LUCKLESS Pickering Town hit the woodwork four times as they went down 1-0 in Saturday's top-of-the-table clash at Northern Counties East League leaders Brigg.

Alex Wilgrass also had a 76th-minute penalty saved by Brigg's inspirational goalkeeper Damian Steer as the Pikes left Lincoln-shire wondering how they had come away without anything after a display that boss Steve Brown believed was the best he has ever seen from the club.

Mark Wood (twice), Gavin Dickenson and James Drinkall were all denied by the frame of the goal and Steer also made eight good saves to keep the visitors at bay.

Last season's FA Vase winners snatched the premier division points when Simon Roach got the only goal of the game on 75 minutes and after Wilgrass' spot kick, awarded when Dickenson was tripped in the box, was saved by Steer.

A deserved victory would have seen Pickering close the gap at the top to two points but the Mill Lane outfit are cruelly now eight points adrift, though they still have four games in hand on Brigg.

The defeat also ended Pickering's eight-game unbeaten league run since losing to Thackley in their second match of the season.

Pikes boss Brown said: "Even their supporters and officials were very complimentary but it was one of those days when the best team did not win. Their goalkeeper was world class and made seven or eight good saves.

"But it's the best I have seen Pickering Town play and I have been watching them for a few years so we have just got to take all those positives out of the game."

Selby Town are second in the table after a thumping 7-2 defeat of struggling Borrowash Victoria.

Steve Ward and the premier division's top scorer, Joe Gaughan, both bagged braces, while Tom Matthews, new signing Andy Battersby and Adam Sadler completed the rout.

Ward opened the scoring after just two minutes and 13 seconds and Matthews doubled the lead nine minutes later.

It was 3-0 on 17 minutes thanks to Ward and Gaughan set up debutant Battersby, recently signed from local rivals Goole, to fire in a sweet strike two minutes later.

Gaughan got his first in a rampant first half-hour on 27 minutes before Blake Hogan pulled one back for Borrowash direct from a free kick before the break.

Selby were back in the ascendan-cy early in the second half when Ward set up Sadler for his goal on 47 minutes and Gaughan profited from another Ward pass to score again on the hour mark.

Aaron Jackson then netted a late consolation for the visitors.

A fine goalkeeping display from Ed Neale earned Harrogate Railway a 0-0 draw at Liversedge.

The home side, including several former players from Railway manager Martin Haresign's old club Farsley Celtic, dominated the first half but Neale pulled off save after save.

And Railway could even have stolen maximum points late on when former York City striker Ian Blackstone missed the target with an easy header and Steve Davey also went close.

In NCEL division one, Tadcas-ter Albion lost 3-2 at home to second-placed Maltby Main.

Harrogate Town's fine Unibond League premier division form continued with a 2-1 victory at Stalybridge Celtic.

The former Conference club, who travel to Barnet in the FA Cup this weekend, were beaten by third-placed Harrogate thanks to goals from former York City strikers James Turley and Glenn Naylor.

Turley opened the scoring on 13 minutes after a Naylor shot was parried by the home goalkeeper.

But Celtic equalised shortly afterwards when James Reardon was dispossessed and Liam Sutcliffe could only punch a right-wing cross as far as Phil Eastwood, who fired into the roof of the net from 20 yards. Naylor then grabbed the winning goal on 29 minutes after an excellent through ball by Mark Ford.

In worse news, Town are waiting to see how serious a cheekbone injury is that saw the scorer substituted moments later.

Updated: 12:55 Monday, November 03, 2003