DORCHESTER Town have their eyes on a variety of improvements ahead of hosting Eastleigh in their final pre-season friendly at the Avenue Stadium this evening (7.45pm).

Magpies’ boss Glenn Howes highlighted Dorchester’s need for ruthlessness in front of goal, increased fitness and game management following the 2-1 defeat to Wimborne on Saturday.

The Eastleigh match provides Dorchester with their sternest test of the summer against opposition who claimed ninth in the National League last campaign.

But Howes demanded the requisite adjustments from his side despite the high-calibre of the Spitfires.

He told Echosport: “We need to manage the game better when the opposition have an awful lot of the ball.

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“Our distances and spaces, going into a mid-block, we need to have that option to operate.

“Our press is not far off. When you play your Yeovils and Eastleighs you might have less of the ball, but I don’t want that to be a situation where we’re giving up possession and not brave enough to have our moments in the game.

“Certainly, we’ll have to manage the physical element better, pick and choose when we need to press and when we need to come into our mid-block.”

Dorchester will assess impact injuries to Alex Moyse and Shaq Gwengwe, while Olaf Koszela’s game time continues to be managed following surgery on a broken ankle.

Commenting on the minor injuries within his squad, Howes said: “It’s really difficult as a non-league, part-time team to manage the load of players and get that right.

“We need to push them, do more to increase their fitness levels. Equally, if (we expect) too much of them they are going to pick up knocks here and there.”

“Some players have looked after themselves better than others.”