Dorchester Town stay up - is this a new era for the Magpies?

Dorchester have battled against the drop in four of their past five seasons, nerves shredded until deep into those campaigns.

But this time, in the fifth season in question, there seemed little fuss.

The Magpies had not beaten Salisbury since a 2-1 victory in their National League South days – more than nine years ago.

And there seemed little fuss over the task at hand – better Kings Langley’s result at Yate and safety was secured.

READ MORE: Salisbury 0-1 Dorchester Town - Glenn Howes match reaction

There also seemed little fuss within Dorchester’s ranks, players and staff members as they beamed with confidence after taking three wins from their past five fixtures.

Among those triumphs were gritty displays at Kings Langley and Wimborne, washed down with a terrific 3-0 victory over Hendon last time out.

Their form had presented them with the opportunity to wrap up survival in the Pitching In Southern League Premier South away to a quality Salisbury side flush with former Dorchester players.

Antonio Diaz and Charlie Davis – the latter tormented all afternoon by the Magpies’ faithful – were among that contingent, while Calvin Brooks had risen through Dorchester’s youth system.

All three players have featured for Weymouth in the past five years.

They were joined by winger Abdulai Baggie, who looked a shadow of his lofty form for the Terras two seasons ago.

Of the quartet, only Brooks shone in tandem with Devon Arnold on the Salisbury right – the latter drafted into the line-up thanks to Sam Heal’s injury minutes before kick-off.

Dorchester contained Salisbury to good effect in the first half, the Whites’ only clear chance coming when Diaz was denied by Southampton loanee keeper Jack Bycroft after Baggie’s clever pass.

While the Magpies had threatened little themselves, restricted to long-range shots, their appetite in midfield was beginning to drain their opponents.

READ MORE: Salisbury 0-1 Dorchester Town - match report

Tom Purrington might need a new pair of boots, such was the distance he covered in Wiltshire.

And the former Plymouth man was instrumental in the winner, evading numerous tackles and gliding into the area before losing possession.

Although he was tackled by Sam Roberts, the ball trickled invitingly to top scorer Alfie Stanley and the former Portsmouth man did the rest, tucking neatly into the far corner.

The travelling Dorchester support erupted. Where were the nerves of Dorchester relegation battles past?

Something just felt different this time, that safety was almost an inevitability given how well the Magpies had played their last five games.

Dorchester walk off the pitch after beating the drop Picture: NEIL WALTON

The only nerves being frayed were those of Salisbury boss Steve Claridge, who watched the majority of the game from the stands.

He constantly berated bad luck with injuries, an unsettled line-up and even complained that his squad ‘haven’t played professionally’ when dissecting what he perceived to be slow thinking on the ball.

Claridge could have a strong argument on the injury front, with player-of-the-month Diaz forced to play a more defensive role on the left, caused by Heal’s knock.

Ollie Knowles was clearly limping in midfield for much of the first half and then star player Brooks was stretchered off – Claridge among the bearers – with a serious-looking knee injury.

All this happened as Salisbury began to wilt in the warmth, ground down by Dorchester’s greater will to win.

READ MORE: Salisbury 0-1 Dorchester Town - how it happened

But they did play their part in a thrilling final 28 minutes, including eight added for Brooks’ treatment, as the nerves finally found their way into Dorchester’s bloodstream.

Concurrently, Yate were seeing out a 3-1 win over Kings Langley and Dorchester just needed to avoid conceding two late goals in order to achieve safety.

Harry McGrath could have put survival beyond all doubt, only to blaze over from 12 yards when unmarked.

Salisbury’s Sam Ashton, subbed in for Brooks, stirred the butterflies further with a 30-yard dipper that crashed against the bar.

Bycroft needed two grabs to hold Baggie’s flick in the 96th minute and Olaf Koszela drilled a good chance wide on the break as another opportunity went begging.

But the final whistle came just a minute later and Dorchester were safe, sparking deserved celebrations.

Yet, that feeling of difference remained at the full-time whistle as players thanked fans and vice versa.

A quick glance across to the management team, led by boss Glenn Howes, saw them embrace the fans just as readily as the players.

But already etched on their complexion was a business-like determination to avoid a situation like this happening again.

Four times in five seasons has taken its toll.

Lingering was the irony in pre-season of the club making increased strides to dodge this very scenario happening – and yet somehow it did.

This is where Howes comes in. Prior to becoming Dorchester boss, he’d done very little losing.

He can now argue he has helped turn fortunes around, earning four victories in six games, and he already has his sights set on 2022/23.

Notably, he used the term “big summer” in his post-match interviews – and it’s hard to disagree.

Howes has earned the chance to stamp his authority all over Dorchester’s summer.

For the first time next August, we will see a Magpies team purely picked by Howes to carry out his footballing philosophy.

Based on what we have seen over the past month, that philosophy is to win games.

You can therefore understand why things feel so much different at Dorchester – the Magpies have turned a corner and that may only just be the beginning.