Canvey were delighted to find visitors St Albans generous both off and on the pitch as the Islanders produced one of their most scintillating performances of the season.

The Hertfordshire side came into this match on level points with their hosts, but Gulls were simply on another planet as they tore the opposition apart to firmly establish themselves as the only realistic challengers to Aldershot for the Ryman Premier title.

Striking pose - Lee Protheroe swings in the cross from which Lee Boylan struck Picture: ROBIN WOOSEY

St Albans fans raised over £700 towards the near £2,000 raised for match-day mascot Candy Bloomfield, a five-year-old leukaemia sufferer.

On the pitch manager Jeff King rang the changes following Tuesday's disappointing reverse at Hendon and saw his side roar into a 2-0 lead with less than three minutes gone.

Only 38 seconds had gone when, following a foul on John Kennedy deep on the right, goal machine Lee Boylan was on hand to convert Lee Protheroe's set-piece.

Just two minutes later it was 2-0 with Ollie Berquez taking advantage of an underhit back pass to shoot home past visiting goalkeeper Richard Wilmot.

On the ten-minute mark the visiting Saints pulled back a goal when Andy Lodge's right-wing cross saw Corey Campbell rise to head home.

However, Gulls were at their irresistible attacking best and, after Micky Bennett's 16th minute header had been kept out by a superb Wilmot save, Boylan was on hand to make it 3-1 five minutes later.

That was the end of the first-half goal action, but the Islanders took only a minute of the resumption to grab a fourth.

Chris Duffy set-up the chance with a challenge on the edge of the area and, as Berquez rolled the ball towards an empty net, Boylan completed his hat-trick.

Steve Parmenter fired wide after 55 minutes but eight minutes later the same player, fittingly as he'd been instrumental in starting the fund-raising for Candy as a friend of her family, cracked home a superb 20 yard shot to make it 5-1.

Inevitably the goal rush was completed by man-of-the-match Boylan who, after substitute Bertie Brayley had been foiled by Wilmot, was on hand to notch his fourth of the afternoon and 37th of the season to see himself well clear in the Ryman Premier hot-shot table.

A delighted King said: "I made a few changes because I was disappointed by our performance at Hendon.

"We didn't play well then, but we were excellent today. I've heard that Aldershot won again today to stay six points ahead of us with a game in hand, but we've just got to keep plugging away."

For more on Ryman Premier League sides see our Ryman Premier League section

Published Monday, April 7 , 2003

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