'It's been unbelievable!" - Harworth Colliery youngsters win league title in style

But that’s exactly what Harworth Colliery under 21s achieved in the Worksop Van Hire North Midlands Development Football League.

The Colliery lads were crowned Central Division champions in early December after winning their opening 10 games – sealing the title with a thumping 10-0 win against Retford United.

Harworth scored no fewer than 60 goals in 12 league games and only a 3-2 defeat to Worksop Town in their final fixture prevented them from ending the season with a perfect record.

Brendan Wilson, under 21s manager and stalwart at Harworth Colliery, told the Free Press: "It’s been unbelievable.

"I’ve always been involved with the first team at Harworth and then I had to take a backwards step due to family commitments. The opportunity then came along to manage the under 21s and I knew it would be a tough task because I didn’t know what I was going to be left with in terms of players.

“We did a pre-season with quite a lot of under 18s which was a new team formed the previous year. You could see they’d be good lads going forward but I thought they might struggle physicality-wise.

“My task at the start of the season was to say ‘forget the league, forget the results and if I get one you guys through to the first team that’s my end goal’. By mid-season we had eight lads playing in the first team!

“The games went on and we just kept picking points up. It’s been an unbelievable ride and the players have been absolutely top drawer.”

He added: “The lads were absolutely devastated that they got beat by Worksop in the last game and didn’t finish the season unbeaten. I just said to them the fact that Worksop are running round as if they’ve won the league because they beat little old Harworth is a massive statement and that’s something they need to be proud of.

“I don’t work with them in the week, I only see them on matchdays because there’s so many involved in senior teams. They just come to me and they're raring to go. Their attitude is second to none.”

Harworth’s title-winning team was predominantly made up of 17 and 18-year-olds.

Wilson says their success is owed to the infrastructure put in the place at the club over recent years.

"What our Jonny, the chairman, has set up here – having all the pitches re-done and spending thousands of pounds on them being looked after every year – is starting to bear fruit,” he said.

“This has been a long time coming.

“I looked after the team with my brother many years ago and we were the whipping boys. If we got one result you’d have thought we’d have won the league.

“I think it is testament to how many junior teams we’ve got. Over the coming seasons I’m going to inherit a crop of local young lads which is exciting moving forwards.”

Colliery’s youngsters remain on course for a league and cup double after reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup with a 3-2 win over Handsworth after extra time.