Match Report

Diamonds were downed by Step 4 Stamford on a hot Saturday afternoon at the Zeeco Stadium.

The hosts, playing their first game of pre-season, got off to the perfect start after two minutes when James Blunden headed home a corner. Dean Snedker was then forced into a strong save to deny Jack Duffy either side of Nathan Tshikuna curling narrowly over and new signing Courtney Lashley bending a strike inches wide. An equaliser did arrive just after the half-hour mark when Trialist number 11 fired past ex-Diamonds keeper Ben Heath, but Stamford re-established their lead soon afterwards when Jonathan Margetts slammed in a precise cut-back. They added another moments before half-time when a handball in the area led to Rob Morgan confidently slotting home the resulting penalty.

Stamford carried on where they left off at the beginning of the second half when, firstly, ex-RDFC man Jon Challinor strode forward before hitting a low strike past Snedker from range to make it four. Two minutes later they scored again as a cross from the left was flicked on for Rodrigo Goncalves to volley into the unguarded net. Diamonds did manage to pull a couple of goals back as Jenson Cooper struck a powerful effort into the far corner from 25 yards, and Connor Furlong dispatched a penalty after being tripped in the box, but the hosts ultimately ran out deserved victors.

Full match report to follow…

Preview

Diamonds travel up the A1 to take on Stamford AFC in their latest pre-season friendly on Saturday.

Latest news

After a hard-working performance in a 4-0 defeat to impressive League One opposition MK Dons on Tuesday night, Andy Burgess will be looking for a reaction against a high-flying, Step 4 side Stamford.

3 new signings were confirmed in the week including impressive trialists Evan and Courtney Lashley and Matthew Lars Fossen who has been playing in Norway, Spain and Sweden lately.

The game on Saturday will be a first pre-season outing for Stamford.

Stamford AFC

Stamford had a successful but ultimately heartbreaking season last year, finishing second in Northern Premier Midlands with 26 wins from 38 games and missing out on top spot by just 3 points. A 2-1 home play-off defeat to Belper Town was a massive shock after they had beaten the same team twice during the season by an aggregate 10 – 2.

They play at the Zeeco Stadium in Ryhall Road on the northern outskirts of Stamford and are managed by Graham Drury.

Admission prices:

Adults: £7

Concessions: £4

12 to 17: £2

Under 11: Free

Previous meeting

Stamford are one of manager Andy Burgess’ former clubs and he actually played in the meeting between the sides in 2013 pre-season prior to Diamonds 2nd season. He assisted the opening goal for Stamford but saw Fazel Koriya score twice to put Diamonds ahead before his Stamford side struck back in the last 10 minutes to win the game 3-2.

Can’t make the game?

Our Radio Diamonds team will be providing live commentary as the action unfolds – tune in at mixlr.com/radiodiamondsafc. Listeners will be able to message with their comments and thoughts on 07394 309591.

We will also doing live updates on our Twitter account at twitter.com/AFCRD. Highlights and interviews will be available after the game at youtube.com/AFCRDTV.

Match Preview: Paul Judd