Tilbury 3, Little Oakley 0

THERE was a welcome win for Tilbury in the Isthmian North on Saturday (19 September) that lifted Dockers to ninth and sets them up for Tuesday's home derby against struggling Canvey Island, now under the management of former Northern Ireland international and Manchester City star Kevin Horlock after the recent departure of former Dockers player Garry Kimble.

Alfie Fry, Jake Brocklebank and Rasheed Salau came into the starting 11 for Dockers after their heavy midweek defeat at Cambridge City.

The newly-promoted visitors came close to opening the scoring early on when George Davis flicked his rebound goalward, only to see it strike the crossbar.

The deadlock was eventually broken in the 41st minute, when Bobby Rea's cross from the lefthand side was blocked by the arm of Noah Collars. Joe Elliott stepped up to take the penalty, and he made no mistake, firing past Brad Cook for the lead.

On the stroke of halftime, Tilbury doubled their advantage through Jon Nzengo, who was playing a more advanced midfield role. Nzengo picked up the ball on the edge of the area after a punched clearance from a long throw, took a touch to set himself, and rifled his strike into the top right corner.

The hosts came close to extending their lead further, once again through Nzengo, who this time saw his rifled effort denied by the woodwork.

The match was finally put to bed in the 88th minute, when the hosts were awarded another penalty as Ben Allen was brought down in the area. The pressure still didn't faze Elliott, as the defender hammered another strike into the top corner.

Dockers: Lawlor, Fry (Bennett), Rea (Nandi), Taylor, Reeve ©, Elliott, Toussaint (Winn), Brocklebank, Nzengo (Allen), Stimson (Sidibe), Salau.