Duckpond FC celebrate Essex title win in open top bus

Duckpond FC toured Harwich on Saturday in an open top bus

A Sunday League football team from Essex decided to celebrate their title win "in style" with an open top bus parade around their home town.

Duckpond FC, who won the Colchester and District Sunday League Division Two by two points, toured Harwich.

The club, formed in 2011 and named after Cox's Pond in the town, spent £300 on hiring a red London bus for the day on Saturday.

Captain Kris Muir, 25, said: "We wanted to have a proper celebration."

The team, which includes a butcher, welder and railway worker, won 12 of their 16 matches in the 2012-13 campaign, with two draws and two defeats.

'Great day'

It was their second league title in successive seasons, after winning Division Three of the league in their inaugural season.

Mr Muir, a barman who lives in Harwich, said: "We wanted to go out in style and have a proper celebration.

"Word spread on Facebook and people were outside their houses waiting for us to come past.

"We were getting waves and shouts. It was a great day."

The team, which plays its home games in Mile End Sports Ground, in Colchester, are aged between 19 and 25.

"We all grew up together and are pals outside of football," he said.

The hour-long tour also saw them taken round nearby Dovercourt and Parkeston. They spent about £150 on "Duckpond FC" banners that were tied to the bus.