Wendron United secured their position on top of the South West Peninsula League West table for Christmas, in a 3-1 victory over second-place Wadebridge Town, writes Ned Laity.

The home side took the lead 17 minutes in when a corner was cleared but only as far as Jack Stocker, who got himself to the by-line and fired in a cross that was smashed home by Russel May.

Josh Wood would be on hand to score the second in the 29th minute, after he slotted the ball under the keeper following some tricky footwork.

Wadebridge pulled a goal back just before half time when Jacob Rowe blasted the ball past Ethan Fearn, however the Dron secured the three points with just over 20 to go, through talisman Charlie Young.

Wendron Untied manager, Michael O’Neill, spoke about Wendron securing their place at the top for Christmas, saying, “The table is largely irrelevant at the moment.

“We’re happy we’re there because it means we’re winning games. Seven wins in seven and 14 games in the league unbeaten. All the signs are positive and all the noises we’re making are at the right end of the table.”

O’Neill claimed he was ‘delighted’ with his side’s performance, stating, “it was a real 6 pointer in terms of what the league would look like.

“The most important thing for us was that we got in there and earned the right to play, doing the basics well. We had to weather the storm and do our defensive work well, relying a little bit on Ethan (Fearn) to keep a couple of shots out."

Despite an intercepted goal kick in the lead up to the visitors goal, Fearn managed to deny Wadebridge on a number of occasions, including a save from point blank range to prevent a nervy end to the game.

The Wendron chief spoke about his goalie, saying, “his saves at crucial moments in the game are so important, when we needed him the most he came through it.”

Other honourable mentions from O’Neill went towards his midfield three, Stocker, Lucas Potts and Joe Chapman, praising their calmness and link up play.

Speaking about the tough Christmas period and their short break from matches, O’Neill said, “we’ve notoriously as a club suffered in the second half of the season and we put a stop to that last year and went from strength to strength.

“I am happy with the way that we’ve hit the ground running after the little break and we now get the opportunity to go and show it again on the 27th.”

Wendron Untied face 9th place Mullion AFC on the 27th  December, whilst Wadebridge host Bodmin Town on Boxing Day who reside in 12th.