A BRACE from Harry Rice gave Dial Square all three points against newly-promoted Laleham at Alwyns Lane on Tuesday (9 Sept.) night.

Rice scored in each half to take his tally to four goals in just three games to elevate Dial to third in the Surrey Premier County Football League table.

After suffering a surprise 2-1 home defeat against Bagshot in the league last Saturday, Dial boss Steve Brown was able to welcome back George Frith, Aidan Phillips, Aidan Doran and Charlie Marshall for the visit of Laleham.

The reinforcements served as a clear indication that Dial meant business from the outset, as the visitors struggled to keep possession against a litany of Dial attacks.

Dial captain Zac Hawker was the first to catch the eye when he fired over after just five minutes. But the hosts didn’t have to wait long to take the lead when Rice wrong-footed two Blues’ defenders inside the box, before holding his nerve and picking his spot past Jack Burrows from 12 yards.

One almost became two four minutes later when Michael Burton raced in to volley agonisingly wide of the post after an inviting cross from Jordan Carter.

With Dial in the ascendancy, Frith also passed up a good opportunity to extend the lead five minutes before the break, but his lob over the onrushing Burrows dropped just wide of the far post, with Burton unable to turn the ball in from an acute angle.

Laleham were limited to just a couple of half-chances throughout the first period, with Wayne Fitzgerald arguably having the best chance to test George Mead, but he dragged his shot wide just shy of the interval.

Dial needed to be on guard three minutes after the restart when striker-turned-defender Marshall managed to block Gus Naya’s shot. At the other end, Burton was again inches away from opening his Dial account after a tantalising cross from James Vass flew across the box, unimpeded.

With Dial pressing for a second, Cameron Tait managed to break clear of Vass down the right flank, but his low shot failed to hit the target midway through the half.

However, Dial’s second goal never looked far away, and so it proved when Rice managed to outmanoeuvre Burrows on the edge of the penalty box, before striking the ball into an empty goal in the 79th-minute.

To their credit, the visitors never lost heart and thought they had reduced the arrears a minute later, but Tait’s goal was ruled out for offside.

With a full complement of substitutes on the pitch, Rice and Daniel Cenzano both tried their luck from distance, but neither were able to test Burrows further as Dial went on to complete a comfortable 2-0 win. 

DIAL SQUARE: Mead, Corner (Finley), Vass (Doran), Phillips, Marshall, Bunyan, Carter (Cenzano), Hawker, Rice, Burton (Lawrence), Frith (Xavier).

MotM: Harry Rice