Dartford 0-1 Margate - We defended absolutely heroically - O'Connell

James Pinnock scored the game’s only goal after a brilliant through ball by skipper Jay Saunders, as the striker held his run just long enough to stay onside before waltzing around Darts keeper Andrew Young to net midway through the second half to spark wide scenes of celebration on the Gate bench.

And despite finishing the game the stronger, Dartford couldn’t find a way past a defensive wall dressed in blue in which, particularly in the second half, Dan Young and Grant Cooper were outstanding. 

Indeed, the Darts were constantly frustrated as they gave one of their most disjointed performances of what has otherwise been a wonderful season for the Princes Park side.

After the game Margate manager O'Connell admitted to www.kentishfootball.co.uk:  "I'm absolutely over the moon but have to admit that the last ten minutes out there aged me about twenty years! 

“But in all seriousness I think we deserved it in the end – they put a lot of balls into our box but we defended absolutely heroically today. 

“Everyone from my keeper Jamie Turner right through to my centre forward James Pinnock – they all gave 110 per cent tonight. 

“We caught them on the break a couple of time and could maybe have got a second.  I know that there some thoughts that Pinno may have been offside when he scored but I’ve just had a Dartford supporter came up to me in the bar and he said that James is three yards on side. 

“But whatever the case, he’s deserved that goal – it was a great finish.  I’m just sorry he couldn’t have got us another one to save me a few more grey hairs tonight,” the Gate boss joked.

For Dartford boss Tony Burman, his sides evening was far from entertaining but at least there was the "comfort" of his side still being ten points clear at the top of the table. 

"I'm more disappointed in the result rather than our performance," he told www.kentishfootball.co.uk after the game. 

“We lost the game and that’s that.  We didn’t play that badly tonight – there was just no spark and I thought that our legs had gone, and as the game went on it gave them heart,” Burman admitted. 

“It was a poor goal – Daffy’s (Danny Dafter) lost the ball in midfield from probably his first mistake of the game.  Something like that will happen if you don’t punish them at the other end.

“Our service into the box,” a disappointed Darts boss said, “and our play into the box wasn’t nearly as good as it has been in our last two games and we didn’t get nearly enough crosses into the box to score goals.”


“We felt the pressure of being where we are had gotten to the boys and then we go and get two wins last week.  But tonight there was just no life in the legs, and after going with the same side, in hindsight maybe we got it wrong. 

“It was a weary performance that was disappointing – they’ve come and done a job on us tonight no doubt about that!”

But over all this was a very lifeless performance from the Darts, although O’Connell must be given a huge amount of credit as the visitors had clearly done their homework. 

With wing-backs Aaron Lacey and Dan Stubbs giving Ryan Hayes and Danny Harris no room whatsoever, Allan Tait and Lee Burns (who Burman admitted afterwards shouldn’t really have played because of a hamstring injury) were forced further and further away from goal just to get the ball. 

That said it was the home side that bossed long periods of the first half but only rarely threatened Turner in the Gate goal. 

The giant keeper’s first scare came on 14 minutes when Billy Burgess’ long missile like throw was flicked on at the front post and flew across the face of goal before anyone could tap the ball into an empty net. 

On Dartford’s next attack Burns was left holding his head on the edge of the Margate box after a clash with John Keister – the home fans seemed to indicate that the Sierra Leone international had used his elbow on Burns, but the officials gave nothing and the game resumed.

A couple of minutes later Turner was relieved to grab Tait’s attempted chip after the keeper and Keister got in a huge muddle on the edge of the visitors box as the defender unsuccessfully tried to shepherd the ball back to his stopper behind him.

Then on 23 minutes there was an altercation between Dafter and Sam Jones in midfield that lead to both players being lectured by referee Rock. 

Both escaped without even a caution which to many who had the same view as this reporter was extremely surprising as it did appear that Jones had “pushed his head” into Dafter’s face.

Adam Gross then fired in a shot from 30 yards that Turner did well to grab at the base of his right post, before Keister came within a whisker of heading Hayes’ bulleted right wing cross into the roof of his own net – the ball flying inches past the angle of post and bar on its way fro a corner that was cleared.

Margate’s first chance of note arrived almost as the first 45 minutes expired. 

Pinnock created the chance with a surging run before, Jones swept a looping dipping drive inches past Young’s right post with the keeper scrambling.

The second half became very cagey until Dafter’s mistake on 67 minutes allowed Saunders to play the ball through to Pinnock to score despite the home protests that Pinnock was offside. 

Saunders indeed was by this stage pulling the strings for Margate in a way that was reminiscent of the way he’d done for the club during his first spell at Hartsdown Park. 

Indeed, only Young’s right post stopped the impressive Stubbs from doubling the lead on 69 minutes as the left wing back latched onto Pinnock’s lay off before he let fly with a drive that beat Young but clipped the right post ion its way to safety!

The League Leaders then made a double change with Rob Haworth and Carl Rook replacing Tait and Burns, but the change brought no change in Margate’s rear guard action, and despite Gross firing just over from Haworth’s lay back, and Hayes bouncing a free kick off of the top of Turners cross bar in stoppage time, the Darts never really looked like a team at the top of the League – though to be fair, Margate didn’t look like a side at the bottom either! 

Somehow, I think only one of those two current positions will change come the end of April – here’s hoping that it’s not Dartford’s!

Dartford: Andrew Young, Billy Burgess, Adam Gross, Adam Flanagan, John Beales, Danny Dafter (James White 75), Ryan Hayes, Danny Harris, Allan Tait (Rob Haworth 75), Lee Burns (Carl Rook 67), Elliott Bradbrook.
Subs: Lee Noble, Jamie Coyle

Booked: Rob Haworth 89

Margate: Jamie Turner, Aaron Lacey, Dan Stubbs, John Keister, Grant Cooper, Dan Young, Ty Benjamin (Sam Groombridge 87), Jay Saunders, Leroy Huggins, James Pinnock, Sam Jones (Lloyd Blackman 89).
Subs: Dean Grant, Tommy Osbourne, Alex Krunie.

Goal: James Pinnock 67

Booked: Dan Stubbs 59, Lloyd Blackman 90

Attendance: 907
Referee: Mr David Rook (Hatfield, Hertfordshire)
Assistants: Mr Michael Barnes (London N16) & Mr Warren Harvey (Waltham Abbey, Essex)