Dunston will bring a number of familiar faces with them to 1st Cloud Arena for Saturday’s pre-season friendly.
The Mariners are set to take on the Pitching In Northern Premier League East side in their final outing before the league opener against Stalybridge Celtic on Saturday, August 13th.
With former South Shields favourites Jon Shaw, Craig Baxter and Phil Turnbull among their ranks, Dunston are sure to provide an excellent test of Kevin Phillips’ team’s credentials.
The trio boast a remarkable amount of experience and all had excellent playing spells at SSFC, with Shaw still a vital part of the club as head of professional development.
The striker-turned-defender joined Shields in the summer of 2016 from Gateshead, having enjoyed an excellent career to that point with the likes of Luton Town, Burton Albion and Sheffield Wednesday.
He quickly found a new home at 1st Cloud Arena and departed the playing staff six years later after 211 appearances, 27 goals, two promotions and five trophy wins.
Shaw is certain to receive an extremely warm welcome on Saturday and the same will surely also be true of Baxter and Turnbull.
Baxter also signed in the summer of 2016 after his time at Gateshead came to an end, and the right-back spent five years in claret and blue.
In that time, he made 201 appearances and, alongside Shaw, was a key cog in the quadruple-winning squad of 2016-17 as well as the second successive promotion sealed the following season.
He also showed his versatility by deputising in midfield and across the defence, and was forever a reliable figure who has continued to demonstrate those qualities since joining Dunston last summer.
Baxter was named the club’s players’ player of the season, manager’s player of the season and committee player of the season in 2021-22.
Turnbull, meanwhile, made the long-awaited move to his hometown club Shields in the summer of 2018 from Darlington.
The midfielder proved to be an always dependable presence during his three years with the Mariners, making 94 appearances.
Turnbull had a long-held ambition to represent Shields and did so with aplomb, proving a hugely popular member of the squad among fellow players and staff alike.
Also among Dunston’s ranks is Ursene Mouanda, who had a shorter spell with Shields in the 2018-19 season, making 28 appearances.
He has since developed well at the UTS Stadium and is an important part of Dunston’s midfield.
We look forward to welcoming all of our former players back to 1st Cloud Arena.
Tickets cost from £6 for adults.
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