Worcester Raiders fired six past a defenceless Shortwood United on Wednesday night at Sixways Stadium, doing their promotion hopes no harm at all writes Ashley Symonds.

A hat-trick from a fresh-faced Josh Willis helped Raiders on their way, while goals from striker Jordan Murphy, Isaac Cooper, and Kai Mahon added further gloss to an emphatic scoreline.

As the referee blew his whistle to begin the game, it seemed that Raiders were still hurting from their 1-1 draw at Stratford on Saturday and were looking to get out of the blocks early.

And so they did, as Mahon was on hand to fire Raiders into an early lead in the second minute.
He controlled a long raking pass in effortless style, before cutting onto his right foot to power the ball home.

The fans in attendance did not have long to wait for a second either, as Mahon got himself involved in the action again when he played a through ball to the red-hot Cooper, who had no trouble sliding the ball past keeper Rob Sims to make it 2-0.

Worcester found themselves in control for the rest of the first half, with early goal scorer Mahon causing havoc throughout, but he was not able to convert his chances.

So by the time the teams headed down the tunnel for half-time, Raiders may have been two up, but it could have been much more.

Although it was Raiders who began the game fast, it was Shortwood who came out fighting in the early stages of the second half. Just three minutes into the second period Shortwood thought they had reduced the deficit when they smashed the ball into the back of the net, however the referee spoiled the celebrations by calling it back for a free-kick for a handball.

That disallowed goal woke up Worcester in great style, forcing them to reapply their early pressure, so when new recruit Willis banged in two goals in three minutes shortly after, it came as no surprise.

Willis could have netted a third to seal his hat-trick six minutes later, as he broke down the left wing with only the keeper to beat, but unselfishly he played in teammate Jordan Murphy, who duly delivered and gave Raiders their fifth of the game.

However, with two minutes left to play, Willis did get his hat trick, dribbling past the keeper and a few defenders to tap home.

The full-time whistle brought an end to Shortwood’s misery as they were dominated from minute one, with Raiders now only five points off league leaders Studley with four games left to play.

It seems that the Raiders will have to battle through the play-offs to secure promotion as although the title is still mathematically possible, realistically it could be too little too late.