HIS side may not have got the result they were hoping for at Histon on Tuesday, but Graham Kemp feels the long trip to Cambridgeshire ultimately helped bring the Magpies’ players closer together.

Dorchester took a bumper squad of 20 to the Glassworld Stadium in midweek after Kemp had told his contracted players to make themselves available for the game or face being put on the transfer list.

And the county town boss, whose team host Biggleswade Town in the Evo-Stik Premier Division tomorrow (3pm), was pleased with the response he got.

“It was a good bonding experience for the boys,” he said. “We took over five hours to get there, which wasn’t great, but it gave me a chance to sit, watch and listen to the lads.

“Although the result didn’t quite go our way, it was good for team morale.

“The performance was what I asked for and with a little bit of luck we could have got a point.

“It was the response I was hoping to get and we have to move on now.”

Commenting further on the reasons behind getting the whole squad to make the trip to Histon, he added: “It wasn’t so much a punishment.

“We have had a lot of home games on the trot and when that happens, and results aren’t going your way, it’s difficult to build team spirit.

“People just turn up, play, and then go home.

“On Tuesday we had some lads coming from Yeovil, Bournemouth and Southampton, and when you spend time together on a long trip it helps.

“You feel tired the next day and it’s hard to get up for work, but that time together is helpful in the long run.”

Chris Dillon and Matt Oldring have been passed fit for tomorrow, while Jamie Gleeson (groin) and Jake Smeeton (hamstring) are due to undertake late fitness tests.

Looking ahead to the clash, Kemp reckons that given the position Dorchester are in, winning ugly could well have to be the way forward if they want to haul themselves clear of the relegation zone.

“You can find yourself in a situation where you have to abandon your footballing morals to a certain extent, you have to scrap for every point,” he said.

“The next few months aren’t going to be the prettiest because I don’t want to be the best footballing side in the league and get relegated.

“Me and the players want to be in this league next season, and I expect to be in it.”

The Waders, 15th in the league table, beat Dorchester 4-1 in August but haven’t won any of their last three Premier Division fixtures.

Magpies (from): Walker-Harris, Murray, Hanger, Gleeson, Walker, Rolls, Crittenden, Lanahan, Joyce, Odam, Robinson, Murphy, Godfrey, Brookes, Smith, Parrett, Hubbard, Oldring, Dillon, Smeeton

* Dorchester Reserves' Dorset Senior Trophy clash with Stourpaine at the Avenue Stadium has been rearranged for Wednesday, November 12, (7.45pm).