Glen Harrington
10:00am, Thu 1st Sep 2022
Wealdstone vs Woking
Vanarama National League
Sunday 4th September 2022
After winning three and losing three throughout August, Woking start their September fixture list with a trip to Wealdstone, aiming to make it back-to-back away wins in the National League.
The Cards were excellent for large spells against Torquay on Monday, but after dominating the first-half without scoring, they found themselves behind to Ross Marshall’s header just after the hour mark. Thankfully, the response was as brilliant as it was emphatic, as James Daly netted twice – the first a header from a Jack Roles corner and the second a well-taken rebound after Jermaine Anderson’s shot was saved – before Roles converted a third in just seven minutes after being played through by Reece Grego-Cox. It might well have been more for the visitors too, had Ricky Korboa not spurned a late chance, but Darren Sarll’s side were good value for all three points.
The result leaves Woking 11th in the league table after the first month of the season, with nine points out of 18, two points adrift of the top seven and five clear of the bottom four. Of course, whilst the league table means little at this stage of the season, the Cards will be keen to prove themselves against one of the early pacesetters on Sunday, in a game which will be shown live on BT Sport – with Wealdstone having taken 13 points from their first six games to sit fourth. Sarll and co should have a near full-strength squad to pick from, although Kyran Lofthouse remains suspended.
Opposition Watch
It’s been a superb start to the season for the Stones and one that few pundits had predicted. Stuart Maynard’s side are in their third season in the fifth tier, having recorded finishes of 19th in 2021 and 16th in 2022, and were tipped by many to be battling against relegation this term. However, they have been near-perfect so far this year, with four wins, one draw, and just one defeat.
They opened their campaign with a 3-2 home win over Bromley, lost 1-0 at Eastleigh, before three straight wins at Oldham (2-1), at home to Halifax (1-0), and at Gateshead (1-0). On Monday, they drew 0-0 at home to Yeovil, despite having ten men for more than 80 minutes. Striker Rhys Browne has been the standout player for the Stones throughout August, scoring four of their seven goals, and helping pick up the goalscoring slack from last season’s top scorer Josh Umerah, who joined Hartlepool in League 2 over the summer.
Maynard has had a busy summer, adding 13 new faces, including former Woking players Max Kretzschmar, Tarryn Allarakhia, Sam Howes, and Malachi Napa, who join Jack Cook in an impressively large ex-Cards contingent. He also added Sam Habergham, a trialist at Woking over the summer, and ex-Aldershot defender Lewis Kinsella – who will miss Sunday’s game through suspension. All five former Cards started against Yeovil so there could be several reunions to look forward to.
As well as Umerah, those to move on this summer include another ex-Card, Charlie Cooper, who joined Oldham, Nikola Tavares, who moved to Dagenham, and Jerome Okimo, who signed for rivals Barnet.
Recent Meetings
• Woking
2-0 Wealdstone – 22nd January 2022, National League (Effiong, Loza)
• Wealdstone
1-2 Woking – 21st August 2021, National League (Kretzschmar 2)
• Woking
2-4 Wealdstone – 29th May 2021, National League (Own Goal, Gerring)
• Wealdstone
0-1 Woking – 23rd March 2021, National League (Diarra)
• Woking
3-2 Wealdstone – 5th May 2019, National League South play-offs (Diarra, Kretzschmar, Hyde)
Tickets
Ticket prices are discounted if purchased before Friday 2nd September at 11:59pm. They are £15 for Adults, Concessions £10, 18-23 Next-Gen £8, Under 18s £5, with 16s and Under FREE (with paying Adult). Ticket prices after this time will be £17 for Adults, Concessions £12, 18-23 Next-Gen £10, Under 18s and Under 16s £7.For more information and to book your ticket please
click here.
