Newark Town’s Lewis Chambers in the hunt for his club’s goalscoring record as he nails four goals against West Bridgford in the United Counties Division One fixture

It took a while for Newark Town to warm up against West Bridgford in the United Counties League Division One game before Town stormed home 4-0.

All four goals came from Lewis Chambers, the stalwart Newark Town player chasing his club’s highest goalscoring record.

The Blues came out of goal hot in cold conditions before a more even pace set in with both teams going into half-time scoreless.

The Newark side were almost the same as their emphatic 7-0 win over St. Andrew’s on the road in their last game.

Chambers was absent from the St Andrew’s game so he started on the bench.

“We ended up staying with the same team, it’s the first time in my coaching career that I’ve done it,” said Newark Town coach Luke Parsons.

“The squad hasn’t changed, they absolutely deserve their places.

“We made some big decisions that left some players out of the squad and even bigger decisions that left some good players on the bench.”

In the first half, Newark Town had their chances particularly early on – but they couldn’t capitalize on their chances.

Tristan Drummond and Rhys Harbottle connected to put pressure on goal before George Asplin and Rory Harrison started clicking in attack.

Asplin looked particularly dangerous as he hovered around the box and snapped his shots as they were presented.

Jammy Lloyd made some good runs and played well off the ball, and acting captain Alex Hales was vocal in his motivation.

About 20 minutes into the game, Jordan Haywood collided with the West Bridgford goalkeeper and the physio had to be called.

Haywood received the all-clear from the sidelines shortly after and returned to the field after a jersey change.

West Bridgford began a counterattack after about half an hour and it was up to Newark’s capable defenses to keep them in there.

Jackson Buckthorp had a tight try in the closing minutes of the first half when he hit a sweet ball that was tipped over the top by the visiting keeper.

When teams were substituted at half-time, both phases of dominance had played out, but there was a feeling that Newark Town had a slight advantage.

The Blues manager made some crucial changes at half-time, using Chambers and another attacking player, Jack Beckett, to shake things up.

After the restart, however, it was West Bridgford who came out and attacked first, hitting a well-hit ball off the Newark goal crossbar.

In the 48th minute an appeal came from the Newark players and Unterstand as they were sure there was a handball in the away box, but the vociferous efforts were unsuccessful.

Chambers meanwhile began to move in lanes and was actively looking for the goal.

His efforts paid off in the 58th minute when he scored his first goal before following up with his second ten minutes later thanks to an assist from George Asplin.

Drummond also made an attack of his own that looked promising but hit the side netting under pressure.

At this stage of the game, the West Bridgford captain announced to his side that they were still in it to keep his team’s morale up.

“There are still many chances to score,” he told them.

Chambers then turned to his players and encouraged them, saying there were still plenty of chances for the Blues to score more goals.

Chambers’ prediction proved correct as he scored his hat-trick in the 78th minute before adding a double two minutes later.

Beckett made an impression off the bench as he made some beautiful passes and drove the ball forward.

The most notable opportunity Beckett presented was Joe Aitken, who pulled a shot in the final minutes of the game.

Although it was a good performance, it was cleaned up by the opposing goalkeeper.

The game ended on a high note as Town walked away in a 4-0 win after scoring all the goals in the second half through Chambers’ boot.

The West Bridgford defense had few answers to Chambers and was unable to adapt as he seemed to score at will.

Buckthorp, Haywood, Ben Sharpe and Luke Andersen held the defense tight and didn’t allow West Bridgford to score on the board.

Goalkeeper Harry Chapman conceded another goal as Newark Town won their fourth straight game.

“West Bridgford are at the bottom but the teams we’ve played against this season definitely don’t deserve to be there,” said Parsons.

“They will move up the ladder, they are a good team.

“We improved massively in the second half after the lads came at half-time and knew it wasn’t good enough.”

Chambers made the difference as he turned goals after coming off the bench.

“Chambers oozes class, he and Beckett really kicked the team up a notch,” said Parsons.

“I can’t say more about Chambo.

“He’s always in the right place at the right time, he scored four goals today.”

Chambers’ four goals now see him needing just three more to score 114 goals and become the club’s top scorer.

Next up is the Blues on Saturday (kick-off 3pm) at home to Gedling as they look to win their fifth straight game and start an impressive winning streak.