*BS*CRAIG CLOKE insists he is not seriously injured and should be fully fit to take on Met Police next Saturday.

*BF*The Whites defender – who has signed a new one-year extension to his contract committing him to the club until the end of next season – was carried off on a stretcher after being the victim of a late tackle at the end of the 0-0 draw against Maidstone at Sittingbourne.

But Clokey says he has only sprained his ankle and is confident of recovering in time to play at Crabble next weekend. He said: “Their guy has come in hard and late, and stamped on me. I had just cleared the ball when the player caught me and he even stamped on me too. The way I fell has sprained my ankle. At first, I thought I may have twisted it but that does not appear to be the case. I was carried off as a precaution. I could easily have limped off.

“It’s swelling a bit now and no doubt I’ll be feeling it in the morning – but, fingers crossed, I’ll be alright to play next Saturday’s game against Met Police.”

Both clubs wanted the game to be called off as conditions on the quagmire pitch got worse and a floodlight failure in one area of the field made playing dangerous.

Cloke said: “I’ve never played on such a terrible pitch. The game should never have gone ahead. It was very dangerous and when the floodlights failed in one area of the ground, it was obvious to both sides that we should call the game off.

“But the referee decided to continue and I am just glad no-one got seriously hurt. In my opinion, I was deliberately stamped on and found that disappointing. The referee then booked the wrong player, which says it all, really.”

Dover Athletic chairman Jim Parmenter has already confirmed the club will be making a written complaint to the Ryman League about the match due to concerns over health and safety.

Clokey said he was delighted to sign a new deal with his home-town club.

He said: “This is my club and love playing for it. I want to help the club get back up the divisions.”

*BS*WHITES have been boosted by the news that goalkeeper Glen Knight is set to have his hand out of plaster on Friday 1st December.

*BF*The experienced former Welling stopper snapped a tendon in his hand in a non-footballing accident and has been in plaster for nearly two months.

Glen revealed this week to Justin Allen in an interview for WhitesLive On Demand that DAFC sent him to a Great Britain Olympic physio to examine the injury and advise the Dover keeper. The verdict from the physio was that the hand is healing well and can soon come out of plaster. Glen will then get fit and ready to come back into contention for the Dover No 1 shirt.

Dover boss Clive Walker also expects a return to action soon for experienced midfielder Danny Chapman. ‘Chappers’ has been out of the team with a injury since Whites’ previous trip to Sittingbourne’s Bourne Park back in August.

Initial fears that sciatica was the problem were found to be false but Chapman has been suffering back and muscle pains when attempting to run.

Clive Walker said: “Danny’s been out for long periods before and then suddenly he comes back into the team.”

Both Walker and Chapman are hopeful that this will be the case again shortly, as Chapman has done everything to keep up his fitness since August and is itching to get back playing football again.

Both Knight and Chapman have been frustrated at being out of action for so long and have been scouting for their manager to keep busy and contribute towards the club during their injuries.

*IS*Apologies for the lack of a preview for the Maidstone match. This was due to illness.*IF*

*BS*JIM PARMENTER has confirmed that the club will be submitting a complaint to the Ryman League after the Maidstone v Dover match was allowed to be played out on a half-lit and quagmire pitch.

*BF*Both managers had requested for the game, which ended 0-0, to be called off at the start of the second half at Sittingbourne when it was clear that conditions were very dangerous.

Craig Cloke – who signed a new one-year contract before the game – was carried off after getting injured in the badly-lit area of the field.

Jim said: “We are submitting a complaint to the Ryman League. The conditions were very dangerous and both clubs wanted the game called off.

“The lights failed in one area of the pitch and this made the already dangerous conditions worse.

“We don’t know the extent of the injury yet – and are keeping our fingers crossed for Craig.”

*BS*CRAIG CLOKE insists he is not seriously injured and should be fully fit to take on Met Police next Saturday.

*BF*The Whites defender – who has signed a new one-year extension to his contract committing him to the club until the end of next season – was carried off on a stretcher after being the victim of a late tackle at the end of the 0-0 draw against Maidstone at Sittingbourne.

But Clokey says he has only sprained his ankle and is confident of recovering in time to play at Crabble next weekend. He said: “Their guy has come in hard and late, and stamped on me. I had just cleared the ball when the player caught me and he even stamped on me too. The way I fell has sprained my ankle. At first, I thought I may have twisted it but that does not appear to be the case. I was carried off as a precaution. I could easily have limped off.

“It’s swelling a bit now and no doubt I’ll be feeling it in the morning – but, fingers crossed, I’ll be alright to play next Saturday’s game against Met Police.”

Both clubs wanted the game to be called off as conditions on the quagmire pitch got worse and a floodlight failure in one area of the field made playing dangerous.

Cloke said: “I’ve never played on such a terrible pitch. The game should never have gone ahead. It was very dangerous and when the floodlights failed in one area of the ground, it was obvious to both sides that we should call the game off.

“But the referee decided to continue and I am just glad no-one got seriously hurt. In my opinion, I was deliberately stamped on and found that disappointing. The referee then booked the wrong player, which says it all, really.”

Dover Athletic chairman Jim Parmenter has already confirmed the club will be making a written complaint to the Ryman League about the match due to concerns over health and safety.

Clokey said he was delighted to sign a new deal with his home-town club.

He said: “This is my club and love playing for it. I want to help the club get back up the divisions.”

*BS*WHITES have been boosted by the news that goalkeeper Glen Knight is set to have his hand out of plaster on Friday 1st December.

*BF*The experienced former Welling stopper snapped a tendon in his hand in a non-footballing accident and has been in plaster for nearly two months.

Glen revealed this week to Justin Allen in an interview for WhitesLive On Demand that DAFC sent him to a Great Britain Olympic physio to examine the injury and advise the Dover keeper. The verdict from the physio was that the hand is healing well and can soon come out of plaster. Glen will then get fit and ready to come back into contention for the Dover No 1 shirt.

Dover boss Clive Walker also expects a return to action soon for experienced midfielder Danny Chapman. ‘Chappers’ has been out of the team with a injury since Whites’ previous trip to Sittingbourne’s Bourne Park back in August.

Initial fears that sciatica was the problem were found to be false but Chapman has been suffering back and muscle pains when attempting to run.

Clive Walker said: “Danny’s been out for long periods before and then suddenly he comes back into the team.”

Both Walker and Chapman are hopeful that this will be the case again shortly, as Chapman has done everything to keep up his fitness since August and is itching to get back playing football again.

Both Knight and Chapman have been frustrated at being out of action for so long and have been scouting for their manager to keep busy and contribute towards the club during their injuries.

*IS*Apologies for the lack of a preview for the Maidstone match. This was due to illness.*IF*

*BS*JIM PARMENTER has confirmed that the club will be submitting a complaint to the Ryman League after the Maidstone v Dover match was allowed to be played out on a half-lit and quagmire pitch.

*BF*Both managers had requested for the game, which ended 0-0, to be called off at the start of the second half at Sittingbourne when it was clear that conditions were very dangerous.

Craig Cloke – who signed a new one-year contract before the game – was carried off after getting injured in the badly-lit area of the field.

Jim said: “We are submitting a complaint to the Ryman League. The conditions were very dangerous and both clubs wanted the game called off.

“The lights failed in one area of the pitch and this made the already dangerous conditions worse.

“We don’t know the extent of the injury yet – and are keeping our fingers crossed for Craig.”

*BS*CLIVE WALKER last night chilled out with a glass of his almost trademark dry white wine to toast a hard-fought three points at Croydon.

*BF*There is no doubt that the performance was not of the highest standard from his men, but at least they showed a battling spirit to grab victory at a difficult venue.

Conditions were not easy under foot on a bobbly pitch, making it difficult for either side to play decent football.

And a dull game, as well as the ice cold temperatures, made for painful viewing for the fans.

But, at least, goals from Craig Cloke and Jimmy Dryden gave supporters some warm moments of quality to look back on.

Clive said: “It was a hard-fought win. There are not going to be many teams in this division who come away from here with three points.

“The game was poor and our performance was not up to the standards we expect, but that happens at these kind of places where conditions are difficult.

“But the team found a way through and we’re delighted to have got the three points.

“We’ve got a good record away from home this season so it was nice to keep that going. To win a league, you have to pick up points everywhere. It’s very early days at the moment with so many games left.”

Midfielder Danny Chapman, who is close to returning to action and could be back within the next couple of weeks, thought his team-mates made hard work of winning.

He said: “I thought we put ourselves under unnecessary pressure at times. We just lack that bit of communication on the pitch at times – but hopefully I will be back to help in that department soon.”

*BS*CLIVE gives a full reaction to the 2-0 win at Croydon on DAFCtv, being screened from Wednesday night.

*BS*JIM PARMENTER praised Whites for picking up three points at Croydon Athletic – even though the performance was not the best they have produced this season.

*BF*Goals in each half from Craig Cloke and Jimmy Dryden were enough to see off the hosts in difficult and freezing conditions on Tuesday night.

But Jim admitted: “It’s fair to say it wasn’t the best of performances, but the pitch and conditions were difficult, so the team deserve credit for coming away from here with a 2-0 win.

“If we win games 2-0 without playing well, then that is the kind of form a promoted team shows – so you won’t hear many complaints from me there.

“We weren’t in control of the game, it wasn’t a nice game to watch – but you have to give credit for the way we managed to find a way through to the three points.

“You cannot play well every week – but it’s all about getting the win, so job done on that score.”