Cosgrave on spot to extend Lewes unbeaten run

Aaron Cosgrave slots home Lewes' penalty, which earned them victory against Merstham / Picture: James Boyes

Boss Hugo Langton praised his side’s second half performance in a game in which the visitors ended with ten men after Calvin Ekpiteta saw red for two yellow cards.

The 1-0 win in front of over 450 fans means the Rooks are now four games unbeaten, and move up to 16th in the Isthmian Premier table.

“I thought the first half was a little disappointing by the standards we have set ourselves recently,” said Langton after the game. “I felt we sat back off them too much and didn’t give them too many problems.

“Second half we upped our game, and made everything a little bit quicker. I always felt that if we get a ball in behind then we would cause them problems and that’s how we won the penalty that Aaron put away brilliantly.”

The Rooks started on the front foot, with Ronnie Conlon testing Tyla Dickinson early on. However, the first half didn’t provide much in terms of goalmouth activity as both sides failed to really break through the defences.

However, Merstham had a big chance before the break when Jude Mason played through Jack Leahy, but one on one with Nathan Stroomberg the Brighton & Hove Albion loanee could only lift the ball over the bar.

Cosgrave was crowded out on the edge of the box before he could get his shot away as the hosts again started the brighter in the second half, before the game’s real talking point just before the hour.

Cosgrave got in front of Sol Patterson-Bohner as he latched on to a ball over the top and was judged to have been bundled over by the visiting defender just inside the box by referee Will Briers, who pointed to the spot.

Having already been booked earlier in the game, Ekpiteta was then shown a second yellow card for his protests to leave Merstham a man down.

And after a four minute delay, Cosgrave kept his head and drilled the penalty past Dickinson to put Lewes in front.

It was the hosts who almost doubled their lead late on, with Conlon firing over and Brad Santos seeing an effort saved as they held on to win all three points.

Rooks: Stroomberg, Walsh, Beresford, Bosma (Khinda-John 44), Wakley, Frimpong, Bolarinwa (Santos 63), Arthurs, Cosgrave (Owusu-Nepaul 89), Blewden, Conlon. Not Used: Redwood.