No.15 — April 23, 1984: Fleet 1-1 Dartford
Back in the familiar surroundings of the Southern League and both clubs were riding high in the division, though for the Fleet it would be the last high point for some time. Although finishing fourth that year, Fleet’s promotion challenge had withered somewhat by the time of this meeting at Easter 1984. For Dartford it was a different story as they sought to fight off a title challenge from Fisher Athletic. Ray Kenny scored for the Fleet but the Darts escaped with a vital point in front of 1,701 – and they would go on to win the league three points clear of Fisher for a return to the top flight.
No.16 — November 24, 1987: Fleet 0-2 Dartford
Notable only as the lowest crowd to ever watch the derby match (unless you count zero from last season’s Covid-affected fixture!), just 242 turned up for this largely pointless and certainly catchily titled ‘Westgate Insurance Cup Round 1 Group Phase’ defeat. Fleet were in the financial doldrums, Dartford riding high under Peter Taylor and the Northfleet public clearly weren’t convinced this was going to be a classic! They were right.
No.17 — January 1, 1992: Dartford 5-0 Fleet
The last ever North Kent derby at Watling Street before it was demolished and both Maidstone and Dartford went into serious decline was a miserable one for Fleet fans among the 1,152 crowd. We’d lost at the same venue by the same scoreline two years earlier and with a poor relegation-bound squad, it was too easy once more for the Darts to roll in the goals. Dartford went on to finish sixth in their final season before their crisis, Fleet finishing bottom of the league by quite some distance although we managed to scrape a 1-1 draw in the Easter return at Stonebridge Road, watched by 836… the lowest ever league crowd for this fixture.
No.18 — October 13, 2001: Dartford 0-2 Fleet
Without a meeting in almost a decade following Dartford’s demise in 1992 (aside from a Kent Senior Cup tie), this FA Cup clash threw up the unique occasion of Fleet having to set up camp in the away dressing room at Stonebridge Road given that homeless Dartford were drawn at home and groundshared with us. Leading the Ryman Premier, Fleet had a little bit too much for the Southern League East Division Darts as Rob Owen and Elliott Martin scored in front of a modest 1,270, but despite their lower-league status, Dartford gave it a good go on ‘home’ soil!
No.19 — August 28, 2010: Dartford 1-1 Fleet
The first North Kent league derby for 18 years as Dartford’s promotion and Fleet’s relegation pitted the two old rivals at the same level at last. Fleet edged ahead on the hour courtesy of Michael West’s header but lost Dean Pooley to a nasty looking injury, and then the home side stepped things up a gear. Charlie Sheringham equalised from the spot for a perhaps fitting draw after so long a gap in such games. It was clear the keen rivalry was still there as 2,781 turned up in fine voice. Fleet fans enjoyed the next derby that season even more, winning 2-1 at Stonebridge Road en route to promotion.
No.20 — January 1, 2013: Fleet 2-2 Dartford
Newly promoted Dartford had been well and truly on top in the Boxing Day fixture, easing to a 3-1 victory over relegation-haunted Fleet and looked set to complete a double as they comfortably took a two-goal lead at Stonebridge Road. But in one of the few truly memorable moments of an awful season, Fleet roared back to steal a point. Nathan Elder fired a quick response to Dartford’s second goal but home fans had to wait until the dying moments of injury time, having missed several opportunities for the equaliser, before Elder ducked beneath a loose ball to fire home a most enthusiastically greeted goal just 30 seconds from the end. We still got relegated though!
No.21— January 1, 2017: Fleet 1-0 Dartford
Having lost the Boxing Day game to a spirited Darts at Princes Park, promotion doubts might have really crept in had Fleet let the return match slip – not to mention given Tony Burman’s side half a nose into the title race. In front of 2,564 on a damp, soggy afternoon at Stonebridge Road, it wasn’t exactly a classic but Fleet fans cared little as Bradley Bubb’s scuffed close-range winner wrestled back the local bragging rights and more importantly the three points.
No.22— January 2, 2021: Dartford 0-0 Fleet
Behind closed doors and amidst the global pandemic, the only North Kent derby to be played out in front of complete silence from the terraces – and in front of glowing screens at home via livestreaming. There were a couple of moments for either side but it unsurprisingly lacked the real blood and guts of a typical Fleet-Darts clash and a goalless draw was perhaps inevitable.
