Pocket Preview 9: AFC Wimbledon v Stockport County
Six games into the season and County are yet to put any sustained pressure on the league. A trip to the Capital will be no picnic.
Just before half-time last weekend it looked like County had finally found their form, albeit against opposition the Hatters would be expected to beat.
A stunning strike on the half-volley from loanee Louie Barry inside the first 15 minutes showed the quality that has been hiding in this squad across the first month of the season.
Things looked even brighter when Antoni Sarcevic, back from injury, dinked a finish over the keeper from just outside the six-yard box. Leading by two goals against expectant relegation battlers Crawley, it looked like County were set to canter home with three points in the bag.
Then the County of late re-emerged.
An uncontested run down the wing, followed by a cross that found Crawley striker Adam Campbell with far too much room in the box, allowed him to scuff a shot to against the far post to beat Hinchliffe just before half-time.
Just past the hour mark, Crawley are leading three goals to two, with goals from Crawley men Danilo Orsi and Harry Maguire’s brother, Laurence.
Thankfully, substitute Tanto Olaofe managed to salvage a point, latching onto the end of a lofted through ball from new loanee Joel Cotterill.
Despite avoiding an embarrassing loss, County will have had a lot to reflect on over the past week and will want to get back on good terms this Saturday.
Team News
The attacking display was a welcome difference from the struggles in front of goal that County have faced at the beginning of this season, with frontmen Barry and Olaofe both getting on the scoresheet.
This will give a Challinor a headache in selection in attack, with Madden, Barry, Tanto and Powell all recently hitting form.
Dave Challinor on attacking selections: “Tee [Tanto] was unfortunate to not start the game on Saturday but did exactly what you’d expect him to do off the bench and got us an equaliser.”
There will need to be a shake-up at the back too, with Ibou Touray being called up for international duty with Gambia, who’s started every league game in County’s back line so far.
Adding to injury woes and seeing further changes to the defence, Kyle Knoyle has also been ruled out with injury, which was feared at first to sideline him for months but should hopefully only see him out of action for around six weeks.
There’s potential for Macaulay Southam-Hales to return to action this weekend to replace the injured Knoyle, but this not yet guaranteed and could see Challinor revert to a flat back four for the first time this season, following a lack of wing-back options.
The reshuffle may also present chances for Ethan Pye to get a more consistent run of games in the league, but Challinor appears in his pre-match preview to have still not conclusively decided if he’s ready to make the full step up yet.
County will also miss new loanee Joel Cotterill through international duty with Wales U21.
Opposition Watch
The Hatters will be greeted by a few familiar faces when they arrive in London on Saturday, as a number of our recent players have transferred south to the Cherry Red Records Stadium this year.
Despite being Simon Wilson’s “dark horses for the league this year”, both Joe Lewis and Connor Evans are on loan at the Dons, with Ryan Johnson having also travelled the same way on a free transfer.
As per standard loan agreements, both Lewis and Evans will be unavailable for selection against County.
Lewis was involved in the Dons midweek EFL Trophy triumph against Stevenage, where he also bagged their only goal in open-play before victory via penalties.
Our opposition’s main attacking threat is undoubtedly James Tilley, who hit two against Newport in his last League Two outing.
The attacking midfielder in a recent post-match interview said Dons boss Johnnie Jackson has given him the freedom of the pitch so long as he picks up his fair share of the defensive duties.
Such positional freedom could cause nightmares for the County defence and make the in-form man difficult to pick up during the game.
Dave Challinor was critical of Horsfall’s recent performances in his Crawley post-match interview, so County’s main man in defence could have a tough task ahead of him to get back in the gaffer’s good books.
Predicted XI
For the FanHub lovers amongst us:
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Who’s The Ref?
Taking charge on the day will be referee Alan Young. This will be his first match as a referee in the 2023/24 season, having spent last season refereeing mainly across League One and League Two.
Young last officiated a County fixture at the end of last season, which saw the Hatters win 1-0 away at Swindon after the referee had sent Swindon man Jacob Wakeling off for a challenge on Kyle Knoyle.
Last season, Young produced a total of 133 yellow cards and eight red cards across 31 games.
He’ll be assisted on the day by linesmen Paul Evans and Stuart Butler, with the Fourth Official being Leigh Crowhurst.
Thanks for taking the time to read today’s Pocket Preview. The next instalment ahead of the MK Dons away game will land on Friday, Sep 15.
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