DORCHESTER Town boss Callum Brooks admits his plans for the Magpies’ final pre-season friendly against Winchester City at the Clayson Stadium tomorrow (3pm) have altered slightly.

Following the 2-2 draw at Portland, Brooks had revealed to Echosport the clash with the Citizens would act as a simulation of Dorchester’s opening BetVictor Southern Premier South meeting with Beaconsfield.

However, after Tuesday night’s friendly with Bemerton Heath Harlequins fell victim to heavy rainfall, the Magpies instead played an in-house match at training.

Brooks also admitted starting places for the Beaconsfield fixture were “up for grabs”.

He said: “We did think (the simulation) would be how we would approach it, but I’m aware of losing that game on Tuesday where I was intending on looking at a couple of players.

“The ones that would have played 20 minutes on Tuesday would’ve played (tomorrow). We tried to replicate a game on Tuesday with regards to the distance they would cover but nothing is like a game.

“We have our standard of what we want and we stick to that. With regards to replicating the starting XI there’s positions up for grabs.”

Last season Dorchester were thrashed 5-1 by City in a performance then boss Steve Thompson labelled as “shocking”.

Asked whether the Magpies’ upcoming display could be used by fans to interpret a measure of improvement, Brooks felt his players could only be judged over a “substantial” time period.

He said: “I’d like to see a barometer of improvement across all the pre-season games. We could win 2-0 but for below the standard required in our league.

“I’d like the supporters to see that we’re trying to improve on last year. We would expect to improve on last year’s (result) but if we beat them 2-0 it’s still not an indicator – give us time over a substantial period.

“What I’ve seen is there’s been a marked improvement since I’ve been here.”

Dorchester midfielder Charlie Davis (groin) is a major doubt, but Tom Blair (blisters) is expected to recover and take his place in an 18-man squad.