LOCAL football was again decimated by the weather and few games went ahead.
Only one match was played in the STL Northern League and a last-ditch victory for Whitehaven lifted them into the top half of the Second Division.
For a long period it looked as if visitors Thornaby would claim all three points. They led for more than an hour but then conceded two goals in the last few minutes.
A tremendous 35-yard strike by Martin O’Riordan after 27 minutes gave Cumbrian goalkeeper Stuart Pettit no chance – and with just a couple of minutes remaining, it seemed his goal would be sufficient for the Teessiders.
But Leigh Dunn had the last word, scoring twice to earn Whitehaven an unexpected victory.
He cut in from the left and placed his shot into the bottom left-hand corner of the net, and in added time finished off a good move by Scott Redhead. The two quarter-final ties in the Northumberland FA Senior Benevolent Bowl went ahead and there were wins for Prudhoe Town and Alnwick Town.
Prudhoe defeated neighbours Stocksfield 3-0 but it was not until the late stages that they made sure of their place in the semi-finals.
Chris Winn scored with a direct free-kick after half an hour and as Stocksfield pressed in search of an equaliser, they left the way open for the hosts to score twice more in the final eight minutes. Winn beat goalkeeper Owen Little in a race for the ball and found the net from 25 yards, before Gavin Lisle struck from an acute angle in the 92nd minute.
Killingworth YPC Sporting squeezed past Alnwick Town by the odd goal in three. The visitors had the edge in the opening half but it was not until the 57th minute that they opened the scoring. Paul Baird’s shot across the face of goal beat goalkeeper Brian Brooks and went in off the far post. Alnwick battled back for a 75th-minute equaliser.
The ball was only partially cleared and Brian Murray fired home, giving Killingworth goalkeeper John Mundy little chance.
With time running out, the visitors booked their place in the semi-finals. A corner spun off Gary Patterson for an unfortunate own goal.
MALCOLM PRATT
