Boston Town guaranteed themselves at least a play-off place as they disposed of promotion rivals Eastwood in a bruising encounter.
Chris Funnell’s side made it six wins in a row in front of their biggest crowd of the season.
Debutant Bruno Andrade lived up to the hype around his arrival with a spectacular opening goal after 21 minutes.
He’d already caused plenty of problems for the visiting defenders with his dazzling footwork on the left wing.
The former Lincoln City man crowned an impressive start by curling a sumptuous shot into the top right hand corner.
By then, Eastwood had already pressed the self-destruct button, Thomas Hill being sent off inside the first two minutes as he recklessly scythed down Jordan Tate.
The Red Badgers continued to be their own worst enemy throughout the game as they lost their discipline. There were further eye-watering challenges while their players regularly berated the officials when decisions went agaisnt them.
Happily, the Poachers kept their heads by and large and carved out numerous changes in the first half. Harry Limb had the ball in the net but was ruled offside and Zak Munton crashed a header against the bar from one of Andrade’s inviting crosses.
Eastwood shuffled their pack at the interval and offered much more of a threat in the second half. Suddenly, Limb, Munton and Matt Cotton weren’t as menacing as they had been before the break.
The home fans, bolstered on Non-League Day by a number of Boston United supporters, grew anxious in the chilly and blustery conditions.
Cotton almost scored a stunner after a breathtaking interchange with Andrade but saw his dipping shot superbly palmed away by visiting keeper Sam Wilson. But Eastwood also came close on several occasions to preventing Town claiming a third consecutive clean sheet.
Relief finally came in the last minute of the game when Limb surged into the box and was cynically taken out by Joshua Thompson as he bore down on goal and with Jordan Nuttell also in a prime position to score.
Limb rammed home the resultant penalty to send the Mortgages For You Stadium home buzzing, while Thompson saw red and trooped off to the changing room.
Town: Portas, Gibbons, Smith, Tate, Ford, Wilson, Andrade, Maddison, Munton, Limb, Cotton
Boston Town FC 