Molten Spartan South Midlands League Challenge Trophy Second Round Colney Heath 2 Hanwell Town 0 Premier Division Brimsdown Rov 1 Colney Heath 3 RICHARD Howard struck twice as Colney Heath continued their good recent form to defeat Premier Division

Molten Spartan South Midlands League Challenge Trophy Second Round

Colney Heath 2 Hanwell Town 0

Premier Division

Brimsdown Rov 1 Colney Heath 3

RICHARD Howard struck twice as Colney Heath continued their good recent form to defeat Premier Division leaders Hanwell Town in the Challenge Trophy Second Round on Tuesday.

Hanwell started brightly and dominated the opening period but the Magpies hit back with crunching tackles from skipper Ant Muthusamy and midfield inspiration Neil Jordan to gain a foothold in the contest. Joint boss Scott Lacey said: "Hanwell were excellent in the first 10 minutes but then Ant put in a massive challenge and Neil followed it up with another crunching challenge. From then on I thought we dominated. We were stronger, quicker and we wanted it more. Man for man all our players were outstanding."

Goalkeeper Chris Eames set up the opening goal with a spectacular 70-yard pass which marksman Richard Howard took in his stride and clattered into the back of the net.

Muthusamy put in a colossal performance in the heart of the Colney Heath defence and was helped out by Dennis Paratusic, who cleared the ball off the line when Hanwell threatened.

The Magpies wrapped up victory when Greg Deacon fed Howard and he curled a fine shot into the bottom corner showing his finishing class.

Deacon missed a late penalty but the Magpies were already in complete command and closed out an impressive 2-0 win. Lacey is urging his side to keep their impressive form going. He said: "We have lost one in nine games and that was because we had 10 men. This team could do something special this year but we need to make sure complacency does not set in."

On Saturday, Colney Heath recorded a 3-1 win at Brimsdown Rovers, sparked by an excellent goal from skipper Ant Muthusamy.

The Magpies were favourites to win but could not get going in the early stages and relied on the spectacular opener from defender Muthusamy to give them a half-time lead. Lacey was not satisfied with the display from his side. He said: "The effort was good but the quality was lacking. We didn't play at all well. It was pretty frustrating from the sideline."

In the second half, midfield powerhouse Neil Jordan showed some guile in the box to convert an overhead kick for a rare goal after the ball bounced up in the box. Lacey said: "The worst thing was that he walked back to the centre circle because he doesn't know how to celebrate."

Brimsdown found a route back into the contest when Ryan Dear lobbed the ball home but the Magpies continued to look for the decisive third and it arrived with four minutes remaining. Striker Richard Howard broke clear on the left and cut back to strike at goal, only for the goalkeeper to push the shot into the path of teenager Aaron Clarke who scored his first goal for the club. Lacey said: "It was nice for Aaron. His workrate was immense for us."

On Saturday at the Recreation Ground, Colney Heath, the Magpies host local rivals Welwyn Garden City in what should be an exciting derby clash.