'I think it's a great tie' – Brian Stock relishing Ridgeway derby

Stock oversaw a derby with Dorchester early in his tenure last September, the Terras winning 3-1 thanks to Jordan Ngalo, Josh McQuoid and Jake McCarthy goals.

And the former Burnley and Doncaster midfielder backed fans and players not to get carried away by the latest renewal of the long-standing rivalry.

He told Echosport: “It’s a fixture that makes sense for both parties, we’re happy to go to Dorchester again.

“I think it’s a great tie. I remember last year quite a lot of supporters managed to watch that friendly and it was played in the right spirit with nothing malicious going on.

“Sometimes with derbies, those things sometimes happen, but it was played in the right way and I fully expect it to be that way again.”

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Weymouth will again work on patterns of play and tactics.

“We’ve been working on that over the last 10 days,” Stock revealed.

“The majority of pre-season is all about getting minutes into players and monitoring them as they go.

“When we look at the 21st of August (season start) we want to make sure every player has had 90 minutes under their belt, if not more.”

Ben Morgan (Achilles) will be assessed, as will Josh McQuoid, Sean Shields, Josh Leslie-Smith, Xander McBurnie, Andy Robinson and Calvin Brooks who are all struggling with a non-Covid-19-related illness.

Weymouth are also hoping to seal deals for their three remaining triallists, following the signing of McBurnie earlier this week.

Taofiq Olomowewe is among the triallists Weymouth hope to sign Picture: MARK PROBIN

Midfielders Omar Mussa, formerly of Dover, and Dorchester Town under-23 man Dan Neild plus former Burnley under-23 and Wealdstone centre-back Taofiq Olomowewe are all close to signing.