Eaton Socon manager Mark Spavins admits the club’s bid for Kershaw Premier Division title glory may be over . . . but he insists their challenge for promotion from the Cambs League is still very much alive.

Socon slipped to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of table-topping reigning champions Great Shelford in a crunch clash at the Mick George Stadium last Saturday.

They conceded with three minutes to go after previously clawing their way back onto level terms courtesy of Ryan Whittingham’s header from a Mayson Byatt corner.

The loss leaves Socon sitting 13 points behind their conquerors, but Spavins is adamant his side will not allow their season to drift as they still have an excellent chance of going up.

Socon are currently third in the table, two places and nine points clear of Chatteris Town, who have also applied to go up.

And, providing both clubs’ facilities come up to scratch for a higher level of football, it will be the team with the best league position that goes up.

Spavins said: “We have been far too inconsistent since the turn of the year and that has probably cost us our chance of winning the title.

“Injuries haven’t helped either, but we still have a lot to play for and cannot afford to feel sorry for ourselves.

“We need to be in a position to take advantage if the top two slip up, and we need to ensure we finish above Chatteris to try to win promotion.”

The two other local sides in the Kershaw Premier Division fared better last Saturday.

Hemingfords United picked up another valuable point in their bid to dodge the drop when drawing 1-1 with Linton Granta. Nick Cade hit a last-gasp leveller in the fourth minute of stoppage time for a side six points above the bottom two.

Boss John Hughes admitted: “It wasn’t our best performance by any means, but we battled until the end and picked up a good away point.”

And Brampton finally had a result to cheer after starting 2017 with four successive defeats.

Wayne Ambler’s men claimed a welcome win when beating Cambridge City Reserves 4-0. Martin Turner (2), Matt Gearing and Ollie Vale provided the goals.

Bluntisham Rangers were too strong for Buckden in an all-local clash at Kershaw Senior B Division level last Saturday.

Mitchell Chandler’s first-half brace, and goals in quick succession from Ben Johnson and Robert Read just after the hour, earned a 4-1 win for the hosts.

Ben Carter and substitute Dave Roberts struck in the second half as Needingworth United beat Sawston Rovers 2-0 to register a second successive victory at the same level.