HJF Dartford Ladies 2 v 2 Kent Magpies

Dartford won 6-5 on penalties

Kent Regional Womens Cup - 1st Round

DARTFORD Ladies' good fortune continued with a dramatic penalty shoot-out victory to clinch a quarter-final place in the Kent Regional Womens Cup, writes Brian Page.

In an intensely-fought opening 20 minutes Dartford goalkeeper Hannah McNanara was forced to make an early block while midfielder Rachel Elson had her two-pronged assault cleared off the goal-line at the other end.

A strengthening Magpies' side put Dartford under pressure before stealing an early lead when, after McNamara blocked a shot from close-range, the visitors stabbed the loose ball into the net.

With match reduced to a midfield battle, goal-scoring chances were infrequent but Dartford pushed forward relentlessly with Elson teasing the Magpies' defence.

Dartford came out for the second-half the hungrier side and were soon rewarded with Tessa Bird scoring her 10th goal of the season with a shot which could only be pushed into the net by the visiting goalkeeper.

A superb and skillful solo run through the midfield by Laura Donnelly paved the way for a precise pass to the feet of Bird who converted it to give the Oakfield Lane side a 2-1 lead on the hour.

Magpies were unlucky not to pull level after they caused panic in Dartford's defence, only to see the ball hit the woodwork.

With a thwarted weaving effort from Harriet Hill and a late direct free-kick from Fitzpatrick being fired narrowly over the crossbar, Dartford failed to clinch a vital third goal, allowing their Eltham-based visitors the opportunity to grab an equaliser in the second minute of stoppage time and take the game into extra time.

After a fruitless extra 30 minutes it went down to penalties with Donnelly, Bird and Etherington all converting their spot kicks with Magpies matching their tally to take the shoot-out into sudden death.

Precision strikes from Elson, Susie Benham and Kelly Domican all found the net as the drama continued before McNamara brought the match to an abrupt end, pulling off a save which takes Kevin Howlett's Dartford side to Ashford in the next round.

MATCH FACTS: DARTFORD: McNamara; Page (Domican, 115); Beaney; Etherington; Benham; Fitzpatrick; Holloway; Hill; Donnelly; Elson; Bird; Dartford, managed by Kevin Howlett, entertain Lindfield for Chairman's Cup action on Sunday 12th March. Kick-off 2 p.m.