So County's relegation battle will go to the wire when rivals in distress Maidenhead United visit Newport Stadium on Saturday.

They failed to seal survival with a win in East Sussex, but their tremendous effort at Lewes means that of the three teams who could join relegated Margate and Redbridge, County are best placed to survive.

The 200 or so Amber Army who made the long trip on Saturday were surprised to see striker Cortez Belle replace suspended skipper Darren Jones at the back, but the lone signing from Chester fully vindicated manager John Cornforth's selection with an outstanding performance.

With veteran Chris Curran restored to midfield after a lengthy injury, County endured a nervous 20 minutes before getting their act together against an impressive home side.

High-flying Lewes sprang a surprise of their own by including former West Ham striker Gavin Holligan, who they had been keeping under wraps for next term and, despite being ineligible for promotion on ground grading rules, they were in no mood to be charitable.

Jamie Moralee gave County a 27th-minute lead with a superb volley from a trademark Curran long throw, but they quickly conceded an equaliser when Lee Farrell found space to give Nathan Vaughan no chance.

There were calls from the terraces to restore Belle to the attack as Lewes picked up their game after the break, but a 58th-minute tackle on Holligan showed the importance of Belle as a defender.

County were furious with the referee when he pulled play back to caution Marc Cable for a foul on Curran when John Phillips was through on goal, but they breathed a sigh of relief later when Scott Morgan punched a header off the line only to find that Mr Smith had penalised Lewes for a foul on Vaughan.

The last few minutes were pure drama, with Holligan gaining a deserved personal award with an 84th-minute goal, and then with two minutes left on the clock the referee spotted a foul by Cable on Belle in the home penalty area.

The official pointed decisively to the spot and Jason Bowen showed his ice-cool temperament by smashing home the penalty.

Cornforth praised his players, and said: "A win would have been perfect but a lot of teams would have folded after conceding a late goal like that.

"I knew Lewes had brought in a couple of players and had pace up front, but I can't fault the lads, who showed their character today.

"Missing Darren Jones was a huge blow and we needed the bit of luck we had, so now it's all set up for next Saturday, when I'm sure we'll get a big crowd."

While a point will definitely be enough, even an unthinkable defeat will not relegate County unless Carshalton achieve an unlikely win at Eastbourne.

A small number of County's following embarrassed the club by hurling objects at home 'keeper Scott Ward, and a few were ejected after the break when the police turned up in force.

Lewes: Ward, Lovett, Harvey, Cable, Jinadu, Kennett, Dobson, Davis, Farrell, Holligan, Watts. Subs not used - Whiteman, Newman, Belgrave, Fogden, Hunter. Scorers - Farrell (34), Holligan (84). Cautions - Cable (68 foul), Watts (88 dissent).

Newport County: Vaughan, L Phillips, Morgan (Grist 85), Davies, Thomas, Belle, Bowen, Curran, Moralee, Harrhy (J Phillips 66), Taylor (O'Sullivan 72). Subs not used - G Jones, Passmore. Scorers - Moralee (27), Bowen (88 pen). Caution - Bowen (55 time wasting). Referee - Mr E Smith.

Attendance - 612.