Lye Town 3 Coleshill Town 1 - Report

Joshua’s charges ended a four-match winless run in Northern Premier League Midlands with a dominant performance in which they struck the woodwork three times.

Demico Burton went close and Joe Palmer’s goalbound shot had to be cleared off the line by Harry Higginson before Ben Billingham broke the deadlock late in the first half, slamming in at the far post Sam Tye’s cross following Cain Smith’s through ball.

Ryan Bridgewater and Paul Ibhadon both hit the bar from corners and Lye would have rued those missed opportunities when Coleshill levelled, Niall Rowe lashing in after a corner had been flicked on 11 minutes into the second half.

Undeterred, Lye rattled the bar again from Adam Meacham’s close-range shot and deservedly retook the lead when Palmer coolly slotted past Lewis Fenney one-on-one having been threaded in by Ibhadon.

Nathan Kabeya might have doubled that lead only to clear the bar six minutes later but the points were made safe by Billingham late on, stroking into the far corner on the run having been played in behind.

“Our point against Anstey last week now looks like a good one, especially as they put five past Spalding this weekend, and this one was a really good result,” said Joshua.

“It was important for us to get back to what we are, we had lots of energy all over the pitch, Joe was back to his best and we had Paul and Cain who were like dogs in the middle of the park which really set the tone for us.

“I was really pleased with the win and the performance and this was a great building block for us to attack the next couple of weeks.”

Next up for Lye is a trip to second-placed Spalding United on Saturday.