THERE could be three new faces in the Taunton Town side which takes to the field away to Poole Town tomorrow (ko 3pm).

Josiah Dunstan, Jake Jackson and Owen Windsor could all make their Southern League debuts for the Peacocks, having joined the club in the last week.

Defender Dunstan, 19, has come in from Hungerford Town, while forwards Jackson, 25, and Windsor, 18, have joined on loan (until January 2, 2020) from Gloucester City and West Bromwich Albion, respectively.

In addition, Joe Charles has returned to the club, the pacy 22-year-old midfielder having signed in 2017 before suffering two serious knee injuries.

Talking about the new faces in his squad, Taunton head of football Rob Dray told the County Gazette: “We know Joe - he’s coming back from injury, he’s a great lad and he has out-and-out pace.

“Josiah has great raw attributes but hasn’t played much.

“We have a strong side here, but we will talk to him and find a solution.

“Jake gives us size and runs in behind - he’s a National League North level striker.

“We were looking for another striker after Josh Grant went, and we need the numbers for the midweek games coming up.

“Owen can play on the left of the forward line - he gives us another angle, and we’ll have a good look at him.”

The Peacocks have been without a match since last Wednesday’s cup win over Truro City, after Tuesday’s scheduled friendly at home to Bideford was rained off.

Dray admits that it can be “very difficult” to prevent a side being under-cooked by a lack of match action.

“We don’t have a dedicated training facility, and with [Tuesday’s] game being called off at short notice, everything’s booked up,” he said.

“We got together for some circuits training in Ryan Brett’s gym, to get the new lads together, and that was very good.”

Providing the weather doesn’t scupper Saturday’s fixture, it will see the Peacocks face the team who knocked them out on penalties in last season’s promotion play-off semi-finals.

Dray does not think that will add any extra spice to the occasion, however.

He said: “It’s just our next game, and we’re all over that [shootout loss] now, so I don’t think it will have much bearing on this weekend.

“Poole have a very strong side, and they want to go back up to National League South.”

Midfielder Ollie Chamberlain is an injury doubt for the match, which pits sixth against fifth, but Bristol City loanee Zac Smith is set to return.

He played 90 minutes for City’s Under-23 side on Monday, having been sidelined by an ankle injury since last month.

The opposition

If you think Taunton Town have had a bad time of it with postponed games, Poole Town have suffered more.

Remarkably, the Dolphins have only had four home league fixtures so far this season (eight in all competitions), with their last Southern League match at the BlackGold Stadium being on September 14.

Their last home game in any competition was on October 29, with the weather and cup matches having an impact on their schedule.

Tuesday’s schedule match at home to Beaconsfield Town was called off due to a waterlogged pitch, leading to a statement from chairman Chris Reeves.

“The financial implications are taking on increased effect... Unprecedented and unwelcomed weather is consistently contributing to a concerning amount of lost revenue,” he said.

Reeves urged Poole fans to turn out in large numbers for this Saturday’s match, which sees Taunton visit Dorset.

The Dolphins are two points behind the fifth-placed Peacocks, albeit with three games in hand.

Harry Baker has nine league goals so far this term, and Taunton boss Rob Dray knows to expect a tough test from their fellow promotion hopefuls.

Taunton fans planning to attend the following Saturday's match at home to Beaconsfield Town (December 7, ko 3pm) can take advantage of a two-for-one ticket offer, inside this week's County Gazette (November 28 edition).