EARLSWOOD Town saw their late comeback attempt fall short in a thrilling 5-4 defeat against Bolehall Swifts.
The Earls rallied late on as Harry Dixon scored twice while Keelan Reilly and Harry Street also found the net in vain at Rene Road.
And the result means Earlswood sit 11th in the Midland Football League Division Two table.
The Earls spurned several early chances to take the lead as Bolehall goalkeeper Jackson Acton denied both Dixon and player-manager Joel Hughes when one-on-one.
And Dixon then hit the post from the penalty spot after drawing a foul in the box as Bolehall cleared the loose ball to safety.
However, Dixon atoned for his penalty miss with the game’s opening goal as he fired a driven effort into the bottom left corner.
Bolehall drew level soon after when Josh Whitehouse curled a shot past a rooted Alfie Pyott.
And Swifts completed the turnaround on the stroke of half time as Whitehouse grabbed his second of the game at the back post from close range.
The home side stretched their lead after the break as substitute Sam Dunkley beat Pyott when one-on-one.
And Whitehouse completed his hat-trick after Bolehall caught the Earls out with a rapid counter attack.
Bolehall wrapped up the points when Dunkley’s powerful strike from the edge of the penalty area found the far corner.
The Earls had a mountain to climb but reduced the deficit when Reilly finished on the rebound before Dixon finished Andy Matthews’ cross.
And Street then struck from the edge of the penalty area in the final few seconds but it proved too little too late for the Earls.
Earlswood are next in action against Littleton on Saturday, November 2 with kick-off at 3pm at The Pavilions.
