A 0-0 draw at Burgess Hill Town last night saw Croydon Athletic drop two points in the race for the Ryman Division One South title.

Thanks to Whyteleafe's shock 1-0 win over second-placed Folkestone Invicta though, the Rams did increase their lead at the top of table, albeit having played a game more than Folkestone, who they face on Tuesday.

With Burgess Hill looking to make a late run for the play-offs, both teams started the match strongly, with Gary Noel and Ben Godfrey working hard up front for the Rams.

As the half wore on it was Noel that was through on goal but the keeper blocked it well to keep the scores level.

In the 44th minute, it looked like Croydon had got the breakthrough when Godfrey got on the end of a corner but his shot was cleared off the line and Joe Dolan’s rebound header went just wide.

With Jacob Erskine winning every ball in defence for the Rams, and Leslie Thompson looking lively on the wing, it seemed the Rams were the most likely to score in the first 45 minutes but it was not to be.

At the start of the second half Dolan’s header hit the crossbar and a ball into the box was met by Danny Waldren which the keeper saved and the Godfrey’s overhead kick went wide.

The referee then became centre stage when he suffered an injury that led to him having to leave the field and there was a subsequent 20 minute delay while a replacement official was found.

After the restart the game recommenced at a very fast pace, with goalmouth action for both sides and Rory Hill had a good cross into the box which just failed to reach the oncoming strikers.

Gareth Williams had the ball in the back of the net for Croydon but unfortunately the stand-in linesman ruled it offside.

Towards the end of the match Nathan Green saved the day by blocking a great chance for Burgess Hill and keeping the away side in it.

As news filtered through that Folkestone had lost at Whyteleafe, this could be an important point for both sides in maintaining their search for Premier Division status next season.

Croydon Athletic: Andy Little, Joe Howe, Nathan Green, Danny Waldren, Joe Dolan, Jacob Erskine, Leslie Thompson (Rory Hill, 73), Jeremy Williams (Bentley Graham, 81), Gareth Williams, Gary Noel, Ben Godfrey.