NELSON could not sustain their early promise as Flixton ran out comfortable winners at Victoria Park on Saturday.

The Blues made a lovely start and took the lead after 11 minutes when Gary Smith scored with a close-range volley.

But Flixton equalised five minutes later when Chris Downey found the net direct from a free-kick.

Nelson almost regained the lead on 37 minutes when Ed O'Neil's header struck the underside of the visitor's bar and the ball was scrambled off the goal line.

And Nelson were made to pay as Flixton got their noses in front just before the interval when Mark Ayres sprung the offside trap and set up Downey for an easy tap in.

Nelson came strongly back after the interval and Ryan Cross had his shot turned over the bar by a great save from David Rouse in the Flixton goal.

And the Blues' defence was caught napping after 57 minutes when a quickly-taken free-kick released Downey and he burst into the penaltybefore completing his hat-trick.

Flixton grew in stature as the game went on and added a fourth goal when Ricky Strachan finished off an excellent build up with a close range shot after 79 minutes.