vs 
AFC Fylde suffered a frustrating defeat on Saturday afternoon at the hands of the side they famously beat six summers ago to claim the FA Vase at a sun-baked Wembley Stadium.
But in this first meeting since then, it was the Trawlerboys of Lowestoft that took all three points despite a dominant performance from The Coasters, particularly in the second half.
Shaun Bammant scored the only goal of the game midway through the first period which gave the home side something to hold on to as they constantly denied Fylde any chance of at least a point.
Danny Rowe got an early shot in to test Ashlee Jones in the Town goal on two minutes, but it took another 15 for either side to record the next attempt on goal.
It was Bammant who got it and forced a save from Ben Hinchliffe but in the end it would never have counted as the linesman had his flag raised for offside.
Bradley Barnes then tried his luck with a half-volley from a corner but he sent his effort high and wide from the edge of the box on 18 minutes.
Then, ten minutes later, disaster struck for Fylde – striker Jefferson Louis was able to back-heel the ball through two defenders inside the box which allowed Bammant time to run onto the loose ball and tap into the net from close range.
The game was fairly even at this point as both sides were feeling the brunt of tasty challenges, particularly Adam Sumner who was brought down by Chris Henderson and he was rewarded with a yellow card for his troubles not long after Tom Hannigan saw the same from referee Anthony Da Costa.
Seven minutes before the break, Richie Allen had two bites at the cherry from Mike Barnes’ cross after a defender stopped him connecting for an initial shot, but as the ball came down he could only volley over the bar rather than keep it low and on target.
Then Michael Potts was unlucky to see his shot tipped over the bar by Jones two minutes later.
It was Lowestoft who started the second half the stronger with Robert Eagle and Rossi Jarvis missing two decent chances to extend their side’s lead in the first five minutes but from then on Fylde controlled the play but couldn’t find any end product.
Allen was laid off by Joe Booth just inside Town’s box but his half volley sailed inches wide of the post on 57 minutes.
Rowe couldn’t get a shot off five minutes later as a defender poked the ball away from his toes to concede a corner, from which Hannigan headed wide.
Allen then fell afoul of the linesman’s flag when he got a toe onto Potts’ ball over the top only to see Jones palm his effort over his goal.
And with 19 minutes remaining Allen was even more unlucky, hitting the side netting with a good strike that finished on the wrong side of the post.
He wasn’t finished there either as the Fylde striker saw a fantastic header cleared off the line by Lowestoft captain Sam Gaughran on 78 minutes.
Then, with time running out, Rowe did brilliantly to get a shot on goal under pressure from a defender inside the box but again Jones was there to deny Fylde.
Fylde boss Dave Challinor was disappointed not to come away with something from the game but said: “I suppose we’re learning some harsh lessons at the moment. All the hard work that we put into the first half meant we dominated the second but we were undone by a sloppy goal which gave them something to hang on to.
“I felt that even though we played well and tried to create some chances we didn’t work their keeper enough which ultimately means our forward play and decision making isn’t good enough.”
But Challinor added: “That will be something that we will work on in training next week now as we don’t have a game until next Saturday.
“We’ll prepare ourselves properly for next weekend as two games in 48 hours isn’t great for anybody but we’ve got time to work on what we need to and make sure we’re ready for it.”
Fylde’s next fixture is a home tie to league leaders Guiseley who have claimed maximum points from their three games so far. Kick-off is at 3pm.
Lowestoft Town: Jones, Ainsley, Haynes-Brown, Fisk, Hayles, Gaughran (C), Henderson, Jarvis, Louis (Gleeson 65), Bammant, Eagle; Subs not used: Smith, Okay, Clunan, Marsden.
GOAL: Bammant (28)
AFC Fylde: Hinchliffe, Denson (Hughes 55), Sumner, Langley, Hannigan, B. Barnes (C), Booth (Lloyd 75), Potts, Rowe, M. Barnes, Allen; Subs not used: Tomsett, Noon, Charles.
HT: 1-0
ATT: 610
Fylde MOM: Richie Allen
