'Gate Suffer Heavy Defeat To Lewes

By Riley Finch 

Goals from Steve Cawley and Vinnie Bowman were not enough to mask our defensive frailties, as we concede four in a hard fought defeat at The Dripping Pan.

It took the hosts just eight minutes to take the lead, with Kalvin Lumbombo-Kalala finding space on the right to unleash a strike into Harry Seaden’s bottom corner. The hosts doubled their lead just before the thirty-minute mark, as Tommy Wood sent Seaden the wrong way after being awarded a penalty.

Ellis Ashworth was deemed to have got more man then ball after a dangerous delivery into the box and the referee adamantly pointed to spot despite 'Gate protests.

Bowman was reintroduced to the starting eleven today, and his blossoming partnership with Cawley got us right back into the contest. Cawley bulldozed through two Rook players, sliding in at full stretch to fend off the defender and he fired a shot towards the Lewes goal.

'Keeper Nathan Harvey saved the goal-bound shot but parried it straight to Bowman, who snuck the ball in at the near post from the tightest of angles. The goal was only Bowman’s second senior goal for the 'Gate, and his first in the league!

The comeback was short lived however, as just four minutes later, Chris Whelpdale spun cleverly in the box to slot the ball past Seaden for Lewes' third.

After such an end to end first-half, the second was always going to be quiet in comparison, and Lumbombo-Kalala’s second of the game seemed to have killed off any chance of a historic comeback.

Cawley did reduce the deficit to two after a tidy finish into Harvey’s bottom corner, but it wasn’t enough to avoid defeat at The Dripping Pan.

New signings Dominic Vose and Yaser Kasim impressed on their first starts since signing and Cawley and Bowman’s strike partnership seems to be blossoming nicely with the pair grabbing a goal each.

With Ben Greenhalgh back after serving a suspension, and perhaps some further new signings on the way, Margate will take great confidence from today despite their defeat, as they look to a quick turnaround against Hastings United on Tuesday night.

Margate: Harry Seaden, Archie Johnson, Yaser Kasim , Tyrone Sterling, Harry Hudson, Dominic Vose, Steve Cawley, Ellis Ashworth, Fyn Rutherford (Taner Dogan 68'), Vinnie Bowman (Rory Sutcliffe 75'), Ryan Lowe

Unused subs: Reece Hobbs, Alfie Hill

Attendance: 933

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