Kingstonian boss Alan Dowson reckons the measure of how far his side has come will be how it bounces back from Saturday’s FA Cup disappointment.

New signing Jon Fletcher was the villain of the piece as he conceded a last-minute penalty to give Hendon a 2-1 triumph and a third qualifying round tie with Ashford Town (Middx).

The defeat cost Ks £4,500 in prize money alone and ended a six-match unbeaten run since Dowson rung the changes at Kingsmeadow to inspire a turn around in the club’s fortunes.

Kingstonian, who beat Hendon 3-0 in the league at the start of that streak last month, have risen to mid-table in that time and are just four points adrift of second spot in the Ryman League Premier Division standings.

And the manager believes they must respond quickly if they are to continue their revival.

“It was very disappointing to go out of the cup particularly when you think of the money and the prestige it can bring,” he said.

“There is not that much wrong with us, but we’ll find out how good a side we are if we can bounce back from this straight away.

“We have to do it quickly because we don’t want to get on a losing run again. If we win at the weekend we could be in the top four, if we lose we could be in the bottom four.

“Things are just starting to sort themselves out and we have to make sure we keep pace with those at the top.”

Carl Wilson-Denis’ second goal of the season had given his men the lead at the weekend, but they couldn’t build on the momentum and paid the price late in the game after Fletcher’s rash intervention.

“I’ve got no complaints about the penalty. It was a clear decision. I felt sorry for John because he has been outstanding for us since he has come in. There is no problems with him as far as I’m concerned,” added Dowson.

“We had a bad day at the office and unfortunately in the FA Cup you cannot afford that.”

Ks started the recovery process with a 3-0 friendly triumph at Corinthian Casuals on Monday night, with second half goals from Joel Ledgister (2) and Liam Collins.

But Kingsmeadow chief reckons it is going to be a tough task to get back to winning ways in the league.

“Margate are a big, strong and experienced side. We’ve got to stand up and be counted. We know that if we compete we will be fine, but if we are not on our game we’ll get found out,” he said.

Former Blackburn Rovers defender Ian Pearce, who made one league appearance for Ks earlier in the season, has been appointed assistant manager at Lincoln City under new boss Chris Sutton.

Kingstonian’s next three games: Oct 3 Margate (a), 10 Cray Wanderers (h), 13 Billericay Town (a).