Welling United are back at Park View Road on Tuesday evening when they host Oxford City in the F.A. Trophy.

On Saturday, they had their first league game of the season in front of spectators but they were unable to extend their four game unbeaten run.

After a promising start in which they created, but didn’t finish, some good chances they lost their way in the second half and conceded from a near post corner. After that they never really looked like getting back into the game and visitors Chippenham Town saw the game out comfortably.

Brad Quinton, Welling’s manager, will now be looking at using the F.A. Trophy to give his team a boost but Oxford won’t make it easy for them. They have only lost once in their last six league games and they had a good F.A. Cup run before losing one-nil at Shrewsbury Town in the second round. 

Welling will be without two players who are cup-tied so Quinton will have enforced changes to the team. He said “It’s another game that we want to win, we have to win. The emphasis now falls on me to make the changes. That’s down for me to decide on who plays.”

In most games this season, Welling have played football that’s pleasing on the eye but without the cutting edge. Quinton believes that they are playing too much pretty stuff and wants them to mix it with the other side of the game. “What you need to do, you need to do the horrible things in this league.

“They’re young boys. They don’t understand that and I keep telling them and telling them and telling them. What you need to do is the horrible things, the basic things the simple things. You keep a clean sheet, you nick a goal, you win one-nil. It’s what teams do.”

When the two teams last met, back in August 2019, they played out a goal-less first half but Connor Dymond put Welling ahead just past the hour mark. Kyran Wiltshire levelled from close range but within two minutes, Adam Coombes put the Wings back ahead from the penalty spot and he made sure of the three points when slotting home late on in front of the happy home fans.

Whoever wins the Trophy match will have a home game in the next round against either Concord Rangers or Truro City, but when that will be played is to be determined.

Picture supplied by Dave Budden.