onariase, Graham, Eleftheriou, Croll, Brundle, Robinson, Dobson, Quigley Ebbsfleet are in form, Bromley are flying-high - it's going to be a tough few days but it's about time we finally rose up to the challenge because if we continue the trend we've set in the last couple of months, frustrations will swiftly become much higher. We're almost resigned to losing Saturday's game, such is the lack of faith towards the club at the minute, but Ebbsfleet is a much-win and no other outcome is acceptable.
It's a big few days and let's hope we deliver some long-overdue cheer, though as always that's said more in hope than expectation. Merry Christmas, and here's praying 2020 is a more prosperous year for the club than the last one proved to be.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
WRITERArchives
January 2024
|