Chasetown FC will be forgiven for having one eye on another play-off charge after a demolition of high-flying Belper Town.
Although The Scholars still find themselves four points adrift of the top half of the table after their fourth consecutive league win, they will already be beginning to wonder whether they can claw back the 11 points deficit they have on the current team occupying the play-off positions.
Against them is the fact that nine of the 11 teams above Chasetown have played fewer fixtures, but in the form they displayed to destroy Belper, who had started the day in third place, there will be teams looking over their shoulders.
Make no mistake about it, winning at Belper is no mean result. The Nailers started the day as the league’s top scoring team with the top scoring player Jon Froggatt leading the line with 22 goals to his name.
But it was Chasetown who took the lead in the 14th minute after Belper protested against a corner kick being was awarded.
Paul Sullivan appeared to fire wide of the post, but when the corner was partially cleared Ramone Stephens dribbled across the edge of the box and laid the ball to Danny Bragoli. His first shot was probably heading wide but as the ball came straight back out to him of from the goalkeeper’s punch, Bragoli fizzed an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net.
Ten minutes later, the lead was doubled after Lee Butler drove in a right foot shot from the edge of the penalty box which struck the foot of defender Chris Jones and looped up and over keeper Dave Ratcliffe.
If Jones was unfortunate then, within a minute he had some good luck when his cross looped over Ryan Price inside the far post from an unlikely angle.
Belper committed men forward for a period and Tesfa Robinson and Richard Teesdale stood strong in defence to repel the Nailers’ attacks.
There was a feeling that the next goal would be crucial and it was Chasetown who got it, just eight minutes after the restart. Stephens advanced towards the Belper back four and slipped an inch perfect pass into Nick Wellecomme whose finish was clinical, guiding the ball beyond Ratcliffe as he advanced.
The hosts may have looked good going forward and had another sustained spell of pressure on the visitors’ goal but again the defence stood firm and then Craig Harris’ men exploited weaknesses in the home defence.
Eight minutes from time, it was game, set and match to Chasetown when a corner found its way to Paul Sullivan who drilled a low shot home from six yards.
Twice, Chasetown went close to a fifth. First, Sullivan’s headed flick on to Wellecomme saw the striker drill a shot inches wide of the post with Ratcliffe beaten, and then the keeper was fortunate not to see a card of any colour when Sullivan poked the ball beyond him and the Town stopper blocked his run.
Belper Town: Ratcliffe, Pride (Duncum, 60 mins), Jones, Marrison, Watt, White, Harrison (Davies, 83 mins), Warne, Froggatt (Wells, 50 mins), Ward, Adam. Subs not used : Beatson, Roulston.
Chasetown: Ryan Price, Chris Slater, Grant Beckett, Joe Halsall (Dean Bennett, 85 mins), Tesfa Robinson, Richard Teesdale, Lee Butler, Danny Bragoli, Nick Wellecomme, Paul Sullivan, Ramone Stephens (Jono Gould, 60 mins). Subs not used: Jack Farmer, Louis Keenan, Danny Watson.
Click below to see more of Dave Birt’s pictures from the game:
