There maybe many players and fans around the league who believe that the Doodson Sport Cup is way down their club’s list of priorities but Spartans midfielder Jack Stanger isn’t amongst them as he reflected on a job well done in the 5-3 win over Stocksbridge Park Steels.. The eighteen year old was given his second start by Paddy Atkinson and rewarded the Spartans manager with a calm performance in the centre of the park and he insisted his side can have a real go at going far in the competition. He said “It’s always good to have a distraction from the league and at the moment we are sitting in and around mid-table but this cup can give us a chance to take something from the season. With some good draws in the coming rounds who knows where we could end up”.
A topsy turvy game was finally settled in extra time as late goals from Robbie Dale and Daniel Maguire sealed a deserved win for Spartans and Stanger felt his side were good value for their win. The former Consett midfielder said “It was a good result for us tonight although we did make it hard for ourselves but we did well to get the win in the end. I think I started by being a bit sloppy and gave the ball away but once I settled I think I’ve done ok. I was very happy with my assist for Ryan McGorrigan’s goal as well. We can just look forward to the next round now.”