Littletown’s title hopes dented by second straight league defeat

Littletown slipped to a second straight defeat in the Yorkshire Amateur League Supreme Division on a day when the programme was decimated by poor weather and waterlogged pitches.
Lower Hoptons Yorkshire Amateur League game against Wortley was one of many to be postponed last weekend after their Woodend Road ground in Mirfield was left waterlogged. Picture: Allan McKenzie.Lower Hoptons Yorkshire Amateur League game against Wortley was one of many to be postponed last weekend after their Woodend Road ground in Mirfield was left waterlogged. Picture: Allan McKenzie.
Lower Hoptons Yorkshire Amateur League game against Wortley was one of many to be postponed last weekend after their Woodend Road ground in Mirfield was left waterlogged. Picture: Allan McKenzie.

Just eight of the scheduled 40 matches managed to survive, with the top flight game between Lower Hopton and Wortley one of many to be called off.

Defeat leaves Littletown six points behind leaders Farsley Celtic Juniors but they have now played a game more.

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Horsforth are back in fifth place, nine points behind Littletown but with five games in hand.

Littletown played against the wind in the first half but took the lead with a move off the training ground when a near post corner from Scott Lightowler was met by Adam Williams.

Horsforth came out for the second half determined to hit back and Saints man-of-the-match Alex McGurk levelled matters in the 49th minute.

As conditions worsened Jamel Stewart put Horsforth ahead with eight minutes to go and Rexhep Ejupi added a third in the 90th minute.

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Littletown were hampered when four different players suffered injuries in the second half but they never gave up and reduced the deficit in injury time through Reiss Brook.

However, the result is somewhat insignificant after Littletown’s Beck Lane ground was left four feet under water when Spen Beck flooded following the previous week’s Storm Ciara.

Water levels had subsided by last Sunday but the club now face a major clean up operation, plus repairing damage to perimeter fencing before football can be played again.

The only other Supreme Division game to survive last week saw Leeds Medics and Dentists edge a seven goal thriller, beating Toller 4-3.

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That result allowed Medics to move up to ninth place in the table, just one place behind Toller.

Lower Hopton remain bottom of the table, two points behind Drighlington with three games in hand and six points adrift of third-bottom Steeton having played a game less.

Dewsbury Rangers produced a battling display as they were edged out 2-1 by Championship leaders Leeds Medics and Dentists Reserves.

Medics remain at the top of the table, following their ninth win of the season, but have now played 17 of the scheduled 22 games, which is more than any of their promotion rivals.

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Rangers tactics were direct with long hopeful ball over the defenders in the first half and the ball into the wind in the second period but they found it hard to break down a tight Medics rearguard.

Rangers opened the scoring after 20 minutes on the 3G pitch through Arista Llewellyn’s 14th goal goal of the season.

Medics restored parity just before half-time with Florian Nurudeen making use of the chance created by Jamie Barnard.

Medics took a 58th minute lead with Barnard capitalising on a chance created by Sina Karimian to take his goals tally into double figures.

This was Rangers’ fifth straight defeat and they have slipped out of the promotion race and are now back in ninth place, anxiously looking over their shoulders at the three sides below them.

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