FOR a third consecutive season, Forest Green’s Wembley ambitions in the FA Trophy were thwarted by a club from a lower level as Ebbsfleet United booked a place in the third round.

It is also the third year in a row Rovers have gone out at the second round stage, and they were on the back foot for much of the game after Dale Bennett’s challenge saw him sent off

And after Bennett’s sending off had pegged Rovers back, Daryl McMahon’s superb strike proved to be enough despite a late Forest Green rally.

Rovers struggled to get going as the wind made life difficult for both teams in the first half.

An uneventful opening half-hour saw only Bennett’s dismissal as a major talking point when it occurred, ten minutes before half-time.

The right back picked up his second red of the season when he was adjudged to have gone in dangerously on Ebbsfleet front man, Danny Kedwell.

Rovers were forced to reorganise quickly, with Clovis Kamdjo dropping into the back four, and it took an exceptional header off the line from James Norwood to keep the home side at bay.

They did find a way through only minutes after Bennett’s dismissal

The ball was given away poorly in the Rovers box, which allowed former Leyton Orient midfielder McMahon the opportunity to slam home terrifically past the reach of Sam Russell and hand the Vanarama Conference South side the lead.

Rovers in the second half, but they still struggled to get things together. Edwards in the Ebbsfleet goal, made several key saves

And, while Rovers kept getting chances, as the Kent outfit frustrated Forest Green in the closing stages, ensuring their place in the third round of the competition.