DORCHESTER FOOTBALL: Magpies head for magic 40

He also felt that the state of the pitch isn’t helping his side and contributed to their poor performance.

“The pitch is becoming a problem now particularly with the weather we’ve had. The groundsman does a fantastic job to get it fit as we have been training on it as well. We are very thankful for his efforts, he has been putting in a lot of extra hours, but it’s so heavy it’s not proving to be a good surface to play the kind of football we want to play.”

Vickers added: “It was not a pretty game. They came with a game plan which we had to change after 5-10 minutes in order to stop Docker getting on the ball which meant switching to match them up in midfield and go to a back three.

“We maybe were a bit fortuitous to get the first goal when we did, but on the balance of play overall I thought we deserved to win.

“We did switch off a couple of times which could have cost us, but at halftime we regrouped and sorted things out. The second half was a big test for the back three, Gary Bowles, Kyle Critchell and particularly Nathan Walker because their lad up front was clever and is used to playing against big defenders, and that’s a testament to him on how he has come on.

“Gary also excelled in a three. He’s a great footballer and good reader of the game.

“Everyone played their part in the second half on what was a difficult pitch and dug in and helped each other. Sometimes you have to roll your sleeves up and dig in.”

Vickers admitted that the early second-half goal eased his nerves.

“I was unable to really enjoy the first goal because I was frustrated at the way we were playing in the first-half but I relaxed a bit after the second.

“Mossy worked hard in getting the penalty and Groover (Matt Groves) despatched it brilliantly. To be fair that’s why he started; because he takes responsibility for things.”

Vickers also praised Nick Crittenden for his piece of skill in conjuring the first goal. “Yes, that what he creates, that’s what he brings to us. The game was lacking and we were cancelling each other out, and with the ref keep stopping the game it needed something to lift it. He’s got that special quality to create something out of nothing and gives us that extra little bit of balance and dimension.”

The win gives the Magpies 35 points and edges them closer to the 40 points that Vickers considers safety.

“We’ve got to keep our winning mentality and spirit going and look ahead and once we have achieved the safety mark then we can look at players for next season. There are some like Harry Nodwell who hasn’t really had a chance yet that we need to give a run of games to see what he can do.”

PICTURE: GOAL - Matt Groves slams home the early second-half penalty to give Dorchester a 2-0 lead in Saturday’s win over Bishop’s Stortford - a result that takes the Magpies 12 points clear of the Blue Square relegation zone and extends an impressive recent run that has yielded 13 points from the last eight games

Photo by IDRIS MARTIN

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