Dover Athletic 2 Basingstoke Town 0

A CONFIDENT second-half display eased Dover into the FA Cup third qualifying round at Crabble on Saturday.

It was job well done for Clive Walker's boys, the cash-starved club banking a timely £7,500 in prize money from sponsors Axa for their troubles.

Ryman League Premier Division visitors Basingstoke ultimately had no answer to well-struck goals from Simon Glover and Nicky Dent, as Whites conquered their customary cup jitters in front of the boisterous Crabble faithful.

An uninventive, goalless first period saw Basingstoke marginally edge the spoils.

Livewire striker Neville Roach's Football League experience was to the fore for the Hampshire side, making sure Whites keeper and talisman Paul Hyde was at his best.

The balance of power began to shift in Dover's favour midway through the half, midfielder Kenny Dyer again rolling back the years to supply Nicky Dent with the goods up front. On 24 minutes, the striker's flicked header from a Dyer ball narrowly flew the wrong side of the bar.

But, as often with Dent, the best was yet to come. You could write that on his epitaph.

Whites emerged guns blazing in the second-half to banish talk of another cup banana skin, against a club which beat them at the fourth qualifying stage in 1998.

Tony Browne, Dean Readings and Dyer each went close. But the River End throng didn't have to wait long for the breakthrough, Glover burying a hard shot inside the left post of a rattled Scott Tarr in the Basingstoke goal on 50 minutes.

Whites plugged away in pursuit of a second goal and some breathing space.

A great chance fell to Dent in the 60th minute. He combined with man of the match Matt Carruthers at a set-piece, only to have his stinging effort well saved.

Never one to leave the home fans wanting, however, the 34-year-old Crabble favourite settled the tie 12 minutes from time.

A looping cross from the left was neatly knocked down by Lee Spiller into the path of Dent. He found space to turn before firing Dover's second, again inside Basingstoke's left post.

Contest over, boss Walker gave late run-outs to Jamie Day and Paul Sykes as Dover cruised to their first FA Cup win since beating Gravesend in 1998.

Dover Athletic: Hyde, Browne, Norman, Readings, Humphrey, Dyer, James, Spiller (Day 82), Glover, Dent (Sykes 89), Carruthers. Subs not used: Davies, Tyne, Williams.

Basingstoke Town: Tarr, Dickens, Stamp, Allaway, Hemmings, Gibbens, Foster (Ray 84), Howes, Roach, McAllister, Ewin (Graham 84). Subs not used: Layton, Arthur, Herbert.

Attendance: 825.