Sittingbourne 1-5 Dartford - You've let down the club, blasts Lovell - EXCLUSIVE

SITTINGBOURNE 1-5 DARTFORD
FA Cup (Sponsored by E.ON) First Qualifying Round Replay
Tuesday 18^th September 2007
Stephen McCartney reports from Bourne Park

Angry Sittingbourne boss Steve Lovell slammed his players after they put in their “worst performance in two years,” as they crashed out of the FA Cup at the hands of Kentish rivals Dartford at Bourne Park tonight.

Lovell, pleased with the way his players’ performed during Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Princes Park, was left shell-shocked as his side surrendered four goals during the first half.

With Darts striker Brendon Cass netting a hat-trick, taking his tally to eight goals in as many games, and other goals coming from defender Adam Flanagan, and midfielder Eddie McClements, Dartford should ease past Combined Counties League side Camberley Town in the Second Qualifying Round tie at Princes Park on Saturday week.

Despite a tight opening, four Dartford goals in a devastating 21 minute spell during the first half, put the game beyond Sittingbourne’s reach.

And Lovell also lost his goalkeeper, Josh Willis, 18, to a knee injury, which forced him to be stretchered off on the stroke of half-time.

Lovell drafted midfielder Kieran Marsh back into the team, having missed Saturday’s game, and Colin Richmond, who impressed at Princes Park, was given his first start of the season.

Sittingbourne were without former Dart, Anthony Hogg (ankle/groin) and defender Lee Hockey (foot).

Dartford gave combative midfielder, Alex O’Brien the full 90 minutes, following his three-match ban, but were still without winger Ryan Hayes (foot), Tommy Osborne (ankle) and Andrew Sam.

Hayes’ plaster cast is being removed at nine o’clock on Thursday morning, the day boss Tony Burman will unveil their new signing.

Willis was called into action after just nineteen seconds when he beat out Jay May’s shot - before the game turned into a tight affair.

Sittingbourne’s first chance - in front of their highest crowd of the season - arrived in the 13^th minute.

Bradley Spice latched onto a through ball from Steve Hafner, but his left-footed chip from 18-yards, sailed over.

Former Dart Hafner, then tried his luck with a left-footed shot from 25-yards, which sailed past the right-post.

But Dartford opened the scoring after 23 minutes, courtesy of Flanagan’s second goal of the season - and they didn’t look back.

Jamie Coyle, who was Sittingbourne’s skipper before his move to Dulwich Hamlet, whipped in a right-footed free-kick from 28-yards, and two looping headers from May, which were thwarted by Willis and crossbar, resulted in Flanagan drilling the ball into the net from six-yards.

Clinical Dartford doubled their lead just four minutes later, with Cass scoring his first of the night.

A poor back header from Joe Dowley let in the prolific striker, and Cass flicked the ball past the advancing Willis and into an open net, to the delight of the vocal travelling contingent.

McClements’ second goal of the season, meanwhile, gave Dartford a three-goal cushion with nine first half minutes remaining.

The Dartford playmaker, playing on the right of a four man midfield, latched onto May’s defensive splitting pass through the middle and the play-maker drove a right-footed shot past Willis from sixteen-yards.

Rampant Dartford should have scored when May’s drilled shot deflected off Dowley and flashed past the left-post.

And from the resulting corner, taken by Steve Norman, Sittingbourne left John Guest unmarked, but the former Folkestone Invicta and Welling United defender, saw his header sail past the far post.

Poor defending allowed Cass to net his second - and Dartford’s fourth - in the 44^th minute.

Captalising on a mistake from Dowley, one of many Brickies who didn’t perform, Cass ghosted past two defenders before coolly slotting the ball past Willis.

Willis’ miserable night, however, was evident when he was stretchered off with a knee injury after the ball went past him for the fourth time.

Substitute goalkeeper, Bradley Ashmore was then handed his debut.

It took five second half minutes for Dartford to create their next chance when Cass’ hooked volley deflected past the far post after Norman’s corner was knocked down to him.

Sittingbourne midfielder Anthony Allman’s right-footed half-volley was well off the mark after Mitchell Sherwood cut back Hafner’s free-kick to the former Ashford Town midfielder some 25-yards from goal.

Rookie goalkeeper Ashmore was called into action after 59 minutes, diving low to his left to tip May’s right-footed drive around the post.

But Cass netted his hat-trick in the 68^th minute.

McClements’ angled ball over the top of the Sittingbourne defence found Mark Green in space on the left-hand side.

And Green’s floated left-footed cross was met by a right-footed volley by Cass at the far-post, which found the bottom far-corner.

May, who scored his sixth goal of the season on Saturday, skimmed the crossbar with a right-footed volley from 25-yards, five minutes later.

Sittingbourne defender James Campbell unleashed a half-volley, which flew over the Dartford crossbar from the edge of the penalty area, following a rare shot towards Tony Kessell’s goal.

And at the other end, substitute Tom Bradbrook, who had replaced hat-trick hero Cass, dragged a shot agonisingly past the foot of the far post, after bursting into the Sittingbourne penalty area.

But Sittingbourne striker Spice netted his fourth goal of the season, scoring an 86^th minute consolation.

Spice was held back by Flanagan inside the penalty area, and Spice drilled his right-footed penalty past Kessell, who had guessed the right way, but the consolation was too little, too late for Lovell.

“I wouldn’t like to repeat what I said to them really at half-time, but the better team won on the night,” Lovell said EXCLUSIVELY to www.kentishfootball.co.uk  afterwards.

“They outplayed us, out fought us, out battled us, thoroughly deserved it.

“We got absolutely battered. The boys let the club down tonight and I let them know in more words than one.

“It makes you wonder really, we’ve had a good start to the season, it doesn’t matter that tonight, they wanted it more than we did.

“There’s no other reason than they performed better than we did and I don’t know how, I don’t know why.

“The boys have done really well this year, allright we’ve had a few people out but still, I had enough out there to give them a good game and when you give the goals away like we did first half - the first three goals were errors.

“We’re three-nil down before you know it. You can’t come back from that and we were never going to come back from it.

“Disappointing tonight. It’s the worst that we’ve played for a long, long time.

“I’d say it’s the worst we’ve played in the two years that I’ve been here and that goes without saying after the performance we played Saturday to this was just….

“You’ve got to hold your hands up to the opposition. I thought they wanted it more than us, they worked hard, they were fitter on the night.

“They were first to every ball and they’ve got some good players. They’ve got some really good quality players, so sometimes you hold your hand up and say the quality was there, but it was the way that we gave it to them!

Lovell demands a positive reaction from his players’ when they travel to basement boys Chipstead, in a Ryman League Division One South match, on Saturday.

“We’ve got to pick ourselves up,” he said. “We’ve got a game Saturday against Chipstead, we’ve got to go there and I’ve got to try and put a team out to go and win the game.

“They’ve got to pick themselves up. I’ve given them what they deserved tonight, they know it.

“The boys understand what they’ve done, but second half we had a go, but you can’t come out for the first half and just give people the licence to go out and play - and that’s what they did.

“They didn’t close them down. They let them do what they wanted, too much respect.”

Lovell added: “I know there’s a lot of boys who gave everything tonight, but there’s a few that perhaps don’t want to give everything and if that’s the case, then I’ve got to get them out, because I don’t want players at this club who aren’t going to give everything.”

Dartford boss Tony Burman, who said his side should have won on home soil on Saturday, was pleased that his side finished off the job tonight.

“I wouldn’t have described it easy before the game, it was always going to be a difficult tie,” he explained to www.kentishfootball.co.uk.

“It was a difficult tie at our place but I felt the score at half-time tonight could have been that on Saturday, if I’m honest.

“I felt we was excellent first half on Saturday and we dropped off a little bit and Sittingbourne came in and done their little bit but you could always see they could score a goal if we hadn’t taken our chances.

“I had a go at them on Saturday and said “the season has actually started, pre-season’s over” and I think the little bit of belief, which will come, has got to happen.

“We’ve come here and we’ve done a professional job. It’s a difficult surface to play on, but we’ve come and done a job.

“We’ve had a little bit of luck tonight, with the second goal, and we’ve earned that luck. We haven’t had too much of it since the start of the season, but it happened for us tonight.

“I’m pleased it did but having said that, I think we thoroughly deserved our result tonight.

After criticising May and Cass after Saturday’s draw, Burman was full of praise for the pair tonight.

“The two came in for a little bit of criticism on Saturday from me,” he said.

“I know they’re the best pairing at this level and even higher. They haven’t fired on all cylinders and yet they’ve scored goals, which either means we’re creating some as well, but they’re taking some.

“But I think they can score a hatful more and I’m just delighted that I’ve got them.”

But Burman is confident his side can brush aside Camberley Town and make it within just two more wins from the first round proper of this season’s FA Cup competition.

“I haven’t seen the best of the team, no-one has seen the best of the side, and when I get my full squad back, and another couple of players I’m after, we’ll have a push,” he said.

And with Ryan Hayes “chomping at the bit” to return to football, Burman cannot wait to unleash the talented winger on their Ryman League Division One North rivals.

“Ryan Hayes has his plaster off on Thursday at nine o’clock,” revealed Burman. “He’s saying he wants to train by 12 o’clock and he’ll be back in on Saturday, he keeps telling everyone.

“But he’s chomping at the bit to get back and we’ve got to take our time with him, but that is a new signing when he comes back - when he’s ready.

“That is a new signing, and what a signing!”

Burman is expected to unveil a new signing on Thursday.

He added: “All I can tell you is I’m hoping to sign someone on Thursday. I’ve put it off today because of the Cup game and I think there’s a good chance the lad will sign on Thursday.

“I’m not going to say who he is, but he’ll be a massive boost to our squad.”


Sittingbourne: Josh Willis (Bradley Ashmore 45), Ian Varley, Joe Dowley, Paul Ainsworth, James Campbell, Kieran Marsh, Steve Hafner, Anthony Allman (Steve Searle 61), Bradley Spice, Colin Richmond (Hicham Akhazzan 52), Mitchell Sherwood.
Subs: Dave Norris, Toby Ashmore.

Goal: Bradley Spice 86 (pen).

Booked: Ian Varley 24

Dartford: Tony Kessell, Jamie Coyle, Steve Norman, Adam Flanagan, John Guest, Alex O’Brien, Brad Potter (Richard Avery 80), Jay May, Brendon Cass (Tom Bradbrook 75), Eddie McClements (Dave Moore 80), Mark Green.
Subs: Jamie Lawrence, James Tedder.

Goals: Adam Flanagan 23, Brendon Cass 27, 44, 68, Eddie McClements 36

Booked: Steve Norman 51, John Guest 66, Adam Flanagan 86

Attendance: 303
Referee: Mr Neil West (Leigh on Sea, Essex)
Assistants: Mr Paul Kelly (Gillingham, Kent) & Mr Keith Scudder (Gravesend, Kent)