Hebburn swoop for former Carlisle, Rochdale and Mansfield player

The Hornets host Heaton Stannington tomorrow in Northern League Division Two with manager Scott Oliver delighted at the boost to his squad.

He said: “We have had good news and bad news leading into this game with our captain and top scorer Channon North unavailable and our right-back Ross Toward deciding to go to Jarrow Roofing.

“Ross was fantastic for us and deserves the chance to play in Division One.

“On the plus side, Adam Rundle has agreed to sign for us from West Auckland and is a fantastic signing for us.

“His experience will be vital as the season goes on – he has played 350 Football League games and scored at Wembley in the League Two play-off final, and played in the FA Cup at St James’s Park.

“Adam has come to us young enough to make a difference, and like all our players he is here for the right reasons.

“James Davidson will replace Ross at right-back and I will make a late decision to see who replaces Channon in our line up.”

Former Carlisle, Mansfield and Rochdale man Rundle will add balance on the left as Hebburn go into the game in great form, having propelled themselves up the table into fifth position after six wins on the spin.

While promotion remains a possibility, Oliver isn’t getting carried away and has his sights set on a top-six finish at the end of the season as he welcomes back Alan Pegram, Josh Perry and James Talbot into his squad.

He added: “We have enjoyed the luxury of having no midweek game leading into tomorrow’s match against a very good Heaton Stannington team.

“We are top of the form guide with six wins on the trot in the league, which led to a fantastic October for us.

“Games against the Stan are always tight and they have won at our place the last two times they have visited.

“Again we push to finish in the top six but we really are punching above our weight again in this league.

“I expect tomorrow’s game to be a cracker.”