Dagenham & Redbridge 4 – 1 Wealdstone

Dagenham and Redbridge

National League

4 - 1

Wealdstone

KO: 15:00 | Sat 29th Oct ’22

Wealdstone suffered an East end humiliation in a sloppy 4-1 defeat at Dagenham & Redbridge’s Chigwell Construction Stadium.

Defender Harry Phipps opened the scoring for the Daggers early on, before Junior Morias scored a well-executed free kick. Josh Walker made it three midway through the second half with a scintillating run from his own half.

Morias doubled his tally in the last minute of normal time, with Sam Habergham grabbing a consolation in stoppage time for the visitors.

Stones boss Stuart Maynard handed a first start to Simeon Akinola who had impressed with goals against Boreham Wood. Returning loan signing Charlie Barker was also thrown straight into the starting line-up at right-back.

It was a far from ideal start for the Stones with Phipps open the scoring after six minutes, glancing a near post header over Sam Howes from a Tyreke Johnson cross.

Howes was then nearly caught out twice after misplaced backpasses from Sam Habergham and Tarryn Allarakhia in quick succession almost crept in their own goals, defending the residents would describe as being in a two and eight.

And the task was made even harder on 20 minutes when Morias swung a perfectly placed free kick into the top corner from the edge of the area after Johnson was felled by Stones new signing Charlie Barker.

Morias nearly repeated that feat 13 minutes later, swinging a 25-yard free kick just wide of the same corner his previous effort nestled into.

Daggers stand-in skipper Matt Robinson almost made it a threes-up for the home side, firing off the back station and into the side-netting. He had most of the stadium fooled that the ball did go in.

This gave the Stones a lifeline for the second half and they worked toward halving the two-goal deficit and went close when Giovanni McGregor dragged a shot wide.

Olufela Olomola produced a good block from Phipps after some good work from Micah Obiero and sub Sam Matthews.

Former Stones loanee Walker made the Stones pay midway through the half though, winning the ball from McGregor in his own half, taking the ball to the Stones box and slotting past Howes to treble the lead for the Eastenders.

And Morias wrapped it up in the final minute of normal time slotting a penalty just past Howes who almost got to it after Dyer had fouled Omar Mussa in the area.

There was time for the Stones to spoil Elliott Justham’s clean sheet when Habergham slotted past the keeper in from a corner in injury time.

Wealdstone are next in action on Tuesday evening, making the trip up north to face Altrincham in a 7:45PM kick off at the J Davidson Stadium.

WEALDSTONE: Howes, Barker, Cook (c), Habergham, Mundle-Smith (Kinsella 81), McGregor, Allarakhia, Obiero, Hutchinson (Matthews 59), Olomola, Akinola (Dyer 69). Subs not used: Sesay, Mongoy.

Report by Chris Woods

Jon Taffel Match pics HERE