BILLERICAY Town player-manager Jamie O’Hara heaped praise on debutants Darren Oldaker, Odysseus Alfa and Arjanit Krasniqi after the trio impressed in the agonising 2-2 draw with Dorking Wanderers.

Although two goals in the space of five second half minutes from Moses Emmanuel and Jake Robinson put Town in the driving seat at the Steel Team Stadium, late goals from David Ray and Jason Prior - who had also missed a penalty - allowed Dorking to snatch a share of the spoils.

But O’Hara was pleased with how Oldaker, Alfa and Krasniqi - whose arrivals were confirmed less than 24 hours before the National League South encounter got underway - performed.

O’Hara said: “I thought the three new players came in and were brilliant.

“Ody has joined from QPR and he was fantastic. He got the ball and was direct.

“He hasn’t even trained with us so he only played on a whim.

“Ody didn’t know any of the boys’ names so he was fantastic in terms of what he did.

“DJ came in and he is another player I rate highly.

“I think he is a fantastic young talent who should be playing in the Football League so we need to try and keep him on board if we can.

“Arj played at left-back after only training with us once this week and he was brilliant.

“He looked strong, comfortable and confident, so I was happy.”

Exciting attacker Alfa has joined on a short-term loan from Championship outfit Queens Park Rangers, while Krasniqi boasts international experience with Kosovo.

Oldaker has arrived following his departure from League One outfit Gillingham last month.

And, having worked alongside the midfielder during his stint at Priestfield in 2016, O’Hara believes the 20-year-old has a bright future ahead of him.

O’Hara added: “When I was at Gillingham, DJ was there and despite only being a young lad he was in and around the first team.

“I like him. He is a good kid who wants to learn and play football.

“He wants to get in the game and make it to the top.

“I know that he has had a few offers come in from Football League clubs to join their under-23 sides but he wants to play men’s football, so I managed to talk him into coming down here.

“If I can keep him on board and get him to stay, I think he could be a really good addition for us.”

And O’Hara was deflated after Prior’s injury time header denied Billericay back-to-back wins.

“It felt like two points dropped,” admitted O’Hara.

“We were fantastic for 80 minutes and passed the ball well but we just couldn’t see it out and it’s frustrating when you look at the goals we conceded.

“It was hard to take and the boys have got to take responsibility to see it through.

“If we saw the game out it would have been a big three points.”