Newton Aycliffe FC put an end to their recent run of defeats on Monday and in doing so ended any slim chance that remained of Shildon lifting the Northern League First Division trophy.
With Allan Oliver again finding his resources stretched by unavailability, he switched to a 4-5-1 formation. Dan Mitton returned to the heart of the defence and Craig Mickle returned to lead the attack.
With just 4 minutes on the clock, Stuart Owen found Mickle who laid the ball off for Hedley to cut inside and smash a right footed shot into the roof of the net.
The first half was open and evenly contested. Richardson saw a shot come back off the Aycliffe bar while Graham made a couple of top saves in the Shildon goal.
And then, Shildon went up the other end and were awarded a penalty, as another former Aycliffe man, Ben Wood, was challenged on the edge of the box. He managed to pick himself up and strike his penalty into the bottom corner.
At the other end Tom Atkinson, who had replaced Butterworth, cut inside the full back and curl a shot across goal that just evaded the far post.
That was how the game ended. A much improved Aycliffe performance that must surely give players, management and supporters heart as they look towards next season.
Spence, Oliver, Clough, Mitton, Close, Butterworth, Broom, Green, Mickle, Owen, Hedley. Substitutes: M. Wood, Raitt, Atkinson, J. Young, Farley.
Aycliffe’s next and final game of the season is this coming Saturday as they welcome FA Vase finalists West Auckland to Moore Lane Park. The game is a 3pm kick off, with admission costing £6 for adults, £4 concessions with u12s going FREE.