Steve King’s first game in charge was one to forget as his Dartford side succumbed to lower Division Kingstonian.
Kingstonian are 15th in the Bet Victor Premier Division but in the first half you would have been hard pressed to know who the Conference South side was.
In the second half Dartford showed glimpses of their higher status but in the end deserved to go out of the competition whilst Kingstonian will wait for Monday night’s draw to see what reward awaits them.
Kingstonian came out of the blocks the quickest and went at Dartford, as early as the 3rd minute Louie Theophanous received the ball 20 yards out and his shot was turned away for a corner by Mark Smith. From the corner Frank Puermo saw his header cleared of the line.
Kingstonian took a deserved lead before 10 minutes had been played when Reece Hall was found in the area & his shot beat Smith.
Kingstonian continued to boss the game and in the 21st minute they scored their second, a bad pass in the Dartford half went to Daniel Hector who ran forward and slipped the ball forward for Theophanous who from 8 yards slipped the ball past Smith.
Two minutes later and Dartford had their first real chance. Jordan Gibbons cross to the back post found Luke Wanadio who cut inwards and from 15 yards curled his shot agonisingly past the post.
It was nearly three on the half hour mark when a free kick 30 yards out forced Smith to push it around the post for a corner & from the resulting corner Theophanous saw his header go just past the post.
Dartford thought they had got a goal back through Andy Pugh but his header beat Robert Tolfrey and rebounded off the post.
Disaster struck for Dartford in the 40th minute when Daniel Bennett driving forward was adjudged to be tripped in the area. Thomas Kavanagh blasted the penalty straight down the middle to seemingly put the game beyond Dartford.
However Dartford gave themselves a lifeline just before the interval when Pugh ran unto a McQueen through ball and shot home from 15 yards.
The second half started with Dartford on the front foot and they nearly pulled a goal back when Pugh’s low cross found Greenhalgh on his own on the back post but his side foot effort went just past the post.
Ten minutes later another half chance came when a Greenhalgh free kick to the back post found Ronnie Vint & his header went across the 6 yard box and avoided everyone.
Kingstonian seemed to have gone into their shell and in truth rarely threatened although Kenny Beaney could have sealed the game curling his effort unto the roof of the net with 20 minutes to go.
Dartford set up a frantic finish immediately after that opportunity when Norman Wabo, who had been on for two minutes, ran towards goal before putting speedster Darren McQueen in and he made no mistake from 12 yards.
The last 19 minutes plus added on time saw Dartford attack the Kingstonian goal causing a few anxious moments but in the end they ran out of ideas and Steve King’s reign at Dartford started with a defeat.
DARTFORD: Smith, Gibbons, Onyemah (Wabo 69), Vint, Allen, Wanadio, Greenhalgh (Wabo 69), McQueen, Crook, Hill, Pugh
SUBS NOT USED: Calvert, Hayes, Town, Walsh, Brodie
KINGSTONIAN: Tolfrey, Clohessy, Saraiva, Puemo (Henriques 68), Cook, Kavanagh, Bennett (Sow 63), Beany, Theophanous, Hall, Hector (Thompson 83
SUBS NOT USED: Davies, Bambra, Harrison, Bull
REFEREE: Mr T.BISHOP
ASSISTANTS: Mr J.GRAY & Mr A.EMERY