Dockers adrift

ANOTHER dreadful day at Chadfields leaves the dismal Dockers marooned eight points and a bagful of goals from safety.

Little went right for Tilbury who look certainties for the drop after another lacklustre display capped by a moment of madness from top scorer Colin Wall who was sent off for landing a haymaker - about the only thing a Tilbury player got on target all afternoon - and he will now miss at least three matches and possibly more as it's the second time this season he has been dismissed for violent conduct.

His departure on the half hour mark, with Dockers already a goal down, virtually ended any hopes Tilbury had of getting something from the match though there remains a sense of injustice about the incident as he certainly should have won Dockers a penalty. Taking up a classic far post position he was well placed to get a head to Keith Wilson's drifted free kick and put Tilbury on level terms but he was prevented from doing so by a Beaconsfield arm that literally ripped the shirt off his back.

Everyone in the ground bar the referee and his officials saw it and Wall was so incensed he lashed out, decked the offender and began the long walk.

"Stupid, senseless and embarrassing," were some of the words he muttered afterwards but the damage has been done and no amount of contrition on his part can change things.

The only good thing anyone might dredge up out of it was that at least Wall showed passion, a commodity in rare supply at Chadfields these days.

It was certainly missing when Beaconsfield opened their account on nine minutes. The ball fell to Adrian Sear in a crowded penalty area and though at least three Tilbury players were close to hand, no-one reacted to try and block him and he was given time and space beyond his wildest expectations to pick his spot and rifle the ball past Dave McCartney.

That, Wall's moment of madness apart, was about all that was memorable in the first half.

Tilbury only had two chances, both falling to Marvin Neufville. He ended his seasonal goal drought with a goal in midweek and hopes were high that it might spark him off but his first minute missed shot and failure to connect with the ball when well-placed midway through he half proved otherwise.

To their credit ten man Tilbury did improve in the second half and dominated much of the opening 20 minutes.

During that time Danny Harris just failed to make proper connection with a header and won a couple of free kicks with his direct running.

However the deadball situations came to nothing, with one being a lamentable strike from Harris himself that drew derision from the terraces. Why such an obviously talented player continually underperforms is one of the great Chadfields mysteries.

Having failed to make anything of their best passage of play, it was no surprise when Dockers went further behind on 73 minutes when tall striker Allan Arthur nodded in close to the post after a madhouse goalmouth scramble. Tilbury had three chances to clear the danger but only a brave block from Tilbury's outstanding player, Dean Cleaver, was anything like the required level of commitment and it was no surprise the ball ended up in the net.

Beaconsfield might have made the scoreline more emphatic as they dominated the closing stages, Leon Callender rattling the crossbar with a effort, but they knew their job was done well before the end.

Tilbury finished a well-beaten side and on this form and safety now eight points away and a goal difference of -37 things look bleak indeed.

There are still 69 points to play for so anything is possible, though it's unlikely Tilbury will be responding with a positive to this week's FA missive asking if they will want to be considered for ground inspection in case they win promotion!

Manager Paul Joynes has several new signings in the pipeline, including that of a much-needed striker. As someone who has suffered bad luck since the start of the campaign with a series of injuries, not to mention players who have let him down with their lack of commitment, the hard-working and popular manager deserves a break and hopefully whoever comes in will light the flame of hope before the darkness of relegation consumes the club.