Salisbury City 0 Dover Athletic 0

DOVER earned a point from an entertaining game in Wiltshire that had everything apart from goals.

While it might be argued that City had enough chances to win the game, it would be equally valid to point out that Athletic had enough opportunties to have pinched a winner on the break.

Caretaker coach Gary Whittle once again shuffled his pack, making five changes to the team that had started last week's game at Worthing. With a strong wind at their backs in the first half, it was Whites who made the early running.

First Craig Wilkins tried his luck with a dipping volley from distance that went just the wrong side of the post. And when Dale Skelton opened things up with a great ball in from the right flank, Buster Smissen’s close range effort was somehow turned behind by City goalkeeper Aaron Hedges.

However, not for the first time this season, a side from the division’s lower reaches looked a good one as City, with a pleasing brand of ball-to-feet football, got back into the game.

In the latter stages of the first half, only poor finishing proved their undoing. Having found himself unmarked and in a good position, striker Sean Cook missed the best opportunity of the game, dragging the ball tamely wide. And when overlapping full back Scott Bartlett cut back a great cross from the deadball line, Cook’s poor connection at the near post went straight at Whites’ goalkeeper Kevin Readings.

Just before the interval, however, it was City’s turn to enjoy a little good fortune when Lee Scott’s inswinging corner from the left clipped the crossbar after goalkeeper Hedges had lost his footing.

If the first half had been enjoyable enough, the second was doubly entertaining with much of the goalmouth action coming in a frenetic last 10 minutes, not to mention an excessive amount of added time.

Dover’s best chance came five minutes from the end of normal time as substitute Chris Wright got on the end of Craig Cloke's long ball out of defence. After tenaciously holding off his marker, Wright’s effort from 15 yards looked a certain goal until Hedges somehow got something on it to deflect the ball behind.

A goal at this point would certainly have won it, but it was City who bossed the game’s closing stages as Whites were compelled to endure a few hair-raising moments.

Most notably, Glenn Howes crept unnoticed into the inside left channel to unleash a volley of awesome ferocity that looked a goal all the way. However, a superb save from Athletic’s on-leave Marine brought applause from all parts of the ground.

Readings was beaten moments later, however, during a period of injury time. As goalkeeper Hedges came to the halfway line to launch a free kick into a crowded area, Nick Humphrey misjudged the flight of the ball and headed against his own crossbar. When the ball rebounded to safety, it proved that little stroke of luck that can make or break a season.

Dover Ath: Readings, Scott, Smidmore, Humphrey, Cloke, Vallance, Lott (Hickman 80), Hamshare, Wilkins, Skelton, Smissen (Wright 60). Subs not used: Clifford, Wood, Mullin.

Mercury Man-of-the Match: Sam Vallance.

Whites are in league action again tonight (Monday) when they travel to Essex to take on Chelmsford City, who are currently ground-sharing with Billericay Town.