Richard Langley's Dover side recorded their fifth consecutive win in all competitions and their first back-to-back league victories of the season with a comprehensive win against Grantham Town on Saturday afternoon. The 2-0 scoreline barely did justice to the Whites' superiority but unfortunately the result was somewhat overshadowed by a serious injury to Athletic defender Dean Readings.

Readings was carried from the field on a stretcher early in the second half having been caught from behind by a two footed challenge from ex-Rushden and Kettering forward Dale Watkins, currently on loan at Grantham from Chelmsford City. An ambulance was called for and Deano was taken to hospital before the conclusion of the match, where it was confirmed that his left ankle was broken.

By the time of Readings' enforced early departure the Whites were already well in control of the match. Two goals to the good and threatening to inflict a cricket score on their visitors. The hard work had been done in the first 45 minutes and for 25 minutes at the start of the second half, Dover's attacking play was irresistable and only some desperate defending and a lot of luck kept the score respectable.

Spearheaded by a magnificent individual performance from Tommy Tyne and with Jamie Day back to the sort of form that earned him the player-of-the-year accolades last season, 2-0 at half-time was the least that Dover deserved. They first threatened Ziccardi's goal from Matt Carruthers' ninth minute free-kick. Leading scorer Craig Wilkins connected with a diving header from 12 yards but his effort flashed just wide of the upright. In the 25th minute Athletic eventually took the lead, through Jamie Day's second goal of the week. Day picked up the ball in midfield and took it forward 10 yards with the Grantham defenders backing off before placing it into the far bottom corner from 25 yards.

Eight minutes later Wilkins threatened again with another header from a Carruthers set-piece. This time his effort from a corner went narrowly over but it took him just another five minutes to record his sixteenth goal of the season. Tyne's perfect throughball put him away and he drew the keeper before drilling across the goal into the bottom corner, despite Ziccardi getting a hand to the ball. It was Wilkins' 13th league goal and keeps him just one behind Stafford Rangers' Daniel Davidson at the top of the division's goalscoring charts. Wilkins has almost delivered on his promise to the Dover supporters that he would score 20 goals this season and quicker than anyone would have hoped. With another two matches in December the possibility remains that he may even reach the target before the turn of the year.

A third goal before the break would not have been undeserved and Tommy Tyne came agonisingly close to delivering it in stoppage time. Under pressure from Matt Carruthers, Ziccardi screwed his clearance from a back-pass straight to Tyne. Tyne attempted to lob the stranded goalkeeper from 35 yards and his effort looked in all the way until it just drifted inches wide of the back post at the last moment.

The Whites came out strongly at the start of the second half and threatened to overwhelm the Lincolnshire side. Play was held up for several minutes soon after the restart after Watkins' reckless challenge on Readings. Despite catching the Dover defender from behind, before the ball had even arrived, with his two-footed lunge, Watkins somehow escaped punishment and was allowed to continue. Readings was not so lucky.

With Andy Arnott on in place of Readings, Dover continued where they had left off at the end of the first half. Somehow events conspired to prevent them adding to their lead in the 58th minute. Matt Carruthers cross from the right ran on to Jimmy Jackson arriving on the left-hand side of the penalty area. He stood the ball up to the back post were Wilkins rose to meet it with a commanding downward header that came back off the base of the opposite upright. Tyne collected the loose ball but his effort was deflected behind for a corner.

Two minutes later Jamie Day would have secured another goal-of-the-season award but for an excellent save by Ziccardi. A couple of Grantham headers cleared Matt Carruthers' cross, but only as far as Day who took the ball on his thigh before striking a 35-yard right-footed effort that Ziccardi did well to palm away from the top corner of his goal at the expense of a corner.

The 68th minute almost brought the goal that Tommy Tyne's impressive display had deserved. Jamie Day won the ball in the air from Paul Hyde's long kick, despite being fouled. The referee signalled advantage and Jackson clipped the ball over the top into the path of Tyne. As the goalkeeper came out Tyne cleverly hooked the ball over his shoulder towards the unprotected net but despite bouncing on the line the ball somehow stayed out.

The chances came less frequently after that but Grantham never looked capable of a comeback. Paul Hyde's duties were restricted to a couple of regulation catches in the course of the afternoon and the only slight threat from the visitors was an off-target header at the back post from a free-kick in front of the Family Stand. Dover did cause a few more anxious moments in the Grantham area but were unable to add to a scoreline that scarcely told the story of an excellent Dover performance.

The next first team match at Crabble is on Boxing Day at 3:00pm when the Whites take on Eastbourne Borough in the Dr. Martens League. Next Saturday Athletic travel to Somerset looking for some revenge against the only visiting team to have won at the Hoverspeed Stadium this season, Weston-super-Mare.

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