DORCHESTER Town manager Steve Thompson remains “positive” ahead of the Magpies’ Evo-Stik Southern Premier South contest at Gosport Borough tomorrow (3pm).

On Tuesday, the 10-man Magpies exited the Dorset Senior Cup at the quarter-final stage, falling 3-1 on penalties after a 2-2 draw with arch-rivals Weymouth.

A draw after 120 minutes added to successive 1-0 wins against Hungerford Town and Frome Town in response to a 5-0 loss to Chesham United.

But the Dorchester boss is upbeat after the Weymouth defeat, and returns to face a Boro side from which four points were yielded last season, including a huge 7-2 win at home.

Thompson told Echosport: “I’m positive. We drew (against Weymouth) and I think we would have had a very good chance of winning if we kept 11 on the field, I thought we looked dangerous.

“That’s hindsight now. I’m not happy going in because we’ve just been knocked out of the cup, but I’m pleased with the players’ response to the Chesham loss in the last three games.”

Thompson added he is struggling to place full trust in the entirety of his squad following Ben Seymour’s red card against the Terras – the Magpies’ seventh of the campaign.

He said: “I have to put trust in the players and I feel there are quite a few players I can trust at the moment, but I need to be able to trust the whole squad, that’s important for me.”

Asked if he would look to bring in new faces to alleviate his concerns, Thompson said: “No, it’s me saying I need to be able to trust what I’ve got. That’s important for any manager, not just me.

“We go into the league games knowing how important they are. I’m just disappointed we’ve been beaten when we played so well. We need (a win) to move up the table.”

Seymour, who has seven goals in eight games for the Magpies, will be available to face Gosport before his three-match ban begins against Staines on Tuesday.

Callum Rose could make his first appearance since a two-game ban, while several players will be assessed after picking up minor knocks in the Ridgeway derby.

Elsewhere, Dorchester’s are set to face rearranged matches on consecutive Tuesdays away to Staines and home to Swindon Supermarine.