Morecambe 2 Dover 1

DOVER ATHLETIC boss Gary Bellamy found it hard to hide his frustration after seeing his side outplay fourth placed Morecambe but crash to their sixth successive away defeat of the season.

Bellamy saw his charges more than match a Morecambe team unbeaten at home this season so far and few can deny that they deserved something from this game.

But as Bellamy said after the game: "It's becoming a little bit irritating that people are saying we have been unlucky to lose because we deserved to win this game just like we deserved to win at Farnborough and Yeovil. We have somehow got nothing from this game again and that is disappointing."

Dover's situation was not helped when they wasted a glorious chance to take the lead on the half hour when leading scorer Keith Scott crashed a penalty against the cross bar. It was the seven-goal Scott's second spot kick miss of the season and an important one as it would have given the visitors the lead against a disappointing Morecambe.

But the penalty miss seemed to inspire the home side who took the lead five minutes form the break from a swift counter attack. Questions must be asked however as to how the lightweight substitute Ryan-Zico Black was left all alone at the far post to head home Dave McKearney's deep right wing cross.

The lead lasted just five minutes, however, as Dover pulled a goal back in first-half injury time. A long clearance from new keeper Phil Smith, recently signed from Millwall, was flicked on by Scott and John Elliot's 30-yard volley shocked everyone as it ended up in the bottom right-hand corner of the Morecambe goal.

The game then became something of a battle with both sides finding it difficult to find any pattern to their play but from out of the blue the home side took the spoils with a moment of pure quality from winger Garry Thompson on 65 minutes.

Cutting in from the right onto his supposedly weaker left foot, the 20-year-old curled the ball into the top corner with a shot that gave Smith no chance.