Bromley 1 v 0 Walton & Hersham

Ryman Premier

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AS THE players came off the pitch after the final whistle Bromley boss George Wakeling embraced his goalscorer Colin Luckett on a job well done.

Forget the fact Bromley's goal was a hotly- disputed penalty and forget Andy Walker in goal was the busiest man on the pitch.

Instead remember it is battling performances such as this which can be the difference between survival and relegation.

Remember also this was Bromley's first league win in 10 attempts and it puts a sliver of daylight between them and the drop zone.

Wakeling said: "We have had a lot of games where we felt we have not had our share of the spoils, where we have worked very hard only to make mistakes and walk off the pitch empty-handed and frustrated.

"Against Walton we dug in, made no mistakes and we stood up to be counted. There was a lot of tension out there as we needed the win but I thought the players were absolutely brilliant and I was really pleased with their attitude and the three points."

Bromley started brightly and Gary Drewett forced Walton's Ricky Perks into a nervy save inside the opening 60 seconds.

Des Boateng then shot wide from 18 yards but for 20 minutes the match descended into a scrappy affair.

All too often passes were poor, control was shambolic and with Walton's back line each standing over six feet tall, Bromley's long balls to Mark Tompkins and Jones Awuah were being mopped up all too easily.

For the visitors Mark Nwokeji looked dangerous, forcing a save from Walker and bringing a good shot-saving tackle from Mark Willy.

It all changed on 41 minutes when a harmless cross into the Walton box found itself at the feet of Awuah.

The forward, with Walton's Will Jenkins close by, swung his boot and missed the ball but fell over and to most people's surprise the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

Wakeling said: "At first I thought the penalty was fortunate but when we came off, two of my players said a defender had pulled Jones' shirt as he went to shoot, which made him miss it.

"They got caught round each other's legs and how the referee saw it I don't know but it was a penalty as Jones had his shirt tugged."

Luckett scored and the visitor's protestations continued unabated until the half-time whistle, when the coaching staff joined in to berate the referee.

But, fortunate as it may have been, Bromley had the lead and whether it was intended or not, they spent the rest of the match hanging onto it.

Apart from a slim chance for Awuah on 47 minutes and a Boateng shot which took a wicked deflection and almost caught the keeper off his line, it was a backs-to-the-wall job.

Walton's best chance fell on 52 minutes when Lee Allum found himself four yards out with only Walker to beat but the keeper blocked superbly.

Lampton then shot into the side netting and Jenkins hit a howitzer drive from 30 yards which Walker did excellently to turn away.

Bobby Traynor shot over for the visitors and Walker had to be alert to collect Lampton's dangerous cross amid a sea of legs.

Walker was again on hand when Allum beat McLeod and shot low at the Bromley goal.

Traynor and Tristan Frontin saw their shots slide wide and Wes Goggin squandered Walton's last chance on 91 minutes when he lifted the ball past Walker but beyond the far post.

Bromley worked hard for the win in a not too pretty match but Wakeling and McLeod will not mind at this stage of the season three points is all which matters. Forget the intricacies, just remember the points.

MATCH FACTS: BROMLEY: Walker, 8; McLeod, 6; Luckett, 6; Henriques, 6; Willy, 6; Boateng, 5; Carroll, 6; Drewett, 7; Tompkins, 6; Awuah, 6 (Vines, 71); Gardner, 6 (Wood, 76).

SUBS NOT USED: Carew; Feumba; Harding.

ATT: 363.