STEVE Wilkes has said Northwich Victoria’s players will have a ‘spring in their step’ for a derby with 1874 Northwich on Saturday after thrashing Padiham.

Rob Doran’s hat-trick was a highlight for Vics, who halted a sequence of three successive defeats in the North West Counties League’s top-flight in emphatic fashion.

“Rob deserves the praise he’ll get,” reflected Wilkes.

“His effort and desire are amazing and I think they found him impossible to play against in the second-half.”

It means that Vics will start this weekend’s encounter at Wincham Park three points clear of their neighbours, who they have never beaten, and with a game in hand.

Joel Brownhill opened the scoring against the Storks when he dispatched a penalty after Dom Craig had been sent sprawling by a defender.

Goalkeeper Kai Calderbank-Park, making his debut, then kept out efforts from Craig low to his left and Doran after Harvey Whyte had slipped a pass into his path.

Craig also directed a shot too close to Padiham’s new number one after he had been picked out at the back-post at the end of a counter-attack.

A second goal arrived when Doran converted from Matty Clarke’s pinpoint cross and he finished smartly to make it 3-0 after racing onto a long on 63 minutes.

The in-form front man completed a personal treble shortly afterwards, this time with an unstoppable shot that flew into the top corner.

Calderbank-Park kept the score down when he denied Whyte before producing his best to keep out substitute Brian Matthews’ effort.

Wilkes said: “To score four goals away from home is fantastic and we kept a clean-sheet too.

“My only disappointment is we ought to have won by a much wider margin, but I’m not complaining!”

Vics | Taberner (GK), Camozzi, Monson, Craig, Grimshaw, Barski, Whyte, Clarke (Whittle 80), Doran (Matthews 75), Brownhill, Mason (Darr 71) Subs not used Cooke, Boon Goals Brownhill 14 (penalty), Doran 56, 63, 67

Attendance 127