Raw Guernsey squad hurt by Young’s late withdrawal
SEVEN uncapped players have been named in Chris Tardif’s first match-day Muratti squad and – potentially – there could be an eighth.
With resources seriously stretched by the departure of Ross Allen, injuries to Craig Young, Leroi Riley, Rhys Gower and Sam Cochrane and the clash with a Guernsey FC away game, Tardif has had to dig deep to name a squad which, out of the blue, also includes himself.
The team, which will also have a new captain in Ben Coulter, will be much changed from the side that scraped through their most recent Mount Hale test 1-0 in 2016.
Of that side, only four are likely to feature tomorrow.
The seven potential newcomers include St Martin’s goalkeeper Jason Martin, who is set to join the small band of sportsmen to be fully capped on the football and cricket fields.
He has had an outstanding season and even had Leroi Riley not dislocated a finger playing for Manzur on Wednesday, Martin was in line to play in Alderney.
The other uncapped players are the Rovers duo Sam Hall and Louis Graham, the North pair of Luke Mollet and Sam Murray, Saints striker Danny Hale and Guernsey FC striker Paris Pereira.
The potential eighth new face is Rovers striker Will Fazakerley who has been called into the squad late and, along with North’s Stuart Roussel, is on standby should illness or late injury intervene.
Tardif revealed yesterday that both Cochrane and Young failed fitness tests against his desire that every player in the 16 be sufficiently fit to play 90 minutes.
‘My view is that if you are not fit enough to play a whole game, then you the player has to make a decision.’
The loss of Young, who took a painful knock against the RAF recently, is a blow to the side and the boss was keen to explain why he originally planned to have Roussel in the 16, but stood him down after Young was ruled out to Luke Mollet’s benefit.
‘Until Craig pulled out, Stuart was definitely in.
‘But with Craig out I had to reevaluate the squad. I needed a more defensive midfield option.
‘It was a tough decision and took us an hour after training to go through the scenarios.’
Tardif will settle for another 1-0 win as long as they win.
He also knows that Alderney’s recent poor Priaulx League form counts for very little as the home side will be bolstered by UK-based options and the likes of talented Vale Rec defender Damien Larkin.
Is he worried?
‘I wouldn’t say I’m concerned. I’m respectful, but not scared of what Alderney has to offer.
‘But, of course, it’s a must-win one and one that for us we can only fail.
‘We are not assuming anything. We know it won’t be an easy game and it’s all about the result.
‘It’s one of the smallest medals in football, but it means the most to me,’ the coach added.
GUERNSEY SQUAD
Jason Martin, Chris Tardif, Tom de la Mare, Tom Strawbridge, Jamie Dodd, Louis Graham, River Marsh, Ben Coulter, Matt Loaring, Sam Hall, Luke Mollet, Paris Pereira, Danny Hale, Sam Murray, Dom Heaume.
Standby: Will Fazakerley and Stuart Roussel.
