Lichfield City rounded off their season in victorious style with a 4-3 home victory over local rivals Bolehall Swifts.
Paul Holt gave debuts to Jack Langston and Dan McLeod as he looked to avenge a defeat at the hands of the same opponents just days earlier.
His players started brightly with Kyle Minto breaking the deadlock in the 15th minute as he beat keeper Tom McNulty to the ball to glance a header into the net.
The strong wind made the conditions difficult for both sides, but the visitors seemed to cope better as they finished the half strongly.
They got their rewards when a penalty was awarded three minutes before the break when Lichfield skipper Todd Perry was penalised for a push in the box. But Craig Johnson spared the defender’s blushes and ensured his side went into the break in front as he palmed James Abbott’s spot kick away.
The save gave City added impetus and they began the second period with real purpose, doubling their lead on 52 minutes when a thunderous Lewis Bourne volley found the roof of the net from an acute angle.
Lichfield clearly sensed the chance to rack up even more goals. Josh Houghton cleverly rounded McNulty, only to be hauled down by the Bolehall keeper as he prepared to tap into an empty net. The referee had no option but to point to the spot and show McNulty a red card, leaving Langston to fire home the penalty on his debut.
Things went from bad to worse for Swifts as City stretched their lead when Langston’s 25-yard drive squirmed out of the grip of stand-in keeper Haywood and across the line.
But the hosts took their foot off the gas and Bolehall took full advantage, Nathan Thompson making an immediate impact of the bench as he headed home before scoring a wonderful solo goal from 25-yards.
The nerves began to jangle for Lichfield when Thompson collected the match ball after rounding off his hat-trick from the penalty spot late on, but Holt’s men saw out the game to claim the three points.
