Ely City are starting to reel in the teams around them in their battle to avoid relegation, according to Ben Lawrence.

Ely have picked up four points in three games since Lawrence and Brady Stone took the helm and the veteran centre back says the Robins are causing panic among the teams around them.

Just three points separate Ely and 15th place Thetford Town in light of their 3-1 win over Diss last Saturday and they remain just a point behind FC Clacton, who they face this Saturday.

He said: “We are starting to reel in a few teams now. We have drawn Diss into it, Thetford Town and Clacton and we face Clacton on Saturday so hopefully we can keep it going.

“Clacton is a tough place to go to simply because it’s not a good playing service and it will be difficult to get it down and play but it’s a game we need to win so we will go out there and be positive.”

At Diss on Saturday, Ely took the lead on the cusp of the 30-minute mark as Austen Diaper poked home from close range.

But the hosts pulled level just a minute before the break as Matt Dixon slotted past an exposed Lee Pacey.

The Robins took the lead on the hour mark as a cute chip from Townsend which came back off the post and into the goalkeeper’s arms was adjudged to have crossed the line by the linesman and the goal was awarded.

And the result was put beyond doubt just three minutes later as Ely capitalised on another goalmouth scramble and Townsend mopped up from close range.