MATCH PREVIEW | KINGSTONIAN
Dorking welcome Isthmian Premier League side Kingstonian to Meadowbank on Tuesday night in what is the first final in the space of four days for Wanderers.
Although most eyes will remain on the National League South promotion final against Ebbsfleet United on Saturday, Dorking will be looking to secure the Surrey Senior Cup title after a rather convincing 5-3 victory against Balham FC in the semi-finals. Kingstonian were due to play in their semi-final against Chertsey Town but were awarded a bye into the final after from Surrey FA and an independent commission.
The K’s finished 10th in the Isthmian Premier Division and play their home games at King Georges Field in Tolworth and groundshare with Corinthian Casuals. They played at Kingsmeadow until 2017 after Chelsea bought the ground from AFC Wimbledon who didn’t allow the club to remain tenants there. They even ground shared with Dorking’s rivals Leatherhead during the 17-18 season. King Georges Field has a capacity of 2,000. They haven’t played competitively since a 2-1 defeat at Margate on 23rd April and didn’t win any of their final five league games of the season.
Kingstonian’s squad is littered with non-league experience. Ghassimu Sow started his career at Crystal Palace but has played non-league for much of his career. The 27-year-old Liberian is known to be a combative midfielder who has played for the likes of St Albans City, Dulwich Hamlet and Lewes and has been at the K’s since 2019. Kingstonian’s number one is Julian Schwarzer, the son of former Middlesborough and Chelsea goalkeeper Mark. The 22-year-old was on the books at Fulham where his father spent five years as a player and after a short spell at Basingstoke Town, was re-signed by the club and joined the K’s on loan in January after only one appearance this season for the Cottagers’ Under 23 side. Alex Addai is a tricky winger who spent three seasons playing in the EFL for Cheltenham Town, he also spent time on loan at Maidenhead United and Solihull Moors before eventually settling at the K’s, a club he joined permanently in February after a short-term deal with Hemel Hempstead Town had expired. The club captain is Simon Cooper. He is a central defender and joined the club in 2019 from recently relegated Merstham and has Isthmian Premier and Southern League experience with the likes of Guildford City, Chipstead and Carshalton Athletic. Their top scorer was Elliott Buchanan, a former Dorking player who re-joined Kingstonian in 2020 after a previous short spell. He finished the 2021/22 as the K’s top goalscorer with 23 goals in all competitions despite joining Farnborough in March, who secured promotion to National League South at the end of the season.
SURREY SENIOR CUP RECORD
Kingstonian have played in the final 17 times since the Senior Cup was introduced in 1882. They have won 11 of those finals including their last one in this competition in the 2005-06 season. Dorking have never played in a Surrey Senior Cup final.