Dover Athletic 3 Dartford 2
By Tom Howard
Nicky Southall’s late strike helped 10 man Dover Athletic edge rivals Dartford for a place in the FA Trophy first round after a pulsating five goal thriller at Crabble.
A frantic first half with goals from Adam Birchall, Jay May, Danny Harris and a Frannie Collin penalty left the tie on a knife edge at 2-2 at half-time.
Despite a barrage of Dartford attacks Andy Hessenthaler’s 10 men grabbed a winner against the run of play to keep their FA Trophy hopes alive.
Both sides started the game with attacking intent and it was Dover, featuring new singing Yado Mambo in defence, who created the first chance. A long ball found Birchall and his pass found Collin, but the Whites striker’s shot was blocked by the Darts defence.
The Ryman Premier league leaders Dartford responded and came close minutes later. Dover goalkeeper John Whitehouse was forced into a smart save from a Ryan Hayes free kick.
The game was played at a high tempo and with six minutes on the clock, Dover opened the goalscoring through top scorer Birchall. A Matt Fish cross found the former Arsenal trainee in the area and he slotted the ball into the corner of the net.
Despite taking the lead the visitors Dartford dominated the next ten minutes. Harris and May both had chances to equalise, but were unable to keep their efforts on target.
Hessenthaler’s side regrouped and on 25 minutes Birchall should have given Dover the lead. A Southall corner found the striker in space in the area and his low drive was clawed out by Darts goalkeeper Andrew Young.
However, just 60 seconds later Dartford scored an equaliser with a well-worked goal. A move started by Adam Gross saw the ball lofted into the Dover area and a one-two from May was fired passed Whitehouse.
The Darts kept pushing forward and were rewarded just after the half hour, as they took the lead for the first time in the tie. A Ryan Hayes cross met an unmarked Harris and his bullet header flew past a stranded Whitehouse.
The chances came thick and fast and Dover were awarded a penalty two minutes later for a foul on Shaun Welford. Collin stepped up and placed the spot kick into the bottom corner.
The game continued to be played at a frantic tempo in the second half as Dartford laid siege to the Dover goal.
Dover struggled to defend and Harris should have given Dartford the lead minutes after the restart. The striker found time and space in the Dover area,but shot wide when it looked easier to score.
The tie took another twist on the hour mark as Dover’s new singing Mambo was shown his second yellow card of the game for a clumsy challenge and was subsequently sent off. Dover changed their shape and moved Jake Leberl into defence.
Dartford continued to put Dover under pressure, but the Whites managed to regain the lead against the run of play, with a clinical counter attacking move on 70 minutes. Substitute James Rogers fired a cross into the area and Southall popped up in the six yard box to poke the ball into the net.
To their credit Dartford continued to push forward and in the dying minutes of the tie substitute Danny Crouch had a great chance to force a replay, but his lofted effort flew narrowly wide.
Attendance: 1,084
Dover Athletic: Whitehouse, Fish, Mambo, Hill, Gore, Leberl, Southall (Davis 86 mins, Moore, Welford, Collin (Rogers 66 mins), Birchall( Walder 89 mins)
Subs not used: Hughes, Hook
Dartford: Young, Burgess, Beales, Coyle, Gross, Hayes, Noble, Dafter (Crouch 81 mins), Harris, May ( Haworth 81 mins), Burns
Subs not used: Dent, Eferakerho, Kessell
POSTED: 21/11/2009 19:03:24
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