Nelson salutes Lewes FC players after Chatham and Bognor are beaten

The Rooks put title favourites Chatham Town to the sword in a shock 2-0 win at The Dripping Pan on the opening day, with goals from Matty Warren and Danny Bassett downing the side who finished second last season.

A penalty save from goalkeeper Toby Bull was a key factor in the win too, preserving the hosts’ 1-0 lead before Bassett sealed the win.

On Tuesday, Lewes went on to face Bognor Regis Town on their first away trip of the season and came away with a hard-fought 1-0 win.

It was another tight and dramatic night, with Eddie Allsopp’s 85th-minute goal again ensuring Rooks fans had their heart in their mouth.

After the two games, Nelson said: “From a points perspective, we’re over the moon.

“If you’d told us before the start of the season that we’d play Chatham at home and Bognor away on a Tuesday night and end up with six points, we’d have bitten your arm off for it.

“From a performance perspective, we've just got a few bits to work on. But over time, it will come,” Nelson added.

“The team’s still new, still bonding, still learning, so we need time for that to embed, but I’m definitely happy with the start.”

These results came after Lewes continued their summer transfer business by revealing the captures of Ethan Kaiser, Hamilton Antonio and Shae Hutchinson.

Centre-back Kaiser, 24, midfielder Antonio, 27, and forward Hutchinson, 23, played both matches in the past week, having an immediate impact after being revealed to the fanbase.

With defender Jerry Puemo and forward James Jeffrey also joining the Rooks, Lewes’ 16-strong squad is solidified for the time being.

Discussing how pleased he was with how his brand-new squad has started after a tough pre-season, Nelson said: “It’s a testament to the boys, because it is not an easy situation to be in.

“Our pre-season was very vibrant, regardless of what the scores were. Yes, we were disappointed in some of the games and not winning or not scoring, but the actual environment was vibrant, which is a testament to the boys that we have in the building at the moment.”

This weekend, the Rooks return to The Dripping Pan to host Hashtag United.

The Essex side, whose vast social media audience follows them wherever they go, have three points from their first two matches and will be keen to make a splash against Nelson’s side when they kick off at 3PM on Saturday.