Ebbsfleet suffered back-to-back home defeats on Saturday when they were knocked out of the FA Trophy.

It was hardly the perfect warm-up for the Fleet, who host League 1 Fleetwood in a televised FA Cup Second Round tie next weekend.

Maybe their minds were on that as it was a low-key affair at Stonebridge Road, with little for the crowd of 829 to cheer.

A second-minute error by Sido Jombati nearly let in Jake Hutchinson for the opener but the Eastbourne striker curled his shot wide of the far post.

The Fleet took their time to get going but it needed a fine save by visiting keeper Lee Worgan to push away Shaq Coulthirst’s shot before Kieran Monlouis’ smart turn wasn’t matched by the finish as he shot wide from just inside the area.

Eastbourne’s Chris Whelpdale forced Fleet keeper Mark Cousins into action before the visitors went ahead on 20 minutes. Whelpdale delivered a pinpoint cross and Greg Luer escaped his marker to head home from close range.

Jombati headed over a Ben Chapman cross and Franklin Domi’s shot was cleared off the line by Kai Woollard-Innocent as Ebbsfleet looked for an equaliser before the break.

Eastbourne lost skipper Mitch Dickenson to injury after he failed to recover having taken the full force of a Darren McQueen blockbuster earlier in the half.

Hutchinson was denied by Cousins early in the second half before Whelpdale talked himself into the notepad for dissent.

The Fleet introduced Joe Martin in the final half-hour, his first action since the end of September. But the home side created very little against a well-organised Eastbourne defence.

Substitute Craig Tanner put a 20-yard free-kick over the bar and Elliott Romain was unable to direct his header goalwards against the side he spent time with on loan earlier this season.

Fleet did have the ball in the net with three minutes left but Coulthirst was denied by the offside flag after Worgan couldn’t hold Tanner’s drive.

Ebbsfleet: Cousins, Jombati, N’Guessan, McQueen (Romain 80mins), Domi, Edser, Paxman (Martin 62mins), Chapman, Monlouis (Tanner 70mins), Coulthirst, Hollis. Subs not used: O’Neill, Haigh, Poleon, Cundle.

Eastbourne: Worgan, Woollard-Innocent, Barry, Dickenson (Burchell 45mins), Wynter, Perez, Hammond, Luer, Whelpdale (Walker 66mins), Gravata, Hutchinson (Remy 72mins). Subs not used: Mbonkwi, Bull, Scarlett, Holter.

Referee: Robert Claussen.

Attendance: 829.