Managerless Belper hit for six

It was a long night for the Nailers as they found themselves 3-0 down in the opening 23 minutes, and a further 5-0 down at the half-time interval.

Stafford forwards Ben Haseley and Christian Dacres each grabbed themselves a hat-trick, in a win that sees The Boro’ move eight points clear at the top of Evo-Stik Division One South.

Haseley opened the scoring twelve minutes in, Nathan Rooney drove forward and played the ball across goal, Haseley turned past Sam Purcicoe in the box and stabbed the ball towards goal and Haystead could not get enough on it to keep it out.

Haseley turned provider for Stafford’s second, he collected Peter Till’s pass and his centre found Dacres with the freedom of the penalty area to double Boro’s lead.

Stafford’s third and Haseley’s second virtually put the game to bed, he ran onto Levi Reid’s through ball, cut inside Lee Cooksey and drilled the ball low past Haystead into the bottom corner.

Haseley’s third came with a big slice of luck, the lively Till clipped a ball in behind the Nailers defence. Haystead raced out of his goal and smashed the ball against the goalscorer and Belper’s ‘keeper was helpless as the ball looped into the empty net.

On the stroke of half-time Dacres beat the offside trap as Rooney’s through ball sent him clean through on goal, one-v-one with Haystead he calmly slotted the ball into the bottom corner.

The second half was nowhere near as frantic as the first, it took Stafford until just past the hour mark to get their sixth. Dacres completed his hat-trick tapping home from close range after Haystead and parried Rooney’s free-kick.

Dacres hobbled off to the applause of a bumper crowd of 503 at Marston Road, which left Boro’ to finish the game with ten men as they had made all their substitutions.

Stafford Rangers: Whitehouse (GK); Melbourne, Curtis (Wood 24’), Miles, Daniel (C), Craddock (McNaught 67’), Reid, Rooney, Dacres, Haseley (Harvey 63’) Till.

Unused subs: Johnson, Kurasik.

Belper Town: Haystead (GK); Purcicoe, Matthew, Lister (C), Cooksey, Williams, Fairclough, Towey (Johnson 76’), Garnett, Liversedge, Hemagou (Shaw 45’)

Unused subs: Stevenson, Ryan, Wedderburn.

Attendance: 503

Referee: Nick Hobbis

Assistant Referees: Glen Robson & Thomas Hall