Dover Athletic and boss Jake Leberl react after Whites play ineligible defender Nico Jones in 4-0 Kent Senior Cup win at Beckenham Town

Dover look set to be kicked out of this season’s Kent Senior Cup.

The National League South bottom team progressed to the Quarter-Final stage of the competition with a 4-0 victory at Isthmian South East Beckenham last Tuesday.

But it has since come to light that 22-year-old defender Nico Jones had - seemingly unknowingly - already played in the Kent Senior Cup this term for Welling United in a 7-1 defeat to Sevenoaks in November and therefore was ineligible.

Ironically, Jones was sent off for a second bookable offence at Beckenham.

Whites are in contact with the Kent FA - but manager Jake Leberl concedes the situation doesn’t look good for Dover, who would have been due to face Ebbsfleet in the next round.

He said: “I was really pleased with the boys that came in and played, especially the two full-backs.

“Unfortunately, we had an incident where one of the lads (Jones) played in the competition for Welling. When we signed him, he put down on the form his previous club as Brentford.

“Unfortunately, it looks like we will be expelled from the competition.

“We were not aware he had played in the competition already - he thought it was a friendly and his agent wasn’t aware. What more can you do?

“That’s the situation with where the club is at this season, having had so many players. It’s a shame, really. It would have been tough at Ebbsfleet - but a good challenge for the boys.

“The (Kent) FA have asked for a report and that’s the truth. We haven’t tried to hide anything.”

A statement from Dover on Sunday read: “Dover Athletic are aware of the allegations brought forward around fielding an ineligible player in the Kent Senior Cup Second-Round match on February 6.

“The Kent FA are yet to receive our response and thus no