MFL Weekend Round up (Premier Division)

Bewdley Town 0-6 Congleton Town

​Congleton continued their impressive form with a convincing 6-0 win against Bewdley Town at Ribbesford Meadow in front of a good crowd of 102 supporters. The Bears showed their quality throughout this match and got off to a great start in the 3rd minute when Brian Barton scored to make it 1-0. Congleton made it 2-0 near the half hour mark with Brian Barton scoring again to make it 2-0 going into half time.

Daniel Needham scored early in the second half to make it 3-0 before Tom Hampton scored on the hour mark to make it 4-0. Further goals from Peter Williams and substitute George Sankey made it 6-0 to help the Bears goal difference which could be important at the end of the season.

It was a tough day at the office for Bewdley against a quality team. The hosts will look to respond against Lichfield City next weekend to move out of the relegation zone.    

Dudley Town 1-2 Atherstone Town

Atherstone Town managed to make it consecutive wins in the league and picked up their first away win of the season to beat Dudley Town and move clear of the relegation zone. A notable crowd of 252 supporters turned up to the Guardian Warehousing Arena for a huge match near the bottom of the table.

Kev Hemagou opened the scoring for the Adders in the first half before Dudley managed to equalise in the 40th minute through Connor Archer to make it 1-1 going into half time. Jake Brown scored the winner for Atherstone Town in the second half to give the visitors a crucial three points to move five points away from the relegation places.

It was a close match and Dudley will feel a bit unlucky not to get anything from it. The Robins are only two points from safety and have been competitive so far this season. They could do with getting a win to give the team a bit of confidence over the next few weeks.   

Northwich Victoria 2-1 Romulus

Northwich Victoria recorded a momentum building win against Romulus to move well clear of the relegation places and safely into mid table. An impressive crowd of 194 supporters turned up for the match on Saturday with the Vics getting a eye catching win against one of the toughest defences in the league.

Marcus Perry opened the scoring for Northwich Victoria in the 23rd minute to go into half time with a 1-0 lead. The Roms responded in the second half with Cameron Lee equalising in the 57th minute to make it 1-1. Northwich managed to find a late winner to take home the three points with Frazer Cookson scoring in the 86th minute for the Vics.

The win moves Northwich into mid table in 12th with 12 points from nine matches played. Following a slow start to the season, their recent form has been good with 9 points from their last four league matches.    

Shifnal Town 3-3 Tividale

Shifnal Town scored a late equaliser in a thrilling match against Tividale at the Acoustafoam Stadium on Saturday in front of an excellent crowd 157 supporters.

​The Shropshire club took the lead early in the first half with Joe Ellis Cuff scoring in the 19th minute and continuing his impressive form in front of goal. Tividale managed to equalise near the end of the first half with Jakob Burroughs scoring in the 37th minute to make it 1-1 going into half time.

Shifnal managed to re-take the lead early in the second half with Kieran Buckley scoring in the 59th minute before Tividale equalised late on through Ryan Snape in the 87th minute to make it 2-2. The visitors were on course for a late winner when Ryan Snape scored again in the 91st minute but Shifnal substitute Patrick Nelson scored a last minute equaliser for Shifnal to make it 3-3.

The hosts are well placed to challenge for the play offs over the coming month with the club 6th in the table with 17 points from nine matches played and a few games in hand over the teams above them. It was a battling performance from Tividale which showed a lot of character and results like this should see the club comfortably mid table come the end of the season and well clear of relegation worries.     

Stone Old Alleynians 1-2 Lichfield City

Lichfield recorded a quality away win against Stone Old Alleynians at Kings Park on Saturday to move into the play off places. A crowd of 85 supporters watched Lichfield show their quality against Stone Old Alleynian who are a tough team to play at home.

Lichfield got off to a good start with Daniel Smith continuing his good form in front of goal and scoring in the 7h minute to give the visitors the lead. Cameron Dunn scored early in the second half to make it 2-0 to Lichfield and effectively give them the three points. Stone Old Alleynians scored a late consolation goal deep into injury time with Connor Russo scoring in the 95th minute to make it 1-2.

The win moves Lichfield up to 4th in the table with 19 points from ten matches. Consistency has been the main strength from the visitors with only one loss this season.    

Uttoxeter Town 1-4 Highgate United

Highgate United continued their excellent away form this season and beat Uttoxeter Town at the Oldfield Sports Ground to cement their position in the top three of the table.

The Gate got off to a positive start early in the first half with former Knowle player Kartel O’Neil Martin scoring in the 3rd minute to make it 1-0. Charlie Shaw made it 2-0 to the visitors in the 23rd minute before Aaron Brown made it 3-0 in the 39th minute. Kartel O’Neil Martin capped off an incredible first half for Highgate with another goal to make it 4-0 going into half time.

Uttoxeter responded in the second half and managed to get a goal back through substitute Henry Wallace in the 67th minute to make it 1-4 but the day belonged to Highgate United.

Highgate’s away from has been a real strength so far this season with only one loss and four wins from five matches to move the Solihull club up to third in the table with 23 points from 11 matches.     

Whitchurch Alport 3-4 Studley

Studley produced a dramatic comeback against Whitchurch Alport at Yockings Park to take home the three points and remain top of the table. Whitchurch got off to an excellent start and made it 1-0 when Alex Hughes scored in the 22nd minute before Chris Aziamale made it 2-0 on the 37th minute with a brilliant individual goal.

Whitchurch scored again in the second half with Alex Hughes scoring from the penalty spot to make it 3-0 on the hour mark. Studley managed to get a goal back from a free kick by Zac Guinan in the 62nd minute to get into the match.

Zac Guinan scored again for the Bees in the 75th minute to spark a comeback from Studley late on. The visitors got a crucial equaliser in the 90th minute when Zak Harbon scored to give them what looked like a point. The Bees managed to get all three right at the end with Zac Guinan completing his hat-trick in the 95th minute to make it 4-3 and keep the team at the top of the table.

It was a real test for the Bees on Saturday, and they came through it to keep their title charge on track.     

Wolverhampton Casuals 2-2 Darlaston Town

Wolverhampton Casuals got an eye-catching point at home against Darlaston Town on Saturday at Brinsford Stadium to move further clear of the relegation places. A good crowd of 120 supporters watched the Cassies compete admirably against Darlaston Town and get their first point at home this season.

Darlaston took the lead early in the second half with Aaron Bishop scoring in the 46th minute before Ben Podmore made it 2-0 in the 57th minute. Wolverhampton Casuals managed to score in the 74th minute before an excellent free kick from the hosts made it 2-2 late on to give the Cassies a valuable point against a quality team.

​The hosts are currently in 16th with seven points from 10 matches and two points from the relegation places. Their next match comes against Romulus away this weekend at CV Stadium.  

Darlaston will look to respond with a home game against Stone Old Alleynians this weekend at the Paycare Stadium.

Round up feature written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League