Newark and Sherwood United defeat contenders Melton Town 3-1 at home in the United Counties League Premier Division North competition
A surprising 3-1 win at home for Newark and Sherwood United against playoff contenders Melton Town was the talk of the round in the United Counties League Premier Division North.
A crowd of 200 saw The Highwaymen get a much-needed win on the board and many in attendance were surprised that it came against the Pork Pie Army.
The Melton side were sitting in third before the fixture but the loss bumped them down to fourth in the table.
Melton have a star-studded lineup in their side including several former professional footballers.
Two of their wingers have had impressive careers in the pyramid.
Former Bristol City, Nottingham Forest, and Ipswich City winger Paul Anderson was again a feature of a tough Melton side.
Another winger on the field was Greg Mills who played for Derby County.
He has gone on to have successful stints at several nonleague clubs before playing for Melton.
Striker Tyreace Palmer who came off the bench and scored the only goal for the visitors was formerly signed for Notts County.
However, despite the professional pedigree of the Melton players it was United who were the more impressive of the two sides as they carved out a solid victory.
Tom Jones got the home side off to a flyer as he scored soon after the first whistle, netting in the upper left corner in the fourth minute.
Jones nearly scored again in the 42nd minute as his shot hit the post ensuring an opportunity for Liam Moran who capitalised and put The Highwaymen up 2-0.
Confidence was high as the whistle blew soon after for the break and the home team went into half-time up by two.
Newark and Sherwood United started the second-half well but it took a while for their efforts to be rewarded.
Moran would once again be the hometown hero as his brace was secured when he scored his second in the 60th minute thanks to an assist from captain Kian Sketchley.
The visitors clawed one back thanks to Palmer after the forward came off the bench to put the score at 3-1 in minute 78 but The Highway men were able to halt a late comeback effort from Melton.
It was a shock loss for The Pork Pie Army with one supporter openly questioning how The Highwaymen are near the bottom of the league after such a dominating performance.
"It felt like a turning point but the proof will be in the pudding," said Newark and Sherwood United manager Jonathan D'Laryea.
"If it is a good performance in one game, however, we can't have a poor performance in the following fixtures.
"I wasn't surprised at the result because I know how good we are when we play to our ability.
"We have to keep level-headed but for me, it was the best performance of the season.
"I do think that we have to use this as a turning point moving forward.
"We had a lot of strength in depth for that match, we had Luke White and Ainsley Finney on the bench.
"We were also missing some key players as Sam King, Kosi Nwobi, Daniel Oliver and Liam Marsden were away for various reasons.
"Our training has been good lately and I think that played a major part in our victory.
"The determination and motivation was there from the players.
"We know we have underachieved this season but we are focusing now to pick up as many points as possible.
"We were so organised and everyone knew their job.
"We are looking for progression and we want to make the squad as competitive as possible which will help us go up the table now and lead to good things next season.
"I would like to extend a big thank you to the fans who continue to support us, we know the results haven't been great and we appreciate everyone coming along.
"Your support makes a big difference."
D'Laryea said he was happy to see Moran net twice in the victory.
Moran has been instrumental in attack for the side this season after coming over from Southwell City.
"Liam has been superb for us, his link-up play has been good.
"We will keep challenging him and I think if he keeps working hard he is going to be an influential player for us.
"We have Kareem Abouraia now who has recently signed, he is a very exciting player who adds flare when he comes on the field.
"He previously played for Leicester Nirvana."
"Louie Jarvis had a great game for us and has been fantastic since coming back from a broken leg suffered in the pre-season.
"He nullified the threats down the left side against Melton and caused them a lot of problems."
