IAN ROBINSON refuses to tag Lymington & New Milton as Wessex League championship favourites - even though the title race has taken a decisive turn in Linnets' favour.

Lymington's scrambled single-goal victory at BAT - which co-incided with Winchester City unexpectedly slipping up 2-1 at Hamworthy United - has given Robinson's team a three-point lead at the top with five games to play.

But with the two Wessex juggernaughts set to meet at City's Denplan Stadium next Saturday, the Lymington manager knows only too well the silverware scrap could take another twist in five days time.

"I don't accept for one minute that, after Saturday's results, we're now favourites. What I would say is that we are in with a good shout," Robinson said.

Lymington have to lift the Wessex League crown to fulfil their Ryman League aspirations.

Their Fawcetts Field facilities were due to be inspected today.

They certainly had to battle it out to take all three points at Southern Gardens - and Robinson reckons the club's last five games will be a similar "war of attrition."

"There are five clubs waiting to write the headlines by beating us - and they'll be giving it everything, just like BAT did," he warned.

Lymington took a long while to impose themselves against BAT, but in addition to coping with their opponents' long-ball tactics, they had to overcome an abysmally poor playing surface on which the ball continued to bounce wildly and erratically.

The pitch - worn, bumpy and rutted - was never going to produce a decent contest. No wonder the players kept glancing an envious eye at BAT's lush and verdant Premier League cricket arena less than 100 yards away!

Michael Jackson eventually broke the deadlock 15 minutes from time with a goal that, ironically, owed its origins to the pitch.

With substitute Ben Thomson opening things up, Lymington had taken a firm grip of an untidy affair - without looking that dangerous - when the influential Jimmy Anderson hoisted a deflected ball towards the BAT penalty area. Keeper Gareth Barfoot came out to the edge of the box, but was completely beaten by the bounce and left stranded as the ball dropped behind him.

Jackson used his height to head in off the underside of the bar.

It somehow seemed appropriate that the game should be decided in such bizarre fashion.

For their own part, BAT were unbeaten in five but, through their own spoiling tactics, offered minimal threat as an attacking force.

Lymington's Mark Watson hardly had a meaningful shot to save.