Boss Scott Porter described Lydd’s own goal in their defeat at Southern Counties East Premier Division champions Deal as something he had never witnessed before.

Trailing at half-time to teenage forward Jamie Kennedy’s early goal, the Lydders’ hopes of a second-half comeback were dealt a major blow inside seconds of the restart in barely believable fashion on Saturday.

Deal restarted the game, as midfielder Macauley Murray launched a long ball from the centre-circle into the final third. Goalkeeper Craig Smith rushed to the edge of his penalty box but was beaten by defender Jahmahl King’s miscued header, which bounced into the empty goal.

Porter said: “We’re in the game (at half-time), we were well in the game. All the pressure is on them, there’s no pressure on us.

“(I told them) to go and express yourselves and go and get on the ball and go and put a fight up - and look what happened.

“It killed it. It’s killed everything and I’ve never witnessed anything like it!

“It’s a bad, bad mistake from Kingy and the goalkeeper. It’s got to be dealt with by two experienced players, so there goes the momentum. It’s gone.

Report: Deal 3-1 Lydd

“There’s no communication. He (Smith) has not called early enough. The wind’s blowing, it just goes to him.

“I’m just feeling gobsmacked.”

Lydd never recovered from that moment in front of a crowd of 1,422 at the Charles Sports Ground, substitute Jack Shonk getting a late stoppage-time consolation after home substitute Ife Oni had sealed the win as it finished 3-1 to Deal.

They are seven points from fifth-placed Erith Town.

“It sums up the time I have been at Lydd,” said Porter, who took over from veteran midfielder James Rogers in January.

“Mistakes. Individual mistakes have cost us in every single game. Every single goal that we give away is from a mistake. No one has scored a worldie past us.

“Just look at the goals today. It just summed up the whole time that I have been at Lydd.

“Deal do their jobs for 90 minutes, collectively as a side, and we don’t. Sometimes, we do it in bits - and then we play as individuals. You’re not winning anything with that mindset.

“It needs to change. It needs to change for the next two games and it needs to change for next season.

“Credit to Deal, they deserve everything. They’re a well-organised side, they have been together for a long time, so congratulations to them.

“But for us, that just sums up my time at Lydd. Just poor goals.

“The second goal, I’ve never seen anything like it in my life! It killed us. It killed the lads’ momentum in their minds and knocked us for six.

“It was always going to be an uphill struggle after that.”

Things could have turned out differently had Lydd struck first in an even start to the game, though.

Robbie Dolan nodded over a Sammy Adams corner and midfielder Adams shot wide from distance before Steve King’s side took control.

On those chances, Porter said: “Robbie is unlucky there.

“It’s a great delivery and Sammy had a strike so we were in the game in the first half.

“Even after the (first) goal went in, we were still in the game.

“But we weren’t good enough in the final third. It’s as simple as that.”

The Lydders will host second-placed Glebe next weekend.