Billericay Town 0-1 Kingstonian

Alan Dowson did not carry through with his threat to bring in a new back four after Ks' home defeat to Horsham, and may be relieved that he didn't after they turned Ks' best defensive performance of the year.

Rarely has Rob Tolfrey's goal been so untroubled, as the back five kept Billericay at bay throughout the game on a difficult pitch, providing Dowson's side with an important win to end the run of six games without a victory.

Dowson did, however, bring in the new striker that fans have been calling for since Carl Wilson-Denis' departure and it reaped immediate dividends. Folkestone Invicta's Allan Tait is the man brought in to partner Bobby Traynor and he marked his debut with the only goal of the game.

He would not even see the game through to half-time after being brought off on 35 minutes to receive stitches to a bloody injury, but by this point he had made his vital contribution and is expected to be fit to face Aveley on Monday.

Tolfrey comfortably saved an early header from Chris Wild before Traynor had a volley saved as both sides struggled to create an early impact. The game began in a scrappy manner and rarely improved as a spectacle but this would work to Ks' advantage after they grabbed the lead in the nineteenth minute.

Matt Gray chased an overhit pass into the corner and robbed Blues skipper Ian Cousins. Gray was able to dribble into the penalty area and place an accurate low pass into the six-yard box, where Tait confidently toe-poked it past goalkeeper Micky Morgan.

Tait arrives with more of a reputation as a target man than a goal-getter but it was the sort of Traynoresque poached finish that suggests he may be capable of sharing the scoring burden with his golden boot-winning strike partner.

Ks had the better of the game but neither side would come close to finding the net again before the break. Simon Huckle came closest but fired over from around the penalty spot, looking slightly off balance as he stretched for the ball in front of him.

Ks continued to hold the home side at bay in the second half, although threatened only sporadically themselves. Morgan comfortably saved two efforts from Tait's replacement Sam Clayton as well as a Dean Hamlin effort from the optimistic distance of 30 yards.

Billericay did gather some momentum in the final ten minutes but Sean Bonnett-Johnson's would-be equaliser was struck off for a foul on Tolfrey and Harrison Chatting, who had been the hosts' most dangerous player throughout the game, could only volley over.

Ks held on to claim all three points; now, Dowson will be hoping that this new-found defensive solidity can be repeated, especially if it is allied to a renewed potency going forward with a new strike partner for Traynor.