Ashby Ivanhoe 2 Stapenhill 1

Ashby Ivanhoe put past demons to bed against Stapenhill with a hard-fought victory in front of a bumper crowd of 285 on Tuesday.

With four defeats in a row against the visitors, Ivanhoe flew out of the blocks and could have led inside a minute, Chris Acott seeing his lobbed effort go just past the far post.

Despite sitting in mid table, Stapenhill proved more than good enough to match Ashby in an equal first half. Neither goalkeeper was truly tested as both teams struggled to play on a pitch which quickly started breaking up.

The match's first moment of magic saw Ashby break through.

Despite being surrounded by defenders, Acott found Ash Garner who saw his shot hit both posts, before being bundled over the line by a visiting defender.

Stapenhill once again were haunted by their former man Garner, who scored on his return to Maple Grove in October, and played a pivotal role in his side's victory this time around.

Ashby were the stronger side after the goal and doubled their lead with 20 minutes to go.

Acott once again at the heart of the move, found captain Sam Grouse who stayed calm and finished across the goalkeeper to seemingly wrap up three points.

As is always the case against Stapenhill, the match would not just peter out. Ben Novis would score once again against Ivanhoe, this time finding the net directly from a corner, deceiving Tommy Dyche who came out to claim a cross.

Dyche would not be tested by the visitors for the remaining 15 minutes, however. Stapenhill would play on the front foot without the quality in the final third to find an equaliser.

The victory came as a huge relief to all the players, staff, and fans at Ashby with the celebratory mood around the NFU Sports Ground clear to see following the final whistle.

Ivanhoe end 2022 two points off the top of the table and begin the new year with a short trip to face Ingles, a side who knocked them out of the MFL cup in November.