Match Report

Leverstock Green put up a great effort against a side two levels higher in the non-league pyramid, and even briefly led the game at one stage, but in the end Bostik League Premier Division side Dorking Wanderers came away with the win and ended the Green’s impressive run in the Emirates FA Cup at the Second Round Qualifying stage.

Despite the rain which persisted all afternoon there was a good crowd of 130 at Pancake Lane for this afternoon’s game. The visitors made the stronger start, with Jason Prior heading just wide from a free kick in the 3rd minute. Leverstock’s first effort on goal came in the 13th minute when Jonathan Lacey beat a defender on the left edge of the penalty area before hitting a shot which was saved by Dorking keeper Slavomir Huk. Seconds later at the other end a pass from Kieran Lavery put Niall McManus through on goal but he shot wide.

In the 21st minute Luke Preedy played a great ball forward to Lacey, who worked the opportunity for a shot from the edge of the box which went just wide. Three minutes later it was Lacey playing a great ball to put Brima Johnson away down the left. Johnson outpaced defender Isaac Philpot but his cross was cleared from in front of goal. The ball was back at the other end shortly afterwards, and Lavery received the ball with his back to goal inside the box, with Preedy in close attendance. Preedy made an effort to get the ball, but brought Lavery down, and the referee pointed to the penalty spot. Prior sent Arvydas Kacinkevicius the wrong way from the spot to put Dorking into a 1-0 lead in the 26th minute.

Prior came close to adding a second for the visitors on 31 minutes but his long-range shot brought a great save out of Kacinkevicius, turning it round the post. In the 38th minute a foul on Chris Blunden just outside the box gave Leverstock a free kick in a great position. Blunden’s first effort hit the wall, but his second effort was a cross to the far post where Lacey headed back across goal to Alex Witham, whose header was deflected over the bar. The resulting corner taken by Lacey went over the keeper to the far edge of the box, where Witham put the ball back into the danger area. Although Blunden was close to the ball, it was Lavery who put through his own net to put Leverstock back on level terms at 1-1.

The Green were back in the game, but they would have to play the rest of it without their skipper Shane Wood, who in trying to turn quickly went over on his ankle during the build-up to the goal. After five minutes of treatment Wood had to leave the game to be replaced by Alex Yearwood. The resulting stoppage time saw two more goals scored. Three minutes into stoppage time a Dorking defender tried to pass the ball back to his keeper Huk, but didn’t spot the presence of Lacey, who intercepted the back pass and stroked a superb finish past Huk to put Leverstock into a shock 2-1 lead. However, the lead lasted less than a minute as Dorking went straight back down the other end and a pass through the middle put McManus through to level the scores at 2-2.

Leverstock’s impressive first half display prompted the visitors into a double substitution and a change of formation at half time. It was still a closely-fought battle, with Leverstock having another couple of chances around the hour mark, both near-misses from Blunden. The first was a shot from the edge of the box which was saved by Huk, the second a free kick from just outside the box which took a slight deflection and hit the bar. Having gone so close to going back in front, Leverstock found themselves back in arrears in the 63rd minute as they were caught on the break from a corner. A great run from substitute Tom Tolfrey was spotted by Lavery, who threaded the ball into his path, and having comfortably beaten the offside trap, Tolfrey went on to slot past Kacinkevicius for a 3-2 Dorking lead.

Leverstock went close again three minutes later as Luke Nugent went on a run down the right before laying off for Yearwood, who hit a great curling shot which Huk did well to turn round the post. However, towards the end of the game it was Dorking who were looking the stronger side, and after Kacinkevicius had pulled off a couple of good saves to keep Leverstock in the game, finally in the 86th minute Lavery was put through to take the ball round the Green keeper and slot home the fourth goal which sealed his side’s victory.

Despite the result it was an excellent hard-working performance across the park from the Leverstock side, who rarely looked two levels inferior to their opponents. With the FA Cup run over, Leverstock must now turn their attention back to the league, where they have played the fewest number of games in the division, starting with a tough visit to Biggleswade United next Saturday.