DEPLETED March Town United beat the odds to record an incredible victory over newly-crowned county cup champions Whitton United on Saturday.

Whitton, who had not lost in the Ridgeons First Division since August, lifted the Suffolk Senior Cup in front of more than 1,000 fans at Ipswich Town’s Portman Road ground last week.

But a crowd of just 70 watched as March sent the Greens crashing back down to earth with Dan Sterna’s last-minute header sealing a memorable victory.

Manager Jamie Weston had feared the worst when Denny Escorcio, Simon Bates and Andy Bryan were forced to withdraw from the trip to Whitton - who beat the Hares 4-0 at the GER last month.

He said: “We only took 11 players and we left them shell-shocked. Our bench had me and the physio on it while they had about seven players warming up. Sometimes you just need that bit of adversity to pull through.

“After the game it was probably the best atmosphere we have had in the changing room since I’ve been here. The lads were buzzing and it meant a lot to them.

“They were absolutely shattered. Most of them couldn’t walk after the game - they worked their socks off. They got exactly what they deserved.

“We have beaten Gorleston and Cambridge University Press but the fact that we only had 11 players makes this the best win of the season.”

The shock win stretched the seventh-placed Hares’ unbeaten run to four games. They host Long Melford at the GER tomorrow.

Weston added: “Dan Sterna was absolutely superb and deserved his goal, Adam Sutton marked their main midfield player out of the game and Lee Brooks was fantastic in goal.

“It has been a tough time with injuries and things going against us but this was a nice way to put that behind us. It just shows what we are capable of.

“If we’d have just had that little bit of luck we could have been up there challenging in the top three. It’s the season that could have been.”