IF you thought Ipswich Town were relieved at ending their 18 game away day hoodoo, then just think how the Capel Colts under-15 side felt after finally tasting victory.

Stuart Watson

IF you thought Ipswich Town were relieved at ending their 18 game away day hoodoo, then just think how the Capel Colts under-15 side felt after finally tasting victory.

Prior to last weekend, the Division Two Felixstowe & District Junior League side had gone nearly three years and 56 games - that's 84 hours of football - without a win.

In their first 12 games of this season alone the Colts had shipped 90 goals, scoring just five, and unsurprisingly found themselves once again occupying their all too familiar spot at the foot-of-the-table.

You had to go back to May 7, 2005, two and a half seasons ago, to find the last time the side - then under-12s - had won a game.

That win came against the Trimley Red Devils by a score of 3-2. Now they will be hoping to play the same side every week as by way of a strange coincidence, the Colts ended their unwanted run against the very same opposition, by the very same score line.

Made up largely of pupils from Chantry High School, the Capel side, who have seven asthmatics in their 21-man squad, finally ended their dreadful run in dramatic fashion.

Having gone into a surprise 2-0 lead against the side second from bottom in the table, they then contrived to be pegged back to 2-2.

The valiant team were not to be denied their long awaited moment however, as Liam Murray slotted the ball under the keeper in the final minute to send his side into pandemonium.

Colts manager Dean Newton said: “You'd have thought they'd won the FA Cup. It was a struggle trying to get all our subs off the pitch in order to finish the match.

“Everyone comes to us expecting to give us a bit of a hiding, but Trimley were very good sports.”

Newton, whose son Daniel plays in goal for the side, only took over as manager alongside his wife Julie in December after the previous manager could no longer continue his commitments.

He said: “Daniel must have been suffering from repetitive strain disorder the amount of times he has been picking the ball out of the net!

“The players were just all so desperate to be able to go into school on a Monday morning with their heads held high.

“Although they were losing they all love their football and were awarded the FA fair play award last season.”

The Capel Colts take on a St John's side that have won 13 of their 14 games this season. Although a second successive victory looks unlikely, Capel will at least be hoping they can finish the season with a better goal difference than the minus 180 they suffered last year.

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