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Folkestone record best win in Dr Martens League
Folkestone Invicta 6-1 Fleet Town
Tuesday 18 November 2003
Dr Martens League Eastern Division
by Richard Murrill

Folkestone Invicta equalled their biggest ever win in the Dr Martens League as they overwhelmed Fleet Town at the Westbourne Stadium on Tuesday night, with striker Allan Tait helping himself to a first half hat-trick.

John Ayling, Lee Blackman and Anthony Hogg scored the other goals as Invicta repeated the 6-1 winning margin recorded at Baldock during the Folkestone club's promotion-winning season of 1999-2000.

Ayling scored a hat-trick on that afternoon in Hertfordshire four years ago and was given his first league start of the season in place of the watching James Dryden who was put in plaster after being taken away in an ambulance with ankle
ligament damage at Hastings on Saturday.

And it was 21-year-old AYLING who opened the scoring after 26 minutes with a simple tap in after Micheal Everitt had headed against the post from Mark Munday's right wing cross.

The opening goal came just a minute after Everitt had hit the crossbar with a diving header when Tait played the ball in from the left.

By then Munday had already seen his header strike the crossbar via a defender's head on the goal line when the Invicta man's former Margate team mate Paul Lamb sent over a corner from the right hand side on his home debut.

The rest of the first half belonged to Tait as he hit a hat-trick in an eight-minute spell to end a barren spell of just one goal in his previous six matches.

TAIT made it 2-0 with a stunning finish from the edge of the penalty area after 37 minutes. And the 22-year-old striker struck again two minutes later when he latched onto a through ball from Martin Chandler and went round goalkeeper
Calvin Sparshatt to put the ball into the back of the net following a move started by Ayling.

TAIT completed his hat-trick in the 45th minute when he was put through by Ayling, took his time and picked his spot to send a cool, low finish into the corner of the net.

Everitt had gone close again after 40 minutes when he was put clean through by Chandler but blasted straight at goalkeeper Sparshatt.

Fleet pulled a goal back after 54 minutes when Craig LEWORTHY - son of non-league legend Dave - took the ball round goalkeeper Tony Kessell and placed the ball into the net from the left hand side of the box.

Tait shot against the post as Invicta struck an upright again after 65 minutes when substitute Blackman played the ball to him after defender Lee Blakely had given the ball away.

It was 5-1 after 72 minutes when BLACKMAN fired home his first home goal for the club in a move also involving James Millar and Tait.

And fellow substitute HOGG completed the scoring two minutes later with a spectacular strike from outside the penalty area.

Invicta had dominated from the start as Munday might have got in the end of a Lamb free kick after just two minutes and goalkeeper Sparshatt palmed away a Tait shot when Everitt threaded the ball through after seven minutes.

Fleet had a few chances just after the half hour mark when Leworthy fired over from the edge of the box after 33 minutes, Ed Hare shot into the side netting a minute later from a Leworthy cross and Ben Buckland blasted over at the far post
following a deep cross from the right after 36 minutes.

Captain Craig Anstey then hit a low shot at Kessell from the edge of the box after 43 minutes.

But this was a night when Invicta were to fill their boots and Tait shot just wide of the far post when he skipped past a defender after collecting the ball from Munday in the 60th minute.

Everitt then shot at goalkeeper Sparshatt from the edge of the box on the hour when Tait played the ball in to Millar.

At the other end, an ambitious 30-yard free kick from Anstey was not too far away from the Inivcta goal after 68 minutes.

FOLKESTONE INVICTA: Kessell, Everitt, Lamb (Winfield 78 mins), Flanagan, Guest, Lindsey, Chandler (Hogg 63 mins), Munday, Ayling (Blackman 52 mins), Tait, Millar. Unused subs: Dyson, Egan.

FLEET TOWN: Sparshatt, Clark, Blakely, Hare (Smith 76 mins), Millerick (Saunders 62 mins), Jeffrey, Black, Anstey, Whitcher, Leworthy, Hale (Proctor 76 mins). Unused subs: Kendall, Catlin.

Attendance: 351