A QUICKFIRE hat-trick from in-form Alex Garlant helped Petersfield Hurricanes repel Camberley Town Raiders in the mud at Love Lane on Saturday.

Garlant, the Hurricanes’ second top scorer, took his season’s tally to 11 with three goals in the first ten minutes of a North East Hampshire Youth League game shortened to three quarters by worsening under-foot conditions.

The eager youngster’s first saw him run onto a through ball, take a touch and hit a right-foot shot past the Raiders goalkeeper, the second followed some quick thinking after striker Taylor Pearce’s shot had rebounded off a post, and grim determination saw Garlant complete his first hat-trick as he ploughed through the mud evading tackles before rolling the ball confidently past the visiting keeper.

Pearce himself scored twice more on a pudding of a pitch, taking him on to 16 goals for the season, shooting across the goalkeeper from out on the left before riding two tackles and planting the ball firmly into the bottom corner.

Not to be outdone, stylish Harry Timmons, the youngest member of the team, excelled again with his darting runs forward and timely tackles at the back.

And he was rewarded with his third goal of the season, after earlier hitting a post, when battling play from Garlant saw the ball squirt out into the path of Timmons who made no mistake with a powerful drive into the net.

And Timmons could easily have scored moments earlier as he won the ball in midfield and drove toward goal, but his effort which was sailing just wide was diverted into his own net by an unlucky Camberley defender.