Match report by Fred Deveson.

It was a wet and windy evening at Crabble as the hosts were defeated 1-2 by their Kent rivals Tonbridge Angels, who keep Dover bottom of the league.

There were some changes to the starting lineup for the Whites, with Freddie Oliver making his full debut, as well as Baptiste starting on the left for Dover and Iffy Allen returning to the starting eleven.

The fans were in full voice for the start of the game, but it was the visitors who had the better of the opening exchanges. The returning Paris Lock was looking positive for the Angels, making some good runs and making life hard for Ojemen. 

The visitors controlled the ball well from the start and had the majority of possession. They were making good combinations in and around the box and looked threatening. 

This possession didn’t come without it’s weaknesses, as there were gaps at the back which Dover looked to exploit with long balls looking to find Nikaj. 

Dover found an opening with the long ball route and had a penalty shout waved away by the referee. In the same passage of play, the Whites hit the crossbar after a fantastic effort. Signs were there that Tonbridge could be broken down.

This was until the visitors came forward in another attack after a period of pressure, and after some good footwork in the box, number 8 Higgs netted past Jinadu who could do nothing to stop the shot.

The Dover goalkeeper had previously made a couple of good saves to keep the score level, but Tonbridge’s patience paid off as they went 0-1 up midway through the first half.

After the goal, the chances kept coming for the away side. Jacob Mensah was called into action when the visitors found a pocket of space, and had it not been for Dover’s number 16, the score would’ve inevitably been 0-2. 

The front three of Tonbridge were linking up very well and had the hosts worried every time they came forward, with some good dribbling and movement, creating lots of space for themselves.

Tonbridge Angels kept up the pressure and Jinadu was forced into more good saves to keep the score at 0-1. The goalkeeper was arguably Dover’s best player in the first half, making some very important saves.

This wasn’t all for the first half, as right on the stroke of the half time whistle, Jacob Mensah scrambled the ball in with his knee and levelled up the score before the break.

The second half started similar to the first, with the visitors dominating the ball. They had a chance early on in the second half to make the score 1-2, but were denied by the post. 

The goal did come for The Angels shortly after, with some good work again by their number 7, and after some scrappy play in the box, it was Francis Mampolo who tapped home to make it 1-2. 

It did not get much easier for the hosts after this, as the wide players for Tonbridge were doing superbly well and causing all sorts of issues for Dover. Paris Lock danced his way through the hosts’ defence and Scott Holding was called into action, making a good goal line block by the post. 

The half continued much the same until later on in the game, when a chance came for the hosts. Baptiste picked up a long ball on the left and found Wilkinson on the other side of the box in acres of space, but he could not control the ball and a good chance went amiss. 

Dover did up the pressure towards the end of the game, with the biggest threat coming from Wilkinson’s excellent delivery from the succession of corners the hosts had. George Nikaj got his head to a few of these corners and narrowly missed one of the latter chances, much to the delight of the visiting side.

The visitors deployed their time-wasting tactics and eventually saw out the victory, making it back to back losses for Dover in the National League South.

Dover host Slough Town on Saturday, looking to get their first win of the year.

Dover Athletic: Jinadu, Ojemen (Oldapio 85mins), Mensah, Holding, Naylor (Sutherland 80mins), Baptiste, Oliver, Charles-Cook, Nikaj, Wilkinson, Allen (Dembele 65mins). Subs not used: Dunne, Young.

Tonbridge Angels: Henly, Lyons-Foster, Gard, Mampolo, Higgs, Odokonyero (Greenidge 85mins), Lock (Puffette 90mins), Hinds, Dabre, Vincent, Wagstaff. Subs not used: Parkinson, Aransibia, Velvick.

Referee: Constantine Hatzidakis.

Attendance: 455.

Match report by Fred Deveson.

A chilly afternoon in the South West saw the hosts Torquay United pick up their first win in 2024, after a long-range cracker from Brett McGavin sealed Dover’s fate.

There was action before the game had kicked-off at Plainmoor, as sadly Bailey Akehurst picked up a nasty knee injury in the warm-up. The left-back was stretchered off to the applause of all fans. He was replaced in the starting lineup by Peter Ojemen; his first game this year.

After a thoughtful minute silence, the game kicked off and it was high intensity from the start. The Gulls were full of energy and had the crowd right behind them, but it was the visitors who had the edge. Two corners came in from Dover in quick succession, but nothing came from them. 

The Dover pressure continued, and Oyenuga was making good progress until a nasty challenge left him in a heap on the floor.The resulting free-kick came to nothing. 

Torquay had a chance to build their own pressure following this flurry from Dover. The hosts had a penalty shout waved away by the referee, much to the anger of the home faithful. 

Dover came forward again after this, and it was Wilkinson who created the chance with a fantastic flick to George Nikaj, who was in on goal, but a brilliant tackle by the Torquay defender stopped the Dover number 10 getting a shot on goal.

Da Silva for the hosts was beginning to make life hard for Ojemen on the right hand side, and it wasn’t long before Torquay had the ball in the Dover penalty area. Another penalty shout was dismissed by the referee, angering the Yellow Army even more. 

The pressure from the home side continued, however, and Jinadu was called into action when a spin and shot had to be saved down to his left. 

Not long later, there was a succession of corners by the hosts, who crowded the Dover goalkeeper in the hope of forcing a mistake. The Whites dealt with it well, however, and the half time whistle came shortly after.

Torquay started the second half with plenty of energy and intensity, but it was Dover who had the best chance early on. A great ball into the box was just missed by Naylor, who couldn’t quite his head on it, much to the relief of Torquay. 

Torquay then began their onslaught of chances. Some intricate passing in the Dover box lead to a good chance for the Torquay number three, who hit his effort straight at Jinadu.

The goal came soon after, however, and what a goal it was. McGavin picked the ball up just outside the area and he had the time and space to unleash a strike which buried itself in the left corner of Jinadu’s goal. The hosts took a deserved lead.

The Dover boss tried to change things up after the goal, with Oladipo coming off the bench. Roman Charles-Cook later switched to left back, with Allen and Sutherland coming on to try and attack the wings more. Peter Ojemen was brought off to allow these attacking changes.

In the final few minutes, Dover did not go out without a fight. Nikaj received the ball and worked his way towards the penalty area, winning a corner. Following the corner, Allen picked the ball up on the right and entered the box. The winger looked to be brought down, but the shout was waved away once again by the referee, much to the anger of the 13 travelling Dover fans.

Torquay then implemented their time wasting strategies keepingthe ball in the corner, and eventually holding out for their first win of 2024. 

It was another disappointing afternoon for Dover Athletic, who are winless so far this year. 

Torquay United: 1. Mark Halstead, 3. Dan Martin, 6. Ross Marshall, 8. Asa Hall (4. Tom Lapslie,  67′), 11. Brad Ash (10. Lewis Collins, 75′), 14. Brett McGavin, 17. Dillon De Silva, 18. Will Jenkins Davies, 21. Dean Moxey (c), 23. Ollie Tomlinson, 30. Ethon Archer.

SUBS NOT USED: 22. Rhys Lovett, 26. Archie Harris, 32. Osman Foyo.

DOVER ATHLETIC: 1. Daniel Jinadu, 3. Roman Charles-Cook, 4. Peter Ojemen (11. Ifeanyi Allen, 66′), 6. James Dunne (c) (9. Zidan Sutherland, 83′), 10. George Nikaj, 14. George Wilkinson, 15. Charlie Naylor, 16. Jacob Mensah, 20. Nick Dembele (7. Denstiny Oladipo,62′), 25. John Oyenuga, 26. Scott Holding.

SUBS NOT USED:  8. Freddie Oliver, 22. Luke Baptiste.

Attendance:  1,889 (13 away)