WITHAM Town extended their winning run to five games and ended new boys Norwich United’s unblemished start to the Ryman League division north season with a 2-1 victory at the Village Glass Stadium.

Fresh from booking their place in the FA Cup second qualifying round last weekend, Witham claimed their third league success in a row.

Both teams had made solid starts to the season, with Witham coming into the game on the back of a four-match winning run and Norwich sitting fourth in the division north table after winning their opening three games in the league.

And that confidence showed in both sets of players as they tried to get on the front foot early in the game.

The visitors pressed in the opening stages without creating much in the way of clear-cut chances, while Witham went close when Scott Kemp drove in at the Norwich defence and curled a shot just wide of the far post.

However, the majority of the pressure in the first period was directed towards the home goal as the Norfolk side enjoyed the lion’s share of the possession.

It meant Witham had to stay disciplined in their defence, but the fact that they did ensured keeper Lewis Snelgrove had relatively little to do throughout the first 45 minutes.

But having remained goalless through the first half, Witham soon broke the deadlock after the break.

The ball broke to an onrushing Tyler Hayes about 30 yards out and his first-time low driven shot could only be parried by Norwich keeper Andrew Wilton to where Ryan Imbert was waiting to tuck away the loose ball.

It gave Witham the lead and they soon took full control as a wonderful strike from Nathan Korentang doubled their lead in the 55th minute.

The Town midfielder cut inside from the right wing and unleashed an unstoppable shot into the top corner that gave Wilton no chance.

Witham tails were certainly up and their growing confidence was underlined by Kemp once again driving at the Norwich defence and forcing Wilton into a smart save low to his right.

The visitors weren’t prepared to give up their unblemished start to life in the Ryman League without a fight, though, and were right back in the game in the 66th minute when Shaun Wones turned in a cross from the left.

It was now Norwich tails that were up and they pressed for an equaliser and only a tremendous reaction save from close range by Snelgrove kept Witham ahead as the game entered the closing stages.

There was no way through for the visitors and the evening finished on a sour note for them as full-back Jamie Speller was shown a red card for violent conduct in time added-on at the end.

Elsewhere in division north, there was a third defeat in a row for Maldon and Tiptree as they lost 3-1 at VCD Athletic.

The Jammers took the lead in the 38th minute when Liam Nash fired home the opener, but the hosts restored parity before half-time when Becka-Kah Debele equalised just three minutes later.

It made it 1-1 at half-time, but it didn’t stay level for long as two goals in as many minutes soon after the restart put VCD in the driving seat.

Firstly Kris Newby gave them the lead in the 48th minute and former Colchester United striker Jamie Guy doubled the advantage just a minute later.

They gave VCD a healthy buffer and they held on to it until the final whistle to take all three points.