Borough 1, Rushden 1: Simon Weatherstone could turn out to be crucial to Eastbourne Borough’s prospects this season.

The former Crawley midfielder scored a second goal of the season contender at Priory Lane in the space of four days to earn Borough a first ever point against Rushden and Diamonds.

Weatherstone’s superb volley might not have been as spectacular as Neil Jenkins’ stunning 25-yard winner against AFC Wimbledon but it highlighted his ability to score from midfield.

That already looks an invaluable attribute with Borough’s new-look strike force of Liam Enver-Marum and Jamie Taylor still searching for a first goal.

It is too soon to judge the pair following their arrival in the summer but neither are likely to be 20 goal-a-season men at this level which means it is vital other players share the responsibility of putting the ball in the back of the net.

It was a similar case last season when only 22 of Borough’s 58 league goals came from out-and-out strikers while midfielder Paul Armstrong was top scorer with nine.

Weatherstone was delighted to mark his competitive debut in style following a hamstring injury and acknowledged the importance of sharing the sharing the goals around.

He said: “It was nice to score on my debut but it would have been better if it had been a winner. I had a similar chance just before it and put it over so I made sure I nailed the second one.

“I like to score my share of goals from midfield and hopefully I can build on that start. It doesn’t really matter who gets the goals, the result is what matters.

“We were the better side in the first half and they were on top after the break so I think it was a fair result in the end. We don’t know what happened in the second half really, it is just one of those things, but all credit to Rushden for the way they came out back at us.”

Weatherstone got the nod ahead of Dan Smith on the right-hand side of midfield and was at the heart of things as Borough bossed the game before the break.

His hopeful cross almost led to an opening goal after five minutes when Enver-Marum beat Dale Roberts in the air but saw his header bounce just wide.

Roberts was a lucky man again in the 20th minute when his weak punch fell to Weatherstone on the edge of the area who sent a right-foot volley whistling over the bar.

There was no let off nine minutes later when Weatherstone latched on to another poor punch to lash an unstoppable volley into the roof of the net from the edge of the area, this time with his left-foot.

Matt Smart, on for the injured Neil Jenkins, drew a good save from Roberts but Rushden gave a hint of what was to come when Craig Farrell and Aaron O’Connor both put good chances over the bar in the final ten minutes of the first half.

It was a completely different story after the restart as Borough lost their way and the pressure finally told in the 58th minute as Rushden got back on level terms.

Diamonds boss Justin Edinburgh introduced Lee Tomlin and Cliff Akurang from the bench and it paid dividends as Tomlin’s cross skimmed off the head of Smart to present Akurang with an easy finish from close range.

Borough were unable to respond but still came close to stealing the points on the break with Taylor shooting wide from a tight angle and substitute Atkin lobbing over the bar in injury time.

Borough boss Garry Wilson said: “We came out of the blocks fast in the first half and looked really sharp.

“It was some of the best football we have played at this level and we didn’t need half time to come.

“We lost our way after the break but we hung in and finished the game strongly and had a good opportunity to win it near the end.”

Eastbourne: Knowles, Austin, Baker, Pullan, Jenkins (Smart, 25), Weatherstone, Armstrong, Brown, M Crabb, Taylor (Smith, 83), Enver-Marum (Atkin, 79). Subs not used: Jordan, Elphick.

Booked: Austin, Brown.

Rushden: Roberts, Osano, Stuart, Downer, Corcoran, Cousins, Porter, Wolleaston, Wolleaston, Reid (Tomlin, 56), O'Connor, Farrell (Akurang, 53). Subs not used: McNamara, Pattison, Byrne.

Booked: None.