'Opportunity lost' - Eastbourne Borough's epic struggle for survival goes on

After a victory over Hemel Hempstead last Saturday which was more decisive than the 1-0 scoreline suggests, the Sports were held 1-1 on Tuesday night, in dreadful weather, by Dover Athletic.

It was a game which, on more than one measure, should have brought a precious victory.

“It’s an opportunity lost tonight,” Adam Murray admitted when he spoke to club media.

“There’s no point dressing it up.

"The end pass, the final cross, the final shot was sometimes missing tonight – on another night we could have scored three or four.

“In the first half we played too many passes sideways or backwards. In the second half we came out with a lot more purpose, we created some great situations but perhaps the decision making fell short.

"That’s what can happen with young players – a lot of them are going through a learning process, but they are doing it in the middle of a relegation battle.”

“It’s only one point but of course we can build on that,” Murray told the Herald.

“It’s another game that we’ve not been beaten.

"Overall the performance deserved three points.

“In the first half we laboured a little bit, but in the second half we came to life, and did enough to win the game.

“We have to be more clinical with our decision-making and our quality in the final third, but the mind-set, the character, the mentality was outstanding – for the players to keep going and keep pushing, so deep into the game.”

The Gaffer will look for the same purpose and commitment – and for better reward – tomorrow (Saturday) when Taunton Town visit the Lane. The Somerset club are grappling with huge financial issues and with a fixture backlog, but they defeated Worthing 3-2 on Tuesday night.

Then on Tuesday night the Sports go to Truro City – or actually to Gloucester City, where the Cornishmen are completing their home fixtures because of chronic pitch problems.

Ten games to go for Borough, and survival is absolutely in the balance.