Boss Austin revels in ‘complete performance’ as Bees triumph at Corby

Over 700 fans were on hand for the first meeting of the season between two clubs separated by just 11 miles and they witnessed a dominant display from the Bees.

It was an emotional afternoon for the home side as they paid tribute to long-serving club secretary and president Gerry Lucas with an impeccably observed minute’s silence before the game.

But James Ireland opened the scoring for Harborough after 14 minutes and they were 3-0 up before half-time courtesy of further goals from Dan Cooper and Ethan Johnston.

And Joel Carta’s effort a minute into the second half rounded things off as the Bees moved to within two points of their hosts in the Northern Premier League Midlands table.

And boss Austin believes the victory serves as a “statement” of his club’s intentions.

“I am really happy, it was a complete performance and I thought we dominated them from start to finish,” the Harborough manager said.

“There will be no qualms from them about the result and it could have actually been more.

“With the build up in the week and a couple of things that were said, I just thought that maybe they were more focused on us than we were on them.

“It was a big day and I know they wanted to do well for the occasion but I just felt like if we focused then we could get something out of it.

“It was a fantastic performance and I think it is a massive statement.

“I spoke in the week about making it a big four in this area and today we have done that.

“I am sure we will be respected next time. A lot of people underestimate us and call us a village side.

“There isn’t going to be a difference between our budget and their budget, if anything they will have more.

“We have spent our money wisely and, on a derby day, we have beaten them 4-0 on their own turf so we are delighted with what we have done.”