Molesley wary of Martyrs

WEYMOUTH manager Mark Molesley has labelled Merthyr Town as “dangerous opposition” ahead of the Terras’ trip to Wales in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier Division tomorrow (3pm).

The Martyrs nearly folded after well-documented financial problems earlier in the season, losing 13-1 to Chesham in the immediate aftermath, but since then the Welsh club has welcomed back many of its first-team squad.

Merthyr have since slipped to 18th place having taken just two wins from their past 10 home league games, while Weymouth sit third after impressive back-to-back wins over Farnborough and Royston.

Speaking to Echosport, Molesley was keen to ignore another long trip for his side and called for his players to “stand up and be counted”.

He said: “It’s been much-publicised with their money problems. They lost in the last minute at Slough and have had a couple of draws.

“They’ve got a lot of their players back. They’re dangerous opposition and a good side. It will hopefully be an entertaining game up there.

“Not to make excuses (the travel) is what it is. We’ve got to deal with it and stand up and be counted.

“We know that if we’re in the game we’ve got quality and we’ll go to the end and make chances.”

Molesley also spoke of his pride in Weymouth’s 2-1 win over Royston on Tuesday night after a tough January that has thrown up several away fixtures.

He said: “I was really proud of the boys. They’ve had a tough few weeks and that was our last midweek game.

“Hopefully we’ve put ourselves back in the mix, but we’ve got to follow it up (tomorrow).

“We want to follow it up but we want to treat each game in isolation. I’m sure we can win if we prepare right and do things right.”

The Terras welcomed back Josh Carmichael for the victory over the Crows after injury, and Molesley was quick to praise the midfielder.

He said: “It was a massive boost for us. We had to rest him up on Saturday but he’s been a big part of things this season.

“He made some good tackles, headers and clearances for us and helped carry those three points home.”

The victory gave Weymouth their second successive win after a 6-0 triumph over Farnborough on Saturday, and Molesley is looking to repeat the trick against the Martyrs.

“I think it’s important to stick back-to-back wins together. We want to chase the ones above us. It was a good night for us but we’ve got to go again,” he said.

Molesley is hopeful that both Ben Thomson (groin) and Harry Baker (illness) will be fit for the clash after Baker missed the win over Royston, while Thomson came off injured in Hertfordshire.

Source Weymouth FC / Dorset Echo