NOVEMBER NEWS
Saturday 29 November 2008
Pictured with Fred are AFC Fylde President
David Haythornthwaite, his son Sam, and AFC Fylde Chairman Dai Davis.
TONY TARGETS PROMOTION FOR OLDHAM TOWN
Oldham Town manager Tony Mills is hoping that his fifth season in charge at
the Whitebank Stadium proves to be his most successful yet.
Over the years of his tenure, Tony has gradually built a squad that has
featured regularly in the top half of the table, and the club have bounced
back after disappointment at the end of last season, when they were
unwittingly pipped for promotion at Ashton Athletic on the last day of the
campaign.
A draw at Ashton in that game would have seen Town finish third and in what
turned out to be a promotion position. In the event, Athletic won 3-2,
leapfrogged over Town into third place and ultimately into the Premier
Division, and it’s a game that still rankles with Tony.
“Our goalkeeper had conjunctivitis, so I left him out and our centre forward
was working but could have got time off, so both would have played if we had
known about the importance of the game. I’m not having a go at Ashton
Athletic, obviously they were in the same position as we were, as they
didn’t know at the time that three teams were going to be promoted either.
But if we had known that the game would have a bearing on the final placings,
we would have approached it differently and wouldn’t have gone there without
some key players.”
After such a near miss, it might have been tempting to make some changes to
the squad over the summer, but Tony has kept much the same squad together.
Like many non-league managers, his main frustration with his squad members
is not so much their playing ability but their attitude at times.
“I really feel I’ve got a good squad, the quality of the players I’ve got is
fine, but sometimes their attitude towards training and playing is
unprofessional at times.
“We have to put with hearing about how grandad’s cat has got the flu and all
sorts of other excuses. One day we had a player travelling to a game and he
saw a magpie. Because he didn’t see another one he turned back. On another
occasion another player just didn’t turn up for a game. When I spoke to him
to ask why, I was told “I had a McDonalds Breakfast and didn’t feel too good
afterwards”. Needless to say, those two players are no longer with us.
“Even when you’ve got an attractive game it doesn’t seem to make any
difference. Last season we were going to Kirkham & Wesham on the Saturday
and I got a call on the Thursday night to say that three of my midfield
players were going on a stag do to Amsterdam at the weekend. They’d known
about it for a while but had been frightened to tell me when they saw what
game it clashed with. So we went there with a makeshift midfield and still
only lost 2-1.”
Dealing with those sorts of issues has led Tony to adopt some slightly
unconventional methods to get his message across to his players.
“The players know when I’m not happy. We used to mollycoddle them a bit,
when they did a warm up they came back into the dressing room and on a table
in the corner we used to give them their own packs of Lucozade, chocolate
bars, fruit, jaffa cakes and so on. Anyway, one particular week we had had
a bad few days, and I wasn’t happy with the attitude, so I thought it was
time for a change of routine on the Saturday.
“So when they came back in after the warm up, they turned to the right in
the dressing room where the table was, and instead of the usual stuff, I’d
put a jug of water and a cabbage on there. They were standing there
looking, wondering what was going on, and I picked up the cabbage and said
to them “I might as well talk to this” and booted it up in the air. It fell
into bits all over the place, and the look on the players’ faces told me
that they knew I wasn’t happy. So I knew I didn’t need to bother with my
team talk for the day, I just walked out and left them to it.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the campaign, Tony believes that that cup
results his side have achieved this season shows they are a match for
anyone.
“We’ve beaten Ashton Athletic in the FA Cup, then took Rossendale United to
a replay in the next round. We also beat Congleton in the League Challenge
Cup, who would have been favourites on the day, and that shows we are
capable of beating anyone.
“Talking to the Congleton people after the game, they said they had been
expecting a hard game, but had also expected they would match us and get a
result. They admitted they were surprised at how well we played.
“After the Congleton game, we tallied up the number of teams we have played
from higher leagues in various competitions over the past couple of years,
and we reckoned that we have been unbeaten against something like 16 teams
from higher leagues. And that is with more or less the same squad of
players throughout.
“Everyone else in the league knows we can do it on our day. Look at the
teams who finished first and second last season, New Mills and AFC Fylde or
Kirkham & Wesham as they were last season. We beat Kirkham & Wesham at
home, only lost 2-1 away with a weakened side, drew with New Mills at home
and beat them away. And look where they both are in the Premier Division
this season, up there pushing for promotion.
“Our biggest danger is complacency. I can tell when I walk into the
dressing room now before a game whether or not we are going to put on good
performance or not, by the atmosphere in the dressing room. Some of the
games we have lost in the past year or two to teams low down in the league
has been down to complacency. I can accept getting beating by a better
side, you can hold your hands up, especially if they are paying good money
to their players. But lacklustre performances, complacency when the players
think they are better than they are, is the biggest problem I have to
address.”
However, despite his frustrations about his side’s inconsistency at times,
Tony is justifiably proud of his team’s home form.
“We’ve not lost for over 18 months at home, and we were the only team in the
whole of the league last season that never lost at home. I definitely think
that gives us a psychological advantage at times. I’ve seen teams come to
play us with only one up front and five in midfield trying to stifle us, and
I feel that when visiting teams come to play us and line up like that, they
must be very aware of our record.”
A glance at the current Division One table reveals that if Town were to win
their games in hand, they would be top of the table, and Tony is upbeat
about his side’s prospects for the remainder of the season.
“Promotion is the target, and I think it is achievable with the squad I’ve
got. Three seasons ago you could argue that we had a better squad but we
only finished mid table. From that team, three players are now at Curzon
Ashton, and one of them, James Agoo, scored for them when they knocked
Exeter out of the FA Cup a few weeks back. We had Tunji Moses who went to
Salford and is now at FC United, and Paul Taylor who was at Altrincham. A
team full of good players, many of whom have played at a higher level, but
the mix wasn’t right then and I think it is now.
“You would
have to fancy AFC Liverpool to be there or thereabouts, so it probably means
the rest of us are fighting for the remaining one promotion place, although
I think Bootle and Padiham are our biggest threats. We’ve still got to play
Bootle and AFC Liverpool at our place though, and no one gets an easy ride
there. If we can get a bit more consistency going, and produce performances
like we’ve shown in the cup games this season, I’m sure we’ll be up there
challenging at the end of the season.”
NEWS FROM ECCLESHALL
Eccleshall are facing the prospect of losing their leading goalscorer Dwayne
Spence for up to a year, after he aggravated an old injury in his side’s
recent game against Padiham.
A medial ligament problem was identified last year, but Dwayne decided to
play on this season, and had suffered no major ill effects until he suffered
a knock on his knee. Eccleshall manager Dave Dale explained:
“Dwayne should really have had an operation last year, but he decided to
carry on playing as he felt it wasn’t really causing him a problem. He took
a knock against Padiham and afterwards his knee swelled up, so he visited a
specialist and we are awaiting the report. He has been trying to tell me
that he would be OK to play again soon, but as a club we are not prepared to
take that risk in case he does more damage.
“We have been told that for operations like the one that Dwayne may need,
there is an 8 month recuperation time, so in terms of playing it could be a
year or more before he is back to full fitness and playing again.
“It’s a real blow for us because Dwayne is a really good lad, a real
character and a great guy to have around the club. He recently acted as
disc jockey at a fancy dress party arranged by one of the players at the
club, and has organised a fund raising Race Night for the club, which will
take place on Saturday 6th December after the Ashton Town game.
“He’s still coming down to watch games, and has confessed to me that he
doesn’t know how he would cope with being out of football for a long time if
he does need an operation. We can only hope that the specialist’s report
reveals the damage to his knee is not as bad as we fear.”
Turning attention to the rest of his squad, Dave says he is satisfied with
the progress being made on the playing side, given the restrictions the club
has to face.
“The problem for a small club like Eccleshall is that when you have bigger
clubs nearby like Newcastle Town, Congleton and Kidsgrove, if we find a
promising youngster it isn’t long before he starts to get offers to go to
other clubs paying good money. We can’t do anything about that, we just
have to accept it and make sure that if one player leaves, we have others
coming through the ranks.
“We’ve had one 16 year old Josh Whitmore in the side a couple of times this
season, and we have others coming through too, so I’m reasonably happy with
progress on that front at the moment. We are better placed than we were at
this stage last season, and we have our sights set on a mid table position
and then building on that for next season.
“The club is run by a group of really nice, honest people and it’s a nice
place to be. The chairman and the committee are realistic about what can be
achieved with the resources we have and are very supportive of the
management team. It’s all about building foundations for the future, and I
feel we are developing nicely at the moment.”
Finally, we reported a couple of weeks ago that Padiham’s visit to Pershall
Park on the 15th November ended up with a local farmer being
called upon to help tow the team coach out of the car park, after it became
stuck in mud. Eccleshall secretary Richard Marsh reports that the club
showed their appreciation towards him afterwards.
“The local farmer was rewarded by Eccleshall FC with two bottles of wine for
his efforts”, he said. “However, the stories about him trying to milk his
bull instead of his cows after he had drunk the wine are false.”
HIGH FIVE FOR DANNY
A couple of weeks ago we reported that Ramsbottom United’s Andy Sensale had
scored the quickest hat trick of the season, scoring three times in the
space of five minute against Atherton Collieries.
On Saturday 22nd November, Danny Brown of Stone Dominoes achieved
another noteworthy goalscoring feat, netting five times in his side’s 6-2
win over Leek CSOB, four of them in the last 17 minutes.
Danny’s achievement was just one in a number of events in a game jam packed
full of incident.
The Old Boys went ahead in bizarre fashion from a hotly disputed goal. The
referee had stopped play to allow Stone’s Anthony Marshall to receive
treatment, and from the uncontested drop ball, Michael Machin headed for
goal and slotted the ball past the Stone keeper.
After some lengthy discussions, Danny was allowed to level the scores by
scoring an unchallenged equaliser for Stone.
Mark Thorley then gave the Old Boys the lead once more, and then Stone were
reduced to ten men just before half time when Alex Baird received a second
yellow card.
Stone captain Stuart Scheuber netted an equaliser in the 63rd
minute, before Danny began to grab the limelight, scoring in 72, 79 and 86
minutes.
With two minutes to go Stone's James Curley was red carded along with the
Old Boys’ Nick Hambleton and Danny Hyde after a flare up involving most of
the players, and Stone manager Shaun Hollinshead was also ordered out of the
dugout by the referee.
When order was eventually restored, the remaining 18 players played out the
remainder of the game and Danny Brown sealed a memorable afternoon with his
fifth goal, which arrived in the ninth of ten minutes of stoppage time.
GOLDLINE TROPHY SEMI FINALS
Atherton LR will be flying the Vodkat League flag in the Goldline Trophy
semi finals, the first of which will be played on Monday 1st December 2008
when Stoneclough face holders Euxton Villa. LR will play Charnock Richard in
the other semi on Wednesday 10th December 2008.
Both games will be played at Victory Park, home of Chorley FC with a 7.30pm
kick off, and will be played to a finish with extra time and penalties if
necessary.
MILLERS HELP FANS BEAT THE CREDIT CRUNCH
New Mills are doing their bit to help supporters beat the credit crunch at
their home game against St Helens Town on Saturday 6th December.
All children under the age of 16 will allowed in free of charge to the game,
provided they are accompanied by an adult, and there will also be a raffle
held on the day with prizes specifically aimed at younger supporters.
PLAYER MOVEMENTS THIS WEEK
Transfers
James Edwards Runcorn Linnets to Formby
Chris Smith Congleton Town to Flixton
Registrations
Abbey Hey Billy Blower, Robert Jones
AFC Fylde Patrick Denuchy, David Proutt, Ashley
Wallace
AFC Liverpool Jack Baker, Anthony Carr, Brad Warburton
Ashton Athletic Guy Clarkson
Atherton Collieries Michael Clegg, Gareth Hall
Atherton LR Timothy Davies, Mark Eckersley, Stephen
Edwards, Shaun Evans, Dale Glover, Dane Grimes, Adam Kelly
Bootle Lee Hollywood
Chadderton Mark Davis, Billy Dempsey
Cheadle Town Aiden Billingham, Richard Crawford, Alan
Hamlet
Colne Neil Stansfield
Daisy Hill Anthony Allen, Mark Armstrong,
Mark Pritchard
Eccleshall Dean Ennion, Thomas Sturmey
Flixton Brian Matthews, Steven Yardwood
Irlam Michael Cawley, Matthew Eden,
Daniel Roberts
Nelson Joseph Brizell
New Mills Andrew Atherton, Joshua Casulli,
Daniel Christie, Michael Dugdale, Michael Halliwell, David Whelan
Norton United Thomas Fogg, Craig Rogers
Runcorn Linnets Clive Brown, Joshua Howard, Dominic
Studley
Squires Gate Andrew Clarkson
St Helens Town Jonathan Halliwell
Stone Dominoes Stuart Pope, Lee Ridgway
PRESENTATION OF AWARD
Andy McCoy of AFC Liverpool was
presented with the Division One Player of the Month Award for October by
League Secretary John Deal, prior to his side's home game against Padiham.
TOP
ATTENDANCES
Wednesday 26th November 2008
Runcorn Linnet v Abbey Hey 134
Silsden AFC v Colne 117
Saturday 29th November 2008
AFC Fylde v Ashton Athletic 241
Runcorn Linnets v Winsford United 151
Glossop North End v Maine Road 148
Padiham v
Leek CSOB 101 Division Two Trophy
Saturday 22 November 2008
FA VASE ROUND UP
A total of five Vodkat League clubs progressed to the Third Round of the FA
Vase after victories in their Second Round games on Saturday 15th
November, in each case pocketing prize money of £1200. We round up the
games involving our clubs below.
AFC Fylde 1 Newcastle Benfield 0
Not surprisingly, much of the Second Round spotlight fell on holders AFC
Fylde, who began their defence of the trophy with a hard fought 1-0 win over
Newcastle Benfield, thanks to a
last minute
penalty from Joe Booth.
The holders were given a tough time by their Northern League opponents, who
enjoyed the better of the chances in an entertaining first half.
After the break, AFC Fylde began to take control but the game seemed
destined for extra time before Booth struck with virtually the last kick of
the game to clinch victory for his side.
Newcastle Benfield wasted no time in signalling their intentions and could
easily have been two goals up inside the opening six minutes.
Within 90 seconds of the start, the home defence failed to deal with a ball
into the box, and Scott Davison’s shot on the turn across the face of the
goal just missed the target.
Fylde had another let off in the 6th minute when Benfield’s Michael Chilton
volleyed Adam Scope’s cross over the bar from eight yards.
As play flowed from end to end, Allen with a header, a Booth shot and
another header from Horsfield all had chances for Fylde.
But the visitors finished the half strongly with Adam Scope having a shot
tipped over by Summerfield, before Stephen Young headed over from six yards.
After the break Fylde began to dominate possession and Booth and Allen both
tested Andrew Grainger in the visiting goal, and as the game reached an
exciting finale, the last six minutes produced the best chances of the
afternoon.
Benfield substitute Alysine Bengura missed a great chance when he headed
wide from a corner kick after evading his marker at the back post.
At the other end Fylde full back Matt Lawlor produced the save of the game
from Benfield keeper Grainger, who dived full length across goal to push
away the defender’s header.
With extra time beckoning, Fylde finally made the breakthrough in the last
minute. A neat through ball from Richie Allen played Mark Wane in on goal,
and as he shaped to shoot he was sent tumbling to the ground by a Benfield
defender.
The referee had no hesitation in pointing to the spot, and Joe Booth calmly
tucked the resultant penalty low to the keeper’s right in the bottom corner
of the net to seal a last gasp victory.
Speaking live on BBC Radio Lancashire afterwards, AFC Fylde boss Mick Fuller
said:
“I believe we were favourites to win this game today, but in my mind I knew
it was going to be close, and that proved to be the case.
“From what I’ve seen of Newcastle Benfield they are a very capable team.
I’ve watched them a couple of times, and they are well organised and I said
to the players before the game that if we weren’t firing on all cylinders
today we were going to have a problem, as I felt that this was going to be
the toughest test we will have this season.
“It wasn’t a great performance from our point of view but 1-0 is good
enough. In the second half we had the majority of the play and I thought we
deserved the win overall.
“It was a clear cut penalty, and it was a great way to finish the game.
There was a good crowd here too, lots of children, and they got behind the
side and we really appreciate the support they gave us. It was a good day.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the competition, Mick anticipates further tough
games are ahead.
“Last season we were newcomers to the competition and perhaps surprised a
few sides. Now, everyone will want to take the Vase holders out of the
competition so any side we play will be giving that bit extra, and they will
know what we are about.”
AFC Fylde President David Haythornthwaite said:
“Newcastle Benfield are a good footballing side who didn’t have any
weaknesses, but we’ve found that the teams we’ve played from the Northern
League are good sides. It might be tempting fate to say it, but I feel that
if we can win a game against a side like them, we can beat anybody.
“It was good to see a lot of parents and children here for the game. A
crowd of 423 for a Second Round game is a good attendance, and Martin
Booker, our Business Development Manager, has done a fantastic job in
getting the local community and schools involved. That’s what we want to
do, we want to be a family club and want to offer a unique proposition for
people to come down and watch us. Obviously if we keep winning they will
keep coming.”
Stone Dominoes 1 Coventry Sphinx 0
Stone Dominoes produced one of the most impressive results of the Second
Round when they beat Midland Football Alliance high-fliers Coventry Sphinx.
Sphinx reached the quarter finals of the Vase last year, going out in a
replay to Kirkham & Wesham, and started as favourites against a Dominoes
side one level below them in the Pyramid.
A close encounter appeared to be heading for extra time until Dominoes
struck the killer blow three minutes from time.
Chris Rowley's free-kick was headed back by Alex Baird at the far post into
the path of James Curley, who fired home an angled shot from about eight
yards to clinch the win.
Dominoes manager Shaun Hollinshead told the Sentinel newspaper: "We had
about four players out, so the result was testimony to the squad.
"Coventry Sphinx are a good footballing side and they started brightly, but
once our more experienced players had got on the ball and helped us to
steady the ship we played very well all over the pitch.
"It was a difficult game of few chances, but we persevered and even their
manager accepted we deserved to win."
Glossop North End 4 Biddulph Victoria 0
Glossop North End confidently strode into the Third round of the FA Vase for
the first time since 2000 with an emphatic victory against Biddulph Victoria
from the Midland Football Alliance.
The visitors didn't muster a shot on target during the 90 minutes, whilst
Phil McGing in the Vics goal was constantly busy, pulling off a number of
saves.
The 210 supporters present did not have to wait long for the opening goal
when on 14 minutes Rick Bailey and Dave Hodges linked up on the left.
Bailey got to the by-line and cut the ball back for Hodges to pick his
spot. A 2-0 half time lead was secured on 36 minutes when Nick Allen scored
a beauty, turning his man at the left hand edge of the box and curling a
shot into the far corner.
Martin Parker ensured victory was secure on the hour mark, twice converting
sliding in from 6 yards. The first came from a Young cross from the right,
the second a Hodges ball from the left.
From there it was McGing who was the star, making saves on a frequent basis,
including one backpedalling from an audacious Jamie Kay free kick from half
way. Biddulph were simply frustrated, shown by striker Chris Boast's late
sending off for a bad tackle - amazingly his THIRD red card in the Vase this
season.
Glossop assistant manager Terry Hincks was delighted, thanking the crowd for
their support, and the players for their 'top drawer' performance. And
having scored 5,4,4 and 4 in their FA Vase games so far this season, North
End may be a team that everyone wants to avoid in the Vase this season.
Bootle 5 Oldham Town 3
A terrific game at New Bucks Park saw Bootle emerge victorious after a
spirited second half fight back from Oldham Town.
Bootle went ahead in the 5th minute, when Sean Coulton headed home from Andy
Fowler's corner kick, but the visitors were level within five minutes
through a goal from Jonny Phillips. Six minutes later Antony Hickey put
Bootle ahead once more, and Andy Fowler increased the lead with a fine goal
five minutes after the break.
Jamie Rainford and Andy Fowler combined to create Bootle's fourth goal on 71
minutes, Fowler shooting home from the edge of the penalty area after a fine
run by Rainford.
Oldham Town central defender Tim Buxton then scored two goals in the space
of three minutes to pull the score back to 4-3 and set up a grandstand
finish.
As the visitors pressed forward in search of an equaliser, a breakaway goal
three minutes from time clinched victory for Bootle. Jamie Rainford picked
the ball up deep in his own half, advanced down the right and sent in a
cross that Paul Tosney converted to make the final score 5-3.
Alsager Town 1 Runcorn Linnets 1 (after extra time)
Runcorn Linnets 2 Alsager Town 2 (after extra time)
(Runcorn won 5-3 on penalties)
It took a penalty shoot out in the replay to separate these two sides, who
were deadlocked after extra time in both games.
At Alsager, Runcorn had the better of the opening exchanges as the home side
took time getting into the game, although there was little goal mouth action
in the first forty five minutes.
The best chance fell to Alsager’s Andy Whitney right on the stroke of half
time, when Tim Drohan chased what seemed a lost cause to collect the ball
near the corner flag, and after beating two defenders crossed for Whitney
who scuffed his shot just wide of the goal.
The 'Bullets' started the second half a lot livelier than the first and were
unlucky not to claim a penalty, when Tim Drohan was brought down from behind
only for their claims to be waved away by the referee.
However three minutes later there was an identical incident and this time
referee Gary Croft pointed to the spot. Lee Jones stepped forward to convert
the penalty to put Alsager one up.
Alsager only managed to hold on to their lead for ten minutes when following
an defensive error on the right, Runcorn's Rob Whyte struck the equaliser.
Extra time failed to separate the sides, so a replay was required at Wincham
Park the following Tuesday.
Runcorn started the replay slightly better than the "Bullets", who struggled
to overcome the missing Lee Jones who was suspended. However after twenty
minutes or so Alsager started to get their passing going, and slightly
against the run of play Runcorn took the lead on 38 minutes when Rob Whyte
finished off a good move with a cracking volley .
After the break Alsager went with three at the back which saw them have
their best spell of the game, culminating with Dean Williams hitting a
cracking effort to equalise on 76 minutes and take the game into extra time.
Andy Whitney gave Alsager the lead with a goal in the third minute of the
extra time, but Michael Morrison pulled Runcorn level in the 98th minute
following a goalmouth scramble. With no further scoring it took penalties
to decide the outcome, with Runcorn eventually winning the shoot out 5-3.
Whitley Bay 5 Abbey Hey 2 (after extra time)
Abbey Hey almost pulled off one of the shocks of the round as they pushed
last year’s semi finalists Whitley Bay all the way in an exciting game.
The final score might suggest that the home side had a fairly comfortable
passage into the next round, but the reality was much different.
Ten minutes after half time, Abbey Hey were leading 2-0, and had silenced
the home crowd who had turned up expecting to see their side progress in a
competition in which they have achieved success in recent years, being semi
finalists last season and winners in 2002.
Just before half time, Abbey Hey deservedly took the lead when Nevins
crossed from the left and Maloney tapped home from close range.
Whitley Bay made two substitutions at half time, but despite the changes,
the visitors’ confidence was high and they went two up after 53 minutes when
Nevins fired a tremendous 25 yard shot into the top corner of the net giving
keeper Burke no chance.
A shock appeared to be on the cards, but the game turned on a controversial
decision three minutes later. Bay’s Craig McFarlane was tripped as he broke
through on goal, and despite stumbling, he attempted a shot which was
saved.
The referee was going to let play continue, but after spotting his assistant
flagging for a penalty, he changed his mind and awarded a spot kick. Paul
Robinson squeezed the penalty just past Abbey Hey keeper Steve Downs to make
the score 2-1.
With eight minutes remaining Whitley Bay equalised when Moore fired a shot
across the keeper and into the far corner of the net.
With Abbey Hey having used all three subs and Danny Heffernan carrying an
injury they held out until three minutes before the first period of extra
time when Bay captain Coulson converted a cross at the back post.
Abbey Hey threw caution to the wind and hit the post before conceding a
fourth goal 10 minutes from the end of extra time when Lee Kerr shot home
from close range to put Whitley 4-2 ahead.
Robinson had the final say when he broke clear just inside the Abbey Hey
half and raced away to slot home the fifth goal a minute from time.
Terry Burke, whose excellent goalkeeping kept Whitley in the game, was named
as Bay’s man of the match with dangerous striker Adie Nevins getting the
award for Abbey Hey.
Abbey Hey’s Gordon Lester said:
“We played as well as we have done all season, and probably the best we have
played for a long time. It might sound like sour grapes from our point of
view but the penalty was the turning point. We were holding our own at the
time, and getting a goal back gave them a boost at an important time in the
game.
“Adie Nevins’ goal to put us two up was a screamer, a real goal of the
season strike, and it really silenced their support.
“The people at Whitley Bay were very complimentary to us afterwards, and
they admitted they had looked at our league position and expected a much
easier game than they got. Their president awarded the man of the match
award to their keeper, which shows the way the game went.
“All credit to our lads for a great performance, and on another day it could
have been 3-2 or 4-2 to us. We can take a lot of positives from the
performance, and hopefully it will kick start our season for us.”
Formby 0 Dunston Federation 4
After a good run in the Vase last season, Formby’s interest in this season’s
competition ended at the hands of Dunston Federation, who sit second in the
Northern League Division One having lost just twice in 16 league games.
It always promised to be a difficult afternoon for Formby, and they fell
behind in the 14th minute when Kane Young converted from a corner
at the near post.
It was 2-0 after 24 minutes when Stephen Brown fired home from close range
after a Bulford shot hit the post, and after 37 minutes the game was
effectively over as Wells put in a cross which was misjudged by the keeper
and Sheeran rose to head into the unguarded net
In stoppage time Dunston had the ball in the net again, although it wasn’t
clear to many why the assistant had flagged for an infringement.
Wells added a fourth goal in the second half and the stats showing goal
attempts to be 14-3 in favour of Dunston was a telling reflection of the
visitors’ performance on the day.
Market Drayton Town 2 Newcastle Town 1
With Stone and Glossop knocking out sides from the Midland Football
Alliance, it was down to the league leaders of the MFA to strike a blow for
their league, by ending Newcastle Town’s hopes of progress in the Vase.
There was very little between the sides early on but Castle took the lead on
15 minutes, when Daryl Wilkes' long throw was back headed over the keeper by
Andy Kinsey.
Ryan Dicker made two tremendous blocks to keep Castle ahead and then Market
Drayton's keeper Pryce made a tremendous save to turn away a header from
Steve Elks, before Neville Thompson's goalbound shot was turned for a corner
by a defender who did well to get his tackle in.
The home side went close on a couple of occasions but at half-time Town were
still ahead. Two minutes of defensive madness saw the game turn on its head
when first the impressive Ellis and then Ryan scored two goals after
defensive lapses.
Town went close with Minor having a cross shot saved, Kinsey had a goalbound
shot kicked off the line and Minor's cross beat the keeper but bounced off a
defender and back into a grateful keeper’s arms.
However the home side were always dangerous as Town pushed forward, and
Danny Read showed why he was nominated Goalkeeper of The Month with his
handling and three fine saves. In a final flurry Ellis and Rogers went
close, but in the end Town crashed out of their third cup competition in
eight days.
FA VASE THIRD ROUND DRAW
The draw of the Third Round ensured at least one of our clubs will be in the
draw for the next round, with AFC Fylde hosting Runcorn Linnets. The four
ties involving our clubs are as follows:
AFC Fylde
v Runcorn Linnets
Glossop North End
v Winterton Rangers (Northern Counties East League Premier Division)
Long Eaton United (Northern Counties East League Premier Division) v
Bootle
Stone Dominoes
v Nostell Miners Welfare (Northern Counties East League Premier Division)
Ties will be played on Saturday 6 December 2008, and the winners of each tie
will pocket prize money of £1,300.
MUD MUD GLORIOUS MUD…
Anyone who visits Padiham Football Club can always be assured of a warm and
friendly welcome, and the last thing anyone could ever say about the people
at the club is that they are “stick in the muds”.
However, at about 5.45 pm on Saturday 15th November, the Padiham
players and officials who made the trip from the Arbories down to Eccleshall
for their Division One fixture experienced a bit of a sticky problem as they
prepared to leave Pershall Park and head back up the M6.
Padiham Secretary Alan Smith takes up the story.
“At Eccleshall’s ground, there is a small strip of grass next to the car
park that is set aside for the visiting club to park a coach. As we made
our way towards it, I thought it looked a bit heavy and I suggested to our
coach driver that it might be wise to look for somewhere else to park, but
he ignored me and parked there anyway.
“I did wonder at the time if that was a good idea, and when we came out of
the clubhouse and boarded the coach to head for home, we discovered that we
did indeed have a problem. The coach was well and truly stuck in the mud.
“We rounded up everyone still at the ground, and players and officials from
both clubs came out and tried to push and rock the coach in an attempt to
shift it. We must have had about 30 people pushing and shoving, but it made
no difference – we were going nowhere.
“With Eccleshall being in a rural area, someone at the club had some farming
contacts, so they got on the phone to see if any local farmers could come
down with a tractor. The first guy they tried said that he couldn’t come
down as he was in the middle of milking his cows, but luckily the next
farmer they got hold of was available, and he soon turned with a tractor,
ropes and chains.
“Fortunately he got us out, and after about a 45 minute delay we finally
pulled out on the main road and headed for home. On behalf of everyone at
Padiham, I would like to thank everyone at Eccleshall for their assistance
at the time. They left the floodlights on to make it easier for us to see
what we were doing, and none of the Eccleshall officials left the club until
they were sure we were back on the road and ready to go”.
IN MEMORY OF JOHN (JACK) HOWARTH
The following statement has been issued by Darwen FC Programme Editor
Stephen Hart.
It is with sad regret that I have to announce the passing of John (Jack)
Howarth aged 87, who died after a long illness on Thursday 13th November.
Our heart felt condolences go out to his family and friends from everyone at
Darwen Football Club.
Jack used to write reports of Darwen FC matches for the then local newspaper
“THE DARWEN NEWS” under the penname of Jackdaw, until the late 1950’s. He
then became the secretary of Darwen Football Club, a post he filled well
into the 1970’s.
When he retired from work he took it upon himself to research the results
and information of the club. He recorded almost all of the scores and
goal-scorers that Darwen FC played including the results as far back as the
1890’s and up to the present day. He also kept many match reports that
appeared in the local press.
Although he couldn’t get to any matches in the last few years, he always
kept himself informed of anything that was happening to his team.
He was always a pleasant man and would happily spend hours talking about the
things happening at the club and a mine of information.
Norman Walsh used to visit Jack every week and take him the programmes from
the home games and stay and chat to him about things that happen in life.
Norman says he enjoyed Jack’s company and will sorely miss him.
As the programme editor for Darwen FC, I met Jack on a few occasions and
found him to be a mine of information and extremely passionate about the
club he loved. When talking to him you could spend hours with him especially
when talking about the history of Darwen FC. Jack used to put articles
together for the programme and if I ever needed information I could always
rely on him to help me out. He will be missed.
From everyone at Darwen Football Club, “Rest in Peace”.
Stephen Hart, Programme Editor, Darwen FC
MANAGERIAL VACANCY AT MAINE ROAD
After 20 years of association with Maine Road FC, Ian Walker has resigned as
manager, due to family and work commitments.
As a player Ian holds the record for most appearances for the club, 631 in
all. He had been manager for three years, having taken over from Chris
Simms, and last season he led Road to their most successful season ever in
the NWCFL, finishing fourth and winning the League Challenge Cup.
Maine Road Secretary Derek Barber said: “Out of last season’s squad, we
only have four players left now. Some went to other clubs for money, others
had to leave because of work and other commitments, and one moved out of the
area. It meant that Ian had to keep bringing in new young players and that
is always difficult. Our most experienced player now is the captain Steve
Cheetham, and although he has made around 170 appearances, he is only 23.
“In the end Ian felt he couldn’t do any more and decided to step down. He
is getting married at Christmas, and has work commitments too, so that
played a part in his decision. Everyone at the club will miss him
immensely.”
It means that there is now a managerial vacancy at Brantingham Road, but
Derek says the committee will not be rushed into a decision.
“Ian was only the sixth manager in the club’s 58 year history, and everyone
knows that we are a club who pride ourselves in playing the game the right
way and not being afraid to bring on the kids. That is something which Ian
advocated right to the end.
“We want a manager who has the same qualities as Ian and Chris Simms.
Someone who will carry on our traditions of finding young players, and
bringing them through the ranks into the first team, playing good football
in the process. We want someone who is going to commit to the club for the
long term.”
For the time being, Derek will take charge of team affairs until the right
replacement is found. Anyone who is interested in applying for the
manager’s job at Maine Road should apply in writing to:
Derek Barber
Flat 4, Maple Court
259 Wellington Road North
Stockport
SK4 5BS
Applications can also be submitted by e-mail to:
maineroadfc@hotmail.co.uk.
NATIONAL LEAGUE SYSTEM – PROMOTION IN 2009
The FA has written to all Step 5 clubs advising them of the procedures to be
adopted with regard to promotion from Step 5 to Step 4 at the end of season
2008/2009. The information communicated by letter last week is as follows.
Normal practice would be for the clubs finishing in the bottom two places of
Step 4 leagues to be relegated to Step 5, but in season 2008/2009 the
following will apply:
Northern Premier League
– The clubs finishing in bottom positions in (the UniBond League) Divisions
1 North and South will be relegated to Step 5. It is anticipated that both
these divisions will be increased to 22 clubs for season 2009/2010. Due to
there being less than 22 clubs in each of these divisions at this time, it
is felt appropriate to only relegate the clubs in the bottom positions.
Southern Football League
– The club finishing in 21st and 22nd position in
Divisions 1 Midlands and South and West will be relegated to Step 5.
Isthmian Football League
– The clubs finishing in 21st and 22nd positions in
Division 1 North and South will be relegated to Step 5.
Clubs wishing to be considered eligible for promotion at the end of the
current season must ideally finish in 1st position in their
current league. If the club finishing in 1st position does not
wish to be considered for promotion, then the club finishing in 2nd
position will be considered.
In addition to the club’s finishing position, it will have to achieve the
appropriate ground grading (Category E) by 31st March 2009.
NEW NON-LEAGUE WEBSITE
Ramsbottom United webmaster Chris Dunn has launched a brand new website
aimed at non-league football followers in the North West.
Chris explained: “It’s called ‘nonleaguenorth.com` and it will hopefully
help promote non-league football in the North West of England. It will
allow members to automatically upload news articles, match reports etc.
regarding their clubs. There is also an events page so clubs can advertise
any upcoming sportsman’s dinner, charity events etc. We have forums,
programme reviews and much more.”
The website can be found at
www.nonleaguenorth.com.
PLAYER MOVEMENTS THIS WEEK
Transfers
Nial Callaghan Atherton LR to Wigan Robin Park
Alex Dibley Darwen to Oldham Town
Joshua Howard New Mills to Runcorn Linnets
Paul Morley Nelson to Padiham
Clark Walsh Padiham to Nelson
Charlie Weir Leek CSOB to Abbey Hey
Registrations
AFC Blackpool Brett Dawson
Ashton Athletic Daley Woods
Ashton Town Michael Trainor
Bootle Dean Hawksey, Paul McEvoy
Chadderton Carl Taylor
Congleton Town Daniel Biegus, Richard Eyre
Daisy Hill Craig Naylor
Flixton Oliver Barnes, Craig Brennan, Warren Dickinson,
Daniel Fradley,
David Graham, James Jowsey, Keith Mairs, Craig Massey, Andrew McClean, James
Moore, Daniel Morrison, Lloyd Morrison, Andrew Pownall, Luke Scarry, Darren
Vernon, Leon Willis
Formby Tony Dunning
Irlam Anthony Connor
Maine Road Liam Beckford
Nelson Scott McArdle, Michael Webb
Ramsbottom United Daniel Holland
Silsden Chris Simpson
TOP ATTENDANCES
Wednesday 19th November 2008
AFC Liverpool v Irlam 250
Glossop North End v New Mills 171
Runcorn Linnets v Alsager Town 171 FA Vase
Saturday 22nd November 2008
AFC Fylde v Formby 249
AFC Liverpool v Padiham 222
New Mills v Newcastle Town 182
Runcorn Linnets v Glossop North End 135
Ramsbottom United v Ashton Athletic 100
Tuesday 18th November 2008
Atherton LR’s 6-3 away victory at St Helens Town was their 900th
League game.
Saturday 22nd November 2008
The 1000th league goal of the season was scored on this day by
Lee Skellern of Eccleshall.
Thursday 20 November 2008
NEWCASTLE TOWN
Danny Read of Newcastle Town was
presented with his Premier Division Goalkeeper of the Month Award by League
Fixtures Secretary John Reid and club representative John Cotton.
NELSON
The presentation of the September
Premier Division Player of the Month award was made to Lee Kershaw of Nelson
before his side's home game against Colne in the LFA Co-operative Trophy.
Pictured with Lee are League Development Officer Geoff Wilkinson and
Nelson Secretary Gary Broughton.
AFC FYLDE
Before AFC Fylde's FA Vase game against Newcastle Benfield, Fred Hunter,
Chairman of the FA Vase Committee, presented the club with a commemorative
plaque and replica trophy for their efforts in winning the Vase last season.
After AFC Fylde's victory over Newcastle Benfield in the FA Vase, manager
Mick Fuller was presented with the Premier Division Manager of the
Month Award for October by League Development Officer Geoff Wilkinson.
Saturday 15 November 2008
This month sees Padiham Football Club celebrate their 130th
anniversary, and to celebrate the event, the club is holding a Sportmans
Dinner at Turf Moor, home of Burnley FC on the evening of Thursday 27th
November.
The guest speaker is Dave Watson, the former England international defender,
and also appearing is comedian Lea Roberts along with MC Andy Ashworth.
Tickets are priced at £25, and anyone interested in attending should
contact Padiham Secretary Alan Smith on 07775 717698.
Alan says they still have plenty of support at club events from players who
have represented the club over the years.
“We hold a number of functions over the course of a year, and it’s good to
see so many familiar faces turning up to support the club”, he said. “As
this dinner is to celebrate an anniversary, we hope that as many people as
possible will come along to support it.”
Anyone who has read Alan’s synopsis of the club’s history in match
programmes will be aware that, in their first few years of existence,
Padiham were considered one of the pioneers of football in Lancashire, and
one of the better club sides in England. They reached the third round
proper of the FA Cup in 1883-84 and attracted good crowds when clubs such as
Blackburn Rovers, Preston North End and Burnley came to town.
With the club having such a long history, Alan is always on the lookout for
any photographs, memorabilia and general items of interest about the club.
“We do have a good number of photographs from over the years, and items from
more recent years aren’t a problem, but we are very short on information
about the club prior to the First World War. If anyone has any information
on the club from the early years, photographs, newspaper cuttings or
anything connected to the club, we’d be delighted to hear from them.”
On the field, manager Graham Howarth is delighted with his team’s recent run
of form, their 2-1 win over Ramsbottom United in the League Challenge Cup
being their eight successive victory.
Up to the end of September the team had only achieved one win in the league,
but Graham says he was always confident that results would pick up.
“We knew at the start of the season it would be tough to begin with as I was
building a squad almost from scratch and it does take time for new players
to settle in and gel. That’s always going to be the case, especially with
the number of young players we have.
“In the first few games we looked a bit out of sorts at certain stages, but
we knew we had the right set of players together and that the results would
come. That has happened now, it’s just taken a bit of time to get there.
“The most encouraging thing is that we’ve a young side, we’ve sometimes had
four or five players under 19 in the team, and that bodes well for the
future, although we might struggle to keep hold of some of them.
“We’ve got good strength in depth too, as we‘ve shown we can still keep up
the winning run with players missing. An example of that was the game
against Ramsbottom where we had Chris Ridehalgh and Rob Grimes out, who have
both been scoring goals for us, and we were also without Paul Scott who
gives us a good balance at the back, and yet we still won the game.”
Two of the most recent additions to Graham’s squad have both made an
immediate impact. Goalkeeper Sean Davis won the Division One Goalkeeper of
the Month award for October and striker Paul Fildes returned to the club
after a spell in the Unibond League. Graham says the form of his new 18
year old keeper in particular has been an unexpected bonus.
“Our regular keeper Gavin King went on holiday towards the end of September
and that gave Sean his chance to come into the side from the reserves. He’s
done so well there’s no way we could leave him out, and his arrival
coincided with us going on the winning run.
“Sean’s only 18 and came to us from Burnley’s School of Excellence. He
started in the reserves at the beginning of the season, had to wait for his
chance and when it came along he grabbed it with both hands. For a lad so
young he’s so composed, he talks well, he commands his box well and has done
brilliantly for us. He’s been making some great saves for us and is going
to be some keeper once he has three or four years experience behind him, and
hopefully we can keep him here.”
Another addition to the squad in the past few weeks has been Paul Fildes,
who returned to the Arbories in early October and has five goals to his name
already. Graham says he had no hesitation in moving quickly once he knew
Paul was available.
“When I was manager at Nelson I had Paul there with me and I know him well.
He gives you a different dimension, his pace forces defenders to back off
and gives other players get a bit more time and space to deliver a pass.
“We got the opportunity to bring him back in when he left Lancaster City,
and although there were one or two other clubs after him he wanted to come
back here. I have to be thankful that Alan and the rest of the committee
backed us when we indicated we wanted to bring him back, and he’s a good
signing for us.”
Looking ahead to the rest of the season, Graham is optimistic that his
players can maintain their recent good form.
“The winning run has given the players great belief in themselves and within
the group”, he observed. “If you are going to succeed you need good habits,
and we’ve got into a good habit of winning games. The run will obviously
come to an end sometime, but when it does we just need to go out and build
another good run. But it’s going well at the moment generally, and
hopefully that will continue for the rest of the season.”
MANAGERIAL CHANGE AT CHEADLE TOWN
Cheadle Town manager Trevor Howard has resigned due to personal issues and
the fact that he can no longer devote the time necessary for the post.
Trevor has been in charge at Park Road for four years and the club would
like to thank him for his devotion during that period.
His assistant Steve Brokenbrow has taken over as manager and took charge for
the first time when Cheadle entertained Daisy Hill at Park Road on Saturday
15th November.
VODKAT LEAGUE LOOKS GOOD TO PAUL
Ramsbottom United Assistant Manager and former Football League professional
Paul Williams has been impressed with the standard of football he has seen
since joining the Rams as assistant to boss Andy Feeley in the summer.
Paul finished up his playing career with a spell in non-league football that
included a stop over at the Riverside, and for someone with experience of
playing in the Premier League with Leicester City right down into non-league
football, it’s encouraging to hear that he has been impressed with what he
has seen so far this season while being involved at Ramsbottom.
“I think the standard of football in this league is not at all bad”, he
said. “I’d say there’s definitely players in the Vodkat Premier Division who
have the quality to go up a few levels. I think young players who get the
chance to play in this league have an excellent learning opportunity. It
toughens them up, but at the same time you do get the chance to play
football too, and that gives them a good grounding for playing at a higher
level.”
Despite having some non-league experience, Paul says there are still aspects
of managing at non-league level that he notices are very different from the
professional game.
“I’ve had no problem adjusting to non-league football. I came out early
from the pro game through injury and played non-league for a couple of years
including a spell at Ramsbottom before I finished playing, so that’s been no
problem.
“The thing I find most frustrating is not being able to get the players
together on a regular basis, especially when you want to work on certain
things. Players have got work and other commitments and sometimes it’s hard
to try and fit in the work you want to do around players’ availability.
“Having to change your plans at the last minute is another problem you
experience We are trying to work on those things, and try to get everyone
together a bit more often, but it takes time to get everything into place.”
With the Rams sitting in mid table, Paul says the main short term aim is to
overcome the erratic form the team has shown so far.
“They are a good set of lads, their problem is inconsistency. We just can’t
seem to get back to back results and get a run together to push up the
league. We get a good result then go out and let ourselves down. My
biggest concern is that when we go ahead in games, we seem to switch off and
we have to try and work on that.
“We’ve not set any targets at the moment, our main aim is to try and get
some consistency together. If we can get to Christmas and be in the top
ten, that would give us a good platform to push on from in the second half
of the season.“
NIGHT WITH LEGENDS AT LEEK
Leek CSOB are holding a “NIGHT WITH LEGENDS” Sportsman’s Dinner in a heated
marquee at their normal home venue of Harrison Park, Leek Town's ground, on
Thursday 4th December.
The event is in aid of the Old Boys club funds, and ex-Stoke City Stars Alan
Hudson, Terry Conroy and Wayne Biggins will be the guests. The cost of the
ticket includes a four course meal and there will be a Questions and Answers
Session where guests can ask Alan, Terry or Wayne questions or ask for their
opinions on any footballing matters. There will also be Sporting
Memorabilia Auction and a raffle.
130 tickets have already been sold, but there are still some available at a
cost of £35 each. Anyone interested should contact Old Boys secretary Stan
Lockett by e-mail at:
s.lockett15@btinternet.com.
VACANCY AT ALSAGER TOWN
Alsager Town have announced that they are looking to appoint a new club
Secretary. All enquiries in the first instance should be sent via e-mail to
the club’s Press Officer David Armstrong at the following e-mail address:
dgarmstrong@btconnect.com
NEW CLUBS FOR NEXT SEASON
Following on from our previous update a few weeks ago, there is news of at
least one potential application from a new club to join our league next
season.
Barnoldswick Town from the West Lancashire League have now officially
requested an application form for membership of the League, which is the
first in a number of steps that a club needs to take in order to progress an
application.
The club is also required to inform the Football Association and their
current League of their intentions, and also needs to apply to The Football
Association for promotion from Step 7 to Step 6 by no later than 31st
December 2008.
It was reported in the Non League Today newspaper a week or two back that,
as well as Barnoldswick Town, “Duncanfield Town, West Didsbury & Chorlton
and South Sefton Borough have all expressed an interest in moving up” to our
League.
To put the record straight on this point, we reported in the weekly League
news in October that West Didsbury & Chorlton asked for an advisory ground
grading visit in order to ascertain what they needed to do to achieve the
grading criteria required for admission. They are putting together a 10
year development plan for their ground and wanted some advice before they
began planning.
No club called Duncanfield Town has made any enquiry, but Dukinfield Town
(Manchester League) and South Sefton Borough (Liverpool County Premier
League) have requested information on ground grading. It should be
emphasised that neither club is in a position to make an application to join
the League at present.
GRASSROOTS GRANTS NOW AVAILABLE
Non-league clubs across the country are being encouraged apply for funding
from a new Government scheme set up to support community oriented
activities.
The Grassroots Grants scheme has £130 million to distribute among small
local voluntary and community groups in England and is administered by the
Community Development Foundation. Grants of between £250 and £5,000 can be
sourced to support activities that lie at the heart of local communities.
Within the programme, the Government has set aside a £50 million pot from
which it will match endowment investments from businesses. This offers
businesses the chance to contribute directly to supporting and sustaining
the communities in which they operate.
Examples of activities that can be supported include:
• the purchase of equipment, like a computer, printer, etc
• the costs of putting on a local event or workshop
• contribution to rent costs (related to activities/service delivery)
• the cost of attending a conference or event
• training for volunteers (eg, FA Level 1 & Level 2 courses)
• additional activities to expand an existing funded project
• activities that support community activity
• activities that meet an identified need in the local community
• funding to support an organisation to achieve a quality or other standard
relevant to their activities (for example, applying for FA Charter Standard
status)
Applications are administered by the
Community Development Foundation and any group
must apply via the local funder applicable to their area. Contact details
of your local Community Development Foundation can be found by clicking on
the following link:
http://cdf.vbnlive.com/SITE/UPLOAD/DOCUMENT/Projects/Small_Grants_Organisations_04_09_08.pdf
Alternatively, anyone interested in finding out more information can call
the Grassroots Grants helpline on 01223 400331.
LEAGUE CHALLENGE CUP THIRD ROUND DRAW
The draw for the next round of the Vodkat League Challenge Cup was made at
the Arbories Memorial Sports Ground on Saturday 8th November.
Ties were drawn by Padiham Groundsman Bob Bailey and Ramsbottom United
Chairman Harry Williams. The draw is as follows:
AFC Fylde v Wigan Robin Park or Bacup Borough
Alsager Town v Runcorn Linnets
Colne v New Mills
Stone Dominoes v Oldham Town
Flixton v Formby
Silsden v Abbey Hey
Irlam v Bootle
Padiham v Atherton LR
Ties will be played on Saturday 24th January 2009.
PLAYER MOVEMENTS THIS WEEK
Transfers
Brad Barrington Rochdale Town to Chadderton
Robert Batty Padiham to Runcorn Linnets
Marc Beattie AFC Blackpool to Squires Gate
Robert Brocklehurst Cheadle Town to Maine Road
David Cram AFC Blackpool to Squires Gate
Philip Ducker Ashton Athletic to Ashton Town
Anthony Harrison Squires Gate to AFC Blackpool
Michael Kearney Maine Road to Rochdale Town
Ray Redmond Daisy Hill to St Helens Town
Registrations
AFC Blackpool Christopher Corless, Matthew Garfield
AFC Fylde Leroy Allen
AFC Liverpool Paul Parle
Ashton Athletic Christopher Francis
Ashton Town Lee Collier, Daniel Leather
Atherton Collieries Lee Hallworth, John Stead
Chadderton Scott Ashton, Joshua Parkinson
Colne Paul McMenemy
Congleton Town Andy John, Lewis Short
Daisy Hill Michael Anders, Sam Knowles, Martin Pilkington
Flixton Damien Billingham, Lee Dyson, Dale Whitehead
Glossop North End Saul Lomax-Newton
Holker Old Boys Michael Kewley
New Mills Damian Owen
Runcorn Linnets Robert Glaysher
Squires Gate Chris Bennett
St Helens Town David Draper, James Hampson
Stone Dominoes Matthew Hill
TOP ATTENDANCES
Tuesday 11th November 2008
Newcastle Town v Port Vale 151 County Cup
Witton Albion v Congleton Town 128 County Cup
Saturday 15th November 2008
AFC Fylde v Newcastle Benfield 437 FA Vase
Glossop North End v Biddulph Victoria 210 FA Vase
Alsager Town v Runcorn Linnets 166 FA Vase
Market Drayton Town v Newcastle Town 161
Leek CSOB v AFC Liverpool 120
Ramsbottom United v Silsden AFC 120
Flixton v New Mills 115
Bootle v Oldham Town 101 FA Vase
VODKAT LEAGUE LANDMARKS
Saturday 15th November 2008
Leek CSOB second goal in their 2-1 victory over AFC Liverpool was their 700th
League goal and was scored by Tony Mantle.
Leek CSOB also recorded their 600th League point.
Cheadle Town’s first goal in their 5-2 home victory against Daisy Hill was
their 700th home League goal and was scored by Michael Myers.
Monday 11 November 2008
MANAGERIAL
CHANGE AT
Cheadle
Trevor has been in charge at
His assistant Steve Brokenbrow has taken over as manager and will take
charge for the first time when Cheadle entertain Daisy Hill at
Sunday 9 November 2008
PRESENTATION OF AWARD
Padiham goalkeeper Sean Davis was
presented with the Division One Goalkeeper of the Month Award for October by
League Media Officer Ian Templeman, before Padiham's tie against Ramsbottom
United in the League Challenge Cup.
Saturday 8 November 2008
VODKAT LEAGUE CHALLENGE CUP THIRD ROUND DRAW
The draw for the
next round of the Vodkat League Challenge Cup was made at the Arbories
Memorial Sports Ground by Padiham Groundsman Bob Bailey and Ramsbottom
United Chairman Harry Williams. The draw is as follows:
| AFC Fylde | v | Wigan Robin Park or Bacup Borough |
| Alsager Town | v | Runcorn Linnets |
| Colne | v | New Mills |
| Stone Dominoes | v | Leek CSOB or Oldham Town |
| Flixton | v | Formby |
| Silsden AFC | v | Abbey Hey |
| Winsford United or Irlam | v | Bootle or Maine Road |
| Padiham | v | Atherton LR |
AFC
FYLDE PREPARE TO DEFEND THE VASE
Saturday 15th November sees the latest round of ties in the FA
Vase, as the competition reaches the Second Round stage. There are a total
of nine clubs from our league still involved, but inevitably the focus both
locally and nationally will fall on AFC Fylde, as they begin their defence
of the trophy they won so dramatically back in May with a home tie against
Newcastle Benfield.
AFC Fylde President David Haythornthwaite says that everyone at the club is
looking forward to another taste of FA Vase action.
“It will be good to finally begin defending the trophy, but for us now every
game is like a cup final, as teams are up for playing us and everyone wants
to beat us. It’s an old cliché to say that you’d rather win the league than
win a cup, but defending the FA Vase is a little bit special.
“It was a bit strange for us to see the Vase starting this season, and not
be involved in the first few rounds. Right from the start last season we
were watching out what was going on with other clubs we were due to be
playing. We’re looking forward to the game against Newcastle Benfield,
although I think it’s a very tough draw. We beat them 5-2 away last year,
in what was one of our best performances last season, and I believe they are
a better side this year they won’t be relishing coming down to play us.
“I know that the manager and players are committed to trying to retain the
trophy and I think we’ve got a squad that can do it. We made a few signings
over the summer to strengthen so I think we are a bit stronger this year,
and I think we’ve got as good a chance as anyone in the competition.
“Hopefully we’ll get a good crowd down for the game too. We’re going round
the schools in the area promoting the game at school assemblies, and with a
bit of luck we’ll get a good attendance and a good atmosphere on the day.”
Club captain Dougie Shaw experienced every footballer’s dream of going up to
the Royal Box at Wembley to collect the trophy back in May, and he says the
memories from the day will live with him and his colleagues for a long time
to come.
“The Vase was a massive bonus for us last year. The main aim was promotion
when we came into the league so to get the Vase as well was fantastic.
“It was a once in a lifetime experience and it was a great honour too.
Getting there was an achievement in itself, and to win it was the icing on
the cake, it made the trip down there worth it.
“Looking back on the day, I’d probably say that coming out to warm up for
the first time was one of the best memories. By that time. most of the
people were inside the stadium, and to see that many people there to watch
me and my team, and Lowestoft’s team was amazing. I’ve never played in
front of a crowd like that. 20,000 people is a lot of people and you are
playing on the hallowed turf at Wembley as well.
“Just to step out there was a great moment, and there are other little
things you remember too, like having my son standing next to me when we
stood before the game listening to the national anthem. And then after all
that, going on to win the game just made for a perfect day, it really was
perfect.
“We still talk about it now and again and have a laugh and a joke about
little things that happened on the day, and on the night after the game, but
it does get blotted out a bit as you go through pre-season and into a new
season. You can’t live on the back of what you did in the past. We want to
go places, as everyone knows we want to be in the Football League by 2022
and things have to carry on.
“I think it’s a tough start we’ve got against Newcastle Benfield, although
being drawn at home is a bonus. I’m sure Mick will have done his homework,
he’s going to see them and we’ve got to prove we can overcome teams who will
be really up for beating us. We were a bit of an unknown quantity last time,
but teams will know us a bit better this time and we’re there to be shot at,
and have to cope with that.
“I’m sure it will be more difficult than it was last time, and if we get
there again, to be honest I’d probably be a bit surprised, because not many
teams retain a major trophy like the FA Vase. But I certainly want to be
there again, although there’s a long way to go before we can start thinking
about that. It’s only the second round, and there’s a lot of teams still
left in it.”
Meanwhile, as well as focussing his efforts on preparing his team for their
defence of the FA Vase, manager Mick Fuller is still fielding questions
about his night out at the recent Football Writer’s Association dinner in
Manchester, where he managed to get Sir Alex Ferguson to agree to bring a
Manchester United side to Kellamergh Park for a pre-season friendly.
Invited to go along and accept an award for his team’s efforts, Mick took
the opportunity to ask for a few favours from the well known managerial
names in attendance, and landed a bigger prize than he expected.
Mick explained: “I made a joke during my speech about one of my objectives
for the night being to get a friendly against a Premiership club, and I was
flabbergasted when during his speech Sir Alex turned round to me and said
“Mick Fuller, I’ll bring my side to play you next season, but be warned –
the gate receipts won’t cover my wine bill!
“Sir Alex was brilliant and I had about a ten minute chat to him afterwards
as well. He started by telling me smoking is no good for me, and I said to
him that if I had his side I wouldn’t need to bother. He said “Yes, but you
want to see my wine cellar”.
“It was a great night and something I’ll remember for a long time. That’s
up alongside Wembley for me, to be involved at an event like that with a
load of Premiership managers. They were all very friendly and approachable
too, and it was a great night. I spoke to Phil Brown, Brian Horton, and
Tony Pulis and as far I could see the only other non-league manager who
seemed to be there was Dean Saunders, he was there with a few guys from
Wrexham. I had a chat to him for a few minutes as well.
“I think they all thought I was a bit cheeky, but one or two of them said to
me “good luck to you, because now he’s said that he will stick to it. If
you don’t ask you don’t get and it’s great PR for the club.”
Turning to playing matters, two weeks of cup football will allow Mick to
turn his attention away from league fixtures for a while after his side’s
defeat at New Mills. Mick accepts that the result proves how hard the
battle for promotion is likely to be this season.
“New Mills are a bogey team for us, three times we’ve played them since we
came into the league and they’ve won every time. We knew this latest game
would be a battle, and you could see by their reaction how pleased they were
at the end. We always knew we wouldn’t go through the season unbeaten, and
that was just a blip that we’ll get over. If we had won we’d have been 11
points clear of them but now it’s down to five and it’s game on. But it’s
early days yet.”
Like everyone else at Kellamergh Park, Mick is looking forward to enjoying
some FA Vase action again.
“Obviously we really want to defend it, but it’s a tough start with the tie
we’ve been given. We certainly won’t be taking Newcastle Benfield lightly
but we are looking forward to the game. I’ve been up to watch them a
couple of times so I’ve got an idea of what we are up against.
“We’ve made a good start to the season and have learned a few lessons along
the way. I feel we’re good enough to be in the top two in the league
without a doubt and have another good run in the Vase again. I’m happy with
the squad at the moment, and if we keep clear of injuries and suspensions
we’ll be OK, and have no reason to fear anyone.
NEWS FROM NEW MILLS
The past couple of months have seen a number of changes both on and off the
field at New Mills, but with the early season disruption now at an end,
manager Tony Hancock is looking forward to focussing his efforts on building
a squad capable of challenging for promotion.
Last year’s Division Two champions began the season as one of the favourites
for promotion in the newly named Premier Division, after some big name
signings and an influx of other players, but a combination of factors led to
some mixed results early on, as Tony explained.
“In the close season we decided we needed to strengthen in certain in
departments and brought in three or four players who we thought would
strengthen the squad, but as it turns out none of them are no longer with
us. I’m not frightened of bringing in players to have a look at them, but
some of the lads who have come in haven’t quite had the attitude I’m looking
for, so they’ve come in one door and out another.
“It’s a like a job, you want to go and work for a company that’s growing and
New Mills is one of those places where people can see things are happening
and lads want to come and play for this football club because it’s a club
that is going places. So quite a few have come in, some have stayed and
some have gone. The honesty of the lads who were here has shone through,
and the ones who are not honest are no longer with us.
“We had some very mixed results at the start of the season, but we had five
major injuries to our team, and I had to replace those players who were
experienced but didn’t quite have the legs to play at this level of
football. In the Premier Division, you certainly need experience but you
need a mixture of other things too, and the lads we brought in weren’t quite
up to the physical side of things and that’s why our results were a bit
indifferent.
“I’m not making excuses, the inconsistent form was down to me as the
manager. Maybe I didn’t have the right players in place to cover for
injuries, maybe I didn’t have the right players to do the jobs I wanted
doing. But I put players out on the park and ask then to do a job, and
early on we weren’t doing what we should have been doing. But we’ve turned
the corner now, we’ve worked hard, and have now got a full squad back.
“We waited for the missing lads to come back, the likes of Mike Ryan the
captain, Matty Taylor who was outstanding for us last year, and Danny
Jackson in the centre of the defence. With these lads back that’s why we’ve
suddenly picked up. They are very fit players, they know how to work the
pitch and we’ve missed them. But since they came back, in the last seven
games we’ve conceded one goal and that has been down to them.
“In fact I’m pleased with the all round effort of all the players lately.
They are showing precisely the commitment and enthusiasm that is needed to
move this club forward. I’ve been especially delighted with the players who
have stepped up from the reserves. There are a lot of young players here at
the moment and the future is looking bright. We’re five points behind AFC
Fylde now, we clawed back a points gap by beating them, and all I’ll say is
that by Christmas we hope that we’ll be in the top three and after that we
can take it from there.”
Tony of course has plenty of experience in gaining promotion to the UniBond
League, as he achieved that when he was at Woodley Sports. He is under no
illusions about the challenges involved.
“It’s hard to get out of the First Division, never mind the Premier
Division, and I think the Premier Division now is harder than it was five
years ago when I was in it with Woodley Sports. There were four promoted
that year we went up, and we were top of the league with five games to go
but we ended up finishing fourth, because we got hit with a bad run of
injuries and suspensions at a critical time. What I learned from that is
that if you are going to get out of this league you need a big healthy
squad, and that’s what we have at the moment.
“In this league, the top five or six teams are very good sides, and even
when we play teams lower down the table they know that New Mills are
ambitious and going for promotion, and they all want to come and take points
from you. It’s very difficult and you have to rise above that, dig in and
work hard.”
A month or so ago, Bacup Borough manager Brent Peters ventured the opinion
that the Vodkat League Premier Division is better than the UniBond First
Division. Like Brent, Tony has experience of both leagues and he agrees
that any side who gains promotion for our Premier Division will be well
prepared for UniBond League football.
“The difference between our Premier Division and the UniBond First is that
in our league it’s about the top five or six, whereas in the UniBond First
Division the teams are beating one another. In the UniBond you get a lot
more space and time to look around, whereas in this league it’s more
frantic. You don’t have so much room and you have to know where your next
pass is going or else you get clattered. It’s a very fast paced type of
football in this league and you have to have players with their wits about
them. Early on this season we lacked that bit of sharpness you need, and
that showed in our results.
“If you can get out of this league, and keep the squad together that got you
out of this league, then when you go into the UniBond First Division I think
you’ll be challenging for a place in the top five. I know that because I’ve
been there before with Woodley Sports, and the season we went up we finished
tenth in our first season and we were runners up in the Presidents Cup.
“I kept a lot of the lads that got us promotion and I think if you keep the
squad of players together that got you promoted, their hunger and desire
will carry them through. It’s a higher level to move up to, sure, but the
players are motivated to prove themselves. When they find you get a bit
more room to play, all of sudden they think “hang on a minute, this is not
as hard as we thought it would be”.
“When they get that confidence, coupled with their hunger to pick up where
they left off, the consistency will come and who knows, that could take you
up into the top five or even promotion to the UniBond Premier. But it
doesn’t happen without hard work.”
Turning back to New Mills, Tony is clear about where his ambitions lie.
“I am focussed on getting this club higher up the non-league ladder.
Everyone knows we get good crowds here and this club is geared up to play in
the UniBond First Division and the UniBond Premier. There’s not many teams
around the North West playing at this level that can get crowds of 300 to
400 for games. It’s nice to see people come out and support us in such
numbers, and I won’t feel I’ve completed my job at this football club until
I get us promoted.
“The backing I get from the Chairman, his wife and the other directors here
is fantastic. I don’t expect anything other than total commitment from the
players and the board don’t expect anything less from me. I came here to do
a job, we got promoted last year which was the first step, and I’ll be
working at 150% to get this club into the UniBond, which is where they
belong.”
Meanwhile, Tony now has a more settled backroom staff since the club
recently announced the appointment of Pernell (Penn) Dunne and Steve Hayes
as the new management team of the Club's reserves. Penn and Steve started
the season at Atherton Collieries building a second team from scratch and
left them in a very promising position just behind New Mills in 4th place.
Penn has management experience at various levels over a 25 year career and
is a scout for Manchester City. Penn and Steve also manage at county level
as they are in charge of Warrington Schoolboys at the Under 12 age group.
The club’s Committee would like to thank Matt Reeves who has been in
temporary charge of the reserves since the start of the season for the
support and dedication he has shown to the Club and thanks also to
Tony, Paul and Steve Kennedy from the youth team for assisting Matt, often
at short notice.
In recognition of Matt's work, Penn and Steve asked Matt to be part of their
management team and everyone at the Club was thrilled that Matt accepted
their offer. Penn and Steve are also being joined by Rhianne Williams,
daughter of the Atherton Collieries Chairman Ian Williams, will act as
their secretary on match days.
Ironically the new management team’s first challenge was to return to
Atherton Collieries for their first fixture in charge on Saturday 1st
November. In a game which both Penn and Steve were naturally very much
looking forward to, they steered their new charges to a 3-1 win.
Finally, in keeping with the busy comings and going over the past couple of
months, the club have made a cosmetic change to the ground that will sadden
many a groundhopper who has enjoyed a visit to Church Lane.
The large tree at the clubhouse end of the ground has now been removed as
the club is planning on further developments to the club house. Football
Secretary Sue Hyde explained that although the tree was a familiar landmark
at the ground, it had begun to cause a problem.
“It had been starting to cause concern as branches were spreading over the
clubhouse roof. Also, the club are planning on expanding the club house
building and the tree would have hampered that development. We made some
enquiries and established that the tree had no protection order on it, so it
was taken down about a month ago.
“Because we took it down fairly quickly in between games, people are only
starting to realise now that it’s gone. We were surprised how many of the
club regulars came down for the first game after it had been removed, and
didn’t notice it was missing!”.
PLAYER OF THE MONTH AWARDS FOR OCTOBER
PREMIER DIVISION – ROSS McNAIR OF ATHERTON LR
During the month of October, LR were unbeaten in five games, four of which
were away from home. Playing in central defence Ross was instrumental in
the team’s good run of form. As club captain Ross is a great motivator and
provides strong backbone to the team. He has great positional awareness and
is a rock solid presence at the heart of the defence.
FIRST DIVISION – ANDY McCOY OF AFC LIVERPOOL
Andy has been registered with AFC Liverpool since the start of the season,
and after featuring in early games he dropped out of the first team starting
line up. Over the past eight weeks he has worked hard in training and
regained a place in the first team for the five matches in October, and
proved his worth by scoring four times. He was also nominated as man of the
match in two of those games. Andy has worked hard to regain his place,
never complains, even when he has to start on the subs bench, and is
improving with every game.
SAFE HANDS GOALKEEPER OF THE MONTH AWARDS SPONSORED BY SAMEDAY
PREMIER DIVISION – DANNY READ OF NEWCASTLE TOWN
Danny played a major part in Castle’s unbeaten run during October. He made
critical saves in a number of games, most notably two in the 1-0 win over
Tamworth, and an outstanding penalty save in the league game up at Colne
after Town had been reduced to ten men. His save turned the game and saw
Town go on to win. He also made three fine saves at Squires Gate to help
earn his side a point, three more in the 1-0 win over St Helens and two in
the victory at Winsford when the score was 0-0. In addition, he has also
set up numerous Town attacks with his quick throws and long kicks.
FIRST DIVISION – SEAN DAVIS OF PADIHAM
At the age of 18 Sean was give his chance to play in the first team at the
end of September and was influential in Padiham’s unbeaten run during the
month. His ability to control his area and his quick thinking when
releasing the ball enables his colleagues to attack the opposition at
speed. His handling is second to none, and his agility has seen him make a
number of fine saves to keep his team in games during the month. He is also
a very vocal player which helps in many situations, and he has an
outstanding future at the club.
Congratulations to all the players on their awards.
QUICKEST HAT TRICK OF THE SEASON
On Saturday 1st November Ramsbottom United’s Andy Sensale
grabbed a hat trick within the space of five minutes to earn the Rams a 3-0
win over Atherton Collieries, with goals timed at 71, 73 and 76 minutes.
It’s certainly the quickest hat trick in the league this season, and lovers
of footballing trivia will no doubt be wondering when the last time was that
a hat trick was acquired with such haste.
League statistician Paul Cowburn dusted down his record books to check, and
reports that Russell Dematteo scored a hat trick in five minutes (75,78,80
minutes) playing for Eccleshall at home to Holker Old Boys on the 29th
September 2007.
Also worthy of a mention is Troy Hayder, who played for Trafford at home to
Stone Dominoes on the 16th August 2006 and scored four goals in the space of
14 minutes, with the first three in only four minutes (53,55,57 and 67
minutes).
NORTH WEST SIDE STORIES
The latest edition of the League’s online magazine North West Side Stories
is now available to view online. There are contributions from old and new
correspondents, along with features from Glossop, Norton United and AFC
Liverpool. Visit
www.nwsidestories.co.uk.
PLAYER MOVEMENTS THIS WEEK
Transfers
Billy Dempsey Flixton to Bacup Borough
Chris Downey Flixton to AFC Fylde
Anthony Harrison Squires Gate to AFC Blackpool
Melford Knight New Mills to Runcorn Linnets
Andrew Pheby Chadderton to Oldham Town
Registrations
Abbey Hey Paul Monaghan, Wayne Welbeck
AFC Blackpool Anthony Fallon, Anthony Harrison, Jamie
Hughes, Dale Roberts
Ashton Town Lee Ebden, John Fleming, Paul Nutter
Atherton Collieries David Chapman, Matthew Chapman, Daniel
McFadden
Bacup Borough Anthony Hargreaves
Chadderton Mark Wilkinson
Cheadle Town Charles Ebbrell
Colne Tugay Elmas, James Mann
Daisy Hill Martin Gwennett
Darwen Chris Thompson
Flixton Matthew Campbell, Nick Gibson,
Alex Mortimer, Daniel White, Shaun Whitehead
Maine Road Rhys Nevins
New Mills Matt Barker, Sean Nolan
Newcastle Town Joshua Ford
Rochdale Town Simon Bowman, Richard Sopel
Silsden Simon Armstrong, Robert
Barraclough
St Helens
Town Sean Homer
TOP ATTENDANCES
Saturday 8th November 2008
New Mills v AFC Liverpool 210 League Cup
Padiham v Ramsbottom United 142 League Cup
St Helens Town v Runcorn Linnets 117 League Cup
Sunday 2 November 2008
PLAYER OF THE MONTH PRESENTATION
League Secretary John Deal presented Paul Rutter of Norton United with his
award for being Division One Player of the Month for September.
Saturday 1 November 2008
HAROLD BREARLEY
Salford City FC are saddened to report the death of Harold Brearley.
There will no doubt be many people still involved with the North West
Counties Football League who will have been acquainted with Harold over many
years. Harold was involved with the club from its early days, and was
Secretary during their greatest era as Salford Amateurs in the 1970s, when
they were successful in the Manchester area and wider afield in Lancashire
competitions.
As Chairman, Harold guided the club's progress from the Manchester League
through the Cheshire League into the North West Counties League. He
subsequently became Club President and retained a keen interest in club
affairs. On behalf of Salford City FC, current club Chairman, Darren Quick
extends condolences to Harold's wife Brenda and his son Ian at this sad
time. Details of Harold's funeral will be posted on the club's website (www.salfordcityfc.com)
when they are known.
NEWS FROM COLNE
Colne’s plans to develop a new stadium and leisure complex next door to
their current Holt House Stadium are progressing well, with the development
expected to be rubber stamped by Pendle Borough Council towards the end of
November.
The club’s consultants PMP have produced a proposal and business plan which
has been presented to the Council, and Colne Chairman Dave Blacklock says
that no problems are anticipated at this stage.
“The Council are fully behind the proposed development and have been
committed to it right from the start”, he said. “We don’t anticipate any
major issues in having the plans approved, and after that the next phase of
work will begin. We would expect to be able to get the wheels in motion
before Christmas with regard to applications for funding, so we’ll be able
to say then that the project is well and truly under way.”
The development will see the club as the centrepiece of a sports facility
for the whole Pendle area, and with the club having achieved the FA
Chartered Standard in September, Dave says that the club is determined to
ensure that they have a footballing infrastructure in place to make the most
of the facilities available.
“At the moment we have teams an various age groups starting and age 8 up to
age 16”, he said. “We also have sessions for 5 to 8 year olds on a Saturday
morning, where we get them out on the pitch and teach them to develop their
skills. So we have that side of things well established already.
“One of the most interesting initiatives that forms part of the new
development is the establishment of a football academy in conjunction with
Nelson and Colne College. The idea is that students will come to the
college to study for a qualification, probably a BTEC in Sports Science.
“They will attend college classes as normal, but do their football training
at the club every day with sessions fitted in around the college classes.
The idea is that in effect they will be working like full time
professionals, training every day.
“We already have experience of how a scheme like that will work as two of
our former players, Neil Harris and Mark Young are currently on footballing
scholarships in the USA as part of their studies towards a sports science
degree.
“We are committed as a club to developing our own players and seeing them
progress through to the first team, and an academy will develop and enhance
the successful youth policy we have in place already”.
Meanwhile, on the field there’s been no shortage of action with Colne being
involved in a number of high scoring games since the start of the season.
Between 20th August and 11th October, Colne never
scored less than two goals in any game, and twice recorded back to back wins
and scoring five goals in the process.
They notched up two 5-1 wins in successive weeks away at Runcorn and Formby
at the end of August, and in September they beat Holker Old Boys 5-0 in an
FA Vase replay before winning 5-4 against Atherton Colls four days later.
They ended October with another high scoring game, on that occasion going
down 4-3 at Glossop.
Despite some inconsistent results, and an unfortunate run of postponements
that sees them having played fewer league games than anyone in the Premier
Division, manager Nigel Coates feels that his young side are beginning to
gel together.
“I can’t fault the effort or the performances, and I do feel we will see
some improvement from all the players as they gain experience at a high
level of football”, he said. “Many of these lads have only just come from
the youth team, we’ve regularly had five lads in the middle of the park all
under 21, and the transition can sometimes take time.
“It’s been a good start to the season from a goalscoring point of view, but
the problem is our lack of height in the team, and the rate we keep
conceding goals. Scoring isn’t a problem with 44 goals in 16 league and cup
games, but with 32 conceded it’s not hard to see where the problems lie.
“It’s a young group of players and there’s no doubting their ability, but I
feel we need a bit more experience to help the younger lads through some
games. We have missed Scott Gizon and Kieran Roberts as well as Ronnie
Wright at the back who was a model of consistency last year and a good team
player. We’ve brought in Stuart Shepherd who was at Bacup, and that will
give us a bit more stability at the back, and the other lads will hopefully
be back from injury soon.
“We need a good run of results to take us up the table and take advantage of
our games in hand. Once we get a full squad back I’m sure we will be OK.”
NEWS FROM PADIHAM
Padiham’s Arbories Memorial Sports Ground is looking even more spick and
span than usual at the moment – thanks to some recent assistance from
building firm Bovis.
The company donated materials and labour to work on a number of maintenance
jobs around the ground as part of a community based project which was, as
ever, initiated by Secretary Alan Smith.
Alan’s local knowledge and involvement in local affairs once again paid
dividends for the club, as he came into contact with the firm while they
were working as main contractors in building new schools in the town.
“I live on the doorstep of one of the schools and over the course of the
last couple of years I’ve got to know the people involved there”, he
explained. “In turn they have become aware of the work I get involved in on
behalf of the football club.
“Each year Bovis choose a community group or organisation as a project to
support, and after I made them aware that there is always plenty of routine
maintenance work needed done at the Arbories, they decided this year that
they would get involved with the football club and the sports club.
“It’s part of the ethos of the company, they ask their workforce to
volunteer to work on community projects, and the employees take time off
work to come down and get involved in whatever projects the company is
sponsoring. You could have a site agent painting a door, for example.
“As a result of being chosen as a beneficiary of the scheme,