Newport aces are going up yet again

The Lilleshall-based outfit have enjoyed plenty of highs in recent years and their men’s second team were celebrating at the weekend after clinching promotion from the Midlands Division Nine North West.

It’s the second successive season the side have secured a step up in standard and they have achieved it with four games remaining.

A resounding 5-0 win at home to Wolverhampton & Tettenhall thirds sealed the deal.

Benji Howells went on to bag a hat-trick. Martin Hall and Nathan Evans also netted as Newport made it 16 wins from 18 games.

Now they will turn their attention to chasing down leaders Market Drayton.

“It’s a fantastic achievement for the boys but their eyes are still set on trying to win the league with a fixture against leaders Market Drayton coming up in a couple of weeks time,” said first-team skipper and club coach Ash Williams.

In the same division, the third team beat Lichfield sixths 4-0. Ed Tivey, Oscar Higgins, Brad Cromwell and Toby Middleton scored.

But while there was joy for the second and third teams, the firsts saw their fading North West Six title hopes take a hit after a 4-1 reverse against Bloxwich seconds.

The ladies’ first team drew 2-2 against title hopefuls Ludlow. Ellie Smith and Bex Podmore were on the mark.

Telford & Wrekin earned top marks against Loughborough University in the Midlands Premier Division – Tom Mallett bagging a brace and being joined on the scoresheet by Cal Stacey in a 3-2 triumph.

The men’s seconds continued their dominance in Division Four West with a 5-1 win over Leek seconds. Dave Tracey bagged a hat-trick, with Matt Hadley-Moore and Owen Shave also on target.

The third team boosted their promotion hopes with a 5-2 win at Stafford seconds. Sean Huffer led the way with a treble, and he was joined on the scoresheet by John Perry and Andrew Lloyd.

Connor Ashbridge (two), Matthew Fennell-Fox and James Stevens scored as the fourths beat Cannock thirds in Division Eight North West.

The men’s fifths moved closer to the Division 10 North West title with a 1-0 win over North Stafford sixths thanks to a Peter Scales goal.

The women’s first team enjoyed a win at St Georges, beating Leek 5-0 in Division One thanks to a hat-trick from Cherylynn Lane and goals from Megan Lancaster and Lucy Brown.

The thirds comfortably beat Phoenix Blues 3-1 in Division Four Moorland. Charlotte Goodwin netted twice and Gayle Roberts once.

The fourth team also picked up three points following a 2-0 win at Bloxwich fourths. Ivy Brannen and Daisy Wilson scored.