Assistant boss Jake Leberl has issued an impassioned rallying call to Dover fans as his team prepares for what could be their final home game of their National League campaign against Macclesfield Town tonight..

Dover are sixth on the table ahead of the clash with the ninth-placed Cheshire visitors and are currently four points behind fifth-placed Aldershot Town but with a game in hand on the Shots.

It means nothing else but a win will do tonight to keep alive any hopes of Dover have of reaching the play-offs heading into Saturday’s final day of the regular season.

Leberl said: “You cannot under-estimate how much the fans matter at this club. They’re our 12th man and I know that because I’ve played here.

“Saturday’s loss to Torquay was extremely disappointing and frustrating after knowing going into that game how big it was and coming away with nothing – nobody needs telling that, especially the fans.

“We have two games to go and we need two wins – we need the fans to stay behind us. We need to be together, we need to be united because this play-off race has not been won yet.

“Football is a funny old game and anything can happen.”

MACCLESFIELD’S RECENT FORM

The Silkmen were unable to gatecrash Lincoln City’s promotion party on Saturday as the home side came from behind to win 2-1 in front of a crowd of 10,031.

Mitch Hancox stunned the Imps after he gave the visitors the lead in the 23rd minute before Terry Hawridge pounced on an loose ball to level the scores six minutes later.

The winger grabbed his second late on with a curling finish to seal the title and a return to the Football League for Lincoln after a six year absence.

LAST MEETING

10/01/17 Macclesfield 2-1 Dover

Captain Jamie Grimes’ second goal in as many games was not enough to prevent Whites losing at the Moss Rose.

Grimes (pictured above celebrating his goal in January) beat goalkeeper Scott Flinders to James Hurst’s free-kick to head his side infront in the eighth minute.

That’s the way it stayed until Chris Holroyd scored from close range in the 67th minute before the striker claimed his second of the night after raced clear to slot the winner past goalkeeper Steve Arnold seven minutes later.

PREVIOUS MEETINGS

12/4/16 Macclesfield 0-0 Dover

17/10/15 Dover 2-1 Macclesfield

18/10/14 Macclesfield 1-0 Dover

HITMEN

Ricky Miller remains the top scorer in the National League with 36 goals.

Moses Emmanuel and Ross Lafayette both have 11.

Macclesfield’s leading marksman is Holroyd with 13.

DOVER TEAM NEWS

Assistant boss Leberl said on Monday evening that there are no injury concerns ahead of the game

COVERAGE

The game starts at 7:45pm but if you are unable to make the trip, we will have live updates on Twitter – @DAFCLiveText – follow us and get all the news as it happens!

Coverage starts from 7pm.

MATCH SPONSOR

Today’s match is being sponsored by EXCLUSIVE HOUSEHOLD STAFF.

MATCH BALL SPONSOR

Today’s match ball is jointly being sponsored by JOHN MARTIN and the CORNWALLIS COMPANY.

All of us at Dover Athletic thank all our sponsors for your support and we hope that you enjoy your time with us this evening.

TUESDAY’S OTHER NATIONAL LEAGUE FIXTURE

Maidstone United v Lincoln City

AWAY TRAVEL

There will be a Supporters Club coach making the trip to Barrow on Saturday 29th April and it’s not too late to reserve your seat on it.

It leaves Crabble at 3am and thanks to a donation from the Supporters club, the cost is as follows:

Adults Members £20, Adult Non Members £35 and accompanied child (under 16) £10.

Please call or text Andy on 0793 4300335 to book your seat or see him in the Centre Spot tonight.

Please note you are now required to pay for your seat in advance by cash or by cheque or via bank transfer.

Visit http://www.dasc.co.uk/ for all the details.

Chris Kinnear’s men could relegate a side for the second consecutive home match when third-bottom Torquay visit Crabble on Saturday.

Southport lost their National League status after losing 3-0 to Whites on 14th April and the Gulls could suffer the same fate.

Should the Devon club fail to win and Braintree, York and Guiseley all record victories, then United’s demotion to the National League South will be confirmed.

In spite of the visitor’s lowly standing on the ladder, Dover’s assistant boss Jake Leberl believes his side, who dropped to sixth after Monday’s loss at play-off rivals Aldershot Town, are in for a tough test. 

He said: “Any game against a team fighting for their life is always difficult.  They will do all they can within their power to stay in this league.

“They have got some dangerous players and we have got to want to win more than them on the day.”

Dover will start the game only one place and one point behind fifth-placed Aldershot, but with a game in hand on the Hampshire side.

TORQUAY’S RECENT FORM

The Gulls  gave their survival bid a boost by beating fellow strugglers Braintree Town 3-1 at Plainmoor on Monday.

The visitors struck early through Manny Parry’s header, but Brett William’s fine solo run and finish levelled matters just before the interval.

The former Forest Green forward then pounced on a loose ball in the area to put the hosts ahead.

AFC Bournemouth loanee Jordan Lee made the points safe late on to keep the Gulls within touching distance of the safety zone.

LAST MEETING

27/08/16 Torquay 2-1 Dover

Ricky Miller’s free-kick was not enough to prevent Dover’s three-match winning streak coming to an end at Plainmoor.

The striker struck 15 minutes from full-time to equalise after Jamie Reid put Torquay ahead just after half-time.

But Dover’s celebrations proved to be short-lived as Dan Sparkes slotted past goalkeeper Steve Arnold just a minute later.

Tyrone Marsh’s injury time effort against his former employers struck the inside of the post, but the ball bounced away to safety much to the relief of the home support.

RECENT MEETINGS

26/3/16 Dover 5-0 Torquay

06/10/15 Torquay 2-3 Dover

02/12/14 Dover 2-2 Torquay

HITMEN

Ricky Miller remains the top scorer in the National League with 36 goals.

Moses Emmanuel and Ross Lafayette both have 11.

Torquay’s leading marksman is Brett Williams with eight.

DOVER TEAM NEWS

Leberl confirmed on Thursday that Whites have a fully fit squad to pick from. 

Joe Healy (calf) and James Hurst (leg) are both available for selection after being substituted during the defeat at Aldershot.

Midfielder Jim Stevenson could also be involved after being recalled from his loan spell at Southport earlier this week.

TICKET NEWS

Tickets can be purchased on the day but please note that this match IS segregated.

COVERAGE

The game starts at 3pm but if you are unable to make the trip, we will have live updates on Twitter – @DAFCLiveText – follow us and get all the news as it happens!

Coverage starts from 2pm.

MATCH SPONSOR

The Torquay match is being sponsored by REFLEX LABELS.

All of us at Dover Athletic thank you for your support and we hope you enjoy your day with us this afternoon

MATCH BALL SPONSOR

Saturday’s  match ball is being sponsored by JOHN MARTIN.

As always, we welcome John to the game and thank him for his continued and ongoing support.

SATURDAY’S OTHER NATIONAL LEAGUE FIXTURES

Lincoln City v Macclesfield Town

Boreham Wood v Gateshead

Braintree Town v Barrow

Bromley v Guiseley

Forest Green Rovers v Maidstone United

North Ferriby United v Aldershot Town

Solihull Moors v Eastleigh

Sutton United v Chester

Tranmere Rovers v Southport

Woking v York City

Wrexham v Dagenham & Redbridge

AWAY TRAVEL

There will be a Supporters Club coach making the trip to Barrow on Saturday 29th April and it’s not too late to reserve your seat on it.

It leaves Crabble at 3am and thanks to a donation from the Supporters club, the cost is as follows:

Adults Members £20, Adult Non Members £35 and accompanied child (under 16) £10.

Please call or text Andy on 0793 4300335 to book your seat or see him in the Centre Spot on Saturday.

Please note you are now required to pay for your seat in advance by cash or by cheque or via bank transfer.

Visit http://www.dasc.co.uk/ for all the details.