MATCH PREVIEW: MAIDENHEAD UNITED (H)

Boreham Wood vs Maidenhead United
Saturday, 10th February 2024, 3:00 pm
Mangata Pay UK Stadium, Meadow Park, Vanarama National League

PREVIEW

Tomorrow, we welcome Maidenhead United to Meadow Park in what will be another crucial fixture for Luke Garrard’s side as The Wood look to climb back up the Vanarama National League table. Our last meeting with The Magpies came back in September where The Wood travelled to Berkshire and came away 1-0 winners thanks to a penalty, converted by Tyrone Marsh. Maidenhead United are currently sat 12th in the table after 9 wins, 12 draws, and 10 losses, with our Berkshire opponents having accrued 39 points, 2 points more than The Wood. Luke Garrard’s side are currently sat 4 places below Maidenhead in 16th but are 10th in the form-guide, 2 places above The Magpies, and come into this Meadow Park clash off the back of a 1-0 victory away at Woking on Saturday.

FORM GUIDE

Maidenhead United – W-D-W-L-D

Alan Devonshire’s Magpies are currently unbeaten in their previous 3 league games, picking up wins against Wealdstone and Solihull Moors as well as a draw away at York City. Maidenhead United would open their 2024 with a tie against Bromley, where The Magpies were held to a goalless draw by The Ravens. This was followed by a 1-0 loss to Ebbsfleet United, the most recent loss for the Berkshire side, where The Magpies were victims of a Dominic Samuel winner with 8 minutes of the 90 remaining. Maidenhead would bounce back from the defeat to Ebbsfleet, however, by winning 2-1 over Solihull Moors. This was thanks to a Tobi Sho-Silva tap-in and long-range thunderbolt from Sam Barratt, which would eventually prove to be the winner for The Magpies.

On the Saturday that followed, York City would host The Magpies and the honours were even as the two sides played out a 1-1 draw, a draw where both goals were scored before the half-hour mark. Maidenhead winger, Ashley Nathaniel-George would open the scoring on 17 minutes with a clean strike into the top-left corner of the York City net, but The Magpies would lose their lead just over 10 minutes later as the home side would equalise through a Sam Beckwith own goal. Finally, in their most recent fixture, Maidenhead would make the trip to North-West London where they would take on David Noble’s Wealdstone. The Magpies would win 1-0 over The Stones thanks to another Nathaniel-George goal, the winger’s 5th of the season.

ONES TO WATCH

Ashley Nathaniel-George:

28-year-old winger, Ashley Nathaniel-George, has played a pivotal role for The Magpies so far in their 2023/24 campaign. Nathaniel-George joined Maidenhead United in September of 2022 and has already equalled his goal tally of last season with 16 games to spare. The winger has bagged 2 goals in his last 2 league appearances, one of which opened the scoring away at York City and the other proving to be the winner away at Wealdstone. The 28-year-old, formerly of the likes of Crawley Town, Southend United and Ebbsfleet United, is also an Antigua and Barbuda international, having earnt a total of 10 caps for the Caribbean side, the majority of which coming in the CONCACAF Nations League. Nathaniel-George is a large threat on the left-wing due to his technical ability. The winger can get away from opposition players with his quick feet as well as the skills and bursts of pace in his locker, a difficult attacker to defend against and a large factor for Jack Payne’s back-line to consider going into tomorrow’s fixture.

PRE-MATCH INTERVIEW