Former Hatter Holmes bursting with pride after Kenilworth Road wonder strike

DUNSTABLE Town skipper Peter Holmes was left proud of his players as they pushed Blue Square Bet Premier side Luton Town all the way in the Beds Senior Cup final on Tuesday night, eventually losing out 5-4 after extra-time, writes Mike Simmonds.

The Blues, who finished second in the Molten Spartan SML Premier Division, came up against a Hatters side containing a wealth of first-team experience, but looked like they might cause an upset until the last few moments.

Holmes said: “We gave it a good go and I thought that everyone did so, so well. They (Luton) train every single day and we train once a week.

“We’ve got beat 5-4 and there are a lot of players in that Luton team who have played a lot of first team games, so our younger lads can take something away from that.

“It was always going to get harder in the second half, but we came back into it and put on a bit of a show, so they should be proud of themselves.”

Holmes himself enjoyed a fine return to the place where he made over 100 appearances in seven years, sending an absolute screamer past Lewis Kidd to make it 4-4 with just minutes of extra-time remaining.

The 31-year-old picked up possession fully 35 yards out from goal, and thundered his strike in off the underside of the bar, before praying it was caught on camera.

He said: “To come back here and play a game, score a goal like that, made my night really.

“I hope it’s on video as it was just one of them. As soon as you hit it, you just know it’s going in. It’s probably the last time I’m going to play at Kenilworth Road in my career, so it was nice to score a goal like that.”

Holmes has enjoyed a terrific first season at Creasey Park, as he was a regular scorer from midfield, with Blues just missing out on top spot, despite beating champions Royston Town twice.

When asked if he would be at the club next season, he added: “I don’t know, I take every year as it comes.

“I had to make a decision at the end of last season when I was with Hayes, whether to stay in football professional, but I’ve got a business.

“Don’t get me wrong, I do miss playing on Saturday in front of a lot of fans but there’s a kick around on a Saturday and fair play, Dunstable try to do it well.

“I’m just playing for the love of the game really. A few of the lads were YTS at Luton and it’s more of a social thing. To come and play at Kenilworth Road in the final is great, you can’t turn that down.

“We beat Royston twice, who won the league and it’s who turns up on a Saturday. You can’t expect everyone to be fully dedicated to a Saturday game when they’ve got jobs, so you’ve got to appreciate that.

“We pushed them (Royston) all the way and it was just unfortunate we never went up.”

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