Reserve team star Graham Marchant showed Harrogate Railway boss Martin Haresign what he can do after scoring two goals in a momentous 3-0 defeat of top-six outfit Sheffield.

Marchant has already picked up the golden boot award for the Northern Counties East League division two after netting 26 times in 22 games during the Reserves' unbeaten championship-winning season.

And on Saturday he justified Haresign's decision to call him up to face NCEL premier division high-fliers Sheffield with strikes in the 51st and 69th minutes.

Haresign said: "Graham's been on the bench for the last two or three games but we decided to give him a go and he did really well.

"We had to change the system because we had a lot of key players like Danny Spence missing so we played with wing-backs and it worked fine for us."

Recent signing Gary Shaw also impressed on his home debut.

Pickering Town banished the demons of their midweek defeat to Hallam with a confident 4-0 win over Glasshoughton Welfare.

Tom Adams, Ricky Greening, Danny Brunton and John Haigh were all on the scoresheet and manager Steve Brown said he was impressed with the way his players had turned things round.

He said: "It was a pretty good performance and that was something I had asked the players for after last week so I was really pleased with that."

The win also lifts Pickering back into the top four, where Brown hopes to finish.

Goole, meanwhile, suffered a 'bad day at the office' as they slipped to a 3-2 home defeat to Liversedge.

Liversedge raced 3-0 ahead before Kevin Graham and Nigel Danby salvaged two late consolation strikes.

Joint manager Jimmy Reid said: "We gave three bad goals away and were punished for it and it was probably a fair result as far as I'm concerned.

"I think it was just a bad day at the office - some days they look great and others they look like they have never kicked a ball before."

Off-the-boil Selby Town suffered another defeat despite Joe Gaughan finding the net. Darren Bogan and Graeme Pardy were on target for Arnold Town to seal the 2-1 win as the Robins' premier division campaign slides into dismay after holding out so much promise for the first two-thirds.

And in division one of the NCEL, Tadcaster Albion's 2004 slump continued with another 3-1 loss inflicted by visitors Staveley Miners Welfare. Matty Howgate managed a 90th-minute consolation for the hosts.

But there was no denying Harrogate Town, and in particular, veteran playmaker Mark Atkins.

He added the gloss to a storming 5-0 win with an 81st-minute wonder goal for a grand Wetherby Road farewell.

The former Blackburn Rovers and York City midfielder ran through eight players before side-footing home to wrap up a convincing performance in Town's final home game of the UniBond League premier division campaign.

Marc Smith had opened the scoring on the half-hour mark before adding another goal 20 minutes later.

Defender Mick McNaughton and newly-crowned Supporters' Club and spectators' player of the year James Turley - another former Minsterman - were also on the scoresheet in the nap-hand triumph.

Manager John Reed said: "I had asked them if we could finish off in style and that's exactly what they did.

"That result means we can't finish any lower than fifth and we are guaranteed Conference football next season, which is amazing when you consider we were bottom of the first division only three years ago."

Updated: 11:20 Monday, April 19, 2004