Isthmian League round-up: Herne Bay and Margate draw in Isthmian Premier, Folkestone Invicta lose again and Chatham Town go top of Isthmian South East

A six-goal thriller saw Herne Bay’s Isthmian Premier survival bid take another hit at Hastings on Saturday.

In a topsy-turvy encounter, Kevin Watson’s men were 2-0 down before two-goal Jerson Dos Santos and strike partner Marcel Barrington put them 3-2 up by half-time.

But a second-half strike by Jack Dixon earned the hosts a share of the spoils from The Pilot Field clash in front of 873 fans.

On-loan Gillingham striker Joe Gbode and ex-Dover captain Craig Stone found the net for Hastings in the first half.

Bay, whose chairman Stuart Fitchie stood down on Thursday, are now four points away from Kingstonian and safety after they won at Folkestone. But they’ve also slipped down to third-bottom, behind Bowers - managed by former Faversham manager James Collins.

Margate also drew, sharing four goals with Lewes at Hartsdown Park.

All the efforts came in the first 35 minutes, with midfielder Sam Blackman and forward Ruben Soares-Junior on target for the hosts, the former making his 100th club appearance, while former Gate striker Joe Taylor scored against his old club.

Folkestone lost for a fourth match in a row, going down 3-1 at home to Kingstonian despite frontman Ira Jackson’s penalty.

Cray Wanderers remain four points away from fifth-placed Enfield after they played out a 1-1 draw.

Leyton Orient loanee Harrison Sodje struck late on to earn Neil Smith’s side a point after they had trailed for much of the match.

Chatham moved to the Isthmian South East summit thanks to a 2-1 home win over top-three rivals Whitehawk in front of a crowd of just shy of 1,500 people.

With Ramsgate’s trip to Chichester among those postponed, midfielder Jack Evans won it at the death in dramatic fashion with a penalty after his first-half effort