Sawyer miffed by Charlton loss

2:51pm Wednesday 16th July 2008

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PAUL Sawyer has admitted the manner of Dartford's narrow 1-0 defeat against Charlton at Princes Park last night was hard to take for the Ryman Premiership battlers.

Dartford were more than a match for a young Addicks side and were on the brink of securing a draw before Tamma Tuna struck with an injury-time winner.

Assistant manager Sawyer, who is in sole charge of first team affairs while Tony Burman is away on holiday, was happy with the way the Darts had played but less so with the final outcome.

He explained: "It is always disappointing to lose so late on when you feel you are about to get a decent result, even if it is only a friendly.

"I felt we deserved at least a draw on the night, but you need to look beyond the result because there were plenty of positives as well.

"The game was a good workout for us and everybody was involved.

"Our new signings were playing together in a game for the first time and they all did very well. Nobody let us down."

Sawyer also confirmed Dartford will continue with last night's policy of using as many players as possible when Crystal Palace arrive at Princes Park on Friday evening.

"We will be picking from the exact same squad and mixing it up again with different formations," he added.

"There will be two different teams again but they won't necessarily play together in the same two sides who faced Charlton last night."

Dartford discovered earlier this week they will kick-off the new campaign at Hendon on August 16.

Sawyer concedes it is a tough fixture in which newly-promoted Dartford will have to make their Ryman Premiership debut, but pointed out this is only to be expected bearing in mind the step up in class they are taking.

He said: "Hendon finished in seventh last year so are obviously a good team.

"It will be a potentially difficult place for us to go but we will do our homework and see them for ourselves in pre-season and speak to a few other managers for their insights.

"There will be no easy games in this division and we always knew so.

"Hendon did very well to come seventh, but a lot can change in non-league football at a club during the summer with people coming and going."