By Brett McCarten

KESWICK kept the pressure on Appleby at the top of the table as they scored last-gasp winners against Wetheriggs United and Kendal United to contine their push for the championship title.

Wetheriggs United clashed with Keswick as third faced off against second in a game that saw chances hard to come by.

Both defences remained strong as Wetheriggs took hold of the game, dominating possession, but no chances from either side troubled the goalkeeper.

The game opened up towards the end as Keswick pushed for a winner. A goalmouth scramble ensued after a Keswick corner and Jamie Little took his opportunity to score the winner from four yards out to give his team the edge in the title race.

Earlier in the week, Keswick took the lead against Kendal United when Richard Bannister headed in at the near post from a corner.

United replied instantly as Brandon Robinson put the ball into the bottom corner of the net.

Greg Pearce put Kendal into the lead on 70 minutes when his shot hit the bar before going in and United had the chance to go 3-1 up through Martin Willan, but he missed when one-on-one with the keeper.

A tired Keswick side came to life late in the game. With three minutes left, a Keswick free kick found Steve Hindmarsh at the far post, who hit the ball on the half-volley to level the game despite appeals for offside from United.

With the last kick of the game, defender Stuart Dowson clinched three points for Keswick with an overhead kick to make it 3-2.

At the other end of the table, Kendal Celtic and Penrith Rangers shared the points in their relegation scrap.

Celtic started the better of the sides and were dominant in the first half, with Nick Chaplow going close as his shot hit the bar.

Andrew Goodall and Olli Mills also had chances but had their shots saved by the keeper.

Kendal got the breakthrough just before half time when Olli Mills fired the ball into the back of the net from outside the area.

The second half saw Penrith wake up as Celtic keeper Dean Wicks had to pull off two fine saves to keep his team in the lead.

Penrith equalised midway through the second half, bundling the ball home from close range to make it 1-1.

Both sides had further chances but put them wide as the game ended all square.

Celtic couldn’t get any points from their game against Staveley though, as their relegation rivals moved six points clear of the drop-zone with a 3-0 win.

A Tom Fry free kick gave United the lead, before Jamie Stott made it 2-0.

Celtic had a man sent off before Stott added to his tally in the last minute to seal the three points for United.

However, Staveley couldn’t get a result against high-flying Wetheriggs as they lost 2-1.

Appleby stayed top of the league with victories over Lunesdale United and Ambleside United Reserves.

Crawford’s goal and Dent’s double were enough for Appleby to overcome Ambleside, while Ambleside United’s frustrations got the better of them after they had a man sent off.

Kirkoswald thrashed relegation-threatened Sedbergh Wanderers 4-1 as Lunesdale United and Burneside played out a thrilling 3-3 draw.