Welling United stumbled to their heaviest defeat of the season as they crashed five-nil to an impressive Dorking Wanderers side.

As starts go, it couldn’t have been a tougher ask than to visit the league leaders and then the team in second place in your first two games as manager but that’s what greeted Steve Lovell when he took over at bottom of the league club, Welling United.

Rather like in the previous season, Welling started the brighter of the two teams but went behind to Dorking’s first real attack and never really recovered.

An early Lyle Della-Verde free kick was flicked on by Dipo Akinyemi but it was just out of the reach of Lewis Hobbs who would have had a tap in at the far post. Then David Oldaker sent in another free kick that was flicked on by Anthony Cook but nobody was able to get on the end of it.

Kristian Campbell let fly from twenty five yards but it was half blocked for Lewis Carey to claim and soon after Dorking went ahead. James McShane got in behind and pulled it back for Alfie Rutherford to fire home under Reice Charles-Cook.

Cook fired a free kick into the Dorking defensive wall before Matthew Briggs went on a long run down the right hand side but shot across the face of the goal. However, Dorking did not have too long to wait before they increased their lead. Jason Prior was given the freedom of the penalty area to head towards goal but Charles-Cook made a brilliant save. Nicky Wheeler reacted the quickest to the rebound and he thrashed it home.

Again, Prior won a header from a corner under a minimal challenge but Charles-Cook was able to claim his header more comfortably this time around.

The last chance of the first half went Welling’s way when Akinyemi’s first touch took it away from his marker but he delayed his shot and Sami El-Abd was able to get back to block.

Any hopes that Welling had of getting back into the game were dashed within two minutes of the re-start. Briggs produced the cross and Prior was again left unmarked to flick a back-heel beyond Charles-Cook and into the bottom corner.

Nearly twenty second half minutes had gone when Dorking made it four-nil. Veteran Barry Fuller picked out Prior this time, and although his shot was saved, McShane was on hand to apply the finishing touch.

Kane Wills fired well over before Dorking started resting players but they still contained Welling comfortably whilst mounting the occasional attack. They went five up with ten minutes remaining when the impressive Briggs burst into the right hand side of the penalty area before blasting an unstoppable shot inside the far post.

Three minutes later, Welling registered their first real shot on target when Lionel Ainsworth shot from the edge of the area then Della-Verde had a shot deflected wide for their first corner.

Della-Verde had another shot that flashed inches wide and Campbell was also unable to hit the target.

Deep into injury time, it could have been six for Dorking when Rutherford was off target from Luke Moore’s through ball. The referee put the Wings out of their misery moments later.

Lovell may well make changes to his team to look at other members of his squad when Welling entertain Ebbsfleet United on Tuesday evening.

Dorking Wanderers: Carey, Fuller, Beard, Fogden (Gallagher 70), El-Abd, Wills, Wheeler (McManus 46), Briggs, Prior (Moore 65), Rutherford, McShane.

Subs not used: Philpott, Muitt.

Goalscorers: Rutherford (17), Wheeler (25), Prior (47), McShane (64), Briggs (80)

Yellow cards: None

Red cards: None

Welling United: Charles-Cook, Johnson, Campbell, Durojaiye (Ainsworth 60), Strachan, (Doe 69) Hobbs, Cook, Shokunbi, Akinyemi (Murrell-Williamson 65), Oldaker, Della-Verde.

Subs not used: Green, Hughes.

Goalscorers: None

Yellow cards: Della-Verde

Red cards: None

Referee: Greg Rollason

Assistants: Ryan Head and Andy Loe