Chris Sze continued his scoring streak with a brace as Southport booked their place in the next round of the IZUZU FA trophy by beating Leek Town 3-1.
Sze has scored in each of the Yellows’ past nine matches across all competitions and he opened Southport’s account in the 61st minute before adding another 10 minutes later.
Following a blistering counterattack, Sze was fouled in the build-up prior to opening the scoring, but he showed great determination to stay on his feet and curl the ball into the top left corner.
His strike came just outside a golden period in which Southport have scored 13 goals in the first 15 minutes after half-time.
It did not take long for the hosts to double their advantage, with Sze dispatching a composed penalty down the centre, wrong footing Noah Cooper to establish distance between their opponents.
The hosts had several early chances in a quiet first half, but Leek Town had the best chance and only shot on target courtesy of Lateef Babatunde Olowabi.
The Jack Carr stand was in full voice, spurring on their side with conditions pointing to a traditional English winter fixture under the lights in front of an attendance of 950.
The Northern Premier League side battled on, and gave a strong account of themselves. They eventually unsettled the hosts with a late scare to halve the deficit in the 89th minute, following a header at the back post from Alexander Hurst.
But fears of a two-goal collapse from the Yellows were quickly nullified.
Arthur Gnahoua scored 60 seconds later, wrapping the ball into the bottom left corner following another fast break from the side in yellow.
Southport will look ahead to their next league fixture against Alfreton Town on Tuesday, in the National League North, but will keep a close eye to learn of their opponents for the fourth round of the IZUZU FA trophy on Monday morning.
Fixtures for the next round will be played on the weekend of Saturday January 10th, when Neil Dann’s and his Southport face their next test in keeping their Wembley dream alive.
