Romsey Town's last game of the season ended in a 4-0 defeat against a suspiciously strong Liss side, who hoisted themselves to fifth in the final table as a result.

"The eleven that played on Saturday was completely different to the side they fielded against us in September," explained Romsey manager Trevor Holmes, "even though the names on the teamsheet were familiar."

"Some of their players were so good that I can't believe they're Wessex League regulars.

"After hearing them asking about 'how the first team got on' as they left the pitch, I reckon that they must be reserve players from a higher-level club like Havant & Waterlooville or Portsmouth."

That is perfectly legal - players can sign to play for several clubs as long as they're not signed to more than one club in a single league - but there was a suspicion that some of the Liss players may not have been the same as the names on the teamsheet. That, of course, is highly irregular, but difficult - if not impossible - to prove.

The visitors got off to a cracking start, and scored their first with a cracking shot from the edge of the area after a break down the left.

After 8 minutes Romsey lost centre-back Andy Foster to injury, forcing a reshuffle. With Andy Kemp now in midfield the Romsey side competed well, but were powerless to prevent a second Liss goal headed direct from a corner on 18 minutes.

Two more goals in the second half underlined the visitors' superiority, leaving Holmes to reflect on an up-and-down season in which his side have ben prevented from achieving their full potential by a string of injuries.

Holmes is optimistic about the future, though. "We've got the backbone of a decent side here with the likes of Ross Gregory, Paul King, Andy Kemp and Simon De'ath," he said. "We're hopeful that we can re-sign Andy McIsaacs - his move to Andover hasn't really worked out - and there's a few more possibles that I can't name yet.

"With a bit of luck there's no reason why we can't challenge for the championship next season."