BT Sport Double Bill Will Give National League Fans Their Fill

So save some turkey and chow down on some sandwiches in front on the TV on Boxing Day as two of the sides who had hoped for better in 2020 do battle.

Dover Athletic are desperate not to end the year bottom of the table and they can try and avoid being the basement boys going into the New Year by defeating Dagenham.

In the first of the three-day double header, the cameras head to Crabble to see if Andy Hessenthaler’s team can start their great recovery.

Will it be a Whites Christmas? The BT team will be there to see if Dover can get going again after seven defeats in their last eight.

“It’s going to be a strange Boxing Day,” the manager told KentOnline. “We’re kicking-off at 5.20pm which is unusual in itself, we’re playing behind closed doors and we’re on television, plus by the time we kick-off we will be five or six games behind most teams.

“Dagenham are starting to get going now. They’ve had a slow start which can happen sometimes but it’s not a surprise given their squad to see them picking up results.

“I know Paul McCallum really well and he is a goalscorer at this level.

“We’ve got some tough games coming up and it’s a great challenge but we also know that it’s in our own hands. We’ve got to embrace what’s ahead of us and see what we can do.”

Dagenham counterpart Daryl McMahon wants his team to build on their fantastic performance against Torquay United.

They became the first side to win at the leaders this season and the Daggers boss wants a repeat of their display on the Kent coast.

After beating the side at the top, he now wants to see off the team sitting bottom.

He said: “It was a fantastic victory but it’s always been about looking forward and we need to follow that up.

“But it will be a really big test for us - Dover are a good team and they are fighting.”

Then on Monday comes part two of the live offering - and Woking await for Eastleigh.

Alan Dowson’s team have lost only once at home this season but this time last year still gives the manager nightmares.

“We got beaten by three goals and then by six over Christmas last year - so hopefully we can improve on that!” he joked in a Zoom chat with the National League Oliver Osborn.

“We’re not daft, these are tough games we got over this period. But they will be saying the same thing about us I’m sure.

“If Eastleigh win their games in hand they will be in the promotion places, they’re a really good team. We know how tight this league is.

“We haven’t been live on BT Sport too much, so it would be nice to put on a bit of a show for the cameras.”

Eastleigh are good away from home and manager Ben Strevens wants that to continue.

The Spitfires have won three from five on their travels with victories at Barnet, Yeovil and Bromley already to their name.

The 40-year-old said: “We were frustrated up at FC Halifax on Tuesday but our away results have been good this season.

“But this division is so demanding and we need to tackle the Christmas period as best we can.”