STRATFORD Juniors won the East London Advertiser s Hospice Cup on Sunday with a dramatic defeat of New North Rangers in a topsy-turvy encounter at Leyton s Ive Farm ground. Playing the final match in their club s history, New North took a deserved lead a

STRATFORD Juniors won the East London Advertiser's Hospice Cup on Sunday with a dramatic defeat of New North Rangers in a topsy-turvy encounter at Leyton's Ive Farm ground.

Playing the final match in their club's history, New North took a deserved lead and bossed the opening and closing stages.

But Stratford's superiority in the middle period proved decisive as Jimmy Mosengo's double secured victory for the Newham side and condemned New North to a luckless defeat.

The Hackney side had the ball in the back of the net in stoppage time, but an apparent equaliser was ruled out for offside, and when they took off their shirts for the last time, it was in a losing effort.

"I've been doing this for six seasons and I get help from the parents and through players' subscriptions, but we have no sponsorship at all," said New North manager Martin Doody. "We decided this would be our swansong, no matter what."

It will always rankle with Doody and his players that this final defeat should have been a victory.

New North dominated the opening 25 minutes and took an early lead when Ricardo Goffe raced clear down the right and his lofted shot eluded Stratford keeper Gytis Kazlauskas, who could only help the effort into the net.

The Hackney side continued to dominate and Scott Howes-Doody, Gregory MacDougall and Goffe all hit efforts high or wide that would have put New North out of sight.

But Stratford Juniors took advantage with two fortunate goals that should have been stopped.

Rory Blair let in a 40th-minute equaliser when Jimmy Mosengo's tame shot went through the New North keeper's legs to bring Stratford level.

And early in the second-half, Blair attempted to palm Mosengo's high cross-shot over the bar, but succeeded only in pushing the ball into his own net.

New North responded and in the closing stages did all the attacking, forcing their opponents to defend desperately.

At the start of a long period of stoppage time, the Hackney side appeared to have equalised when skipper Charlie Fagan placed his shot beyond Kazlauskas, only for the wild celebrations to be cut short when the linesman flagged for offside.