DORSET SENIOR LEAGUE

STEVE Alcock has challenged his side to take the positives from their previous game into tomorrow’s top-of-the-table tussle at second-placed Kingston Lacy (3pm).

The Weymouth Sports boss was delighted with his side’s display in last Saturday’s 5-3 win at Gillingham Town Reserves and is adamant it is going to take something similar at Pamphill Village Green in order to come away with a positive result.

Alcock, whose side sits fourth in the Dorset Senior League, said: “We knocked the ball around superbly at Gillingham and hopefully we can take the positives from that performance into the game at Kingston Lacy, which will no doubt be another tough one.

“We had a bit of an epic match there last season where we came back from 4-0 down, only to end up losing 5-4 to a late winner with five minutes to go.

“They have had a good start to the season and are currently unbeaten but if we go there and play the way I know we can, we will stand every chance.

“Youngsters like Shaun Bessant are coming on leaps and bounds, and they are only going to get better with experience. We are still very much a work in progress.”

Simon Austin, Steven Walker and Ben MacConnachie could all return for Sports tomorrow, giving Alcock a nice selection headache, although he will be without Ed Bastick, who has just started university.

Meanwhile, Upwey & Broadwey manager Steve Reynolds is hoping for better fortunes at home against Blandford United Reserves (3pm), following last weekend’s 5-1 defeat at Stourpaine.

The Redlands outfit also lost 5-2 at Wareham Rangers on the opening day of the season and the club’s concerned boss is calling for a response.

He said: “On paper we have a decent side but no one is taking responsibility, particularly in the middle of the pitch, and that has to change.

“We should have the same group of players this week that we had at Stour-paine, minus Justin Crawford, which means we will only have 12 if Henry Clark is available but that is the way it is at the moment and we just have to get on with it.

“We are still waiting for players to return from long lay-offs through suspension and until they do, we just have to battle on and hopefully there will be a positive response tomorrow.”

Chickerell United Reserves and Portland United Reserves are both on the road this weekend at Stourpaine and Okeford United respectively (both 3pm).