Alton manager Kevin Adair was delighted with his side’s performance after they won 4-2 at home to Horley Town in the Combined Counties Premier Division South on Saturday.

The Brewers raced into a 4-0 lead by half-time thanks to goals from Siph Mdalolose, George Bennett, Jamie Hoppitt and Darnell McDonald.

Lewis Pearch and Sam Remfry were on target for Horley in the second half, but Alton saw the game out to claim the three points.

“I've got to be really positive about the first half – it was probably as good as it gets for us,” said Adair.

“We didn't go behind in the first ten minutes – that’s key.

“We scored a goal and then got another and really took the game to Horley – it probably should have been six at half-time.

“We've come out of a period where we've found it tough.

“We knew we had this performance in us.”

Although Adair was happy with the win, he did see room for improvement on his side’s second-half display.

“It's hard to not take your foot off the gas when you’re 4-0 up but the way we were playing changed – which it shouldn't have done,” said Adair.

“That's the disappointing thing but if I'm disappointed after taking three points and scoring four goals we're obviously demanding good standards.

“We put everything into the first half and tried to coast through the second half – and Horley couldn't get any worse.

“As good as we were in the first half Horley were poor.

“In the second half Horley came out and were more direct.

“We allowed them to be and then Horley got a couple of opportunities.

“We gifted them the first goal and then the second came in a transition after we lost the ball.

“Overall it’s a good three points – we needed them.

“There's a long way to go for us but we're starting to see what we thought we were capable of.

“Now we've got to do it week in week out but the difference from 17th to 11th in the league is small, so a couple of wins can make all the difference.

“We've got a points total we want to achieve in the games we've got in January and then we’ll look to keep pushing forward with a young group.

“They're looking to improve and they are learning.

“They've learnt the hard way in the first half of the season but they have learnt from it and are getting better.

“Everyone knows what is expected and we're starting to see a lot more from the lads.”