Holyport qualify for play-offs after Burnham fail to beat Hilltop in their final game

Photo: Holyport FC

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Holyport have realised their goal of qualifying for the Combined Counties Premier Division North play-offs after Burnham failed to beat Hilltop away this evening.

The Blues needed to win at Hilltop in their final league game to move above Sam Lock's side, but they came up just short at Holloways Park in a game that was more even than the 3-0 scoreline suggests.

Holyport, who finished fifth, will now visit league runners-up Rayners Lane for their play-off semi-final on Saturday.

Hilltop, who only just survived relegation from the division themselves, played with a greater freedom than in recent weeks and they took the lead on the stroke of half-time. The Blues fought hard to find a leveller in the second half and crashed a shot against the crossbar with the Hilltop goal living a somewhat charmed life. However, their efforts to push for the goals they needed to win the game led to them being caught on the counterattack, and Hilltop scored twice in the closing stages to complete a 3-0 win.

Great effort… pic.twitter.com/tZqSRnfoXR

— Paul Butler (@psjbutler) May 2, 2024

The result means the Blues have finished the season with four straight defeats and miss out on the play-offs by just three points, however, the result will have been celebrated heartily by Holyport's players and coaching team who are now just two wins away from achieving promotion to step four.

This was already set to be the highest finish in the club's history, but they've now put themselves in where they could conceivably achieve promotion to the level above through the play-offs.

Having picked up 30 points from their final 12 games, and 15 points from their last five, they are one of, if not the division's form side, and Rayners Lane won’t relish facing them in Saturday's play-off semi-final.

WE'VE DONE IT!!! @ComCoFL | #ProudToBeSeen pic.twitter.com/wQfBacfcyQ

— Holyport FC | Est 1897 (@HolyportFC) May 2, 2024

The league's other semi-final will see third placed Bedfont Sports host fourth placed Reading City, with the two winning teams then meeting for the final at home of whichever side finished higher in the league.

Despite recent defeats to Rayners Lane (3-1) and Reading City (1-0) Ben Murray would have expected his side to get over the line with their final two fixtures against Wokingham & Emmbrook and Hilltop. But the Blues were narrowly beaten 3-2 by Wokingham on Saturday and couldn't change that losing momentum at Hilltop this evening.

Holyport finished their season with a 2-1 win over Ardley United on Saturday. Afterwards, their manager Sam Lock said how proud he was of the team, who had been down in 14th place in early December before embarking on this remarkable run to the play-offs.

Speaking on Saturday, Lock said he and his players weren't ready for the season to end.

“I'm absolutely delighted,” he told Jay Harvey. “The boys have given us everything. Absolutely everything and they've got a chance.

“We say it's seeing off our season, but we're not finished, we're ready to go, we're hungry. We're ready for whatever comes our way.

“I am so incredibly proud as a manager, of the players, the management staff, the fans, the board, the directors, everybody.

“For little old Holyport to be in the position that we are is out of this world.”