Dartford 1-4 Forest Green Rovers - I'm just absolutely gutted for Louis Wells, says Tony Burman

The Darts, who came within seven agonising minutes of knocking Port Vale out of the competition in the First Round in November 2010, before going down to a 4-0 defeat at Vale Park in the replay, took the lead against the run of play tonight through striker Harry Crawford’s seventh goal of the season, before it went horribly wrong for the Kent side.

Forest Green Rovers, who in fifth-place in the Blue Square Bet Premier are one place above Dartford, equalised within three minutes when the impressive Yan Klukowski found the top left-hand corner from a quality 25-yard free-kick.

But two blunders within eleven minutes by Wells – gifting Klukowski his second on the hour and Matt Taylor applying the finish from close range – stunned the Darts and former Ebbsfleet United striker Magno Vieira rubbed salt into Dartford’s wounds when he wrapped up the scoring with the last kick of the game.

When asked how he was feeling at the final whistle, Burman said: “Frustration but also very, very disappointed of the result and the way it happened.  We’ve taken the lead and we’ve given away a silly free-kick on the edge of the box and got carried away with what was going on around us rather than concentrating on the football and keeping our heads.

“Second half, I’m gutted for Louis. He’s made a couple of mistakes unfortunately and it’s one of those things. It’s happened. He’s not meant to do it but football’s unforgiving and we’ve got punished.”

Burman made three changes to the side that came away from Nailsworth with a well-deserved 1-1 draw at the weekend, with Nathan Collier, Tom Champion and Crawford, relegating Ryan Hayes, Jon Wallis and Lee Noble to the bench.

But Forest Green Rovers stamped their authority on the game and they used their experience to not be put off by the hostile atmosphere inside Princes Park, as the home fans constantly booed Forest Green skipper Eddie Oshodi, following his alleged elbow on Tom Bonner at The New Lawn.

Dartford were on the back foot from the first whistle as Forest Green striker James Norwood issued the home side an early warning when with only Wells to beat he fired his shot into the Dartford side-netting with only 101 seconds on the clock.

But their first chance on target arrived in the fourteenth minute when Klukowski swung in a corner from the left towards the far post and Oshodi almost silenced the home fans with a downward header, which was plucked out of the air by Wells, standing on his goal-line.

Bonner, who came up from the back for a free-kick, powered a header wide of Sam Russell’s near post in what was a rare goalscoring chance for Dartford.

Norwood then cut in from the left before drilling a low right-footed drive from distance, which was turned around his post by the diving Wells.

The resulting left-wing corner was taken by Klukowski, but Norwood’s flicked shot rolled comfortably into the Dartford keeper’s gloves.

But Dartford grabbed the lead, against the run of play, in the 27^th minute, much to Burman’s delight.

Right-back, Richard Rose, linked up well with James Rogers, and whipped in a precise cross into the penalty area and former Southend United striker Crawford was left unmarked on the penalty spot and his glancing header sailed across keeper Russell to find the bottom far corner.

“It was a great header, it was a great finish!” said Burman, who’s side face Mansfield Town here on Friday night in front of the television cameras.

“When you’ve taken the lead you feel you’ve got to go or it and we did a little bit.”

Forest Green Rovers thought they had equalised after Klukowski played Norwood in behind Lee Burns and Bonner and the striker stroked a low right-footed shot across Wells to find the bottom far corner.

But Wickford-based referee, John Hopkins, frustrated the away side by pulling the game back following Elliot Bradbrook’s sliding foul and handed a yellow card to the Dartford skipper.

Up stepped Klukowski and he got his right-footed 25-yard free-kick, just left of centre, up and over the Dartford wall and into the top left-hand corner, past Wells’ despairing drive, to score a quality goal. It was his fifth of the season and it came on the half-an-hour mark.

But Burman was disappointed with his players after they switched off leading up to the melee before the stunning goal was scored.

He said: “They’ve scored a great goal from a free-kick, don’t get me wrong.  It’s right in the top corner but it’s what’s lead up to that.  There’s enough players around there. If players go on their backsides and don’t stay on their feet then they get punished and that’s what we did.”

Dartford created a decent chance when Crawford cut the ball back to midfielder Tom Champion, who was given time and space to see his right-footed drive sail just over the crossbar.

Wells made a comfortable save just before the break when he dived low to his right to prevent Reece Styche scoring from 30-yards, after the striker cutting in from the left.

Sadly, instead of challenging their normally excellent support towards their team in black and white, the Princes Park faithful challenged their anger at their visitors’ and the first half was a fractious affair as referee Mr Hopkins kept on handing out yellow cards, much to Burman’s displeasure.

Burman said: “It was an aggressive atmosphere.  I felt we started to concentrate on the aggression rather than keeping our thoughts on the football and I thought that’s what happened when they got their goal back.  We scored and we should’ve kept a clean sheet and that’s as simple as that!

Burman added: “We got caught up, I felt, in the atmosphere and it wasn’t helped by the referee in all honesty.  Obviously he’s got his cards out far too early.

“The referee’s booked someone after the first (nine) minutes and he’s continued after that. Some people are happy when the assessors are there and other referees are not and I felt the referee was probably too nervous having an assessor here,” claimed Burman.

Thankfully, a football match broke out after the interval and Dartford just couldn’t force the ball over the line during a goal-mouth scramble after Bonner steered his low right-footed shot into a crowd of players after meeting James Rogers’ out-swinging corner from the right.

Bradbrook then drilled a low left-footed drive from 30-yards, which forced visiting keeper Russell into diving swiftly low to his right to turn around the post.

But Burman looked on in disbelief when Wells was guilty of making his first blunder on the hour mark when he allowed Klukowski’s speculative angled right-footed drive from 30-yards spill out from the side of his body and the ball nestled into the bottom far corner.

When asked how Wells was feeling inside the dressing room after the game, Burman replied, “He’s absolutely gutted like.  We had no other alternative either. Louis had to go in goal. He was excellent on Saturday and tonight he’s made a couple of mistakes but for the first goal Elliot’s made a mistake with a rash challenge that he done on their player.”

Burman added: “I think at one-all the games’ there.  Goalkeeper’s are not allowed to make mistakes, it’s just an unwritten rule in football.  It’s hurt us at a bad time and it’s followed up closely with another one and the game’s over.

“Listen, he’s absolutely gutted and so am I for him because football’s unforgiving and it happens.”

Wells made sure when he caught Turley’s towering header after left-back Chris Stokes swept in a free-kick from the right channel.

Forest Green had a second goal ruled out, this time for offside, when Taylor slotted the ball across Wells to find the far corner.

But Wells’ second blunder came eleven minutes after his first, which gave Forest Green Rovers a killer 3-1 lead in the 71^st minute.

They built up down the left and a right-footed angled drive from substitute Kieron Forbes should have been dealt with by the hapless Dartford keeper at his near post but he spilt the ball and Taylor was on hand to force the ball over the line from close range to score his seventh goal of the campaign.

Burman said: “Outfield players might get away with it, when they don’t you know they’ve made a mistake but goalkeeper’s unfortunately can’t.

“I’m just absolutely gutted for Louis because he’s a good guy. He is a good guy.  It’s just not gone his way tonight.

 “You can play well and lose. We’ve done alright tonight. We didn’t set the world alight but we’ve done alright against a very good side.  Unfortunately Louis’ made a couple of errors and it’s cost us because they’ve come too quickly after each other. It’s a shame but we have to battle on and lift ourselves up and we go into Friday’s game.”

Norwood then played the ball to release substitute Ed Asafu-Adjaye on the overlap down the right and after cutting inside he clipped the top of the near post with Wells beaten.

The expected small but loyal travelling fans were now enjoying their long trip to Kent and the impressive Norwood picked the ball up just inside the Dartford half before going on a 30-yard run but after cutting into his penalty area he lost composure and his shot sailed over.

Forest Green scored a flattering fourth goal, two and a half minutes into injury time, when former Ebbsfleet striker Vieira cut in to the penalty area from the left and placed his right-footed shot across Wells to find the bottom far corner to send his side through and ensured that Dartford suffered their second successive defeat in the final qualifying round.