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Maidstone United caretaker boss Simon Walton played for Peter Taylor's England under-21 team

There will be a reunion on the touchline when Maidstone host Dagenham this Saturday.

Simon Walton, the Stones' joint caretaker manager, goes head to head with Daggers boss Peter Taylor, the man who gave him an England under-21 call-up.

Walton was a young midfielder at Leeds when Taylor picked him and their paths have crossed over the years.

Simon Walton was called up to the England under-21 squad by Peter Taylor Picture: Andy Jones
Simon Walton was called up to the England under-21 squad by Peter Taylor Picture: Andy Jones

But the chance to manage against someone who also took charge of the senior England team feels surreal to Walton.

He said: "He picked me for the under-21s a couple of times and I’ve had various meetings and spoken to him a few times.

"That’ll be nice to go up against an ex-England manager. It’s not something I thought I would do any time soon.

"He was a top man. Bill (Williams, Stones chief executive) speaks very highly of him from his time here and I got on well with him.

"He picked me for squads and he’s been brilliant - he was for me when I was younger."

Dagenham manager Peter Taylor Picture: Barry Goodwin
Dagenham manager Peter Taylor Picture: Barry Goodwin

A run of six wins in seven games included the scalps of title-chasing Leyton Orient and Salford as Dagenham climbed the National League table.

They're without a win in three but are eight points clear of the bottom four in 16th place.

Walton said: "They’re flying. They’ve had investment, they’re a Football League club, they've got players who have played at this level for however many seasons now and it’s going to be another tough game.

"Every game’s tough now. We've got Leyton Orient away the week after so it doesn’t get any easier.

"It’s not even about belief now, it’s just realisation, realising what you’ve got to do to win games because we’ve shown we are more than capable."

Maidstone visit Dartford in the Kent Senior Cup quarter-finals on Tuesday night.

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