BOSS HESS: I WILL NOT WALK AWAY FROM WHITES
BELEAGUERED Andy Hessenthaler insists he won’t walk away from winless basement-boys Dover Athletic.
Some sections of the Crabble crowd were calling for the manager’s head during their latest home defeat to Barnet – who started the day second-bottom.
It was an eighth loss in 11 National League games and left the Whites 17 points from safety and with the potential for an FA Cup upset at home to Yate Town of the Southern League Premier Division next Saturday.
The Dover boss was joined in the dressing room by chairman Jim Parmenter after the final whistle and admitted: “He’s obviously disappointed, like we all are. He said just get into training and try to get through in the Cup. I’m sure Yate will be rubbing their hands together – it’s a banana skin, but it might be the catalyst to kick us on.”
He added: “I wouldn’t walk away. We’re doing as much as we can. We had nine out injured today. I don’t think we’ve ever been able to pick our strongest team. The chairman knows what we’re dealing with here.”
By contrast Barnet made it four games unbeaten under caretaker boss Dean Brennan and climbed to 17th after another improved display.
The Bees thought they were ahead inside 90 seconds when the lively Ephron Mason-Clark fed Daniel Powell down the right and his low cross was slammed home by Mason Bloomfield, only for the goal to be disallowed for offside.
The deadlock was broken on ten minutes as Mason-Clark sent a deep cross to the back post, Ben Richards-Everton nodded it back into the centre where Bloomfield arched his neck to turn a close range header past Adam Parkes.
Whites battled back and Koby Arthur drew a flying save from Bees debutant Aston Oxborough, who also turned a low Matt Bentley effort around his near post, while Aaron Cosgrave was inches away from a leveler when he flung himself at Sam Wood’s set-piece just before the half-hour, only to see his header trickle past the post with Oxborough stranded.
Powell fired past the post and Rob Hall was denied by Parkes either side of the break before Bloomfield turned provider just before the hour, threading a defence-splitting pass for Powell to run through and slot past Parkes.
Dover did pull one back five minutes later when the tireless Cosgrave fizzed a rocket just inside the post from well outside the box. It was his fourth goal of the season and just Dover’s sixth.
Hessenthaler introduced Ricky Miller and Khale Da Costa in an effort to salvage a point and Da Costa sent a diving header straight at Oxborough from a deep Miller cross with 20 minutes remaining.
Hall was denied by Parkes and Bees sub Kian Flanagan could only find the side-netting on the break while Jake Goodman’s glancing header in stoppage-time went straight to the grateful keeper.
STAR MAN: Harry Taylor (Barnet) ATT: 885 ENTERTAINMENT: ★★★★★ REFEREE: Tom Bishop