Birchard spot on in thriller
Express Autocentre Maidstone & MidKent Sunday League
Tonbridge boss Steve McKimm has allowed Dan Bennett to rejoin Merstham after a brief spell at Longmead. McKimm wanted the midfielder to stay but wasn’t going to stand in his way. He said: “It just didn’t work out for Dan here. He decided to leave and we wish him all the best. “I didn’t want him to go but I only honour people’s wishes. “He phoned me on Sunday to say it wasn’t working out. He did well when he played but players have to decide what they want and there’s no point keeping an unhappy player. “He’s gone back to Merstham. They’ve lost a couple of players and it’s helped that he’s gone straight back into their side.” Tonbridge’s Bostik Premier play-off bid suffered with a third straight defeat at the weekend, losing 4-2 at Needham Market. Angels were four down when Sam Bantick and Joe Turner scored late on. McKimm was pleased with the performance despite the result. He said: “It sounds perverse really, and fans don’t want to hear it but we played well. We had 17 attempts on target but only scored twice.” Tonbridge remain 11th and McKimm said: “Fans, players, managers, we all want to be the best we can and at the moment, this season hasn’t worked out for us. “I allude to what we’ve done in the past but that’s history now and we’ve got to look to the future.” Tonbridge host fifth-placed Staines on Saturday - a side McKimm rates highly. He said: “They’ve got a good front three who score a lot of goals, they’re strong and well-organised.”
PWD L F A Ps Wigan ........... 27 18 6 3 53 13 60 Blackburn ..... 29 17 8 4 54 27 59 Shrewsbury .. 28 17 7 4 37 20 58 Scunthorpe ... 30 14 9 7 42 30 51 Bradford ....... 30 15 3 12 44 45 48 Rotherham .... 29 14 5 10 48 36 47 Charlton ........ 28 13 7 8 37 33 46 Peterboro ...... 28 12 7 9 46 37 43 Portsmouth ... 29 13 3 13 34 33 42 Gillingham .... 29 10 10 9 34 32 40 Bristol Rvrs ... 29 12 3 14 42 45 39 Oxford .......... 29 10 8 11 44 43 38 Plymouth ...... 30 10 8 12 33 39 38 Doncaster ..... 30 9 10 11 34 35 37 Fleetwood ..... 29 10 6 13 40 45 36 AFC Wmbldn . 29 9 7 13 29 33 34 Southend ...... 29 9 7 13 35 49 34 Walsall.......... 28 8 9 11 35 41 33 Blackpool...... 29 8 9 12 34 40 33 Northamptn .. 30 9 6 15 28 50 33 MK Dons ....... 28 7 9 12 29 40 30 Oldham ......... 30 7 8 15 41 55 29 Bury.............. 29 6 5 18 23 44 23 Rochdale ...... 26 4 10 12 26 37 22 Results: Saturday: Bristol Rovers 1 Shrewsbury 2, Bury 1 Blackpool 1, Charlton 2 Oxford 3, Fleetwood 2 Scunthorpe 3, Northampton 0 Rochdale 1, Oldham 2 Bradford 1, Peterborough 0 Southend 1, Plymouth 2 Blackburn 0, Portsmouth 2 Doncaster 2, Rotherham 2 AFC Wimbledon 0, Walsall 1 MK Dons 0, Wigan 2 Gillingham 0. Tuesday: Bury 2 AFC Wimbledon 1. Fixtures: Saturday: AFC Wimbledon v Northampton, Blackburn v Oldham, Blackpool v Walsall, Bradford v Bury, Doncaster v Charlton, Gillingham v Peterborough, MK Dons v Plymouth, Oxford v Bristol Rovers, Rochdale v Fleetwood, Scunthorpe v Rotherham, Shrewsbury v Plymouth, Southend v Wigan. Tuesday: Bristol Rovers v Rochdale, Bury v Southend, Charlton v Bradford, Fleetwood v Shrewsbury, Northampton v Gillingham, Oldham v MK Dons, Peterborough v Scunthorpe, Plymouth v AFC Wimbledon, Portsmouth v Blackburn, Rotherham v Oxford, Walsall v Doncaster, Wigan v Blackpool. FA TROPHY Third round Results: Saturday: Dover 3 Leyton Orient 4, Maidstone 2 Gateshead 2, Workington 1 Bromley 1.
Third round replay Results: Tuesday: Bromley 7 Workington 1, Gateshead 3 Maidstone 0.
PWD L F A Ps Wrexham ...... 32 15 11 6 37 24 56 Macclesfield . 31 16 8 7 39 33 56 Aldershot ...... 31 15 10 6 49 32 55 Tranmere ...... 32 15 9 8 51 30 54 Sutton........... 30 15 7 8 44 35 52 Dover............ 31 13 12 6 43 26 51 Bromley ........ 31 14 8 9 53 37 50 Boreham W ... 31 13 11 7 45 32 50 AFC Fylde ..... 32 13 10 9 56 41 49 Dagenham .... 31 12 9 10 48 40 45 Eastleigh....... 32 10 14 8 51 50 44 Ebbsfleet ...... 32 10 13 9 41 39 43 Maidenhead .. 31 10 11 10 42 43 41 Gateshead .... 30 9 13 8 38 31 40 Woking ......... 31 11 6 14 40 48 39 Maidstone..... 31 9 11 11 38 48 38 L Orient ........ 31 9 8 14 39 46 35 Hartlepool ..... 31 8 10 13 35 45 34 FC Halifax ..... 31 8 10 13 32 43 34 Barrow.......... 30 7 10 13 37 43 31 Solihull M ..... 31 8 6 17 32 46 30 Chester ......... 31 5 12 14 27 51 27 Torquay ........ 32 5 9 18 28 53 24 Guiseley........ 30 4 10 16 27 56 22 Results: Saturday: AFC Fylde 2 Eastleigh 2, FC Halifax P-P Dagenham, Guiseley 0 Wrexham 2, Torquay 3 Barrow 1, Tranmere 3 Ebbsfleet 0. Fixtures: Saturday: Barrow v Hartlepool, Bromley v Maidstone, Dagenham v Aldershot, Dover v Sutton, Eastleigh v Boreham Wood, Ebbsfleet v Solihull Moors, Gateshead v AFC Fylde, Leyton Orient v Tranmere, Macclesfield v Guiseley, Maidenhead v Torquay, Woking v Chester, Wrexham v FC Halifax. Tuesday: Barrow v Sutton, Guiseley v Gateshead. Billericay....... 24 20 3 1 67 19 63 Dulwich ........ 31 19 6 6 62 31 63 Margate ........ 32 17 9 6 56 33 60 Folkestone .... 30 17 5 8 66 46 56 Staines ......... 30 16 7 7 68 44 55 Wingate & F .. 31 17 4 10 47 41 55 Hendon ......... 29 16 4 9 68 41 52 Met Police..... 33 14 9 10 56 49 51 Leiston ......... 30 14 7 9 51 39 49 Leatherhead . 29 15 3 11 39 35 48 Tonbridge ..... 31 12 5 14 40 44 41 Thurrock ....... 33 12 4 17 45 58 40 Brightlngsea . 31 11 5 15 53 59 38 Merstham ..... 32 10 8 14 50 59 38 Dorking Wdr . 28 10 6 12 47 51 36 Enfield Town . 31 9 9 13 46 55 36 Kingstonian... 30 11 2 17 36 53 35 Lowestoft...... 32 10 4 18 43 56 34 Harrow ......... 31 10 4 17 43 63 34 Needham M .. 32 8 9 15 51 58 33 Worthing ....... 31 8 7 16 45 62 31 Tooting ......... 33 8 6 19 46 79 30 Harlow .......... 32 8 4 20 35 65 28 Burgess Hill .. 28 7 6 15 41 61 27 Results: Saturday: Burgess Hill 2 Hendon 4, Dorking Wanderers P-P Harrow, Dulwich 0 Met Police 0, Folkestone 3 Brightlingsea 2, Kingstonian 0 Tooting 1, Leiston 2 Worthing 3, Margate 1 Lowestoft 0, Needham Market 4 Tonbridge 2, Staines 4 Merstham 2, Thurrock 3 Enfield Town 1, Wingate & Finchley 3 Leatherhead 1. Monday: Kingstonian P-P Merstham. Tuesday: Lowestoft 3 Enfield Town 0, Wingate & Finchley 1 Tooting 1. Fixtures: Saturday: Brightlingsea v Margate, Enfield Town v Kingstonian, Harlow v Burgess Hill, Harrow v Thurrock, Hendon v Dorking Wanderers, Leatherhead v Needham Market, Lowestoft v Dulwich, Merstham v Leiston, Met Police v Billericay, Tonbridge v Staines, Tooting v Wingate & Finchley, Worthing v Folkestone. Tuesday: Billericay v Lowestoft, Dorking Wanderers v Wingate & Finchley, Enfield Town v Burgess Hill, Hendon v Leiston. KENT RELIANCE SENIOR TROPHY
Quarter-final Results: Wednesday: Canterbury 7 SC Thamesmead 3 aet (3-3 at 90mins), Erith Town 0 Whitstable 2.
Semi-final Fixtures: Saturday: Canterbury v Sheppey, Whitstable v Cray Valley. Sevenoaks .... 20 14 5 1 39 13 47 Whitstable .... 22 14 3 5 40 19 45 Beckenham .. 22 14 2 6 52 32 44 Crowboro ...... 22 13 4 5 55 27 43 Croydon ........ 25 12 4 9 44 41 40 Lordswood .... 24 11 6 7 39 37 39 Deal .............. 22 12 2 8 40 36 38 AFC Croydon . 23 11 5 7 38 34 38 Corinthian ..... 23 11 4 8 36 33 37 Canterbury .... 23 9 8 6 35 28 35 Cray Valley.... 23 10 3 10 42 39 33 Sheppey ....... 22 9 5 8 47 31 32 Bearsted ....... 27 10 1 16 31 41 31 Glebe ............ 24 9 4 11 36 50 31 Erith Town .... 23 8 4 11 32 35 28 Chatham ....... 24 7 5 12 28 36 26 Tun Wells...... 23 7 5 11 30 41 26 Rusthall ........ 24 6 3 15 32 56 21 Rochester ..... 22 3 3 16 26 58 12 Hollands & B . 22 1 2 19 22 57 5 Results: Saturday: AFC Croydon Ath 1 Canterbury 1, Chatham 1 Croydon 1, Corinthian 2 Rochester 3, Cray Valley 1 Bearsted 0, Crowborough 2 Beckenham 2, Glebe 1 Lordswood 3, Sheppey 1 Sevenoaks 2, Tunbridge Wells 3 Rusthall 2, Whitstable 2 Hollands & Blair 0. Fixtures: Saturday: Bearsted v Sevenoaks, Beckenham v Chatham, Corinthian v AFC Croydon Ath, Croydon v Glebe, Erith Town v Lordswood, Hollands & Blair v Tunbridge Wells, Rusthall v Deal. Tuesday: Crowborough v AFC Croydon Ath, Sevenoaks v Erith Town, Sheppey v Beckenham. Punjab Utd .... 24 18 4 2 70 28 58 K Sports........ 24 18 3 3 62 26 57 Fisher ........... 24 16 3 5 65 28 51 Bridon Rps .... 27 13 4 10 65 55 43 Kent F U (-9) . 26 16 3 7 78 50 42 Snodland ...... 26 13 3 10 59 54 42 Holmesdale... 24 12 4 8 62 40 40 Snodland Town beat Park Royal 5- 4 in a Premier Division thriller.
Royal led through Sean Adams after five minutes but Jamie Birchard levelled from the spot and Snodland went 3-1 up early in the second half with Harry Dawes’ smart finish and another Birchard penalty.
Back came Royal as Dan Melvin’s quick double squared the match, only for Dawes and substitute Shane Tree to give Snodland a 5-3 lead.
Jimmy Funnell scored Royal’s fourth but they were denied an equaliser by a string of outstanding saves from man-of-the-match Paul Ambler.
K Sports won 4-2 at White Horse with Rhys Abioye scoring twice and Jason Goodchild, who was later sent off, making it 3- 0.
Horse replied through Ian Knight and Joe Boorman but the 10 men netted a fourth when Farai Maganga scored in the 80th minute.
Fishermans Arms are through to the Presidents Cup final.
They were too strong for East Malling, winning 4-1.
Man-of-the-match George O’Mahoney scored twice, with Tom Carr and Ali Simpson also on target. Lee Fincham scored Malling’s consolation.
Cross Keys beat Ryarsh 4-3 on penalties after a 1-1 draw in the Erith & Bel .... 22 11 5 6 59 36 38 Stansfeld ...... 24 11 5 8 56 56 38 Lydd ............. 26 11 2 13 60 57 35 FC Elmstead . 23 9 5 9 49 44 32 SC T’mead .... 23 9 3 11 48 41 30 Meridian ....... 23 8 4 11 44 47 28 Phoenix Res .. 23 7 4 12 39 46 25 Sutton Ath..... 25 6 6 13 43 56 24 Forest Hill ..... 23 7 3 13 41 59 24 Gravesham ... 25 4 5 16 30 73 17 Lewisham ..... 23 4 2 17 32 80 14 Crockenhill ... 25 3 0 22 28114 9 Results: Saturday: Bridon Ropes 2 Lydd 1, Erith & Belvedere 3 Gravesham 3, Fisher 2 K Sports 2, Forest Hill 3 Meridian1, Kent Football Utd 2 Punjab Utd 6, Phoenix Res 7 Lewisham 0, Snodland 1 Stansfeld 4, Sutton Ath 3 SC Thamesmead 2. Monday: Lewisham 0 Sutton Ath 5. Tuesday: Erith & Belvedere 4 Forest Hill 1, Phoenix Res 0 Holmesdale 3, Stansfeld 4 Bridon Ropes 2. Fixtures: Saturday: Bridon Ropes v Forest Hill, FC Elmstead v Meridian, Fisher v Kent Football Utd, K Sports v Crockenhill, Lewisham v Lydd, Punjab Utd v Erith & Belvedere, SC Thamesmead v Holmesdale, Sutton Ath v Phoenix Sports Res. Monday: Lewisham v Erith & Belvedere. Challenge Cup Quarter-final Fixtures: Tuesday: Chatham v Lordswood, Tunbridge Wells v Cray Valley, Whitstable v Deal. Kennington ... 16 14 0 2 60 19 42 Greenways.... 14 11 3 0 41 17 36 Tudor Sports . 19 9 4 6 40 33 31 Invitation Cup.
Rob Rose headed Ryarsh in front straight after half-time but striker Richard Alcorn equalised with a 70th-minute tap-in.
Coxheath had too much for Bearsted under-18s, winning 5- 0, with goals from Mark Batten (2), Max Maher, Ionut Ene and man-of-the-match Matt Batstone.
But Kings Hill under-18s advanced after beating Walnut Wanderers 4-1.
Barming Colts and Invicta Sunday shared the points in a Division 3 title battle.
Dan Porter met Shaun Dowling’s cross as Invicta took an early lead, while Tyler Money went close to a second.
Invicta keeper Luke Black made a flying save after the break but Barming finally equalised with a fine goal from Sam Carter.
Shaun Dowling had a goal ruled out for offside for Invicta a minute later and defender Ellis Sage missed a chance at the death. Peckham ...... 15 8 4 3 32 15 28 Stansfeld ...... 18 8 4 6 40 41 28 Otford Utd ..... 17 8 3 6 45 33 27 Metrogas ...... 19 8 3 8 41 46 27 Bexley .......... 14 8 2 4 27 21 26 N Romney ..... 21 6 7 8 35 41 25 Borden Vill .... 16 7 3 6 40 36 24 Lew Athletic .. 14 5 4 5 28 30 19 Fleetdown ..... 20 4 5 11 21 34 17 Lydd Res ...... 17 4 4 9 38 50 16 Staplehurst ... 20 4 4 12 41 62 16 Fav Strike ..... 21 4 3 14 31 61 15 F’boro OBG ... 17 2 5 10 17 38 10 Hawkinge ..... 14 12 0 2 53 18 36 Kings Hill ...... 14 11 1 2 56 18 34 Deal Sports ... 14 11 1 2 45 18 34 Cuxton 91 ..... 12 8 1 3 43 10 25 K Sports Res . 12 7 2 3 37 20 23 Herne Bay R.. 15 4 1 10 21 49 13 Rolvenden..... 13 4 1 8 22 36 12 Guru Nanak .. 16 3 3 10 21 44 12 Hildenboro .... 17 2 2 13 25 70 8 Hollands Res . 15 2 2 11 16 56 7 Wateringbry .. 14 11 1 2 53 23 34 L’wood Res ... 13 9 2 2 41 26 29 Burgess H ..... 15 8 4 3 49 36 28 Roch City ........ 8 6 1 1 55 11 19 W Farleigh .... 11 5 2 4 25 20 17 Rusthall Res.. 12 5 2 5 21 29 17 Snodland R ... 12 4 3 5 31 31 15 Ashford ......... 12 4 2 6 36 30 14 Ton Invicta .... 13 4 2 7 35 35 14 Larkfield ....... 12 0 1 11 6 72 1 N Romney R.. 10 0 0 10 15 54 -1 AEI Sports ..... 15 12 2 1 64 18 38 Deal Sp Res .. 14 9 4 1 49 19 31 AFC Ashford .. 13 8 3 2 42 18 27 F’sham Res... 15 8 2 5 43 36 26 Bromley Grn.. 12 6 1 5 31 21 19 Univ of Kent .. 10 5 3 2 24 17 18 CC Sport ....... 16 4 5 7 45 49 17 Woodnesb’.... 16 5 2 9 28 46 17 Deal T Rgrs ... 12 5 1 6 28 34 16 Tenterden ..... 14 3 1 10 31 54 10 S’hurst Res ... 13 2 2 9 27 41 8 Aylesford ...... 12 1 0 11 11 70 3 Results: Premier Division: Faversham Strike Force 4 Borden 2, Kennington 2 Staplehurst 1, Lydd Res 1 New Romney 1, Otford 4 Fleetdown 1, Tudor Sports 2 Lewisham Ath 3. Division 1 Central & East: Herne Bay Res 0 Hawkinge 7, Hollands & Blair Res 1 Rolvenden 0, Kings Hill 3 Cuxton 91 3. Division 2 Central & East: Lordswood Res 5 Ashford 3, New Romney Res 1 West Farleigh 2, Wateringbury 6 Snodland Res 2. Division 3 Central & East: Bromley Green 0 Faversham Res 2, CC Sport 4 Deal Town Rgrs 2, Deal Sports Res 2 AFC Ashford Ath 2, Staplehurst Res 4 Woodnesborough 1, Tenterden 8 Aylesford 2. Bill Manlow Inter-Regional Challenge Cup third round: Club Langley 4 K Sports Res 0, Metrogas 3 Deal Sports 1. Les Leckie Cup quarter-final: Kent 1 Rochester City 2. Kent Intermediate Challenge Shield semi-final: Greenways 2 St Peters 4. Fixtures: Premier Division: Farnborough OBG v Faversham Strike Force, Fleetdown v Lewisham Ath, Greenways v Kennington, Otford Utd v New Romney, Stansfeld v Peckham Town, Staplehurst v Tudor Sports. Division 1 Central & East: Cuxton 91 v Rolvenden, Deal Sports v K Sports Res, Univ of