The Northern League cup final will be between South Shields and North Shields after South Shields won 4-1 at Shildon tonight, but there was plenty of controversy.

Shildon took the lead after just 5 minutes when Micky Rae picked up a through ball and placed the ball into the bottom corner, but they were controversially reduced to ten men on 12 minutes when Jamie Harwood was red carded for what looked like a legal shoulder-to-shoulder challenge in the area, and Carl Finnigan scored from the spot.

Both sides then had chance to go into the lead, until former Sunderland youngster Jordan Blinco scored from a Finnigan assist. Rae was denied an equaliser by Shields keeper Liam Connell, before Blinco scored the third from 20 yards.

Finnigan completed the scoring, but Shildon remained angry over the Harwood dismissal.

In the league, Newcastle Benfield striker John Campbell scored five as they beat Sunderland RCA 6-0, with Dylan McEvoy scoring the other. Campbell has now scored 13 for Newcastle Benfield since he joined from Newton Aycliffe earlier in the season.

The proceeds from the game went to Ward 34 of the Freeman Hospital, with referee Dean Hulme donating his match fee to the fund..