THEY say winning becomes a habit - but Vauxhall Motors seem to be addicted to dramatic finishes.
John Lawless scored in the 85th minute last night to give Vauxhall their first win in five games, four of which have seen Motors score in the last 10 minutes.
For the first time Carl Macauley was able to pair captain Stephen McNulty with new signing Joe McMahon.
And for the first time since September 16 Motors kept a clean sheet.
Kettering took the game to their guests, with Serge Makofo causing a lot of problems down Motors' left flank.
One of his surging runs saw him deliver a ball for the Poppies' Andy Hall whose shot from point-blank range was blocked by keeper Sean Lake.
Having been thwarted at one extreme,
Hall tried the other as he launched a 30-yard effort which Lake tipped over the bar.
Kettering didn't have it all their own way however. Lee Furlong spurned a chance and McNulty forced a good save from former Port Vale keeper Paul Musselwhite.
In the second half Lake was tested again this time by Craig Westcarr but again he could not be beaten. Makofo also tried to give the Poppies the lead but his shot caused Lake few problems.
If Kettering felt the game was petering out into a goalless draw, they clearly hadn't done their homework.
Stuart Whittaker brought the ball forward and spotted winger Lawless on the opposite side of the pitch.
Having scored four goals in his previous three games -including the late goal which salvaged a draw at Redditch - Lawless is in hot form and he took the pass and fired a superb shot past Musselwhite five minutes from time to steal the points from Kettering.
Vauxhall: Lake, Moogan, Dames, McMahon. McNulty, Field, Furlong, Garritty, O'Donnell (Rooney 74), Whittaker, Lawless. Not Used: Addo, Griffiths, Dittmer, Macauley.
Attendance: 736. nMotors host Woking in the third round of the FA Vase on Saturday, kick-off 3pm.
