Hebburn suffered a major setback ahead of this week’s big FA Cup tie when they were hammered 6-3 at Brandon.

Connor Winter and Adam Beamson both ran riot against the visitors, scoring a hat trick apiece. Hebburn were level 1-1 at one point, but Connor and Beamson took control of the game for their side after that. Liam McBryde (2) and Chris Lunn replied for Hebburn.

Hebburn manager Paul Bennett said: “We rotated the squad, and to say that I am disappointed is an understatement. We feel let down by the whole squad, some of whom are playing for places in the FA Cup. Players are forgetting that the promotion is our main aim and games in hand mean nothing when there are performances like that. There is one word to describe the performance – disgusted. Radcliffe watched us – they’ll be thinking of the next round after watching such an abject performance.”

Northallerton are now fifth bottom as they also scored six at Thornaby, their first away win of the season. Grant Hickman and Peter Bulmer put them 2-0 up, before recent signing Marcus Laing replied with a free kick.

But then Northallerton took their chances clinically, with Colin Anderson (2), Carl Chillingsworth and Gary Mitchell scoring further goals. Chillingsworth also missed a penalty.

Northallerton manager Mark Fanning said: “We caught them at the back several times. It was a good away win.”

Thornaby manager Ray Morton said: “It was a shocking second half. At half time we collapsed, but fair play to Northallerton their finishing was good.”

Leaders Team Northumbria are now six points clear after they beat Washington 4-2. Former Darlington midfielder Dan Riley put them a goal in front, with Peter Watling and Liam Clough making it 3-0. Michael Latimer pulled a goal back, but Mark Fenwick responded with a fourth. Michael Young pulled a late goal back.

Team Northumbria director football Paul Johnson said: “Another good win against a team in the top half of the league, so again we are beating teams around us. With Hebburn and Esh Winning coming up in the next few games, it’s just the right time to play then with our squad so strong. We played really well for 70 minutes and we took our foot off the pedal in the last 20 minutes.”

Washington manager Richie Latimer said: “I thought we played well in spells today, but got punished with some sloppy play at key times. We need to pick ourselves up and cut out the silly mistakes.”

Whickham are now up to second after Tony Thirkell scored a hat trick in their 3-1 away win at Ryton and Crawcrook, for whom Luke Sullivan replied. Thirkell has now scored 12 league goals for the season.

West Allotment won their fifth successive game when they won 2-0 at Chester-le-Street and are now third. Mark Minto and Scott Fenwick scored their goals, although Chester missed some good chances. Chester created plenty of chances, but couldn’t score for the sixth successive game.

Chester-le-Street manager Anth Smith said: “We dominated the first half and should have been three up. Two individual errors cost us dearly. I feel aggrieved, we can’t buy a goal.”

Crook Town are in seventh place after drawing 3-3 with Gillford Park at the Millfield, thanks to a last minute goal by Kevin Devine. New signing John Toft put Crook into the lead, but Gillford hit back through Kyle Armstrong and Craig Wilson. Richard Hodgson levelled for Crook, before David Wallace made it 3-2 with four minutes ;left.

Esh Winning finished off a good week by defeating bottom club Horden 2-1. Chris Smith and Darren Kokes scored for Esh, with Dan Reeves replying.

Esh Winning manager Andrew Soppitt said: “It was the same old story for us. We played really well, controlled the game, created 30 chances but only scored two. We need to take our chances early and kill teams off.”

Horden manager Brian Honour said: “We were a tad unlucky and were beaten by a late penalty. It was a great effort from our players, especially as we had nine missing and our sub keeper played up front.”

In midtable, Birtley and North Shields drew 1-1. Shields, who are steadily climbing the table, took the lead through James Luccock, but veteran Craig Marron levelled.

Birtley manager Scott Oliver said; “We got battered, but our keeper Andy Hunter had an outstanding game. We lacked quality, but North Shields were impressive.”

North Shields manager Anthony Woodhouse said: “I thought we deserved all three points. The referee made a number of clangers and should have shown at least two reds to Birtley and one to us. We didn’t take our chances which cost us, but the Birtley keeper was quality.”

Seaham Red Star were within sight of only their third victory of the season against Morpeth, but they conceded a last minute equaliser. Seaham led 2-0 with goals by Michael Chapman and Richard Goodman, but Morpeth levelled through David Dormand and Mark Grant.

Seaham Red Star manager Steve Cook said: “It was disappointing to concede a stoppage time equaliser, but it was another small step forward. As we grew into the game, our quality shone through and we got ourselves into a great situation. However, a combination of Morpeth pressure and our anxiety cost us points. We need to close these games out to climb up the league, and the players have been told in no uncertain terms.”

Easington lost 2-1 at Whitehaven, even they took the lead through Craig Ellison. Leigh Dunn and Kevin Connelly hit back for the Cumbrians.