Eastbourne Borough manager Garry Wilson believes they will have to break Lewes' spirit if they are to win the Senior Cup on Monday.

Wilson, who won the cup with Hastings Town in 1996 when they beat Crawley Town 1-0, knows that the Rooks' confidence will be sky-high at Priory Lane after they clinched the Ryman League division two title a fortnight ago.

Wilson, who played alongside Rooks boss Jimmy Quinn at Queen's Park in Scotland, said: "It looks an evenly balanced game.

"I think week in, week out we are playing at a higher standard than Lewes. At the moment they are in the winning habit and are used to playing lesser sides on a more regular basis.

"It is like when we were in the County League and you knew in some games that you might not play well but could still get a result.

"They have probably found that there are some sides in their division that they have been able to beat without playing well, whereas I think we are tested every week, in every game.

"We have got to break the spirit of Lewes because they are used to winning. That will be the key to this game."

Borough will be without defender and the supporters' player of the year, Ben Austin, for the final as he was rushed into hospital for an operation to remove his appendix in the early hours of last Wednesday.

Wilson said: "It is a shame for the lad as he has had a good season but these things happen in football. Lewes have lost Paul Stokes and Justin Harris so we cannot complain too much about losing one player."

Apart from Austin's absence, Borough have a full squad to choose from including leading scorer Matt Allen, who has recovered from a hamstring injury, and midfielder Matt Smart.

Lewes will be without striker Germain Amanuel who is suspended following his recent red card against Barton Rovers.

Julian Curnow, Harris and Stokes are all missing through injury while Clinton More, Danny Davis and Danny Fletcher are cup-tied.

Apart from that, Quinn has no fresh injuries for what he expects to be a tough match.

He said: "It will be very hard, particularly with Eastbourne playing at home, which does make a difference whatever anyone says.

"It would be fantastic to win it and finish off a great season in style.

"If we didn't win, the players can be proud of what they have achieved this year. It has been a marvellous season, possibly one they won't match again.

"There has been no match this season that didn't mean anything. We have had to get ourselves up for every game. Let's hope the boys can pull out one more result."

Broken bone victims Harris and Stokes will travel with the squad. Quinn added:

"They will be made to feel very much part of it. It isn't just about the players who are on the park on the day. These players have played their part in the earlier rounds."

Eastbourne Borough: Stark, Lightwood, Baker, Walker, Tuck, Longhurst, Smart, Stevens, Scarborough, Westcott, Pearce, Ducille, Crabb, Goodwin, Allen, Davidson.

Lewes: Standen, Thomsett, Cable, Hack, McCallum, Head, Dicker, Clark, Ebanks, Kamara, Venables, Palmer, Beeston, Francis, Newman, Gearing.