City of Peterborough won't be going down without a fight

​The city side claimed just a second win of the Midlands Conference season when beating fellow strugglers Bedford 4-1 at Bretton Gate on Saturday.

City remain bottom, a point behind Bedford, and four points from safety with just four matches to go.

They have another must-win fixture this Sunday when they host St Albans (2pm), a team who eased their own relegation fears with a 4-1 success at Harleston.

City’s last three games are at Harleston – a team they beat at home – at second-placed Stourport and at home to leaders Nottingham University seconds, so a great escape from trouble remains unlikely.

But a fast start when they scored twice in the first seven minutes which led to a set-piece hat-trick for skipper Joe Finding has at least given them a sniff.

Finding opening the scoring from a second minute short corner and he soon added a penalty stroke following a foul on Zak Scotting who had latched on to Matt Goodley’s excellent through ball.

A neat passing move enabled Gareth Andrew to score at the back post for a 3-0 half-time lead before Bedford raised their game. City players made regular trips to the sin bin – Finding went twice – for foul play and the visitors pulled a goal back from a penalty stroke conceded by Scott Howard.

But City held firm and sealed a well deserved victory with another Finding short corner strike in the final quarter.

City of Peterborough Ladies are also fighting hard against relegation from the East Premier Division and they delivered a game display in a single-goal defeat at home to second-placed Cambridge City seconds.

City appear to be in a dogfight with Chelmsford to avoid the drop. They are level on points with City having a game at hand, although it is at fourth-placed Bishop’s Stortford on Sunday. City also have a Saturday awayday at sixth-placed Broxbourne.

Fourth-placed City men’s seconds beat third-placed St Ives 3-1 in an East Division One match. Ethan Pearson, Louie Raybould and Dan Barkworth scored the goals.

City fourths were beaten by second-placed Bourne Deeping 6-3 in Division Three. Shane Carlton, Matty Cave and Ed Walker were on target for City.

The only City ladies winners were the fourth team who pipped Cambridge Nomads 2-1 in Division Four with goals from Erin Brassington and Izzy Hurn.

Selected City of Peterborough results…

Men: City 2nds 3 (Pearson, Raybould, Barkworth), St Ives 1; Cambridge City 1, City 3rds 2 (Drake, Astbury); City 4ths 3 (Carlton, M. Cave, Walker), Bourne Deeping 6; Spalding 4, City 4ths 5 (Buckley, Cox, Wallace, Doyle, Hastings); Cambridge Sth 1, City 6ths 2; Kettering 3, City 7ths 0; City 8ths 7 (Kennedy 3, Quaddaz, Browning, Alford, Spencer), Cambridge Nomads 0.

Ladies: Cambridge Sth 4, City 2nds 1 (Foad); City 3rds 0, St Ives 2; Cambridge Nomads 1, City 4ths 2 (Brassington, Hurn),