Men's football news
Written by: Joe
Goalkeeper Toby Bull admitted that Lewes FC’s performance against Canvey Island wasn’t the best but gave praise for the character of the display after a strong defensive outing saw the Rooks see out a 2-1 win, reports Christopher Coleman.
The match didn’t entirely go the Rooks’ way, with Bull himself being regularly involved in keeping the ball out of the net, but the defence did enough to bounce back from two defeats in a row.
“We’ve been on a little bit of a bad run and it’s sometimes difficult to get out of that when the environment is sort of a bit down and you’re losing games in a row,” said Bull. “A win is vital and I think today (was) probably not our best of performances but what we did show was character.”
Lewes’ first goal came from a big deflection off one of the Canvey Island defenders, while the ball somehow found itself at the feet of Gianluca Botti to slot home the second from inside the six-yard box.
Bull said: “You have to create your luck, you have to put the ball in the box, keep probing and keep trying to create your chances and thankfully it fell in the right places. A deflection is a deflection but if we don’t shoot, we don’t score.”
On the game in general, Bull added: “Sometimes you buy your luck, but I think we deserved it because we haven’t had the best of luck this season.”
Bull’s busy afternoon at the Dripping Pan ultimately resulted in him being named Player of the Match, especially in a second half where his saves alone kept the Rooks in front.
“It’s always nice to get Player of the Match and that’s normally because I’ve been quite busy,” said Bull. “Obviously it would be nice if they didn’t have a single shot on goal and I can just sit back and enjoy, but at the same time I’m there to do my job.
“It’s really important that in those moments I’m there for the team, if any of the boys make mistakes or something happens, I’ve got to be there to back them up.”
Canvey Island had a goal disallowed in the first half for a foul on Bull, which the keeper said was the right decision, saying: “It was one hundred percent a foul, as I’ve jumped, he’s absolutely shoved me, I don’t think he could have made it any more obvious.”
Bull also felt that the Canvey goal shouldn’t have stood either, but admitted that the chance came from a mistake on his part, saying: “For me it’s obstruction because I was in control of the ball and he’s nudged it out. But it happens. Next time I’ll probably just punch it, I’ll learn from that.”
The Rooks’ next game is an away trip to another high-flying team in Cray Valley PM, who currently sit in second place, six points ahead of Lewes in fifth.
“They’re obviously a very strong side and they’re doing really well this season, they had done extremely well last season and they’ve taken that with them into this,” said Bull.
“I think today’s win will hopefully give us boys a bit of momentum, a bit of confidence going into the next few games.”
Lewes travel up to Cray Valley on Saturday for a 3pm kick off, with the hopes of making their place inside the play-off spots a bit more comfortable before the turn of the year.
Interview: Christopher Coleman