WITH the weather holding up it was a great footballing day to be gracing Christie Park and the teams did not let the massive support they received down. Chieftain seemed to take the early upper hand dominating the possession from the start.

They were soon rewarded with a neat finish from Chieftain's Stokes. This put a bit of life into Tarnbrook and they came into the game a lot more with some good play.

The equaliser soon came as the ball was delivered to the far post for Shuttleworth to have time to control and then finish past the advancing Buzzer.

Chieftain once again upped their game and watched as a few good solo efforts went whizzing past the bar and the post respectively.

Then came a neat move involving Thornton, Baines and also Borras before Stokes popped up and coolly slotted home his second of the game. A few more efforts came and went for both teams which took us to half time.

With Chieftain making a few changes they did not look as comfortable at the start of the second and it was not long before a mistake in the chieftain rear guard that allowed the young Harrington of Tarnbrook to equalise.

Again Chieftain upped their game and pressed for a winner which happened to fall to substitute Norfolk who smashed the ball into the back of Tarnbrooks net after some good play from the Chieftain winger Baines.

Chieftain thought they had secured it now but in true battling fashion Tarnbrook never gave up and the forward man of Tarnbrook was rewarded for all his hard work when a slip from Malcolm gifted him a free run on goal and with only buzzer to beat he coolly rounded the keeper and brushed the ball into the empty net. Game on.

Both teams were handed chances to grab the winner and it was with 15 minutes left that up popped another substitute in Jocko who found himself alone coming towards the back post and the ball arrived to him for him to finish without problem into the bottom corner. Tarnbrook tried in vein to come back again but time was against them and Chieftain were able to see the game out and hang on to their slender 4-3 lead and retain the League Cup.

CHIEFTAIN: Busby, Daweson, Johnny Watson, Easton, Thornton, Baines, Stokes, Murgatroyd, Kane, Borras, James Watson. SUBS: Holmes, Davies, Norfolk, Malcolm