Harborough Town five points clear at the top as Putman rocket sets up Alvechurch win
Harborough Town moved five points clear at the top of the Pitching-In Southern League Premier Central table with a hard-fought 2-0 win at relegation-threatened Alvechurch on Saturday.
After a difficult first-half, the Bees hit the front on 59 minutes when Eliot Putman unleashed a 25-yard rocket with his left foot that flew into the net via the underside of the crossbar.
The points were then sealed five minutes from time when Brady Hickey headed home from close range, and with Spalding United dropping points in a 1-1 draw at St Ives, the Bees have gone clear at the summit.
The win followed on from a 2-1 midweek win at Bromsgrove Sporting, and Borough are now five points clear, still with a game in hand, which they play at third-placed Real Bedford on Tuesday night.
"I am delighted, it has been a tough schedule for the lads and to come through with six points, you couldn't ask for much more," Austin told @HarbTownFC. "Alvechurch is a tough place to play, with the slope which is tough to deal with.
"We had to get to grips with that, and I wasn't happy with the first half at all and there were a few stern words and if we were going to compete we needed to put a better foot forward.
"There were a lot of average performances, a lot of 50-50 battles lost, but the second half was the polar opposite and I think the subs have made an unbelievable impact."
On Putman's wonder strike that broke the deadlock, Austin simply said: "That was an unbelievable goal.
"He had a lot of space to run into and he has hit it, and he probably won't hit one sweeter, but hopefully he does in this run-in to the end of the season."
Looking ahea to Tuesday's trip to Bedford, who were 3-0 winners over Stamford on Saturday, Austin said: "All of these games are tough and we have to just take them one at a time.
"For different reasons they are tough, there is the travel aspect of the past two games, the extra want from the teams trying to stay in the league.
"Tuesday will be a little different as we are going up against an all-out possession-based team, and how do you get the ball off them?
"They are class for the football purist, but it is a match made for both teams and whoever wants to be better on the night.
"We go there full of positivity and let's put another Harborough Town performance in and see where it takes us."
A win against Real Bedford would see the Bees go eight points clear at the top, with six matches of the season remaining.