*BS*I last spoke to Michael around a month ago following on from the side’s 1-0 victory at Whitehawk, and at that stage – with nine points out of a possible twelve – he was happy with how the season had started.*BF*

Since then, four consecutive Skrill South defeats – including a 1-0 loss away at Sutton United on Tuesday night – have seen the side drop down to 15th place. The defeat at Gander Green Lane was the latest in a string of disappointing results.

Whites have always found it a tough place to go to, and overall the outcome was probably the correct one – despite a couple of good chances for Whites to find an equaliser.

Sutton’s early goal meant Dover were chasing a result for a long period of the game, but Kamara feels the side’s second half performance was far superior than the first: “The first half was disappointing. Obviously we let the goal in, and gave their guy too much space, and were still trying to find our bearings for most of that first period.”

“The second half was better. We created more chances but, as has been the case for a lot of this season, couldn’t convert any. We’re at that stage now where we can’t hope for a bit of luck. Sometimes you get fortunate in games but we’re not getting that – we now need to dig in more than ever and battle for these wins.”

Whites’ hopes of a comeback were dealt a severe blow when midfielder Moses Ademola was given a second yellow card with 15 minutes remaining. Kamara, like many, was astonished at this decision and feels a lot of sympathy for his team-mate: “I don’t think he deserved either yellow. From what others have said, he was onside for the first (Ademola was booked for kicking the ball away after the referee had signalled for offside) and I don’t know if he even heard the ref’s whistle.

“Then he was given his second yellow card for diving. Moses’ reaction said it all – their guy definitely made contact with his ankle, and he was in a lot of pain after the game. I think the referee knew he’d made a mistake pretty quickly, but it was too late. He’ll now miss a game through suspension and we’ll have to see how his ankle is.”

Recent results have seen Chris Kinnear face some criticism regarding his team selection and formation, however Kamara firmly believes the buck lies with the players: “We need to take responsibility for what happens on the pitch. We all know what needs to be done, and we’ve known that all along, but we’re still gelling.

“Every game we play we are learning more about each other. We’re all hurting but all believe we can turn this right around. We all need to pull together and do a lot better – that said, we’ve not been getting outplayed in our games and haven’t lost any game by more than one goal.

“Dover is a massive club at this level and the expectation levels are therefore higher here. But I’d rather be playing for a club with high expectations than one without. The fans have been incredible, even during the last few games – we need them to keep turning up and supporting us.”

*BS*Four consecutive Skrill South defeats have seen the club drop down to 15th place in the league, however with the season still very much in the early stages Dover enter Saturday’s game knowing that all three points could push them up the table by as many as nine places.*BF*

Tuesday night’s defeat away at Sutton United continued a dismal few weeks for the side, and are now just one defeat away from matching the five-game losing run which saw Nicky Forster lose his managerial position just eight months ago.

Despite the downturn in results, spirits are still high within the Whites squad and the general consensus amongst the side is that things will click soon and the good form enjoyed by Kinnear during the second half of last season will return.

Saturday’s match sees Dover make the long trip to Somerset to face a Bath City side who have won just once at Twerton Park this season, defeating Concord Rangers 3-1 on the last day of August. Their last result was a 1-0 loss away at Staines Town in midweek, whilst draws against Ebbsfleet United and Tonbridge Angels in the two games previous to this mean that the hosts start the match in 12th place, with nine points from their opening seven games.

Last season’s encounters between the sides ended in two victories for Dover – goals from Billy Bricknell and Steven Thomson saw Whites come back from a goal behind to take all three points in the away fixture, whilst a 2-0 home victory came courtesy of Ben May and a memorable Gethin Jones own goal.

Top scorers for Lee Howells’ side this season are David Pratt and Ross Stearn, with three goals apiece. Pratt – who set a new world record in 2008 for the quickest sending-off in a match, timed at three seconds – impressed during his time at Chippenham Town and will be looking to add to his tally for this campaign.

Whites are likely to be without Moses Ademola for the match – the midfielder’s suspension following on from his red card against Sutton has not kicked in yet, however in the event that led to his dismissal an ankle injury was picked up which should rule him out of contention.

Defenders Tom Wynter and Terrell Forbes are also facing a battle to be fit for the game and both are likely to miss out, meaning club captain Craig Stone should revert to defence. Lloyd Harrington remains unavailable for selection following his injury sustained against Ebbsfleet United a month ago.

Elliott Charles, Nathan Elder and Michael Bakare are once again competing for a maximum of two starting places. Elder, whose work rate on Tuesday night was admirable, is the most likely of the trio to keep his place in the side, whilst Charles will be hopeful of a starting position after putting in a determined performance in midweek.

Dover Athletic Chairman Jim Parmenter has commented on recent speculation, rumours and statements made in relation to the arrangements for our FA Cup tie against Guernsey FC.

The board and I are concerned about the recent press release by Guernsey FC along with “official tweets” and re-tweets by them (which under FA rules are considered tweets by the club) regarding their pending home tie in the FA Cup with this football club.

Much of what has been published is disingenuous and aggressive and has been published before any formal agreement between the two clubs and the FA over the fixture.

While we are aware that competition rules do provision for the fixture being moved to the mainland if agreement for rescheduling cannot be reached, as of today we have not received official confirmation that this is the case.

The chances of being drawn at home on this date should have been no surprise to GFC and we are very surprised, in light of their ground share arrangements, that they have not addressed the potential fixture clash prior to entering the competition.

Guernsey FC enjoy the privilege of special rules (appendix two) regarding their entry into the FA Cup, agreed independently by them with the FA. It is the view of this club that, whilst we will be as accommodating as possible, where we can, Guernsey should operate within the rules of the competition without complaint, as every other club in the competition has to do.

We will provide supporters with further information once arrangements have been agreed and confirmed.

*BS*I last spoke to Michael around a month ago following on from the side’s 1-0 victory at Whitehawk, and at that stage – with nine points out of a possible twelve – he was happy with how the season had started.*BF*

Since then, four consecutive Skrill South defeats – including a 1-0 loss away at Sutton United on Tuesday night – have seen the side drop down to 15th place. The defeat at Gander Green Lane was the latest in a string of disappointing results.

Whites have always found it a tough place to go to, and overall the outcome was probably the correct one – despite a couple of good chances for Whites to find an equaliser.

Sutton’s early goal meant Dover were chasing a result for a long period of the game, but Kamara feels the side’s second half performance was far superior than the first: “The first half was disappointing. Obviously we let the goal in, and gave their guy too much space, and were still trying to find our bearings for most of that first period.”

“The second half was better. We created more chances but, as has been the case for a lot of this season, couldn’t convert any. We’re at that stage now where we can’t hope for a bit of luck. Sometimes you get fortunate in games but we’re not getting that – we now need to dig in more than ever and battle for these wins.”

Whites’ hopes of a comeback were dealt a severe blow when midfielder Moses Ademola was given a second yellow card with 15 minutes remaining. Kamara, like many, was astonished at this decision and feels a lot of sympathy for his team-mate: “I don’t think he deserved either yellow. From what others have said, he was onside for the first (Ademola was booked for kicking the ball away after the referee had signalled for offside) and I don’t know if he even heard the ref’s whistle.

“Then he was given his second yellow card for diving. Moses’ reaction said it all – their guy definitely made contact with his ankle, and he was in a lot of pain after the game. I think the referee knew he’d made a mistake pretty quickly, but it was too late. He’ll now miss a game through suspension and we’ll have to see how his ankle is.”

Recent results have seen Chris Kinnear face some criticism regarding his team selection and formation, however Kamara firmly believes the buck lies with the players: “We need to take responsibility for what happens on the pitch. We all know what needs to be done, and we’ve known that all along, but we’re still gelling.

“Every game we play we are learning more about each other. We’re all hurting but all believe we can turn this right around. We all need to pull together and do a lot better – that said, we’ve not been getting outplayed in our games and haven’t lost any game by more than one goal.

“Dover is a massive club at this level and the expectation levels are therefore higher here. But I’d rather be playing for a club with high expectations than one without. The fans have been incredible, even during the last few games – we need them to keep turning up and supporting us.”

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