There was a close-season bombshell when, in July, reigning Premier Division champions Croft United announced their withdrawal from the Saturday League. Of course, the sad loss of talisman, Roy Smith might help explain the demise of such a long-standing club, but we can only speculate. The Premier Division didn’t have to wait too long before they were hit by another withdrawal blow as Gedney Drove End decided to call it a day after playing just one game. The club, obviously struggling to attract players to their set-up, forfeited their opening match, at home to Skegness Town Reserves and they followed that up with a 9-0 home drubbing at the hands of Westside Rangers. Secretary Paul Markham couldn’t see any light at the end of the tunnel and after much discussion the club decided to pull out of the campaign. This left the top flight with just nine teams with the only other casualty being in Division Two where Marshalls, newly promoted after their first ever season in the league, pulled out before a ball was kicked.

It turned out to be quite a season for Wyberton Football Club who topped the Premier Division with their first team and did likewise with their second-string in Division Three. Prison side, North Sea United only spent two seasons in Division One before returning to the Premier after a storming season. Park Road Old Boys just edged out Woodhall Spa United in a nail-biting finish at the top of Division Two.

The season kicked off on the first Saturday in September and Wyberton put their first Premier Division points on the board following a 2-1 away win at Swineshead Institute – both goals coming from Michael Gardner, while the eventual runners-up Spilsby Town enjoyed a 6-0 opening day victory at Westside Rangers. Wyberton’s energetic start continued right through September with an 8-1 win against Wrangle, a 3-1 victory against Skegness Town Reserves and a 2-1 triumph against Billinghay Athletic. By Christmas, Wyberton already looked firm favourites and their impressive run continued well into the new year – in fact they didn’t drop any points until March 20 when Spilsby Town finally did the impossible when they beat the leaders 2-1. But there was no denying Wyberton and they took the title comfortably with plenty of time to spare

North Sea United wrapped up the title of Division One almost as quickly as Wyberton with Freiston finishing in second spot. Freiston slipped up too many times to threaten the leaders and Old Leake finished the strongest team of all with a blistering finish to their season to finish third. Freiston started off well enough hitting eight goals at Old Doningtonians with Ty Fravigar and Dean Seiner both claiming hat-tricks. North Sea’s opening match was against Fishtoft on the second Saturday of the season and they had to be content with a 2-2 draw. The Camp only lost one game and that came on October 20 when Spilsby Town Reserves came away with a 4-2 victory. Two weeks later, Freiston visited North Sea United and they crumpled under pressure going down 7-0. Freiston fared much better when they returned in mid-December performing much better but still going down by the odd goal in seven. North Sea finished the year on top form when they thrashed Holbeach Bank 7-1 on December 29 with Stuart Kane claiming four goals. The prison side were also helped by the goalscoring prowess of Rob Masters and David Noel who both weighed in with valuable goals. Freiston went down 3-2 against Old Leake at the end of March to virtually end any hopes they had while Old Leake continued in a rich vein of form with seven-goal victories against Coningsby Reserves and Holbeach Bank.

The closest finish out of all four divisions came in Division Two where the table-topping battle between Park Road Old Boys and Woodhall Spa United went right to the wire. Both sides were without games on the opening day of the season and ironically they clashed on the second week. Park Road Old Boys came out on top with an impressive 5-1 away win with top goalscorer, Paul Colton hitting two of his side’s goals. The Old Boys had their hiccups along the way and, in fact, went down at home to Wainfleet United 4-2 two weeks later. Wainfleet looked as if they might mount a serious challenge to the leadership but they fell away towards the end of the season. Kirton Town Reserves shipped in twelve goals at Woodhall Spa at the end of September and they were also leaking goals in mid-October when Park Road hit them for ten. Woodhall won 5-0 at Fodsyke on the same day with Wayne Biggadyke hitting a hat-trick. The top two sides met again on the Saturday before Christmas and Woodhall put up a better display drawing 2-2. On the same Christmas Saturday Fosdyke’s Andy Brown celebrated the festivities in style thumping six goals at Tydd St Mary in a 10-0 mauling. Wainfleet’s Lee Johnson almost repeated the feat with a five-goal haul against Mareham United in a 9-0 scoreline on the same day. The following week both Park Road and Woodhall recorded 6-0 away wins at Kirton Town Reserves and Sutterton respectively. Nortoft United were also a side who briefly threatened during the first half of the season and they were still in contention in early February with a 10-1 victory against Fosdyke – Chris Massingham netting four times for his side. Nortoft went down to a narrow 1-0 defeat at home to Woodhall three weeks later but bounced back with 2-0 win against Park Road but their challenge was all but over when they fell to a 2-0 defeat at Sutterton at the end of March. So it was neck and neck at the top of the division as the season entered the final weeks epitomised by the two side’s same 5-1 winning scorelines on April 19. The final week in April turned out to be a monumental title decider as Park Road had already completed their fixtures and could only sit back and wait. Woodhall had to win by a margin of at least five goals to clinch the title and local rivals, Mareham United stood in their way. Mareham spoilt the party with a battling performance before going down 6-3 so for Woodhall it was a case of ‘so near yet so far.’

The Division Three title race saw new side, Skegness Working Men’s Club always playing catch-up to leaders, Wyberton Reserves and although they were at times within touching distance, the eventual Champions possessed the ability to put together a winning sequence to edge further ahead of their rivals. The opening day saw the Skegness side throw the gauntlet down with a convincing 8-0 home win over Spalding Harriers Reserves while Wyberton saw off the challenge of Billinghay Athletic Reserves with a 3-1 victory. Gordon Drake was banging the goals in on a regular basis for the Working Men’s Club as Spalding Town Reserves found out to the dismay – “Deadly Drake” plundered six goals in a 9-0 victory on the second Saturday whilst on the same day Spalding Harriers Reserves were shipping in goals yet again with a 9-0 defeat at Friskney. Poor Spalding Harriers were finding life difficult as they played all the top three sides in the opening weeks – Wyberton Reserves were next and they didn’t fare much better going down 8-1. Thankfully The Harriers recovered after that nightmare start finishing clear of the bottom three. There was a huge shock at Skegness Working Men’s Club on the Saturday before Christmas when Friskney returned home with an amazing 8-0 victory under their belts. Skegness bounced back the following week with a 6-1 win over Park United while Wyberton finished the year on a high note with a 5-0 victory away at Old Doningtonians Reserves. There was a highly significant result on the first Saturday of the new year as both the top two sides clashed – Jason Allen and Neil Featherstone both scored twice in a 7-0 win for Wyberton. The title was decided in mid-April when Wyberton were 2-0 winners at Friskney while Skegness W.M.C. went down to a strong Westside Rangers Reserves outfit 6-2.

Wyberton’s first team were also successful in the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup where they defeated Spilsby Town 1-0 – the winning goal coming in the last few minutes from Sam Louth. The semi finals had been close run matches with Wyberton edging out Skegness Town Reserves 2-1 while Kirton Town put up a magnificent performance holding Spilsby Town to a 1-1 draw before going out in the dreaded penalty shoot-out by 9-8.

Not surprisingly, Wyberton went the furthest in the Lincs Junior Cup before being eliminated by Skegness Town in the semi-final. In The Eleys Sports Cup Swineshead won by a single goal when they met West End Tigers – the winner coming from Jack Houghton. Both sides had comfortable semi-final victories against lower league opposition and there was just one shock in the whole competition when Fishtoft defeated Billinghay Athletic 4-3.

In the Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup final Coningsby Reserves were victorious against Swineshead Reserves as they faced each other once more. Tony Mumford, who has since retired, ended on a high note scoring the winning goal.

Swineshead Reserves did enjoy some success in the Willoughby Shield when they defeated Wyberton Reserves 2-1.

A Ricky Toyer goal helped Fishtoft to Challenge Cup success when they defeated Kirton Town 1-0.

For May 10

The last major Saturday League cup final took place with Swineshead Institute and West End Tigers battling it out for the coveted Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup at Boston Town’s ground. Swineshead threatened first after seven minutes with Matt Bates getting on the end of a free-kick but his header was directed straight at the keeper. At the other end there was nearly an own goal as defender Steve Graham glanced a header just past an upright. Swineshead striker Richard Stukins then burst through moments later but he shot into the side netting. Rangers’ full-back Joe Hallam went close on 20 minutes with a free-kick that flew just over before referee Rod Crozier brandished the first yellow card on the half-hour mark when Luke Brittain launched himself into a recklessly high tackle. Brittain responded a minute later with a fierce drive which flew just over. Full-back Anthony Slater found himself in a decent position minutes after the restart but his shot was well parried by Tigers’ keeper Peter Cook before Swineshead went even closer to the opening goal when Martin North’s superb defence-splitting pass found striker Jack Houghton whose low shot struck a post. Luke Brittain then had West End’s best chance when he fastened onto a loose back-pass. But Swineshead keeper Andrew Stukins produced an excellent save at the feet of the inrushing striker. The breakthrough came on the hour mark when Richard Stukins’ low cross found Jack Houghton and he made no mistake from close range. Brittain responded three minutes later with a header from a free-kick but it flashed just over and then Nathan Padley saw a well struck shot superbly saved by Stukins in the Swineshead goal. West End were enjoying their best spell at this stage and Martin Jolly, a substitute for the injured Brittain, produced a snap-shot that went just wide. Swineshead had the final chance with five minutes remaining when Matt Bates’ fine cross was headed wide by Ryan Barker. Willoughby Cup chairman Jim Ely presented the trophies after the game where the man of the match award went to goalkeeper Andrew Stukins for an assured display of confident handling and superb distribution.

There were only four games last Saturday in the whole league and they were all in Cropleys Suzuki Division Three. Friskney scored two goals in each half of their home game against Old Doningtonians. Sam Hill and Perrie Dale netted the opening goals for Friskney to give them a 2-0 interval lead before Old Dons replied after the break. Further goals from Daniel Fletcher and Scott MacKay put the result beyond doubt to make the final score 4-1. Unfortunately the game will be remembered for all the wrong reasons after the game suddenly erupted into a free-for-all – as the game entered the 75th minute. With no previous hint of aggravation, a spark was ignited and referee Sid Ault was left with no alternative but to dismiss Friskney’s Sam Hill and Old Dons’ Jamie Welsh. The Old Dons linesman, Lee Hilton, was also red-carded after running on the pitch to allegedly join the ensuing fracas. Matt Smith scored Spalding Harriers Reserves goal in their home match against Westside Rangers Reserves but it wasn’t enough to earn any reward as the home side went down 3-1. West End Tigers Reserves produced an excellent performance in their home encounter with Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Goals from Nicky De Vries and Kevin Orton who struck twice earned a creditable point against a strong Billinghay line-up. The visitors’ goals came from Ben Miles, who scored twice and Joe Carr. Final score 3-3 Wyberton Reserves and Fishtoft Reserves also shared the points in a 2-2 draw at the Causeway. James Payling and Neil Featherstone hit the Champions goals while Lewis O’Keefe and Tim Billingham replied for Fishtoft who had, two days earlier, booked their place in the final of the Swineshead Cup with a thumping 9-1 victory against Holbeach Bank. Scott Wiseman and Danny Keal both scored twice while Chris Firth, Chris Marshall, Pete Coonan, Ady Almond and Mark Ryan were also on target.

For May 3

Wyberton lifted the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup with a winning goal two minutes from time against a shell-shocked Spilsby Town, who will have felt that they at least deserved an extra time shot at their opponents. Spilsby started brightly with Jordan Wood bursting through after five minutes. but he was denied by a brave block from Wyberton keeper, Steve Melady. Gary McGilloway then saw a right-footed shot drift just wide of the post. Wyberton’s first effort on goal came after 12 minutes when John Reeson’s free-kick was directed straight at the keeper before Jordan Wood broke through again only to see his shot parried by the keeper and his follow-up effort go wide when it looked easier to score. Wyberton’s Mark Lovelace tried his luck with a quickly taken free-kick but the ball went wide. Spilsby’s Simon Sutton threaded a superb through ball to Liam Papworth but the striker lifted his shot over the bar. Spislby thought they had taken the lead midway through the first half when Papworth’s shot was parried out to Wood who tucked the ball away but his celebrations were cut short by the referee assistant’s flag. Wyberton’s best effort of the first half almost saw them take the lead but Mark Lovelace’s header from a corner was cleared off the line before Des Rook’s shot at the other end went narrowly past an upright. Michael Gardner, who had been suffering from an earlier knock during the first half, broke free down the left but he missed the target when well placed. The first yellow card of the final came after McGilloway’s late challenge left Matthew Crunkhorn in a heap near the touchline. Spilsby’s stand-in keeper, Dan Fox produced a tremendous save low to his left after 65 minutes to keep his side in the game – Fox was drafted in after first team keeper Martin Ziller was ruled out through injury and Mike Emery had signed for Rushden and Diamonds, making him ineligible for the final. Fox was called into action again moments later when he tipped Sam Louth’s header over the bar. Jordan Wood had a shot blocked on the line by Nigel Vince after 70 minutes and Spilsby were left shaking their heads in disbelief 10 minutes later when they had two efforts cleared off the line in quick succession. To Town’s dismay Wyberton snatched victory two minutes from time when Sam Louth chested down a right wing cross before hooking the ball high into the net. Willoughby Cup President, Tony Appleby presented the trophies and the man of the match award went to Wyberton keeper, Steve Melady who produced a faultless display for his side.

Gary Cochrane hit a hat-trick for Billinghay Athletic as Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division champions, Wyberton suffered only their second defeat of the campaign. Chris Rutt and Mark Lovelace replied for the visitors but it wasn’t enough as they went down 3-2. Swineshead needing a victory margin of at least three goals to secure the runners-up spot, entertained Skegness Town Reserves and after a goal-less first half, Jack Houghton gave them a tremendous boost with the opening goal on the hour mark. Unfortunately for the home side they were caught pushing forward and Skegness took full advantage to bounce back scoring twice through John Jeffery and Troy Lonslow and take the points with a 2-1 victory.

Old Doningtonians finished their Cropleys Suzuki Division One season on a high note with four points from their final two games. In a midweek match, The Dons shared the points with Kirton Town following a 1-1 draw. Martin Fox was on target for Donington while Cliff Langham replied for Town. Four days later saw Old Dons secure a comfortable 3-0 home win against Fishtoft. Wayne Foster, Rob Chapman and a superb individual solo effort from Scott Ekins earned the points in an excellent victory. With Spilsby Town’s end of the season trip to Barcelona stretching their Reserves resources in their attempt to raise a side for their home game against Old Leake, they pulled out all the stops to turn out a full compliment. Town opened the scoring after five minutes when a Pete Sampson throw was headed in headed by Dan Smith. Spilsby’s lead was short-lived as Old Leake levelled the scores before both sides netted again in a five minute period before the break – Smith again on target for Town firing home from the edge of the box. Spilsby held the upper hand during the early stages of the second half but the normally reliable Liam Papworth squandered three golden chances. Old Leake went in front with 15 minutes remaining when a Spilsby corner was quickly moved upfield before the ball was fired home. As Town threw men forward they were caught out when Old Leake scored a fourth late on. Old Leake’s marksmen were Ben Jacques and Adam Tempest who both scored twice. Final score was 4-2.

Wrangle United Reserves finished Cropleys Suzuki Division Two their season with a victory when they played hosts to Tydd St Mary. Thomas Crozier and Liam Shinn scored the crucial goals in a 2-1 victory to send Tydd home empty handed

Simon Hyland was on fire for Fishtoft Reserves when they entertained West End Tigers Reserves in the Cropleys Suzuki Division Three. Hot-shot Hyland scored three of his side’s goal in a 6-2 victory. Fishtoft’s other match-winners were Carl Tate, Tim Billingham and Carl Bailey. Another hat-trick hero was Gordon Drake whose treble helped Skegness Working Mens Club to a 4-2 away win at Mareham United Reserves. Michael Redding grabbed the other goal for Skegness. Park United ended on a high note with a 4-2 home win against Billinghay Athletic Reserves thanks to goals from Alex Limb (2), Tom Waterson and Andy Waterson. Friskney went goal crazy at Freiston Reserves winning 8-1. Dave Robinson scored Freiston’s lone consolation. Freiston Reserves had, however, managed a 3-1 victory in an earlier midweek match when they defeated Park United at home thanks to goals from Joe Deamer, Dave Robinson and Lee Hoff.

For April 26

Swineshead Reserves, from Division One, made up for their recent Reserve Cup final defeat with a Barclays Brokers Willoughby Shield final victory over leaders of Division Three Wyberton Reserves, although it needed extra time to separate the two teams. Swineshead started brightly and deservedly opened the scoring on ten minutes when striker, Harry Houghton raced through onto a slick pass before finishing superbly from the edge of the box. They almost increased their lead three minutes later when Mark Ledger’s well struck volley from long range flew just wide before Wyberton got back on level terms after 15 minutes when they were awarded a free-kick after the referee judged that a pass back to the keeper had been deliberate. Jason Allen rifled home the free-kick through a crowd of players and into the back of the net. The first yellow card came on the half hour mark when Richard Barker was fouled on the edge of the box and Jamie Button was cautioned for throwing the ball at an opponent before Andy Thompson’s free-kick went over the bar. At the other end Steve Fisher had a snap shot which went wide of the left hand upright before Swineshead went close to increasing their lead right on the stroke of half time when Harry Houghton’s lofted cross to the far post drifted over the keeper’s head and struck the woodwork. The second half was very scrappy although Wyberton could have gone ahead inside the opening minutes when Neil Featherstone tried to force the ball home but the close attention of Nathan Stainfield forced the ball to go wide. Jamie Button went close after 70 minutes following Featherstone’s through ball but the final shot missed the target. Wyberton also had an appeal for a penalty ten minutes from time when Featherstone went down in the box but the referee waved aside their appeals. In extra time Stainfield fired a left footed shot just over the bar and Houghton’s free-kick was well saved by Scott Lea low to his right. Swineshead just had the edge, however and goals from Nathan Stainfield (pen) and Robert Snaith sealed a 3-1 victory. Guest of honour, Boston League Vice-President, Mr. Tony Appleby presented the trophies and the man of the match award went to Swineshead defender, Nathan Stainfield. Final score was 2-1.

There were just two games in the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division where Swineshead put last week’s dismal display behind them with a thumping 8-0 home win against Wrangle United. Swineshead were 1-0 in front after eighteen minutes when Richard Stukins fired home from fifteen yards but they didn't add their second until two minutes before the break when Stukins bundled the ball over the line with his shin following a Matt Bates cross. Martin North made it 3-0 on the hour mark when he burst through before netting. Substitute Jack Houghton then entered the action and the striker stole the show with a four-goal burst inside 10 minutes - all breakaway goals with cool finishes. The eighth and final goal came in the last minute when Bert Snaith was brought down in the box and he, got to his feet, dusted himself down and fired home from the spot. Skegness Town Reserves also had a convincing win when they travelled to West End Tigers. Goals from Sean Chamberlain (2), Greg Barker, John Jeffrey and Troy Lonslow secured a 5-1 victory. West End’s goal came from Luke Brittain.

In a very tight first half, Coningsby Reserves took the lead at Spilsby Town Reserves in their Cropleys Suzuki Division One match through a Carl Wall strike. This spurred Spilsby into life as Dan Smith had a goal ruled out for offisde and Eddie Hodgson struck a post. Spilsby had the upper hand after the break with Des Rook going close with two volleys and Dan Smith hitting the crossbar. Spilsby got on level terms through Mark Ingram's when his free-kick eluded everyone before bouncing past the outstretched keeper. Town went ahead following Tom Adams' superb run that ended with Dan Smith side footing home. Coningsby had a golden chance to equalise shortly afterwards but were denied by Martin Ziller’s fine finger-tip save. Smith had a couple of chances to complete a hat-trick before Mark Ingram wrapped up the scoring with a third when his curling free-kick found the net. Final score 3-1. Freiston travelled to Kirton Town, where they received the Division Two runners-up trophies but then it was a case of ‘after the lord mayor’s show’ with their opponents showing no mercy winning 4-1. Kirton were 2-0 in front inside the first fifteen minutes before Lee Dakin reduced the arrears on the half hour mark. Although Freiston pressed for an equaliser after the break Town made it 3-1 midway through the second half. Freiston missed two good chances late on before Kirton wrapped up the three points with a fourth goal in added time. Kirton were without a couple of regulars and drafted in some young guns who excelled. Their goals came from Matt Parnham (2), Kyle Bates and Martin Durrant.

What a tight finish for the Cropleys Suzuki Division Two title – With Park Road Old Boys having finished their fixtures the previous Saturday, Woodhall Spa United had to win by a margin of five goals to snatch The Championship from The Holbeach side’s grasp. Unfortunately for Woodhall their final game was against local rivals, Mareham United who were desperate not to do any favours for their near neighbours. And so it turned out to be as Mareham battled to lead, at one time, 3-2 before Woodhall threw everything at their opponents and three late goals in as many minutes set up a grandstand finish but Mareham refused to buckle further despite finally going down 6-3. Jack Draper grabbed a hat-trick while Steve Lovett claimed a double-strike, Daniel Wells also got on the scoresheet. Wainfleet United finished on a high note, securing third spot following a 5-2 away win at Wrangle United Reserves. The visitors held a 2-1 lead at the halfway stage following goals from Phil Simpson and Royston Wilkinson and three more second half goals sealed the victory. Matthew Broome scored twice while Michael Parnham completed the scoring. Wrangle’s goals came from Pardeep Singh and Shane Brackenbury. Sutterton's final game of the season produced a 5-2 victory over Kirton
Town Reserves. Despite falling behind, Sutterton recovered to lead at the interval thanks to a well-taken strike from Simon Long and a Carl East tap-in. A stunning solo effort gave veteran East his second goal of the game before Ashley Hughes netted the fourth from a yard out. Kirton were rewarded with their second goal of the game before Sutterton skipper, Carl Appleyard had the final say, netting from the penalty spot to make the final score 5-2. Kirton Reserves did play well but still could not manage that elusive win. Their goals came from Chris Chapman and Hakkan Darici.

Friskney were forced to play nearly all of their home Cropleys Suzuki Division Three match against Marheam United Reserves with ten men when Jack Hill was dismissed after just four minutes. Mareham took full advantage immediately by opening the scoring before Friskney clawed themselves back into the game with a superb strike from Neil Allen whose 20-yard shot flew into the top corner. Amazingly, Friskney then scored again to lead at the interval following a Sam Hill goal albeit a somewhat fortunate effort when his his-hit shot somehow found the net. Marheam scored twice after the break to lead 3-2 but Daniel Redford salvaged a hard earned point when he kept his composure to score from the spot. Final score 3-3. A Steve Wilcox hat-trick helped Billinghay Athletic Reserves to a 5-2 home win against Spalding Town Reserves. Rick Harrod almost repeated his feat with a well-taken brace. Leaders, Wyberton Reserves had no problems at Spalding Harriers Reserves where they recorded a 5-1 away win with Jason Allen scoring twice. Jamie Cox, Mark Lovelace, Neil Featherstone and an own goal completed the scoring while the Harriers goal came from David Kantak. Skegness Working Mens Club also won away from home when goals from Carl Wilson, Andy Verhaul and Michael Redding secured a 3-1 victory. A long range effort from Marcus Reeson had kept Freiston in the game.

For April 19

The rain, once again, welcomed the players and supporters for the second successive Saturday League final at Boston Town’s Tattershall Road ground last Tuesday when Kirton Town and Fishtoft took to the field to decide the destiny of the Target Newspapers Challenge Cup. Fishtoft started brightly and they created the first real chance inside the opening minutes but Chris Marshall directed his header wide following a great cross from the left. A Pete Coonan corner was then glanced towards goal by striker Ady Almond but the effort was deflected round the far post for another corner. Kirton’s first chance didn’t materialise until the 15th minute when Martin Durrant’s volley flashed wide of the left hand post but it was Fishtoft again who went closest to scoring three minutes later when Marshall turned smartly in the box but his low shot was superbly saved by Kevin Parker. Parker was again in action five minutes later when Coonan’s 25-yard drive was beaten out by the busy keeper. Almond then beat the keeper to a through ball but his header went wide. At the other end, Kirton’s Durrant rifled a shot over the bar following a corner but it was all Fishtoft as Ricky Toyer tried his luck from 35 yards out but his shot went wide before Almond’s excellent cross from the left flank caused panic in The Town defence as the ball was almost deflected into his own net by a defender. Kirton defender Michael Collins produced a splendid tackle on Coonan as the striker broke clear before Fishtoft defender, Chris Firth made an equally crucial tackle on Adrian Dobriansky before the ball squirted over the crossbar. Fishtoft finished the half on top as Michael Lomax found himself in space inside the area but he fluffed his attempted hook shot. The second half started with Fishtoft’s Scott Wiseman heading over from a corner before Dobriansky burst through on the left before lifting his shot over the keeper and also wide of the post. Kirton were probably having their best spell of the game in the opening exchanges of the second period as Tosh Bates fired a long range shot just over the bar. But then the decisive goal came on 55 minutes when a right wing corner found an unmarked Ricky Toyer and his header flew into the net. Wiseman fired wide whilst under pressure on the right hand side of the box before Dobriansky flashed a shot wide at the other end. Fishtoft again finished strongly with Lomax powering a shot just over the bar in the dying minutes. Guest of honour, James Barnes, advertising manager from the Boston Target presented the trophies with the man of the match award going to defender, Chris Firth who marshalled his defence superbly throughout.

In Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division, Wrangle United enjoyed a surprise home victory against Swineshead. Goals from John Rutherford, Mark Crozier and Jimmy Britton secured the three points for the home side in a 3-1 scoreline. Unfortunately for Wrangle, their fellow relegation strugglers, Coningsby also won at Skegness Town Reserves. The surprise at Skegness was probably the margin of the scoreline – a resounding 5-2 away win. Coningsby’s scorers were James Wayman 2, Stuart Thompson, Tony Mumford and Martin Lynch. It was a fitting finale for Coninsby’s Tony Mumford, who has announced his retirement from the rigours of local league football. West End Tigers came back from behind before recording a 2-1 home win against Billinghay Athletic. Martin Jolly and Ben Parkinson scored the crucial goals for The Tigers after they had fallen behind to Billinghay’s opener. West End, without eight regular players, called up several second-string players and they all played their part in a fine team performance. Jolly’s leveller was a classic centre forward’s header from an excellent Steve Favell cross. Jolly was involved again in the winning goal when he flicked on for skipper, Parkinson to force the ball home.

Coningsby Reserves rescued a Cropleys Suzuki Division One point with a last-gasp equaliser in their home match against Spalding Town. After Spalding had stormed into a 2-0 lead Coningsby pulled a goal back before the break through Carl Wall’s penalty. The visitors looked to be heading for victory until Daniel Daubney salvaged some reward for Coningsby when his free kick found the net – virtually the last kick of the game. Final score 2-2. Swineshead Reserves were the victims of a dubious penalty decision for the second successive week when they went down at home to Old Leake by the narrow margin of 2-1. Adam Sinclair converted the penalty while Ben Jacques grabbed the other match-winning goal for Old Leake. Swineshead’s reply came courtesy of an own goal. Kirton Town were still suffering from their Challenge Cup final defeat when they entertained Old Doningtonians. The visitors won 3-1 – only their third win of the season but still enough to lift them off the bottom of the table.

Park Road Old Boys completed their successful Cropleys Suzuki Division Two campaign with a 5-1 home win against Fosdyke. The leaders, assured of promotion, now have to wait to see if fellow promotion seekers, Woodhall Spa United can topple them in their final game next week for the race for the title. Park Road had gone ahead courtesy of an Ash Allen strike only for Andy Brown to level the scores at 1-1. A Paul Colton penalty put The Old Boys back in front at the halfway stage. The home side sealed victory with three further goals after the break as Ash Allen netted his second goal of the game and Chris Gilbert made it 4-1. Paul Colton, not to be outdone, also claimed his own brace of goals. Referee, Mr Reynolds had an excellent game in the middle of the park. Coincidentally, Woodhall Spa United also won by the exact same scoreline when they took on Wrangle United Reserves in a game switched to Woodhall. Wrangle took the lead through Dion Roberts while Woodhall stood appealing for a free-kick. The second-placed side replied with two superbly struck goals from Jack Draper to lead 2-1 at the interval. Paul Picker also grabbed two goals himself after the break while Andrew Money broke his recent goal-drought with the fifth to seal a 5-1 victory. Woodhall have to win by a five-goal margin in their home game against Mareham United in order to snatch the title from Park Road Old Boys. A Chris Rawlings goal was enough to give Black Bull United a slender 1-0 victory in their home game against Sutterton. Mareham United had a welcome 2-1 home win against Spalding Harriers thanks to goals from Matthew Deane and Lewis Cartwright. Kirton Town Reserves went mighty close to breaking their duck when they went down 4-3 against Nortoft United at Tattershall Road. Dominic Cridland did most of the damage for Nortoft hitting a fine hat-trick while Nick Stone completed the scoring.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Three, Simon Hyland was again on the scoresheet for Fishtoft Reserves but unfortunately for his side they went down 5-3 at the hands of Spalding Town Reserves. Fishtoft trailed 2-1 at the half time stage with Kevin Woods on target from the penalty spot but two quick-fire goals early in the second half sunk any hopes Fishtoft had of getting back into the game. Hyland and Tim Billingham brought some respectability to the score-line but Town added another goal also to run out 5-3 winners. Wyberton Reserves look to be heading for the title after a 2-0 away win against Friskney although the home side had the better of the exchanges during the first half but just couldn’t convert their possession into goals. Both of Wyberton’s goals came from Neil Featherstone. Their victory was slightly soured by the sending off of Kelvin Whyler and there were yellow cards for Jamie Button and Jamie Cox. Skegness Working Men’s Club came up against a strong Westside Rangers Reserves side when they made their journey to Kirton Middlecott School. Will Scott hit four of his side’s goals in a 6-2 home win. Kev Manning and Jon East were also on target for Rangers while Adam Morton and Darren Walker replied for the Skegness side. An Adam Gallimore goal was not enough to gain any reward for Park United in their home game against Spalding Harriers Reserves. Gallimore’s first half strike had given Park a slender half time lead but for all their efforts after the break the home side couldn’t hold onto their lead as Spalding hit back with two goals to run out 2-1 winners. A Rick Harrod hat-trick helped Billinghay Athletic Reserves to a 4-1 home win against Old Doningtonians Reserves. Ben Miles was also on target for Billinghay.

For April 12

In Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division Billinghay Athletic and Swineshead shared the points in a 1-1 draw. Gary Cochrane rescued Billinghay with his point-saving goal. Swineshead had got off to the perfect start with a goal after just four minutes when Nathan Stainfield netting a superb individual goal when he cut in from the left before beating three defenders and scoring froma tight angle. Billinghay, who had always looked dangerous at set pieces, equalised when keeper, Andy Stukins could only parry a fre kick and the ball fell kindly for Gary Cochrane to tap home the loose ball. A single Graham Blades goal was enough to earn Spilsby Town a 1-0 away win at West End Tigers. Blades’ speculative 30-yard lob left The Tigers keeper stranded for the all-important winning goal.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One Old Leake travelled to Holbeach Bank and the visitors produced a magnificent seven-goal performance to sink their opponents as their run-in maintained its impressive momentum. Ben Jacques was again amongst the goals with a personal four-goal haul while Adam Sinclair (pen), Shaun Geagham and Adam Lester completed the rout. Final score 7-0. The remaining three games all finished up as 1-0 away wins as firstly, Kirton Town snatched victory at Swineshead Reserves with a hotly-disputed penalty award. Adrain Dobriansky stayed calm before converting his spot-kick to give his side a 1-0 away win. Pete Coonan’s winning strike was enough to give Fishtoft a hard earned away win at Spilsby Town in a very tight encounter. The crucial goal came on the half hour mark and although Spilsby enjoyed plenty of possession they couldn’t find a way past an impressive Fishtoft defence in which Ricky Toyer, Luke Perkins and goalkeeper, Ben Shaw excelled throughout. Eddie Rich, Rhys Fitzgerdald and Glenn Hislop all went agonisingly close for Town but it wasn’t their day. Referee Nick Sleaford enjoyed himself in the middle.

Nortoft United were held at home by Wrangle United Reserves in a Cropleys Suzuki Division Two match. The home side who have just lost their way a little in recent weeks were thankful for a James Andrew strike which earned Nortoft a point to keep them in the hunt for promotion. Wrangle’s goal came from Pardeep Singh.

Woodhall Spa United, on the other hand, are enjoying an excellent run-in at the moment. A 2-1 away win at Tydd St Mary keeps Woodhall’s hopes of promotion well and truly alive. Wainfleet United are still in the race after a 4-1 away win at Mareham United. Jak Marshall, Lee Johnson and Phil Simspon were all on target for the visitors but the best goal of the game came from Michael Parnham. Nigel Hoyles replied for Mareham. Park Road Old Boys look to be heading for the title after a 3-0 away win at Sutterton, who had been enjoying a fine run of late. The leaders were held to a goal-less first half before Chris Gilbert gave them the lead after the break. Further goals from Ash Allen and leading goalscorer, Paul Colton sealed a 3-0 win.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Three Wyberton remain favourites for the title after a thumping 4-0 away win at Freiston Reserves. The visitors’ strong line-up was just too strong for Freiston and goals from Steve Melady, Jamie Button, Neil Featherstone and Jason Allen secured a valuable three-point haul. Another side to boast a 4-0 score-line was Friskney following their convincing home win against Billinghay Athletic Reserves. All of Friskney’s goals came in an action-packed first period with Sam Hill pouncing twice to put the game beyond Billinghay’s reach by half-time. Perrie Dale and Neil Allen were also on target for the home side. Two goals from Gordon Drake helped Skegness Working Mens Club to a 3-0 away win at West End Tigers Reserves. James Baniewicz completed the scoring for Skegness. Westside Rangers Reserves recorded a 3-1 home win against Park United with goals from Jason James, Harry Gurton and Matt Fisher. Gurton also got on the score-sheet for Park with an unfortunate own goal. Fishtoft Reserves produced a superb five-star performance in their home match against Spalding Harriers Reserves. Matt Joyes helped himself to a double-strike while Simon Hyland, Tom Adams and Carl Tate were all on target for the home side.

For April 5

After their 2-1 Fishtoft Cup final defeat two days earlier, Billinghay Athletic repeated their loss when Coningsby returned home with the three Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division points last Saturday. In the final an Adam Weston goal got Billinghay back to 2-1 after falling behind to a crucial second goal – a dubious penalty given for handball after a defender couldn’t evade a driven ball. On Saturday Lee Marshall was on target for Billinghay but Coningsby took the honours with only their second win of the season. Defender Nathan Stainfield scored both of Swineshead’s goals in their 2-1 home win against Spilsby Town. West End Tigers and Wyberton shared the points in a 2-2 draw. Craig Spooner and Joe Hallam (penalty) earned West End their point. Wyberton’s Jordan Dixon overstepped the mark with referee, Stuart Eyre and received a red card into the bargain for dissent. Spooner and Hallam’s goals had given West End a 2-0 lead before Wyberton pulled a goal back before the break. The visitors rescued appoint with a second half leveller. Sam Louth and Michael Gardner were on target for the visitors.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One, Old Leake’s recent good run of form continued with a thumping 7-1 away win at Coningsby Reserves. The home side were still in the game at the halfway stage when they found themselves 3-1 behind but a storming second half display from Old Leake stunned their opponents. The visitors’ goals came from Chris Mitchell (2), Ben Jacques (2), Shaun Geagham, Rob Staples and Ben Siddle. Coningsby’s consolation goal came from Mick Harness. A single goal was enough to settle the outcome of Freiston and Kirton Town at The Danny Flear Centre. A wayward backpass was seized upon by an alert Freiston attacker to seal victory. Holbeach Bank went down 5-1 at home to Fishtoft. Stacey Blythe grabbed the Bank’s only reward.

Fosdyke produced a lacklustre performance during the first half of their home Cropleys Suzuki Division Two game against Mareham. Luckily for them, they were still very much in the game after Andy Brown’s strike saw them go in at the interval all square at 1-1. Two goals in the opening five minutes of the second half set Fosdyke on their way to victory as they stepped up the pace. Carl Jackson’s two quick-fire goals put the home side well in control and Liam Pitam sealed victory with two further goals as Fosdyke ran out 5-1 winners. Woodhall Spa United and Sutterton produced an enthralling encounter before a goal ten minutes from time settled the points. Woodhall’s Greg Tate went close to opening the scoring with tremendous header which struck an upright but the first half finished a goalless. Sutterton then thought they had gone ahead after the break but the goal was ruled out for offside. Woodhall snatched victory with a late goal from Jonathan Kerry to keep his side on course for promotion. Park Road Old Boys remain top after hard earned three points at Wrangle United Reserves. Wrangle had clawed themselves back into the game after trailing 2-0 to level the scores at 2-2 through Richard Fenwick and Gavin Bell but The Old Boys grabbed the crucial winner.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Three Mark Hodgson hit Mareham United Reserves’ goal in their 1-1 home draw with Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Jack Hill and Perrie Dale struck during the first half to give Friskney a

2-0 half time lead against Freiston Reserves before a Sam Hill goal sealed a 3-0 victory. The local derby encounter between Spalding Town Reserves and Spalding Harriers Reserves was settled by a single Kevin Nottingham goal in the second half. After a goalless first half a reckless tackle gave The Harriers their chance from the penalty spot and Nottingham made no mistake from the spot. Fishtoft Reserves and Westside Rangers Reserves produced a six-goal thriller with the sides sharing the points following a 3-3 draw. Simon Hyland and Carl Tate gave Fishtoft a 2-0 lead during a wind-assisted first period before Rangers turned the tables in the second half. Kevin Woods popped up with Fishtoft’s third goal to save the day.

For March 29

A Steve Marvell goal kept Spilsby Town on course for the runners-up spot in the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division when they entertained West End Tigers at their Ancaster Avenue ground. West End, who included four players from their reserve side, produced a solid display and it was one of the second string players who set up their only goal in the 1-1 draw when Craig Spooner crossed for Paul Vaughan to head home. Will Scott was in red-hot form for Westside Rangers away at Wrangle United. The lively striker struck four of his sides’ six goals in a 6-1 away win. Dave (DJ) Wright and an own goal completed the scoring. John Tomlin replied for Wrangle.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One, all the goals came in the second half of the game down at the North Sea Camp where the already promoted Prison side eventually overcame the challenge of Old Doningtonians. After the goalless first period, Rob Masters struck twice and Dave Noel grabbed the other in a 3-1 victory. Kirton Town had to dig deep to grind out a hard fought 2-1 home win against a good Holbeach Bank side. It was Holbeach who started strongly and they broke the deadlock midway through the first half before Kirton equalised before half time through Mick Goddard. After the break Kirton piled on the pressure but they squandered several attempts on goal until Mick Goddard finally wrapped up the victory when he beat the keeper on a one on one. More chances followed for both teams but Kirton held on to their narrow victory.

Old Leake put a dent in Freiston's proud home league record when they came away with a surprise 3-2 away win. Both sides had early opportunities before Freiston opened the scoring on the half hour mark when Gary Frost scored following a quickly taken free-kick. Old Leake got on level terms before the interval when they took advantage of some slack defending in the home ranks. Freiston regained their lead after an hour when Aston Chase lobbed home a shot over the stranded keeper. Back came Old Leake and they equalised with a scrambled effort with just five minutes remaining. The visitors then still had time to have goal ruled out. Amazingly, there were 14 minutes of added time and Old Leake snatched their decisive winner with five minutes left with a well-worked goal. Final score 3-2. Old Leake’s match-winners were Ben Jacques who grabbed two and Rob Staples.

The Cropleys Suzuki Division Two game between Black Bull United and Mareham United was held up for a while after an unfortunate injury to the home side’s Gary Woodward. The player was whisked away to hospital with a serious knee injury after the game was only midway through the first half. The game itself finished all-square after a 1-1 draw. Tim Rowland scored The Black Bull goal. Sutterton caused a bit of an upset when they defeated promotion hopefuls, Nortoft United. Gavin Rhodes opened the scoring for the home side and Ashley Hughes sealed victory with a second goal. Sutterton had the wind at their backs during the first half but, despite having plenty of possession, they could only muster some long range efforts from Ashley Hughes and Shaun Erhardt and Nortoft would been the happier of the two sides at the halfway stage. Sutterton adapted well after the break and they opened the scoring after fifty minutes when Gavin Rhodes got on the end of Ashley Hughes’ cross to volley home in style. Nortoft then enjoyed their best spell of the game and they dominated possession for a while but Carl Appleyard marshalled his defence superbly to preserve the home side's lead. The crucial second goal arrived with ten minutes remaining when Rhodes' through ball caused confusion in The Nortoft defence and Ashley Hughes pounced to prod the ball home and give Sutterton their fifth win in a row. Wainfleet United hit Kirton Town Reserves for six with Rob Jackson boosting his season’s tally with a four-goal blast. Lee Johnson and Jak Marshall were also on target. Kirton battled on in vain trying to find their first points but were overcome by a strong Wainfleet side. Ross Isham scored Kirton’s consolation goal.

Skegness Working Men’s Club were held to a 2-2 Cropleys Suzuki Division Three draw at Billinghay Athletic Reserves, although they still remain firm favourites for promotion. Carl Wilson and an own goal earned the visitors their point while a Rick Harrod penalty and an Adam Brett strike gave Billinghay a share of the spoils. Spalding Town Reserves comfortably defeated Park United at home with a 3-0 victory. Nathan Young junior was again on target for Town although the striker missed a hatful of chances. James Thorold and Micky Handsford completed the scoring. Two goals from Troy Ayton helped Freiston Reserves to a 4-3 away win at Fishtoft Reserves. Gary Hoyles and Dave Robinson were also on target for the visitors. All the home goals came from Tim Billingham who claimed a fine hat-trick. Fishtoft had been somewhat hampered by an injury to their keeper Jason Follows who was knocked unconscious. Westside rangers Reserves had to battle against the wind during the first half of their away fixture at Mareham United Reserves before finally securing a 4-1 victory. Rangers still managed to take an early lead through Lee Nicholson’s speculative 40-yard effort which found the top corner of the net. Rangers went further ahead after being awarded a rather bizarre penalty which no-one seemed to know what it was for. Kev Manning gratefully accepted the spot-kick to put his side 2-0 in front. The strong winds appeared to increase as the first half wore on and Rangers
were forced on the back foot for a while and Mareham reduced the arrears through Tom Sewell. Rangers regained control after the break and Manning grabbed his second goal and his side’s third with a powerfully struck free-kick before Matt Fisher completed the scoring with a fierce drive from 12 yards out. Final score was 4-1.

Steve Melady struck four times for Wyberton Reserves in their Barclays Brokers Willoughby Shield

Semi-final tie against Wrangle United Reserves. Jamie Cox with two and Matthew Crunkhorn completed the scoring to send The Causeway side through to the final where they will meet Swineshead Reserves. Final score 6-1. Wrangle’s goals came from Thomas Crozier and Shane Brackenbury. Mark Ledger and Alex Kirkham scored the match-winning goals for Swineshead Reserves in their excellent away win at Spilsby Town
Reserves. Both goals came in the second half and although Spilsby had plenty of possession they couldn’t find a way past Swineshead keeper, Phil McCallister, who had an inspired game throughout. Final score was 2-0.

For March 22

The Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup final finally got under way after the previous week’s postponement due to floodlight problems and the weather certainly wasn’t very kind to players and supporters. Driving wind and rain welcomed all-comers to Boston Town’s Tattershall Road ground but the attendance was surprisingly good. Coningsby Reserves gained sweet revenge for their defeat in last year’s final against Swineshead Reserves with a 2-1 victory this time, although extra time was needed to produce a winning verdict. Coningsby kicked off with the strong wind at their backs and the first shot came from their midfielder Tony Mumford who lifted his shot high over the bar in the opening minutes. Swineshead keeper Phil McCallister was called into action after 10 minutes when he tipped a deflected free-kick over the crossbar. Coningsby left winger Damian Kerr-Robinson almost created the opening goal 10 minutes later but his near post cross was scrambled clear. A Swineshead defender almost sliced a clearance past his own keeper but McAllister was alert to the danger once again. Swineshead’s first worthwhile effort didn’t arrive until five minutes before the break when Andy Thompson curled a free-kick just wide of the right hand post. Just when it looked as if Swineshead might survive the first half onslaught, Coningsby’s veteran play-maker Tony Mumford popped up with the opening goal. Kerr-Robinson again skipped his way down the left before crossing low for the marauding midfielder to shoot high into the net from close range. At the other end Swineshead almost levelled the scores when Alex Kirkham fired high over the crossbar. It was Kirkham again who went close just two minutes into the second half when he shot straight at the keeper before Mumford supplied a superb cross from the right which caused panic before being headed clear. Swineshead went desperately close to grabbing an equaliser on the hour mark but Harry Houghton’s well struck shot rebounded back off the inside of the post. Not to be denied, however, Houghton did find the net when he got behind a static Coningsby defence before scampering away and finishing in style. Coningsby were equipping themselves much better against the wind than their opponents although they didn’t have the driving rain to contend with and Mumford went close with a shot that was deflected wide. The game was end to end now and Richard Barker scooped a Harry Houghton cross over the bar after 80 minutes before “action-man” Mumford produced a speculative free-kick from out on the right which curled viciously before striking the angle of post and bar five minutes later. Houghton then shot wide when he found himself in the clear and there was still time for Mumford (who else?) to go close to snatching a winner but his free-kick was well tipped over the bar by Andy Yeomans. So extra time was required and Coningsby grabbed the decisive goal after 10 minutes of the first period when David Stephenson broke through and although his first shot was saved by the keeper, he was quickly onto the rebound to slide the ball home. Yeomans kept his side in the game with a fine save at the foot of the post just before the break. Swineshead’s Jonathan Prue went close in the second period with a 40-yarder that flew just wide but, in the end, the best team probably deserved to lift the trophy on the night. Guest of honour was retired referee, Vernon Bond, a much-respected figure in local football and he presented the trophies. Man of the match was, of course, Coningsby’s marvellous Tony Mumford.

With Wyberton’s Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division title firmly in the bag, they travelled to Spilsby Town so it wasn’t surprising that they returned home empty-handed after a 2-1 defeat. Liam Papworth and Joe Turner scored the goals to secure a victory for Town who will now be looking to secure the runners-up spot. John Reeson replied for Wyberton.

Swineshead Reserves, still suffering from their cup final disappointment only two days earlier, went down 5-1 at the hands of Freiston in their Cropleys Suzuki Division One meeting. Two late goals, however, gave Freiston a somewhat flattering scoreline. Both sides tried to play football on a very slippery surface and both keepers were kept busy. Freiston took the lead midway through the first half when a long pass found Dean Seiner who galloped away from his marker before scoring. Aston Chase then netted from 20 yards out to give his side a 2-0 interval lead. Swineshead grabbed a lifeline early in the second half when Richard Barker scored but Freiston soon restored their two-goal advantage when Lee Dakin rounded the keeper before rolling the ball home. Dean Seiner wrapped up the scoring with those two late goals to complete his hat-trick.

Black Bull United, who pitch-share with Cropleys Suzuki Division Two opponents, Fosdyke, shared the points in a 3-3 draw. Fosdyke found themselves 2-0 at half time and although they pulled a goal back just after the restart through a Robbie Curle penalty, Black Bull restored their two-goal lead to make it 3-1. An own goal the gave Fosdyke a glimmer of hope and Lee Pitman’s spectacular 30-yard effort drew the scores level at 3-3. Andy Brown could have won it for Fosdyke but after he rounded the keeper, he could only strike the upright. Jon Lamyman scored twice for Black Bull while Paul Sims netted the other goal from the penalty spot.

Billinghay Athletic Reserves and West End Tigers Reserves also battled out a Cropleys Suzuki Division Three draw. Adam Brett and Paul Baxter scored the goals for Billinghay.

Fishtoft discovered last Saturday that their opponents in the final of the Target Newspapers Challenge Cup on April 15 will be Kirton Town who eliminated Old Leake from the competition following a 3-1 semi-final victory. Rob Staples scored the Old Leake goal.

For March 15

Wyberton required extra time before finally seeing off the challenge of Skegness Town Reserves in the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup semi-finals. Josh Bartlett scored the Skegness goal that helped his side earn extra time. But Wyberton snatched victory with a late winner. Wyberton’s match-winners were Chris Rutt and Benn Houghton. Kirton played hosts to Spilsby Town as the underdogs last Saturday but played as though they belonged in the top flight. Kirton got their tactics right and contained Spilsby throughout the first half until a mix-up between Kirton’s Michael Collins and goalkeeper John Paul Horton gifted Spilsby the lead following a back pass. Half time score was 1-0. Kirton started strongly after the break and a formation change led to an equaliser from young striker Adrian Dobriansky who pulled the ball down and whacked the ball into the top corner from just inside the penalty box. It was then down to Spilsby’s keeper to keep them in the game. He made three unbelievable saves late on in the game as Kirton surged forward. The post was also struck twice. Full time saw the game end 1-1 as did extra time. The dreaded penalty shoot-out produced a glut of successes. It was the unfortunate Kirton defender James Holland who finally failed to hit the back of the net when he hit the bar which left Spilsby edging through by 10- 9 on penalties.

Fishtoft and Woodhall Spa United produced a nine-goal Target Newspapers Challenge Cup semi final thriller with the Division One side eventually going through 6-3. Two goals from striker Ady Almond and another two from Michael Lomax helped Fishtoft through to the final where they will meet the winners of Old Leake and Kirton who do battle this coming Saturday. Pete Coonan and Scott Wiseman completed the scoring. It was Lomax who got the home side off the mark with a flying header before Woodhall equalised. Fishtoft went in at the interval with a slender 2-1 lead after Ady Almond headed in a long Grant Butler throw. Woodhall hit back after the break with another equaliser to make the scores 2-2 only for one of their defenders to handle in the box and Scott Wiseman made no mistake from the spot. Incredibly Woodhall rocked their opponents with yet another leveller at 3-3 but that was to be their last chance as Fishtoft stepped up a gear with three goals from Ady Almond, Pete Coonan and Michael Lomax to finally finish off their brave visitors. The final is due to be played on Tuesday April 15 at Boston Town’s Tattershall Road Ground

Wrangle United were always going to be up against it when they travelled to Billinghay Athletic in the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division with just 11 players. Things got worse for the visitors when they suffered an early injury and they were forced to play most of the game with ten men. Billinghay took full advantage of their extra man by taking maximum points following a 5-2 victory. The home goalscorers were Adam Weston, Gary Cochrane, Mark Wheatley, Thomas Atkin and Jason Perrin. Wrangle replied through Tim Bell and Simon Reed.

Holbeach Bank and Spalding United shared the Cropleys Suzuki Division One points in a 2-2 draw with all the goals coming during the first half. Michael Ocock and Mark Jones grabbed the Bank’s goals. Andy Thompson hit Swineshead Reserves’ goal in their 1-1 home draw against Spilsby Town Reserves. Both sides produced a very evenly contested game and Swineshead could have taken the lead in the very first minute when Harry Houghton missed following a one-on-one with the keeper. Thompson struck on the half hour mark following a corner and Spilsby, who improved greatly after the break, levelled the scores through Dan Smith who finished well. Jason Cade had a majestic game for Town and referee D Bent produced a faultless performance in the middle. Freiston rode their luck a little in beating a strong Coningsby Reserves line-up. Freiston took the lead after just two minutes when Dean Seiner tapped home from two yards out before the home side levelled the scores when Gary Frost unfortunately headed past his own keeper. Within two minutes, however, Seiner had put his side back in front following a left wing raid followed by a fierce drive. Coningsby were back on level terms just before the break after the visitors failed to deal with a corner. Coningsby then thought they had gone ahead for the first time ten minutes into the second half when they scored from a free-kick but the referee disallowed it because he had already signalled an indirect free-kick. It was Seiner who clinched the match when he completed his hat-trick on seventy minutes to make the final score 3-2.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Two Tydd St Mary never recovered from conceding two early goals in their home fixture with Sutterton. The home side went close to getting back in the game when they struck the crossbar before Sutterton wrapped up the points with a late third goal. Fosdyke went down by the odd goal in five at home to Wainfleet United. They did strike first, however, when Andy Brown pounced onto a back pass before rounding the keeper and rolling the ball home. Fosdyke were then muscled out of the contest as Wainfleet levelled the scores on the half hour mark following a free-kick before the visitors added another to go in at the break 2-1 ahead. A much-improved performance by Fosdyke after the break saw them enjoy plenty of possession but luck deserted them on several occasions. Wainfleet made their opponents pay for failing to capitalise when they broke away to snatch a third goal. Fosdyke were rewarded for their pressure when Andy Brown smashed the ball home from close range a minute from time but it was just too late. Final score 3-2. Wrangle United and Black Bull United finished all square after a 2-2 draw. Robert Skinner and Liam Shinn were on target for Wrangle.

There was a Cropleys Suzuki Division Three shock at Spalding Town Reserves where leaders, Wyberton suffered only their second defeat of the season. Town’s match-winner was Nathan Young (Junior) who scored all three of his side’s goals. Neil Featherstone replied with both of Wyberton’s goals. Giles Favell also scored a hat-trick in Old Doningtonians Reserves’ 6-2 home win against Park United. Shawn Scott too scored twice while Lee Fovargue completed the scoring. Park’s cause wasn’t helped by the sending off of one of their players for raising a hand at an opponent. Both of Park’s goals came from Steffan Lovell. Skegness Working Men’s Club closed the gap at the top with a hard earned 1-0 away win at Fishtoft Reserves. John Baniewciz hit the crucial winning goal for the visitors. Jonathan Redford got Friskney off to a flying start in their home game against Spalding Harriers Reserves with the opening goal. Further goals from Jack Hill and Neil Allen made sure of a comfortable 3-0 victory. Both side finished with 10 men after the referee dismissed a player from each side. Mark Haynes opened the scoring for Westside rangers Reserves in their home game against West End Tigers Reserves before the visitors levelled the scores. Kev Manning came to Rangers’ rescue with a two-goal blast to earn his side maximum points following their 3-1 victory. Mark Taylor and Scott Francis scored for Freiston Reserves in their home game against Billinghay Athletic Reserves but it wasn’t enough to earn them any reward. The visitors went home with the three points after replying with four goals to run out 4-2 winners.

IMPORTANT NOTICE: Unfortunately last Thursday’s Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup final had to be postponed due to floodlight problems. The game has now been re-scheduled for Thursday March 20 (still at Boston Town’s Tattershall Road Ground). Kick-off is now at 7.30 pm

For March 8

Coningsby failed to make the most of their wind advantage during the first half of their Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division home game against Westside Rangers and it proved costly. Rangers struck with a four-goal blast in the opening twenty minutes of the second half to finish off their opponents. Jody Betts scored twice while Will Scott and David Wright were also on target. Coningsby’s only reward came from Adam Avis, who replied with their lone strike. Final score 4-1. Liam Papworth hit two goals in Spilsby Town’s 3-2 home win against Skegness Town Reserves. Des Rook was also on target for the home side. Benn Houghton also scored twice as Wyberton celebrated their title success with a 4-0 away win at Wrangle United. Mark Lovelace and Scott Hutchinson grabbed the other goal.

North Sea United’s expected return to the Premier was confirmed last Saturday after a Cropleys Suzuki Division One 3-2 victory against Coningsby Reserves. After a goal-less first half, the goals came thick and fast with David Noel proving to be The Division One Champions’ match-winner with two of their goals. Stuart Kane was also on target for North Sea. A Chris Wing goal was enough to give Old Doningtonians a share of the points in their home relegation clash with Spalding Town. Old Leake had to come from behind before claiming victory in their home game against Holbeach Bank. Trailing 1-0 at the halfway stage, Old Leake ground out a victory through goals from Rob Staples and Chris Mitchell. Spilsby Town Reserves went down to a narrow 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Freiston. Both sides produced an entertaining game despite the blustery conditions. Although the first half finished goal-less, Freiston did strike the upright and the crossbar as they enjoyed a brisk back-wind behind them. Spilsby had their best spell of the game in the early stages of the second half but Freiston keeper Bradley Morrell thwarted them on several occasions. Freiston rocked their opponents with the opening goal when a corner was cleared only as far as Ty Fravigar who side footed home from six yards out after fifty five minutes. Spilsby went mighty close to levelling the scores with several near misses as first, Joey Scarborough had a shot cleared off the line and then Dan Smith struck an upright. Jamie Khun also saw a shot brilliantly tipped over the crossbar by Bradley Morrell and then the same player struck the crossbar following a free-kick. After weathering the bout of home pressure Freiston snatched a second goal through Dean Seiner who broke through before finishing in style from the edge of the box with twenty minutes remaining. Spilsby left it late before getting on the scoresheet when Dan Smith netted to set up a frantic finish but Freiston held out for the three points. The competitive but sporting game was well controlled by M Larvin.

Park Road Old Boys got back to Cropleys Suzuki Division Two winning ways when they defeated Black Bull United 3-0 at home. The first half finished goal-less as Park Road enjoyed a strong wind advantage but Black Bull found that their opponents played the ball around much better against the stiff breeze. Gary Booth scored the opener before Craig Andrews added a second. Ash Allen rounded off a fine second half performance with a third and final goal to send Park Road back to the top of the table. It was almost a case of Mareham United 0 Liam Shinn 4 as Wrangle United Reserves took maximum points in a 4-2 victory. Shinn was on top form with his four-goal haul while Darren Vinters and Adam Brooks replied for the home side. An Andy Brown hat-trick helped Fosdyke secure a 5-0 home win against Kirton Town Reserves. Carl Jackson and Dave Whalley hit the other goals. Amazingly, Fosdyke scored all five goals whilst facing a very strong wind – the pick of which was Jackson’s superb individual effort when he skipped past four defenders before smashing the ball past a startled keeper. With the conditions in their favour after the break Fosdyke could not find a way through and the only highlight of the half was provided by home keeper, Chris West, who produced a fine save to deny Kirton any consolation. Final score 5-0. Tydd St Mary’s Player-Manager, Carl Wilson is still searching for an answer to his goal-scoring problems. Despite competing well in their home game against Spalding Harriers, Tydd just cannot make their possession pay and it doesn’t help either when they are leaking goals at the other end. Shaun Dignam hit Tydd’s only goal in a crushing 6-1 home defeat.

Wyberton Reserves recorded a 2-0 home Cropleys Suzuki Division Three win against a battling Park United side. Jamie Cox and Jamie Button hit the all-important goals to keep Wyberton firmly on top of the table. Freiston Reserves enjoyed a 4-1 home win against Spalding Town Reserves helped by one of the fastest ever league goals. Gary Hoyles’ opener was timed at just five seconds as Freiston got off to a storming start. The Timby brothers, Paul and Neil, also got on the scoresheet while Scott Francis completed the scoring

Goals from Adam Brett and Steve Wilcox earned Billinghay Athletic Reserves a 2-1 home win against Friskney. The margin could have been greater for Billinghay but they squandered a penalty. Fishtoft Reserves came from behind to take the three points in their home game against Mareham United Reserves. Mareham held a slender 1-0 interval lead but goals from Tim Billingham and Tom Adams made sure of the points.

The final of the Eleys Sports Cup will be competed by West End Tigers and Swineshead as both Premier Division sides overcame the battling efforts of lower division sides. Kirton Town held their own during the first half of their away tie at West End Tigers and at 1-1 they were still in the tie. West End scored first but could not add to their tally and Kirton equalised before half time through Lukasz Gierejkiewicz. The Tigers soon dispelled any hopes Kirton had of causing an upset with a four-goal blitz in a 10-minute spell. Luke Brittain hit a match-winning hat-trick while Mark Wakefield and a Paul Vaughan penalty sealed the match. Final score 5-1. Another powerhouse performance in the second period saw Swineshead breeze through to the final when they travelled to Woodhall Spa United. Woodhall had chances during the first half with Andy Money going close twice as he first struck the post with one effort and then had another shot well saved by Swineshead’s keeper. The visitors stepped up a gear after the break scoring four times without reply to run out 4-0 winners. Swineshead's second half goals came from Matt Bates (2), Richard Stukins and Nathan Stainfield

For March 1

Billinghay Athletic grabbed three welcome Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division points with a 2-1 home win against Westdie Rangers. Gary Cochrane and Chris Bampton scored the match-winning goals. A Sam Louth hat-trick helped keep Wyberton firmly on top of the table when they played hosts to Coningsby. Dan White, Mark Lovelace and Benn Houghton also got on the scoresheet in a convincing 6-1 victory.

Holbeach Bank and Old Doningtonians shared the Cropleys Suzuki Division One points in a 1-1 draw. Shane Hughes was on target for the Bank. There was another draw at Spalding Town where Old Leake were the visitors. There were no goals on this occasion as both sides cancelled each other out. Old Leake had the best chance to steal the points but they squandered a penalty. Kirton town played hosts to a resurgent Fishtoft side and it was the home side who seized the advantage early on through a goal from Lukasz Gierejkiewicz. Kirton then had a number of chances to increase their score but failed to find the end product until Chris Hilton produced a mazy dribble in the penalty box before finally putting the ball into the net to give Kirton a 2-0 half time lead. It was much the same in the second half with both teams pressing forward before Fishtoft were awarded a dubious penalty in the last five minutes which put pressure on Kirton but the home side held out to run out eventual 2-1 winners.

An amazing team performance from Fosdyke saw them return home with maximum Cropleys Suzuki Division Two points from a tricky away fixture at title-chasing Woodhall Spa United. The result was made even more remarkable considering their earlier plight when late withdrawals left the visitors with just ten men and a real uphill task ahead of them. Although striker Andy Brown was in top form with all three goals, the result was gained through a superb team effort. Fosdyke opened the scoring after twenty minutes through Brown’s first effort and they were more than good value for their half time lead. It wasn’t until the hour mark that Woodhall finally got back on level terms when a scuffed free-kick somehow eluded everyone before finding the bottom corner of the net. Fosdyke hit back within five minutes when Brown burst clear before slotting the ball home. The home side equalised from the penalty spot following a push in the box but Fosdyke stunned their opponents with the winning goal when Brown again left defenders trailing in his wake as he latched onto a long clearance once more before lobbing the ball over the advancing keeper. Final score 3-2. Woodhall’s goals came from Jack Draper and Andy Money. Nortoft United produced an excellent team performance in their top of the table clash with Park Road Old Boys at The George Farmer College. After last week’s disappointment, Nortoft got back to winning ways and they were soon into their stride with an early goal from Chris Massingham who headed them in front. There weren’t many more chances after that and The Boston side went into the half time break with their slender one goal lead. The visitors started the second half in much the same way as they had the first period when they were awarded a penalty but the goalkeeper guessed right to keep out Massingham’s spot kick. Nortoft were then awarded another penalty to seal the match and Dean Stevens, this time, made no mistake from the spot. Park Road had one great chance to get back into the game when they broke through on a one-on-one but United keeper, Karl Beck made a crucial save. Final score 2-0. Black Bull United’s winning streak continued with a 3-1 home win against Tydd St Mary. Paul Sims, Tim Rowland and Micky Hill scored the goals to give Black Bull their fourth win on the bounce. Wainfleet United’s visit to Spalding Harriers proved fruitless after they went down 2-0. Steve Carn and Arron Cooke did the damage for the Spalding side with the two goals.

An Andy Verhaul hat-trick helped secure the three Cropleys Suzuki Division Three points for Skegness Working Men’s Club in their quest for promotion when they entertained Mareham United Reserves. John Baniewciz was also on target for The Skegness side in a 4-2 home win. Park United moved off the bottom of the table following their 2-1 home win over West End Tigers Reserves. Tom Waterson and Alex Limb struck the Park goals to give their side their fourth win of the season. Westside Rangers Reserves went down at home by the narrow score-line of 2-1 to Friskney. Thomas Lailey De Ville grabbed the Rangers’ goal and they could have salvaged a point but they missed a penalty. The miss proved costly as Friskney replied twice to take the points. After a goal-less first period in which Rangers had to battle against a strong wind, the second half really livened up. Friskney opened the scoring before Lailey De Ville levelled the scores with a cheeky back heel following a trademark long throw-in from Matt Lee. Friskney regained the lead when a long ball over the top caught out The Rangers rearguard before Westside were given a golden chance to gain some reward in the dying minutes. The young referee gave a penalty much to Friskney’s vehement protests – in fact the visitors disgraced themselves by seemingly manhandling the official in the unsavoury aftermath. However, The Friskney keeper produced a stunning save by stretching full length to keep out the spot kick. The referee, C Reeson had a fine game in the middle of his first match.

In very windy conditions, which spoiled the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Shield tie between Third Division outfit, Old Doningtonians Reserves and Spilsby Town Reserves, the Division One side eased through to the semi finals. Joey Scarborough gave Spilsby the lead after fifteen minutes when he headed home at the far post. Town made it 2-0 thanks to Marcus De Vivar’s fierce drive, which flew into the bottom corner. The Dons keeper, who was a serious contender for man of the match, pulled off several outstanding saves thwarting Steve Marvell on at least three occasions. Not to be denied, however, Marvell added the third goal with a well-executed volley before Liam Papworth made it 4-0 when he tapped home Scarborough’s goal-bound effort. Old Dons grabbed a late consolation goal when Giles Favell beat goalkeeper, Mike Emery to the ball to head home. Final score 4-1. Kirton Town Reserves put up a brave fight at Wyberton Reserves before going out of the competition following a 3-1 away defeat. Jason Sullivan, Steve Fisher and Nikki Whiley scored the goals to help sink the visitors. Holders, Swineshead Reserves found Fishtoft Reserves a hard nut to crack before squeezing through to the last four. David Slaughter, Andy Thompson and Paul Clarke scored the match-winning goals in a 3-1 victory. Fishtoft, from Division Three, were rewarded for their efforts with a goal from Grant Butler. The last remaining tie produced the biggest upset when Wrangle United Reserves, from Division Two sent Coningsby Reserves from Division One crashing out of the competition. The underdogs crushed their opponents 7-0 at home to breeze through to the semi-finals.

For February 23

Fishtoft, from Division One, secured their place in the semi finals of the Target Newspapers Challenge Cup with a 3-1 home win against Park Road Old Boys who have been going well of late in Division Two. Fishtoft opened the scoring when Chris Marshall flicked a ball into the path of Danny Keal whose shot rebounded out to the lurking Ady Almond and he bundled the ball home. Park Road got back on level terms through Rick Limb who curled the ball in direct from a corner before Fishtoft regained their lead when Almond was fouled in the box and Scott Wiseman tucked away the penalty. A workmanlike performance from Fishtoft in the second half saw them safely through and they sealed victory with a third goal from Wiseman’s free-kick. For Fishtoft, Luke Perkins led by example with a superb battling performance. Referee T Horton had a fine game in the middle. A six-star performance from Kirton Town in the second half saw them breeze through to the last four at the expense of Skegness Working Men’s Club at Graves Park. The Skegness side took the lead on 20 minutes after a very physical opening period when Gordon Drake scored before Kirton’s silky skills came to the fore. An equaliser came from Cliff Langham was followed shortly by a goal from Lukasz Gierejkiewicz who trickled the ball past the Skegness goalkeeper and into the net to make the half time score 2-1. Kirton's class then showed in the second half with some neat build-up play and Martin Durrant popped up to score the third. Lukasz Gierejkiewicz grabbed his second goal of the game before young substitute Kyle Bates came on later in the half to claim a couple of goals -one from the penalty spot. Final score 6-1.

Two goals from Greg Barker helped Skegness Town Reserves to a 4-2 Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division home win against Wrangle United. Dan Starkey and Craig Leverett grabbed the other goals as Wrangle struggled to contain a strong Skegness outfit. Tim Bell and Jimmy Britton grabbed The Wrangle goals.

Two of The Premiership’s underachievers, Coningsby and Billinghay Athletic clashed last Saturday and both sides excelled to provide an exciting encounter. Coningsby looked dead and buried at half time as they trailed 3-0 but they stormed back after the break to level the scores following goals from Steve Brown, Tony Mumford and Jamie Wayman. A penalty with fifteen minutes remaining saw Billinghay edge through and take the three points with a 4-3 victory. The visitors’ goals came from Adam Weston, Steve Wilcox, Lee Marshall and Tom Atkin. Swineshead came away from Westside Rangers with maximum points after a 2-0 victory at the Middlecott School. The game was a rather scrappy affair throughout with a goal in each half deciding the outcome. Matthew Bates opened the scoring ten minutes before the break with a shot from ten yards out and Richard Stukins’ looping header from an Anthony Slater cross sealed victory after sixty seven minutes. Wyberton continue to look odds-on favourites for the title after a 3-1 home win against West End Tigers. Jack Smith, Mark Lovelace and Sam Louth scored the decisive goals.

Freiston kept their third consecutive clean sheet when they defeated Holbeach Bank 6-0 at home in a Cropleys Suzuki Division One encounter. The Holbeach goal lived a charmed life during the first half and they were fortunate to be trailing by just one goal at the halfway stage. The opening goal came from Jamie Skinner after thirty minutes. Freiston increased their lead to 3-0 within ten minutes of the restart following goals from Jamie Skinner and Aston Chase. Skinner completed his hat-trick on the hour mark and Chase added another just a few minutes later to make the score 5-0. The final goal came from Dean Seiner who netted the sixth with 10 minutes remaining. A late penalty from Adam Sinclair left Old Doningtonians empty-handed following their 2-1 defeat at Old Leake. Ben Jacques grabbed Old Leake’s other goal.

Marcin Minczynski, fresh back from his recent visit to Poland, showed Spalding Harriers what they have been missing in Cropleys Suzuki Division Two with a fantastic four-goal haul in his side’s 6-1 home win against Mareham United. Nathan Gurbutt and Steve Carn helped celebrate Minczynski’s return with the other goals. The big game of the day took place at Nortoft United where Woodhall Spa United were the visitors. A single Andy Money goal was enough to give Woodhall the crucial three points in a 1-0 victory. The home side did create several chances but The Woodhall keeper was in fine form pulling off several important saves. Nortoft’s cause wasn’t helped by a double sending off as they lost their discipline a little. Dominic Cridland was dismissed along with substitute Anthony Tiffen. Wainfleet United hit Tydd St Mary for seven with Michael Parnham causing most of the damage with a fine hat-trick. Rob Jackson weighed in with two goals while a spectacular Royston Wilkinson effort was the pick of the bunch – his 50-yard belter caught the Tydd keeper off guard and the ball sailed into the net. Lee Johnson completed the scoring for United in a 7-2 home win.

Kirton Town Reserves remain firmly at the foot of the table following a 5-0 defeat at Fosdyke against Black Bull United. Andy McGuire and Tim Rowland both struck twice for the Bull while Micky Hill also got on the scoresheet. Rowland’s two goals came during the first half with Hill’s strike making the half time score 3-0. The high winds spoilt the second half but The Bull made sure of the points with two McGuire goals. Although Kirton rarely tested the home keeper, they probably should have been awarded a penalty midway through the second half but the referee waved away their appeals. The victory was Black Bull’s third on the bounce and they have now started their push up the table. Sutterton kicked off their home encounter with near neighbours, Fosdyke, as one of the division’s form sides but despite having their fair share of possession, they were unable to trouble the visiting keeper. Fosdyke, on the other hand, created two clear-cut chances which they buried to give them a 2-0 interval lead. After a stern half-time lecture, Sutterton came out after the break firing on all cylinders as Carl Duncan and Simon Long both went close. It wasn’t until the 65th minute that Sutterton managed to halve the deficit when Carl Duncan’s low ball into the box was poked home by Nathan Hubbert. The home side were level two minutes later when Adam Newark’s free kick was met by Nigel Daubney and he cleverly laid the ball off for Ashley Hughes to drive home the equaliser. Sutterton were now in command and they deservedly grabbed the winner with ten minutes remaining when Gavin Rhodes powered home a stunning 25-yard volley past the helpless keeper. An unfortunate incident five minutes from time soured the match when a player from each side received his marching orders – the fracas being out of context in a match, which although competitive, was played in the correct spirit. Final score was 3-2.

After hitting five goals in their last two games, Old Doningtonians Reserves almost repeated their impressive hauls but fell one short when they defeated Spalding Harriers Reserves 4-1 at home in their Cropleys Suzuki Division Three fixture. Giles Favell helped himself to another brace of goals and Lee Fovargue also got on the scorehseet with George Skafidas completing the scoring with a contender for goal of the season. Skafidas produced a stunning overhead kick that flew into the top corner to put the icing on the cake for The Dons. James Todd continued his rich vein of goal-scoring with another two-goal blast in Mareham United Reserves’ excellent 3-1 home win against Friskney. Mark Hodgson also got on the scoresheet for the home side. Spalding Town Reserves lost narrowly at home to Westside rangers Reserves. Chris Page’s goal looked like earning Town a share of the points but Rangers had other ideas when they snatched the points with a last-gasp winner. Final score 2-1. Fishtoft Reserves gained a welcome three points with a 3-0 away win at Park United thanks to goals from Lewis O’Keefe, Tim Billingham and Carl Bailey. A Neil Featherstone hat-trick helped Wyberton Reserves to a 5-1 away win at Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Jamie Cox and Jason Sullivan were also on target for the league leaders.

For February 16

The only Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division game last Saturday was at the Kirton Middlecott School where Westside Rangers and West End Tigers produced a seven-goal thriller. For Rangers, Will Scott scored twice while Ryan Mason also got on the scoresheet but it wasn’t enough as the Tigers took maximum points in a 4-3 victory.

Holbeach Bank grabbed a very welcome three points after a 2-1 Cropleys Suzuki Division One home win against Spilsby Town Reserves but they left it very late. Ben Crane and Michael Ayres popped up with the goals in the last five minutes to snatch victory from Spilsby. Town’s goal came on the half hour mark through an own goal following a corner and despite creating several chances to add to their tally they couldn’t turn their possession into goals. The Bank’s goals were a result of some cruel luck on Spilsby’s stand-in keeper, Mark Ingram who first dropped a cross at the feet of Crane and then a mistimed clearance fell to Ayres who promptly despatched the ball into the net. Goals from Michael Lomax and Pete Coonan were enough to give Fishtoft the three points with a 2-0 away win against Coningsby Reserves.

Tydd St Mary took on another of the top sides in the Cropleys Suzuki Division Two last Saturday and they proved that, although they again finished up empty-handed, they may have turned the corner after two very promising displays. Nortoft United were the visitors on this occasion and they were forced to fight every inch of the way for their hard earned 3-2 victory. Tydd held Nortoft to a 1-1 half time score-line after the visitors opened the scoring through Chris Massingham following James Andrew’s cross and then Jake Ansell cancelled that out by grabbing the home goal. Massingham was again on target after Dean Stevens provided the opening and the magical Massingham completed his hat-trick from a Lee Burdass pass. This was Massingham’s second treble in the last two games. Andy Bennett pulled a goal back from the penalty spot to set up a tense finish. Final score was 3-2. The first 20 minutes of Sutterton’s away match at Mareham United were a very even affair before Gavin Rhodes broke the deadlock. The left-back was upended in the box but his tame spot-kick was saved by the keeper. Fortunately for Rhodes he was on hand to tuck away the rebound. Two minutes later it was 2-0 as Carl Duncan headed home a superb cross from Nathan Hubbert. Mareham were rocking now and it was 3-0 on 35 minutes courtesy of an Ashley Hughes strike following Simon Long’s pass. Sutterton made it 4-0 at the break when Hubbert provided a stylish finish past the helpless keeper. There was no let up after the interval as Hubbert added a fifth after 55 minutes with the best goal of the game – a stunning overhead kick. Hot-shot Hubbert deservedly claimed his hat-trick ten minutes later when he fired home from the edge of the box after good work from Nigel Daubney. Sutterton’s seventh and final goal came after seventy minutes when Rhodes set up Hughes to grab his second goal of the game. Final score was 7-0. Kirton Town Reserves, languishing at the bottom of the table, put up a spirited fight against promotion-seeking, Woodhall Spa United at Graves Park. The home side were still in the game at the halfway stage when they found themselves trailing by just a 2-1 margin following goals from Daniel Wells and Andy Money. Woodhall stepped up the pace in the second half and Wells finished off Town’s brave effort with two goals to complete his hat-trick before Money added his second to make the score 5-1. Further goals from Wayne Biggadyke and Justin Scarborough put the result beyond doubt. Final score was 7-1.

Gordon Drake was again on the scoresheet for Skegness Working Men’s Club when they travelled to Spalding Harriers Reserves. The striker hit two of his side’s goals in a 4-1 Cropleys Suzuki Division Three away win with Carl Wilson and Darren Walker completing the scoring. Ben Ford replied for The Spalding side. Spalding Town Reserves recorded only their second win of the season when they were victorious at home against Mareham United Reserves. Shane Bycraft and Jason Chilvers were on target for Spalding in their 2-1 victory. Lee Hoff was Freiston Reserves’ hat-trick hero in his side’s 4-1 home win against Westside Rangers Reserves. Stuart Messenger was also on target for the home side. It was certainly a case of Déjà vu for Old Doningtonians Reserves when they travelled to Fishtoft Reserves – not only did they repeat their previous week’s score-line of 5-2 but the exact same goal-scorers mirrored their feat. Giles Favell and Lee Fovargue both scored twice again while Andy Barnett grabbed the other goal once more. Fishtoft’s replies came from Tim Billingham and Lewis O’Keefe

Two goals from Greg Barker secured Skegness Town Reserves’ place in the semi final of the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup following The East Coast side’s 2-1 home win against Billinghay Athletic. Swineshead and Wyberton produced a cup tie worthy of the final itself and it was a shame either side had to be eliminated from the competition. It was Wyberton who edged through to the semi finals following a 4-3 away win. Wyberton drew first blood after just two minutes when a home defender and goalkeeper collided leaving a grateful Mark Lovelace with the easy task of tapping the loose ball into the empty net. Swineshead’s response was instant when they equalised three minutes later when Matt Bates found Richard Stukins who netted from close range. The home side continued to pile forward and they were rewarded with a second goal when Stukins was again on target firing home a left footed drive from 18 yards out. Swineshead should have added to their slender half time lead but they were denied by the keeper and the woodwork. Wyberton were soon level after the break when they capitalised on a mistake in the home ranks and the visitors took a 3-2 lead on fifty five minutes following Scott Hutchinson’s surging run down the left enabling Lovelace to knock the ball home. It looked all over for Swineshead when their opponents went 4-2 ahead with ten minutes remaining when Ryan Barker appeared to head a corner into his own net but they gave themselves a glimmer of hope when substitute Rob Snaith broke clear before calmly beating the advancing keeper. The home side continued to press for an equaliser but they ran out of time. Wyberton match-winning goals were credited to Mark Lovelace, with a hat-trick and Sam Louth. It was literally a walk in the park for Kirton Town on Saturday in the Willoughby Cup. Visitors, Park Utd must be congratulated, however, for a spirited performance from start to finish with great team morale. Kirton’s top scorer of the day was Mick Goddard with five goals while the others came from Tosh Bates, Badaszewski Prezemyslaw (2), Michael Collins, Kyle Bates, Lukasz Gierejkiewicz and Chris Hilton. Graham Blades and Jordan Wood both claimed hat-tricks for Spilsby Town in their 7-1 demolition away at Wrangle United. Sam Veasey grabbed the other Town goal while goalkeeper Jimmy Britton scored the Wrangle goal.

For February 9

Swineshead produced a storming second half performance to eventually overwhelm West End Tigers 6-2 in their Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division encounter. Chris Shipley opened the scoring for Swineshead after 28 minutes when he drove the ball home after a corner was headed down to him. West End equalised seven minutes later with a shot from the edge of the box through a crowded goalmouth. Matt Barker restored Swineshead’s lead before the break with a glancing header from a Martin North cross. Shipley’s looping header early in the second half put the home side well in control and Matt Bates added a fourth shortly afterwards when he raced clear before calmly finding the net. Martin North made it 5-1 just after the hour mark as the Tigers collapsed and Matt Bates heaped more agony on the visitors with another goal after breaking clean through once again. West End brought some respectability to the scoreline with their second goal in the final minutes to make the final score 6-2. Spilsby Town moved up to second place following a 3-0 away win at Billinghay Athletic. Gary McGilloway, Viv Jeffery and Liam Papworth were The Town’s hot-shots. Skegness Town Reserves enjoyed the same scoreline success as their first team who were on Lincs Junior Cup duty when they also won 3-0. Wrangle United were on the receiving end on this occasion. Skegness returned home with all three Premier Division points after goals from Craig Leverett who scored twice and Sean Chamberlain.

North Sea United continued their quest for a return to the top flight following a 4-2 Cropleys Suzuki Division One victory against Kirton Town. The visitors found themselves 1-0 in front at the halfway stage but four second half goals wrapped up the points for the Camp and they ran out 4-2 winners. Gary Hayes, Rob Masters, David Noel and an own goal did the damage for the prison side. The scoreline probably flattered North Sea as Kirton put them under immense pressure and could have come away with at least a point. Kirton went ahead through a Tosh Bates header but then spurned at least four good chances which should have made the half-time score beyond North Sea’s retrieval. In the second half, though, North Sea grabbed two goals to give them a 2-1 lead. Kirton then responded when Lucas Gierejkiewicz finally found the net with a header to level the scores. North Sea then piled on the pressure and managed to go ahead with a scrambled goal and they sealed the win with a penalty in the last minute. Freiston enjoyed a comfortable 6-0 home win against Spalding Town. In fact the scoreline could have been much greater had it not been for a fine performance from the visiting keeper who pulled off some good saves. It took Freiston 30 minutes to break the deadlock when Dean Seiner finally netted and the same player claimed his second goal right on the stroke of half time. Aston Chase made it 3-0 on the hour mark before Seiner finished off his opponents with another three more goals to take his personal tally to five. This was Freiston’s second successive 6-0 victory. Fishtoft also hit six in their home fixture against Holbeach Bank with Michael Lomax netting two of his side’s goals. The other match-winning strikes came from Ross Nicholls, Danny Keal, Jake Louth and Luke Perkins. Final score was 6-0. Spilsby Town Reserves started well in their home match against Old Doningtonians and they opened the scoring after just seven minutes through Joey Scarborough following a through ball from Matt Barker. Town then looked to be well in control when they grabbed a second goal through Eddie Rich’s long range strike which went in off a post. Old Dons turned the game around in the second half with two replies to level the scores at 2-2. Spilsby recovered from this double-blow and slowly regained control as Rich had an effort smothered on the line and Tom Smalley also went close. Shortly afterwards Joey Scarborough’s header was tipped over the bar by a defender and the referee had no option but to award a penalty and give the culprit a red card. Rich made no mistake from the spot to give Spilsby a 3-2 win.

Old Leake scored three goals without reply when they entertained Coningsby Reserves. Ben Jacques, Chris Mitchell and Martin Thurlby grabbed the all-important goals for the home side.

Park Road Old Boys continued their quest for the Cropleys Suzuki Division Two title with three players missing, including Player-Manager Liam Dave when they travelled to Tydd St Mary. They got off to a great start when Daryn Gilbert's superb cross was headed in by top scorer Paul Colton. The home side then came back into the game, but were hit with a second goal when the excellent Ben Kinnear burst down the right and pulled the ball back for Chris Gilbert to clinically side foot home. At this stage the visitors were on top and only superb saves prevented Daryn Gilbert and Ben Kinnear from adding to the tally before half time.The second half was a much closer affair with the home side continuing to work hard. However, with the Old Boys central midfielders of Booth and skipper Andrews controlling the game, a third goal followed after an excellent cross with the outside of his left boot from the superb Daryn Gilbert enabled Colton to head home his second. Old Boys lost defenders Tim Gilbert and Rick Limb in the last twenty minutes through injuries, but the result never looked in doubt. The Saints, with four regular players out, battled for the whole ninety minutes, hitting the woodwork twice and having two penalty shouts denied. Although not happy with losing the game, manager Carl Wilson was pleased with his sides’ performance and feels that “the club has now turned the corner after 18 months of uncertainty”. Wilson added “We gave Park Road a good game today and they’ll know that. The performance by the team was excellent and I am looking for the lads to give me 100% again next week at home against second placed Nortoft”

Tydd St. Mary FC held a fund raiser on the 2nd February 2008 with local band Evolution the main attraction. 300 people attended the function raising in excess of £1,000 for the club. Nortoft United entertained Mareham United and the second-placed team carried on looking to be a good bet for promotion following a 5-1 home win. The game started on an even keel with both side sharing possession in the centre of the park but once Nortoft opened the scoring there was no way back for Mareham. It was Chris Massingham who got the ball rolling for his side with the first goal and he doubled the lead shortly afterwards. A pin-point cross from Anthony Tiffen found the lively Massingham who promptly claimed his hat-trick. A James Andrew corner led to a fourth Nortoft goal when he whipped over his cross onto the head of Danny Clayton who made no mistake. Mareham finally pulled a goal back just before the break with a long rang strike. The second half was evenly matched with both sides locked in a midfield battle but Nortoft completed the scoring with a fifth goal late on when Clayton was again on hand to head home a corner. Sutterton travelled to Spalding Harriers for a game of two contrasting halves - the visitors dominated the first period even though they had five regulars missing from the line-up while it was a different story after the break. Although clear cut chances were few and far between it seemed only a matter of time before Sutterton broke the deadlock during the first period but Spalding stood firm as the half finished goal-less. The nearest Sutterton came to an opening goal was when James Bruns’ 25-yarder was well saved by the home keeper. The second half was a totally different story with The Harriers taking control and things looked bleak for the visitors when they lost key defender Adam Newark through injury. Thankfully for Sutterton, Carl Appleyard and Nigel Daubney held their side together before they stunned The Spalding side with an injury time winner. Scott Jackson’s clever pass sent fellow-sub, Jess Povey, streaking clear on the right and he skipped past two defenders before rounding the keeper and smashing the ball into the net. Final score was 1-0. Two wins in the last two weeks have given Black Bull United a massive boost – the latest of which was at home against a faltering Wainfleet United side. Although the visitors started the stronger, almost scoring from the kick-off, The Black Bull gradually got back into the game by passing the ball neatly around the park and creating chances of their own. Wainfleet went closest to scoring in the goal-less first half, however, when they had a goal ruled out for offside. With a new sense of belief, Black Bull took the lead in the second half through Andy McGuire following good work from Micky Hill and Tim Rowland. The home side went agonisingly close to adding a second but the crossbar came to Wainfleet’s rescue. Black Bull didn’t have to wait long before claiming their second goal when McGuire was on target again. Wainfleet did pull a goal back in added time but it was too late for them to grab any reward. Final score was 2-1.

Old Doningtonians Reserves and Freiston Reserves produced an eight-goal thriller in Cropleys Suzuki Division Three at the Cowley School. Two goals apiece from Lee Fovargue and Giles Favell helped secure a 5-3 victory for The Dons with Andy Barnett completing the scoring. Freiston replied through Gary Hoyles, who also netted a double and Neil Timby. Friskney defeated Fishtoft Reserves 3-1 at home thanks to goals from Perrie Dale, Scott MacKay and Sam Hill. Westside Rangers Reserves also recorded a 3-1 home win against Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Kev Manning, Matt Lee and Matt Fisher all got on the scoresheet for Rangers. James Todd hit four of the goals in Mareham United Reserves’ 7-0 home win against Park United. Mark Hodgson, Jamie Lewis and Stewart Bunn were also on target for Mareham.

There were no complaints from the Wyberton camp after their 3-0 home Mason Bros Lincs Junior Cup semi-final defeat at the hands of Skegness Town. In fact, the score-line could have been worse for the current Premier leaders as Skegness striker, Paul Watts missed an early penalty for the visitors before they got into gear. Watts made up for his penalty miss with two of his side’s goals while Kurt Crossley also got on the scoresheet. Skegness will now play Grimsby Borough in the final after they disposed of CGB Humbertherm in the other semi-final.

For February 2

Top marks go to Coningsby for their first Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division win of the season after several weeks of frustration. On this occasion, however, it couldn’t have been more different when, instead of failing in front of goal after creating plenty of opportunities, they converted the few chances that came their way against Spilsby Town in a 3-2 home victory. Kevin Huxtable and a Tony Mumford penalty had given Coningsby a 2-1 half-time lead before Spilsby levelled the scores with 10 minutes remaining. A draw looked odds-on as the game entered the final minutes but Huxtable popped up with the winner with just two minutes remaining to get Coningsby’s season up and running. The only 100 percent record in the whole league still stands after Wyberton’s 5-1 home win against Westside Rangers. Substitute Dan White came off the bench to stake his claim for a regular starting place in the team with two goals while Nigel Vince, Scott Creek and Mark Lovelace completed the scoring. West End Tigers hastily arranged fixture paid off with a 2-1 home win against Wrangle United. Their original opponents, Billinghay Athletic were otherwise occupied in the semi-final of the Fishtoft Cup so The Tigers brought forward their March fixture and goals from Mark Wakefield and Luke Brittain secured three valuable points

North Sea remain in top spot in Cropleys Suzuki Division One after a 6-1 victory over Old Leake although the visitors played much better than the score-line suggested. Three goals in each half settled the outcome with Stuart Kane, once again amongst the goals with a fine treble. Rob Masters struck twice while David Noel completed the scoring. Referee Dave Bent stood in at the last moment and he did an admirable job in the middle on an exceedingly cold down at Freiston Shore. The local derby at Freiston saw Fishtoft come unstuck against a free-scoring home side. Freiston showed their intentions early on with two goals inside the opening 15 minutes following strikes from Dean Seiner and Jamie Skinner. Fishtoft keeper, Ben Shaw then pulled off several fine saves before James Messenger scored to make the interval score 3-0. Fishtoft produced their best spell of the game during the opening stages of the second half but they couldn’t find a way back into the game. Freiston recovered to regain control and they struck the post twice before wrapping up the three points with further goals from Dean Seiner, Aston Chase and Jamie Skinner. Final score was 6-0. Kirton Town enjoyed a comfortable 4-0 home win at Graves Park against Spalding Town. Spalding managed to contain some constant pressure from the home side but Kirton couldn’t find a way past the visitors’ in-form goalkeeper. After the break however Kirton managed to scramble a goal through Karl Louth after a goalmouth melee. More pressure followed from the home side and they made it 2-0 with a goal form striker Lucasz Gierejkiewicz. Later in the game the home side added two more goals leaving the visitors with too high a mountain to climb. The last two goals came from Chris Hilton and Badaszewski Prezmyslaw.

Form team of the moment, Park Road Old Boys march on at the top of the Cropleys Suzuki Division Two table with a 3-0 away win at Spalding Harriers. Two goals from Paul Colton and another from Chris Gilbert set Old Boys on their way to another three points. Colton could have easily claimed a hat-trick but for a glaring miss late on. Another of the form teams in the division, Nortoft United entertained Fosdyke and the home side continued firing on all cylinders with an amazing 10-1 victory. Nortoft dominated from start to finish and Chris Massingham got them off to a good start with the opening goal inside 10 minutes and Anthony Tiffen added another shortly afterwards. The strike partnership continued to cause problems for Fosdyke as Massingham claimed his hat-trick and Tiffen grabbed his second goal. Nic Stone also got on the scoresheet during the first half to make the interval score-line 6-0. Massingham and Tiffen continued where they left off after the break adding further goals before Andy Baker grabbed two goals as Nortoft hit double figures. Fosdyke pulled back a consolation goal through Andy Brown’s close range strike to make the final score 10-1. Woodhall Spa United found themselves trailing 1-0 at half time in their top of the table clash with Wainfleet United before Jack Draper brought his side level after the break. The all important winner came from Daniel Wells with fifteen minutes left. Final score 2-1. Kirton Town Reserves went down fighting at Wrangle United Reserves in a 4-1 score-line. Town have suffered some maulings during the first half of the season but a much improved performance gave Wrangle some real competition. Wrangle sealed victory with goals from Darryl Bray, Dion Roberts, Aaron Fravigar and Chris Forbes. Kirton were rewarded for their brave efforts with a goal from recent transfer signing Luke Wilson. An early goal at Sutterton was enough to give Black Bull United all three points in a 1-0 victory. Micky Hill was Black Bull’s match-winner.

Wyberton Reserves stay firmly on top of the Cropleys Suzuki Division Three table following a thumping 6-1 home win against West End Tigers Reserves. Jason Allen was on top form with a fine hat-trick while Neil Featherstone weighed in with a couple of goals. Jason Sullivan was also on target for the home side. Skegness Working Men’s Club also had a comfortable win on their travels at Spalding Town Reserves. Carl Wilson struck twice while Simon Cannon, Marcello Santini and Gordon Drake grabbed the other goals in a 5-2 victory. Spalding’s goals came from Tom Cherry and Shane Bycraft. Westside Rangers Reserves and Old Doningtonians Reserves produced an exciting eight-goal encounter at The Middlecott School. Matt Lee and Jason James both scored twice in a 5-3 victory while James Pearson also got on the scoresheet. Spalding Harriers Reserves narrowly defeated Freiston Reserves 2-1 at home thanks to goals from Ben Ford and Rob Hutchinson. The Freiston goal came from Joe Deamer.

Mareham United Reserves, from Division Three pushed their Division One opponents, Spilsby Town Reserves all the way before bowing out of the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Shield at the round one stage. Extra time was looming before Town dealt the decisive blow with five minutes remaining when a Callum McGuigan goal settled the tie. Both sides provided a good sporting encounter, which was well refereed by M Larvin.

Fishtoft Reserves came out on top in their home tie with Billinghay Athletic Reserves following a 3-2 victory. John McGarel, Carl Tate and Tim Billingham were all on target for the home side.

Billinghay Athletic and Swineshead will compete for Fishtoft Cup glory in the final although both sides had to come from behind before booking their place in the final. Billinghay were rocked by an opener from Old Doningtonians before recovering to lead 2-1 at the interval. Second half strikes from Adam Weston, Lee Marshall and Chris Bampton made sure of victory. Sam Sleight gave Skegness Town Reserves a 1-0 half time lead when they entertained Swineshead Institute but the visitors stormed back after the break to run out comfortable winners. Sleight struck as early as the fourth minute when he pounced after Swineshead failed to clear a free-kick. Skegness continued to make the most of the wind advantage and the visitors had reserve keeper, Phil McAllister to thank for keeping them in the game with some important saves. Swineshead dominated for long periods of the second half and they levelled on 55 minutes through Richard Stukins who rifled home a shot from the edge of the box. Anthony Slater put his side in front for the first time eight minutes later with a far post header from a Matt Bates’ cross. Victory was sealed with ten minutes remaining when Richard Stukins broke away before finding the net from twenty yards out. Final score 3-1.

For January 26

Ben Daws and David Noel both struck twice for North Sea United in their home Cropleys Suzuki Division One game against Spilsby Town Reserves. Rob Masters was also on target for the Camp in a 5-2 score-line while Liam Papworth grabbed both goals for the visitors. Holbeach Bank hosted Freiston and despite taking the lead with an early goal from Michael Ayres the home side eventually went down 4-1. Ayres’ strike came after ten minutes when he fastened onto a long clearance before lobbing the ball neatly over the advancing keeper and into the net. The Holbeach keeper was in good form for his side but he was beaten on the half hour mark when Dean Seiner’s shot found the net and Aston Chase made it 2-1 a few minutes later when he finished off an impressive move. Freiston were well in control after the break and Chase added a third after sixty minutes before completing his hat-trick ten minutes later to make the final score 4-1. Swineshead Reserves narrowly defeated Spalding Town 2-1 at home thanks to goals from John Berry and Richard Barker.

Sutterton and Wrangle United Reserves served up a seven-goal Cropleys Suzuki Division Two thriller at Park Avenue. Nathan Hubbert and Carl Duncan both helped themselves to a brace of goals in Sutterton’s 4-3 home win. It was Duncan who struck first when he nodded home from close range after Smalley had helped on a Simon Laing corner before Wrangle stormed back with two goals to lead 2-1 at the interval. Both sides had been reduced to ten men five minutes before the break when Ben Smalley retaliated to a spitting incident resulting in the Wrangle player receiving his marching orders also. Sutterton were level within five minutes of the restart when the impressive Duncan finished in style from the edge of the box and the home side continued the momentum with a third goal to go 3-2 ahead when substitute Nathan Hubbert made no mistake from twelve yards. With Sutterton seemingly in control Wrangle rocked their opponents with an equaliser. As the game headed towards a draw the Sutterton conjured up a winner on eighty five minutes when Nigel Edison’s superb cross-field pass found Hubbert in acres of space and the lively striker slammed home an excellent first-time shot to give his side a 4-3 victory. Wrangle’s goals came from Liam Shinn who hit two and Jake Keal. Woodhall Spa United and Black Bull United provided an exciting encounter with the Kirton-based side going down by the odd goal in five. Black Bull had rocked their opponents with a first half goal to lead 1-0 at the interval. Woodhall got back on level terms early in the second half thanks to Andy Money’s strike. Simon Pugh then put the home side in front before The Bull clawed their way back into the game to level the scores at 2-2. Money snatched victory with a winning goal to give Woodhall a 3-2 victory. Black Bull tried desperately to get some reward but their cause wasn’t helped when they were reduced to ten men during the later stages of the game. After three weeks without a game, Nortoft were hoping to continue where they had left off with another impressive display at Spalding Harriers. Two goals in each half ensured Nortoft of another three valuable points and keep their hopes of promotion well and truly alive. Spalding started well and had the Nortoft defence under pressure early on before the visitors stormed back to take the lead when they were awarded a penalty. The ever reliable Chris Massingham made no mistake from the spot before he went close to adding a second but his header flashed wide. Nortoft doubled their lead before the break when Dean Stevens tapped home from close range. Nortoft put the result beyond Spalding’s reach with a third goal when a Chris Parker free-kick took a slight deflection on its way into the net. James Andrew wrapped up the scoring with Nortoft’s fourth when he netted from close in. Final score was 4-0.

Skegness Working Men’s Club’s striking duo were at again when they defeated Westside Rangers 3-1 at home. Gordon Drake hit two of his side’s Cropleys Suzuki Division Three goals while Andy Verhaul hit the other. The Boston side had stunned their opponents by taking an early lead through Jody Betts before Skegness levelled shortly before half-time. Rangers looked to be heading for a share of the points until a lapse of concentration during the final ten minutes allowed the home side to take advantage with two crucial goals.

Mareham United Reserves held leaders, Wyberton Reserves to a 1-1 draw. Mareham striker, James Todd had a mixed day for his side as he struck their all-important goal but there could have been a real upset on the cards had he not missed a penalty. Wyberton’s goal came from Jason Allen. Nathan Young scored Spalding Town Reserves goal in their 1-1 home draw against Fishtoft Reserves. Lewis O’Keefe replied for Fishtoft.

There were no major shocks in the opening round of the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup—just plenty of goals. Spilsby Town hit double figures in their home tie against Mareham United with Gary McGilloway and Jordan Wood both claiming hat-tricks in a 10-1 victory. The remaining goals came from Simon Sutton, Phil Roof Jason Vaughan and Lathen Tuplin. Swineshead Institute went one better by hitting eleven goals in their 11-1 away win at Wainfleet United. The Premier side were 3-1 ahead by half-time with goals from Richard Stukins (14 and 35 minutes) and Anthony Slater (28 minutes). Shaun Drury had kept his side in the game when he pulled a goal back a minute before the break. Swineshead ended any hopes Wainfleet had with two lightning strikes from Matt Bates. A further six goals followed at regular intervals with Stukins ending up with four of his side’s goals and Slater claiming another. The others came from Paul Clarke, Bert Snaith and Tim Tyler. There were plenty of goals at Skegness Town Reserves where Fosdyke went down fighting in a 7-1 score-line. Troy Lanslow hit a hat-trick for Skegness while the other goals came from Sam Sleight, Greg Barker, Niall Chapman and Simon Bailey. Fosdyke produced a battling performance throughout despite the score-line and they created several chances but poor finishing let them down once again. Skegness 4-0 in front at the break, added another shortly after the restart before Fosdyke were rewarded with a goal from Dave Whalley. The home side finished strongly, however, scoring twice more to run out comfortable winners. In the days’ only all-Premier Division clash, holders of the trophy, Wyberton overcame the challenge of Coningsby with a 3-1 home win. Michael Gardner hit two of the home side’s goals while John Reeson also got on the scoresheet. Last season’s runners-up, Billinghay Athletic safely made it through with a 2-0 home win over Old Leake, from Division One. Adam Weston and Lee Marshall scored the vital goals. The game at Graves Park between Kirton Town and Old Doningtonians was all square at half time thanks to some great saves from the Dons keeper. Disaster struck the home side in the second minute of the second half when Kirton player, Richard Borrill won the ball and landed awkwardly on his ankle. An ambulance was called and eventually took him off to hospital where he was later diagnosed with a broken ankle in three places requiring surgery and a lengthy spell out of the game. Kirton managed to put this blow behind them by taking the lead through striker Lukasz Gieregkiewicz. It was again up to the Old Dons keeper to keep his side in the game with some more marvellous saves until Kirton managed to increase their tally. Another goal came from Lukasz before Chris Hilton popped up in the last few minutes with a strike to leave the home side 3-0 winners.

For January 19

Heavy rain in the week leading up to the latest programme of action presented the Boston Saturday League with its worst weekend for postponements so far. The weather caused the call-offs of eight league and cup matches. And with Wyberton’s County Cup tie taking precedent, the league lost nine games in total.

In the Lincs Junior Cup, Wyberton stormed through the mud at their Causeway ground to book their place in last four of the competition at the expense of Louth United. Wyberton took the lead mid-way through the first half when Nigel Vince was fouled in the box and the referee pointed to the spot. Michael Gardner calmly converted from 12 yards. Wyberton gained in confidence and this reflected in their play and they were duly rewarded with a second goal when Scott Creek found himself with some time and space in the visitors’ penalty area and he coolly exploited the opportunity by slotting the ball home. Louth were dealt a crushing blow minutes later when they had one of their central defenders dismissed for a foul on Sam Louth on the edge of the box. Amazingly, the sending-off seemed to galvanise the Louth side while Wyberton appeared to lose the initiative. The second half became a stalemate with Louth, to their credit, probably edging the possession stakes. With Wyberton now relying on the counter-attack they had a great chance to put the result beyond doubt when Sam Louth broke clean through but the keeper came to his side’s rescue with a crucial save. The tie really came to life 20 minutes from time when the referee adjudged that there was a push in the box, following a corner kick. And he awarded Louth a penalty which they duly despatched despite a valiant effort from veteran goalkeeper Martyn Bunce. Wyberton’s keeper then helped keep his side ahead with two match-winning saves as Louth searched desperately for an equaliser. The home side withstood Louth’s late pressure to give the Boston Saturday League a representative in the semi-finals.

Meanwhile, in the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division, Coningsby floundered yet again when they entertained Wrangle United. A goal on the hour mark from Pardeep Singh was enough to seal the points for the visitors while Coningsby experienced one of those days again when for all their huffing and puffing they just couldn’t convert any of their chances into goals. Final score was 1-0. The other scheduled game at Spilsby Town saw their derby match against Skegness Town Reserves lose out to the weather

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One, North Sea United were held by Swineshead Reserves in an enthralling game down at the Camp. David Noel was again the man on target for the prison side, scoring both goals. North Sea had taken the lead but full marks to the visitors for clawing their way back into the game and salvaging a valuable point with goals from Harry Houghton and Andy Thompson. Final score was 2-2.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Two, the games at Black Bull United and Wrangle United Reserves were called off, so visitors Sutterton and Tydd St Mary (respectively) had a day off.

Shaun Smith scored two goals for Marheam United Reserves in their 4-2 Cropleys Suzuki Division Three home win against Old Doningtonians Reserves. Daniel Garnett and Mark Hodgson grabbed the other match-winning goals. Old Dons replied through Liam Pitts and Jamie Welsh.

Out of the four scheduled Target Newspapers Challenge Cup quarter-final ties, two were settled and two will have to wait for another available date. Woodhall Spa United and Old Leake made it through to the semi-finals at the expense of Fosdyke and Freiston respectively. Woodhall came from behind to breeze through with a 5-1 home win against Fosdyke. The visitors opened the scoring through leading scorer Andy Brown after 15 minutes before Woodhall levelled on the half hour mark through Mark Richardson. Both sides improved after the break and Fosdyke, despite the final score-line, played as well as they have done all season. Their downfall, however, was in their finishing whereas Woodhall had no such problems proving to be clinical where and when it counted. The home struck twice early in the second half through an own goal and Jack Draper before Fosdyke went close on two occasions. First, Brown struck the crossbar and Robbie Curle then had a pile-driver deflected over the bar. Woodhall wrapped up the tie with two further goals when Justin Scarborough and Andy Money were on target in the final five minutes. Referee Ray Larcombe had a fine game in the middle. Ben Jacques proved to be Old Leake’s goal-scoring hero with a fine hat-trick in his side’s 4-1 home win against Freiston. Old Leake rocked their opponents with a three-goal blitz inside the opening half hour before Dean Seiner pulled a goal back before half-time. Freiston, with nothing to lose, had Old Leake back-pedalling during the early stages of the second half but the home side rode their luck and they made sure of victory with a fourth goal when a header looped over the keeper and into the net. Adam Tempest was also on target for Old Leake.

For January 12

Ben Parkinson struck both goals for West End Tigers in their home Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division game against Coningsby. The first half, which was evenly contested, ended all-square before the Tigers upped the pace early in the second half. Parkinson claimed his first goal when he knocked home a rebound after the keeper parried out Nicky Syndercombe’s shot. Both sides had chances after that before West End sealed the win when Parkinson set off from his own half beating three defenders before firing across the keeper and into the top corner. Michael Swain also had a good chance to add a third goal late on but after his buccaneering run ended with his shot being saved. Final score 2-0. Westside Rangers got back to winning ways after a thumping 4-0 home win against Wrangle United. Kev Manning scored twice while Will Scott and Ryan Mason completed the scoring.

North Sea United remain top of the Cropleys Suzuki Division One table after a 4-1 victory over Spalding Town. Stuart Kane grabbed two of The Camp’s goals while Dave Noel and Craig Attwater also got on the scoresheet. Old Leake dealt another blow to Freiston’s fading title hopes when they recorded a 4-2 home win. Martin Thurlby, Bowie Houston, Chris Mitchell and an own goal helped sink the visitors. Freiston had no complaints after producing a poor team performance but their cause wasn’t helped by the fact that they had no recognised goalkeeper in their line-up. The visitors had, in fact, opened the scoring when Jamie Skinner netted after ten minutes. After Old Leake had levelled before the break they scored twice more after the restart to lead 3-1. Again Skinner scored for the visitors to give them a glimmer of hope but they were being caught straying offside time and time again. Old Leake sealed their win with a fourth in the final minutes.

Park Road Old Boys cemented their place at the top of the Cropleys Suzuki Division Two with an all round team performance of quality against second placed Wainfleet United. Old Boys got off to a dream start with the excellent Rick Limb bursting forward from left back to coolly slot past the home keeper after only three minutes. The home side tried to exert some pressure, but failed to penetrate the determined visitors’ defence and midfield. Old Boys top scorer Paul Colton then confidently finished after 30 minutes to make the half time score 2-0. With Simon Ward and Tim Gilbert superb at the back, Gary Booth then extended the lead with a powerful shot from an acute angle that surprised the keeper early in the half. Colton and Chris Gilbert continued to unsettle Wainfleet with their physical presence up front, resulting in skipper Craig Andrews extending the lead to secure the points with a deflected shot after a mazy run past three players. With the game won, Old Boys relaxed in the last ten minutes to let in the home side to score two consolation goals through Lee Johnson and Ashley Rasmussen. Spalding Harriers hit seven goals in the home game against Black Bull United. Lewis Field and Ben Pell both grabbed two goals apiece in a 7-0 scoreline. David Kantak, Trevor Hammond and Sean Gough were also on target for a rampant Harriers side. Kirton Town Reserves looked at one point as if they might be on schedule for their first victory of the season but after a whirlwind start they were left shell-shocked after Mareham United bounced back to snatch the points. Town got off to a flying start with Cliff Langham netting twice within the first 15 minutes. After the break, however, Mareham piled on the pressure and managed to score three goals to end up eventual winners in a 3-2 scoreline. Fosdyke had their game all wrapped early on after blitzing opponents, Wrangle United Reserves with a four-goal blast inside the opening half hour. Karl Jackson’s return from suspension proved to be the undoing of Wrangle as first, his pinpoint cross found Paul Wright who headed home and then more good work from Jackson resulted in Dean Fisher converting the low cross. Dave Whalley netted number three from close range before Fisher claimed his second goal of the game. Wrangle managed to pull a goal back just before the break following a free-kick. The second half was a pretty dour affair with the pitch now resembling a ploughed field and Wrangle were rewarded with a second goal on eighty minutes. Andy Brown had the final when his late entrance was capped with a chipped effort from twenty five yards. Final score 5-2. Referee T Basker had a fine game in the middle.

Park United’s Cropleys Suzuki Division Three revival continues following a convincing 6-1 home win against Spalding Town Reserves. Adam Gallimore was Park’s man of the moment with three of his side’s goals while Steffan Lovell, Matthew Bradshaw and Mitchell Johns made sure of the three points. Fishtoft Reserves gained a welcome win, only their second victory of the season, when they defeated Billinghay Athletic Reserves 5-2 at home. The all-important goals came from Matt Joyes, Chris Marshall, Damian Pugh, Scott Wiseman and Ady Almond.

The Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup semi-final tie at Freiston where cup holders, Coningsby Reserves were due to attempt to make it through to the final for the second successive season, was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. Swineshead Reserves, however, did make it through to the final once again. It will be their third successive appearance in the final and they achieved it with a 5-0 away win at Mareham United Reserves. Harry Houghton scored twice while Andy Thompson, Mark Ledger and Robert Snaith made sure.

For January 5

West End Tigers produced a six-goal blitz inside 15first half minutes to sink a plucky Fosdyke side in their Eleys Sports Cup third round tie. Leading scorer Andy Brown had given Fosdyke a shock lead but West End stormed back to put the result beyond their opponents reach by half time with a six-goal salvo. Both sides had further chances to add to their tally in the second half before The Tigers wrapped up the tie with two further strikes to run out 8-1 winners. The Tigers goals came from Luke Brittain (3), Nicky Syndercombe (2), Paul Chester, Mark Wakefield and Kevin Norton. Second Division side Woodhall Spa United caused a major upset at Westside Rangers when they eliminated their Premier Division opponents out of the competition. The sending off of the Rangers’ keeper after just five minutes proved to be a crucial turning point in the tie. The referee ruled that the goalkeeper had handled outside his area and Rangers were suddenly reduced to ten men. Woodhall ran out 3-2 winners. There was another cup upset at Coningsby where Division One side, Kirton Town booked their place in the semi final draw following a 2-0 away win. Paul Fossitt’s team, despite being underdogs, adapted well to the 4-1-4-1 formation. It was in the latter stages of the first half that Kirton went ahead utilising the pace of lone striker Adrian Dobriansky who met a through ball and netted his shot on a one-on-one with the keeper. Kirton went further ahead early in the second half after a deflected shot from a rampaging Martin Durrant. Coningsby piled on the pressure but not get past Kirtons tactical game plan of closing down and containment. Swineshead eventually overcame the brave challenge of visitors, Freiston with a late, late show. Two goals in the final three minutes edged The Premier side through to the semi-finals. Freiston had played their part in an evenly contested cup tie and the Swineshead keeper had to be alert on several occasions to prevent The Division One side from causing an upset.

Fishtoft’s recent good run continued in Cropleys Suzuki Division One with a 3-2 home win against Old Leake although they had to come from behind to take the three points. An own goal got Fishtoft off the mark but Old Leake replied twice through Nathan Hutchen and Adam Sinclair (pen) to lead at the halfway stage. Fishtoft stepped up their game after the break and goals from Danny Keal and Michael Lomax secured victory. Spalding Town produced a storming second half comeback without gaining any reward when they played hosts to Spilsby Town Reserves. The home side found themselves trailing 3-0 at half time but second half goals from Tom Cherry and Ian Tomblin gave them a glimmer of hope but Spilsby held out to take the three points. A flu-stricken Spilsby outfit had earlier scraped together a team and they started really well scoring after just five minutes when Matt Thomas crossed for Ryan Johnson to score and Phil Roof added another when he smashed the ball home after Joe Turner had weaved his magic in the box. Spilsby appeared to have wrapped up the match with a third when Graham Blades netted after good work from Pete Sampson. Final score was 3-2.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Two, Park Road Old Boys started the New Year with a bang when they thumped Mareham United 6-1 at home. Three goals in each half sunk a struggling Mareham outfit as Liam Dave, Johnny Britton and Tim Gilbert struck during the first period. Liam Dave grabbed two more after the break to complete his hat-trick while Chris Gilbert also got on the scoresheet for the Old Boys. Wrangle United Reserves suffered yet another setback when they were beaten at home by Spalding Harriers. Liam Shinn and Dion Roberts scored for Wrangle but it wasn’t enough as Spalding replied four times to run out 4-2 winners.

A seriously under-strength Sutterton side had the unenviable task of hosting league leaders, Wainfleet United. Despite not having scored a goal since mid-November, it was the home side who struck first to stun their opponents after just five minutes when some good work from Carl Duncan and Gavin Rhodes allowed young striker, Ashley Hughes to calmly slip the ball under the advancing keeper. Although Wainfleet enjoyed the majority of possession they could not find a way past Graham Nicholls in the home goal. Sutterton should have doubled their lead on the half hour mark but Scott Jackson fired wide of an open goal and Wainfleet responded in positive fashion by levelling the scores five minutes before the break. Sutterton expected a barrage in the second half but it never came and with Appleyard and Newark in commanding form at the back. Sutterton snatched victory on the hour mark when Ashley Hughes turned his marker before firing into the top corner. Although Hughes bagged a brace of goals, Sutterton were indebted to their keeper Graham Nicholls who was in excellent form throughout. Final score was 2-1.

Old Doningtonians Reserves and Friskney served up a superb Cropleys Suzuki Division Three encounter to start the New Year. Both sides displayed adventurous attacking play but Giles Favell who scored both of The Old Dons goals still found himself on the losing side as Friskney returned home with maximum points following a 3-2 away win. The Old Dons’ keeper had an excellent game between the sticks thwarting Friskney on several occasions. Two goals from Nathan Gurbutt helped Spalding Harriers Reserves to a 2-1 victory over Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Skegness Working Men’s Club were again their own worst enemy when they travelled to Wyberton Reserves for the days’ top of the table clash. The Skegness side had a player dismissed early in the game as they did against Friskney two weeks ago and the consequences were the same – a very heavy defeat. Wyberton took full advantage plundering seven goals without reply. Jason Allen and Neil Featherstone hit two goals each while Steve Fisher, Jamie Button and Jason Sullivan completed the rout. Westside Rangers Reserves also hit seven goals when they entertained Spalding Town Reserves. Jason James and Matt Lee both grabbed two goals apiece in a 7-2 victory. Neal Wheatley, Morgan Taylor and James Pearson completed the scoring for Rangers. In a game dominated by West End Tigers Reserves’ midfield, two goals were enough to send Mareham United Reserves home empty-handed. Dale Houghton and a thumping near post header from Martin Jolly were the Tigers men on target in a 2-0 home win.

For December 22 and 29

There were only two Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division games on both weekends over the festive period (December 22 and 29) and two victories saw leaders Wyberton remain on top of the table. Their first three-point haul was their toughest test as visitors Swineshead pushed them all the way. John Reeson and Mark Lovelace hit the match-winning goals for Wyberton while Swineshead replied with a goal from Richard Stukins. Final score was 2-1. Wyberton’s game seven days later proved to be a much more comfortable affair when they entertained Skegness Town Reserves. A 6-1 scoreline meant Wyberton went into the New Year with a healthy lead at the top of the Premier Division. Michael Gardner grabbed a hat-trick while Steve Melady, Scott Hutchinson and Mark Lovelace also got on the scoresheet. West End Tigers and Westside Rangers clashed at Rosebery Avenue on the Saturday before Christmas and goals from Nicky Syndercombe and Paul Vaughan gave The Tigers a 2-0 win. Spilsby Town’s 5-1 away win at Wrangle United two days before the New Year celebrations moved them up to second place although they still remain a long way behind the leader. There was another scheduled game on the pre-Christmas weekend but unfortunately it failed to go ahead owing to Billinghay’s inability to raise a side. This surprise decision set a few alarm bells ringing as the club had no reserve game planned for that day. It is therefore expected that Skegness Town Reserves will be given a ‘walk-over’ and three easy points.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One North Sea United also sit firmly on top of the table after a joyous festive period. Two victories and 10 goals keep the prison side on track for promotion. Their first victory against Old Doningtonians was gained with goals from Rob Masters who hit two and Jay Narjee in a 3-0 scoreline. This was followed by an emphatic 7-1 win against Holbeach Bank. Stuart Kane was on form on this occasion with four of the Camp’s goals while David Noel struck twice. Danny Humphries wrapped up the scoring. Kirton Town had a mixed time during the holiday break – after defeating Spilsby Town Reserves 4-2 at Graves Park they then went down 4-1 at Fishtoft the following week. Adrian Dobriansky (2), Martin Durrant and Richard Borrill were on target in the victory over Spilsby Town Reserves while Jake Louth proved to be a thorn in their side the following week with a fine hat-trick for Fishtoft. Pete Coonan grabbed Fishtoft’s other goal. Fishtoft also earned a valuable point during The Christmas weekend when they drew 2-2 at Swineshead Reserves. Jake Louth and Pete Coonan were again the hot-shots for Fishtoft. Swineshead replied through Scott Williams and Andy Thompson. Freiston kept in touch at the top with a 3-2 home win against Old Doningtonians on December 29 although the visitors produced a battling performance in a closely fought encounter. The Dons had gone ahead with a goal after seven minutes before Jamie Skinner levelled on the half hour mark and Danny Warren added another five minutes later to give the home side a slender 2-1 lead at half time. Old Dons battled back after the break and they equalised after seventy minutes before Freiston snatched victory with another Skinner strike a minute later.

Nortoft United bagged a six-point Cropleys Suzuki Division Two haul during the holiday period. Chris Massingham (2), Lee Burdass and Dean Stevens gave Nortoft victory at Wrangle United Reserves in a 4-2 scoreline and they followed that up with a 3-1 home win over Black Bull United. Nortoft had to come from behind as Chris Massingham equalised to make the half time scores all-square. Dean Stevens was then felled in the box after the break and Massingham converted from the spot before Stevens’ well-placed header found the top corner to give Nortoft victory. Woodhall Spa United and Park Road Old Boys shared the points in a 2-2 draw on the first weekend before they both returned home the following week with 6-0 away wins under their belts. Liam Dave and an own goal earned Park Road their point against Woodhall before a slightly under-strength Old Boys squad travelled to Kirton Town Reserves. Both sides found the greasy surface at Graves Park difficult going and the basement side only had 10 players but battled hard throughout. Kirton managed to keep their opponents at bay during most of the first half with a Paul Colton goal giving the visitors a one-goal lead at half time after playing against a strong head wind. Colton went on to claim three more goals in second half which brought his season’s tally to 23 goals. The other two goals came from subs Jonny Britton (an early replacement for the injured Ash Allen and his first for the club) and Mark Williams (a half-time sub for the ill-stricken Chris Gilbert). Referee, James Trueman had a good game in the middle. Woodhall travelled to Sutterton on the second weekend and returned home with a resounding 6-0 victory. Wainfleet United hit six goals during the first half of their home match against Mareham United on December 22 and three more goals followed after the break. Top scorer Lee Johnson was again on top form hitting five of his side’s goals while Michael Parnham, was also firing on all cylinders claiming a hat-trick. Royston Wilkinson completed the scoring to keep Wainfleet on top of the tree. Fosdyke went one better at Tydd St Mary when they plundered 10 goals without reply. The sending off of their goalkeeper midway through the first half didn’t help Tydd’s cause. Top scorer, Andy Brown took full advantage grabbing a double hat-trick while Dean Fisher struck twice. Matt Wright and Dave Whalley showed no Christmas charity with the other goals.

The two leading sides in Cropleys Suzuki Division Three, Wyberton Reserves and Skegness Working Men’s Club both had mixed fortunes. Wyberton lost their 100 percent record when they went down 2-1 at home to Westside Rangers Reserves. Rangers, who had been struggling of late, were forced to play manager Paul Masterman up front but it didn’t stop them from pulling off a massive shock result. Westside stunned their opponents with a Morgan Taylor opener when he volleyed home from a free-kick. Wyberton levelled before the break through Steve Fisher and they piled forward after the break but Rangers shook the leaders with a clinching second goal on the counter-attack when Lee Vacey found John East and his looping header settled the contest. Rangers had to dig in deep to survive and Wyberton appeared to have saved the day when they were awarded a dubious penalty but Chris Moore came to his side’s rescue with a fantastic save. Final score was 2-1. Wyberton then got back to winning ways at Old Dons Reserves with a 5-0 victory thanks to goals from Jason Skinner who bagged a hat-trick and Jamie Button who struck twice. Skegness Working Men’s Club suffered a major shock home defeat at the hands of Friskney just before Christmas but the early sending off of Andy Corssen didn’t help their cause. The outcome was still somewhat surprising however, as Friskney ran out 8-0 winners! The visitors were indebted to their goalkeeper, Robert Holland who saved a penalty before they set the scoreboard ticking over. Friskney’s Daniel Redford was more successful with his penalty kicks, scoring twice while Gareth Williams also grabbed two goals. The other match-winning efforts came from Neil Allen, Joe Pitcher, Daniel Fletcher and Scott Mackay. Like Wyberton Skegness bounced back with a 6-1 home win against Park United. Andy Verhaul and Gordon Drake netted two goals apiece while Andy Corssen and Simon Cannon completed the scoring.

For December 15

The Boston League fared a little better this week in that only two games were lost to the weather. Billinghay Athletic’s Premier game was called off by the groundsman on the morning of the match as was Friskney’s Division Three encounter with Spalding Harriers due to some areas of the pitch still being affected by ice.

In Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division, Viv Jeffery hit both of Spilsby Town’s goals in their 2-1 home win against Swineshead Institute. Swineshead took the lead in the first half but Jeffery replied with his double, one from the penalty spot to sink his opponents. Swineshead’s goal came from Richard Stukins who rifled home a shot from 15 yards after collecting a flick-on from strike partner Matt Bates. Coningsby and Wyberton produced a thrilling match with the leaders coming out on top with a 4-2 victory. The home side found themselves trailing at the halfway stage by 2-1 but a second half goal from Danny Cottingham brought the scores level. Wyberton finished strongly, however, to take the three points with two further goals, one from the penalty spot. The league leaders’ goals came from Scott Creek, Sam Louth, Michael Gardner and Jack Smith. Adam Avis grabbed the other Coningsby goal.

Fishtoft hit five goals at home against Old Doningtonians in Cropleys Suzuki Division One with Ricky Toyer grabbing two of his team’s strikes. Ady Almond, Danny Keal and an own goal wrapped up the three points. The Dons replied through Martin Fox. Rob Masters and Jay Narjee also scored twice in North Sea United’s table-topping clash against Freiston. Both sides served up an exciting encounter at The Camp as The Prison side snatched victory in a 4-3 scoreline. Dean Seiner too grabbed a brace while Jamie Skinner was also on the scoresheet for Freiston. Referee Rod Crozier had a fine game in the middle. Old Leake got back to winning ways after an excellent 2-0 home win against Kirton Town where Simon Hippersley and Adam Tempest scored the all important strikes. Swineshead Institute Reserves and Coningsby Reserves shared the points following a goal-less draw. The game was well controlled by referee E Andrezejak.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Two Wrangle United Reserves had the misfortune to lose four players through injuries after a road traffic accident as they were departing to face Woodhall Spa United in a top of the table clash. Thankfully the injuries were not serious and the Wrangle youngsters took the brave decision to travel and get the fixture played even though it meant a late arrival at the ground. The game itself was closely fought encounter despite the visitors only having just 11 players which included manager Anthony Elding and club linesman Nigel Birtwistle. Wrangle rocked their opponents with the opening goal after just five minutes when Dion Roberts got on the end of a Shane Elding flick before finishing calmly. Paul Picker got Woodhall back on level terms before Andrew Money edged the home side in front at the break. Wrangle still continued to battle away after the break and they created several chances, two of which were spurned by manager Elding. The visitors also had a decent shout for a penalty before Woodhall wrapped up the scoring with a third goal following a deflected effort from Jack Draper which left keeper Aiden Keal wrong-footed. Credit must go to Wrangle for pulling out all the stops to get the game played in difficult circumstances. Woodhall Secretary, Mark Robinson was called upon at the eleventh hour to officiate the match and he did an excellent job in the middle of the park. Final score was 3-1. Park Road Old Boys found visitors Sutterton more difficult opponents than the 3-0 scoreline suggests. Park Road held a slender 1-0 interval lead thanks to an Ash Allen goal following a cross from Craig Andrews. In the second half Andrews turned goalscorer with a double strike to help sink a plucky Sutterton side. One of Andrews’ efforts was a cracking shot from 20 yards out while his other goal was bundled over the line from close range. Tydd St Mary went goal-crazy at Spalding Harriers hitting seven goals in a surprise victory. Although The Harriers did not play that badly Tydd had one of those days when everything they hit seemed to find their opponents’ net. The Saints were without five regular players for this match but they responded well after last week’s debacle against Black Bull with an emphatic 7-2 scoreline. David Dalrymple was Tydd’s champion with an excellent all round performance, scoring three goals in the process. Andrew Bennett netted a great free kick while Andrew Cooper scored from close range. Richard Smith nicked a cheeky goal and debutant Tom Britton notched with a “Beckham-esque” lob from distance. Tydd manager Carl Wilson came off the bench late on and also scored, but for unfortunately for him it was for the wrong side with an own goal. Allan Lawrence hit the other Spalding goal. Chris Massingham was also in goal-scoring mode hitting four of Nortoft United’s goals in a 5-0 home win against Mareham Unted. Nick Stone also got on the scoresheet for Nortoft.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division Three, Old Doningtonians Reserves struck with an 87th minute winner at Spalding Town Reserves to take maximum points in a 2-1 away win. Spalding were trailing at half time before a long range effort from Wayne Wilding brought the scores level only for Old Dons to snatch victory with that late winner. The Dons goals came from James Pinder and George Skafidas. Wyberton Reserves didn’t need the goalscoring machine of Neil Featherstone’s who was missing from their line-up against Mareham United Reserves. Jason Sullivan and Steve Fisher both scored two goals apiece in an 8-1 victory to keep Wyberton firmly on top of the table. The other home goals came from Jason Allen, Chris Bray, Dean Reynolds and Jamie Button. Park United produced another fine performance, this time, at West End Tigers Reserves where they earned a hard earned point following a 3-3 draw. Tom Waterson struck twice for the visitors while Thomas Limb was also on target for a resurgent Park side. For the second week running Westside Rangers Reserves enjoyed plenty of possession without gaining any reward when they entertained Fishtoft Reserves at Kirton Middlecott School. Rangers conceded a goal in the first half and although starting brightly again after the break were caught out again as Fishtoft struck a second before they pulled a goal back through Morgan Taylor’s first touch after coming on as a substitute. The home side were left stunned immediately, however, as Chris Smith was controversially sent off for getting involved with the Fishtoft keeper whilst attempting to retrieve the ball from the back of the net. Rangers pushed hard for an equaliser but Fishtoft’s extra man advantage paid off with two further goals to run out 4-2 winners. The visitors’ match-winners were Tim Billingham and Damian Pugh who both scored twice.

For December 8

The Saturday League experienced its first wet weekend of the season. This resulted in the first postponements of the current campaign. Games at Wrangle United, Kirton Town and Friskney were lost to the soggy conditions while some pitches will have suffered badly after being churned up in the stormy weather.

In the Mason Bros Lincs Junior Cup Wyberton secured a solid 1-0 victory away to FC Sherpa while West End Tigers were defeated 5-0 away to Lincolnshire League side CGB Humbertherm.

With the postponement of Wrangle United’s Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division

home game against Skegness Town Reserves and West End Tigers’ involvement in the County Cup, only one scheduled match went ahead in the domestic league programme’s top section. And that was at Swineshead. A storming first half display from Swineshead secured victory over Billinghay in a game that was played in atrocious conditions of wind and rain. Matthew Bates opened the scoring after 14 minutes following a pass from Martin North. And the same player claimed his second goal two minutes before the break when he was on hand to pounce after the keeper failed to hold onto the slippery ball following a free-kick. Right on the stroke of half-time Tim Tyler, back from suspension, rifled the ball home from the edge of the box after a corner was only half cleared. Billinghay created several chances after the break but it wasn’t until the 85th minute that they managed to breach the Swineshead rearguard when a corner skidded through a crowded goalmouth and into the net. For Swineshead, the man of the match accolade went to Martin North who produced a superb individual performance. Final score was 3-1.

Fishtoft went ahead with their home Cropleys Suzuki Division One game against Coningsby Reserves and although the going was very heavy, both sides gained some reward for their efforts after a 3-3 draw. Fishtoft’s point was earned through goals from Jake Louth (who scored twice) and Michael Lomax. Old Doningtonians got back to winning ways at last with a 4-1 home win against Old Leake. The home side dominated proceedings throughout and were rewarded with goals from Chris Wing who was in deadly form with a fine hat-trick while David Slaughter completed the scoring. Spalding Town went down at home to Swineshead Reserves, who were grateful to the finish prowess of Harry Houghton. The Swineshead hit-man was in red-hot form hitting all three of his side’s goals while Tom Cherry grabbed the Town goal. Final score was 3-1. Spilsby Town Reserves were always going to be up against it from the moment Sam Ellis was sent off after 20 minutes of their home match against Holbeach Bank. And so it proved after they finished up empty-handed following a 3-0 defeat. The first goal came from the Bank’s first real attack after half an hour when a low driven cross was turned into his own net by the unfortunate Pete Sampson. Spilsby then had a penalty appeal turned down before the needless sending off gave Holbeach the upper hand. Town hit the post after the break through Matt Thomas and Sampson twice had efforts cleared off the line. As the game entered its final minutes the home side saw goalkeeper Mike Emery make his way forward into the opponents’ box for corners and from one such dead-ball kick he saw a header cleared off the line. The Bank quickly countered and they found themselves in the clear before running the ball into an empty net for a 2-0 lead. An injury time clincher sealed victory for the visitors when a long range lob found the net with the Town keeper nowhere in sight. Final score was 3-0.

Lee Johnson was again Wainfleet United’s goalscoring saviour with three of his side’s goals in a 4-1 home Cropleys Suzuki Divison Two victory against Wrangle United Reserves. The home side scored two in each half to sink their young opponents. Mark Lyon grabbed the other Wainfleet goal. Wainfleet were, however, indebted to their goalkeeper, Joe Perry who, despite being at fault for Liam Shinn’s equaliser, pulled off some terrific saves. The best of the bunch came when he somehow got down to keep out Darryl Bray’s powerful strike when the scores stood at 2-1. Fosdyke entertained Park Road Old Boys and both sides provided an entertaining game considering the difficult conditions. The home side failed to make the most of their wind advantage during the first half of their home encounter and they, in fact, fell behind to a penalty after 20 minutes following Matt Wright’s mistimed sliding tackle. Fosdyke got back on level terms when a determined run from Wayne Ash saw him set up Andy Brown who’s shot was hooked out from behind the line but fortunately for the home team the honesty of the Park Road linesman came to the fore and he ruled that the ball had crossed the line to make the interval scoreline all-square. Park Road wasted no time in the second half scoring three times in quick succession to virtually finish off Fosdyke’s challenge although Andy Brown did grab his second goal of the game with 20 minutes to go. Nortoft United continued their good run of form with a 2-0 home win against Sutterton. The all-important goals came late on from Danny Clayton and Dominic Cridland. Clayton’s goal came about when he turned inside three defenders before slotting home a left footed strike and Cridland’s goal followed a pinpoint pass from Dean Stevens. Tydd St Mary were left reeling from a double sending off in their home match against Black Bull United. It came after a Black Bull player had first received his marching orders before deciding to re-enter the field of play in a mindless act of revenge. Unfortunately two Tydd players retaliated and were duly dismissed. Black Bull took full advantage of their extra man advantage by taking all three points in a 5-0 victory.

Skegness Working Men’s Club again made up ground on Cropleys Suzuki Division Three leaders Wyberton Reserves who were without a game for the second week running. Skegness hit six goals in their home game against West End Tigers Reserves with Gordon Drake and Tom Jenkins both scoring two apiece. Andy Verhaul and Adam Corssen completed the scoring for the home side. Performance of the day must go to Park United who earned their first points of the season with a highly creditable 4-2 away win at Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Simon Creasey was on target twice for the home side but it wasn’t enough against a jubilant Park side who took maximum points with goals from Adam Gallimore who scored twice, Andy Waterson and Tom Waterson. Westside Rangers Reserves were left kicking themselves for not making their superiority pay when they went down to a 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Spalding Harriers Reserves. Things had looked good for Rangers after Kev Manning had given them a 1-0 lead but the home side then found themselves victims of a cruel sucker punch when they conceded two goals in the dying moments of the game.

For December 1

There were no major shocks in the Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup quarter-finals of the competition as last year’s finalists, Coningsby Reserves and Swineshead Reserves both safely made it through to the semi-finals. Current holders Coningsby Reserves saw off the challenge of West End Tigers Reserves with a 3-1 victory. Daniel Daubney took centre stage for Coningsby with all three goals – his treble strikes all coming during the first half which basically ended any hopes the visitors had of progressing through. One of Daubney’s goals came from the penalty spot while the other two followed one-on-one situations with the goalkeeper with his third and final goal being a superbly executed chip over the keeper from 40 yards out. Swineshead Reserves entertained Wrangle United Reserves in a match where both sides paraded youthful line-ups. This resulted in a keenly contested encounter which saw play flow from end to end. Swineshead held a slender 1-0 lead at the halfway stage and they doubled that margin midway through the second half with a long-range strike. Soon afterwards the home side looked to be home and dry when a well worked goal made it 3-0.To their credit Wrangle, with nothing to lose, laid siege to their opponents’ goal during the final 15 minutes. Shane Brackenbury struck a post before the same player reduced the deficit when he steered a shot into the bottom corner. When Tim Bell lobbed the Swineshead keeper to make it 3-2 it set up a frantic grandstand finish but the visitors couldn’t quite find the crucial equaliser as the home side held out. Final score was 3-2. Swineshead’s match-winners were Robert Snaith, Harry Houghton and Alex Kirkham. Dave Robinson hit four of his side’s goals as Freiston Reserves thumped Kirton Town Reserves 9-2. Neil Timby and Lee Hoff both scored two goals apiece while Adrian Wood rolled back the years with a rare strike. Both of Kirton’s goals came from Adrian Dobriansky. Mareham United Reserves also made it through to the next round after they disposed of Billinghay Athletic Reserves by the odd goal in five. James Todd was on target twice for Mareham while Jamie Lewis grabbed the other match-winning goal. Final score 3-2.

Spilsby Town produced a late, late show to rescue a Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division point when they played hosts to Westside Rangers. The Boston side looked to be heading for victory at 2-0 with the game approaching full time before Liam Papworth grabbed a late lifeline. A distraught Westside were then stunned as Spilsby levelled the scores with an equaliser in the fourth minute of added time. Pete Sansam was Spilsby’s saviour with the crucial late point-saver. Final score was 2-2. Swineshead were down to the bare bones when they were the visitors to Rosebery Avenue against West End Tigers. The visitors could only field the basic eleven players with no substitutes so it was a major bonus for them to come away with maximum points following a 1-0 victory. The all-important winning goal came early on when Martin North found the net. And although both sides had chances defences were mainly on top in a scrappy game.

Dave Noel was North Sea United’s hat-trick hero with all three of his side’s goals in a 3-1 Division One win against Fishtoft down at The Camp. Fishtoft replied through Scott Wiseman. Old Leake and Spalding Town served up a dour goal-less draw at The Community Centre. The closest Old Leake came to scoring was when Adam Sinclair had an effort well saved by the Spalding keeper. There were plenty of goals at Holbeach Bank however, where visitors, Kirton Town took maximum points following a 5-3 victory. Town opened the scoring early on with a superb solo goal from Lukasz Gierejkiewicz when he collected the ball from the halfway line, took on three players and shot from just inside the penalty box into the bottom right hand corner. An injury forced Kirton to change keepers and it wasn’t long before Holbeach equalised. Kirton then added a further two goals before half time through Kyle Bates and another from Lukasz Gierejkiewicz. After the break Kirton earned a penalty that was successfully taken by Lukasz to earn him his hat-trick. Holbeach scored straight afterwards making the score 4-2. Kirton were given another penalty for a challenge on Chris Hilton who took responsibility and calmly scored from the spot kick. Once again Holbeach came back with a goal but could not add to their tally and Kirton ran out 5-3 winners. The Bank’s goals came from Stuart Dawson, Michael Ayres and Stacey Blythe

Cropleys Suzuki Division Two leaders, Wainfleet United were held at home by a resurgent Fosdyke side, who were still bubbling with confidence after their cup heroics against Billinghay seven days earlier. Fosdyke took the lead in the fifth minute with a route one strike when Kyle Gibbons’ long goal-kick eluded the home defence where striker, Andy Brown controlled the ball in an instant before despatching a shot in the bottom right hand corner. Wainfleet levelled the scores after 25 minutes through Royston Wilkinson’s header from a corner and this boost spurred the home side as they dominated proceedings for a while. It was no surprise when the home side went ahead through Wes Sutton and they increased their lead shortly afterwards when Lee Johnson struck a third goal. Crucially, Fosdyke pulled a goal back just before half time when a free-kick was flicked on by Dave Whalley to Andy Brown who, in turn, laid the ball back for Whalley to drive gleefully into the net. Fosdyke probably edged the second half and they deservedly equalised when Karl Jackson burst through on the left before cutting inside and slotting the ball home. A repeat raid from Jackson saw the player clipped by a defender in the penalty area but instead of going down the player kept on his feet and stumbled forward before firing just wide. Final score was 3-3. Woodhall Spa United are still just off the pace at the top of the table despite a 4-1 home win against Spalding Harriers. Jonathan Kerry scored Woodhall’s first half goal with the visitors still in the contest at 1-1. The home stepped up the pace after the break to run out comfortable winners following goals from Rob McCusker, Daniel Wells and Jack Draper. Nortoft United travelled to Fosdyke, where Black Bull United were their opponents and The Boston side returned home with all three points following a 3-0 victory. Dave Collingwood, Anthony Tiffen and Chris Massingham were all on target for Nortoft. Tydd St Mary travelled the short distance to Holbeach for this local derby against Park Road Old Boys. Both clubs had won the previous week and were keen to continue where they had left off. The Saints started brightly and were unlucky not to score when some good work by Ash Piccaver down the left saw him cross for Phil Elderfield unmarked in the box but he sliced his shot wide. Park Road responded well and began to pressurise the Tydd defence and some excellent saves by Man of The Match Steve Wright in goal for The Saints kept them at bay. Tydd had arrived with a game plan to close down Park Road and restrict space and it paid off as The Saints continually frustrated the Park Road forward line with tackle after tackle and save after save. Park Road were reduced to ten men with ten minutes to play but this did not stop them trying to nick the win but, again, Wright was strong in goal for The Saints. The final score was 0-0 and it had been a scrappy game but referee Rod Crozier had a fine game and enjoyed himself in the middle..

Skegness Working Men’s Club made up a bit of ground on Division Three leaders, Wyberton Reserves with a 4-1 away win at Old Doningtonians Reserves. Andy Verhaul’s hat-trick ensured that their long journey was a worthwhile one while Carl Wilson weighted in with the other goal. Old Dons replied through George Skafidas. Perrie Dale and Sam Hill both grabbed two goals apiece in Friskney’s 5-0 away win against Park United. Joe Pitcher also got on the scoresheet for the home side. Park’s cause wasn’t helped when their goalkeeper Darren Hunt who suffered concussion after the opening goal, was eventually forced to leave the action when the score was 3-0 following bouts of blurred vision.

For November 24

North Sea United remain in pole position in Cropleys Suzuki Division One after a thumping 7-2 victory down at the Camp against Coningsby Reserves. Stuart Kane grabbed a double strike while the other goals came from David Noel, Jay Narjee, Rob Masters, Darren Ladds and Ben Daws.

Wainfleet United moved to the top of the table in Division Two after a 3-1 away win at Tattershall Road against Nortoft United. The home side started well enough and they went close to taking the lead, but Dean Stevens’ effort struck an upright. Wainfleet responded by going in front through a Lee Johnson goal before Nortoft levelled the scores before half time when Lee Burdass got on the end of an Andy Baker corner. Again Nortoft started well after the break and they were awarded a penalty when Andy Baker was fouled inside the box but The Wainfleet keeper guessed the right way to keep the spot-kick out. Wainfleet went 2-1 ahead when Ashley Rasmussen broke through before coolly beating the advancing keeper. Wes Sutton wrapped up the scoring with a third goal late on when his long range effort flew into the net. Referee Garry Winwright had an excellent game in the middle. Wrangle United Reserves suffered their first defeat of the season when in-form Park Road Old Boys inflicted a 5-1 defeat on their opponents. Ash Allen and Paul Colton rocked Wrangle with two goals apiece while Liam Dave also got on the scoresheet. Wrangle had taken a first half lead with a header from a corner and were unlucky not to have gone further ahead but Liam Shinn’s shot was headed off the line. The visitors had no answer to Park Road’s powerful second half display as experience proved to be the key factor over Wrangle’s youthful line-up.

Wyberton Reserves stay top of the Division Three table following a 4-2 home win against Freiston Reserves. The match-winning goals came from Jamie Cox, Neil Featherstone, Sam Louth and Jason Sullivan. Freiston hit back through Gary Hoyles and Neil Timby. Friskney moved up to fourth in the table following a 4-2 home win against Westsdie Rangers Reserves. The visitors were very much in the game at the halfway stage as they trailed just 3-2 before Friskney made sure of the points with a fourth in the second half. Perrie Dale hit two of the Friskney goals while Sam Hill and Jo Picker hit the other crucial strikes. An under-strength West End Tigers side travelled to Spalding Harriers but the visitors still started brightly as they produced some good football. They were rewarded with the opening goal early on through Nicky De Vries who got on the end of keeper Paul Cook’s first time clearance. West End went 2-0 ahead following another strike from De Vries. The Boston side made the game safe with a third in the second half when Craig Spooner was brought down in the box and the nippy striker dusted himself down before converting the spot-kick himself. The Harriers rallied late on and they were rewarded with a goal to make the final score 3-1.

The tie of the day in the Eleys Sports Cup took place at the Causeway, Wyberton where the home side and Swineshead both contributed to providing a fantastic encounter. Play was end to end on a muddy surface and it was shame either side had to be eliminated from the competition. Swineshead had the better of the first half exchanges and Martin North almost got the visitors off to a flying start after just four minutes with a terrific shot from the edge of the area which was well saved by the Wyberton keeper. Swineshead were not to be denied for long however, as Paul Clarke scored against his old club minutes later with a volley from 25 yards which looped over the stranded keeper. Swineshead made it 2-0 on the half hour mark when Matthew Bates beat defender and keeper to score after a great through pass from Rob Snaith. Wyberton came out for the second half much the stronger and they reduced the arrears within six minutes of the restart when a rash challenge from a Swineshead defender gave the home side a penalty which they converted. Wyberton were level two minutes later when a cross was slid home from close range. Although play swung from one end to the other, there was no further score during normal time. With both teams tiring in the energy sapping conditions the tie slowed down a little but just when penalties beckoned Wyberton looked to have clinched victory with two minutes remaining when a free-kick was headed home. Swineshead had the last word however, when they levelled the scores with virtually the last kick of the game when Anthony Slater’s 30-yard shot flew past the keeper and into the top corner to take the match into the dreaded penalty shoot-out. Swineshead scored from three of their spot-kicks while Wyberton scored one, hit the bar with another and had two efforts saved by keeper, Andrew Stukins. Referee Steve Ross returned to local football and had a fine game.

Westside Rangers from the Premier Division hit double figures in their home tie against Division Three side Skegness Working Men’s Club. The visitors were struggling to raise a side after several players were unavailable and they could only take the field with just eight players. The Skegness side who were 3-1 down after 10 minutes, were eventually back to a full quota of 11 players but the boost did not have the expected impact. Westside took full advantage of Skegness’ depleted ranks hitting twelve goals with three players helping themselves to hat-tricks. Will Scott, Neil Wheatley and Tom Ruck were the ones on hat-trick duty while D. J. Wright grabbed a double strike. Jason Keal wrapped up the scoring for the Rangers with his first goal for the club. Young Roger Kissane was in dazzling form for Rangers with his mazy runs and although he didn’t manage to get on the scoresheet himself the speedy flank-man made some great assists. Final score was 12-2.

West End Tigers started slowly at Wrangle United and they soon went a goal behind through Jimmy Britton before they bounced back with an equaliser from Paul Vaughan who finished in style following some slick inter-play. Wrangle’s Jimmy Britton then pounced to put his side back in front following a defensive mix-up only for Vaughan to cancel it out with his second goal – this time from the penalty spot after Mark Wakefield had been felled in the box. West End then went in front for the first time when Wakefield powered home a header to give his side a slender half-time lead. The Tigers dominated possession after the break and they grabbed a fourth following some persistent play from Luke Brittain who regained possession after a brave challenge with the keeper before rolling the ball into an unguarded net. Spencer Swadling headed home a Joe Hallam free-kick and Ben Parkinson added a sixth with a cool finish after some fine build-up play. Parkinson was then fouled in the box presenting Vaughan with a great chance to complete his hat-trick – unfortunately for the midfielder he fluffed his big chance by sending his effort wide of the post. Lloyd Sanderson pulled a goal back for Wrangle to make the final score 6-3.

Freiston travelled to Old Doningtonians and a 7-1 victory put them comfortably through to the next round. It took 20 minutes for the visitors to get off the mark when Danny Warren was able to take advantage of a goalkeeping error. Jamie Skinner added a second goal to give Freiston a 2-0 interval lead. Both sides found the slippery conditions more difficult as the game wore on but Freiston managed to net a third when Warren’s deflected shot deceived the keeper. Peter Lovelace’s shot on the hour mark gave the visitors a 4-0 lead before Old Dons’ efforts were rewarded with their best spell of the game when, after striking the crossbar with a thunderous drive, they reduced the arrears with the beat goal of the game direct from a free-kick. Further goals from Ty Fravigar, Aston Chase and Peter Lovelace completed the scoring to make the final outcome 7-1.

A top performance from Fosdyke of Division Two accounted for the scalp of Premier side Billinghay Athletic, who were probably flattered by the 4-3 score-line. Fosdyke’s battling qualities saw them coast to a 2-0 interval lead when firstly, Andy Brown chased a wayward back-pass to set up Dave Whalley for a simple tap-in, and then, Brown himself got on the end of a fine cross from Rob Epton. Billinghay pulled a goal back on the hour mark when keeper, Chris West parried out a shot into the path of a grateful striker. This boost saw Billinghay enjoy their best spell of the game and they drew level from a corner. Andy Brown then restored Fosdyke’s lead after he pulled clear of the Billinghay defence. Billinghay then shot themselves in the foot when they had the goalkeeper dismissed for comments to the referee. Surprisingly ten-man Billinghay got back on level terms again following a header from a free-kick. With the scores locked at 3-3, extra time looked a dead cert before Dean Fisher conjured up a bit of magic when he danced through the Athletic defence before rounding the keeper and slotting home the winner.

Kirton manager Paul Fossitt was very pleased with his side’s performance after making some tactical positional changes. Passing from midfield was fast and fluent and too much for the home side. After many chances Kirton finally broke the deadlock with a well-worked goal from Badaszewski Prezmyslaw. It was much the same after the break. Their second goal was a powerful strike from Lukasz Gierejwiecz who was excelling in his new midfield role. The game ended in a 2-0 result.

There was one tie in round one of the Swineshead Cup and that took place at Holbeach Bank where the home side breezed through to the next round at the expense of Mareham United. No less than 11 goals found the Mareham net as the Bank went goal crazy. Stacey Blythe struck four of his side’s goals while Mick Ayres grabbed a hat-trick. The other goals came from Shane Hughes (2), Ben Crane and Lewis Forman.

For November 17

Fishtoft eased through to the third round of the Target Newspapers Challenge Cup with a 3-1 home win over Old Doningtonians. Pete Coonan grabbed two of the Fishtoft goals while Gareth Follows completed the scoring. Steve Burdall replied for Old Dons. Fosdyke finally overcame a battling Mareham United side at home but it took a stirring second half display to put them through. Fosdyke had to come back twice during an evenly matched first half which ended 2-2. Striker Andy Brown had kept Fosdyke in the tie with his two first half strikes before the home side blitzed their opponents with a three-goal blast inside five minutes. Dean Fisher then made it 6-2 with the goal of the match. He ran 30 yards before unleashing a rasping drive that flew into the top right hand corner. Dave Whalley completed the scoring with his second goal of the game when he powered home a fine header to make the final score 7-2. Andy Brown hit the other two goals in the second half to bring his personal tally to four. Black Bull United went out of the competition when they visited Freiston where a Dean Seiner hat-trick sealed their fate in a 4-1 scoreline. The home side went ahead in the second minute through Seiner and five minutes later the striker was on target again. Black Bull got back into the game when they reduced the arrears 10 minutes before the break. Seiner completed his hat-trick shortly after the restart to make it 3-1 and although the visitors defended solidly they were powerless to stop Peter Lovelace completing the scoring on seventy minutes. Referee, T Horton had a comfortable game in controlling two sporting sides. Friskney went agonisingly close to causing an upset before going out at home to Kirton Town after extra time. Friskney were seconds away from victory before Kirton grabbed a last-gasp leveller with the last kick of the game to take the tie into extra time. Daniel Fletcher had given Friskney a first half lead before Town equalised after the break through a Adrian Dobriansky strike. Friskney then appeared to have scored the crucial winning goal with three minutes remaining when Perrie Dale popped up to make it 2-1 before the visitors responded with that late, late goal when Chris Hilton, who was returning from injury, thundered home a tremendous shot from thirty yards. Although Friskney missed a penalty when Daniel Redford failed form his spot-kick Kirton stepped up a gear in the latter stages of extra time to run out 4-2 winners as first, a goalmouth scramble forced a Friskney defender into putting the ball into his own net and then Mick Goddard sealed victory with the fourth and final goal. Old Leake eventually saw off the challenge of Holbeach Bank at their Community Centre ground but it required extra time to finish the job. Old Leake started well and they had their opponents back-pedalling but the visitors hit back to take the lead midway through the first period. The home side kept pressing and were rewarded with an equaliser when a Bank defender put the ball past his own keeper following a corner. The second half was a very even affair until The Holbeach side were reduced to ten men when a player was dismissed for a handball offence on the goal-line and Adam Sinclair converted the resultant spot-kick. The Bank kept battling away with their 10 men and they managed to force an equaliser following a long ball which was only half cleared to a lurking striker who despatched the loose ball into an empty net to make the full time score 2-2. Leake finally made their extra man advantage count when they snatched a winner with seven minutes remaining when Ben Jacques slippedthe ball past the advancing keeper. It was a cruel blow to the visitors in a game which neither side desreved to lose. Referee Ray Larcombe had a good game in the middle. Final score was 3-2. Park Road Old Boys squeezed past Nortoft United with a 2-1 home win. Paul Colton scored for Park Road in a first half before Chris Massingham levelled the tie to make the half time score 1-1. Craig Andrews grabbed the decisive winning goal after the break. Two goals from Carl Wilson secured a place in the next round for Third Division Skegness Working Men’s Club when they caused a minor upset by eliminating Spalding Harriers from Division Two. Wilson’s double strike was enough to see off the challenge of The Spalding side in a 2-1 scoreline.

A Neil Wheatley hat-trick helped Westside Rangers to a convincing 6-2 Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division home win against Coningsby. Will Scott grabbed two goals while DJ Wright weighed in with the other. This was Rangers first win of the season after their previous lone victory against Gedney was made null and void after their opponents withdrew from The League.

In the only Division One game Swineshead Reserves enjoyed a profitable away day at Coningsby Reserves following a 4-1 victory. Robert Snaith was on target twice for the visitors while Nathan Stainfiled and Harry Houghton also got on the scoresheet. Jonathan Hall replied for Coningsby. The home side never recovered from a disastrous first half which saw them trailing 3-0 at the interval.

Lee Hoff grabbed a hat-trick in Freiston Reserves’ Division Three 7-3 away win at Park United. Dave Robinson and Stuart Messenger both grabbed two goals apiece for Freiston while Park replied through John Milne, Steffan Lovell and Tom Waterson. There was another big away win at Rosebery Avenue where Wyberton Reserves hit West End Tigers Reserves for six. Neil Featherstone continued his rich vein of scoring with another four-goal haul while Jamie Button hit the other two goals for Wyberton who remain at the top of the table. Billinghay Athletic Reserves came out on top of their local derby encounter against Mareham United Reserves with a 4-1 home win. Rick Harrod was on the mark twice while Simon Creasey and Scott Wells completed the scoring.

For November 10

West End Tigers and Wyberton progressed through to the next round of the Lincolnshire Junior Cup thanks to home victories. West End Tigers entertained Scotter United at Rosebery Avenue where both sides produced a closely fought encounter. It needed just a single goal to put the Boston side through and it was Ben Parkinson who was the Tigers’ saviour when he popped up with a superb match-winning effort. The Scunthorpe side put West End under severe pressure in the first 15 minutes but the Boston side stood firm. Slowly the Tigers got back into the game and their midfield regained control in the second half and they were rewarded with Parkinson’s peach 20 minutes from time. Final score was 1-0. Wyberton hit six in their home tie against fellow-Boston League side Westside Rangers. Michael Gardner and Gavin Marshall both grabbed two goals apiece while Chris Rutt and Dan White found the net for the home side.

Skegness Town Reserves heaped more misery on Coningsby when they returned home to the East Coast with all three Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division points following a 2-0 away win. Town’s scorers were John Jeffery and Andy Reeson.

North Sea United remain top of the Division One table following a convincing 5-2 win at The Camp against Kirton Town. The prison side held a 3-1 lead at the halfway stage and two further goals after the break finished off the visitors. North Sea’s goals came from Stuart Kane 2, Dave Noel, Rob Masters and Ben Daws. It was North Sea who opened the scoring with a wind-assisted corner kick that found its way into the top corner. Kirton equalised through Martin Durrant and they began to get a hold on the game. Two more errors from Kirton however allowed North Sea to go 3-1 up at half-time. North Sea scored a well-worked goal after the break to make it four but Kirton got one back from Lucas Gierejwicz. Kirton as in previous games had chances to score but could not find the killer touch. It was then down to North Sea to seal the match with a fifth goal. Spalding Town and Coningsby Reserves shared the points in a 1-1 draw. Leigh Boekestyn grabbed Town’s goal. Spilsby Town Reserves came away with maximum points when they travelled to Fishtoft last Saturday. The visitors started well and Joe Turner had a shot cleared off the line while at the other end Ady Almond struck the crossbar for Fishtoft on the half hour mark. Spilsby opened the scoring five minutes before the break when Eddie Rich’s through ball found Eddie Hodgson who chipped a delightful shot over the stranded keeper and into the net. In the second half both keepers were called into action as play flowed from end to end before Town increased their lead on the hour mark when Matt Barker’s pass resulted in a mix-up in the Fishtoft defence and Liam Papworth pounced to score easily. Ady Almond also hit the post for Fishtoft while Dan Fox and Glenn Hislop missed good chances for Spilsby. Final score 2-0. If they had converted all their chances Freiston would have won by a more comfortable margin than the 2-1 scoreline against a battling Swineshead Reserves at the Danny Flear Centre. The home side missed a penalty after 10 minutes although it was a fine finger-tipped save from the visiting keeper which kept the scores level. The keeper was finally beaten after twenty five minutes when Aston Chase's shot took a fortunate deflection to beat the wrong-footed keeper. Swineshead drew level just before the break when some quick thinking at a free-kick situation caught Freiston off guard to bring the scores level at the interval, Alex Kirkham netting the leveller. With the brisk wind in their favour, Freiston battered The Swineshead defence but the woodwork got in the way no less than four times before Danny Warren lashed home Jamie Skinners' cross after 70 minutes to give Freiston victory. Swineshead responded well and they were unlucky not have equalised when, following a goalmouth scramble, the ball struck the crossbar before dropping into the arms of a grateful keeper. Final score was 2-1.

Fosdyke held the upper hand at the half-way stage of their Division Two home match against local rivals Sutterton after Andy Brown had fired them into a slender half time lead. Fosdyke should have converted several other opportunities but the chances went begging and the costly misses came back to haunt them in the second half. Sutterton showed their opponents how to stick their chances away after half time with three crucial strikes to run out 3-1 winners. Park Road Old Boys were triumphant in the local derby encounter at home to Spalding Harriers. Paul Colton led the way with the opening goal and Gary Booth increased their lead. Further goals from Mark Jesson and Ash Allen gave Park Road a 4-2 half-time lead. There was only one further score in the second half and that came from Danby who wrapped up the scoring to make the final outcome 5-2. Wainfleet United lost their first game of the season when they entertained the division’s form team, Woodhall Spa United. After falling behind Wainfleet levelled the scores when Lee Johnson was on target. Woodhall stepped up the pace after the break and they took the honours with two more goals to run out 3-1 winners. Kirton Town Reserves continue to find the going tough when they were the visitors to Nortoft United. The hapless visitors conceded double figures to a rampant Nortoft side and remain firmly rooted at the bottom of the table. Chris Massingham got his side's scoreboard rolling when he opened the scoring following a through ball from Christian Parker. Two penalties then gave Massingham his chance to claim a first half hat-trick and the deadly finisher made no mistake to put his side 3-0 ahead. Massingham wasn’t finished there, however, as he completed a one-man first half show to score twice more. The second half followed a similar pattern with the magical Massingham netting three more times to finish with a personal tally of eight goals. Anthony Tiffen’s cleverly flighted lob and a tap-in put Nortoft 10-0 in front before Kirton replied with a consolation goal following a strike from the edge of the box. Danny Clayton wrapped up the scoring with the final goal from aTom Sansam corner. Final score was 11-1. A poor first half display from Wrangle United Reserves saw them trailing 2-0 late into the first half of their home game against Mareham United. A goal just before the break got Wrangle back into the game and this boost got the show on the road for the second half. Two further goals left Mareham reeling as Wrangle stormed into a 3-2 lead but the visitors fought back to level the scores. With the threat of losing their 100 percent record hanging in the balance the home side finally woke up to produce a blistering spell scoring three times without reply to end up 6-3 winners. Shane Brackenbury grabbed two of the Wrangle goals, one of which was a stunning effort from 30 yards out, while the other goals came from Tim Bell, Liam Shinn, Daniel Rowe and Nicky Spiller.

The big match of the day in Division Three took place at Skegness Working Men’s Club where Wyberton Reserves came out on top of the clash of the leading two sides. The two sides served up a superb encounter that was a credit to the division and a single Neil Featherstone strike was enough to earn Wyberton their victory and subject the Skegness side to relinquish their 100 percent record. The Wyberton striker’s goal came with just fifteen minutes remaining and although the home side struck the crossbar they couldn’t get back on level terms. Wyberton were forced into an early change when they lost their keeper through injury and Jason Skinner had to don the jersey and gloves. They also lost Josh Allen in the second half. Final score was 1-0. Friskney held West End Tigers to a 1-1 draw at home thanks to a second half equaliser from Perrie Dale. The Tigers had taken a first half lead when they capitalised on a mix-up in the home defence when a defender and goalkeeper made a hash of dealing with a through ball and a grateful Nicky De Vries netted easily. Spalding Town Harriers Reserves and Spalding Town Reserves shared the points in their local derby encounter. Kevin Nottingham and James Langford scored the goals to earn The Harriers their point in a 2-2 draw. Mareham United Reserves striker, James Todd, rolled back the years by plundering a fine hat-trick to prove he has lost none of his predatory instinct in front of goal. Damian Kerr-Robinson also got on the scoresheet in a 4-1 home win against Fishtoft Reserves. The visitors replied through Damian Pugh. Westside Rangers took all three points when they played hosts to Fishtoft Reserves following a narrow 2-1 win. Jason James and Matt Lee were on target for Westside while Lee Hoff replied for Freiston.

For November 3

Wrangle United Reserves caused the only upset in the Main Ridge Take Away Reserve Cup on Saturday when they defeated Spilsby Town Reserves at home. The underdogs wasted no time in showing their intentions as they stormed into a two-goal lead courtesy of a strike outside the box from Tim Bell and then Nicky Spiller punished the visitors after he found acres of space in the box before finishing in style. Spilsby fought back to level the scores through two needless penalty awards which were both converted by Eddie Rich before Wrangle edged back in front just before the break when a Dion Roberts corner was headed into his own net by a despairing defender. Wrangle increased their lead in the second half when Liam Shinn nipped in to pounce on a loose ball before rounding the keeper and netting to make it 4-2. Amazingly Spilsby were awarded their third penalty following Shane Elding’s rash challenge on Joey Scarborough only this time stand-in keeper, Darryl Bray, deputising for the unavailable Gary Rivett, made a fine save. Unfortunately for the keeper his excellent parry rebounded to Scarborough and he made no mistake from the rebound to set up a tense finish to the tie but Wrangle held on to go through to the next round. Final score was 4-3. Freiston Reserves and Westside Rangers Reserves, both newcomers to the League, faced each other at the Danny Flear Centre and it was the home side that came out on top following a 4-2 victory. The all-important goals came from Dave Robinson, Stewart Messenger, Lee Hoff and Steve Woodcock. One of the biggest scorelines came at Billinghay Athletic Reserves where the home side defeated Spalding Town Reserves 8-2. The home side’s match-winners were Adam Brett and Joe Carr who both claimed hat-tricks while the other scorers were Mike Rowett and Simon Creasey. The exact same scoreline occurred at Swineshead Reserves where the Division One side dumped Third Division outfit Old Doningtonians Reserves out of the competition. Harry Houghton (3), Scott Williams (2), Andy Thompson, Alex Marshall and Richard Barker were all on the scoresheet in their 8-2 victory. Old Dons replied through Giles Favell and George Skafidas. In a cracking tie at Rosebery Avenue, two of the top sides from Division Three, West End Tigers Reserves and Wyberton Reserves provided a well contested affair. West End opened the scoring when Nicky De Vries beat the offside trap to score his fifth goal in four games before Wyberton equalised through Jamie Button who netted when a free kick was deflected into his path to make the half time score 1-1. Steve Favell restored the Tigers lead in the second half when he burst clear to score and Dale Houghton wrapped up the tie with a third when he stroked the ball home following Martin Jolly’s knock down. West End’s Manager, Neil Hardstaff will be a happier man this week following his team’s poor showing in their previous outing. Mareham United Reserves produced a hard working team performance to go through to the next round following their fine 3-1 away win at Spalding Harriers Reserves. The Spalding goal came from Dave Kantak but it wasn’t enough to prevent Mareham from progressing in the competition. Coningsby Reserves needed just one goal at Fishtoft Reserves to secure their place in the next round.

Swineshead minus five players from the previous week due to injuries and suspension were always going to be up against it when they travelled to Skegness Town Reserves for a Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division match. The signs didn’t look good for the visitors when Town took the lead after 20 minutes when Sean Chamberlain collected a flick on before finishing with an excellent strike from fifteen yards. Swineshead didn’t liven up until the final twenty minutes when they created a few openings but the home side hung on for the three points. Final score was 1-0. Wrangle United earned a creditable 1-1 draw away at Spilsby Town thanks to a Jimmy Britton strike. Gary McGilloway had given Town a slender half time lead before Britton saved the day in the second half. A West End Tigers side missing several key players travelled to Coningsby with Manager, Koran Darrigan as one of the substitutes. The visitors started poorly and soon found themselves trailing to the opening goal. Although Paul Vaughan levelled with a superbly struck free kick The Tigers continued in a charitable mood gifting their opponents with two more goals before the break. It wasn’t until the final twenty minutes that the visitors finally found their feet and they reduced the arrears with five minutes to go when Nathan Padley rifled home a 30-yard screamer. The match entered added time with The Tigers throwing everything at Coningsby and right at the death a defender handled the ball in the box leaving Paul Vaughan to send the keeper the wrong way to snatch a point. Coningsby went close to grabbing their first win of the season following goals from Richard Gimshaw-Else who netted twice and Graham McMahon. Final score was 3-3.

In Cropleys Suzuki Division One, there was big shock at North Sea Camp where the Prison side enjoyed a convincing 7-0 victory against one of the favourites for promotion, Freiston. The Camp’s surprise victory was gained following strikes from Jay Narjee (2), David Noel (2), Tom Briggs, Rob Masters and Stuart Kane.

As expected the Camp’s supporters turned out in force to turn up the heat on the visitors who struggled to protect their previously unbeaten run in a physical encounter. Freiston’s cause wasn’t helped by an early enforced defensive change when a defender had to leave the action with abdominal pains. Freiston failed to cope with the Camp’s speedy attack and they conceded two goals before the break. Things got worse for the leaders after the break when defender, Ashley Morrell was adjudged to have deliberately handled a shot and was dismissed by referee Tim Cowdell. The ensuing penalty was converted to make the score 3-0 and North Sea never looked back after that as they plundered four more goals to run out 7-0 winners. Old Leake and Fishtoft shared the honours following a 2-2 draw. Chris Mitchell and Adam Tempest scored the Old Leake goals while Ady Almond and Michael Lomax salvaged a point for the visitors.

Wainfleet United continued their excellent form in Cropleys Suzuki Division Two with a thumping 8-2 away win against Kirton Town Reserves at Graves Park.. Lee Johnson was again in top form scoring four of his side’s goals while Rob Jackson struck twice. The other goals came from Royston Wilkinson and Mark Lyon. The visitors scored first but Kirton replied through Martin Durrant. Unfortunately for Town Wainfleet netted another to leave the half time score 2-1. Kirton suffered a mad 10 minutes after the break when they conceded three goals in rapid succession. Richard Borrill scored again for the home side to make the score 5-2 before Wainfleet added another three goals to run out 8-2 winners. Nortoft United had the difficult task of travelling to in-form Woodhall Spa United and the visitors will be more than pleased with their hard earned point following a 1-1 draw. Woodhall dominated the first period as Nortoft struggled to find their rhythm but they managed to keep their opponents at bay in a goal-less first half. Nortoft improved after the break and they rocked their the home side with the opening goal when Anthony Tiffen chased a ball down the flank before cutting in and scoring from an acute angle. Woodhall finally levelled the scores when Andrew Money chipped a delightful shot over the keeper to salavge a point for his side. Final score 1-1. Despite making a positive start in their home fixture against Spalding Harriers, Sutterton were soon reeling when two defensive errors saw the home side trailing 2-0 after 30 minutes. The home side created several chances but found The Spalding keeper in fine form. Sutterton finally found a way through five minutes before the break when the visitors failed to deal with a routine ball into the box and Steve Kerslake was on hand to find the net from five yards out. The second half was a much more evenly contested affair as both sets of forwards found their opposing defensive back-lines difficult to breach. Sutterton eventually drew level after seventy minutes when Carl Duncan was deemed to have been pushed in the box and the deadly Gavin Rhodes made no mistake from the spot. Final score was 2-2.

For October 27

With no matches in the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division, attention turned to cup action in the Fishtoft Cup and previous round giant-killers Old Doningtonians, having beaten Wyberton gained another Premier Division scalp with a 3-2 victory against Westside Rangers. The tie was due to be played at Middlecott School, Kirton. But with the Westside Rangers Reserves at home in Division Three, it was switched to Donington. David Slaughter put Old Dons in front and after an equaliser from Westside Rangers, Chris Wing restored their lead from the penalty spot. After another equaliser from the Premier Division side Martin Fox scored the winner with five minutes to go. Freiston had been giant-killers in the previous round but, despite battling hard and creating chances they lost 1-0 at home to Swineshead Institute whose winner was scored as early as the seventh minute when Paul Clarke was on target following a run from out on the right flank. Swineshead were forced to re-shuffle their defensive ranks after Steve Graham had to leave the action with a back injury. Another enforced change was necessary early in the second half when striker Richard Stukins suffered a foot injury. Luckily for Swineshead, both substitutes Martin North and Bert Snaith excelled in their roles to help their side through to the next round. Freiston thought they had equalised after 20 minutes but Dean Seiner’s header was ruled out for offside. The underdogs also had a decent shout for a penalty turned down just before the break when Jamie Skinner was felled in the box but the referee waved play on. Billinghay Athletic will be Old Doningtonians opponents in the semi-finals after beating Coningsby 5-1 at home. Playing against his old team John McCluskie scored twice and goals from Pete Dickinson, Stephen Miles and Lee Marshall completed the home teams scoring. Swineshead Institute will play Skegness Town Reserves in the other Semi-Final after The Lilywhites stiffs beat Kirton Town 4-0 at Graves Park.

Spilsby Town Reserves remain at the top of Cropleys Suzuki Division One but dropped two points at home when they were held 1-1 by Swineshead Institute Reserves. Pete Sampson scored for the home side following a corner – his overhead kick finding the net after a frantic goalmouth scramble. Harry Houghton replied for the visitors and although both sides had their chances to win the game the match finished all-square.Town were fortunate that goalkeeper, Mike Emery enjoyed an inspired match. In no less than five times during the first half the in-form keeper came out on top when faced with one-on-ones as Swineshead’s strikers burst clean through. North Sea United moved into third place with a 3-1 victory against Holbeach Bank with Rob Masters getting on the score sheet again. Fishtoft secured their first win of the season with a fine 4-2 victory away from home at Spalding Town. Tom Cherry scored twice for the home team but it wasn’t enough to stop Fishtoft from securing their first maximum points following goals from Ady Almond (2), Danny Keal and Jake Louth.

Cropleys Suzuki Division Two leaders Wrangle United Reserves were without a fixture and Wainfleet United went level on points with a 2-1 victory at home against third placed Spalding Harriers with Lee Johnson scoring both goals for the home team. Woodhall Spa United are fourth and had a good 5-0 win away at Fosdyke. The home side hit the bar and had several goalline clearances and regretted those missed chances with the away team scoring five times without reply. In fifth place are Park Road Old Boys. They entertained Kirton Town Reserves and it was a game of two halves. The travelling team held their own in this high scoring fixture with a 4-4 score at half time but the second half belonged to the home team who scored six without reply to run out 10-4 winners with Paul Colton scoring 4, Ashley Allen and Tim Gilbert scoring two apiece and Liam Dave and Mark Williams completing the scoreline for the Old Boys. Kirton scorers were Sean Baxter, Paul Barker and two from Adrian Dobriansky. Nortoft United are in sixth place with a narrow 1-0 home win against Tydd St.Mary with Dominic Cridland scoring the winner. Nortoft, full of confidence following their first win of the season the previous week, never looked in any danger as they controlled the game throughout despite only having one goal to show for their superiority. Countless chances were squandered before they finally broke the deadlock with just five minutes remaining when Cridland converted from the penalty spot. Nortoft’s second victory was mainly due to their inspirational midfield who proved to be the springboard of all their worthwhile attacks while supporting their back four when under pressure. Referee T Basker had a fine game in the middle. Black Bull United had a fine 7-2 win away to Mareham United for whom Tom Sewell and Jamie Lewis scored the consolation goals. Black Bull’s match-winners were Jon Lamyman (2), Gary Ling (2), Andrew McGuire, Paul Sims and Michael Hill.

Both Wyberton Reserves and Skegness Working Men’s Club maintained their 100 percent records in Cropleys Suzuki Division Three. These teams meet in their next league fixture on November 10 in Skegness and that will be an interesting encounter. Wyberton Reserves remain top on goal difference with a fine 7-2 victory at bottom team Fishtoft Reserves. Neil Featherstone followed up his three-goal haul in their previous weeks 3-0 win against Friskney with another two goals while Jason Sullivan grabbed a hat-trick this time round. Jamie Button and Jason Allen completed the scoring for Wyberton. Fishtoft replied through Tom Adams and an own goal. In their first season in the league, Skegness Working Mens Club remain unbeaten with a 5-1 victory at home to third placed Freiston Reserves. Two strikes apiece for Carl Wilson and Jason Bond were added to the goal by Chris O’Connor. Freiston Reserves hit back with a goal from Gary Hoyles. Friskney are in fifth place and they had to come from behind to Spalding Town Reserves who lead 1-0 at half-time but a brace from Kevin Hancock secured the points for the home team. Westside Rangers Reserves beat Mareham United Reserves 1-0 and moved into seventh place. Spalding Harriers Reserves beat Park United 2-0 at home with goals from David Kantak and Andrius Fomkinas and are in eighth place.

For October 20

Currently reserve teams top three of the divisions in the Boston League. Spilsby Town Reserves lead in Division One, Wrangle United Reserves lead the way in Division Two and Wyberton Reserves lead, albeit only on goal difference at the top of Division Three. Wyberton complete a 100 percent double with their first team at the top of the Premier Division with neither side dropping a point yet.

In the Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division Wyberton maintained their 100 percent record with a 2-0 win at Westside Rangers. In second place are Spilsby Town who thumped Coningsby 8-0 with regular scorer Jordan Wood getting a brace and Gary McGilloway, Dean Heard and Viv Jeffery getting among the other scorers. Elsewhere there were tight games at Billinghay Athletic where the visitors Skegness Town Reserves went away with the points having won 3-2 and at Wrangle United where there was a similar outcome. The visitors West End Tigers took the points 3-2 with a brace from another regular scorer Luke Brittain with Paul Chester adding the third. Let us hope that the pitch on Wrangle playing field is still available for many years to come, but it must be worrying seeing extraordinary meetings being called to discuss its future.

In Division One Spilsby Town Reserves set the pace. Having been at the wrong end of the table for much of last season there has been a big improvement. Their nearest rivals Freiston were without a league game so with a 1-0 victory at Old Doningtonians they went two points clear at the top. The winner came after the home side’s goalkeeper slipped and left an unguarded net. Third placed are Coningsby Reserves where another regular scorer Richard Grimshaw-Else added one in their 2-0 victory at home to Kirton Town. Karl Brown added the second goal. North Sea United lost at home to Spalding Town. Another regular scorer Rob Masters added a goal to the one scored by Stuart Cain for the Camp but that wasn’t enough to stop Spalding Town going home with all three points having won 4-2 with two goals from Ian Tomblin and one apiece from Robert Dempsey and James Thorold. Fishtoft remain bottom of the table but secured a point in a 1-1 home draw with Swineshead Institute Reserves

In Division Two we have two teams with 100 percent records. Wainfleet United didn’t play but Wrangle United Reserves maintained their place at the top with a 4-2 victory at Black Bull United. Andrew McGuire and Gary Ling had scored for the home team. Third placed are Spalding Harriers who thumped Fosdyke 7-0 who swapped places in the table. Among the Spalding Harriers’ goalscorers were Rafal Hebda and Stephen Carn. Sutterton secured a good win at home to their near neighbours Kirton Town Reserves. Steven Kerslake with two, added to goals by Carl Duncan, Newark and Rose from the penalty spot and Sutterton ran out 5-2 winners. Nortoft United beat Park Road Old Boys 3-2. Tydd St Mary got back to winning ways after a poor start to the season with a 5-1 home win against Mareham United. The Saints had much of the opening play but it was Mareham United that took the lead after 15 minutes. A searching ball through the heart of the Tydd St Mary defence found the Mareham United forward in space and, one-on-one with Tydd keeper Steve Wright, he picked his spot and slotted home to make it 1-0. Tydd pressured and some good approach work saw, Man of the Match, Richard Smith wallop in from 10 yards to even the scores. Both teams cancelled each other out, Gary Drake went close for Tydd with a rasping effort, Wright had to dive down to his left to keep out a Mareham effort but it remained even up to the break. Some harsh words were said at half time by Tydd manager Scott Bird and it had the desired effect. The Saints raised their game for the second half and began to direct the play with Smith and Joe Lucas influential in midfield. With the game heading for a draw Tydd made two significant substitutions with 20 minutes to play, bringing on Phil Elderfield and Jake Ansell. Elderfield made an astounding contribution with two goals, one of which was an unstoppable 20-yard volley, and an assist for Smith to score his second. Ansell weighed in with a goal of his own too, to make a final score of 5-1.

In Division Three we also have two teams with 100 percent records. New boys Skegness Working Men’s Club didn’t have a fixture but Wyberton Reserves beat Friskney 3-0 at home with a hat-trick from Neil Featherstone so it’s seven out of seven for Wyberton Reserves. Freiston Reserves lead the chasing pack but are already eight points adrift of the leading two and a 1-1 draw at home to Old Doningtonians Reserves didn’t help them close the gap. West End Tigers Reserves come next in the table and they won 1-0 at home to Fishtoft Reserves. Mareham United Reserves secured three points at Park United winning 3-2 and are now on the cusp of the top half of the table, which is a vast improvement on recent seasons. A John Turner goal was enough for Spalding Town Reserves to secure all three points at home to Billinghay Athletic Reserves.

For October 13

North Sea United and Old Leake shared the points in a 1-1 Cropleys Suzuki Division One draw down at the Camp. Stewart Kane scored the goal for the prison side. Kane’s strike gave The Camp a slender 1-0 half time lead and it looked like being enough to take the honours until Old Leake struck with a last-gasp equaliser from Adam Tempest. The top of the table clash between Freiston and Spilsby Town Reserves finished all square following a 1-1 scoreline at the Danny Flear Playing Fields. The home side started well enough and were dominating the midfield area but Spilsby’s resolute defence denied their opponents any real clear cut openings. Spilsby took the lead on the half hour mark when Ed Hodgson broke down the right flank and found Eddie Rich who, in turn set up Joey Scarborough, returning from a lengthy knee injury, and the grateful Town player finished in style by driving the ball past the keeper’s outstretched right hand. Freiston got back on level terms ten minutes into the second half when Dean Seiner’s deflected shot beat the keeper. Both sides went close to snatching victory but saw efforts come back off the uprights. There was another draw at Old Doningtonians where visitors, Coningsby Reserves returned home with a point after a thrilling 3-3 draw. Chris Wing scored two of the home side’s goals while Steve Burdall also got on the scoresheet. Old Dons also looked like taking the three points but after leading 3-1 Coningsby hauled themselves back into the game with their second goal and finally levelled the scores with an 89th minute equaliser. Spalding Town striker, Paul Ryan grabbed two more goals for his side when they entertained Kirton Town but it wasn’t enough as the visitors took maximum points following a 4-2 away win. It was Kirton who started well and went ahead through an excellent Martin Durrant shot that flew past the keeper after a slick move. Kirton then went two up through Karl Louth who used his pace to overcome the Spalding defence before drilling his shot home. Spalding hit back and equalised due to a Kirton error but the goal was an excellent effort from outside the box from Ryan. After half time Kirton could not find their feet and they conceded another Spalding goal from Ryan. It was only due to a tactical change from Kirton’s manager that turned the game. He introduced teenage striker Kyle Bates to the action and the lively forward scored a great goal within 60 seconds of him entering the action. Kirton then went further ahead and sealed the game with an unconventional strike from Micky Goddard.

Wrangle United Reserves kept their 100 percent Division Two record intact but were pushed all the way at home by a hard working Sutterton side. Wrangle forced the pace early on and were rewarded when Shane Brackenbury burst through after 30 minutes before slipping the ball past the advancing keeper. Sutterton responded well and were level within two minutes when a deep cross from new signing Ashley Hughes was slammed home at the far post by Steve Kerslake. In the second half Wrangle regained the lead when Liam Shinn’s bullet-like header flew past the keeper following a corner. The home side went further ahead when Dion Roberts produced a clever finish before Sutterton pulled a goal back on seventy minutes when Jess Povey netted following good work from Gavin Rhodes and Steve Kerslake. This made for a tense finish as Sutterton threw men forward but Wrangle’s rearguard stood firm to hold onto the three points. Final score was 3-2. Wainfleet United also continue to look impressive at the top of Division Two with a 7-2 home win against Black Bull United. Royston Wilkinson was Wainfleet’s danger-man scoring four of his side’s goals while fellow striker, Lee Johnson scored twice. Matt Broome was also on target for the home side. Another in-form team, Woodhall Spa United, also hit seven goals when they played hosts to Tydd St Mary. An Andy Money hat-trick put the skids under Tydd while Dave Melia and Wayne Biggadyke both weighed in with a brace of goals. Final score was 7-0.

Skegness Working Men’s Club’s Gordon Drake was back on the goal trail with both of his side’s goals in a 2-0 Division Three home win against Billinghay Athletic Reserves. The East Coast side remain firmly on top of the table with sevens wins out of seven. Wyberton Reserves remain hot on the heels of the leaders after they extended their 100 percent record following a 4-1 home win against Old Doningtonians Reserves. Neil Featherstone struck twice for Wyberton while Jamie Button and Jason Sullivan completed the scoring. Wyberton have now won six out of six. Old Dons’ goal came from Giles Favell. Spalding Harriers recorded their second win of the season when they thumped Fishtoft Reserves 5-1 at home. Ben Pell and Kevin Nottingham both scored twice for the Spalding side while David Kentak grabbed the other goal. Wayne Keal replied for Fishtoft. Two of the new sides, West End Tigers Reserves and Westside Rangers Reserves faced each other at Rosebery Avenue. It was Westside who struck first as they stormed into a two-goal lead with goals from Jason James and James Pearson. Rangers undid their good work by presenting the Tigers with two goals following defensive blunders to bring the scores all square at the interval. West End then went in front after the break for the first time before Rangers went agonisingly close to levelling the scores almost immediately but Jon East’s effort came back off the crossbar. The Tigers looked home and dry with a fourth goal but Jon East finally found the net to provide an exciting finish but West End hung on to the three points. Final score was 4-3. Friskney piled on more agony for Park United when they entertained the basement side. Park could only field nine players including two who were signed on the day of the match. Perrie Dale, Joe Pitcher and Sam Hill all grabbed two goals apiece in Friskney’s 8-0 home win. Neil Allen and Kevin Hancock were also on target. Park United Secretary, Fred Hunt will be pulling out all the stops in the coming weeks in an attempt to attract a few more players to the club to keep the side club going in Division Three..

Nortoft United hosted Ruston United in the Mason Bros Lincolnshire Junior Cup and the Division Two side produced a battling performance before going out of the competition to a goal five minutes from time. The game started on an even keel with both sides competing for superiority in midfield. Ruston struck first when they took the lead following a one-on-one finish. Shortly afterwards, Nortoft were awarded a free kick on the edge of the 18-yard box and Dean Stevens calmly side-footed a well placed shot beyond the keeper and into the bottom corner. The same player had a golden chance five minutes later when he burst clear but a slight indecision at the last minute robbed him of a goal as his effort went wide of the goal. Ruston then struck a cruel blow with just five minutes remaining when a header found the net. Referee Dave Bent enjoyed a fine game in the middle. Spilsby Town crashed out of the competition after extra time when visitors, Scotter United spoilt the party. Rob Marsden and Gary McGilloway struck the goals for Town in normal time but the home side couldn’t finish off their opponents and they were eliminated 4-2.

Players plea: Park United are seeking any enthusiastic footballers who think they can compete in Division Three of the Boston Saturday Football League. Should anyone be interested in playing for the club, they can contact Fred or Darren Hunt on (01205) 480312.

For October 6

There were no Premier Division games last weekend and very few either in Divisions One and Two owing to the Eleys Sports Cup taking centre stage. There were also no major cup upsets although Woodhall Spa United enjoyed a good away win at Fishtoft as the Division Two side blew away the Division One outfit 4-1. Jake Louth scored Fishtoft’s lone goal but it wasn’t enough to trouble the visitors who ran out comfortable winners. Wainfleet United, currently flying high in Division Two, must have thought they had a chance of causing some sort of an upset when they entertained Wyberton but the Premier leaders soon dismissed their opponents challenge with a thumping 7-0 away win. Sam Louth struck twice for Wyberton while the other goals came from Chris Rutt, Jordan Dixon, Dan White, Michael Gardner and Joe Beard. Holbeach Bank gave Wrangle United a fright before going out of the competition by the narrow margin of 6-4. The Bank struck first before Wrangle then stepped up a gear to lead 3-1 and the visitors remained in front although their opponents were always in the game until the final whistle. Mark Casey and James Ocock both grabbed double strikes the for Holbeach side. Although Friskney conceded 10 goals when they played hosts to a rampant Freiston side, the young home outfit made their opponents work hard for their goals. The visitors were soon four goals ahead with strikes from Dean Seiner, Ty Fravigar and a brace from Jamie Skinner before Friskney fought back and they created a few chances of their own but failed to find the net. The youngsters tired a little after the break and Freiston gained some valuable shooting practice with further goals from Aston Chase, Gary Frost, Dean Seiner and three more from Jamie Skinner to bring his personal tally to five. Friskney Secretary, Pete Holland took control of the whistle owing to a shortage of a match official and he did an admirable job in the middle. Goals from Jon Lanyman and Andy McGuire secured Black Bull United’s place in the next round following their 2-0 away win at Spalding Town. Division Two outfit Nortoft United were struck down with injury and illness before their difficult tie at Premier side Coningsby but they managed to scrape together 11 players, including several players making their first starts of the season. Nortoft started brightly enough and they created three decent chances in the opening ten minutes before Coningsby got off the mark midway through the first period. There was no way back for the underdogs after that and they conceded goals at regular intervals to go crashing out of the competition. Lee Croft hit an amazing double hat-trick while Karl Stinchcomb scored the other goal in an emphatic 7-0 win. Chris Wing scored twice for Old Doningtonians in their 3-1 home win against Sutterton. Jamie Welsh also got on the scoresheet. Park Road Old Boys were narrowly defeated at home by Kirton Town in a 2-1 scoreline. It was Park Road who started well and looked the more likely to score as Kirton struggled to find their rhythm. It was indeed the home side who struck first to give themselves a slender interval lead. After the break the game became very competitive with both sides getting frustrated and overheated. It was only when Kirton were reduced to 10 men when striker Richard Borrill was sent off that Town buckled down and improved their performance. The visitors levelled the tie through Martin Durrant and with time running out Kirton were awarded a penalty for a tackle on Cliff Langham. Micky Goddard converted the spot kick successfully to edge Town through to the next round. An Andy Brown first half hat-trick set Fosdyke on their way to victory against a stubborn Park United side before an injury to Fosdyke keeper Tony Bierton meant Wayne Ash had to pull on the gloves for his team. Unfortunately for the stand-in keeper one of his first tasks was to pick the ball out of the net when Park fired home following a corner. Fosdyke cranked up a gear, however, and Matt Wright, who had earlier missed a couple of first half chances, netted himself a hat-trick inside twenty minutes. Dave Whalley capped a fine personal performance with the seventh goal to make the final score 7-1. Division Two side Tydd St Mary put up a spirited display against Swineshead and only a single Matt Bates goal separated the two sides at the break. Bates scored after twenty minutes with a far post header from a Nathan Stainfield cross. Swineshead pegged Tydd back for most of the second half and Richard Stukins made it 2-0 after 68 minutes with a powerful shot through a crowded goalmouth. An unfortunate own goal sealed victory for the visitors when a defender, whilst under pressure, deflected a header past the keeper. The score could have been greater but for Tydd’s keeper and the woodwork. Final score was 3-0. It was a sad day for all concerned at Old Leake Football Club due to the sudden death of vice-chairman, Ray Wagstaff. He had been involved with the club for the last twenty years as a player, manager and more recently vice-chairman and will be sadly missed. There was a minute’s silence before the cup-tie as Old Leake had the difficult task of causing an upset at Westside Rangers, from the Premier Division. Although they scored twice through Adam Sinclair and Bowie Houston there was no cup shock as the home side ran out 4-2 winners. Rangers made the first breakthrough when a slick passing move ended with DJ Wright setting up Michael Burt to fire home. Burt was on target again shortly afterwards when he raced onto a through ball before lobbing a sublime shot over the keeper and into the net. Sinclair and Houston then rocked their opponents with their two goals as the interval arrived with the scores all square. Westside improved greatly after the break and young Roger Kissane was causing all sorts of problems for Old Leake downthe right flank. Some dazzling skill from Kissane helped put Rangers 3-2 in front when he provided Chris Smith with a pass who, in turn found DJ Wright and the striker beat the keeper with a superb finish. Wright completed the scoring with a glorious header following Mark Melson’s cross. The tie was well controlled by referee Gary Colby, who stepped in at short notice. Final score was 4-2

Spilsby Town Reserves produced a fine attacking performance in Cropleys Suzuki Division One when they entertained Coningsby Reserves at Ancaster Avenue and they opened the scoring when Eddie Hodgson crossed for Ryan Johnson to volley his side in front. Johnson added another shortly afterwards with a fierce drive from just outside the box and the same player almost made it a first half hat-trick but when he lifted the ball over the keeper when he raced through on a one-on-one, the ball struck the crossbar. Coningsby pulled a goal back early in the second half from a free-kick but a quick double strike from substitute Lee Bache put the result beyond doubt. One of Bache’s Belters was a 30-yard screamer that flew past the keeper. Hodgson sealed victory with a fifth and final goal when his superbly flighted curling shot found the net to make the final score 5-1. North Sea United remain unbeaten following their 4-2 victory over Swineshead Reserves. Mark Ledger with a penalty and a Harry Houghton strike were Swineshead’s successes but they couldn’t prevent The Camp from taking maximum points and moving menacingly up the table.

Wrangle United Reserves moved back to the top of the Division Two table with a 7-0 demolition of a struggling Kirton Town Reserves side at Graves Park. The game was all but over by half time as Wrangle stormed into a 6-0 interval lead and although the young Kirton side played well in spells they had no answer to the finishing power of twin strikers, Tim Bell and Liam Shinn. Tim Bell led the way with a five-goal haul while Liam Shinn bagged a couple. They were well supported by energetic performances in midfield from Dion Roberts and Shane Brackenbury. Kirton battled hard to keep the score from reaching double figures and their second half performance can give them some encouragement for the season ahead.

After his four-goal haul the previous week, Wyberton Reserves’ Neil Featherstone is currently finding his time in Division Three a stroll in the park. The experienced goal-getter went one better last weekend with a five-goal blast in his side’s 11-1 home win against Spalding Town Reserves. Jamie Cox and Jamie Button grabbed two goals apiece while Stacey Ruck weighed in with the other goal. Billinghay Athletic Reserves moved up the table following their 5-1 home win against Westside Rangers Reserves. Steve Wilcox and Joe Carr both claimed a brace of goals while Scott Wells completed the scoring. Rangers were suffering from their first team’s desperate need for players as several of the team were required to play against Old Leake in the Sports Cup. Matt Lee grabbed Westside’s consolation. Skegness Working Men’s Club remain top of the table following their 4-1 home win against Fishtoft Reserves. Andy Verhaull took over the scoring mantle from fellow-striker, Gordon Drake with a hat-trick while Michael Redding also got on the scoresheet. Fishtoft’s goal came from Ben Shaw.

For September 29

Nortoft United recorded their first win of the season when they were triumphant in the first round of the Target Newspapers Challenge Cup at Spalding Town, although it required extra time to achieve it. The tie had been an evenly contested affair before the breakthrough finally came in the first half when the visitors were awarded a free-kick 10 yards inside their own half. Nortoft’s central defender Jason Osbourne decided to try his luck after spotting the Town keeper off his line and the ball flew over the stranded goalkeeper’s head and into the back of the net for the opener. Spalding levelled the scores before the break and as there was no further score in the second period the match entered extra time. The home side struck early in the first period of extra time before Dean Stevens produced a penetrating run and stylish finish over the keeper’s head to bring the scores level at 2-2. Nortoft looked the stronger in the second period and goals from Chris Massingham and Andrew Baker put the Boston side through. Baker was unlucky not to have added to his score but the Town keeper pulled off three excellent saves. Final score was 4-2. Old Leake squeezed through to the next round following a 2-1 away win at Sutterton. Adam Tempest and Chris Mitchell grabbed the match-winning strikes while Scott Jackson replied for Sutterton. Spalding Harriers and Wainfleet United produced an epic battle as both sides finished all-square at 3-3 and with no further goals in extra time, the dreaded penalty shoot-out was required to settle the outcome. Simon Gratton, Alan Lawrence and Rob White hit the Spalding goals while Wainfleet took the match into extra time with goals from Lee Johnson, Michael Parnham and Royston Wilkinson. The Harriers edged through to the next round following a 5-4 shoot-out triumph. Tydd St Mary’s miserable start in the league continued in the cup when they lost 6-1 at home at the hands of Old Doningtonians. Wayne Foster hit two goals for the Dons while Jamie Welsh, Steve Burdall, Liam Pitts and David Slaughter piled on the agony for Tydd.

Not surprisingly Gedney Drove End have submitted an application to withdraw from the Boston Saturday League’s Cropleys Suzuki Premier Division and it is expected that this will be accepted at next Wednesday’s monthly meeting. Elsewhere, in a very close and hard fought encounter at Swineshead it was Westside Rangers who struck first with a goal after twenty minutes when they awarded a free-kick 25 yards out. Michael Burt produced a thunderous drive which flew past the keeper. Swineshead looked to have shot themselves in the foot ten minutes later when Tim Tyler was dismissed by the referee for foul and abusive language. Swineshead hauled themselves level ten minutes into the second half when Paul Clarke scored from the penalty spot after Richard Stukins had been brought down in the box. Rangers were soon back in front, however, when a slick passing move ended with Rick Elsom squaring the ball to Jody Betts who calmly rounded a defender and goalkeeper before slipping the ball into the net. A highly controversial goal brought Swineshead level again with 15 minutes remaining following an injury to a home player just eight yards from goal. From the ensuing drop-ball, Swineshead’s Ryan Barker forced the ball home to Westside’s astonishment and disappointment. A deflated Rangers team then conceded a late goal two minutes from time when Barker’s deflected shot found the net. Final score was 3-2. Goals from Gavin Marshall and Michael Gardner sealed victory for Wyberton in their 2-1 home win against Billinghay Athletic. Spilsby Town came out on top of their derby match at Skegness Town Reserves. Viv Jeffery scored twice while Gary McGilloway and Dez Rook also got on the scoresheet in a 4-2 away win. Skegness could have been two goals in front before Spilsby opened their account but they squandered two absolute sitters. Damian Howland and Louis Mill were on target for the home side.

The local derby Division One match at Fishtoft saw title-chasing, Freiston snap up another three valuable points following a 4-0 away win. Jamie Skinner put the visitors ahead after 25 minutes when he swept home a right wing cross. Fishtoft tried desperately to get back into the game but found the Freiston defence in a defiant mood. Pete Lovelace struck the Fishtoft post shortly after the break before Dean Seiner raced clear to put Freiston 2-0 in front on the hour mark. The same player fired home a cross-shot five minutes later to put the result beyond doubt and new signing, Danny Warren wrapped up the scoring five minutes from time to make the final score 4-0. Stand-in referee, Nigel Masters had a fine game in the middle. Kirton Town and Swineshead Reserves shared the points in a 1-1 draw at Graves Park. Both teams started well but it was Kirton who had the earlier chances and looked more like scoring. Shortly in the first half Kirton scored from the in-form Simon Collins with an excellent header from a free kick. Minutes later however an unfortunate error of judgement from Kirton keeper Kev Parker let Swineshead draw level when he came out but could not reach the ball and it sailed over his head and into the net. The goal was credited to Aston Durrant. Half way through the first half Kirton suffered a major setback when a collision involving their top scorer Simon Collins forced him to leave the field of play. He was later diagnosed with two broken bones in his foot at Pilgrim Hospital. After the break it was still Kirton who created all the major chances hitting the post and having a shot cleared off the line. Kirton keeper Kev Parker did make up for his earlier misfortune, however, with an excellent one-on-one save in his 18-yard box. The game ended 1-1 which was seen as two points dropped by the home side.

Coningsby Reserves were catapulted up the from the foot of the table following a 7-0 home win against Holbeach Bank.

Fosdyke took the lead after just 30 seconds of their Division Two game against Black Bull United when Andy Brown’s shot forced a finger-tipped save from the Bull’s keeper and from the resulting corner Brown hammered home Rob Curle’s flag-kick. Black Bull levelled after 15 minutes following a defensive mix-up between keeper and defender which allowed a simple equaliser to be scored. Brown was on the mark again after half an hour when he challenged former Fosdyke player, Shaun Tebbutt before the striker headed past the keeper. Black Bull enjoyed a much improved performance in the second half and with time running out they finally equalised with an 89^th minute leveller. Final score was 2-2. Woodhall hauled themselves off the bottom of the table with a resounding 12-1 home win against Kirton Town Reserves.

Striker, Neil Featherstone proved too hot to handle for Westside Rangers Reserves’ defence when they entertained Wyberton Reserves at Kirton Middlecott School in a Division Three encounter. Featherstone struck four times in Wyberton’s 6-1 away win while Jason Sullivan and Nathan Holland completed the scoring. Friskney lost their first game of the season when they entertained high-flying Skegness Working Men’s Club. The home side scored twice through Daniel Redford and Daniel Smith but it wasn’t enough and the visitors took the points following a 4-2 away win with goals from Gordon Drake (2), Andy Verhaul and Simon Cannon. The home side had their moments especially during the first half when they were arguably the better side and they went agonisingly close when they struck the crossbar before Skegness opened the scoring to take a slender interval lead. The visitors put the result beyond doubt early in the second half with two quick-fire goals to lead 3-0. Friskney gave themselves a glimmer of hope when they scored twice within a minute during the last ten minutes through Redford and Smith but Skegness had the final say with a penalty in the dying seconds. Final score was 4-2. A Rick Harrod hat-trick helped Billinghay Athletic Reserves to a 4-0 home win over Spalding Harriers Reserves. Steve Wilcox weighed in with the other goal. Old Doningtonians Reserves won their first game of the season when they crushed Fishtoft Reserves 4-0 with goals from George Skafidas, Shaun Scott, Giles Favell and a 25-yard screamer from Lee Hilton.

For September 22

With the Fishtoft Cup — an outside competition to the Boston League — taking precedence over league fixtures, there was only one scheduled Premier Division match on Saturday, between West End Tigers and Gedney Drove End. But even this didn’t take place. As documented during the early part of the season, Gedney Drove End officials were struggling to keep their club going and last Saturday’s game was called off at mid-day because there weren’t enough players available. Club secretary Paul Markham stated that there would be an emergency meeting of the club about their future on Monday evening – but he admitted that the signs weren’t good and withdrawal looked highly likely. West End Tigers were thus left disappointed in not being able to get out onto the pitch again after an inactive start to the season – they have only played one game so far.

Alex Kirkham and Rob Snaith both garbbed two goals apiece in Swineshead Reserves’ 4-2 Division One home win over Holbeach Bank. A Ledrick Brady goal was enough to give North Sea United all three points in their 1-0 victory against Spilsby Town Reserves. The visitors battled well throughout but went home empty-handed after Brady’s deflected shot crept in at the near post on the half hour mark. Spilsby went close through Jake Akers’ long range shot and then Lee Bache had an effort cleared off the line. At the other end Town keeper, Andy Gilbert pulled off a fine save when he diverted a shot onto the post. But North Sea held firm to hang onto the three points.

Wainfleet United still continue to storm away at the top of Division Two following a 4-2 away win at Park Road Old Boys. It is now four straight wins for United as they moved above Wrangle United Reserves who were without a game. Ashley Rasmussen hit two of his side’s goals while Mark Lyon and Lee Johnson also got on the scoresheet.The two goals were the first goals conceded by Wainfleet so fat this season. Paul Sims and Jonathan Lanyman hit the all important goals for Black Bull United when they entertained Woodhall Spa United. The victory gave Black Bull their first points of the season. Sutterton and Tydd St Mary shared the points in a 1-1 draw. Gavin Rhodes scored for the home side. Nortoft United hosted Spalding Harriers last Saturday as their search for a first win of the season continues. The signs looked good for the home side during the first half as they produced some bright attacking play and their efforts were rewarded with the opening goal from Dominic Cridland who gave his side a slender half-time lead. Spalding levelled the scores late in the second half when they scored from a corner. In the dying stages Nortoft had a golden chance to steal the points but Danny Clayton’s header from Andrew Baker’s corner flashed wide. The Harriers produced a quick counter-attack straight away and Karl Beck had to be at his alert best to thwart his opponents with a full-stretch save. Final score was 1-1. Kirton Town Reserves, who struggled to raise a side, were never a match for a rampant Fosdyke attack in a 9-0 mauling. Dave Whalley headed the opener after five minutes before Andy Brown added two more to give Fosdyke a 3-0 lead after quarter of an hour. Robbie Curle hit a 20-yard screamer to make it 4-0 and Matt Wright grabbed a brace to make the interval score 6-0. Although Fosdyke played much better in the second half they could only manage to score three more goals mainly due to some brave goalkeeping from the Town keeper. Dave Whalley claimed his second goal of the game before Simon Chambers made it 8-0. Chambers then set up Dean Fisher who was rewarded for a fine midfield display with a goal to make the final score 9-0.

Gordon Drake has scored in all of Skegness Working Mens Club’s Division Three games so far this season. The striker was again on target with two of the goals in a 4-1 home win against Old Doningtonians Reserves. Tom Jenkins and Gary Coogan grabbed the other goals for the home side while Old Dons replied through Giles Favell. Friskney made it two wins out of two with a 4-1 away win at Fishtoft Reserves. Kevin Hancock was again amongst the goals with a double strike while Perrie Dale and Sam Hill grabbed the others. Matt Joyes replied for Fishtoft.

Division One outfit, Freiston caused a bit of a Fishtoft Cup upset when they dumped Wrangle United from the Premier Division out of the competition. Freiston got off to a storming start by opening the scoring early on and they soon built up an unassailable 4-0 lead inside the first 20 minutes with Dean Seiner (2), Jamie Skinner and Aston Chase all getting on the scoresheet. Wrangle then had a decent spell putting their opponents under pressure without threatening the goal. Seiner completed his hat-trick before James Messenger and Jamie Skinner completed the scoring. Final score was 7-1. The tie did not get off to the best start for Kirton when their key player Tosh Bates collapsing with stomach pains at the Park ground entrance. An ambulance was hastily called and Tosh was rushed off to hospital coming home later that evening diagnosed with possible kidney stones. Once the match started, however, Kirton were up for the game and scored within minutes of kick off from Badaszewski Przemyslaw. Goals from Kirton then came thick and fast. Simon Collins beat the Park keeper following one-on-one two minutes later closely followed by another from Karl Louth. Simon Collins added his econd before the break together with Lucas Gierejkiewicz and Micky Goddard. Much of the same attacking pattern followed from Kirton after the break but Park to their credit kept battling. Further goals for Kirton came from Martin Durrant , two from Chris Hilton , one own goal and another from the in- form Simon Collins to complete his hat trick . The match finished 11-0 to Kirton. Swineshead enjoyed their visit to Spilsby Town where, in the past, they have endured miserable returns. Central defender Nathan Stainfield gave the visitors a 1-0 interval lead when he headed home at the far post. Scott Hempsall then made it 2-0 after fifty seven minutes when he tucked the ball inside the post after Richard Stukins had pulled the ball back from the goal-line. Tim Tyler sealed victory for Swineshead with a crucial third goal on sixty seven minutes when he lofted a shot over the defensive wall from 25 yards out. Final score was 3-0.

For September 15

Gedney Drove End are finding it tough going this time around in the Premier Division and it is to be hoped they can somehow manage to keep going. The signs were not good on the opening day of the season when they forfeited the points and although they had a week’s respite the following week, additional playing recruits have been hard to come by. Several players have opted to play for Holbeach United Reserves and with work commitments not helping Gedney’s ranks were again down to the bare bones. It was no surprise then that a heavy defeat was inflicted on them by Westside Rangers as nine goals found the home side’s net without reply. Rangers had a goal ruled out for offside in the opening minutes of the game but it wasn’t long before they soon got the scoreboard rolling. Substitute Jody Betts delivered a fine cross for Kev Manning to knock across goal for the prolific Niall O’Grady to fire home. Shortly afterwards Tom Ruck was on hand to net the second goal when he fastened onto a loose ball in the box. O’Grady then wasted no time in claiming his hat-trick before the break with two more well taken goals. Although Gedney started brightly after the break, O’Grady could not be contained for long as he netted his fourth goal within 10 minutes of the restart. Westside went on to score four more times with O’Grady claiming the fifth and sixth goals before Manning got on the scoresheet after shrugging off a defender and firing home. Young Gavin Gregory completed the scoring with a close range finish. Final score 9-0. A wonder goal from Mark Lovelace sealed Wyberton’s victory when they travelled to Skegness Town Reserves. The home side had just clawed their way back into the game when Nyle Chapman reduced the arrears to 2-1 after Wyberton had led 2-0 with goals from Lovelace and Michael Gardner. But directly from the kick-off Lovelace launched a superbly executed long-range effort over the head of the stranded Town keeper to make the final score 3-1.

Coningsby Reserves rescued a Division One point with a goal from Steve Brown when they played hosts to Old Doningtonians. After a goal-less first half The Dons opened the scoring after seventy five minutes through Steve Burdall but the setback didn’t deter the home side and they kept plugging away to try and salvage some reward. Striker, Richard Grimshaw Else had earlier gone agonisingly close when he burst through but clipped his shot against the post. Brown finally levelled the scores with 10 minutes remaining. Final score was 1-1. Freiston travelled to Spalding Town but the early pace-setters had to be content with a point following a 3-3 draw. The visitors will put the blame on slack defending and poor finishing as they dropped their first points of the season. Spalding struck first after just five minutes with a headed goal from Paul Ryan. The visitors missed three good opportunities before Aston Chase finally brought the scores level with a thirty yard drive after 25 minutes. Immediately after the restart Freiston’s James Messenger broke through and his cross-shot beat the keeper to edge his side in front at the break. Play was littered with free-kicks at the start of the second half as both sides tried to gain the initiative. Freiston looked to have grabbed the three points when they scored an excellent third on seventy minutes following Dean Seiner’s penetrating run and finish but Spalding reduced the arrears with ten minutes remaining when their substitute went down in the box and the referee awarded a penalty which was converted by Jack Chilvers to make the score 3-2. Paulo Junior then grabbed a dramatic last-gasp equaliser in added time when he won a tackle before lifting the ball over the stranded keeper. Final score was 3-3. Old Leake gained their first points of the season with a 2-0 home win against Swineshead Reserves. Bowie Houston and Ricky Southwell hit the all-important goals for Leake. Referee Tom Horton enjoyed an excellent game in the middle. Spilsby Town Reserves narrowly defeated Kirton Town 2-1 at home with goals from substitute Jordan Wood and Mark Ingram. Both sides struggled to get going in a scrappy opening although Eddie Rich struck the bar with a header then the same player missed a penalty after being brought down in the box. Spilsby started the second half much better with some bright possession football and they opened the scoring within two minutes when Jordan Wood came off the bench to tap in from close range. Spilsby continued on top and the visitors’ goalkeeper was called upon several times to keep his side in the game. Jordan Wood also squandered four one-on-ones with the keeper when clean through. Mark Ingram added a second on 70 minutes before Kirton finally came into the game with their best spell of the match. The visitors were rewarded for their efforts with a goal three minutes from time to make the final score 2-1. For Spilsby, new signing Jason Cade proved to be a commanding figure at the back on his debut for his new side.

A 70th minute equaliser from Fosdyke striker Andy Brown in Division Two managed to bring some relief to his side after they recovered from going behind to a first half strike from Nortoft United’s Chris Andrew. Both sides had contributed to providing an entertaining first period before the games was marred by a career threatening injury to experienced full-back, Simon Moses, who sustained a broken ankle following a tackle two minutes into the second half. A deflated Nortoft side battled on but finally conceded Brown’s equaliser to make the final score 1-1. Wainfleet United recorded their third successive win when they entertained Sutterton. The visitors contained United during the first half with a solid defensive display before striker Lee Johnson proved too hot to handle after the break. The speedy goal-getter helped himself to a two-goal blast while Phil Simpson also got on the scoresheet. Jason Haytree and Adam Thompson both scored twice in Spalding Harriers’ 6-2 home win against Kirton Town Reserves. Steve Carn and Simon Gratton were also on target for the home side. Adam Smith hit four goals in Park Road Old Boys’ 8-1 away win at Mareham United. The other goals came from Ash Allen, Gary Booth, Craig Andrews and Paul Colton.

Two goals from James Todd helped Mareham United Reserves to a share of the Division Three points at Old Doningtonians Reserves. The visitors stunned Old Dons by leading twice during the game and as much as the home side pushed forward they found it difficult to breach the Mareham defence. Mark Stanhope brought the scores level at half-time after Todd’s opener before the experienced flank-man edged his side back in front after the break. Giles Favell finally grabbed a welcome equaliser with ten minutes remaining. Final score was 2-2. Dave Robinson rolled back the years with a hat-trick for Freiston Reserves in their home game against Fishtoft Reserves. Ollie Pinner also got on the scoresheet while Barry Lomax replied for the visitors. Final score was 4-1.

All three Boston League sides suffered preliminary round defeats in the Mason Bros-sponsored Lincs Junior Cup as Swineshead, Billinghay and Fishtoft went out at the first hurdle. The remaining Boston clubs will enter the competition in the first round on October 13. Swineshead produced a lack-lustre performance during the first half at Heckington United and that cost them the game. Although Swineshead opened the scoring after 12 minutes when Richard Stukins headed in at the far post following a Scott Hempsall cross, Heckington replied three minutes later. The home side then stunned The Boston League side by hitting three further goals before the interval. The visitors gave themselves a glimmer of hope right on the stroke of half time when a Heckington defender headed into his own net to make the score 4-2. Swineshead struck the woodwork three times as they improved greatly after the break and several near misses could have got them back into the game. Heckington, however, sealed victory with a fifth goal as Swineshead were committed to throwing men forward. Billinghay also under-performed when they travelled to Grainthorpe United at Grimsby. Gary Cochrane and Paul Baxter scored for Billinghay but it wasn’t enough and they went out of the competition with a 3-2 defeat. Fishtoft, from Division One, battled well in their home tie against Scotter United but the visitors went through 2-0.

For September 8

Wyberton made it two wins out of two in the Cropley’s Suzuki Premier Division following an 8-1 demolition job at home to Wrangle United. Michael Gardner followed up on his match-winning double-strike of last week with four of his side’s goals while Jordan Dixon (2), Lathon Millar and Gavin Marshall completed the scoring.

A Jordan Wood goal helped secure a point for Spilsby Town in their 1-1 home draw against Billinghay Athletic. An under-strength Coningsby side crumpled at home as Swineshead cruised to three points with an easy victory. Chris Shipley set the scoreboard rolling after just six minutes following a Steve Graham free-kick and Richard Stukins added another four minutes later after rounding the keeper. Some quick thinking from Steve Graham on twenty minutes then put Swineshead in firm control when his free-kick caught out Coningsby who were still organising their defensive wall. Tim Tyler added a fourth two minutes later with a cool finish following a flick-on from Kyle Stainton. A cruel injury blow to Stainton who suffered a broken leg then marred the game. The action was delayed for 40 minutes while an ambulance team arrived to take the player to hospital. A despondent Swineshead team still managed to score three more times in the second half to run out 7-0 winners. Ryan Barker’s superb solo effort after seventy minutes put Swineshead 5-0 in front following a mazy run and stylish finish. Stukins made it 6-0 with a powerful shot from ten yards and Steve Graham completed the scoring with a penalty after he, himself, was felled in the box with 10 minutes remaining.

A Harry Houghton hat-trick and a double strike from Robert Snaith still weren’t enough to give Swineshead Reserves victory in Division One when they entertained Old Doningtonians. The visitors salvaged a point with five of their own in a goal-crazy encounter with Martin Fox showing the way with a hat-trick. David Slaughter and Danny Goodacre were also on target for Old Dons in an exciting 5-5 draw. North Sea United and Fishtoft shared the points in a 2-2 draw down at The Camp. North Sea fell behind to an early goal from Pete Coonan before David Noel levelled before the break. A powerful header from Tom Briggs then put The Camp in front after the restart before the visitors equalised to salvage a point with a goal from Jake Louth.

Last season’s promoted teams clashed at the home of Freiston as Coningsby ended up leaving empty-handed after the home side ran out fortunate victors by 4-2. The home side took the lead on 20 minutes with a Shane Chase header and the lead was doubled shortly afterwards when Jamie Skinner found the net. Coningsby stormed back, however, and they were level by half-time as, firstly a disputed penalty was awarded and converted then some slack defending gave the visitors an equaliser. Freiston edged back in front after seventy minutes when they too were awarded a penalty and Dean Seiner slotted home the spot-kick. With time running out Seiner’s speed took him clear of the Coningsby defence and the striker finished in style to make the final score 4-2. Spilsby Town Reserves chalked up the first points of the season following a 2-0 away win at Old Leake. In an evenly contested first half both keepers were called upon to produce fine saves. The only goal of the first period came from Joe Turner’s excellent finish. The same player had gone agonisingly close minutes earlier. Spilsby started the second half with a dominant spell and after a good passing move across the midfield, a Michael Twigg cross was volleyed home by Travis Herberts on his debut. Herberts almost made it three shortly afterwards when his effort was superbly saved by Old Leake’s keeper. The home side produced a few good attacking moments but found the Town defence in fine form. Referee G Wainwright enjoyed an impressive game in the middle.

Wrangle United’s young reserve side continued their impressive start to the Division Two season with victory over visitors, Fosdyke. Wrangle were slow to settle, however, and they fell behind twice before fighting back to level on both occasions. The final 25 minutes of the first period saw Wrangle turn on the style and build up a convincing lead of 6-2. The first half goalscorers were Tim Bell with a treble strike, Liam Shinn, who grabbed two and Dion Roberts. Fosdyke reorganised during the break and they improved greatly in the second half but the game was all but over. Wrangle sealed victory with a seventh goal when the prolific Bell netted his fourth to make the final score 7-2. Wainfleet United’s ace marksman, Lee Johnson grabbed the vital winning goal in his side’s 1-0 away win at Tydd St Mary. The visiting striker ensured that the lengthy journey was all worthwhile as United made it two wins out of two. Goals from Carl Duncan and Steve Kerslake earned Sutterton maximum points in their home match against Mareham United. Final score 2-0

Westside Rangers Reserves in Division Three edged a hard fought encounter with two second half goals at Old Doningtonians Reserves. Honours were even during the first half with neither side having any real clear-cut chances. In the second half Rangers began to take control and The Dons keeper had to be at his best to keep his side in the game. Matt Lee’s surging runs were starting to cause major problems for the home defence and it was from one of his forages down the flank that brought the first goal. Lee, himself, firing home the opener after breaking through The Dons’ defence. Westside made the game safe with five minutes remaining when Jason James slotted the ball home after the keeper had parried the ball out. Final score was 2-0. Two goals from Joe Carr and another from Adam Brett gave Billinghay Reserves a 3-1 victory when they played hosts to Fishtoft Reserves. The visitors replied through Luke Perkins. After hitting eight goals in their first home game, Skegness Working Men’s Club went one better last Saturday when they thumped Spalding Town Reserves 9-0 at home. Gordon Drake was again amongst the goals with an amazing six-goal haul while Adam Worthington, Ady Verhaul and Thomas Jenks completed the rout. Friskney kicked off their season with an impressive 9-0 away win at Spalding Harriers Reserves. New signing Kevin Hancock wasted no time in settling in at his new club with a hat-trick while Perrie Dale grabbed two goals. Daniel Redford, Daniel Fletcher, Neil Allen and Sam Hill completed the scoring.

For September 1

The Boston Saturday League’s Premier Division, still recovering from the shock withdrawal of champions Croft United, got under way at the weekend — but things weren’t totally smooth, notably due to one late postponement when Gedney Drove End were forced to call off their home fixture with Skegness Town Reserves. The expected outcome will be the award of the three points to Skegness Town. The two newly-promoted clubs found life difficult in the top flight. Westside Rangers lost 6-0 to Spilsby Town. Liam Papworth scored twice, while Viv Jefferies, Rob Marsden, Leigh Cuppleditch and Gary McGilloway also netted. Meanwhile, West End Tigers got off to the worst possible start against Billinghay when they conceded two goals in the opening 10 minutes, before Luke Brittain headed home a Spencer Swadling flick-on to make the interval score 2-1. The second half was an evenly-balanced encounter but Billinghay clinched victory with a third goal when a disputed free-kick was converted by the home side. Two Michael Gardner goals secured the points for Wyberton in their 2-1 away win at Swineshead. Paul Clarke pulled a goal back for Swineshead in the dying minutes but it was too late. Wrangle United and Coningsby shared the points in an entertaining 3-3 draw. Wrangle striker, Jimmy Britton was soon off the mark with two goals while Sundeep Singh grabbed the other.

In Division One, newly promoted Freiston scored after just five minutes against Old Doningtonians when Dean Seiner found the net. Ty Fravigar then made it 2-0. Old Dons staged a comeback and they pulled a goal back after 25 minutes before levelling the scores shortly afterwards, the goals coming from Chris Wing and Martin Fox. But Freiston scored when Aston Chase’s deflected shot beat the Dons keeper. Within two minutes of the restart Seiner had made it 4-2 before completing his hat-trick on the hour mark. Fravigar then went onto claim his hat-trick and Chase completed the scoring with his second goal of the game to make the final score 8-2. Spilsby Town Reserves went down to an opening day defeat following Spalding Town’s single strike after 20 minutes, through Mark Henderson. A new-look Kirton Town played hosts to Old Leake on the opening day. Kirton opened the scoring when Jonathan Eastwick headed home following a corner and the home side went further ahead shortly afterwards when the ever-impressive Simon Collins got on the scoresheet. After the break Old Leake reduced arrears through Adam Sinclair. Town sealed a fine win with a third goal. Micky Goddard was the man on target to make the final score 3-1.

In Division Two, Wrangle United Reserves travelled to play Spalding Harriers and the young visitors came away with three points following a 5-1 victory. Wrangle’s youngsters tore into the Spalding side from the off and, by half-time, were 3-0 ahead thanks to goals from Shane Brackenbury, who netted twice, and Tim Bell. In the opening minutes of the second half Liam Shinn was upended in the box and Bell converted the spot-kick. Liam Shinn deservedly got on the scoresheet to make it 5-0 before The Harriers grabbed a late consolation goal. Wainfleet United won 5-0 at home against newly-promoted Nortoft United. Mark Lyons opened the scoring for Wainfleet before man-of-the-match, Lee Johnson, made it 2-0. Royston Wilkinson added a third and an own goal put the result beyond doubt. The final goal came from Michael Parnham.

Mareham United won 3-1 at home against Kirton Town Reserves. Adam Everitt, Matthew Goor and Tom Sewell grabbed the goals for Mareham. Kyle Bates replied for Kirton. Fosdyke striker Andy Brown netted a four-goal haul in his side’s 5-3 home win against Tydd St Mary. Brown’s first half hat-trick put Fosdyke in, what seemed, an unassailable 3-0 half time lead. A Dean Fisher goal and a Tydd reply made the scores 4-1 and the game still looked a foregone conclusion before two further strikes from Tydd set Fosdyke's nerves jangling at 4-3. Brown had the final say, however, with the clinching fifth goal to make the final score 5-3.

In Division Three, Westside Rangers Reserves made a perfect start with a 4-0 away win at Park United, who are still struggling to attract players. Westside took the lead midway through the first half when Chris Smith fired home. Rangers soon extended their lead as debutante Jason James slotted home a corner. After the break, Park keeper Darren Hunt denied Lee Maddison and Tom Fielding. Fielding finally found the net with 20 minutes remaining. Park threw everything at Rangers late on but the visitors’ desperate defending retained a clean sheet. Jamie Wardlow completed the scoring in the last five minutes. Rangers' man of the match was Jon East. Newcomers, Freiston Reserves, enjoyed a 5-3 victory at Spalding Town Reserves (another new side). Marcus Reeson grabbed two of his side’s goals while Lee Hoff, David Robinson and Troy Ayton also netted. Another of the new sides, Wyberton Reserves also paraded a strong line-up in their home game against Billinghay Athletic Reserves. Striker Neil Featherstone was among the goals while Steve Kemp and Jason Allen were also on target in a 3-1 victory. Yet another new team got off to a storming start when West End Tigers Reserves defeated Old Doningtonians Reserves by a single Shaun Lea strike. Both sides struggled to create any clear-cut chances during a goal-less first half before The Tigers re-shuffled their ranks allowing Craig Ardron and Dale Houghton to attack down the flanks. Midfielder Dave Willis also started to enjoy more freedom in the middle of the park and suddenly Old Dons were on the back foot. The home side almost took the lead when centre back, Martin Woods intercepted a ball before striding forward and unleashing a thunderous drive which brought an equally impressive save from the Dons keeper. The all-important breakthrough came with just ten minutes remaining when the predatory instincts of striker, Shaun Lea came to the fore when he hammered home a cross to seal victory. Old Dons almost snatched a last-gasp equaliser but Tigers’ keeper, Steve Bursnell came to his side's rescue with a superb stop. Final score was 1-0. Skegness Working Men’s Club went goal crazy in their first game in the Boston Saturday League when they played hosts to Spalding Harriers Reserves. Eight goals found the back of the Harriers’ net without reply. Gordon Drake hit a fine hat-trick and two own goals did most of the dame while Tom Laverick, Ady Verhaul and Simon Wise completed the scoring in an 8-0 victory.