Yeovil Town sunk to a narrow 0-1 defeat at Huish Park at the hands of Dover Athletic.

Defender Scott Doe netted the only goal of the game, poking the ball beyond Stuart Nelson after an expertly weighted cross.

Victory would have meant the green and whites topped the National League, instead Yeovil sit fifth with a game in hand on the teams around them.

Darren Sarll made two changes to the side which was dumped out of the FA Cup by Hartlepool on Tuesday. One was forced upon him, after Luke Wilkinson’s sending off, Tom Bradbury returned to the fold. 

The second change came in the forward department, Chris Dagnall dropped to the bench with Gold Omotayo his replacement, looking to make an impact.

It would be Omotayo’s strike partner, Rhys Murphy who provided the early trouble for Dover. The forward regularly found routes in behind during the opening stages but struggled to fashion anything clear-cut.

The Glovers largely dominated the first half, with Murphy the continual dangerman, going closest with a looping header which was cleared off the line.

Town would have the ball in the back of the net leading to an eruption from the Thatcher’s Stand, however this was short-lived as the referee ruled the goal out for offside.

The best chance of the half fell to the returning Bradbury who couldn’t quite direct his header on target following Lawson D’Ath’s corner.

The second half bought a role-reversal with Dover the team on top. Forcing Nelson into a number of saves. The visitors’ pressure would tell as Doe broke the offside trap and poked his side ahead.

The goal sparked Town back into life, forcing the game onto the Dover backline.

A number of long-balls caused trouble for the Dover defenders, but still a clear-cut chance was lacking.

Positive substitutions from Sarll led to a number of chances, with James Tilley testing Yusuf Mersin with powerful efforts from the edge of the box.

It would be Dover who went closest in the closing stages, striking the bar with minutes to go.

Ultimately, Yeovil Town could not fashion any goalscoring opportunities in the closing stages, stumbling to a second successive defeat at Huish Park.

Yeovil Town: Nelson; Hippolyte, Collins, Bradbury, Hutton; Lee, Worthington (Tilley), D’Ath, Smith (Duffus); Omotayo, Murphy (Dagnall).

Bookings:

Subs not used: Jones (GK), Skendi.

Dover Athletic: Mersin, Taylor, Doe, Woods, Effiong, L’Ghoul , Munns, Rooney, Gobern, Rigg, Simpson.

Bookings: Gobern.

Subs: Worgan, Cumberbatch, Bedford, Ratti, Jeffery.