Ludlow Town 5 Oadby 4

MANAGER Les Bristow was delighted with the performance of his young team, and particularly hat-trick striker Andy Jones, who battled well to come out on top against their in-form Midland Alliance visitors in a nine-goal thriller.

He said: "My young team have shown that they can match anything in the league and perhaps this excellent performance will give our players more belief in their abilities."

It was all action from the off with Town breaking from the back for Jones to score in the sixth minute.

A poor clearance enabled Oadby to level, and shortly afterwards take the lead.

Ludlow got back on terms before the break when Darryl Smith rounded two defenders before crossing for Chris Busby to head home.

After the interval home goalkeeper Martin Pole made a superb finger-tip save to keep Oadby out, but Town immediately swept down the other end for Darren Leonard yo play in Smith to drive home.

The dangerous Jones twice went close to extending Town's lead before taking them two goals clear when he finished another slick passing move.

Oadby pulled one back when they forced the ball home from close range after a looped pass into the box, and then levelled in the 80th minute when their striker took advantage of hesitation at the back.

However, Jones was not to be denied and gave the Oadby keeper no chance when he powered home his hat-trick goal three minutes later.