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Dartford 5 Woking 1

Goalscorers Max Cornhill (left) and Alex Wall (right) celebrate
Goalscorers Max Cornhill (left) and Alex Wall (right) celebrate

Alex Wall and Max Cornhill scored two goals each as Dartford came from behind to thrash 10-man Woking on Tuesday night.

Woking struck first at Princes Park but the excellent Wall, on loan from Luton, equalised immediately and then put the Darts in front after Woking's Joe Jones had been shown a straight red card.

The sending-off proved to be pivotal. Woking's early dominance faded and Cornhill's second-half brace, which took his recent tally to four goals in as many games, put the result beyond doubt.

And substitute Lee Noble completed the rout in added time.

This win, Dartford's third in their last four outings, lifted Tony Burman's side above Tamworth in the relegation dogfight and to within two points of safety.

The only change to the Darts side which started the 2-1 win at Wrexham was enforced, with Andy Pugh - recalled by Cambridge United from his loan spell - replaced by Danny Harris in attack.

Elliot Bradbrook wins a header in the box (Pic: Andy Payton)
Elliot Bradbrook wins a header in the box (Pic: Andy Payton)

The game started like an express train, with two goals inside the first five minutes.

Four had been played when Scott Rendell got a boot on Josh Payne's strike from the right-hand corner of the penalty area, turning the ball beyond Darts keeper Alan Julian.

But the lead lasted less than a minute, with Dartford equalising straight from the restart. The ball ran for Wall in the box and he turned inside before sweeping a left-footed shot into the bottom corner.

It was a breathless opening and more chances were on the way.

Woking, twice, should have retaken the lead. First, Kevin Betsy got in down the right and centred for John Goddard, who fired wastefully wide of the near post. And when Joe McNerney's hopeful volley fell the way of Rendell, he couldn't adjust in time and the ball bounced off him, rolling kindly for Julian to gather.

The home side were having to operate on the counter-attack, with Woking dominating possession and passing the ball well.

But the Darts had their moments, too, most notably when Harris was played clean through and Woking keeper Sam Beasant rushed out to narrow the angle.

Then came a big moment. Jim Stevenson slid in for the ball with Jones just inside the Woking half and was caught late by the on-loan Yeovil defender. Referee Paul Rees went straight to his pocket and showed Jones the red card.

Woking's Joe Jones receives his marching orders (Pic: Andy Payton)
Woking's Joe Jones receives his marching orders (Pic: Andy Payton)

Dartford looked to make their numerical advantage count and Stevenson, thankfully unhurt by Jones' challenge, got on the end of a Wall cross but fired over.

However, the home side did get their noses in front late in first-half stoppage-time. Wall chased a long diagonal pass from the Dartford right-back position and showed real class to redirect the ball back across Beasant to make it 2-1.

Alex Wall has just put Dartford 2-1 up (Pic: Andy Payton)
Alex Wall has just put Dartford 2-1 up (Pic: Andy Payton)

Woking had plenty of the ball at the start of the second half, but to no avail.

It was 3-1 on 56 minutes when Wall intelligently cut the ball back for Max Cornhill, who rifled it into the net.

And the big centre-forward, bristling with confidence, smashed a free-kick just wide moments later after Cornhill had been crudely up-ended.

Woking had made a double substitution just before the goal but they couldn't recover their earlier swagger, with Dartford's extra man and fresh legs - they didn't play at the weekend while Woking trekked to Gateshead - increasingly making a difference.

Tyrone Sterling had a shot saved by Beasant, before Ipswich loanee Jack Marriott fired wide at the other end, but Woking were about to fall further behind.

Woodyard swung over a corner from the Darts right and Cornhill, unmarked in the six-yard box, powered a header inside the near post.

Now the home side were triumphant and even when the Cards thought they'd pulled a goal back, Marriott's close-range effort was ruled out for offside.

Cornhill, with his sights set on a hat-trick, tried his luck from distance late on. The ball flew high over the bar but the game had been long won by then.

And Noble, who came off the bench for the last few minutes, put the icing on the cake when he volleyed home Julian's long punt into the box.

For Dartford, the Great Escape is on.

Dartford: Julian, Burns, Mitchel-King, McAuley, Sterling, Woodyard (Noble 88mins), Cornhill, Stevenson, Bradbrook, Harris (Swallow 83mins), Wall (Suarez 81mins). Subs not used: Clark, Wellham.

Woking: Beasant, Nutter (Marriott 55mins), Ricketts, McNerney, Johnson, Sole (Murtagh 55mins), Betsy, Payne (Wright 80mins), Rendell, Goddard, Jones. Subs not used: Howe, McNamee.

Attendance: 1,002.

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