LAST season’s treble winners Poole Town Youth under-13s kept alive their hopes of a top-two finish with a narrow 4-3 home win over Burton at St Aldhelms Academy.

It was Burton, however, who were quickest off the mark when Jack Stride opened the scoring with a composed finish after just six minutes.

But two quick-fire goals from Ben Lake and Arron Gabriel, after 12 and 13 minutes respectively, put Poole in the driving seat.

Despite playing without their injured top goalscorer George Smart, Burton were still a threat on the counter-attack and equalised thanks to their man-of-the-match Archie Korrie who scored with a volley.

Poole, however, had the final say of the first half when Christopher Ford netted the hosts’ third.

And Bailey Allen increased Poole’s advantage after the break with a powerful header from a Jamie Arnold corner.

But Burton bounced back to reduce the deficit when Ben Brown carved out an opening to score. Both teams created chances in the final seven minutes of the game but Poole held their nerve to secure the crucial three points.

“It was an entertaining match between two well-organised teams,” said Poole boss Steve Randall. “I thought both sides played good football and all the goals were of the highest calibre.”

Burton manager Kieran Smart was also pleased with his side’s final efforts of the campaign.

“It has been a difficult season for us with so many injuries but the players have responded well and deserve a lot of credit,” said Smart.

“They left the pitch in high spirits, knowing they had worked hard for each other and had all done their best.”

Poole need to win their final Division Seven match against Hordle Spurs by five clear goals to leapfrog Electric into second.

The original fixture at Hordle two weeks ago was abandoned due to the deluge, with Poole leading 3-0 after just 20 minutes.

Poole will also have three points added to their tally for the scratched match against Sway.

Poole Town: Shane Cooper, Bailey Allen, Stefan Spiller, Toby Lawrence, Louis Braggington, Louis MacArthur, Ben Lake, Arron Gabriel, Luke Randall, Callum Macken, Dan Fairbairn, Jamie Arnold, Chris Forde, Morgan Oliver.

Burton Youth: Lewis Byrne, Archie Korrie, Ben Brown, Jack Stride, Brannon Elms, Mason Barratt, Jordan Chaffey, Ollie Finch, Edward Aimson, Luis McGuigan, Sammy Thompson, Ben Warrington, Roberto Da Rocha, Jake Warry.

To view all match pictures visit: http://www.bournemouthecho.co.uk/sport/youth_sport/galleries