Skelmersdale United made the long trip down to Norfolk and after battling their way through the Bank Holiday traffic they returned with a second trophy, but they didn’t just win the play-off between the two champions, they took apart the team that won the southern version of their league title. King’s Lynn suffered from North-South divide at their own Lawns ground as Skelmersdale completely outplayed them for long periods. An opinion shared by a local Norfolk journalist who commented; “Skelmersdale are passing us off the park.”

Skelmersdale started fluently and in the eighth minute Adam Morning had a goalbound shot blocked, soon afterwards Mark Jackson and Antony Hickey combined before the latter put the ball across goal, but Josh Hine was just unable to make a telling contact.

King’s Lynn flashed up the other end and Jordan Yong put a thirty yard shot just wide of Sam Ashton’s far post.

Skelmersdale scored in the 21 & 23 minutes. Wright performing his “Kaiser Franz” role in the middle of the park turned on the ball strolled on and released Hine down the inside right channel, As Lynn goalkeeper Alex Street came out to meet him, Hine unselfishly rolled the ball sideways to give Jackson the easiest goal he will have scored this season.

Wright orchestrated the second goal too, setting Morning away at pace down the left, the winger still had plenty to do though and his clever ball inside to Hine saw the striker keep his cool before finding the net.

King’s Lynn is a champion outfit and their pride was severely dented and they upped their game for ten minutes but Skelmersdale were resolute at the back. Shane Tolley put a shot wide when maybe he could have done better and Sam Ashton made a fairly routine save from Charlie Butt.

Skelmersdale still scored next, Morning running onto a finely weighted through ball in the 35th minute before blasting the ball low into the net.

Before the break given luck, Skelmersdale might have had two more, Street making a save from Antony Hickey then a magnificent one coming off his line as Hine was clean in.

It was no shock that King’s Lynn were quick out of the blocks after the interval and Ashton quickly made a flying save to his right to keep out a superb 30 yard shot from Butt. But United soon settled back into a passing style that was almost like 5-a-side.

Hine had a shot deflected over the crossbar then for Lynn George Thomson put a shot from distance over the crossbar.

Matty Hughes clipped the home crossbar in the 62nd minute. However, a minute later Lynn pulled a goal back. Rob McIntosh committing a foul and Thomson despatched the spot-kick.

If there was any doubt, it was wiped away fifteen minutes from time. The ball was switched from left to right, Kenny Strickland swept the ball into the box, where Hine lost his marker and headed across Street into the net.

Just to finish the season with a flourish Skelmersdale kept going and Hine hit his 25th and 26th Evo-Stik goals of the season in the latter stages. The first a tap-in after Andy Griffiths and Mike Phenix combined to set him up, followed by the coup-de-grace, a chip from 25 yards.

Words don’t adequately sum up Skelmersdale United’s season, but the King’s Lynn journalist might just have hit the nail on the head with his comments.

KING’S LYNN TOWN: Street, Watson © (Stocker, 50), Yong (Ward, 62), Lee, Fryatt, Jepson (Biles, 50), Butt, Thomson, Beaumont, Tolley, Mulready Subs (not used) Dunkley, Spriggs

SKELMERSDALE UNITED: Ashton, Strickland, Holden, Hardwick ©, McIntosh, Wright, Hughes, Hickey, Jackson (Griffiths, 83), Hine, Morning (Phenix, 67) Subs (not used) Woolcott, Field, Burgess

Referee: S. Meredith (Mansfield) Attendance: 321