The Coasters come into this Tuesday night fixture after an impressive second win of the season away to Southend. Taelor O’Kane grabbed his second goal for the club with an impressive header into the top corner, which got things started in Essex. 

Jon Ustabasi got the winner for the Coasters with an impressive finish that sent the Coasters faithful home with three points for only the second time this season. 

Boreham Wood arrive at Mill Farm off the back of a defeat at home to Aldershot Town. Angelo Balanta found himself on the scoresheet, but that was not enough in a 2-1 defeat. 

The Wood come into this game with no win in two and struggling to put the ball in the back of the net. Luke Garrard’s men will be looking for an improvement on recent weeks, whilst the Coasters will be looking to carry on from Saturday’s impressive performance away at Southend.

One of the more well-known managers in Non-League, Garrard plays a style of football that can only be admired. Flair, skill and pace make Boreham Wood a pleasant watch, and people can only wonder how Garrard has not moved up the managerial ladder. 

A local lad born in Barnet, Garrard started his playing days at Tottenham Hotspur. However, after failing to make an appearance, he soon moved on and found himself at Swindon Town. Once again, appearances were limited, and he soon moved back to the London area but found himself moving down the leagues. 

Spells at Bishop Stortford, Northwood and Boreham Wood all lasted no longer than a season before Garrard found his feet at AFC Wimbledon. From 2006 to 2009, Garrard made just shy of 100 appearances for the Wombles, which saw them rise through the lower leagues of the Non-League pyramid from the Isthmian League to the Conference South. 

However, at the end of the 2009 season, Garrard moved back to at the time Isthmian Premier side Boreham Wood. In his first season as a player, he contributed to the side’s promotion to the Conference South.

At 30, Garrard hung up his boots and became the main man in the technical area at Meadow Park. In his first season, he kept the Wood up by two points after battling against the likes of Lincoln, Tranmere and Cheltenham. 

The 2017-18 season is where Luke Garrard worked his magic and took Boreham Wood to the playoff final for the first time in their history. It wasn’t meant to be, as they lost out to Tranmere in the Final, but they did defeat the Coasters in the quarter-finals of the playoffs. 

In the Covid hit season of 2019-20, the Wood got to the playoff semi-finals, losing out to eventual winners Harrogate Town, and it seemed like Boreham Wood were never going to get out of the division. 

The following season, they made another bit of history by reaching the third round of the FA Cup – however, their league performance suffered due to this. The 2021-22 season saw another record, the Wood made the 5th round of the FA Cup, only to be narrowly defeated by Everton. 

Last season, Garrard suffered more playoff heartbreak, losing out to Notts County in the Semi-Finals. 

The Wood come into this game with the same number of wins as the Coasters, but they do have three more draws, meaning they are currently above the drop zone. 

Not scoring many goals but also not conceding many shows that Boreham Wood are tough to break down, and apart from a 4-0 defeat to Oxford City, they would have one of the best defences in the league. 

However, Luke Garrard will be looking for the Wood to improve from their below-par start to the league, and the playoffs will be one of his targets.