Clay Cross Town's pursuit of the title turns into Treasure hunt

Reece Treasure skips round the keeper to score his second goal of the game for Clay Cross Town.

For 20-year-old Reece Treasure bagged two of the goals that helped them to a thumping 4-0 win at Phoenix and lifted them five points clear at the top of the North Division.

The result more than made up for a previous visit to the Rotherham-based outfit when they surged into a 5-1 lead by the interval only for the game to be subsequently abandoned.

This time the weather was far more accoommodating, and all the Millers have to do now is keep their heads over their final three matches for them to be crowned champions. They visit Tideswell United next, on Easter Monday (kick-off 3 pm), before the crunch clash on Wednesday, April 26 at second-placed FC Bolsover, who have a game in hand.

Against a positive Phoenix outfit, Clay Cross didn’t make the breakthrough until the last kick of the first half when Joel Holland left a defender in his wake before firing home hard and low.

But only two minutes into the second period, the lead was doubled when Treasure flicked in a cross from Holland, and just after the hour, it was 3-0 as Treasure skipped past sprawling ‘keeper John Parker, deftly rode a series of challenges and screwed the ball back into the net.

Phoenix kept pushing, but the final goal came from Ant Lynam, who deceived the oncoming Parker to fire home confidently.