Season: 2019-2020

Dover Athletic v Gillingham

Dover were convincingly beaten in the last-eight of the Kent Senior Cup on Tuesday night.

Despite having led at half-time through Kurtis Cumberbatch’s early goal, the League One visitors fought back to move into the semi-final, proving too strong for the National League side.

Regan Charles-Cook opened and ended the scoring on the night, with further strikes from John Akinde, Jordan Graham and Toby Bancroft comprehensively ending Dover’s participation in this year’s County trophy.

Whites made the best possible start when, following a defensive howler from Matthew Baker, Cumberbatch tucked the defender’s loose ball into the bottom corner with the game barely a minute old.

The League One side were nearly back in the contest when Ben Pringle shot goalwards, only for home keeper Yusuf Mersin to tip away the midfielder’s fierce drive.

Athletic’s lead was nearly doubled when Ade Yusuff latched onto a long ball and though Joe Walsh beat the striker to the ball, Gillingham’s goalkeeper cannoned the ball against Yusuff, with the ball rebounding to a visiting defender to clear.

Jai Reason then took aim from the edge of the penalty area, sending the ball spinning narrowly wide of the far post.

Charles-Cook nipped in behind the Dover defence, but Mersin stood strong to turn the ball behind for a corner.

The Turkish keeper saved his best save for just before the break.

Pringle passed inside for Charles-Cook to take aim, but Mersin dropped down quickly to block the midfielder’s strike with his forearm from point-blank range.

Akinde got the better of Kevin Lokko just after the restart, but the former Barnet and Lincoln striker could only find the side-netting from a tight angle.

At the other end, Joe Bedford crept into the penalty area to meet Reason’s corner, only to send his first-time volley over the crossbar.

Yusuff also nearly added his name to the scoresheet, blazing inches wide of the post, a miss that would prove costly.

The League One side levelled with their next attack when Charles-Cook’s deflected strike looped over Mersin and into the net.

Yusuff tried again moments later, blasting his shot into the side of the net.

But Gills would make no mistake with their next chance.

Paul Rooney slid in to direct Graham’s cross behind for a corner, but the ball bounced off teammate Lokko and into Akinde’s path for the simplest of tap-ins.

Dominic Poleon only had to direct his header on target when Rooney diverted the ball into his path from a set-piece, but somehow the substitute headed over the bar with the goal at his mercy.

Dover’s task of reaching the last-four was made all the harder when Graham thrashed the ball into the top corner following good work from Charles-Cook.

The Football League side wrapped up the win late on when Charles-Cook dinked the ball over Mersin and substitute Bancroft rounded Dover’s keeper to roll the ball into an empty net.

Whites next host Chesterfield in the National League on Saturday 14th March, kick-off 3 pm.

MATCH GALLERY

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Dover Athletic v Yeovil Town

A wonder goal dented Whites’ play-off chances against their promotion rivals at Crabble on Saturday.

Experienced striker Marc Richards blasted into the top corner from 20-yards to hand Andy Hessenthaler’s men their first home defeat of 2020.

The loss leaves Athletic two points outside the play-offs in 11th position on the National League table.

Carl Dickinson was forced to head Nassim L’Ghoul’s early cross over the bar to prevent the ball reaching Ricky Modeste at the far post.

Dominic Poleon then flashed a ball across the goalmouth, a cross that none of his Dover teammates gambled on.

Richards went sliding into the area to try and connect to Dickinson’s swirling cross, only to miss the ball by a matter of inches.

The visitors went close twice more, Courtney Duffus firing wide of the mark from the edge of the box and Jimmy Smith heading Remeao Hutton’s cross straight at home stopper Lee Worgan.

With half-time looming, Luke Wilkinson went for the spectacular with an overhead-kick from Charlie Lee’s long throw, an effort too high to trouble Worgan.

There was time for the away side to have another effort, with Duffus volleying onto the back stanchion after Matt Worthington’s initial shot had been blocked.

Inih Effiong then sprinted clear after Lee had flicked a goal-kick towards his own net and with just away keeper Stuart Nelson to beat, the striker was felled in the area after Wilkinson took both the man and ball with a last-ditch challenge.

After the restart, Worgan redeemed himself after dropping the ball, rushing out to block Smith’s effort.

But Athletic’s keeper had no chance with Yeovil’s next chance.

Duffus held off Will De Havilland on the touchline and passed back to Richards to send a shot from the edge of the area into the top corner, with Worgan only able to push the ball into the net via the underside of the crossbar.

Albi Skendi couldn’t match his teammate’s fine finish with Yeovil’s next attempt as the Albanian blazed over following good work out wide from Hutton.

Duffus thought he had doubled the Somerset side’s lead after running on to Skendi’s pass and slotting through Worgan’s legs, only for the assistant to rule the finish out for offside.

The striker then went close again, nodding Smith’s knock-back into the box against the bar with the same player lashing the rebound wide.

Having used all his substitutes, one of Hessenthaler’s replacements nearly leveled matters when Ade Yusuff forced away keeper Stuart Nelson to parry his close-range volley from Bobby-Joe Taylor’s cross.

With time running out, Inih Effiong volleyed towards goal, but his strike lacked the power to trouble Nelson.

A lacklustre Dover attack were unable to find a route to goal as the Kent side remain outside of the top seven with nine league games remaining.

Earlier, boss Hessenthaler made four changes to the side that lost at Solihull last weekend.  Gobern, Lokko, Passley and Poleon replaced Michael Woods, Paul Rooney, Aaron Simpson and Shadrach Ogie.

Whites next host Gillingham in the quarter-final of the Kent Senior Cup on Tuesday 10th March, kick-off 7:30 pm.

DOVER ATHLETIC REACTION

YEOVIL TOWN REACTION

MATCH GALLERY

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