Lilywhites stretch their 100% league record

The league leaders held a one-goal advantage at the break, but three goals during the last 10 minutes secured the three points against their high-flying opponents.

They looked to have got off to the best possible start when a series of quick passes saw them slice through the Hykeham defence and Will Britton slotted the ball past visiting keeper James Cooper.

However, a flag was raised, much to the relief of the Hykeham defence.

With that disappointment behind them the Lilywhites continued to probe the organised back line from Hykeham and, in the fifth minute, Britton broke free, only for Cooper to palm away his effort.

After a further 20 minutes of cat-and-mouse football, with 10 Hykeham players behind the ball, the seasiders finally broke the deadlock.

It involved a neat move down the left between Corey Cunliffe and Danny Stevens, and when the ball fell kindly to Courtney Warren he needed no second invitation to sweep it home from 12 yards.

Hykeham surrendered much of the ball in the interests of keeping the Lilywhites at bay, but on 32 minutes they won a corner from the right.

The ball was curled in by the left footed Luke Smith and grazed the cross bar before being scrambled away.

George Hobbins smuggled it out of Town’s defensive third, but was halted in his tracks when Smith clipped his heels in the centre circle on his way back to his left back position.

Some would say he took one for the team, but referee Neil Wheeler wasn’t impressed and produced the game’s first yellow card.

Three minutes later there were vehement appeals for a penalty from the Hykeham camp when Chris Funnell went down under challenge from Andy Parish in the Skegness box, but Mr Wheeler waved them away.

So the half time whistle arrived with Warren’s solitary goal the difference.

The teams came out for the second half to be greeted by torrential rain and as the game progressed the skies got darker.

Midway through the second half Mr Wheeler took the players off for safety reasons as lightening lit up the skies and rain poured down onto the 3G pitch.

When play resumed the rain had eased off, but conditions soon deteriorated and both sets of players, officials and supporters deserve great credit for seeing this one out.

Hykeham pressed for an equaliser, but Travis Portas in the home goal was rarely troubled.

The pressure was eased in the 80th minute when Alex Nichols netted for the Lilywhites.

Three minutes later George Hobbins tapped in the third and right at the death Josh Clarke fired home a loose ball to make it 4-0.

Lilywhites boss Nick Chapman was delighted with the result, which has cemented Skegness’s place at the top of the table.

“It was a great display in difficult conditions,” he said.

“With four players out (Ben Davison, Kyle Howitt, Kurt Crossley and McCauley Parker) it illustrates what strength in depth we have in the squad.”

TOWN: Portas, Warren, Stevens, Scutt, Chamberlain, Parish, Rayner-Mistry, Hobbins, Britton, Cunliffe, A. Nichols, Clarke, Nwokobia, H. Nichols.

On Saturday Skegness travel to CGB Humbertherm in the Challenge Cup (KO 2.30pm).