Stones face the Daggers in the Isuzu FA Trophy | Match Preview
- Aryan Jolly
- 6 hours ago
- 4 min read
Just under one month after their last FA Trophy game, the Stones return to cup action as they host Dagenham & Redbridge in their first home game of the calendar year.
The Basics
Date: Saturday, January 8
Venue: Grosvenor Vale, Ruislip, HA4 6JQ
Competition: The Isuzu FA Trophy
Kick Off Time: 3:00 pm
Broadcast Information: N/A
News From The Vale
As the school term restarts, so do fixtures for the Wealdstone FC academy sides! The under-19s side have already played their first fixture of the term, against Woking, and there are many more games scheduled over the coming weeks.
If you are aged 16-18 and interested in joining the academy next year, be sure to check out the ‘academy’ section of our website and fill in this form! There are opportunities available for both male and female players.
A reminder that the men’s support group, run by the Wealdstone FC Foundation in conjunction with Heads Up!, has restarted following a break over Christmas. The group meets on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:00pm at The Vale Social Club. To read more about the project and get involved, click here.
After what feels like a long run of away games, the Stones are starting a run of three consecutive matches at the Vale. A week after they play the Daggers, Wealdstone will host Woking in the National League before Tamworth visit the Vale four days later.
Tickets for both matches are available to purchase here. Please note that seated tickets can only be purchased online, in advance.
The Opposition
Recent form: DDLWL
League Position: 12th (National League South).
Dagenham & Redbridge are in the midst of one of the toughest periods in their long and complex history due to a combination of poor results and ownership-related struggles.
Stones fans will be very familiar with the Daggers’ 2024/25 campaign, as both sides battled fiercely at the lower end of the table right until the last kick of the season. A one-all draw against Solihull Moors on the final day of the campaign condemned the London-based side to relegation, following the Stones’ early blitz against FC Halifax Town.
An ambitious recruitment drive in the summer, which saw 30-goal striker Ashley Hemmings and former England international Andy Carroll join the club, has yet to bear fruit thus far, as the Daggers have struggled for consistency in a very competitive National League South.
The manager - Lee Bradbury: Bradbury was appointed as manager at Victoria Road in the summer, with his primary objective being to return the team to the National League. As things stand, the 50-year-old is a fair way off achieving that goal, which has led to increased scrutiny in recent weeks.
His lack of success with the Daggers is slightly surprising, given his extensive and fairly successful managerial career to date.
Bradbury’s first managerial role came with AFC Bournemouth as he retired from playing to replace Eddie Howe as the Cherries’ manager, leading the club to the playoffs in his first few months in charge.
He then had a slightly tumultuous, yet successful, stint at Havant & Waterlooville. After suffering relegation into the seventh tier, Bradbury guided his side to consecutive promotions into the National League before being relegated in his first season in the fifth tier.
The former Manchester City player had a stint in charge of Eastleigh before joining the Daggers, guiding the Spitfires to a 9th-placed finish in the fifth tier.
This campaign has not gone to plan, as he has won just eight of his 25 league games in charge of the Daggers.
The danger man - Stan Leech: Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Daggers’ danger man is a striker, but it is neither Hemmings (who has now left East London) nor Carroll.
Stan Leech was only signed by Bradbury and Co. just over three weeks ago, but he has already endeared himself to the Daggers’ faithful.
Before joining his current club, Leech had played for the likes of Cambridge City and Newmarket Town. He finished the 2024/25 campaign with a very respectable 11 goals in 36 appearances, but took his game to another level this season.
The frontman notched a staggering 25 goals before Christmas, which saw a number of higher division clubs become interested in acquiring his services.
The Daggers won the fight for Leech’s signature, and he has made an impressive start to life at Victoria Road, scoring three times in his first four games for the club.
Buy Your Tickets Now!
It is the Stones’ first game of the calendar year, and tickets for Saturday’s match are available at reduced prices, so get down to the Vale and help the team return to winning ways!
An adult and child can gain admission to the match for just £20 in total, and there are reduced drink prices at the Vale Social Club from 12-2pm during Saturday’s ‘Happy Hours’!
