Given that your were one of the pre-season favourites for relegation, is it right to assume that you are happy with the way Dagenham's season has gone so far?
Very much so! To be 10th at the midway point is very much above everyone’s expectations. I think it’s fair to say that before the season started, the majority of Daggers fans were not particularly optimistic over what the season had to bring. But with the impressive signings we’ve made, we’ve surprised everyone including ourselves.
Being in the play-off hunt is testament to the hard work that the players and the management have put in over the summer and hopefully we’ll be there or thereabouts come May.
What have been the keys to the Daggers' success this season and is promotion a realistic aim now?
I think the brightest feature of our play this season has been our ability going forward. For the last few years, since losing Paul Benson in League One, we’ve really lacked up front – this is the first season since then that I’m confident that we can score in all of our games.
On top of that our home form has been magnificent for the most part this season, dented only by defeats to Cheltenham and Torquay at the weekend. If we can maintain our relatively strong form at Victoria Road and improve away from home, there’s no reason why we can’t challenge for promotion in what is a relatively average league.
Who have been the top performers for your team so far?
The two men that have provided the most excitement and the most goals – Zavon Hines & Rhys Murphy. Quite how we managed to land Hines in particular I’m still not sure, but he’s been a revelation since signing, bamboozling the opposition defence and creating numerous chances every match.
Murphy, on the other hand, is the natural goalscorer that we’ve lacked for far too long, his 11 goals so far this season represents a return higher than anybody throughout the whole of last season.
When the two combine usually there’s an end product. Honourable mentions also go to centre-half Scott Doe and midfielder Abu Ogogo who have both performed extremely well so far this season.
What are the biggest weaknesses in your team that Pompey could exploit if they pulled their fingers out of their arses on Boxing Day?
The constant thorn in our side this season has been our inability to defend aerially, in particular from set-pieces. If you can keep up your decent scoring record from set-pieces, then we could be in for a long afternoon.
Given Pompey's woeful form, how confident are you of getting a result at Fratton Park?
I’m not confident at all. Regardless of form, I just have this niggling feeling that we’ll lose on Boxing Day as we so often do to teams that positionally, we should be beating. Maybe there’s a bit of “surely we can’t beat Portsmouth”, mixed in there as well – but no, I don’t think we’ll come away with a victory.
What kind of football do Dagenham play and how will that contribute to the match on Thursday?
We knock it around far more than we used to. During the Still era we were more renowned for route one play, but with Burnett’s appointment midway through last season, we’re passing it around far more now. We also seem to have a few players who like to dribble with the ball, in particular Hines, so that may be something to look out for.
I think a lot depends on the conditions with regards to how it’ll contribute to the match. Obviously with the weather as it is at the moment, it’ll be difficult for either team to establish fluency into their game, but hopefully if we retain the majority of the possession we can make it work for us.
Predict the outcome of the game.
I think we’ll lose 2-1 with a goal either side of half time for Portsmouth.