Shawbury United give themselves hope as Haughmond denied and Telford Town up to second - round-up

Hosts Shawbury saw off New Mills 2-0 in the league's First Division South to lift them to within a point of safety.

It was a first win under new boss Matthew Boswell in his first home game at the helm at Carradine Road having made the switch from county rivals Telford Town.

Boswell has led a recruitment drive and new signing Kyle Cassell, an experienced striker previously of Salop Leisure League outfit FC Nations, marked his bow with the opening goal after half hour.

Cassell tucked in a finish after tiresome work from another debutant Essa Faburay.

The hosts kept their noses in front in a bad-tempered affair as the mid-table visitors had Ellis Graham dismissed for dissent shortly after the interval. Ben McNamara was sent to the sin bin for 10 minutes as Shawbury faced nine men.

Substitute Ablay Sowe struck the bar as the home side pushed for a clinching second before, in the closing moments, two members of the New Mills backroom staff were sent off and goalkeeper Callum Jakovlevs was sin binned.

Sowe sealed the points against nine men as he beat the replacement keeper in stoppage time as third-bottom Shawbury moved within a point of Alsager.

Alsager had gained a point with a stoppage-time goal of their own in a 2-2 home draw against Allscott Heath.

Kian Newnes drew 11th-placed Heath level early on and Armando Wood's penalty after the hour looked to have won it, but Luke Nicholls snatched his second deep into stoppages.

Second-bottom Haughmond are six points from safety but came agonisingly close to pocketing a point in the 3-2 defeat at Ashville.

The Mond showed spirit to fight back from 2-0 down to level through Ryley Oakley and Ethan Pickford, but Ashville's Jonathon Cahill bagged a winner six minutes from time.

Telford Town climbed to second after an entertaining 3-2 home win over Cammell Laird.

Hosts Telford twice equalised, through Andy Nicol in the first period and Joe Fitzpatrick with 20 minutes left, and the final say went to Ryan Nesbitt, who found the top corner with a stunning 20-yard drive with seven minutes left.

Town are 13 points adrift of runaway leaders Runcorn Town after Market Drayton Town were the latest to fall victim to the freescoring table-toppers.

Drayton - two places and five points clear of the drop - were hit for seven without at their Greenfields home as Runcorn chalked up a 4-0 lead by half-time.

Nothing could separate play-off chasing rivals Vauxhall Motors and Shifnal Town in Northern Premier West at step four.

Shifnal captain and former Football League star Kyle Bennett opened the scoring in Ellesmere Port with a wonderful rising strike into the top corner to beat Calvin Hare for a first goal of the season.

But the hosts' top scorer Nick Rushton levelled matters in first-half stoppage time, with a fine strike into the top corner of his own, and the contest ended a draw after some hardy Shifnal defending. Vauxhall, in sixth, and Shifnal, in seventh, trail the play-offs by three and four points respectively.

There was disappointment for improving Ludlow Town in Hellenic Division One as they remain ninth following a 4-0 home defeat to Malmesbury Victoria, of one place above.