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Old 11-07-2013, 12:21 AM   #13
NoSkillz
College Benchwarmer
 
Join Date: Dec 2002
Location: St. Catharines, Canada
2012/13 Blue Square Bet Premier Results

After a scintillating preseason, we were humbled by Gateshead in game one, dropping a 1-0 decision away to start the season on a sour note. We'd exchange some wins and a few losses, and sat near the upper half of the table with six wins and four losses through ten games.

We'd absolutely take off in late November, with a season-changing loss in the FA Cup refocusing our squad on league play. We'd lose only one game between November 24th, 2012 and March 9, 2013, going an incredible 19 wins 2 draws and 1 loss in a 22 game period and that was enough to propel us to the top of the Conference Premier table.

We'd have a brief three game losing streak after that but recover with 7 more undefeated league games before losing our season finale against Kettering but thankfully, that game didn't matter.

With 99 points, we were 9 points clear of second placed Darlington, giving us the Blue Square Bet Premier championship and most importantly, earning us promotion to League 2 and into fully professional football!



Blue Square Bet Premier 2012-13 League Awards

Top Goalscorer: Adi Yussuf, Histon & Guillem Bauza, Hereford - 24
Most Assists: Derek Doyle, Hereford - 22
Highest Average Rating: Paul McLaughlin, Wrexham - 7.38
Most Man of Match Awards: Ian Miller, Darlington- 9
Player of the Season: Guillem Bauza, Hereford - 46apps 24g 13a 7.26 Avg Rating
Manager of the Season: NoSkillz, Dover

Guillem Bauza was the top player in the Conference Premier for Hereford but could only lead his club to 4th place, where they'd eventually lose in the playoffs, missing out on promotion. I had a great year, winning the manager of the month award three times (November, December and February) and the Blue Square Bet Premier Manager of the Year for 2012/13.

Cup Competitions 2012-13

FA Cup -
It was a short stay in the FA Cup for us in 2012. We'd draw non-league side Tiverton Town at home in the 4th qualifying round and defeat them easily but drew League 2 side Rotherham United in the 1st round proper. We'd do well to battle them to a draw at home but would lose 3-1 away in the replay.

4th Qualifying Round - Dover 4 Tiverton 0
1st Round - Dover 1 Rotherham 1
1st Round Replay - Rotherham 3 Dover 1

FA Trophy
Could we pull off the three-peat?!

We'd get off to a roaring start in the competition, with two 4-1 away wins and a 3-1 home win in the first three rounds. We'd knock off a tough AFC Wimbledon team to get to the semifinals, where we'd match up against Boreham Wood. Despite being favoured, we'd lose 2-1 in the first leg, meaning we'd have to win by at least two goals (or win 1-0) to move on. Thankfully, we'd prevail 2-0 at home to reach our third consecutive FA Trophy final, this time matching up against league rival Darlington.

In perhaps the greatest game in FA Trophy history, we'd finish 120 minutes of football with the score knotted at 2, meaning the cup would be decided in a 5-round penalty shootout.

Our fine centre midfielder Richie Ryan would miss on our second attempt while Darlington's first four players all scored. Their fifth shooter, James Baxter, would miss, giving us the reprieve.

Shockingly, the next three players on each club would not score so through 8 shooters, we were tied 4-4. Interestingly enough, GK Liam O'Brien was up next for Dover and he calmly drove a low shot into the corner for the goal! Alas, Darlington would match his effort.

Defender Jamie Reckord was next for us and he'd score but so too would Padriac Ormsby for Darlington. Our 11th shooter was midfielder Jon Wallis and he made no mistake, bringing up Darlington's goalkeeper to keep his team alive. He would drive his effort wide and that gave us a thrilling 7-6 penalty shootout win and our third consecutive FA Trophy!!!

1st Round - Hastings United 1 Dover 4
2nd Round - Dover 3 Farnborough 1
3rd Round - Chelmsford 1 Dover 4
4th Round - Dover 2 AFC Wimbledon 0
Semi Final Leg 1 - Boreham Wood 2 Dover 1
Semi Final Leg 2 - Dover 2 Boreham Wood 0 (Dover wins 3-2 aggregate)
Final - Dover p 2 Darlington 2 - Dover wins 7-6 on penalties (at Wembley Stadium)
DOVER WINS 2012/13 FA TROPHY

2012-13 Overall Dover Statistics

Top Goalscorer: Ben Hunt - 22
Top League Goalscorer: Ben Hunt - 21
Most Assists: Jon Wallis - 17
Highest Average Rating: Oliver Nicholas - 7.22 (45 apps)
Most Man of Match Awards: Ben Hunt - 8
Fans Player of the Year: Ben Hunt

2012-13 Dover Best Eleven

GK - Liam O'Brien - 43 apps 0g 6.86 avg
DL - Jamie Reckord - 37 apps 2g 7.14 avg
DC - David Ogilby - 45 apps 3g 7.14 avg
DC - Oliver Nicholas - 45 apps 4g 7.22 avg
DR - Carl Jenkinson - 20 apps 0g 7.20 avg
ML - Ismael Fofana - 47 apps 7g 7.01 avg
MC - Jon Wallis - 44 apps 3g 7.12 avg
MC - Richie Ryan - 46 apps 13g 7.01 avg
MR - Abdeltareck Sakali - 47 apps 12g 7.07 avg
ST - Jamie Mclaren - 29 apps 12g 7.14 avg
ST - Ben Hunt - 43 apps 22g 7.21 avg

Other notables: GK Reice Charles-Cook 13 apps 6.77; DC Olly Schulz 19 apps 0g 7.12; DR Conor Morrissey 33 apps 0g 7.02; ML Jake Caskey 31 apps 3g 6.94; MC Rhys McCabe 28 apps 1g 6.90; ST Razak Abdul 29 apps 8g 7.06; ST Connor Deards 15 apps 8g 7.14

GK -
Liam O'Brien continued to lead the way but Reice Charles-Cook forced his way onto the senior team over Liam Hogan, who I loaned out to Ebbsfleet for the season.

D -
Jamie Reckord stayed healthy all season and produced very well, while new captain David Ogilby showed leadership and grit in the middle of the defense alongside star defender Oliver Nicholas. The emergence of young DR Carl Jenkinson was a pleasant surprise, as he was forced into action after Conor Morrissey got injured. Olly Schulz saw his playing time decrease dramatically and it's looking like his time at Dover is close to an end.

M -
We continued to get excellent play out wide from Ismael Fofana and Abdeltareck Sakali and Richie Ryan was studly at our attacking MC position, with 13 goals on the year. The versatile Jon Wallis was our go-to corner taker and piled up a bunch of assists to prove his usefulness as a starter over players like Jake Caskey and Rhys McCabe.

F -
Without question, our best player this year was striker Ben Hunt and his consistent goal scoring has been very helpful in our rise into professional football. He has scored 53 league goals in 115 games at Dover. Jamie Mclaren was decent but very inconsistent while Razak Abdul battled injuries most of the season. We were shocked at the contributions of Connor Deards, who scored 8 goals in only 15 appearances so perhaps I'll have to utilize him more next season. Alan Murphy, a key pickup last year, was a huge disappointment despite his incredible speed.

Year-End Financials



Crowds seemed to stay away early in the season for some reason but started coming out in droves when we hit our hot spell in November. Still, one less FA Cup game and one less FA Trophy game meant almost 200K less in turnover while our expenses were up due to a larger squad. Our bank balance is still decent, thankfully.

Closing Thoughts

A wildly successful season that sees us lift a third consecutive FA Trophy and the Blue Square Bet Premier championship as well.

I think we're set up well to succeed at the next level, with a large stable of young prospects that will soon be ready to play on the senior team, along with a few key veterans. I'm a bit worried about the ramifications of moving into the professional ranks, especially with respect to salaries and hope our small club can get by.

I'm also going to have to start worrying about the lack of facilities at Dover, as it may be hard to recruit capable players to a club without decent training or youth facilities.

But for now, I'll enjoy our success and we look forward to our first year in professional football in 2013/14!

Last edited by NoSkillz : 11-07-2013 at 12:22 AM.
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