Vanarama National League Ones To Watch: Part Seven

We asked Joe Pope, founder of Off The Line blog to assess the players you should be keeping an eye on next season.

David Agbontohoma (Boreham Wood)
Young defender David Agbontohoma spent time on loan with Boreham Wood last season, impressing during his time with the Hertfordshire outfit and helping them to a play-off finish, and as such it was no surprise to see the former Owls player make the move to Victoria Park on a permanent basis this summer. In the process, they have signed of the best, up-and-coming young talents in the National League.

The Wood have already got an ageing squad, and especially in the backline; the likes of Jamal Fyfield, Femi Ilesanmi and David Stephens are all not getting younger by any means.

And, after Will Evans left the club to join Scunthorpe United and the fact Stephens spent last year with Dulwich Hamlet and so may well depart, it left Wood fairly light considering they use a back-three system. As such, they needed to add a younger and more mobile defender, and Agbontohoma ticks those boxes.

He represents such clever long-term planning for Garrard, using last year to assess whether he was up to the grade – a test he certainly passed, given he was a fixture come the end – and signed him on a permanent deal this summer.

More importantly, Agbontohoma gives the Wood a lot of what I feel they need at the back to improve; better abilities with the ball at their feet, more speed for the counter-attack and to chase balls in the channel, a younger, fitter option to last games and an all-round more durable option for the National League.

All the while, he is very much in-keeping with the clearly-defined ethos which Luke Garrard has instilled that has been paramount to their success over the last few years.

An eagerness and passion for defending, Agbontohoma is an athletic and aggressive defender despite not having the obvious, overbearing frame of the likes of Fyfield or Stephens, as well playing on the front foot in the way that he defends. Good in the air and more than willing in the tackle, he is a trademark Wood defender but with room to develop further.

Michael Gyasi (Boston United)
Only a recent signing for Boston United, new striker Michael Gyasi promises – on paper, at least – to be a top player for the level.

It is perhaps easy to overlook Gyasi by way of having an uneventful and largely unsuccessful 2022-23 campaign, but there is definitely still a player there. Go back to last summer prior to when he signed for Chesterfield, he was one of the most sought after forwards at the level after his relegation with Dover Athletic; if the Pilgrims that get that version of Gyasi, they have a proper talent.

You saw what Gyasi is capable of at his brilliant best in the game against Wrexham that finished 6-5, whereby Gyasi ended up scoring four goals for the Whites. And, Ian Culverhouse will be hoping that he can find that top level of performance for the Pilgrims, as if he can then he promises to be a real handful at this level. A tricky and diminutive striker with real pace and power, Gyasi is like a little pocket rocket when at his best with his bets to close down from the front, provide an outlet in behind and his running power.

Gyasi is only 23 years of age, and so still has a lot of room for development left in his game. And, he is now back under a coaching that he has played for before in the form of Culverhouse, thus on the surface it seems like this is a marriage made in heaven and one that will be hugely beneficial for his career. He certainly has the quality – Chesterfield decided to make the move to secure his services – and all he needed was the platform to show what he can do regularly; he now has that.

He is a versatile attacking player, capable of playing on either flank or as part of a two with a more physical forward, and so he gives Culverhouse a lot of versatility in the way that he uses the German forward. He has the pace to run onto knock-downs through the middle, and the trickery and dribbling qualities to engage in foot races and be direct at opposition full-backs; he really is an exciting player. Seeing what he could do in two poor sides in King’s Lynn Town and Dover Athletic, I am intrigued to see how his game can flourish this year in what you would assume is a better Boston United side. Gyasi is more than capable of being the difference for United, and I think he will be.

Lloyd Humphries (Weston-super-Mare)
Regular readers of my stuff may have been getting a little worried that we were nearing the final few “Ones to Watch” pieces and the fact that we hadn’t yet talked about midfielder Lloyd Humphries; don’t worry any longer! There was no chance of Humphries missing out on this list; he is my favourite player outside of the National League’s top tier, and in the same way that he was a joy to watch last year on Weston-super-Mare’s way to winning the league title, I think he will again excite.

Weston-super-Mare won promotion to the National League South last season, and it was fair to say that Humphries was an integral part of their success under Scott Bartlett, winning just about every award that they had to offer in the End of Season awards; they really are a clever bunch, are the Weston-super-Mare fans.

They recognise quality when they see it. And, my word, have they got a quality midfielder in their ranks. Bartlett’s side developed a reputation last season for being a swashbuckling, attractive, front-foot side with an emphasis on passing the ball with speed and swagger, and there is no player that represents a better fit for this than Humphries. A technically terrific player, his passing range is second to none; the cute weight of pass in the final third, the vision to spot a pass, and the close control and footwork to manipulate the ball in tight areas.

He is stepping up a level, and yet I genuinely think that in terms of midfielders in the National League South, Humphries is the best in terms of his technical quality on the ball. He is metronomic in the way that he plays, with the composure and reading of the game to play in a slightly deeper role at the base of midfield, but all the while the creative intellect to play slightly more advanced.

Weston-super-Mare controlled the possession in a fair few of their games, and that was inspired by a string of smart displays from the Non-League Shelvey; the latest nickname I am dubbing, after starting the 'Non-League Giroud' tag for Aaron Jarvis. Bartlett’s side are going to be a welcome addition to the sixth tier, and I think that Humphries could genuinely be the difference between them staying up or going down.