Eastbourne Borough boss Garry Wilson has told his players not to beat themselves up over their 1-0 defeat at the hands of visiting Cambridge City.

Borough went into the game knowing that victory would give them a five-point lead over Lewes at the top of Blue Square South - at least until their title rivals' clash at Newport the following day.

But an afternoon of continuing frustration and missed chances ended with Borough's third league setback of the season and their second at Priory Lane.

Wilson said: "It was a game we were capable of winning and should have won, but there is a long way to go.

"To lose this one was a major disappointment but not a disaster. You are going to get many more funny results before the end of the season..

"This is a league where top can beat bottom and bottom can beat top. The bottom teams are scrapping for their life so there will be no easy games.

"We do not lose many home games, but they came here to get a draw. They played deep and made it difficult for us. We had the chances to win and Cambridge will be going home considering themselves fortunate to have taken three points "I think we may have been suffering from a bit of a hangover after the midweek win over Eastleigh which was a bit like a cup final. We just lacked a cutting edge."

Ironically, the most guilty men when it came to missing chances were the big men who have been scoring frequently in recent games.

Both Andy Atkin and Scott Ramsay will be wondering just how they failed to get onto the scoresheet sheet after wasting gilt-edged opportunities to turn the game round.

Borough produced some neat approach work in the first half but promising moves continually fell flat in the final third.

They also had to be wary of swift Cambridge counter-attacks, one of which saw their top scorer Michael Gash hit the post in the 28th minute.

The string of missed chances got under way in earnest in the 36th minute when Ramsay latched on to a long Lee Hook clearance and superbly beat his marker, only to fire way over the bar from the edge of the area.

Soon after Atkin found himself in a similar position but again the burly striker was too high, albeit closer than Ramsay.

Chance number three fell to Matt Crabb who found himself clear after robbing defender Joe Bruce. Crabb's finish looked true to the mark but rebounded off a post.

If Borough spent the interval rueing their wasted opportunities, even easier ones were to follow in the second period.

Skipper Paul Armstrong, a domin6ant figure in midfield, sent a ferocious angled drive against the post before Atkin, presented with a Jay Lovett cross on the edge of the six-yard box, somehow managed to scoop the ball over the bar.

Atkin was immediately replaced by Nathan Crabb but even Borough's boy wonder failed to produced the finishing touch required.

In the 70th minute, home fans were silenced as City snatched the only goal of the game. Skipper Dave Theobald dived to head Stephen Smith's low free kick into the top corner of the net.

Borough fought hard to salvage a point but failed to seriously test keeper Ashley Timms, The main action was at the other end where Hook pulled off a great save to deny Ashley Fuller before Darren Baker was harshly booked for what appeared to be a fair sliding tackle.

Neil Jenkins, who was incensed by the decision, was also shown a yellow card for arguing.

Home disappointment, however, may at least have been tempered by inconsistency below them in the table.

Hampton and Richmond's 2-0 defeat at home to Fisher Athletic maintains an enormous 12-point gap between Borough and the third-placed team.

But as Wilson continues to insist, with 12 games still remaining there is plenty of time for more twists and turns.

Borough: Hook, Baker, Jenkins, Budd, Lovett (sub Wilde 81), Pullan, Harding, Armstrong, Atkin (sub N. Crabb 68), Ramsay, Matt Crabb. Subs not used: Kember, Ballard, Lightwood.

Man-of-the-Match: Paul Armstrong.