Dover and out for another year (27.09.03)

THE Magpies engineered their traditional early exit from the FA Cup on Sunday, in a doleful defeat to Dover Athletic.
Some may point to the 4-0 scoreline and suggest an embarrassing rout.
But that would only tell half the story, as the Magpies once again demonstrated flair and talent in abundance.
Endurance, however, is a quality they apparently lack, as they ran out of steam by half-time and were quickly battered into submission.
Player/manager John Dreyer also ran out of patience, earning himself a red card for reacting to a late challenge and reducing his side to 10 men.
If one had to look for excuses, this is where you might start, although three enforced substitutions also played their part, as Lawrence Yaku, Steve Sanders and Andy Jennings were all carted off with injuries.
Then again, the result might have been very different if Phil Gray had worn his shooting boots, as he missed three or four golden opportunities to fire United ahead in the first half alone.
The first of these came as early as the third minute, when the former international shot against the post from a deep corner, with the Dover keeper Paul Hyde a mere spectator.
Gray went close again on 13th minutes, drilling a low shot just wide of the upright and then powered a forceful diving header straight at the keeper, who parried the ball to safety.
United then conspired to let Dover off the hook, as they sat back and began trading hopeful long balls with their grateful hosts.
The result was almost instantaneous, as Matt Carruthers put Craig Wilkins clean through, forcing in-form keeper Nick Hart to make a brilliant low save.
But there was little Hart could do just before half time, when a cross from Dean Readings was headed home at the far post by Wilkins, with the Maidenhead defence in disarray.
Having taken a narrow but largely undeserved lead into half-time, things got even better for the hosts immediately after the break, when the ring-rusty Adam Durrant replaced the injured Steve Sanders.
And the Magpies’ problems deepened further, when Dreyer was forced off the bench to replace the stricken Andy Jennings.
With fortune running strongly in their favour, Dover soon doubled their advantage, when Dean Readings got on the end of a James Rogers’ corner and forced the ball home.
Down but not out, the Magpies gamely fought on until the 67th minute, when Tommy Tyne’s late challenge provoked an angry response from Dreyer, earning him a straight red and an early bath.
Now facing 10 men, Dover visibly grew in confidence and began stroking the ball around in search of the killer blow. It came with just two minutes remaining, when James Rogers picked out Kenny Dyer, who lashed the ball home.
With time running out, Dover added one final insult to injury, when Tyne advanced to the edge of the box before curling a low shot inside the near post.

Dover Athletic: Hyde, Browne, Dyer, Readings, Arnott, Chapman, Rogers, Spiller, Wilkins, Tyne, Carruthers. Subs: Cloke, Smissen, Amadi, Glover, Postman.
Maidenhead United: Hart, Jennings, Sanders, Connor, Ashe, Gallen, Boyce, Lee, Yaku, Gray, McIntosh. Subs: Currie (for Yaku), Durrant (for Sanders, 45), Dreyer (for Jennings).