United are on their travels this weekend, as they head to the Kent coast to face Dover Athletic.
Who’s the boss?
Andy Hessenthaler returned to the Crabble for his second stint at the helm in 2018 after previously managing the side between 2007 and 2010, during which he enjoyed back-to-back promotions from the Isthmian League South to the Conference South.
During his first two seasons at the helm at Dover, he guided his White’s to a 13th place finish, followed by a 10th place finish in 2018/19 and the 2019/20 campaigns. It’s been a tough season for his Dover side so far as they sit bottom of the table on -5 points, although they finally got their first win of the season on the 25th January when the beat Eastleigh 1-0 at Crabble.
Player to watch
Danny Collinge signed up for Dover last summer, and so far this season has played the majority of games in a difficult season for the club. Collinge came through the ranks at MK Dons before having a five year spell in Bundesliga II with Vfb Stuttgart, playing regularly for their U23s and second team.
Upon his release from the German club, the central defender then joined Colchester United on a two year deal, and despite not making a first team appearance, was a regular in the U’s U23 set up, as well as having loan spells at Maldon & Tiptree and AFC Sudbury before his arrival in Kent. The 23 year old has also represented England at U16, U17 & U18 levels, making over 30 appearances including in the U17 World Cup in 2015.
Played for both
Ade Azeez came through the ranks at Charlton Athletic, although spent most of his time there on loan, including his first temporary spell at Plainmoor. It was for The Gulls that Azeez scored his first professional league goal, in a 2-1 defeat away at Newport in League Two. After more loan stints preceded his release from his parent club, the striker joined AFC Wimbledon, where in two years he made over 80 appearances.
Partick Thistle in the Scottish Premiership was his next port of call, before Cambridge United signed him up on a two year deal. It was during his time at the Abbey Stadium that Azeez first spent time at Dover, during another loan spell. At the end of his Cambridge contract, he joined Newport prior to enjoying a second loan move at Plainmoor, where he notched the winner against Halifax on his second debut.
The 28 year old then returned to Dover last season for a second spell, before joining Dartford for the current campaign in the National League South.
Previous encounter
Dover Athletic 1 – 2 Torquay United, Saturday 17th August 2019, National League
Two second-half strikes saw United claim their first away win of the season at Dover at the Crabble Athletic Ground, as headers from Asa Hall and Jamie Reid put Gary Johnson’s men in a commanding position. Despite Hall’s late red card, Inih Effiong’s penalty proved little more than a consolation for the home side, as the men in yellow held on for three points on the road.