CAFC vs Dover Athletic – Preview
Carshalton Athletic travel to The Crabble Athletic Ground to take on Dover Athletic in the Isthmian Premier Division on Saturday.
Robins Review
The Robins extended their winning streak to four matches on Monday evening when a late Nathan Paul-Lavaly strike sealed a 2-1 Isthmian Premier Division victory over Hastings United at Colston Avenue. No. 9 David Smith netted his 14th goal of the 2024-25 campaign on the stroke of half-time after stabbing home close-range. Hastings levelled following a Davide Rodari set piece mid-way through the second 45; however, Paul-Lavaly rifled a shot into the bottom right-hand corner in the dying embers of the match to claim Adeniyi’s side all three points. The result moves the Reds up to eighth on 42 points, one behind Hashtag, although Jay Deveneux’s outfit have a game in hand.
Dover Athletic
Last time out, Dover Athletic came back from behind to beat Bognor Regis Town 2-1 on Saturday at Nyewood Lane in the Isthmian Premier Division.
Despite an extremely strong start to the 2024-25 season, Dover Athletic have experienced a disappointing turn in form of late. While the Whites remain top of the division on 55 points, the club are now level with Cray Valley PM; that said, they do boast two games in hand over the Paper Mills. So far, Dover have registered 17 wins, four draws, and six losses.
Winning their curtain raiser a staggering 8-0 against Potters Bar Town, the Whites carried forward the momentum garnered, losing just twice between August and the Lewes fixture in November. The streak included emphatic victories over Chichester City, Horsham, and Dartford, the latter finishing a 5-1 thumping. That said, the club’s form has been on a steady decline since the 2-2 draw with Cray Valley PM just before the commencement of the festive period. The match saw Dover net what The Whites thought to be a last-gasp 95th-minute winner; however, they got pegged back immediately from kick-off. Dispatching of Dulwich Hamlet 3-1 the following week returned the Kent-based outfit to winning ways, but only temporarily, as Cray Wanderers edged them 1-0 mid-way through December. Manager Jake Leberl attributed the results to the absence of goalkeeper Mitch Walker due to injury, given his significant leadership qualities.
Back-to-back victories over Cheshunt and Hastings ensued over Christmas before yet another defeat in quick succession at the hands of Billericay Town on December 28. The Essex-based side have been excellent in terms of consistency, keeping lots of clean sheets and losing very few games. The defeat meant The Whites squandered the golden opportunity to go ten points clear at the top of the league, and instead, it then became a gap of just four. Leberl, however, explained that three players arriving on the stroke of kick-off due to the motorway issues disrupted the club’s preparations for that game, yet he does realise the error of his ways in deciding to feature the trio in the starting XI. Dover would suffer consecutive defeats when in-form Horsham ran out 2-1 winners over the Whites. The club managed to end the unwanted losing streak following a 3-0 win against struggling Hendon but tasted defeat once again after being edged 2-1 by Hashtag at Parkside. The Tags had put five past Cray Valley not long before the league clash with the Whites and had lost just twice since the start of November.
The 2023-24 season saw Dover Athletic relegated to the Isthmian Premier for the first time since 2008-09 when they won the division with an outstanding tally of 104 points from 42 games. For the club, it has been years of turbulence and uncertainty thanks to the repercussions of COVID-19. Before the Pandemic, Dover were a club in ascendancy. There was a memorable FA Cup run in 2014-15 where the Whites beat Morecambe and Cheltenham 1-0 to reach the third round, eventually falling to a 4-0 defeat to Premier League side Crystal Palace. The following year, they qualified for the play-offs, eyeing promotion to League Two and narrowing missing out. Consecutive seasons finishing just outside the playoffs ensued before consolidating their position as a mid-table fifth-tier club with 14th and 11th-place finishes respectively.
However, like many businesses Dover struggled financially during the pandemic and in the 2020-21 campaign the team could only fulfil 15 fixtures, with none played after 30 January 2021, owing to staff being furloughed. Having all of its results expunged in March, being fined £40,000 by the National League and handed a 12-point deduction for the 2021-22 season, by the 29th of May 2021, the Whites had four part-time players on their books after releasing all its personnel. In all honesty, the next campaign was over before it had even started, picking up just eight points in 33 matches while suffering the points deduction meant a 2-0 home defeat to Yeovil Town confirmed Dover’s return back to the sixth tier after an eight-season absence. Things went from bad to worse when the club experienced relegation again for back-to-back seasons, this time to the Isthmian League.
Likely line-ups
Carshalton Athletic
Foley, Sankoh, Atewologun, Read, Paul-Lavaly, Saraiva (c), Saunders-Henry, Kader, Ghannam, Smith, Ifeanyi
Dover Athletic
Gillmore, Charles-Cook, Sesay, Cocoracchio, Baptiste, Matthews, Nikaj, Soares-Junior (c), Mampolo, Naylor, Mensah
Team news
Carshalton Athletic
Club Captain Paris Hamilton-Downes is back out on the grass and training with the team pre-match. While Adeniyi’s defence and front three are settled, Fabio Saraiva remains the only nailed-on inclusion in the Robins midfield. The other two spots could be taken by one of Mason Saunders-Henry, Kwaku Frimpong, Tommy Bradford, and Soul Kader.
Dover Athletic
Manager Jake Leberl confirmed captain and No. 1 goalkeeper Mitch Walker will be sidelined a little longer than hoped because he is still struggling to recover from the injury sustained at the start of December. Meanwhile, latest addition, Charlie Naylor, replaced Harrison Pont in the midfield after the Whites lost the academy prospect over the Christmas period. Naylor has really impressed Leberl, who was full of praise for the new signing: “Charlie’s been a natural replacement for Harrison; he screens the defence really well and is great in both boxes.”
Pre-Match Analysis
Jake Leberl admitted following the defeat to Hashtag that keeping clean sheets has become a real problem for Dover. In all competitions, The Whites have kept eight in the Isthmian Premier to date, but losing the leadership qualities of Mitch Walker at the back has caused the Kent-based side to concede sloppy goals in recent weeks. Leberl’s style of play means that the club scores goals for fun; up to this stage, they have netted 63 times, seven above the runners-up for “Goals Scored,” Cray Valley PM.
Leberl is under no illusion that the way he deploys his team results in them being exposed and susceptible on the break; that said, the manager says he wants to “excite” people and avoid being a team that goes two goals up and rests on that; he wants to push for four or five; he wants his midfielder making the box as opposed to holding the middle.
Key Player
Dover striker George Nikaj has netted 19 times in the 2024-25 Isthmian Premier campaign, which is one behind top goal scorer Chichester City’s Jimmy Wild. The club’s free-scoring tendencies are best seen through the fact that both Ruben Soares-Junior and Luke Baptiste have 29 goals between them.
The Gaffer
In his playing days, Jake Leberl was known for his versatility, experienced as a centre-half, right-back, and midfielder. Having played for the Whites, Leberl returned in November, initially as then-manager Mitch Brundle’s number two, before he succeeded Brundle the following month alongside Academy boss Mike Sandmann. After a 1-0 home victory over promotion-chasing Chelmsford on Easter Monday, the club confirmed that Leberl would remain in his position despite Dover being relegated to the Isthmian Premier. Chairman Jim Parmenter said at the time (April): “We’re delighted that Jake will be with is next season. He’s passionate about the club and wants us to improve – on and off the pitch.”
Match Details
Date: Saturday, February 1, 2025
Venue: The Crabble Athletic Ground
Kickoff: 03:00 PM
Admission: Admission Prices are as follows, £15 (Adult), £14 (Over 60 Concessions), £9 (Under 18’s), Free (Under 11s)
Tickets: For Tickets Click Here
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CRABBLE IS A CASHLESS STADIUM – CARD ONLY
