As expected, the match between current leaders Spraire RA and last years champions Coundon Forresters turned out to be a cracking game of football between two very good sides.

Danny Richmond gave Spraire the lead mid way through the first half with an excellent 'Beckham' style free kick in the top corner from about 25 yards out. Coundon pressed hard for an equaliser, but were thwarted by the woodwork on at least 3 occasions and once by a brilliant save from Spraire keeper Paul Hardie. With time running out and Coundon throwing men forward, Chris Falconer sealed the Spraire victory with a tap in after the Coundon keeper David Brough had made an excellent save, to make the final score Spraire RA 2 Coundon Foresters 0.

Meanwhile, Nestfield Club kept the pressure on Spraire with a fantastic 8-1 victory over in-form Northern Echo. Goals from Gary Mitchell (6), John Robson and Rod Brown provided evidence of Nestfield's superiority, with a well under par Northern Echo only having a solitary John Neilson strike for their efforts.

Elsewhere, Speedwell moved into third place, as they picked up the day's biggest scoreline - a crushing 12-1 defeat of bottom side Green Dragon. Man of the match John Banks struck 3 well taken goals for the Speedwell, whilst a hat-trick from Neil Topping and goals from Shaun Collings (2), Nigel Weller, Roy Winter, Carl Bozeate and James Shoulder completed the rout. Dave Abdale hit a well-taken consolation for The Dragon.

The surprise scoreline in Division One was in the game between East End WMC and Springfield, however. Springfield started the game second-bottom of the division, but carried a 1-0 lead into the break, thanks to Darren Tate's goal. The second half was all Springfield, with Darren Tate adding a further two goals to complete his hat trick, and Mark Thompson and Mark Carter adding one apiece. East End grabbed a consolation through an own goal, but it was nowhere near enough, as Springfield were good value for their 5-1 victory.

In the remaining games a hat-trick from Jason Wing, two goals from Chris Postle and one apiece for Wayne Anderson and Craig Barrigan helped Newton Aycliffe Sports Club on their way to a 7-3 victory over a Team Scania side who had Dean Lawson, Anth Shutt and Michael Carter to thank for their goals. Meanwhile, The Brinkburn beat Hoppers Transport 7-0 thanks to goals from Stephen Johnson (4), Dave Wilson, Rob Creek and James Wilkinson.

In Division Two, Hurworth Albion remain top of the league thanks to a 5-2 victory over Copper Beech DCS. However, the leaders didn't have it all their own way, as the teams went in level at half time, thanks to goals from Richard Hill (pen) and Kelvin Russell for the Albion, and Darren Riley (pen) and Neil Murphick for DCS. However, Hurworth were much the stronger side in the second half, and their pressure finally told as they hit three goals in the last fifteen minutes - two from Steven Bell and one from Andrew West.

Meanwhile, Shuttle & Loom's 7-1 victory over Sadberge moved them up into second place, as Jack Horners lost against Allstars in a fine game of football. The Jack's, renowned for their stern defending this season, found themselves 1-0 down with in five minutes thanks to a fine goal from Darren Kokes. However, they responded well, and their extensive pressure paid off, as James Colbraith nipped in to level the scores. Jack's took full advantage of a let off, as Paul Scott's fine header from a corner gave Jack's a 2-1 lead. However, Allstars were in no mood to continue their poor run of form, and Kokes soon equalised after some fine play from Gavin Rose. The fresh legs of substitute Aron Denham then gave Allstars all three points as he unleashed a fierce shot past the Jacks keeper for 3-2.

Meanwhile, Bishop Auckland Cricket Club beat struggling Bishop Auckland Derby 10-3 to move into fourth place. However, The Derby took the lead in a hard fought first half, as Matthew Gowland capitalised on a defensive error.

However, Anthony Jaques soon levelled the scores up, and then Ross Hardaker struck to give the Cricket Club a 2-1 half time lead. The second half was then completely dominated by the Cricket Club, as they started to score freely and turn on the style with some fine passing and clinical finishing. Alan Meadows notched four in the onslaught, with Kevin Slater bagging a hat trick and Alan Lamb and Michael Barker grabbing one each. Michael Latcham and Wayne King notched second half goals for the Derby.

Northern Spirit, buoyed by their first victory of the season against Sadberge last week, beat Smith & Allan 8-0, and a victory over the Derby will put them within striking distance of the Derby as they fight for second division survival. Phil Moore led the scoring for Spirit against Smith & Allan, however, as he grabbed a hat-trick to add to the brace from man-of-the-match Neil Pinkney, and goals from Simon York, Dave Brown and Mike Donnelly.

In Division Three, league leaders AFC Orange faced third placed Royal British Legion, in a hotly anticipated clash between the only two unbeaten sides in the league. Legion took a deserved lead when Mick Meredith capitalised on Orange's inability to clear adequately from a Legion corner. The Legion held onto the lead until half time, but they faced a much more determined Orange side in the second half, and they were rewarded for their pressure and fine play by Steve Charlton's well executed finish. However, it was Charlton who was to be the hero, as he struck a magnificent shot into the top corner to give Orange a 2-1 lead that they were never going to let go.

Elsewhere, Yates's Wine Lodge remain in second place, after they beat Nestfield Seconds. Luke Chadwick put Yates's in control early doors with two early goals, but a defensive error from Chris Easby gave Nestfield the chance to get back into the game, as Adi Weston brought the score back to 2-1. Both teams were then reduced to ten men, and the game opened up dramatically, with Chadwick taking full advantage as he completed his hat trick to give the Lodgers a 3-1 lead. Stuart Bell then planted a fine header past the Nestfield keeper to make the score 4-1, before Weston scored his second goal for 4-2.

Canney Hill Athletic, meanwhile, missed out on the chance to move back into the top three as they were held to a 5-5 draw by a spirited Faverdale side. Whilst Pizza Perfekt made ground on the top sides as they beat Newton Cap 8-1. A pair of hat-tricks from Pizzaboyz veterans Mark Wardell and Ian Caygill outlined Perfekt's dominance, whilst Carl Batty and Paul Hope also got on the scoresheet. David Jacobs notched a consolation for Cap, who have won two in a row