Diss Town January signing Andrew Topping praised after scoring first senior goal in 1-0 victory at Haverhill Borough
Diss Town manager Garth Good described Andrew Topping’s first senior Diss Town goal on Tuesday night - to secure a key 1-0 away win at Haverhill Borough - as reward for the recent signing’s hard work.
The first-half finish netted a big three points in west Suffolk to restore The Tangerines’ three-point gap in the race to keep hold of the last play-off spot in the Thurlow Nunn League First Division North.
Topping, who started the season with higher-league Mulbarton Wanderers as well as being dual-registered with Long Stratton, re-signed for Diss in January, having previously been at club in the under-18s.
And the forward re-announced himself at Brewers Green Lane with a hat-trick in the under-23s’ 5-0 home rout of Needham Market on February 1.
It saw him get a run in Garth Good’s first team and, on his fifth appearance, he opened his first-team goals account in the 10th minute at relegation-threatened Haverhill Borough on Tuesday.
His slotted finish came after good work from frontman Liam Jackson and proved to be enough to secure back-to-back victories to restore the three-point gap to sixth-placed FC Peterborough. The Cambridgeshire side had taken advantage of Diss not having a fixture on Saturday to draw level on points, though remaining out of the play-off zone on an inferior goal difference, which now stands at 10 fewer.
Good said of Topping: “He’s a good young player who in previous seasons has played for the under-18s at Diss.
“I believe that Andrew is a great addition to the club, a raw player with bags of potential.
“I was really pleased to see him score his first senior goal for the club, as his attitude in training and games has been excellent as he has been working to develop as a young player within a senior environment.”
Reflecting on the victory at Haverhill Borough, ahead of today’s trip to face a Leiston Under-23s side who are just one place above the relegation zone but with a seven-point gap and games in hand, he said: “It was one of those tough games where we struggled to get out of first gear in possession, but credit needs to go to Haverhill who were very disciplined on the night and hard working.
“What really pleased me was the character we showed and hard work. We had real quality about how we defended our 18-yard box.
“I said to the players that we are always determined to play the best football we can, but on occasions that isn't going to happen. In these situations, we have to show grit and a high work ethic to get anything from the game which we did Tuesday night.”
Both Diss and play-off rivals FC Peterborough now have eight games to go with The Tangerines having not qualified for the play-offs since they were introduced in the last few seasons.
