Amanuel sinks Bromley

BANK Holiday Monday pitched together an all-feathered affair with The Rooks and The Ravens scrapping out a dreary encounter until, with 92 minutes elapsed, Germain Amanuel finished off a lightning quick Lewes breakaway to lift Lewes into the top three in Division One South.

It's yet another triumphant scoreline to add to the growing list of top name scalps to bite the Dripping Pan dust. Bromley, despite their below par opening to the campaign, are jam packed full of over achievers. Delightfully named goalkeeper Chuck Martini is a fully paid up Moroccan international, defender Colin Luckett has twice picked up FA Trophy winners' medals with Kingstonian, striker Richard Thompson spent two seasons with Wycombe Wanderers and teenager Adolph Amoako was signed from Crystal Palace and he was on the bench!

The highly ambitious club have designs on reaching the Football League, but arrived in Sussex still seeking their first win. Had they done any research into Lewes' penchant for humbling the odd Goliath, though, they would have known of the tough afternoon ahead.

Any similar background knowledge would have led them to be buoyed by the sight of Paul Thomsett in the No 12 shirt. That momentary high was probably tempered somewhat by Lee Newman's first mention of the season amongst the starting XI. It was Newman who wriggled clear for the initial effort of the day, but the classy hitman couldn't muster the requisite power with his shot or header moments later.

Bromley were without their glitzy summer arrival Eddie Akoamoah, another with FA Trophy and Ryman Premier credentials, but The Rooks were missing regulars, too, in the shape of Andy Driscoll and Gareth Green. The usual pizzazz had certainly gone AWOL from the Lewes display as the visitors took control. One corner from skipper John Myatt found its way to gangling centre back Mark Harris who'd somehow been overlooked at the back stick. His drive scurried through a clutch of bodies, any of whom might have connected.

Bromley showed pretty patches of promotion form, but Lewes did a commendable containing job right up to the interval with only half chances created for Kirk Watts and Carl Bartley.

If the first 45 was a disappointment, then the second barely even attained that status.

On the hour, an off colour Newman, still striving for match fitness, was withdrawn for the bubbly Amanuel. In just minutes, he'd kicked off a mini Rooks revival culminating in Palmer's strike across the outstretched Martini who pushed the ball daringly to safety.

Strangely, it was the away side who looked the most likely to pinch the points at the end, after lobbing a succession of corners and free kicks into the Lewes dangerzone. But it was one such dead ball situation that proved their undoing. With almost every white shirt caught out of position, Danny Davis sprinted down the centre of the pitch before squaring to a beaming Amanuel. From 12 yards, the former Orient trialist's pile-driver left Martini shaken and stirred whilst the 333 in attendance went ballistic. Lewes had done it again.

Chairman Terry Parris was euphoric yet grounded, 'it's fantastic to beat another of the fancied sides but from our point of view the performance was bad.'

LEWES: Standen, Harper, Curnow, Venables, Hack, Cable, Gedling, Davis, Newman (Amanuel 61), Clark, Palmer (Byerley 74). Subs (not used): Thomsett, Souter. MOM: Marc Cable cool under pressure.