Stevenage hosted Colchester United at the Lamex in new boss Dino Maamria’s first game in charge. Read on for Layth Yousif’s PLAYER RATINGS
Stevenage:
Tom King: 7 – Will be interesting to see what happens when he heads back to Millwall at the end of the season when his loan spell is up. Excellent distribution, commands his area well, is a vocal organiser of his backline and exudes the confidence that comes from a keeper who is sure of his positioning.
Jonathan Smith: 6 – An honest pro who always gives his all but his final ball could be more refined when supplementing attacks.
Joe Martin: 6.5 – Scrapped well in his constant battle with the lively Mikael Mandron.
Jack King: 6.5 – Good to see the giant defender in constant dialogue with his equally gigantic colleague Luke Wilkinson.
Luke Wilkinson: 6.5 – Formed an effective central backline with King but both will be disappointed by the goal.
Chris Whelpdale: 6.5 – Gave his all in a battling performance but another who fell short of what he is a capable of.
Alex Revell: 6.5 – Back after a four-match ban which cost Boro – not least Darren Sarll – in terms of striking options. Failed to shine in a dull game on a dull day.
Johnny Goddard: 6 – Not as effective as he would have liked. Hooked at the break for Spurs loanee Luke Amos as new boss Dino Maamria analyses the options available to him.
Danny Newton: 7 – One of the joys of watching the former Tamworth forward is his non-stop, all-action style – which is also an indication of his genuine love of playing the game. The type of player, who, if he wasn’t being paid to play would be the first one to hand his subs over on a Sunday morning game.
Ronnie Henry: 7 – Good to see the club’s record appearance holder make a timely return. Mr Consistency as ever – but what does his off-the-field future hold in Boro’s Brave New World?
Mark McKee: 7 – Won’t be long until he joins fellow countryman Ben Kennedy on Northern Ireland U21 duty if he keeps progressing. Easy to forget he is still a teenager. With Ben Wilmot on England U19 duty the Arsenal scout would have been very interested in his typically tenacious performance.
Substitutes:
Luke Amos: 6 – The White Hart Lane starlet with the quick feet came on after the break to inject pace into the team. Often found himself in a central position but with few options.
Tom Conlon: 5 – Replaced Whelpdale after his Billericay soujourn.
Joe White: 6 – On for Smith late on.
Manager:
Dino Maamria: 8 – He has a lot to offer Stevenage FC and is an impressive man with an excellent record at every club he’s bossed previously. A shame his first match didn’t go to plan but he has a bright future. What he doesn’t need a talk of a director of football and needs to be his own man. Which he undoubtedly will be.
What will also be interesting is how he handles persistent underachievers – how many players will survive from his starting line-up today compared to the first game of next season only time will tell...
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