Dover Athletic were forced to settle for a point at Chesham United after the hosts fought back from two goals down to earn a 2-2 draw.

Euan Williams gave the Whites a first-half lead with a well-taken strike from the edge of the area before top scorer Sheriff doubled the advantage four minutes after the restart. Dover appeared to be in control, but Eze pulled one back midway through the second half before Karl Oliyide completed Chesham’s recovery seven minutes from time.

Dover made a positive start and won an early free-kick inside two minutes, although the delivery was blocked and cleared. The Whites maintained the pressure and earned the first corner of the afternoon a minute later, but Chesham dealt with the danger.

Williams then looked to release Sheriff in the eighth minute, sliding a ball through the home defence, but goalkeeper Goode was alert and came quickly from his line to collect.

Chesham offered their first threat moments later. Kasimu struck left-footed from the edge of the area and forced Walker into action, the Dover captain getting up strongly to beat the effort away before the hosts won a corner.

The resulting set-piece led to an opportunity for Dover to counter, only for Sheriff to be brought down as he looked to break forward. Chesham’s Alfie Williams was shown the first yellow card of the afternoon for the challenge.

Chances remained at a premium as both sides settled into the contest, but Sheriff produced Dover’s first meaningful effort on goal in the 19th minute. The forward tried his luck from distance and forced Goode into a diving save.

The game remained evenly poised through the middle of the half, with neither team able to establish sustained control. Chesham threatened from wide on 34 minutes when Lafleur found space to deliver a deep cross towards the far side of the area, but Jones rose above those around him to head clear.

Two minutes later, Dover found the breakthrough.

Andrews did well to retain possession on the edge of the Chesham box before laying the ball into the path of Williams. The midfielder met it first time and guided his effort beyond the reach of Goode and into the side netting to put the Whites 1-0 ahead.

Chesham looked for an immediate response, with Adebiyi driving an effort from distance narrowly over Walker’s crossbar four minutes later. The Dover goalkeeper was required again shortly before the interval, comfortably gathering another attempt as the Generals searched for an equaliser.

Dover saw out the remainder of the half and headed down the tunnel with Williams’ strike separating the sides.

Chesham began the second period with considerably more urgency and almost levelled within 30 seconds of the restart.

Oyenuga was unable to complete a clearance and the ball fell invitingly to Eze after good work from Fasanmade. Walker reacted sharply to gather the resulting effort and preserve Dover’s advantage.

That save proved even more important three minutes later as the Whites doubled their lead.

Sheriff and Andrews combined effectively on the counter-attack, allowing Sheriff to work himself into a shooting position. His first effort was kept out well by Goode, but Chesham were unable to clear the loose ball and it fell straight back to Dover’s number nine. Sheriff made no mistake at the second attempt, finding the far bottom corner to make it 2-0 after 49 minutes.

With their side facing a two-goal deficit, Chesham made a double change four minutes later and gradually began to increase the pressure on Dover. St Clair-Burton and Andrews were heavily involved as the hosts gained more possession in midfield and pushed the Whites deeper.

A free-kick from a promising position on the edge of the Dover area was sent over the bar just past the hour mark before Dover briefly threatened at the opposite end. Andrews rattled the crossbar from close range on 63 minutes, although the assistant referee’s flag was already raised for offside.

Three minutes later, Chesham were back in the contest.

The ball broke loose inside the Dover penalty area and Eze reacted quickest, driving his shot across Walker and into the far corner to halve the deficit.

The goal changed the momentum of the contest and the Generals immediately went searching for a second. Kasimu came agonisingly close on 70 minutes when a dangerous ball flashed across the face of Dover’s goal and narrowly evaded his outstretched boot.

Moments later, Chesham threatened again. Andrews released Oliyide and the resulting cross travelled dangerously across the six-yard area without a decisive touch.

Eze then produced another excellent opening for the hosts, forcing his way through the Dover defence before sending a low drive towards the bottom corner. Walker was down sharply to tip the ball wide and maintain the Whites’ slender advantage.

Leberl responded in the 75th minute with a double substitution as Andrews and Williams made way for Onu and Wilkinson.

Chesham continued to press and Dover survived another major scare almost immediately. Eze again drove low from the edge of the area and Walker pushed the effort away, with the loose ball dropping towards Oliyide at the back post. The substitute could not quite adjust his feet quickly enough to convert from close range.

Dover still carried a threat on the break and almost restored their two-goal cushion with 11 minutes remaining. Wilkinson delivered a teasing cross towards Sheriff, whose header was gathered by Goode.

But the pressure from the home side finally told in the 83rd minute.

Roberts produced an excellent diagonal pass from the right-back position to pick out Oliyide. The Chesham substitute controlled the ball on his chest before firing beyond Walker to complete the hosts’ comeback and bring the scores level at 2-2.

Four minutes of additional time were indicated as both sides searched for a late winner, but neither could find the decisive fifth goal.

Dover therefore left The Meadow with a point after surrendering a two-goal advantage, having put themselves in a commanding position through goals from Williams and Sheriff before Chesham’s second-half response.

The Whites return to the Megger Community Stadium on Saturday when Maidenhead United are the visitors.

Dover Athletic were forced to settle for a point after surrendering a two-goal second-half advantage in an entertaining 3-3 draw with Braintree Town at the Megger Community Stadium.

Sheriff struck twice before the break and Luke Baptiste added a third shortly after half-time to put the Whites 3-1 ahead, but former Dover man Michael Olarewaju pulled one back before Louie Johnson rescued a point for the visitors in the 89th minute.

The afternoon also marked a significant milestone for Mitch Walker, who made his 350th appearance for Dover Athletic, and the long-serving goalkeeper was called into action on several occasions as Braintree mounted their late comeback.

It was the visitors who registered the first effort of the afternoon after five minutes. Reuben Swann drove through the middle of the pitch before sending a low effort towards goal, but Walker was comfortably behind it. Dover responded three minutes later when Jack Bates delivered a deep cross towards Luke Baptiste, only for Braintree goalkeeper George Barrett to come from his line and intercept before the forward could make contact.

Baptiste was proving a handful for the visitors in the early stages and twice found himself on the receiving end of strong challenges. A Braintree midfielder was booked for a crunching tackle on 11 minutes, before another visiting player went into the referee’s notebook just three minutes later following a further challenge on the Dover attacker.

The Whites were enjoying plenty of possession without creating a clear opening, and Rolando Onu saw a shot blocked midway through the half. Two minutes later, however, Dover found the breakthrough. Beadle launched one of his trademark long throws into the Braintree penalty area, where the visitors failed to deal with the danger. The loose ball eventually dropped for Sheriff, who reacted quickest and swept it home to give Dover a 26th-minute lead.

There was almost an unfortunate moment for Walker nine minutes later when he slipped while attempting to collect a back-pass, but the goalkeeper recovered quickly enough to reach the ball before the advancing Braintree forward could take advantage. Wilson-Braithwaite then became Dover’s first booking of the afternoon in the 36th minute.

Dover were forced into an early change shortly afterwards. Bates required treatment following a break in play and was unable to continue, with Wilkinson replacing him in the 39th minute.

Within a minute of the substitution, Braintree were handed the opportunity to draw level. Former Dover player Alfie Matthews went down inside the penalty area and the referee immediately pointed to the spot. Matthews took responsibility himself and, following a short delay, converted the penalty in front of the home end, with Walker rooted to the spot as the visitors made it 1-1.

The Whites ensured they would still head into the interval in front, though. Deep into four minutes of first-half stoppage time, Sheriff struck for the second time to restore Dover’s advantage and take his side into the dressing room with a 2-1 lead.

There was another Dover change at the interval as Andrews replaced Onu, and the Whites made an excellent start to the second half. Five minutes after the restart, some loose play in the Braintree defence was punished as Sheriff slipped the ball into the path of Baptiste, who made no mistake to stretch Dover’s advantage to 3-1.

Baptiste almost had another just three minutes later when he went for goal directly from a free-kick, but Braintree survived and soon came within inches of cutting the deficit themselves. Captain Elliot Thorpe collected possession on the edge of the area and drove a low effort beyond Walker, only to see it crash against the upright before Dover managed to clear the danger.

Jallow made way for Oyenuga in Dover’s third change shortly before the hour, while Beadle then went close to adding a fourth with an acrobatic attempt inside the Braintree penalty area. The visitors responded by making four changes of their own on 64 minutes as they looked for a route back into the contest.

Braintree began to apply more pressure as the half developed, although Dover continued to defend their two-goal advantage well. Oyenuga produced an important block in the 67th minute when substitute Fletcher Hubbard found space for a shot, diverting the effort behind for a corner.

Williams replaced Beadle with 14 minutes remaining, but almost immediately Braintree reduced the deficit. A loose ball fell to former Dover defender Olarewaju, whose effort took a substantial deflection on its way past Walker to make it 3-2 and set up a tense closing period.

The goal changed the momentum of the contest and Dover found themselves increasingly pinned back. Walker marked his milestone appearance with an important save in the 80th minute when substitutes Afi Adebayo and Hubbard combined with a neat one-two. Adebayo cut inside and sent a low effort towards goal, but the Dover goalkeeper reacted well to dive across and keep it out.

Dover were still carrying a threat from set-pieces and Wilson-Braithwaite came close to restoring the two-goal cushion two minutes later when he attacked a corner, but his header failed to find the target.

With the Whites seemingly closing in on all three points, Braintree finally found their equaliser in the 89th minute. Dover were unable to clear their lines following a scramble inside the penalty area and the ball eventually broke kindly for Louie Johnson six yards from goal. The midfielder managed to squeeze his effort past Walker to complete Braintree’s comeback and make it 3-3.

Neither side could find a decisive seventh goal in the remaining minutes, leaving Dover to take a point from a game in which they had led 3-1 early in the second half. The result leaves the Whites with a quick turnaround ahead of their Bank Holiday Monday trip to Chesham United.

Attendance: 825

Dover Athletic

Walker (c), Charles-Cook, Jones, Beadle, Sesay, Jallow, Wilson-Braithwaite, Bates, Baptiste, Sheriff, Onu.

Subs: Wilkinson, Andrews, Oyenuga, Williams, Ezenwanne, Salami, Bartlett.

Braintree Town

George Barrett, Vladimir Paternoster, Michael Olarewaju, Luis Brown, Elliot Thorpe (c), Reuben Swann, Emmanuel Okunowo, Idreess Namisi, Louie Johnson, Alfie Matthews, George Evans.

Subs: Courtney Senior, Fletcher Hubbard, Jamie Bennett, Alex Bolovan, Alfie Lewis, Afi Adebayo.

Weston-super-Mare 2-3 Dover Athletic

A stunning 90th-minute strike from debutant Corie Andrews secured a dramatic 3-2 victory for Dover Athletic at Weston-super-Mare.

The new signing, introduced from the bench midway through the second half, marked his first appearance for the Whites in spectacular fashion, finding the top corner from 25 yards to settle an end-to-end contest in Somerset.

Jake Leberl made changes to the side which faced Tonbridge Angels in midweek, with Harry Beadle returning to the starting XI and Rolando Onu partnering Decarrey Sheriff in attack. Andrews, whose arrival at Crabble had been confirmed ahead of the game, was named among the substitutes.

Dover made a bright start and had to deal with an early warning when a long Harris free-kick threatened to release Coulson, only for Beadle to recover and clear the danger. The Whites responded by winning the game’s first corner after three minutes and almost made it count moments later when Nazir Bakrin rose highest, his header narrowly failing to find the target.

Onu was next to threaten after eight minutes as Dover continued to find joy with balls in behind the Weston defence. The forward raced onto one such pass and drove towards goal before seeing his effort from around 18 yards kept out by a strong hand from Harris.

The hosts then enjoyed their first sustained spell of pressure, forcing Mitch Walker into action, although Dover continued to pose a threat on the counter. Another well-weighted pass over the top gave Sheriff something to chase in the 11th minute, but Harris reacted quickly to race from his goal and gather before the striker could reach it.

An injury to a Weston player brought a temporary halt to proceedings midway through the half and allowed both sides to take on water and receive instructions from the dugouts. Once play resumed, Dover were quickly back on the front foot and a succession of corners around the 27-minute mark placed the home defence under increasing pressure, with Jack Bates providing a series of dangerous deliveries.

That pressure eventually told two minutes later. Sheriff burst into the penalty area and was brought down by Harris, leaving the referee with little hesitation in pointing to the spot. Sheriff took responsibility himself and calmly sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to give Dover a deserved 31st-minute lead.

The advantage lasted only five minutes. Weston worked the ball to the byline before a pull-back found Louis Britton around 12 yards from goal, and the striker produced an excellent first-time finish beyond Walker to bring the hosts level.

Weston grew into the contest after their equaliser and began to apply more pressure before the interval. Louie Derrick dragged an effort from distance while Britton looked to create another opening inside the Dover area, but a heavy touch allowed Walker to collect.

The hosts then came close to completing the turnaround during first-half stoppage time after breaking rapidly from a Dover set-piece. Sercombe won possession near the corner and Weston poured forward with numbers, Hulbert eventually releasing Dawes down the left. His clipped delivery reached Derrick at the back post, but the midfielder sliced his volley wide.

The sides therefore went into the interval level at 1-1, Sheriff having put Dover ahead from the penalty spot before Britton’s quick response.

Leberl made a change at the break, with Euan Williams replacing Beadle, and Weston were first to threaten after the restart as Walker produced a good save to tip a looping header over his crossbar.

Dover responded with a slick move of their own three minutes later. Onu flicked a header into the path of Sheriff, who had found space behind the home defence, but his first-time volley from inside the box carried over Harris’ goal.

Weston took the lead in the 55th minute. Martin’s quickly taken throw released Jagger Cane into the penalty area and his pull-back found Britton, who created the space for himself around 12 yards out before firing emphatically into the roof of Walker’s net for his second of the afternoon.

Rather than allowing the hosts to take control, Dover responded strongly. Bates sent another dangerous delivery across the Weston penalty area which narrowly evaded both Bakrin and Jalen Jones, before a sustained spell of pressure saw the Whites win several corners in quick succession.

The visitors continued to dominate in the air and came agonisingly close to an equaliser after 63 minutes when another corner dropped into a crowded penalty area. The loose ball fell towards Baptiste, but he was unable to force it home through the bodies in front of goal.

Dover then handed Andrews his debut in the 64th minute, the new arrival replacing Onu, before a brief stoppage followed after a coming together involving Oyenuga. The Whites continued to push Weston back and Andrews soon gave an early indication of his threat, turning smartly before getting a shot away in the 73rd minute which bobbled narrowly beyond the far post.

Oyenuga was replaced by Fuad Sesay moments later as Leberl looked for a route back into the game, and that equaliser arrived in remarkable circumstances in the 76th minute.

Harris came out of his area to clear but lost his footing and could only send the ball towards Williams, who was positioned around 35 yards from goal. The Dover midfielder controlled before sending an audacious effort towards the unguarded net. Harris desperately attempted to recover his ground, but the ball seemed to hang in the air before eventually dropping beyond him and into the goal to make it 2-2.

Weston responded by putting Dover under pressure as they looked to restore their advantage, but it was the Whites who began to look the more likely side to find a winner as the game entered its closing stages.

Baptiste made way for Mo Jallow after 85 minutes before Sheriff went desperately close to his second of the afternoon. The striker was slipped in behind the Weston back line and showed his pace to outstrip the recovering defenders, but his low effort across Harris rolled narrowly wide of the far post.

Sheriff’s afternoon ended shortly afterwards as Kola Salami was introduced with two minutes of normal time remaining, but Dover were not finished.

With the clock reaching 90 minutes, Andrews collected possession in space outside the Weston penalty area. The debutant set himself before unleashing an outstanding strike from around 25 yards which flew beyond Harris and into the top corner, sparking wild celebrations among the Dover players and travelling support.

It was a spectacular way for Andrews to announce himself in a Dover shirt and, despite three additional minutes being indicated, the Whites held firm to complete a memorable comeback and claim all three points.

Dover had led through Sheriff’s first-half penalty before Britton struck twice either side of the interval to turn the match in Weston’s favour. Williams’ long-range equaliser brought the Whites level before Andrews produced the decisive moment at the death to seal a 3-2 victory.

The Whites now return to Crabble next Saturday when Braintree Town are the visitors.

Teams

Weston-super-Mare: Harris, Avery (c), Coulson, Britton, Hulbert, Dawes, Pope, Derrick, Martin, Long, Sercombe.
Subs: Glover (GK), Smith, Wood, Jagger Cane, Ash, Robesten, Thompson.

Dover Athletic: Walker, Charles-Cook, Jones, Beadle, Bakrin, Oyenuga, Wilson-Braithwaite, Baptiste, Bates, Sheriff, Onu.
Subs: Wilkinson, Williams, Jallow, Andrews, Salami, Sesay, Bartlett.

Goals: Sheriff 31′ (pen), Williams 76′, Andrews 90′.