Dover Athletic 1-2 Bromley - What a great win for us! We were immense! says proud Mark Goldberg

DOVER ATHLETIC  1-2  BROMLEY
The FA Cup with Budweiser Third Qualifying Round
Saturday 6^th October 2012
Stephen McCartney reports from Crabble

BROMLEY manager Mark Goldberg says immense team spirit was the catalyst for their well-deserved FA Cup Third Qualifying Round victory at Dover Athletic.

Bromley went into the game six-games unbeaten and in ninth-place in the Blue Square Bet (Conference) South table, three places and three points behind Dover Athletic, who were three games undefeated.

Dover Athletic made three changes with defender Steve Watt, winger Jamie Smith and striker Calum Willock coming in for Ian Simpemba (hamstring), Steven Thomson and Billy Bricknell (who has been suffering from illness and couldn’t train on Thursday night).

Bromley made no secret of their injury crisis leading up to the game but Goldberg admitted afterwards that he risked Ali Fuseini and Richard Pacquette, as leading goalscorer Pierre Joseph-Dubois and keeper Joe Welch also came back into the side.

Former Charlton Athletic keeper, George Howard, 18, who made his debut in Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw at Basingstoke Town, Michael Malcolm and Aaron Rhule were all relegated to the bench and Bradley Goldberg couldn’t play because he was cup-tied having played for Hastings United in an early round.

Both sides had an Academy player on the bench – David Pilcher (Dover Athletic) and Byron Thompson (Bromley) to gain experience of a first-team match day.

Much-travelled striker Richard Pacquette, 29, who scored a FA Cup Fourth Round goal at Anfield in Havant & Waterlooville’s 5-2 defeat to Liverpool back in 2008, gave Bromley a deserved 28^th minute lead, when he capitalised on a blunder from Dover Athletic keeper Mitch Walker.

Bromley doubled their lead with fifteen minutes left when substitute Tony Finn slid the ball into the bottom corner, before Dover Athletic striker, Ben May, 28, scored his fifth-goal of the season with seven minutes remaining.

Goldberg, who is now in his third-spell in charge of Bromley, has guided the club into the FA Cup First Round on three occasions in the past six years, losing to Gillingham (2006), Colchester United (2010) and last season went down to a 3-0 defeat at Leyton Orient.

“I don’t think the result in the end was an unfair result,” he said.  “I think we deserved to win and we’re just delighted that we’re in the hat.

“To come to Dover - we were pretty much the underdogs here - and we’ve had a lot of injuries, I’m really proud of the boys.  They really hung in there.  The last three games they’ve been magnificent with all the injury problems that we’ve had so I’m really delighted.”

Dover Athletic boss Nicky Forster provided an honest assessment of his side’s Kent derby defeat.

He said: “I think we’re bitterly disappointed to go out of the Cup, not to the opposition without disrespect but to go out to a team in our League at home in the manner that we did was disappointing.

“There wasn’t enough urgency, not enough tempo to the game. We started well. We started to play some nice football, carved them open a few times and we were guilty of being wasteful in front of goal.”

Forster added: “Very often I’ll back them up all the way and we’ve lost at home this season and I think we didn’t deserve to but today I can’t say the result wasn’t fair.”

Dover Athletic started well and played the ball around in the middle third of the pitch with recent signing Daryl McMahon pulling the strings in midfield.

And they created the first chance inside the opening five minutes when left-back Tom Wynter clipped the ball into the penalty box and May stroked a right-footed shot on the turn from ten-yards which was comfortably saved by Bromley keeper Welch.

Dover Athletic were enjoying plenty of possession early on and a move in front of the heart of the Bromley defence saw Jamie Smith dink the ball into Calum Willock’s path and the striker laid the ball off to Smith, who stroked his right-footed shot wide of the far post.

Forster added: “Twenty minutes into the game we just started to lose our way, giving the ball away unnecessarily and scratching at things that we shouldn’t do.  Our clearances were poor and not winning our headers in the box.”

Goldberg said: “I thought we actually started less effective than Dover in the first twenty minutes. They were the more confident side.  We sat back and we invited pressure on us and they passed the ball around with confidence.”

But Bromley weathered that early spell of Dover Athletic pressure and came close to scoring following a five-man move in the eleventh minute.

Skipper Fuseini played his part in the move down the left and after he picked up a pass from hardworking Mike Jones, the former Millwall star played the ball down the left to Marlon Patterson and the left-back cut inside before unleashing a low left-footed angled drive which was tipped around the near post by Walker, diving low to his right.

Dover Athletic failed to hit the target in the 15^th minute when McMahon sent a left-footed shot sailing over the bar from 25-yards after he exchanged a couple of passes with Willock through the middle.

But Bromley started to advance higher up the pitch and Elliott Buchanan played the ball inside to Jones and the former Greenwich Borough midfielder cracked a eft-footed drive from 20-yards, which was straight at Walker.

Danny Waldren’s left-footed free-kick from 20-yards deflected over the Dover Athletic crossbar and Fuseini – who took all eleven of Bromley’s corners – swung in the ball from the left and Liam Harwood sent his near post header across the box and Buchanan’s right-footed drive flashed across Walker and Huke was on hand to clear the ball away off the line.

With around 150 visiting supporters now urging on their side, another Fuseini corner was flicked on by Moses Swaibu and Walker blocked Buchanan’s flick towards goal.

Bromley kept pressing and kept Dover Athletic on the back foot and Buchanan exchanged a one-two with Jones before cracking a left-footed drive from 30-yards, which forced Walker into diving to his right to turn around his near post.

Bromley deservedly opened the scoring from the resulting corner as Walker gave The Ravens a helping hand.

Fuseini swung in another corner from the left towards the far post and Swaibu was left unmarked and his looping header should have been caught above the former Brighton & Hove Albion keeper’s head.

But Walker inexplicably dropped the ball as he fell backwards towards the line and Pacquette stabbed the ball over the line with his right-foot from very close range to score his fifth-goal for Bromley – his 20^th club in his career.

Goldberg said: “Again, as we have been doing, we gained confidence as the first half went on and I think it’s fair to say we went ahead, maybe we were a little bit fortunate, but we had a lot of pressure with corners that we won.

“We started to move the ball around well and although it was a goalkeeper’s mistake that led to our first goal, I thought we were just starting to get on top when we scored.”

Forster added:  “We gave a corner away. We lost a header in the box and Mitch’s made a mistake. He should’ve punched it, should’ve held onto it and gifted them a goal.  From then on the urgency wasn’t there!” 

Dover Athletic failed to trouble Welch in the 39^th minute when left-back Wynter fed the ball into the lively May, who laid the ball off to Smith, who stroked a right-footed shot wide from 25-yards.

But Dover Athletic almost grabbed an injury-time equaliser when Willock clipped his cross towards the far post and May’s looping header from an acute angle was blocked by Welch’s right shoulder as the Bromley keeper spread himself at his near post.

Goldberg revealed he had to bring his players’ down off the ceiling inside the visitors’ dressing room during the interval.

He said: “We went in at half-time believing that we can come out for the second half and get another one. It wasn’t just a matter of just hanging in!

“I really wanted to try and still put pressure on Dover. I think it’s fair to say we were only dangerous on the break but we were dangerous on the break and we could have scored two more goals I think.

“They came in probably a little bit too confident with the fact they could contain Dover from scoring and I had to have words with them.  We’ve got 45 minutes to, yes we’re 1-0 up and yes we’re believing in ourselves, but the minute you believe too much you get a slap in your face and that’s football to a certain extent.  When we’re 2-0 up that happened to us.  You know what can happen, the last minutes of the game they get a free-kick and they nearly did tuck one away and it could’ve been an unjust draw where we’d have to worry about them coming to us at Hayes Lane but thank God it’s not like that.”

Dover Athletic’s early second half urgency failed to materialise and Bromley maintained their resilient defending forming a red wall to protect highly-rated Welch.

Bromley turned defence to attack on the hour-mark when they comfortably dealt  with McMahon’s curling free-kick from 35-yards and right-back Sanchez Ming – a former winger – broke from box to box down the right and centred low for lone striker Pierre Joseph-Dubois, but the Frenchman was has recently scooped Conference South player-of-the-month for September looped his left-footed shot high over the bar from eighteen-yards in a central position, when he should have scored his seventh-goal of the season.

Goldberg knew that breakaway chance should have been taken.

He said: “Maybe the final decision making (has let him down), but that’s probably the difference with this level and the higher level.  I think some of our boys are very capable of stepping up.  They’re moments that define games.”

Dover Athletic forced Welch into making a fine diving save in the 63^rd minute when Smith’s angled right-footed drive forced the Bromley keeper into diving low to his right to push the shot behind his near post.

Goldberg explained why he brought on Finn for Joseph-Dubois – but it was certainly an inspired substitution as Finn put Bromley into the last qualifying round with a fine finish.

Latching onto Fuseini’s pass, Finn punished sloppy defending and swept his right-footed shot across Walker and the ball rolled into the bottom far corner of the net.

The goal stunned the Dover faithful – who called this a home banker on their fan’s forum – even further, but the Bromley fans were celebrating their club’s glorious day.

When asked about bringing on Finn, Goldberg said: “When it does work, it’s great! I just felt he could bring us a bit more experience to be honest and I was thinking at that time he could hold out the 1-0 win if anything with his experience and take the ball into the corners and he did that well but what a goal!  It was a great finish and the timing was perfect there!”

When asked about Finn’s goal, Forster replied, “Both were poor goals. The second one, I thought, was a calamity of errors and we’ll have a look at them.

“We haven’t conceded too many this season before today. We were under a goal a game. I think today makes us a goal a game.”

Dover Athletic upped their urgency for the remainder of the game and they came within inches to pulling a goal back when Wynter whipped in a tasty cross from the left and May outjumped Patterson at the far post to loop his header across Welch to sail agonisingly wide of the far post.

But Dover Athletic did pull a goal back with seven minutes remaining after Welch made a fine block to thwart Huke and McMahon’s corner from the right wasn’t cleared by the Bromley defence and after a spell of pin-ball inside the box McMahon poked the ball through to May at the far post and the former Millwall striker took a touch before slamming his right-footed shot past Welch from six-yards.

An honest Forster admitted: “The goal flattered us a little bit. Had we gone on and got the equaliser it wouldn’t be fair.  I think I’ve got to own up today and say they were the better team and they deserved the result, but we’ll start working hard again (in training) on Tuesday and we’ll go again and prepare for Truro next Saturday.”

Goldberg added: “It was a bit weak to be honest. I was a little bit disappointed. We sat back too much. I felt we could’ve cleared our lines. I need to see if on video but I made comment about if afterwards but I suppose in the end we have to be delighted with the win.”

It would have been unfair on battling Bromley had Dover Athletic grabbed a late leveller to force a midweek replay at Hayes Lane and McMahon floated over Dover’s seventh-corner of the game and skipper Huke sent a downward header which bounced agonisingly wide of the near post from eight-yards.

But Dover Athletic failed to score again and Bromley’s defence were brilliantly marshalled by central defender Moses Swaibu.

Goldberg said: “He’s been incredible every game he’s been so consistently good and we’re so lucky to have him at the club.”

Forster was bitterly disappointed that his side failed to get past a well marshalled Bromley defence.

He said: “They were quite narrow so there’s space out wide but did we deliver enough decent crosses? No!  Did we put too many balls when we’re in decent crossing areas behind the goal, out wide or hit the first man? Yes, we did so there were still opportunities to create problems.

“We were big as we have as a team this season with Ben May, Calum Willock, Steve Watt, Danny Webb and Shane Huke, the list is endless and yet did we win enough balls in their box? No!  Did we win enough balls in our own? No!

“So the team I picked today was good enough to win that game of football. The fact that they didn’t was too many players had 5’s, 6’s and sevens out of ten, when they should be having sevens and eights.  You can carry a couple, but not that many!”

Forster added: “Too many players didn’t perform as well as they should.

“Out of our eleven players – I don’t often say it – but too many of their players’ got the better of ours so poor performances all round.”

Dover Athletic are expected to travel to crisis-club Truro City next Saturday, the Cornwell club’s future being decided next Thursday.

Forster said: “It’s a little unfair! What do we do? Do we book hotels and book travel and things like that on the basis that on Thursday they’ll make a decision, Thursday evening, Friday morning.  That’s totally out of our hands.

“I think we seem to be blowing a little hot and cold at home.  We’re strong away from home but we’ll go again. 

“For me, the League has always been my number one priority and I’ll stand by that, but The FA Cup is a very, very important competition for them, for us.  It’s a money making vehicle for the club and to go out the way we have, I’m disappointed.”

As the Bromley players came out for their warm-down, commercial manager Barry Wicks cuddled Goldberg after their two FA Cup wins banked the Hayes Lane club a total of £12,000 in prize money.

Bromley’s last five FA Cup ties over the past two seasons have been away from home and you can expect the club being handed another away tie in the final qualifying round, the round where the Blue Square Bet (Conference) Premier club’s enter the competition.

Goldberg said: “I was so proud of them!  It’s so good to be in the hat. We’ve had such a bad time here at Dover in the past in my reign here. I just always came away disappointed.

“At the moment we’re just grateful to be in the hat. We’ll take wherever we take but I know the chairman (owner Jerry Dolke) would love a home match.”

Goldberg paid tribute to his players that battled through the pain barrier today.

He said: “Considering the injury crisis we’ve had and considering Richard Pacquette and Ali Fuseini have been out for the last three weeks, the way they came back today and played 90 minutes, I mean they’ll only get fitter.

“We’ve been lucky that we managed to get these boys back from injury for today’s game, but it was a risk because you never know how they’re going to react and you don’t know if they’re quite ready.  They haven’t even had a training session but I put them in and I took a risk and thank God it worked.”

Goldberg added: “We’re still a young side and we’re developing as a unit. The team spirit is immense.  It’s the best it’s ever been at the club since while I’ve been here – what a great win for us!”

Dover Athletic: Mitch Walker, Shane Huke, Tom Wynter, Dean Rance, Steve Watt, Danny Webb, Jamie Smith (Chris Sessegnon 71), Daryl McMahon, Ben May, Calum Willock (Billy Bricknell 58), Barry Cogan (Ricky Modeste 46).
Subs: Ian Simpemba, Steven Thomson, Lee Hook, David Pilcher

Goal: Ben May 83

Booked: Steve Watt 21, Chris Sessegnon 72, Daryl McMahon 90

Bromley: Joe Welch, Sanchez Ming, Marlon Patterson, Ali Fuseini, Moses Swaibu, Liam Harwood, Danny Waldren, Mike Jones, Pierre Joseph-Dubois (Tony Finn 75), Richard Pacquette, Elliott Buchanan (Michael Malcolm 85).
Subs: Jerrome Sobers, George Howard, Ian Daly, Aaron Rhule, Byron Thompson

Goals: Richard Pacquette 28, Tony Finn 75

Booked: Mike Jones 60, Pierre Joseph-Dubois 68, Danny Waldren 90

Attendance: 715
Referee: Mr Paul Harris (Maidstone)
Assistants: Mr Vince Penfold (Addlestone, Surrey) & Mr Neil Wallace (Crawley, West Sussex)