Tonbridge Angels 0 Dorking Wanderers 2

Match 115/18/1708 - Saturday, 13th April 2019 - Bostik Premier

Tonbridge Angels (0) 0
Dorking Wanderers (0) 2 Prior 17 Hall 44
Attendance: 825

Admission: Season Ticket
Programme: £2.50
Mileage: 38/6,755

The #Project800 social media post read: Nothing in life, let alone football, is won without a challenge and the challenges don’t come any bigger than when the Champions come to town. We need a #12thMan and you are that 12thMan. #Project800 through the gate and noise that will push the #Angels to the playoffs. And so it transpired, 800-plus people did come through the gate but the challenge of the Champions, Dorking Wanderers, was too great. They showed exactly why they are the Champions, controlling the game from almost every inch of the pitch.

The first quarter hour was largely one of each time finding the other out, Jason Prior had an air shot from a good position and, for the home side, Tom Derry didn’t have the pace to get clear of Isaac Philpot when he burst clear from inside of his own half.

But, on 17 minutes, Dorking opened up Tonbridge with ex-Angel spraying a pass to the right wing from where Matthew Briggs cut in to strike a fine shot, low to Jonny Henly’s left, who could only parry the ball into the path of Prior, who gratefully tucked the ball in the unguarded net from the angle of the six yard box.

Three minutes later, Reece Hall cut inside of James Folkes to fire in a low shot that Henly did well to save with Arthur Lee completing the clearance.

Tonbridge’s first real opportunity came on 21 minutes when Jack Parter brought a save out of Slavomir Huk at his near post, turning the shot aside for a corner.

The game settled into a stalemate in terms of chances before Huk turned over a Joe Turner drive on 36 minutes.

The wish on behalf of Tonbridge supporters at this stage would have been to have gotten to the break with only the single goal deficit but these hopes were dashed in the final minute of the half when a cross from the right by James McShane found an unmarked Hall at the far post for a tap-in to give Dorking a commanding position at half-time.

Tonbridge pressed forward in the second period but, to be fair, Dorking never looked like relinquishing their overall control of the game. A Turner free kick into the area was scuffed clear to the feet of Derry but the striker’s effort sailed over was the closest they came in first 20 minutes of the half.

Chinedu McKenzie and Adem Ramadan were introduced just past the hour for Alex Read and Jared Small but the chances that fell were nothing more than little nibbles. Lee’s header from a corner was cleared from in front of the line and Turner’s tempting to the cross was deflected to safety at the far post by Dorking’s Chris Boulter as the visitor’s intentions became little more than to preserve their lead.

A free kick driven at, and turned over, by Henly was just about Dorking’s only real foray in the second period, but that is not to say they were not in control of affairs.

A final minute header from Sonny Miles drifted frustratingly wide and with the final whistle, the Easter holiday period and matches against fellow play-off challengers Worthing and Carshalton Athletic carried even greater importance.