HEAD BOY LAVERY LEAVES IT SO LATE
White says Wanderers deserve second chance
DORKING boss Marc White felt his side were worthy of a replay as they twice overturned a two-goal deficit at managerless Gloucester City.
Kieran Lavery’s towering header ten minutes from time completed a spirited fightback from Wanderers after Fabien Robert’s brace looked like it had secured the Tigers a safe passage into the final qualifying round.
White said: “I don't think Gloucester deserved to win it – we gifted them a couple of goals and were guilty of some naïve defending. We carved out the better chances during the game so I thought the draw was a fair result.”
The game came to life on 16 minutes when Gloucester’s Mat Liddiard muscled his way clear of Luke Moore before bringing a sharp save out of keeper Slavomir Huk. But Dorking did not look intimidated by their National League South opponents and should have taken the lead when forward Jason Prior fired over from eight yards after racing onto Tom Richards’ defence-splitting pass.
It was the home side that drew first blood just after the half-hour mark. A corner was eventually worked to Joe Parker on the edge of the box and his low shot was poked beyond the helpless Huk by Jake Jackson. It looked like the Tigers had put the tie beyond their Surrey opponents five minutes after the break when Robert fired into the corner from 12 yards but Dorking grabbed a lifeline a minute later when the dangerous Prior side-footed home to round off a breathless counter-attack. Robert quickly restored Gloucester’s two-goal cushion after Parker’s brilliant run and cross only for the visitors to hit back again within three minutes. Robert was harshly adjudged to have fouled Lavery as they tussled inside the box, allowing Prior to calmly drill in the penalty. The visitors were now brimming with confidence and it was no surprise when Lavery had the final say with a towering header. Gloucester’s joint caretaker boss Tom Webb was left feeling aggrieved at the decision that led to Dorking’s second goal. “It wasn’t a penalty and that was a tough call on us – it gave them some momentum at a crucial time,” he said. “Having said that we didn’t do enough when we were two goals up to kill the game. They are a good side though and I am just relieved we are still in the draw.”