Bermudian striker Lejaun Simmons was a hat-trick hero this afternoon as Ilkeston FC claimed a place in the Central Conference Cup Final with a 4-0 win over Burton Albion.
The 20-year-old Devonshire Cougars front-runner broke the deadlock five minutes before the break when he slipped the ball past the goalkeeper after going clear and followed that up by beating the 'keeper with an angled drive before rounding off the victory with a neat header.
The Robins' third goal was scored by Dereece Gardner, our most experienced player except for assistant-manager Darren Caskey and goalkeeper Scott Lowe.
Caskey played for 45 minutes, giving the youngsters the benefit of his experience, while Lowe will be pleased to keep a clean-sheet in his comeback game after recovering from a troublesome ankle injury.
Said manager Kevin Wilson: "If I'm honest I think 4-0 flattered us because Burton's young side did well but Simmon's goals made all the difference. He's a decent finisher - as he showed this afternoon with three different types of goals."
Although it's yet to be confirmed, the Cup Final against Bromsgrove is expected to take place next Monday evening at the New Manor Ground, when Wilson's youngsters will be looking to lift the trophy for the third successive year.
And they could yet complete the double for the third consecutive season. We meet Burton again on Wednesday in our final League game - and we need to win that and for Burton to then beat Tresham for the title to come our way again.
