Canvey Island10 Enfield FC1

Ryman League Premier Division

Awesome' was how Terry Back described Canvey Island after his side were given a footballing lesson on Saturday.

The E's boss, still coming to terms with his side's relegation, was gobsmacked after seeing his side on the receiving end of the Essex side's scintillating forward play.

Back said: "Basically, they were just awesome, and they are the best non-league side I have come across in my 20 years of football.

"They have a £15,000-a-week wage bill and it showed on Saturday.

"The goals they scored were just phenomenal. Having said that, at 2-0 down, we had four good opportunities, but they were just too good."

The E's went 4-0 down after 31 minutes, through a Lee Boylan hat-trick and a Neil Gregory goal. They then briefly threatened a comeback, when Paul Armstrong scored seven minutes before the break.

But after the interval, it was all Canvey Island, as Boylan scored his fourth, and Chris Duffy added number six.

Bertie Brayley helped himself to a hat-trick after coming on as a sub for Boylan.

Lee Protheroe then scored in stoppage time to put the seal on a remarkable performance.

Back added: "We are going to put in a promotion challenge next season. We have signed seven new players for next year and we will soon have some news regarding the ground, so things are looking good."

April 30, 2003 20:00