IT is no surprise Eagley player-manager Simon Whaley takes a long-term view when considering his team's prospects this season.

The Dunscar men have made an encouraging start to their bid for promotion back to the West Lancashire League Premier Division with six wins and one defeat in their opening nine games.

They underlined their potential with a 6-2 home victory over fellow Bolton side Stoneclough on Saturday to firmly establish themselves among the top five clubs making the early running at the top.

They currently sit fourth, two points behind the two teams above them on the same games, and five behind leaders Hurst Green who have played a game more.

Despite the obvious confidence the good start will instil, Whaley is far from getting carried away.

"It's a tough job," he said as he was back at the club on Sunday morning performing some of the many unseen duties a manager has to do in the amateur game.

"It's taken me three years to get the set of lads we have and I need these lads to play for 30 games, not nine.

"It's a long season but if we keep these lads together we will do all right."

Whaley did all right himself on Saturday, scoring twice and having a hand in another couple of goals.

He put Eagley ahead with a 25-yard free kick on 15 minutes but Glen Matthews ensured the sides went into the interval level at 1-1 with a 25-minute equaliser.

The home side dominated the second half and were 4-1 up within 13 minutes of the restart.

Whaley got between two defenders to convert a cross on 50 minutes and five minutes later assisted for Jon Stephenson to make it 3-1.

The two combined again three minutes later when Stephenson's intended pass to Whaley hit a defender and went in.

Simon Neary then killed off Stoneclough with a far-post header on 70 minutes and slid in a loose ball from a corner five minutes later.

Stoneclough reduced the arrears to 6-2 through Joe McCann on 80 minutes, but it could not take the smile off Whaley's face.

"I made four key changes for the cup the previous week and we got beat 6-0," he said.

"I gave people a chance and it didn't come off. It wasn't just the new players who came in, all the players didn't turn up for that one.

"So I changed it back on Saturday and asked the lads for a reaction and they gave it to me.

"Stoneclough are a good, organised unit who made it difficult for us to play in the first half.

"We knew if we could keep it tight up to half time we could turn it around in the second half and that's what we did.

"To be fair we could have scored more in the second half.

"We've won five out of five now at home but anything can happen so I can't take my eye off the ball and I've got to make sure the players don't if we're still going to be talking about promotion at the end of the season."

Chew Moor Brook make up the top five early pacesetters in fifth place, three points behind Eagley with the same number of games played.

They kept up their challenge with a 3-2 home victory over Kendal County on Saturday with Callum Yearsley and Paul Hallows twice putting them ahead and Jack Turner making it 3-1 on 78 minutes before conceding two minutes from time.

In the Premier Division two goals in six second-half minutes saw Turton go down 2-0 at Fulwood Amateurs who leapfrogged the Bolton men into sixth place.

Division Two leaders Ladybridge, who are narrowly ahead of two teams who both have four games in hand on them, lost 4-2 at home to sixth-placed Charnock Richard Reserves.

Tempest United got through the first round of the Richardson Cup with a 4-3 victory at Vickerstown thanks to two goals by Alex McClurg and one each for Jack Iley and Nathan Monson.