A solitary second half strike from Aidan Phillips proved to be the difference at The Hybrid Fitness Stadium as Dial closed the gap on AFC Walcountians to four points with four games remaining.

After a disappointing result against Worcester Park on Saturday, Dial boss Steve Brown opted for experience over youth, with the former Frimley Green and Camberley Town maestro naming himself and experienced assistant Matt Bunyan in the starting eleven.

There was little to choose between Dial and The French within the opening quarter-of-an-hour, with neither proving a threat in front of goal.

However, that almost turned on a six-pence midway through the first half when Balai Antonio Dembele was seemingly brought down in the box, but referee Charles Sherred was having none of it, and waved play on.

Dembele again caught the eye on the half-hour mark when he found himself through on goal, with Casey Bow saving the first effort, before The French surrounded the striker to block the follow-up.

The home faithful had to wait until 31st-minute before the hosts had sight of goal, after Lewis Barker-Bateman glanced his header wide of the target.

With frustrations beginning to take their toll, Dylan Averiss missed an opportunity to give Dial the lead when he was able to turn in the box, before scuffing his shot wide.

At the other end, a cross-shot from Lewis Barker-Bateman flew just wide of Andy Rider’s far post, before Dial marksman Harry Rice fired straight at Bow in what was the last action of the half.

Dial notably turned up the heat in the second half in a bid to break the deadlock, with Aidan Phillips failing to test Bow and Rice’s half-volley charged down by The French resistance just six minutes after the break.

But Dial eventually got just-reward for their endeavour when Dembele cut the ball back from the byline to pick out Phillips, who slotted the ball home from seven yards to give his side a 54th-minute lead.

A rasping half-volley from Adam Aziz, from the edge of the penalty box, was inches away from extending Dial’s advantage five minutes later, but Bow was pleased to see it whizz the wrong side of the near post.

A mazy run and shot from Rice was blocked by Justin David, as the hosts found themselves pinned back in their own half.

With Dial rarely troubled throughout the half, floodlight failure in the 85th-minute looked to be the nearest to staging an upset. Thankfully, power was restored to enable Dial to see out the remaining five minutes, plus five minutes of stoppage time, to secure all three points.

Speaking after the match, Brown said: "I thought the boys were great the way they bounced back from their poor performance against Worcester Park.

"Although we only won 1-0 (v Frenches Athletic], we dominated for long periods of the match. We restricted them to just a couple of half-chances, which was testament to the way that we defended.

"We kept our nerve and eventually got what we deserved, so we need to take that same attitude into our remaining fixtures," he added.

DIAL SQUARE: Rider, Rogers, Abraham-Barlow, Brown (Marshall), Bunyan, Neville, Averiss, Phillips, Rice, Aziz, Dembele (Cenzano). Unused subs: Rose-Davies, Vassell, Vass

MotM: Matt Bunyan