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the latest news, reports, results and tables from the… Cropley’s Suzuki Boston Saturday League
Welcome to a round-up of Boston and District football
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February Reports 2005-2006 |
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Report for matches played on Saturday February 25 Cropley’s Suzuki Division One Three of the five scheduled games in the Premier
Division fell victim to the weather on Saturday. It left only two games on
the action schedule. East Lindsey Council called a halt to any action on
their playing fields at Wainfleet Road leaving Croft United (v Boston Town Colts) and Skegness Town (v
Kirton Town) with an afternoon of inactivity. The same applied to Billinghay
Athletic who were due to play hosts to Wyberton but their pitch had a lot of
standing water in various areas.
Billinghay did attempt to switch their fixture to Woodhall Spa at the
11th hour, but without success. Wrangle United were left wishing that their home game
with Coningsby hadn’t gone ahead after a heavy defeat. Coningsby, without a
recognised keeper, were forced to put player-manager Carl Wall between the
sticks but they were still too strong for the home side. Goalkeeper Wall even
had the audacity to save a penalty while at the other end Ben Robinson was
finding plenty of gaps in the home defence. The rampant Robinson struck a
fine hat-trick while recent signing, Adrian Shaw grabbed two goals. Coningsby
wrapped up the scoring with a Richard Flaherty strike. Final score was 6-2.
Referee, Brian Smith had a fine game in the middle. North Sea United can count themselves unlucky not to
have gained some reward for their efforts during their game with Spilsby
Town. The prison side competed well and were unlucky on several occasions
before falling to a sucker-punch from Spilsby striker Jordan Wood. The nippy
goal-poacher cut inside his marker before rounding the keeper and slotting
home the all-important winning goal to snatch the three points with a 1-0
margin. Cropley’s Suzuki Division One The result of the day belonged to Old Leake who crushed
Tydd St Mary 5-1 away from home. Old Leake’s five-star performance was
achieved with goals from Nathan Taylor (2), Ricky Southwell, Bobby Smith and
Rob Staples. Gedney Drove End knew they had to play to the best of
their ability to gain the honours from their away fixture at Swineshead
Reserves. And so it proved when the
second-placed visitors narrowly secured a 2-1 victory. The visitors faced a strong
wind during the first half as well as a powerful Swineshead line-up. But Gedney’s resilience came to the fore as
they dug in to keep their opponents at bay. Swineshead certainly held the
upperhand during the first half but just couldn’t break down the well
organised back four of Drove End and the half finished goal-less. Swineshead
opened the scoring 10 minutes after the break when striker Jack Houghton was
on target. Gedney slowly clawed their way back into the game and they
levelled through Neil Armstrong — celebrating his comeback following a broken
foot — when he lofted a speculative
shot from out on the right over the stranded keeper. Gedney remained in
control although Swineshead remained dangerous on the break but it was the
visitors who clinched victory when Armstrong scored another spectacular
strike. The jubilant striker launched a long range effort from just inside
his own half. And, with the keeper well out of position, the ball dropped
just under the crossbar for the winning goal. Final score was 2-1. Two goals from Spalding Town striker, Paul Ryan secured
victory when Holbeach Bank were the visitors. The Bank managed to pull a goal
back through Jonathan Wheatley but Town held onto the three points with a 2-1
win. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Two Leaders Westside Rangers maintained top spot after a 4-1
home win over Coningsby Reserves. The Boston side’s goals came from Jody
Betts (2), James Oliver and an own goal. Coningsby competed well and were
still in the game until the latter stages when Rangers’ superiority finally
came to the fore. Black Bull United enjoyed their outing to Holbeach St
Marks, hitting four goals without reply to take all three points back home.
The Bull’s match-winners were Paul Sims, Chris Wood, Chris Devlin and John
Lamyman in a fine 4-0 away win. Wainfleet United entertained Freiston and a real team
effort saw the visitors return home with all three points after a 4-2
victory. Play was fairly evenly contested during the first half but just when
it looked as if it would finish goalless, Freiston snatched the lead when
Jamie Button’s 20-yard effort found the top corner two minutes before the
break. Wainfleet equalised five minutes after the break with a similar strike
before the visitors regained the lead on the hour mark. Danny Brewster beat
the offside trap before lifting the ball over the advancing keeper and
shortly afterwards the same player grabbed his second goal of the game with
an 18-yard drive. Wainfleet clawed themselves back into the game when, after
a goalmouth melee, the ball was deflected past the Freiston keeper. Freiston
striker Troy Ayton had the final say when he burst clear of the home defence
in the final minutes to complete the scoring with a low shot. Wainfleet’s
goals came from Mike Parnham and Shaun Drury. Final score was 4-2. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Three Shodfriars maintained pole position after a crushing 6-0
home win over lowly Mareham United Reserves at Rosebery Avenue. The town side
seemed to have regained their top form at just the right time and undoubtedly
produced some of their best football of the season despite the windy
conditions. The midfield pairing of Shane Brown and John Rutherford
complemented each other as they carved out several openings early on. It was
Rutherford who opened the scoring with a fine finish after some excellent
build-up play. In-form striker, Jimmy Brittain then rattled in the next two
goals before Craig Spooner pounced onto a loose ball and firing home to make
the interval score 4-0. After the
break it was pretty much one-way traffic as Shodfriars continued to create
further chances. The home side managed just two more goals, both coming from
leading scorer, Jimmy Brittain , bringing his personal tally to four for the
match. His final goal was his best effort when he collected the ball on the
corner of the box before driving home an unstoppable shot into the far corner
of the net. Mareham, to their credit, battled away valiantly throughout but
were always chasing shadows. Referee, Derek Hodgson had an excellent game in
the middle. Goals from Liam Pitts and Andy Barnett earned a point
for Old Doningtonians in their home match against Holbeach United Social.
Final score was 2-2. Park United Reserves moved away from the lower reaches
of the table following a fine 3-1 home win against Wrangle United Reserves.
Simon Hyland, Adam Gallimore and John Milne scored the all important goals
for Park. Target Newspapers Challenge Cup In a well-contested semi-final tie, West End Tigers
overcame the challenge of Mareham United in extra time to seal a place in the
final. West End kicked off into a biting wind and struggled to get their game
going during the first half. The only real chance of the opening period fell
to Mareham striker, Darren Vinters who took his chance to put his side ahead
when he curled his shot beyond Peter Cook. West End took the game to Mareham
after the break and shortly after the restart skipper Scott Palmer lashed the
ball home following a goalmouth scramble to bring the scores level at 1-1.
The Boston side had several further chances to have clinched victory but they
failed to capitalise and the tie went into extra time. The Tigers went ahead
for the first time just minutes into extra time when Jamie Hicks scored and
Steve Favell put the icing on the cake with a cracking strike to make the
final score 3-1. West End’s opponents in the final will be Sleaford Town
who also won by the same margin when Old Doningtonians crashed out at the
penultimate hurdle. Sleaford were 2-1 ahead at the break thanks to goals from
Alex Maddison and Iain Stewart while Old Dons’ reply came from their leading
scorer, Chris Wing. Town sealed victory with a clinching third goal after 65
minutes when Steve Morley found the net. |
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Report for matches played on Saturday February 18 Cropley’s Suzuki Division One A Stacey Blythe goal earned Holbeach Bank a point in
their home clash with Spilsby Town Reserves. Honours finished even in a 1-1
scoreline. Holbeach Bank battled for every ball as they looked to move away
from the bottom of the table but chances were few and far between as the
first half finished goal-less. Both teams hit the post after the break and
the deadlock wasn’t broken until the 80th minute when Blythe’s fine header
put the Bank ahead following a corner. Spilsby drew level five minutes later
when Glenn Hislop met Lathen Tuplin’s corner to power home a header into the
net. The visitors then had a golden chance to snatch victory in the last
minute when they were awarded a penalty for a foul on Anthony Slater but for
the second week running Spilsby missed from the spot when Mark Ingram’s
effort struck the crossbar. Probably justice was done, as it would have
proved extremely cruel for Holbeach Bank to finish up empty-handed. Final
score was 1-1. Gedney Drove End were forced to make changes due to
injuries and suspension for their visit of third placed Spalding Town. Gedney
started well and only visiting keeper Stuart Ward kept Town in the game
during the first half with four wonderful saves. The busy Ward was finally
beaten shortly afterwards when another of his super saves rebounded out to
Richie Bates who tucked away his first goal for Gedney. Spalding, who were
dangerous on the break did have their chances in the first half and they
continued carving out some openings after the break but Gedney kept their
lead intact with some stout defending. The home side finally wrapped up the
points with a rather fortunate effort when a cross was deflected into his own
net by a grief-stricken defender. The three points keep Gedney in second
place and hot on the heels of Sleaford Town who were without a game. Referee
Barry Ingham had a fine game in the middle. Fosdyke gained three well-earned points at Sutterton
after going 1-0 down after 15 minutes. This wake-up call spurred Fosdyke into
action and Andy Brown, now accustomed in his new role on the left constantly
caused problems for his opponents. It was from one of Brown’s foraging runs
that brought Fosdyke level when he cut inside before firing home a low shot
past the Sutterton keeper on the half hour mark. Dave Pell put Fosdyke ahead
five minutes later when his shot slipped from the grasp of the keeper and
dropped over the line. The second half saw Fosdyke in total command and
Brown, Pell and Rob Curle all squandered golden opportunities to settle the
match. Andy Brown finally sealed Sutterton’s fate with a thunderous drive
before the home side reduced the arrears to make the final score 3-2. Both of
Sutterton’s goals came from Gavin Rhodes Cropley’s Suzuki Division Two It was a case of Johnson joy for Mareham United in their
home match against Holbeach St Marks. Graham Johnson and Mickey Johnson hit
both of the goals in United’s 2-1 victory. The St Marks goal came from Chris
Shipley. Park Road Old Boys and Westside Rangers provided a fine
competitive encounter with the Boston side coming out on top to retain their
top of the table spot. Ashley Allen equalised Rangers’ opener to bring the
scores level at the half-way stage but two goals in the final 10 minutes gave
Rangers victory and three valuable points in their quest for championship
honours. Wainfleet United took maximum points with a 3-1 away win
against Black Bull United. The visitors’ goals came from Shaun Drury who
grabbed a double and Matt Crowson. Black Bull’s goal came from Paul Sims. Lowly Freiston put up a brave display in their home
match against title-chasing West End Tigers before finally going down 3-1.
The Tigers took the lead after 15 minutes when Martin Woods ghosted in at the
far post to head home before Freiston battled back, going close on several
occasions, Aston Chase twice and Lee Hoff missing good chances before the
break. Freiston brought the scores level ten minutes after the break when Lee
Hoff, this time, found the net. West End's response was swift as they
regained the lead shortly afterwards when Martin Jolly drilled home a shot
with his left foot. The best goal of the game was saved for the final strike,
a cracking 20-yard drive from Steve Favell on the hour mark to make the final
score 3-1 and put the result beyond Freiston. Both sides contributed to
providing a hard fought but sporting encounter that was well controlled by
referee, Tony Sharrock. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Three In the day’s big clash at Graves Park, Kirton Town
entertained league leaders, Woodhall Spa. Both sides started strongly but it
was the visitors who had the best chances early on with efforts narrowly
missing the post and crossbar. The Kirton defence managed to sustain the
early pressure before bouncing back to take the lead midway through the first
half when right back, Shane Rowett collected a pass on the halfway line
before moving forward a few yards and unleashing a Beckham-like shot which
the goalkeeper managed to parry onto the crossbar. Fortunately for Kirton,
Simon Collins’ predatory instinct saw the striker pounce to head home the
rebound. Kirton stunned their opponents soon after the break with a crucial
second goal when Jamie Cox’s half-volley from 10 yards flew into the net
after a cross was only half cleared. Both sides continued producing some entertaining
football that befitted a top of the table clash. Woodhall changed their
formation, pushing an extra man forward but the Town defence stood firm to
keep a clean sheet. Kirton manager, Paul Fossitt was jubilant after the game
declaring that it would be a tragedy if his side didn’t gain promotion this
season. Shodfriars put their recent team selection worries
behind them with a comfortable 6-1 home win over Park United Reserves. The
Boston side were back to full strength and dominated the game for long
periods after the visitors had taken a shock lead early on when a corner was
deflected into his own net by the head of the unfortunate Jasper Borrill.
Shodfriars soon started to take control of the midfield with John Rutherford
in dominant form. They were rewarded with an equaliser when a superb one-two
between Brendon Barnes and Craig Spooner resulted in Barnes scoring in style.
Shoddies went two up shortly afterwards when Barnes received the ball out on
the right before firing home an unstoppable shot past the keeper. Jimmy
Brittain and Craig Spooner both went close to adding to the first half score
but Park held out to keep the interval scoreline at 2-1. The home side had
the Park rearguard under pressure straight after the restart and Spooner’s pace
was causing them constant problems down the left flank. Shodfriars’ dominance
saw them run in a further four goal without reply. Skipper Jimmy Brittain
helped himself to yet another hat-trick and Craig Spooner capped a fine
individual performance with a deserved goal following a through ball from
Dave Willis. Jamie Brown also had an excellent game in his new role on the
right hand side of midfield. Friskney and Mareham United Reserves fought out a dour
goalless draw in a bottom of the table clash. Old Doningtonians Reserves continued their recent good
run with a fine 3-0 away win at Wrangle United Reserves. Liam Pitts grabbed
two of the Dons’ goals while Pete Lunn was also on target. Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup Although there were no knockout upsets, there were some notable spirited performances from lower division sides when playing against Premier opposition in the Barclays Brokers Willoughby Cup. None more so than Park United who went out of the
competition after a narrow 1-0 defeat at Swineshead. Park kept Swineshead out
during a goalless first half before a goal on the hour from striker Jack Houghton finally broke
the Division Two side’s resistance. Houghton’s strike from 12 yards proved to
be enough to put Swineshead through to the next round. Although Swineshead
enjoyed the majority of possession, a resolute visiting defence and an
inspired performance from keeper Phil McAllister who made several excellent
saves throughout the tie continually frustrated them. Old Doningtonians also put up a brave performance when
they entertained league champions Billinghay Athletic. Although Old Dons
found themselves trailing 2-0 in the second half, striker Chris Wing’s
deflected shot gave them a glimmer of hope in the 80th minute. However, their
aspirations were dashed when Billinghay wrapped up the game with another goal
late on to run out 3-1 winners. Billinghay’s match winners were Michael Ward
(who scored twice) and Sam Miller. Although Old Leake went down 4-0 at Kirton Town — the
Division One side produced a gutsy performance and never refused to lie down
and concede defeat. Neil Featherstone’s header gave Kirton an early lead and
a Daniel White goal put the home side into a 2-0 half time lead. It took two
second half penalties to finally seal Old Leake’s fate, both converted by
Steve Burdass. Old Leake keeper Karl Beck had a fine game throughout and his
performance inspired his team-mates to keep battling away. |
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Report for matches played on Saturday February 11 Lincolnshire Junior Cup semi final Agonisingly, Billinghay Athletic fell at the final
hurdle just when it was assumed that this year would be their year to lift
the County Cup. After eliminating both of last year’s finalists in earlier
rounds they were rewarded with a home tie against BBM of Scunthorpe. The
Boston League side failed to reproduce their scintillating form of previous
rounds and it looked as if nerves got the better of them on the day. The
decisive goal proved to be real sickener, however, with the tie seemingly
heading for extra time. But as the game entered the 91st minute the visitors
snatched victory. The tie started at a frantic pace and Billinghay had a
couple of half chances and from one of them central defender Gary Cochrane
was desperately close to making contact in front of goal. The match was
competitive with some fierce tackling from both sides but the game never went
beyond the bounds as referee Terry Knott kept a firm grip on proceedings. BBM
definitely had the best chances in the second half and they squandered two
close range openings when they failed to hit the target when well placed. Two
further opportunities from the Scunthorpe side went begging and Billinghay
looked to be content with the prospect of extra time when they were caught
out with the late sucker punch. A lightning quick left wing raid saw the ball
cut back from the by-line and the jubilant scorer tapped in an easy winner to
seal a 1-0 victory margin. Cropley’s Suzuki Premier Division In the day’s only top-flight game, Wrangle United played
hosts to Kirton Town. After a goalless first half, Wrangle appeared to be
heading for some reward, at least, when Richard Fenwick fastened onto a
through ball before beating the advancing keeper. But the final 20 minutes saw
Nigel Birtwistle’s side fail to kill the game off and their downfall started
with a rash challenge by a United defender on a raiding forward. Steve
Burdass dispatched the resultant penalty and two minutes later a deflected
shot from Neil Goodwin somehow found its way into the Wrangle net. Wrangle
tried to respond and grab an equaliser but they got caught on the break and
an excellent Neil Featherstone strike from outside the box wrapped up the
points and a 3-1 win for Kirton. Cropley's Suzuki Division One The only remaining 100 percent record was finally laid
to rest at Spilsby Town Reserves where leaders Sleaford Town went down to a
2-1 defeat. A strengthened home side provided Sleaford with a sterner test last
weekend and with Spilsby’s first team finding themselves without a game, one
of their Premier Division regulars, Liam Papworth gave his side an early second half lead with a header after a
goal-less first period. Glenn Hislop added a second goal after 70 minutes
when he headed home powerfully after Lathen Tuplin whipped in a fine cross.
As tempers soared, Sleaford found themselves down to 10 men after 75 minutes.
This provided Spilsby with even more space and after Lathen Tuplin’s mazy run
was ended with a reckless tackle in the box. Dan Vines had a great chance to
wrap the game up but the Sleaford keeper guessed right to keep out the
spot-kick. In the last minute Sleaford were also awarded a penalty and
although Matthew Stainton got a hand to the spot-kick he couldn't prevent it
from entering the net. Final score was 2-1. Sutterton earned only their third win of the season
following a hard fought encounter at fellow-strugglers Fishtoft. Although the
home side started brightly it was Sutterton who struck first through Troy
Thomas after 22 minutes when his 18-yard shot gave the opposing keeper no
chance. Fishtoft responded by forcing Sutterton keeper Rick Stainton into
pulling off two fine saves before he limped out of the action at half-time.
His replacement, Graham Nicholls continued the good work in the visiting goal
and Sutterton rarely looked like conceding during the second period.
Sutterton doubled their lead after 65 minutes when Ady Barnett fired home a
low shot across goal following a neat back heel from Ben Smalley who then
turned goalscorer five minutes later when he nodded home from close range
following a Carl Appleyard free-kick which the keeper failed to hold onto.
Final score was 3-0. Swineshead Reserves recorded a narrow 2-1 victory at Old
Leake following a 75th minute winning goal. The first half finished
all-square as Old Leake’s Chris Lawson cancelled out Ryan Barker’s 20th
minute opener with a great strike from 25 yards. Jack Houghton knocked in the
winner following a rebound from Nathan Lee-Farrah's shot. Tydd St Mary’s poor run continued with a narrow defeat
at home to basement side Holbeach Bank. Despite having all the play at the
start, Tydd found themselves a goal down after six minutes when keeper Bas
Barrett tried to clear a long ball but found his kick-out fell straight to a
Bank player. He made the resulting save but found his parry followed up for
the game’s opening goal. Tydd again applied pressure and deservedly equalised
on the half hour mark when Dan Piccaver followed up Andy Bennett’s fierce
shot to easily score. Holbeach Bank came straight back and re-took the lead
five minutes later when another defensive blunder let the Bank player in to
score. Tydd pummelled the Bank defence but they stood strong until half-time.
Tydd came out and equalised within 10 minutes of the re-start when a great
ball from Andy Cooper on the left found Bennett at the far post who finished
well into the bottom left hand corner. Holbeach Bank regained the lead on 70
minutes when the Tydd offside trap was cleverly sprung. On 82 minutes Tydd
again drew level when Scott Bird got on the scoresheet with a scuffed shot
that trickled over the line. But it was the Bank that had the last laugh
when, with just a minute remaining, they won a free-kick just inside the Tydd
half. The ball was floated over into the box, eluded three Tydd defenders and
fell nicely for a Bank player to gleefully shoot home from close range to
give a final score line of 4-3 to the Bank. It was a game that Tydd dominated
and should have done better with but credit has got to go to Holbeach Bank
who are battling for their division one survival and deservedly went home
with all three points. Spalding Town fought back with two second half goals to
take the points at Fosdyke in a scrappy game. Town trailed 1-0 at the halfway
stage before Gareth Burnett finally got them back on level terms midway
through the second half. Matt Clarke struck the winning goal with 10 minutes
remaining. Final score was 2-1. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Two Spalding Harriers recorded a 3-0 home win over Freiston
although the visitors will declare that the scoreline was somewhat
flattering. The home side took the lead after just two minutes when Steve
Carn scored from close range with Freiston appealing for an earlier handball
decision. Jason Haytree made it 2-0 after 20 minutes with a low shot. Both
sides were guilty of dishing out some heavy tackles and stand-in referee
Steve Field had his work cut out at times. The Harriers appeared to have the
game won by half-time after adding a third goal when Carn netted his second
goal of the game with Freiston again appealing for a suspect tackle which
went unpunished. Although Freiston pushed forward after the break they were
unable to break down a well organised Harriers defence. To the players credit
the aggression eased down a little after the break following an interval
warning from the referee. Coningsby entertained Mareham United and the sides
served up a seven goal thriller with the visitors just edging the three points.
Coningsby went close to salvaging some reward with strikes from Lee Croft who
hit two goals and Darren Bunn. But it was all to no avail as Mareham replied
four times to snatch victory. Referee Ian Nicholls had a fine game in the
middle. Two Tim Gilbert goals helped Park Road Old Boys to a 3-0
away win at Holbeach St Marks. Both of the strikers’ goals came in the first
half and Adam Smith wrapped up the victory with a third with 20 minutes
remaining. Wainfleet United went down to a narrow 2-1 home defeat at the hands of Park United. Matt Crowson grabbed Wainfleet’s goal during a first half that finished 1-1 but Park edged in front after the break and then had their goalkeeper to thank for keeping them in the game. The visiting keeper pulled off two great saves to deny Matt Broome on both occasions. West End Tigers moved ever closer to the top of the
table with a convincing 6-0 home victory against Black Bull United. Craig
Ardron opened the scoring with a cross-shot that eluded the Bull keeper
before Steve Favell and Martin Jolly added further goals before the break.
Dion Roberts latched onto a through ball early in the second half before
surging forward and calmly slotting home to make it 4-0. Steve Favell added
two more goals to complete his hat-trick and round off the scoring. Cropley's Suzuki Division Three Kirton Town Reserves hit Friskney for six at Graves Park
with goals coming from Jamie Cox, Martin Durrant, Richard Borrill, Cliff
Langham, Simon Collins and an own goal. Park netted just one in reply. West Pinchbeck put their recent selection worries behind
them to record a 4-2 away win against Park United Reserves. Park’s goals came
from Alec Richardson and Ryan McCaskill. James Eley Sports Cup semi final Gedney Drove End were hoping to inflict another cup
upset on Croft United when they entertained their Premier Division opponents.
But the suspension of Joe McKeown hampered their plans. If that wasn't bad
enough, central defender, Paul Lawrence then suffered an injury during the
warm-up and could not take part. Gedney clearly suffered from these setbacks
and found themselves trailing 3-0 after 35 minutes as Croft took control.
Gedney pulled a goal back shortly after half-time but they were always second
best and Croft comfortably secured their final place with four further goals.
The only black spot for the visitors was the sending off of Greg Barker who
retaliated to a late challenge late in the game. Croft’s match-winning goals
came from Rob Marsden (2), Kurt Crossley (penalty), Louis Mill, Lee Orrey,
and Greg Barker. Gedney replied through Dave Wilson. Croft will now meet
Billinghay Athletic in the final on a date to be arranged. Chairman Roger
Gell is in discussions with Boston United for the League’s most prestigious
knockout competition to take place at York Street and is hopeful of agreeing
on a date in the near future. |
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Report for matches played on Saturday February 4 Cropley’s Suzuki Premier Division Wrangle United travelled to play Skegness Town in an
east coast derby match. And they had to dig in deep to take a well earned
point from a goalless encounter. Wrangle started poorly and suffered two
early setbacks when first Gavin Bell sustained an injury after five minutes
and then Luke Brittain was dismissed after quarter-of-an-hour. But the 10 men
refused to lie down and although Skegness shaved the woodwork on a couple of
occasions, Wrangle keeper Martin Sutton performed admirably in keeping a
clean sheet. As the game wore on, Wrangle grew in confidence and they had two
golden chances that they squandered. The seasiders’ frustration showed when
they also had a player dismissed late in the game. Kirton Town struggled to cope with the lively front men
of Swineshead Reserves at their Graves Park ground and a first half disaster
saw the home side trailing 4-0. Jack Houghton knocked in the first after 23
minutes following a Martin Worth cross before Tim Tyler made it 2-0 when
Chris Hollyoake provided the opening five minutes later. Swineshead continued
to rip their opponents to shreds and Karl Melton’s fine run was rewarded with
a goal after Jack Houghton had picked out the midfielder’s surging run. Paul
Clarke made it 4-0 two minutes before the break when he beat the offside trap
before squaring the ball for Jack Houghton to tap in his second goal of the
game. Neil Featherstone pulled a goal back for Town 20 minutes after the
break when he got on the end of a long free-kick over the Swineshead defence.
But hat-trick hero Houghton wrapped up the three points with a fifth goal
after 72 minutes when he beat four defenders before firing home to make the
final score 5-1. Cropley’s Suzuki Division One Fishtoft inflicted another defeat on lowly Holbeach Bank
when they entertained the basement side. The home side gained a welcome three
points in a 4-2 victory with goals from Joe Talbot (2), Declan Wilson and new
signing, Paul Burrell. Chris Wing hit all three goals in Old Don's 3-1 home win
against Spalding Town. Sutterton went down to a heavy 5-1 home defeat at the
hands of Old Leake. The visitors clinched victory with goals from Rob Staples
(2), Bobby Smith, Ricky Southwell and Jamie Skinner. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Two Black Bull United earned three valuable points with a
2-1 home win over Park United. Tim Rowland and Andy McGuire hit the
all-important goals for The Bull. Park Road Old Boys visited Freiston and held out with
some desperate defending to earn a share of the points in a goalless draw.
The home side dictated much of the play throughout but the visiting keeper
was in top form thwarting the Freiston attack with some brilliant saves. One
of the few times when the Old Boys’ keeper was beaten, the post came to his
side’s rescue when a Scott Francis header rebounded off the goal frame. Park
Road looked as if they would be gifted the points when they were awarded a
penalty but Freiston keeper Matthew Bainbridge guessed right to make a good
save 15 minutes from time. There was another 0-0 draw at Spalding where Spalding Harriers
held league leaders, Westside Rangers to a stalemate In a clash of second versus third, West End Tigers
overcame the challenge of Mareham United in a narrow 2-1 scoreline at Haven
High Technology College. The Tigers made the early breakthrough when Steve
Favell and Martin Jolly combined to set up Stacey Ruck with a clear run at
goal and the midfielder ran on before calmly slotting the ball past the
advancing keeper. The Boston side went 2-0 up in the second half when a
corner was cleared to the edge of the box where Dion Roberts was waiting to
return an unstoppable volley into the Mareham net. The visitors pulled a goal
back from the penalty spot after Rikky Toyer handled in the box. Matt Broome hit a fine hat-trick in Wainfleet United 6-2
home win over Coningsby Reserves. Matt Crowson had got United off the mark
with the first goal from the penalty spot. A Roy Ranyard header and a Royston
Wilkinson effort completed the scoring. Cropley’s Suzuki Division Three Shodfriars’ promotion push has suffered a severe jolt of
late as they have found themselves minus the services of several keys players
who have opted to play in other league competitions. Old Doningtonians
Reserves were the visitors to Rosebery Avenue last Saturday and Shodfriars
again struggled to raise the basic 11 players. The home side missed several
chances in a 4-3 defeat and they were knocked off top-spot. Shoddies’ goals
came from Craig Spooner, Brendon Barnes and Jimmy Brittain. Old Dons’
match-winners were Pete Lunn (2), Liam Pitts and Andrew Dear. Woodhall Spa United put some daylight between themselves
and the chasing pack when they defeated Holbeach United Social 3-1. Goals
from Andrew Money, Justin Scarborough and Ashley Lawrence put Woodhall on
course for promotion. West Pinchbeck were, once again, desperately short of
players for their home clash with Kirton Town Reserves and were forced to
call off the fixture. The likely outcome the next management committee
meeting will be the award of the points to Kirton. League officials will be
hoping that West Pinchbeck can pull through this difficult period and appeal
to anyone who maybe interested in helping out the club on the playing side. Friskney fought back from 2-0 down to take maximum
points in a thrilling 4-3 away victory at Billinghay Athletic Reserves.
Daniel Redford pulled a goal back just before the break to get Friskney back
into the game and Perrie Dale levelled the scores in the second half.
Billinghay regained the lead again before Dale scored his second goal of the game
to bring the scores level. A bizarre own goal gave Friskney the winning goal
following a goalmouth melee. Gary Baines rolled back the years with two goals for
Wrangle United Reserves in their 3-2 home win against East Region School of
Sport. Tim Bell also got on the score-sheet for Wrangle. Barclays Brokers Willoughby Shield Spilsby Town Reserves produced a disappointing first
half display at Swineshead Reserves and found themselves trailing 4-1. The
home side stormed into a unassailable position following goals from the
lively Ryan Barker and Nathan Lee-Farrah who both grabbed tie-winning double
strikes. The only bright spot for Town during the first period was a 30-yard
wonder free-kick from Mark Waters. With nothing to lose, Spilsby upped their
game after the break and Swineshead the keeper was forced into three crucial
saves to prevent the visitors getting back into the game. The only goal
during the second half came from Spilsby’s Phil Roof who scored direct from a
corner kick to make the final score 4-2. Super-sub, Ian Richardson came off the bench to finish
off Mareham United Reserves’ hopes as the veteran striker chalked up a fine
hat-trick in Park United Reserves 6-2 win. Matthew Sargeant, with two goals
and Alec Richardson had put Park on the road to victory before the rampant
Richardson took centre stage with his treble. Mareham replied through Richard
Hall and Daniel Garnett. Mr Trophies Fishtoft Cup semi-finals Croft United put the previous week’s cup nightmare
behind them with a 5-1 away win at Boston Town Colts. Lee Orrey was in deadly
form hitting three of The Croft goals while Scott Hutchinson and Rob Marsden
also got on the scoresheet. Town replied through striker Ben Harris. Coningsby will be Croft’s opponents in the final following
an impressive 4-2 home win. Coningsby produced a blistering first half
performance with a three-goal burst from Steve Miles, Lee Croft and Ben
Robinson. Spilsby stormed back in the second half and they had Coningsby
sweating after pulling two goals back. Tony Mumford’s superb strike wrapped
up the tie to send Coningsby through to the final. |