A trip to Bath City is the incentive for Kings Langley on Wednesday night when they will attempt to reach the Third Qualifying Round of the FA Cup at the second time of asking after drawing 1-1 with Lewes on Saturday.

Steve Conroy’s side came close to winning it at the death but they had to settle for a replay in East Sussex after coming from behind to draw.

Like in the previous round, the cup tie was played in continuous rain, but both teams produced attractive passing football at a high tempo throughout to give the Gaywood Park crowd value for money.

Kings began in rampant mood with Mitchell Weiss testing Lewis Carey and the Rooks were mostly confined to their own half for the first 20minutes as Max Ryan and Weiss again sent headers marginally wide.

A series of corners by the home side failed to produce the breakthrough that their possession probably deserved, but at the quarter mark, Lewes came into the game when a needless foul resulted in James Hammond’s free-kick hitting the bar. Five minutes later Jonte Smith forced Martin Bennett into a good save with his feet, while Weiss again went close with a flick from a Callum Adebiyi cross.

It had now turned into a finely balanced game, but the breakthrough came from a Kings error, as Ryan’s surging run and pass out of defence was intercepted by Omar Lawson, who slipped the ball out to Dan Darbyshire on the right. The defence was totally stretched and when Darbyshire elected to shoot across Bennett, the ball hit the far post to be followed up by Smith from close range.

Kings began the second period as they had started the first and Jorell Johnson went close, while Josh Coldicott-Stevens grazed the outside of the post. Stevie Ward was causing the visitors concern on the right and ended a penetrating run with a shot that was deflected to safety.

Langley were not to be denied though, when a superb diagonal wing pass from Rene Howe set Ward in on goal again and although Carey did well to block his shot, Weiss reacted quicker than the defence to thunder a rising shot into the net from close range.

With the visitors on the back foot, Kings went all out for victory with another series of corners, but as time ebbed away, the balance between all-out attack and being caught on the break became a fine one.

A spectacular run through the centre by Ryan was finally halted, Carey somehow got his fingertips to Howe’s powerful header and deep into time added the home crowd was on its feet as Adebiyi’s header from a corner went narrowly wide of the target.

Kings Langley: Bennett; Connolly, Ryan, Johnson, Adebiyi; Hitchcock (Coldicott-Stevens 27), Godfrey, Syla; Ward, Howe, Weiss (Stobbs 82). Subs not used: Syme, Bourke, Tucker, Collier, Toiny-Pendred.