Club news
A much-improved performance saw Lewes pick up a point in Hugo Langton’s first game in charge with a hard-fought 0-0 draw against promotion-chasing Hornchurch at the Pan, reports Tom Harper.
Langton made two changes to the side that had lost 6-1 at home to Cheshunt in their previous game, with new signing Dimitri Hatzimouratis, who had arrived on a dual registration basis from Welling United, and Harry Reed replacing Stacey Freeman and Ronnie Conlon in the starting line-up.
Hornchurch saw plenty of the ball early on without creating any chances of note.
They began to turn territory into clear-cut opportunities as the half progressed though, with Nathan Stroomberg-Clarke forced into action to deny Chris Dickson twice in quick succession.
The visitors continued to look dangerous and saw George Saunders shoot just wide of the far post after beating Leon Redwood on the edge of the area.
Lewes were handed a numerical advantage juat after the half-hour, as Hornchurch right-back Mickey Parcell was shown a straight red card for a late, studs-up challenge on Alex Malins deep inside the Lewes half.
Despite this, Hornchurch continued to press for the opening goal, with Jordan Clark seeing a goal-bound effort blocked by Malins.
Having weathered a storm for long periods of the first half, Lewes could still have gone into the break ahead, as Dayshonne Golding beat Joseph Wright in the Hornchurch goal to an underhit pass-back but with only a defender on the line to beat, sliced his effort well wide.
The Rooks enjoyed arguably their best spell of the game just after the break, with Billy Medlock testing Wright with a free-kick from the edge of the area, before James Hammond shot just over the bar from distance minutes later.
The game soon settled into a similar pattern to the first half though, with Hornchurch’s direct style seeing them look the more likely scorers.
Lewes kept their visitors at arms length for much of the second half, ensuring that Stroomberg-Clarke wasn’t called into meaningful action until the latter stages.
Hornchurch dominated the closing stages, and saw Adam Cunnington volley just wide from the edge of the area.
They continued to push for what would almost certainly prove to be a winner, with Stroomberg-Clarke making a fine save to help a powerful Nathan Cooper strike onto the bar, before keeping out a close-range strike after a long throw had been flicked on a couple of minutes later.
The final action of the game saw Stroomberg-Clarke make another smart save following a goalmouth scramble to ensure the Rooks ended their recent losing run.
Highlights of the game be watched here whilst last night’s Prodcast can be read here.
After the game new boss Hugo Langton spoke to Barry Collins about the game.
Lewes will hope to build on this result when they visit Enfield Town on Saturday, kick-off at 3pm.
Lewes: Stroomberg-Clarke, Day, Redwood, Taylor, Chappell, Malins, Reed (Conlon 53), Hammond, Medlock (Halsey 90), Golding (Dome-Bemwin 80), Hatzimouratis.
Unused Subs: Freeman, Diedrick-Roberts.
Booked: Redwood.
Hornchurch: Wright, Parcell, Sutton, Lee, Cooper, Johnson, Saunders, Clark (Stimson 90), Dickson (Cureton 70), Uchechi (Christou 46), Cunnington.
Unused Subs: Dutton, Winn.
Booked: Lee, Cunnington.
Sent off: Parcell
Referee: Harrison Blair
Attendance: 269 (approx. 20 Hornchurch fans)