BOSTON TOWN 0
HOLBEACH UTD 1
Lewis Leckie’s second-half header earned ten-man Holbeach United a place in the second round of the Lincs FA Senior Trophy as they edged out in-form rivals Boston Town 1-0 at the DWB Stadium on Tuesday night.
Striker Leckie turned home the only goal of the game on 60 minutes, nodding into an empty net after striker partner Will Bird had seen his initial effort saved.
The Tigers rode their luck in the closing stages after seeing Matt Warfield given a straight red card, with Fraser Bayliss missing a great one-on-one chance for the Poachers.
But Hayes felt his side deserved the win on the night – Mitch Griffiths, Joe Smith, George Zuerner and Jordan Keeble all had good chances – and insists the county competition offers Holbeach one of their best chances at winning silverware this season.
He said: “They rested a few players and we had a few missing, but it was still a decent game.
“I thought that, after the first 15 minutes or so, we were the better side – even with ten men.
“They were very direct up to Will Britton, but I thought we nulified their threat well until the closing stages when Bayliss came on and hurt us a little.
“We’re struggling a little with discipline at the moment. Charley Sanders and Dan Dougill were already banned tonight, now we’ll miss Matt Warfield too.
“It’s hard to criticise him too much, he went in high in an area he perhaps didn’t need to – but these things happen in the heat of the moment in derby games.
“It’s far from ideal to have another red card, but if you’d offered me a 1-0 win before the game I’d have taken it in any circumstance.
“You look at cup competitions in different ways. The FA Cup is all about money, while the FA Vase is about raising the club’s profile.
“For the UCL Cup and Lincs Senior Trophy, they represent trophies we can realistically win. I want us to be challenging at the business end of the season and this competition offers us that chance.”
Holbeach are back in ChromaSport UCL Premier Division action on Saturday as they welcome Wellingborough Whitworth to Carter’s Park (3pm).
Stacy Cartwright and Olly Medwynter return for that game, but Dougill, Sanders and Dan Jenkins remain sidelined.
Tigers: Drury, Harker, Tinkler, Braithwaite, Jackson, Zuerner (Keeble), Griffiths, Warfield, Smith, Leckie, Bird. Not used: Davies, Hamilton.
