NATIONAL LEAGUE

DOVER ATHLETIC 0

FOREST GREEN 1

IT will be a case of deja-vu for Forest Green and Dover Athletic on Wednesday.

The two sides will lock-horns in Kent for the second time in five days for the first leg of the play-off semi-final.

And they will hit the road with renewed confidence after caretaker boss Scott Bartlett ended Rovers’ seven-game winless run following the axing of Ady Pennock on Wednesday morning.

Academy boss Bartlett certainly has the midas touch and will have been delighted to see Brett Williams win it for Rovers with a second half stunner as the Nailsworth side finished the regular season in second and on a winning high.

Bartlett, who won his previous two matches in a caretaking spell in 2013, stepped up to the plate and made six changes from the side Pennock picked in the defeat against FC Halifax Town, including second-year academy starlet Joe Stokes,18, a former KLB student from Wotton and an ex-Swindon Town schoolboy in midfield for his debut.

Rested trio Aarran Racine, Darren Carter and Elliott Frear all returned.

Keanu Marsh-Brown was set to start, but an overnight stomach bug forced him to the subs bench.

Meanwhile, Rob Sinclair (hamstring) and Dale Bennett (groin) remain a doubt for the play-offs.

Winless in seven, Rovers started brightly with Frear whipping in a ball from the left that produced a nervous sprawling save from Andy Rafferty.

Rovers came close to breaking the stalemate on 21 minutes. Carter slipped in Frear, who drifted across the box to fire in a low strike, which Rafferty did well to glove onto the base of the post.

Dover should have nosed ahead just seconds later, but Tom Murphy missed his headed chance with the goal at his mercy from a Duane Ofori-Acheampong nod on following an Aswad Thomas long throw.

And Rovers almost pushed the self-destruct button when the previously imperious Racine misjudged a high ball for Tyrone Marsh to break free and as he shaped to shoot the covering David Pipe did enough to put him off as he prepared to lash the ball beyond the exposed Steve Arnold.

Goalscoring left-back James Jennings found a pocket of space in the box to plant a header goalwards, but he was denied by a flag and a smart save from Rafferty. Jennings then nodded wide soonafter and then Kurtis Guthrie shot across the face of goal as Rovers finished this dead-rubber on the front-foot.

Dover howled for an early second half penalty when Murphy claimed his cross was handled by the diving Jennings.

Bartlett had tweaked his formation at the break with Williams moving to a central striking role and Guthrie moving to the right - and it paid off.

Rovers took the lead in the 52-nd minute with a stunner from Williams, who received the ball from Guthrie and the former Aldershot man stepped on the gas to skip past two Dover defenders and fizz a right-footer beyond the gloves of Rafferty.

Jennings was always a danger from set-plays and Rafferty had to react quickly to claw his header away from Marcus Kelly corner as Rovers hunted a second.

Stokes tried to pull the ball back for sub Ben Jefford, but Connor Essam did well to snuff out the danger.

Rovers survived a late scare, but held on to set up a return to Dover on Wednesday  in the knowledge that a Wembley play-off final is just 180 minutes away.

Forest Green: 4-1-4-1: S Arnold, D Pipe, J Jennings , A Racine, C Clough; J Stokes; D Carter, M Kelly, E Frear ( K Marsh-Brown, 66), K Guthrie ( J Parkin, 69), B Williams ( B Jefford, 76).

Subs not used: L Pidgeley, K Moore.

Attendance: 1,651.

Star Man: Aarran Racine.

Next: Wednesday, May 4, 7pm: Play-off semi-final first leg: Dover Athletic v Forest Green (A),