Faversham Town 1-2 Kingstonian

Kingstonian avoided a potential banana slip of a game after a two-penalty win in their first ever meeting with Faversham Town.

The Lilywhites had frustrated their visitors throughout the first half with a dour off-side trap and were looking to continue this into the next 45 minutes when, within minutes of Bobby Traynor being taken off in the 53rd minute and replaced by Dean Lodge, Lodge's cross found Adam Thompson who was promptly bundled over just in the penalty area. Matt Gray stepped up to duly convert the penalty.

Eleven minutes later Tobi Jinadu's header from the midfield found Lodge and as he began to round the keeper on the left, the prostrate French dragged him down with an outstretched arm. French escaped with a yellow as the referee decided that Lodge was far enough off the goal not to earn the keeper a red card but gave a penalty as it was in the area. Lodge then stepped up for the penalty, only to do a carbon copy of the previous one, albeit with a weaker or, perhaps, more nonchalant shot into the net.

A freak goal back six minutes later made for an exciting game as debutant Matt Ruby was denied and then Tom Bird was cynically bought down as he was about to break into the penalty area with the keeper stranded on the ground next to him. Rob Tolfrey also denied an equaliser.

If the second half was lively, the first 45 minutes began slowly and ended slowly with little in between. It was not until the 8th minute that Bird had the first chance and even then his cross looped over the crossbar from the left. At the other end, the defence was caught out as they claimed an offside whilst Damian Abel continued to play. His cross was parried away and out by Tolfrey.

Dean Hamlin saw his speculative chip caught by French as Traynor ran onto the pass and then Abel shot weakly to the left of the left upright at the other end.

A series of half chances were soon cancelled out as Faversham sorted out their offside trap further and further up the field. With 10 minutes left Lee Hall came on as Dean Hamlin failed to recover from a strain in his right thigh minutes earlier.

If the first half dampened a bright afternoon by the Kent marshlands, so the sun came out almost immediately in the second half on the pitch. A few minutes, inspired by Sam Clayton saw the visitors threaten to run riot against a pressurised home defence but no real goal chances came of it. Indeed it was Abel at the other end who found his path forward checked by Tolfrey.

At this point Lodge was bought on and within minutes had worked his manager's wish. Slotting a low pass from the left to the right of the area across a bewitched flat defence, Thompson took the ball; only to be pushed to the ground.

Gray took the ball off Lodge and Kingstonian were one goal to the good. This opened up the game and Mo Harkin was denied by French, once again by set up by Lodge. Then Lodge was denied as Gray's cross was cut out late in defence. A header from Harkin was saved well by French low and almost on the line.

Ks seemed to sew up the game when after a corner was kicked away and headed back in by Jinadu in the midfield to Lodge. A mazy run on the left found the keeper French on the ground and only an arm to Lodge's legs could stop the inevitable goal being scored.

As Lodge was heading slightly away from goal at the time as he rounded French, the keeper escaped with a booking and this time Lodge took the penalty and the goal.

Within minutes, through a crowded defence, Sam Callender shot almost on the dead ball line hit the crossbar and rolled along its face before Dane Luchford, on the left somehow bundled the ball low into the goal from less than five yards.

From the restart Ruby, just bought on to replace Max Hustwick, shot from 25 yards out to be denied by the legs of the advancing French.

At the other end a long shot from the home team saw Tolfrey tip over from a 25-yard shot and then right at the end Danny Lye headed wide. In-between Bird was bought down by Jack Baldwin as he was about to break through.

A tougher than expected win brings Kingstonian into the second qualifying round and welcome relief from the defeat on Monday in the FA Cup replay.

One highlight not mentioned from the first half was the sight of the retiring Carnival Queen Scarlett Mann kicking off proceedings for the game, wrapped up rather more warmly than she was earlier inside.