Dial head over to Crawley today (31 Oct) to face Oakwood in Division One of the Southern Combination Football League (SCFL) at Oakwood Sports Ground.

It's been a strange couple of weeks for The Dial, who saw their unbeaten home run come to an end against Hailsham Town two weeks ago, followed by another narrow 1-0 league defeat at Redding Way against Guildford City last Saturday.

It's the first time that Dial have played Oakwood, and Dial boss Steve Brown is hoping the league fixture will bring better fortune than the previous two so Dial can notch their first league win away from home in the SCFL.

Despite Dial's relatively impressive home form, you have to go back to 22 April when Dial last won a league game away from home; beating Laleham 4-1 in the Surrey Premier County Football League, a statistic that Brown will certainly want to part company with. Securing three points against The Oaks today could also see Dial move back up to sixth in the SCFL table if results go their way.

Meanwhile, today's hosts will be seeking their first home win (2-0 v Westfield) since the opening day of the season (8 Aug). They too will be looking to flip the form guide on its head, having won only one - in normal time - of their previous nine league and cup fixtures. Albeit, they will be comforted by edging past Saltdean United 5-4 on pens (F/T 2-2) on Tuesday (27 Oct) to progress through to the quarter-finals of the Sussex Principal RUR (Royal Ulster Rifles) Charity Cup.

Dial will be without influential midfielders Matt Hinks and George Frith for today's road trip to West Sussex. Defender Callum Abraham-Barlow is also unavailable, paving the way for Miles Davis and Oluwatomiwa 'Tomi' Bankole to potentially return to the starting XI. Aidan Doran is also expected to return to the squad after a one-match absence.

Speaking to DialSquareFC.com on Friday (30 Oct), Brown said: "I know very little about Oakwood. Regardless, we need to focus on ourselves and how we apprach the game, not the opposition.

"We will be without several key players today, but I'm confident that we still have enough strength across the squad to get a result.

"It's been a frustrating past few weeks, having had the mainstay of possession against Saltdean United, Hailsham Town and, most recently, Guildford City, so we will be looking to put that right this weekend and covert possession into points, which we deserve.

"We had a good training session in midweek, so the boys are definitely up for it, as they should be," added Brown.

Travel Information
For those travelling to Oakwood Sports Ground (satnav RH10 8AT) today, you can plan your journey here. The nearest rail station to the ground is Three Bridges on the Southern Railway Line, which is a c. 25-minute walk from the ground.

Admission
Oakwood's standard matchday admission prices for the 2026/27 season are £8 for adults (including those aged 16 and 17) and £4 for under-16s.

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