Dorchester Town’s loan sharks took a bite out of basement boys Lewes and lifted the Magpies out of the bottom three for the first time since the opening day of the season.

Newport County striker Giuseppe Sole opened the scoring midway through the first half after winning and then converting a 21st-minute spot-kick.

And his second-half replacement – AFC Bournemouth youngster Danny Ings – put the result beyond doubt with just three minutes still to play.

Ings’ fourth goal for the club was enough to make him top scorer at the Avenue Stadium, following Ryan Hill’s release earlier last week, while Sole took his tally to three – all of which coming from the penalty spot.

Saturday’s win came seven days after a disappointing FA Cup exit at Havant & Waterlooville and boss Ashley Vickers was delighted to see his men respond in the best possible manner.

The county town chief, whose side have now picked up seven points from their last three Blue Square Bet South fixtures, said: “The boys were excellent, each and every one of them, and they proved to me what I already knew about them – they are super characters and a fine bunch of men.

“It’s been a difficult week for the club but it galvanised the boys even more and they worked ever so hard.

“Everyone was singing from the same hymn sheet, which didn’t happen last week at Havant, and it paid dividends.

“Simon Evans didn’t have a save to make until a great stop a couple of minutes from the end. And that’s the sign of a great keeper.

“We had a lot of chances again, including a disallowed goal, but the pleasing thing is that we were very solid at the other end. The back four did all that was asked of them.

“The thought of losing never crossed my mind beforehand as I’m a positive person. It’s good to see we’re out of the bottom three but that performance is now a benchmark.

“I asked the lads to use the awful feeling of losing last week’s game to drive them on, and they did.”

Although seeing Hill, Stuart Douglas and Dave Allen all head for the Avenue exit last week – as part of a cost-cutting measure – Vickers made just two changes to the side with Nick Crittenden and Sole returning to the fold.

The Magpies’ last visit to the Dripping Pan ended in a 5-0 thrashing but there was to be no repeat of that lethargic display, despite the Rooks fashioning the early opportunities.

Thankfully for the visitors, Tom Murphy squandered two chances in the opening eight minutes.

Dorchester were guilty of wastefulness in the early exchanges of their 4-1 defeat to Havant & Waterlooville, before being punished by the Hawks, but this time the shoe was on the other foot and the away side took the lead in Sussex.

Scott Manning brought down Sole in the Lewes box and the latter stepped up to convert his third spot-kick in county town colours.

Buoyed by the opening goal, Dorchester twice went close to extending their advantage.

First, in the absence of departed dead-ball specialist Hill, Sole saw his fine free-kick parried by home gloveman Chris Winterton, before Ryan Moss was flagged offside after Jamie Gleeson’s shot struck the grounded forward en route to the Lewes net.

The Magpies’ backline of Kyle Critchell, Nathan Walker, Scott Guyett and Neil Martin were doing their level best to keep the hosts at bay while at the other end Sole fired wide of goal in the 70th minute.

But the nerve-settling second finally arrived in the 87th minute, courtesy of a neat finish from substitute Ings.

Magpies: Evans, Critchell, Martin, Jermyn, Walker, Guyett, Crittenden, Gleeson, Moss, Sole (Ings 75), Devlin. Subs not used: Coutts, Bowles, Nodwell, Coward.