Tag: Brentwood Town

The Darts will be back at Princes Park for a league game on Tuesday night against Brentwood Town.

Dartford have a tough test for their opening home game of the season. Whilst the Darts missed out on the playoffs last term, one of the teams they were unable to catch were this weekend’s opponents.

Brentwood Town followed up their Isthmian North title with a playoff final appearance in May. The Essex side almost won back-to back promotions, but were denied late in extra time by Billericay Town.

Opening Day Comeback

The Darts came from two goal down to win on their opener and spoil Three Bridges’ day. The Sussex side benefited from two penalties in the first half. Emmanuel Oke conceded a spot kick and Charlie Bennett became the first Bridges player to net in the Isthmian Premier. The same player added another from 12 yards after Adrian Gyamera fouled Kevin Riveria in the box.

Player manager, Ben Greenhalgh sparked the comeback on the stroke of half time with his first strike since returning to the club. The equaliser arrived in the second half when Joe Tenent headed home Greenhalgh free-kick. Two minutes later the turn around was complete with Max Fiddes getting his first goal in a Dartford shirt on his debut.

Back of the Nat

Brentwood Town began their camping with a clean sheet and a 2-0 victory. The Blues kept  Burgess Hill Town at bay and also needed their first of the campaign on the stroke of half time. Charlee Adam’s free-kick found Bradley Sachs who headed the Essex side ahead. New signing Nat Mardell made sure of maximum points late in the second half with a guided finish.

Fighting Spirit

Last time Dartford entertained Brentwood Town at home they had to show plenty of grit and determination. Back in January, with both sides aiming for the playoffs an entertaining five goal ensued. The hosts had to win it the hard way when Sam Odaudu was sent off with a little over a quarter to play.

Dartford went two up with the first coming from Sam Okoye after a couple minutes. The advantage was doubled when Olly Box put the Darts in control. Yet the visitors came back through Kymani Thomas, then Daniel Ogunleye after the hosts were reduced to ten men. The winner was finally struck by Eddie Dsane after a brilliant solo run from Dan Carter.

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Highlights courtesy of Dartford FC TV

Draw in Essex

The earlier meeting last season saw the two sides draw 1-1. At the time, Dartford were looking for some form after a slow start in Adrian Pennock’s second full campaign in charge. Brentwood Town fresh from their league title maintained momentum and led the Isthmian Premier.

Samir Carruthers put the Darts in front with a free-kick. Charlee Hughes equalised for the Blues to share the spoils.

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Highlights courtesy of BrentwoodTownTV

Summer Changes

The fact that the goalscorers from both games last term have all left their respected clubs highlights the changes to both squads over the summer. Dartford have replaced Box and Dsane with Gianluca Botti and Max Fiddes. Brentwood Town lost Ogunleye up front and taken a punt on former Stanway Rovers top scorer Nat Mardell.

Keith Rowland has also bolstered his squad with promotion winners. The Blues have added Mikey Berry from champions Folkestone Invicta, whilst Tommy Davis and Ben Steward were signed from Billericay Town. He has also introduced new faces from the National South bringing in Malachi Linton from AFC Totton, Harry Gibbs from playoff winners Hornchurch and Charlee Adams from Chelmsford City.

Manager’s View

Ben Greenhalgh was delighted with how his players responded to adversity on the weekend. He spoke to Dartford FC TV after the win and said: “We showed a little bit of everything, positive and negative. One thing we spoke about is the graft and character these boys are going to have and that’s attacking and defensively”.

The player manager admits the opening ten minutes was ‘too emotional’ when a decision didn’t go Dartford’s way. Harry White in the Three Bridges goal could have been sent off. Afterwards the Darts found themselves two down. At that point the team ‘could have imploded’ according to Greenhalgh.

Dartford’s boss was pleased with how his side saw the game out at 3-2 up, he commented: “The comeback is great, but it’s also the mentality to accept for the last fifteen minutes we had to defend for our lives. For us not to let in an open play goal is credit for the group”.

Brentwood Town visit the Darts on Tuesday night. Greenhalgh is expecting his players to be fully focussed, he explained: “There are good teams in this division and we have to accept that. We have to not be complacent against anyone. We’re going to go to Princes Park and we’re going consistent. We go again Tuesday and hopefully get another three points, it will be a brilliant start”.

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Head to Head

Dartford wins: 4 / Brentwood Town wins: 2 / Draws: 3

Previous Meetings

Dartford 3 – 2 Brentwood Town (31/01/2026– Isthmian Premier)
Brentwood Town 1 – 1 Dartford (11/10/2025– Isthmian Premier)
Brentwood Town 1 – 2 Dartford (25/11/2017 – F.A Trophy)
Dartford 0 – 1 Brentwood Town (29/03/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 2 Dartford (05/02/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 1 Dartford (08/03/1969 – Southern League First Division)

Statistics

• Dartford’s win in January was their first in the league against Brentwood Town in 58 years (D3, L2)
• The Darts have hosted the Blues four times in all competitions and have a 50% win rate (W2, D1, L1)
• Dartford have lost just one of their last 11 opening home games (W5, D5), but are winless in their last three (D2, L1)

On This Day

Dartford have played four time on this day all at home. Six years ago, the Darts drew 0-0 with Hemel Hempstead Town. Three years earlier a goal from Tom Bradbrook after six minutes saw Dartford beat Eastbourne Borough.

In 2012, Dartford’s long awaited return to the National League ended in defeat against Tamworth. Peter Till and Adam Cunnington put the Lambs ahead. Elliot Bradbrook scored a free-kick before Cunnington added a third for the hosts. Harry Crawford set up a tense finish. In another season opener, the Darts drew 1-1 with Yeovil Town in the Southern Premier back in 1973.

Dartford hope to strengthen their playoff credentials by gaining ground on Brentwood Town this weekend.

The Darts host the Blues this Saturday and know victory will take them to within two points of the Essex side. Only a win will guarantee Adrian Pennock’s side a top five place at the end of the afternoon as pressure starts to mount from those looking to get into the playoff places. Brentwood Town will not want to get dragged into that battle and instead will be aiming to keep pace with those above them.

Missed Opportunities

Out of the current top five it is looking like Brentwood Town is the team Dartford can catch, but the Darts failed to gain on the Blues last weekend and so Keith Rowland’s side remain five points clear.

Lately, Dartford have made a habit of beating teams towards the top of the table, then dropping points against teams below them. After claiming an excellent win over Chatham Town, the Darts conceded late to draw at Hashtag United. Adrian Pennock’s side then ended Aveley’s long unbeaten run only to follow that impressive result with defeat at Burgess Hill Town.

Sunk in Sussex

It was no surprise that the Dartford boss named an unchanged side for their trip to Sussex after defeating an in form Aveley. However, once again their away performance has contributed to why the Darts are hanging onto a playoff spot rather than comfortably being in the top five.

Burgess Hill Town can thank George Vorster for the win. The forward scored a brace either side of Denzelle Olopade’s fantastic strike. The Hillians earned a penalty when Kieran Rowe was fouled by Jonny Henly. Up stepped Vorster to put the hosts ahead. In first half injury time, Olopade unleashed a long range shot which flew past Roco Rees and into the net. The midfielder’s second goal in as many games.

Vorster restored Burgess Hill Town’s lead with a header early in the second half and it was much needed. The Sussex side were reduced to ten men after Ben Pope was given a second yellow card. Dartford couldn’t make the numerical advantage count in the final half hour and suffered their first ever defeat at Burgess Hill Town, losing a perfect away record against the Hillians.

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Highlights courtesy of Hillians TV

Home Sweet Home

Dartford will be pleased to be back at home this weekend. A draw at Brentwood Town in October was one of 14 points gained on the road this term. At Princes Park the story is different with the Darts boasting the second highest points at home in the division, just over double the amount earned on their travels.

Darts Deny Blues

Three months ago in Essex, the Darts faced Isthmian North champions Brentwood Town and halted their 100% home record. Continuing momentum from last season, the league leaders at the time had just won eight in a row. Jacob Bland made his debut and Dan Carter came off the bench for his first appearance, but it was a more experienced midfielder who gave Dartford a lead. Samir Carruthers scored directly from free kick, but Charlee Hughes equalised for the Blues as the points were shared.

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Highlights courtesy of Brentwood Town TV

Noble’s the Prize

Dartford have only hosted Brentwood Town once at Princes Park and that ended in defeat back in March 2008. The Blues won 1-0 and the decisive goal alerted Dartford to a certain Lee Noble. The midfielder impressed in the Brentwood midfield and later became a fans favourite with the Darts, winning multiple Player of the Year awards and scoring the 2012 playoff winner. In the previous six meetings against the Essex club, Dartford have won just once and that was in the F.A Trophy third qualifying round in November 2017. Noble proved decisive again, this time against his former side as the Darts triumphed 2-1.

Settling in the Isthmian Premier

Brentwood Town had an outstanding start to their season and topped the table at the end of October. Between the opening day draw with Aveley and the stalemate with the Darts they won all eight league matches. The momentum from their Isthmian North title win just kept growing.

The beginning of November saw the changing of the guard. Brentwood Town lost three in a row to begin that month and relinquished top spot. The Blues recovered, only losing one more in the next eight and that was at league leaders Folkestone Invicta.

Blues Barren Spell

However, for a second time this term the Essex club have just lost three on the spin and will be determined to stop the streak. A clinical Cray Wanderers side won 4-1 with all of their goals coming in the first-half. Although Kymani Thomas scored a consolation, it was a sorry afternoon for the Blues.

The Essex derby with Billericay Town was decided by Elliot Long as Ricay took all three points. Then last time out, Brentwood Town were beaten 2-0 by Dulwich Hamlet.

Manager’s View

Adrian Pennock was disappointed at the defeat in Sussex last weekend, he told www.dartfordfc.com: “I was disappointed with the result. But we weren’t good enough from front to back. I thought our decision-making was poor. It’s not often I can say nearly every player had an off game”.

Dartford are coming under pressure from teams trying to reach the playoffs, the Darts boss commented: “There’s a lot of football to be played. There are lots of teams behind us hitting form, so we have to concentrate on us”, but home advantage could well play its part in the next fortnight, he added: “There’s two home matches to come and they will both be tough games. But we are strong at home. We are going to do all we can to get the six points and forget about this weekend”.

Team News

Aside from Dean Nayler with a long term injury, Adrian Pennock should have a full squad to choose from.

Current League Form

Dartford (LWWDWL)			Brentwood Town (WWWLLL)
Burgess Hill Town	A	1-2	Dulwich Hamlet	H	0-2
Aveley	H	2-0	Billericay Town	A	0-1
Hashtag United	A	2-2	Cray Wanderers	H	1-4
Chatham Town	A	2-1	Welling United	A	4-1
St Albans City	H	1-0	Potters Bar Town	H	1-0
Folkestone Invicta	H	1-2	Hashtag United	H	2-0

 

Head to Head

Dartford wins: 3 / Brentwood Town wins: 2 / Draws: 3

Previous Meetings

Brentwood Town 1 – 1 Dartford (11/10/2025 – Isthmian Premier)
Brentwood Town 1 – 2 Dartford (25/11/2017 – F.A Trophy)
Dartford 0 – 1 Brentwood Town (29/03/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 2 Dartford (05/02/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 1 Dartford (08/03/1969 – Southern League First Division)
Dartford 1 – 1 Brentwood Town (15/02/1969 – Southern League First Division)

Statistics

• Dartford are five games without a league win against Brentwood Town (D3, L2)
• The Darts have kept four clean sheets at home in their last five league games and have kept consecutive home clean sheets in the league
• The Darts last managed three home league games without conceding a year ago.
• Neither side have scored more than two goals in this fixture

On This Day

Dartford have an incredible unbeaten home record on this day winning nine and drawing two. The last side to visit the Darts and prevent a victory was Bristol Rovers in 2015. Dartford equalised twice through Ryan Hayes in the 2-2 National League draw. Keiran Murtagh and Pierre Fonkeu were on hand to give the Darts a 2-0 London Senior Cup win over Metropolitan Police three years ago. In 2009, the Darts won a Kent derby against rivals Maidstone United in the Isthmian Premier League. Rob Haworth scored from a tight angle in Cody McDonald’s last game for the Darts before he joined Norwich City. That derby day victory was the last of a seven game winning streak at home on 31 January.

Dartford are up against newly promoted and surprise league leaders Brentwood Town this weekend in the Isthmian Premier.

The Darts face a tough task if they want to record their first win on the road this season. Adrian Pennock’s side will need to end the Blues perfect home start and eight game winning streak in the league.

Isthmian Division One Division One North champions Brentwood Town are top of the standings again. After a draw on the opening day no one in the division has been able to stop Keith Rowland’s team in their tracks. The Essex club are guaranteed to remain in pole position this weekend regardless of the result.  

Another Cup Exit

For the second time in four seasons Dartford have exited the F.A Trophy, F.A Cup and Kent Senior Cup at the first hurdle. The Darts are now under pressure to pick up results after their disappointing trophy defeat to Hadley. Olly Box continued his good goalscoring form with an early strike making it three goals in his last three appearances. Even though injuries within the squad have cleared up, Michael Olarewaju and Dan Smith made their first starts since August, Dartford still let a lead slip. Hadley turned the tie on its head to become the fourth team from a lower division to knock the Darts out of the competition in the last six years.

Too Many Draws

Only four sides in the Isthmian Premier League have lost fewer matches than Dartford. The problem is those sides are in the top four and the Darts are down in thirteenth. Drawing over half of their league games has contributed to this season’s frustration which has seen the Darts post just two wins on the board, both at Princes Park.

Burgess Hill Town were the latest club to hold back Pennock’s side having come from behind twice. Box and Callum Jones got Dartford off to a great start and the performance in the first half deservedly had the home side ahead. After the break, the Darts were caught out immediately when Marcus Allen pulled a goal back, then equalised with twenty minutes to go. Sam Odaudu scored a deflected free-kick late in the game, but another free-kick from Chris Whelpdale caught out goalkeeper Jonny Henly during injury time to level for the Hillians.

Whilst the Darts are now six unbeaten in the Isthmian Premier they have only picked up ten points from those games.

New Signing

Dartford could give a debut to 21-year-old Jacob Bland, a new signing from Isthmian Division One North side Bowers and Pitsea. The midfielder spent a month with the Darts during the summer. After getting regular games with Bowers, Pennock feels Bland is now a good addition to the squad.

Noble Shines and Signs

Dartford romped to the league title last time Brentwood Town were in the same division. Lining up for The Blues against the Darts that year was a future Dartford legend. Lee Noble impressed Tony Burman in both fixtures back in 2008, so much so he signed the midfielder that summer.

Noble spent 12 years at Princes Park, scoring the National South playoff winner in 2012, won the Supporter’s Player of the Year on five occasions, made over 450 appearances and scored 51 goals. Noble returned home to Brentwood Town in 2024, became Manager’s Player of the Year and helped the Blues to the Isthmian Division One North title.

In a campaign where the Darts added a championship to their honours, Brentwood Town took four points from Burman’s side. Brendon Cass and John Guest scored for Dartford in a 2-2 draw in Essex. The reverse fixture ended 1-0 to the Blues, the scorer that day was Lee Noble.

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Highlights courtesy of sonytino

Brentwood’s Brilliant Start

The Blues have been perfect since the season opening draw at Aveley. Former West Ham United defender and Northern Ireland international, Keith Rowland guided Brentwood Town to their first Isthmian Premier point in nine years. Summer signing Charlee Hughes scored against his former club in the 1-1 draw.

Since then, Brentwood Town have been unstoppable with maximum points in their last eight outings. At home, the Blues have beaten St Albans City, Burgess Hill Town, Carshalton Athletic, Canvey Island and Billericay Town. All opponents Dartford have already played home or away this term with the Darts picking up six points from those teams.

Top Scorers

Rowland’s team have been potent in attack helped by last season’s Player’s Player and Supporters’ Player Of The Year, Danny Ogunleye. He is already on five league goals and sparked interest from Colchester United over the summer. Hughes is just one goal behind in all competitions joint with Louie Johnson, who netted 18 last season to pick up annual awards at Walthamstow.

Manager’s View

The shock defeat at Hadley led to an honest discussion in the Dartford camp. Pennock spoke to www.dartfordfc.com this week and said: “We had a good chat after the game. It was an open floor. I said what I thought and I let them all speak and they gave their opinions. There was no shouting, but we all took things on board and we will see an improvement on Saturday”.

Dartford’s boss felt let down and urges his team to ‘play for the shirt’ and get a good result against the league leaders this weekend, he commented: “I want a reaction and a better performance”, he added: “I want us to bounce back and put in a proper performance against a team that is flying”.

Looking forward to the trip to Essex, Pennock is confident fortunes will improve if the players perform to the levels he demands, he said: “I know we will turn it round. But this week, I want to see energy and players that want the ball. The players know they will need to up the intensity that we have seen in the past few games, but if we can do that, it will be a cracking game”.

Team News

Dartford will be without their creative spark, Olly Box who is suspended for the red card picked up against Burgess Hill Town. However, Ikechi Eze returns after serving his ban. Defender, Ben Frempah has been out of the squad since the draw at home to Canvey Island in early September. Both Sammie McLeod and Dean Nayler have yet to feature this term as they recover from long term injuries.

Current Form

Dartford (DDDWDL)			Brentwood Town (WWLWWW)
Hadley (FAT)	A	1-2	Westfield (FAT)	A	2-1
Burgess Hill Town	H	3-3	Dulwich Hamlet	A	2-1
Cheshunt	H	2-0	Billericay Town	H	3-0
Erith Town (CC)	A	1-1*	Royston Town (FAC)	A	0-1
Aveley	A	1-1	Canvey Island	H	1-0
Canvey Island	H	2-2	Carshalton Athletic	H	3-2

(FAC – F.A Cup / CC – County Cup / FAT – F.A Trophy / * – lost 3-4 on penalties)

Head to Head

Dartford wins: 3 / Brentwood Town wins: 2 / Draws: 2

Previous Meetings

Brentwood Town 1 – 2 Dartford (25/11/2017 – F.A Trophy)
Dartford 0 – 1 Brentwood Town (29/03/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 2 Dartford (05/02/2008 – Isthmian Division One North)
Brentwood Town 2 – 1 Dartford (08/03/1969 – Southern League First Division)
Dartford 1 – 1 Brentwood Town (15/02/1969 – Southern League First Division)
Dartford 2 – 0 Billericay Town (15/04/1968 – Southern League First Division)

Statistics

• Dartford are four games without a league win against Brentwood Town (D2, L2)
• The Darts are five league games without a win on the road from the start of the season for the first time since 2019
• Neither side have scored more than two goals in this fixture

On This Day

It’s been 11 years since Dartford played on 11 October and that was the 1-1 draw at home to Macclesfield Town. The National Premier game ended all square thanks to two late goals. Ryan Hayes looked to have won it for the Darts with five minutes to go, but Matthew Barnes-Homer levelled.

The last six Dartford fixtures on this day have all been at home with just two victories recorded. Ilford were beaten 3-1 in the Southern Premier Division One East back in 2005. Whilst in 1988, the Darts won a Southern League first round cup tie 1-0 versus Hastings United.

On the road, the Darts are unbeaten in four on this day with three draws. The last away day on 11 October was in 1986 against Bedworth United, a Southern Premier League match that ended 1-1. Dartford’s last win on their travels on this day was in 1975 when they defeated Waterlooville 2-1 in the Southern League Division One South.