Dartford bowed out of this season’s FA Trophy, beaten by fellow National South side Whitehawk, but it took two moments that Mark Onyemah will not want to be reminded of that parted the sides.

Each side had one clear chance apiece early in the second half, but an unintentional use of the arm in trying to clear a corner saw Onyemah penalised, with Sam Deering converting the spot-kick.  Elliot Bradbrook levelled within two minutes, but an Onyemah clearance was charged down with six minutes to go leading to Danny Stevens’ deft finish sealing the tie.

On the back of four games unbeaten, Dartford flew out of the blocks and before Whitehawk could settle, had created three chances.  Danny Harris glanced a header wide from an early Tom Bradbrook cross.  Then both Ryan Hayes and Lee Noble had shots blocked as the visitors were being contained deep in their own half.

Whitehawk managed to move Deren Ibrahim around as they settled into their passing game as Jake Robinson forced a low save, followed by a two-handed tip over from the same player’s 30-yard freekick.  Sam Deering then drew another save from Ibrahim after shooting through a crowd of players.

Although the visitors were starting to control possession, Dartford were still testing the Whitehawk defence using Tom Bradbrook as a target man and Harris’ pace on the left.  Harris was denied by a perfectly timed tackle on the edge of the box by ex-Ebbsfleet defender Paul Lorraine, and then glanced another header wide from Noble’s freekick.

Lorraine had two shots blocked in quick succession by the Darts defence from a series of Whitehawk corners, before the home defence was truly opened up for the first time.  Robinson fed the ball out to the left wing to former Dart David Martin.  Callum McNaughton committed himself to a tackle that Martin skipped past, before curling a cross to the right side, where Robinson had made up the ground to volley into the side netting.

Craig Ross had to pull off a save from the head of his own defender, Dean Leacock, but the game started to take on an edge as it neared the interval with four cautions in 5 minutes as players from both sides started to lose discipline.  In the midst of this frantic spell, Tom Bradbrook was presented with a shooting opportunity in the ‘D’, but delayed in shifting the ball onto his left foot, allowing both Lorraine and Leacock to close him down.

Each side had a quality chance to take the lead in the opening minutes of the second half.  First, Martin worked hard to win the ball in the scoreboard corner, and released a pass into the run of Craig Barham-Barrett.  The Ebsfleet-loanee fullback played a cross into the path of Scott Neilson, who drive a first time shot goalwards, that Ibrahim had to fly high to his right to pull off a ‘worldy’ of a save.

At the other end, Elliot Bradbrook found Mark Onyemah overlapping on the left side.  The full-back cut inside Chris Sessegnon and crashed a right foot shot off the face of the bar.  The rebound fell to Hayes, whose first-time shot was deflected wide.

Noble’s freekicks continued to cause problems for the Whitehawk defence, with Callum McNaughton climbing highest, and drawing a good one-handed save out of Ross.

The deadlock was finally broken on 74, but it took a defensive slip for Whitehawk to take the lead.  Deering’s corner was headed clear by Harris, back towards the Whitehawk player on the edge of the area.  In trying to head clear, Onyemah’s right arm made contact and the referee, well placed, pointed immediately to the spot.  Deering stepped up and calmly sent Ibrahim the wrong way.

Within two minutes though, Dartford had equalised, although it was a moment the Whitehawk defence will want to forget.  Hayes’ inswinging corner from the right cleared a number of players in the middle, and Elliot Bradbrook ghosted in to tap into an unguarded net, although Hayes did later try to claim that it had gone directly in.

The visitors retook the lead on 84 and once again Onyemah was culpable. The fullback delayed his clearance allowing Robinson to charge him down.  The deflection fell for Danny Mills to cross into the area where Neilson laid the ball into the path of substitute Danny Stevens, who curled a low shot into the corner, leaving Ibrahim grasping at thin air.

As Dartford pushed for a second equaliser they were vulnerable to a quick break by Stevens on the left.  He found Robinson in space, but Ibrahim was able to effect the save low to his left to keep the score within one.

However, Whitehawk were able to control the closing minutes deep inside the Dartford half with the home side unable to find a way out.

A disappointed Tony Burman, Dartford’s manager, said after the match that: “I didn’t think that we deserved to lose the game, with all due respect.  We’ve contained a decent side and got better as the game went on, we upped the tempo and when we hit the bar, we just needed that to go in.”

Burman did have some consolatory words for Mark Onyemah, who was involved in one of Dartford’s best chances as well as Whitehawk’s two goals.

He added: “it’s happened to someone who has been outstanding for us.  Remember he was the one who hit the bar, and unfortunately he’s had a decision go against him (for the penalty).  Maybe he could have done better for the clearance, but that’s the way it goes.”

“We did alright today and thought we put a lot of work in to stop Whitehawk’s passing game; we contained them, but in the end we’ve given them two goals.  We still need to find that bit of quality in the final third and take our chances.  One minute you’re looking to try and win the game, the next you hope you won’t get punished for a mistake, which we did.”

DARTFORD: Deren Ibrahim, Tom Gardiner, Mark Onyemah, Ronnie Vint, Callum McNaughton, Lee Noble, Ryan Hayes, Elliot Bradbrook, Tom Bradbrook (Jack Simmons 65), Barry Cogan (Andy Pugh 77), Danny Harris.

Subs not used: Ebrima Adams, Tom Wynter, Lee Burns.

Goal: Elliot Bradbrook 77.

Cautions: Lee Noble 42, Danny Harris 44, Ryan Hayes 45+1.

WHITEHAWK: Craig Ross, Chris Sessegnon, Craig Braham-Barrett, Sam Deering, Dean Leacock, Paul Lorraine (Juan Cruz Gotta 70), Scott Neilson (Danny Stevens 77), Sergio Torres, Jake Robinson, Danny Mills, David Martin (Arnaud Mendy 53).

Subs not used: David Ijaha, Jordan Rose.

Goal: Sam Deering 74 (pen), Danny Stevens 84.

Cautions: Chris Sessegnon 45, Scott Neilson 64.

Attendance: 601
Referee: Mr Josh Smith
Assistants: Mr Joel Mannix and Mr Daniel Simpson