Lichfield City FC dropped a place in the table after a 2-1 loss on the road at Rocester.
Jay Hawkins’ men have slipped to fifth in the Midland Football League Division One and now find themselves 16 points adrift of leaders Leicester Road.
The home side struck first in the encounter with a Jack Hurd corner leading to a goalmouth scramble which saw Liam Robinson stab home on 25 minutes.
City had the ideal opportunity to level five minutes later, but Kyle Patterson saw his penalty cannon off the post.
But Lichfield did find the net ten minutes before the break as Patterson made amends with a smart finish into the top corner.
The hosts hit back with a sucker punch a minute before the interval though when Hurd’s corner again caused issues, this time Elisio Francisco was on hand to head home and restore the Romans’ lead.
Neither side failed to make an impression on the scoreboard in the second period, and City will now look to regroup ahead of a home tie with Uttoxeter Town – who leapfrogged them in the table last night – on Saturday (1st February).
