A ruthless second half performance, which included a 6-minute hat-trick for Elliot Andrew, earned Tadcaster a much needed first win in six league matches against Handsworth at the Young Guns Arena. Both sides were relatively poor at the start of the game before the Brewers burst into life following a defensive error, leaving the Ambers with the same record of one win in their last six.

The start to the match was a cagey one, with Tadcaster being contained in their own half and having to wait a quarter of an hour for their first opening - Junayd Cassius-Gill clipped the ball over to Andrew from the left hand side who lashed a shot over after a decent first touch 20 yards out.

Handsworth caught the Brewers’ back line lapsing in concentration when winger Alfie Dodsworth skilfully flicked a loose ball forward with his heel for Mitchell Dunne and their top scorer Alfie Dodsworth to run onto. Sam Green confidently strode off his line and made a well-timed clearance.

A half of few chances saw Ambers keeper Thomas Crosby called into action with half an hour gone, as Sam Kitchen rolled the ball across to Cassius-Gill. A pass into the channel for Elliot Andrew carved out the crossing opportunity and a stretching Luca Bolino was unable to connect with the low ball from the left which Tyler Williams smothered off the line.

Bolino opted to take matters into his own hands minutes later, charging down a clearance before picking out Albert Ibrahimi in the no. 10 position. He hit a rising shot which worried Cosby enough to tip it over the crossbar. Tadcaster were starting to come alive as the game approached half time.

Handsworth looked to threaten on the counter-attack as momentum shifted to Tadcaster’s favour. An inaccurate pass out from the back invited them forward in first-half stoppage time, as a cross in from the left ran to the right edge of the box for Dodsworth to pick up before firing a curling shot wide.

The away side were awarded a free kick as the tricky Dodsworth was judged to have been brought down by referee Luke Hood within 30 yards of goal. Standing over the free kick, the winger bewildered Tadcaster’s defenders by passing the ball low to Ruthven - who finished low into the net only for the offside flag to be raised. The striker had netted 13 goals in his last 14 league starts but his opportunities were scarce throughout the match.

The second half started much like the first, with a couple of half-chances falling for either side. However, Tadcaster took the lead on 61 minutes as Luca Bolino attempted a floated ball over the Handsworth back line. Skimming off the last defender’s head, who had intended to head it back up the field, Andrew pounced on the bouncing ball and lobbed the goalkeeper with his first touch. 1-0.

Handsworth were quickly under siege from a buoyant Tadcaster. Luca Bolino was sent on the overlap on the left wing before darting inside and starting a neat exchange of short passes on the edge of the box. Greenway stopped the ball dead and scanned for options, one of them being an unmarked Andrew who was picked out with the midfielder’s looping cross from the right. He instinctively nodded the ball towards goal, nestling into the bottom right corner. 2-0.

The electric Bolino was running at the Ambers once again in the next minute after they sloppily conceded possession to Tadcaster’s press. The ball was cleared away yet Sam Kitchin, who had been working tirelessly in the middle, was in smartly to win it back. Substitute Raeece Ellington was soon released on the right wing and got the better of the left-back Williams, sending the ball across to Ibrahimi who shifted it further left to none other than Andrew for the striker to complete the rout with a fierce low drive into the bottom left. 3-0, a remarkable 6-minute hat-trick.

Tadcaster were playing some of the best football in the last month during the 5 minute spell, acting purely out of instinct and showing confidence on the ball and in their shape as a unit. The Young Guns Arena was buzzing once more.

Handsworth managed to regain their composure entering the final 5 minutes of the game. Stuart Ludlam sent a direct ball up to Ben Harriott in an advanced position on the right, before the ball was worked back infield to substitute Harry Jessop. He chipped a pass into the penalty area to Harriott, having made a smart run into the penalty area, whose effort was thwarted point blank by Green diving acrobatically to his left and diverting the ball around the post.

Tadcaster’s dazzling 10-minute spell blew Handsworth away, as a rather slow-paced first half mired with mistakes on the ball gave no foresight for what was to come. Elliot Andrew needed only half a dozen minutes to take his tally for the league campaign to 9 goals. Tadcaster knew they had to outscore their opponents this evening, who have often done so this season, and will already be looking to replicate their performance away to Thackley this Saturday (kick off 15:00).

Attendance: 151

Tony Howarth Golf Man of the Match: Elliot Andrew

Tadcaster: Green, Owen, Charlesworth, Thirkell (C), Knowles, Kitchen, Bolino, Greenway, Andrew (‘83 Shepherd), Ibrahimi (‘78 Hines), Cassius-Gill (‘62 Ellington)

Handsworth: Crosby, Harriott, Williams, Fewkes, Ludlam, Carne, Dodsworth (‘64 Jessop), Dolman, Ruthven, Dunne, Fearon (‘72 Holloway)
Unused subs: Parkin, Williams, Thompson