Only nine Southend Sunday league matches plus an Essex Premier Cup fourth-round tie beat the twin menace of the foot-and-mouth outbreak plus bad weather.

In the county competition, Lodge Athletic's great run finally came to an end after a brave fight when they lost 5-4 at Medhurst in an extra-time thriller.

Back on the league scene, a Division One double-header between Maplin United and Sutton Sports resulted in a win apiece.

Shoebury Old Boys kept their promotion hopes alive with a7-0 win at Trinity, while Fairfax went one better with an 8-0 success in Division Two.

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.