BISHOP’S Castle kept their hopes of ending a miserable season with silverware alive at Morda United on Saturday.

The Shropshire rivals met in the quarter-finals of the Salop Leisure Cup with Castle running out 5-2 winners.

Castle arrived at Weston Pools Park aiming to maintain their own cup bid while also preparing for next season’s return to action in the Welsh pyramid.

The match brought together two sides which used to compete in the Welsh system and while Castle will be a member of the MMP-NL Mid Wales League East, the home side has targeted climbing the English non-league pyramid

The home side included former Welsh Premier players Danny Barton and Richard Williams-Cooke in their line-up with the Yellows aiming to end their first season since reforming with silverware.

The match proved an even affair during the first-half

Cameron Hughes and Andy Webb goals ensured the home side were very much in the game at the break but the south Shropshire side stepped up a gear in the second-half to seal their place in the semi-finals.

Sam Jones, Kieran Mulloch, Martyn Ziemann, George Ellis and George Mellor goals ensured Castle sealed victory with the club now awaiting results from the rest of the quarter-finals to discover their semi-final opponents later in the month.

Morda will now step up their preparations for next season with manager Michael Barton having assembled a strong squad boasting a wealth of experience from the Welsh football pyramid.

Meanwhile Castle’s focus will soon turn to the Welsh league.

The club has yet to receive confirmation over the start of the season or the return of supporters for fixtures – a condition considered vital to the return of play in Wales following 14 months and counting of virtually no organised football.