Manager Paul Sheehan hailed the unbelievable effort of his Uppingham Town players after they were crowned Peterborough League Premier Division champions this week.
Town retained their title in a memorable double-winning campaign which also brought Peterborough Senior Cup success to the Rutland club.
Despite being held to a 3-3 home draw by Warboys Town in their final match of the season on Saturday, Town were awarded the three points by the Peterborough League this week following the abandonment of their game with Stilton last month.
That saw Uppingham leapfrog Moulton Harrox into pole position following the completion of the campaign after a hectic finale for both clubs.
Town faced four matches in eight days to end their season with boss Sheehan lauding his side’s efforts.
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He said: “It would have been nice to have won the title on Saturday but it’s been an unbelievable effort these last few weeks and I’m so pleased for the lads.
“We’ve had a really good squad of about 16 or 17 players for the final few games which has allowed us to mix it up a bit because some of the lads can’t play back-to-back games now.
“Leagues are always hard to win, especially over 30 games, and it’s been a long season with Moulton pushing us all the way so I’m delighted for everyone at the club.”
Town had made a strong start to the defence of their title but they then lost the services of Will Lewin to a long-term injury while Josh Sennett secured a higher level move to Deeping Rangers.
Jordan Neil also made a brief switch to Blackstones before returning to the Town fold as their form picked in the new year.
They won 12 and drew three of their 15 league games in the second half of the season and also made progress in the Senior Cup with a succession of away wins.
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Sheehan commented: “We started the season really well but then lost three key players. Rob Forster also got injured and we were struggling a bit in November and December.
“We hung in there though and then started to win some important games. The wins against FC Peterborough were crucial.
“We were eight points behind them going into both games and, if we had lost either, 11 points would have been tough to make up.
“We have done well in the big games and, when we beat Moulton away, I thought we were playing well.
“We then went through a period of not playing well but winning games which is sometimes all you have to do.
“We have played really well in the last two weeks in what has been a tough run of games against sides in the top six.”
Despite conceding three times in Saturday’s draw with Warboys, Uppingham have the best defensive record for the second successive season.
They have kept 14 clean sheets and shipped just 30 goals in 30 games – a statistic which has pleased former Blackstones and Stamford defender Sheehan.
He added: “I am pleased, from my point of view, with how we defended. It is important and it shows that we know what we’re doing.
“We win a lot of games by the odd goal and, if you defend properly, that helps you.”
Town will receive the championship trophy and their medals at a special presentation at Tod’s Piece on Friday night.