OLD Boltonians took a step closer to clinching the Premier Division title as they eased to a 4-0 win against North Walkden on Saturday, writes Chris Morris

The win means Steve Eccleshare’s side realistically only need one more win thanks to their far-superior goal difference, but has warned his team not to get carried away just yet.

They were due to take on relegation-threatened Castle Hill last night, knowing victory put them in a great position to bring home the title.

“We’re playing with great confidence right now and you can’t blame the lads, because they’re top of the league and scored eight in their last two games,” he said.

The league leaders had to do without six players for Saturday’s game and after a slow start they took the lead half an hour in. Matt McClellen showed great strength in the box to turn and finish into the bottom corner.

They put daylight between them and their opponents in the 60th minute, Rob Taylor rising highest to head in from a corner.

Sean Rushton then grabbed a brace to put a gloss on the scoreline, beating the keeper one-on-one for the third, and then rounding things off by finding the net from inside the box with a precise finish.

The win leaves them three points clear at the top of table with four games left to play, but having also played two less than their nearest challengers Mostonians.

Horwich Victoria boss Danny Holmes was left “hugely disappointed” after his side went down 3-1 to lower league Roach Dynamos in the semi-final of the First XI Cup.

On paper it looked like it would be an easy passage to the final for Vics, but Holmes admitted that on the day the best team won.

“We can’t have any arguments with the result,” he said.

“On the day they turned up and were the better side. It’s hugely disappointing, because you get this far and you want to reach the final.

“We huffed and puffed but we just couldn’t find our form, and they deserved it.

“Taking nothing away from the teams we’ve played, we felt we had a good chance from the start because of the draw we had, not having to face any Premier Division sides.”

It was the story of set pieces at Darnhill Playing Fields, for all four goals came from set-pieces.

Only 10 minutes were on the clock when Dynamos took the lead, a free kick was poorly defended by the away side, and they took full advantage.

A shock looked to be on the cards, but 10 minutes later Horwich Victoria were level. Danny Mills curling a 25-yard free kick into the back of net in spectacular fashion.

The home side weren’t about to roll over however, and they fully deserved to regain their lead just before the interval, scoring from a corner.

In the 55th minute the home team doubled their advantage with a helping hand from Horwich. A free kick was whipped in and Matthew Makinson could only deflect it into his own net.

The Division One side withstood some late pressure but held out for what was a fully deserved victory to book their place in the final.

The defeat was Horwich’s final act of their season, as they have completed all their league games.