THE Wiltshire Times and Chippenham News-sponsored Team of the Week award for November 5th, 2006, has been awarded to Division Two side The Horse and Groom FC.

It's all too easy for the teams at the top of any division to motivate their players to turn up week in, week out. But spare a thought for the teams who have to struggle on occasions to get a bare eleven and then come off the pitch after 90 minutes with nothing to show for their efforts.

Running teams like this is difficult, nigh on impossible at times, so when a team that have struggled for any form since being relegated at the end of last season produce a fine victory, their first of the season, then it deserves to be noticed.

The Horse and Groom play with a never-say-die attitude and boast possibly the best playing surface in the league at Leighton recreation ground in Westbury, but this has not helped them make a fortress' of their home ground.

Their results have certainly been better of late and this week they hit the jackpot as The Horse and Groom finally got the win they have been so desperately looking for when they beat higher placed opposition Biddestone Arms by 3-1.

The turning point of the match was a penalty save by Paul Aland in the Horse and Groom goal that at the time would have given the Arms the lead.

Prior to that Tom Hanks had given the Westbury pub side the lead only for Jack Goodship to level things. A back post header from Ben Derrick and Paul Bendell finally getting on the score sheet after missing a number of good chances gave the Groom a much needed victory and lifted them out of the relegation zone.