GRAHAM Kemp hailed the bravery of his charges in the 2-2 draw with Cambridge City at the Avenue on Saturday, but admitted it probably cost them all three points.

A late leveller from Olu Akinsanya on the counter as Dorchester looked to kill the game off meant the spoils were shared in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier Division clash, but the draw did stop the rot of four straight defeats for Kemp’s men.

“We were worthy of all three points and played very well for 80 minutes,” the Avenue boss told Echosport.

“We were just a little bit naive and I had spoken to the lads about being brave and not going out there to avoid defeat.

“I think that was the punishment for being brave, if we had stayed at home we would have probably won the game but I can’t fault the lads at all.

“It feels like a defeat but overall it was such a huge improvement from the last two or three games. Sometimes you don’t get what you deserve and we didn’t get what we deserved on Saturday.

“After the initial five or 10 minutes after when everyone was gutted, the smiles were on the lads’ faces after and we knew we had put in a decent performance.

“I’m not saying we have solved all the problems but it was a massive step in the right direction and I think the lads knew they were a bit unfortunate not to win the game.

“If we continue to do the things we did then we will get more points quickly.”

  •  A fans’ forum will be held tonight in the lounge bar at the Avenue Stadium (7pm).