Barton United secured another three points wit a 3-0 triumph over Leamington Hibernian – but manager Greg Smith was keen to praise his side’s defensive efforts.
The Black Swans embarked on a December programme which could see them continue to rise in the Midland Football League Division Three, as well as reaching two cup semi-finals.
And their 3-0 triumph was the perfect start – although Smith admitted there was still room for improvement.
“It’s a good result,” he said. “I’m more pleased that we managed to keep a clean sheet because we haven’t been struggling scoring as of late.
“Maybe I praised the lads a little too much during the half time break, because they didn’t come out in the second half with the same intensity.”
Barton handed a debut to Ant Warrington on the left wing after a series of impressive performances from the reserves.
The Black Swans began well and took the lead with Sean Wallis winning a header from a Nathan Hunt corner to net the opener after 10 minutes.
Hunt proved to be influential once more after he won the ball in midfield and ran at the Hibs defence. A failed offside trap saw the Barton man beat the keeper in a one-on-one.
The influential Hunt netted his second when Pete Martin squared to him in the box for a cool finish.
The 3-0 lead at the turnaround should have been the platform for more goals, but a slow start allowed Hibs to make use of their speedy wingers.
Boss Smith made his substitutions with Talpur replacing Bowler and moving to a 4-4-2 shape, with Hunt moving out wide, Hickinbottom replacing Wallis in the centre of midfield and Danny Barton replacing Warrington on the left.
The changes halted the threat and allowed Barton to ensure the points were safe ahead of their visit to CPA in the quarter final of the Fazeley Cup next time our.
Barton: Fogarty, Lee, Williams, Douglas (c), Douglas, Brathwaite (Talpur 65), Stack, Wallis (Hickinbottom 70), Hunt, Warrington (Danny Barton 75), Martin.
