Crawley Town call off friendly with Maidstone United due to squad size

Reds were set to travel to the Gallagher Stadium to face the Conference South side as part of their pre-season programme, but boss Mark Yates has said they have ‘reluctantly’ had to cancel the clash.

The current size of the squad has been cited due to the fact they face Brighton & Hove Albion at the Checkatrade.com Stadium tonight (Wednesday) and then host Reading on Monday.

With full-back Lanre Oyebanjo set to miss the start of the season and Gavin Tomlin, Yates believed a game on Saturday would more risk than benefit.

Another factor could be that Reds are also still without a goalkeeper as despite agreeing a deal with someone on loan, they are yet to sign a contract – although current trialist Callum Preston has impressed so far.

Yates said:”With a game against Reading next Monday and Nuneaton next Wednesday, which would have meant three games in five days, we have reluctantly taken the decision to cancel the Maidstone fixture.

“We have a relatively small squad at the moment and two players recovering from long-term injury. I was concerned about the potential for further injuries by playing two games in 48 hours.”

The cancellation with leave Reds with a total of six pre-season games.

Maidstone chief executive Bill Williams added: “As a new club to the Gallagher Stadium, it was a match many were looking forward to and it would have been an ideal test for our squad ahead of the league season.”

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