Barely had the 915 supporters gotten comfortable when Canvey Island took an early lead! The hosts failed to clear Elliott Ronto’s initial effort, which enabled Charlie Stimson to fire in the rebound (5).

The injury-hit Darts made another defensive error barely sixty seconds later, leaving Max Fiddes in enough space to lob Jonny Henly in what was a disastrous start for Ady Pennock’s side (6).

The excellent Shaun Mavididi came close to netting a third for Peter Taylor’s Gulls, only for a timely intervention by Dartford skipper Henly (11).

Dartford did begin to settle down soon afterwards though. Eddie Dsane saw his effort from a Samir Carruthers free-kick chalked off for offside (19), before Callum Jones forced goalkeeper Lewis Greene into making a routine save (22) as the Darts looked for a way back into the game.

Mavididi’s low drive was saved by Henly at one end, before Olly Box was presented with a glorious opportunity at the other within seconds. However, his strike was deflected over by an excellent last-ditch challenge by a Canvey defender (31).

Lewis Greene then saved Eddie Dsane’s effort from a tight angle (34), before the visitors saw an effort cleared off the line before the break.

The opening exchanges of the second forty-five saw the hosts seeing a lot more of the ball, as they were determined to get back into the game.

Ben Frempah came close with his header (48), before Olly Box’s fierce strike was superbly blocked by Elliott Johnson (57).

Callum Jones forced Lewis Greene into a routine save (61), before Eddie Dsane’s diving header blazed narrowly wide of Greene’s far post two minutes later.

Then up stepped George Whitefield to pull a goal back with a towering header at the far post (67), before Olly Box fired a low drive into the bottom corner to level the score two minutes later!

Samir Carruthers’ long-range effort was well saved by Greene (77), before an excellent intervention by Luther Williams at the other end prevented Shaun Mavididi from testing goalkeeper Henly (90+2).

Yet another poor challenge against a Dartford player deep into stoppage time resulted in Danny Nesbitt being sent off, as the game finished in a fiery manner.

The result ensures that Dartford remain unbeaten at home in the league this season, but they currently sit in fifteenth position in the league table with just one win in their opening six fixtures.

The effort is most certainly there, but there’s more potential for Ady to unlock from his team after the opening month of the season.

DARTFORD: Jonny Henly (c), Samir Carruthers, Sam Smith, George Whitefield, Callum Jones, Denzelle Olopade, Eddie Dsane, Olly Box, Luther Williams, Ben Frempah, Jeremiah Pinder.
SUBSTITUTES: <span;>Hugo Taylor, Carter Sullivan, Ikechi Eze, Albie O’Mara-Knapp, Richie Atkins.

CANVEY ISLAND: Lewis Greene, Joseph Halsey, Matas Skarna, Elliott Johnson, Danny Nesbitt, Kenedi Dariri, Kwabena Yeboah, Elliott Ronto (c), Charlie Stimson, Max Fiddes, Shaun Mavididi.
SUBSTITUTES: Louis Jaggs, Daniel Tinubu, George Brough, Igor Sani, Bobby Mason.

Match Photos Gallery

Chris Palmer