‘It felt like a cup final!’ Meet the team who win for the first time in 16 months after ending last season on -1pt!

You could be forgiven for thinking Westerfield United had won the cup on Saturday.

Such was the uncontrolled delight at the final whistle - and relief - that for the first time in more than 16 months - they’d won a league game.

The Suffolk & Ipswich Senior Division club, founded in 1920, and a team that was graced on the pitch many years ago by none other than Ipswich Town legend Roger Osborne at the end of his footballing career, almost went under last season.

A nightmare campaign that saw them draw just one league game - but then get docked two points for failing to fulfil a league fixture, left The Swans on minus one point after 20 matches before, mercifully for them, lockdown arrived.

The season was null and void and Westerfield could have taken relegation.

However, they decided to battle on and go again in the same division.

Roger Osborne scores Ipswich Town's winner against Arsneal in the FA Cup final against at Wembley in May 1978. Roger turned out for Westerfield at the end of his career. These days they are battling back after a tough season last time out. Photo: ARCHANT (Image: Archant)

Their 3-1 win over Bourne Vale on Saturday means that already this season, they have more points than the whole of last. Ironically the last league game they won was on April 27, 2019 - against Bourne Vale!

For manager Adam Potter, assistant Chris Solomon and their team, it was quite an afternoon.

“Honestly, it felt like a cup final,” Potter said. “I feel like the weight of the world has been lifted off my shoulders.

“I joined the club around Christmas and obviously we didn’t win at all last season. But the buzz is back at Westerfield.

“We’ll keep our feet firmly on the ground and to be honest, if we survive this season, that will have been a successful one.

“But as a manager I want to win. The boys worked their socks off on Saturday and we are looking to improve the squad, even as we speak.”

Westerfield United boss Adam Potter. Photo: CONTRIBUTED (Image: Archant)

Chairman Phil Greenhalgh has been with the club more than 25 years. He described last season as ‘the worst ever’. So he was delighted with Saturday.

“We were almost dead and buried in the summer,” he said.

“We’d lost so many players last season and we had some big defeats, 2-10, 0-11.

“It was so unenjoyable, our disciplinary record wasn’t good. It would have been easy to fold.

“But we didn’t and our manager Adam Potter has done a great job, got in some new players, as well as some from last season. Pre-season hasn’t been great and we rode our luck against Bourne Vale a bit on Saturday. But at the end of the match, it was just such joy.”

The Swans will have to wait to double their points tally this season however. They have no game on Saturday, but entertain East Bergholt the week after at Rushmere Sports Club, in Ipswich.