MIDDLEWICH Town beat Middlewich Town, but only just, on Wednesday.

For the second year running, the first team beat the second team to take the Mid Cheshire FA Amateur Cup back to Seddon Street.

The final itself was a celebration of an historic season at Middlewich, who won the Mid Cheshire League First and Reserves Division championships.

And the Reserves came desperately near glory, before ending plucky losers again.

Town beat their own Reserves 4-3, but only after rescuing themselves in the final 10 minutes of normal time and scoring a winner in the second half of extra time.

The Reserves led 3-1 at the 78-minute mark, thanks to goals from James Petrie (2) and Lewis Warren after an earlier missed penalty by Lee Murphy had given them a boost.

Murphy was on the mark, however, as were Rob Hopley and Les Miranda, to extend the game by another half-hour.

Hopley, tipped for big things by manager Terry Murphy, pinched the winner.

By then the first team had been reduced to 10 men following the dismissal by Lostock-based referee Graham Edgeley of Miranda after a clash on the edge of the Reserves' penalty area.

Terry Murphy said: 'Games between two teams from the same club sometimes get a little niggly and are never easy for the first team.

'Our Reserves were excellent and it was a brilliant occasion for the club. I always thought we had the goals in us to get back into it.'

The substitution of Mark Tomlinson and Adam Morris, who was not fully fit, for Lee Duckworth and John Hurst gave the senior side the authority they needed.