Belper Town 1 Spalding United 2
Spalding United’s impressive form continued on Saturday with an eye-catching 2-1 victory at high-flying Belper Town.
The Tulips made it four wins from five games as strikes from Ben Starkie (34) and Gregg Smith (pen 79) sunk fourth-placed Belper at The Raygar Stadium.
Joshua Woodcock pulled one back for the hosts – who did incredibly well to get the game on with the ground being underwater at the start of the week – with three minutes left, but Spalding held on to clinch another great away win in the Pitching In NPL Midlands Division.
Having also beaten title hopefuls Halesowen Town on their travels last month, Tulips boss Brett Whaley is impressed with what he saw against a team known for their direct style of play.
Whaley said: “What impressed me was that this was a very different kind of win than, say at Halesowen.
“Belper are doing very well this season, but their style is more physical and direct that the others at the top.
“I think, if you look at our season, we’ve been very inconsistent for much of it.
“We can’t ignore the disappointing home defeat against Carlton Town, but recently we’ve been getting good results and have been a lot more consistent.
“If I go back to the defeat at Daventry Town, we knew something had to change and we had to change up the squad a little.
“Now we’re seeing genuine signs of improvement and we look capable of getting results against anyone.
“The next challenge is to be able to replicate this over a 38-game season.
“What I will say is that there is now a belief in the squad that we’re in a position to be able to challenge moving forward.
“We’ve showed battling qualities recently and that’s great.
“The next step is to be able to dictate games against the likes of Halesowen and Belper, which will hopefully come in time.”
Whaley was also pleased to have been able to give new signing Jack Withers a debut late in the game, as he continues his comeback from a nagging injury.
Tulips: Duggan, Floyd, Bucci, Marshall, Stainfield, Cartwright, Seymour-Shove (Edge 67), Broccoli, Smith, Starkie (Withers 84), Nassunculo (Macleod 67). Not used: Koroma, Lynch.
Attendance: 460.
