Atherton Collieries v Atherton Laburnum Rovers

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The Official Matchday Programme from the NWCFL Division One match between Atherton Collieries and Atherton Laburnum Rovers. 04/03/2013

Transcript of Atherton Collieries v Atherton Laburnum Rovers

Welcome to The Flatcap Derby

Cross town rivals Atherton LR areour visitors tonight for a NWCFL 1Division 1 fixture and I would like towelcome their players, officials andspectators. This isn’t just any game– it is really the game of the season.The fixture has been rechristened‘THE FLATCAP DERBY’. This wasinstigated by two groundhoppersfrom darkest Manchester in homageto the town’s industrial past.

This name has really stuck a chordwith both clubs and tonight’s game willbe the usual passionate tense affairboth on and off the pitch. The form-book will be thrown out of the windowwith both teams intent on getting thelocal bragging rights. So sit back andenjoy the ride.

This game was initially played onBoxing Day. The game started and weled through two Mitch Leece goals.However the rain which started abouta hour from kick off showed no signsof abating and with standing water onthe pitch the referee abandoned thegame. I had no complaints about thedecision because the field wassodden. My only question was whystart the game? The pitch was aswaterlogged at kick off time as it waswhen the players shook hands. I feltsorry for Mitch as his two goals in blackn white were erased from the recordbooks.

Since Xmas LR seem to have tight-

ened up at the back but have also hadproblems scoring goals. However onSaturday they secured a satisfying1-0 home victory over Oldham Boro.This coincided with the welcome returnof manager Phil Priestley to the game.Phil has been poorly lately andeverybody at Colls hopes he is feelinga lot better.

Since the last programme we haveplayed three games, winning two anddrawing the other. Northwich Villa weredefeated here 2-0. We totallydominated proceedings and a two goalvictory was scant reward. However wemissed numerous chances and couldhave been punished on another day.

We then visited top of the league AFCDarwen and drew 1-1. Our first halfdisplay was our best for a few months.We pressed the table toppers and thissaw them cough up possessionregularly. Again we did not convert ourchances although Paul Atherton’s earlyheaded goal was given offside but onlythe assistant referee thought so.

Unfortunately Darwen scored againstthe run of play and we went in at halftime a little sore to be behind. DannySmith scored a cracking free kick torestore parity but we weren’t asdominant after the break. We wouldhave taken a point before the gamebut talking into account our first halfperformance it felt like two pointsdropped...

Welcome to The Flatcap Derby

On Saturday we broke a 15 yearhoodoo. We last won at Andrew Street,Chadderton on Tuesday 23September 1997. The UK number 1single was Candle In The Wind byElton John. As we know this was ded-icated to Princess Diana. Doesn’t timefly.

Anyway we have had a lot of baddays/nights in Chaddy and StevePilling never thought we would winthere. We won 2-0 with both goalscoming from Paul Atherton. The livelypitch made football almost impossible,we won the game ugly and couldn’t behappier.

The next home is on Saturday whenLeek CSOB are the visitors, KO 3pm.This is followed by away games atCheadle Town (Wed 13 Mar) and WestDidsbury (Sat 16 Mar)

Thanks for coming tonight,

KEEP THE FAITH!

Captain’s Notes

What a differ-ence a weekmakes! LastTuesday weplayed AshtonTown after a verygood 3-0 winagainst Nelsonon the Saturday.We were in a

very confident mood and I honestlythought that we would go on to geta result due to the morale and qual-ity in the squad.

We were awful from 1-11 and thescore reflected it as we went on to lose3-1. It has been a long time since I feltso dissapointed after a game offootball and I think it will take a longtime to get it out of my head.

We had to raise ourselves for thematch against Northwich and to be fairwe could and should have won thegame even more comfortably than wedid. I would have taken anything to behonest as the wounds from Tuesdaynight were still very raw.

On Tuesday just we had a very difficultjourney to Darwen who are top of theleague. After playing some fantasticfootball, we left dissapointed aftersettling for a 1-1 draw. It doesn’t looka bad point on paper and will be agood point come April but on reflectionwe should have left with all 3 points.

At the time of writing we are preparingto play Chadderton where we have notwon since 1997... according to Emil!Then on Monday we entertain my oldclub Atherton LR for the Flatcap Derby.

As Colls captain I feel that I have tohave some kind of hatred towards LR,but I don’t. I spent some of my bestseasons at LR, and met a lot of goodpeople during my time there.

Under Glenn Moses we had the bestdressing room that I have ever comeacross in football. We achieved thehighest finish in the Prem for about 10years or maybe even longer and wewon the Goldline and Hospital Cup.We also boasted 4 Reebok Stadiumappearences. Myself, Danny Smith,David Hill, Simon Howard and RobSwanton were all a part of that teamduring the succesful years and I amsure it will feel strange when lining upagainst them for Atherton Collieries.

That being said I am also 100% surethat although we have our past withthe other side of Atherton, come Mon-day nothing but 3 points will do and thepast will be firmly put behind us for 90minutes.

A big season changing 3 days forColls. Lets hope that it’s the black andwhite side of Atherton are smilingcome Tuesday morning.

Up the Colls! Brad

Visitor’s History

Laburnum Rovers were founded in 1956 byJoe Riley as an under 14’s side and after adifficult first season in the local BriarcroftJunior League, they went on to enjoy muchsuccess in League and Cup competitions.Joe was persuaded to carry on into Seniorfootball and after a brief spell in the LeighLeague the club joined the BoltonCombination.

More success followed, but the ground at HagFold prevented further progress so a farmers fieldwas found and despite footpath criss-crossingand duck ponds either side, hard work byeveryone at the club turned this unpromising fieldinto a football pitch. In 1966 the club moved intoits new ground and were able to take their placein Division One of the Combination.

Jack Crilly succeeded Joe as Chairman andworked tirelessly for the club, supervising theerection of new changing rooms (animprovement on the old air raid shelters they hadbeen using) and a small social club. Jack diedsuddenly in 1980 and as a tribute to the work hedid the ground was renamed from Greendale toCrilly Park.

In the summer of 1980 the club joined thenon-league pyramid when their application to jointhe Cheshire County League was successful. Astipulation of the League was that the townsname had to be in the clubs title, so links with thepast were retained with the new name of AthertonLaburnum Rovers.

In 1982 the club became founder members of theNorth West Counties League, being placed indivision two until the league was reorganised in1987 when ongoing ground improvements sawthem placed in division one. 1989 saw floodlightserected and the club enter the FA Cup for the firsttime, while in 1991 the changing rooms andclubhouse were completely rebuilt.

Towards the end of 1990/91 season Dave Morris

took over as team manager and it was the startof the best period in the clubs history. In 1992/93the club won the League title with 106 points from42 games and also won the LeagueChampionship Trophy. Promotion to the UnibondLeague was denied them because of gradingrequirements, but undaunted the club repeatedtheir double the following season as well asreaching the semi-finals of the FA Vase. This timethe club was promoted to the Unibond League.

Two good seasons saw steady progress, but thenfinancial troubles struck and the club wasrelegated for the first time in its history.

Three seasons of struggle back in the North WestCounties League culminated with the relegationto Division Two. However, the appointment ofAlan Lord as manager saw a remarkableturnaround in form and nine successive victorieshelped the club win back promotion to DivisionOne at the first attempt. In November 2002 TomFoster and Dennis Haslem took over asmanagers after having to rebuild the team fromscratch, they secured Division One football foranother season. Dennis moved on in the summerand Ian Street joined the club.

A period of stability and success followed but atthe end of 2004/05 season Foster and Street leftthe club to be replaced by Mike Lester andDarren Ford, They set about building a newsquad but, in February 2006, Lester and Fordresigned sparking a difficult time for the club onthe pitch with no less than six managers at thehelm over the next two years. The mostsuccessful period came in spring 2007 under RoySweeney when the club moved away from therelegation zone after doubling its points total from21 to 42 in the final two months of the season.

Sweeney resigned in December 2007, withMalcolm Anderton taking temporary charge forfour months until ex-LR player and Leigh RMImanager Stuart Humphreys was brought in toensure the club retained its top division status.

Visitor’s History

and it wasfortunate that 21st place was enough.

With changes elsewhere in the pyramid systemmeaning LR avoided relegation at the end of07/08 season, the club brought in Dave Hughesas the new manager with a brief to keep the teamin the Premier Division while the club wasreorganised behind the scenes. Hughes broughtin a very experienced coaching team and setabout building a squad which has proved verysuccessful. The season ended with one of thehighest league placings for several years, victoryin the Goldline Trophy and another Reebokappearance in the Hospital Cup final.

This season the side had a promising opening tothe campaign recording another FA Cupgiant-killing before injuries took a severe toll, withthe team battling in the relegation dogfight.Victory once again in the Goldline Trophy Finalgave the team enough belief to collect the pointsthey needed to stay in the Premier Division.

Dave Hughes resigned as manager at thebeginning of September 2010 and the positionwas immediately offered to the Head CoachGlenn Moses to ensure stability within the team.Since Moses took over he has led the club to itsthird Goldline Final in three years and our highestmid-season points tally for the past few seasons.

Visitor’s Statistics

04/08/2012 -08/08/2012 -11/08/2012 -14/08/2012 -18/08/2012 -25/08/2012 -01/09/2012 -08/09/2012 -15/09/2012 -18/09/2012 -22/09/2012 -29/09/2012 -09/10/2012 -13/10/2012 -20/10/2012 -27/10/2012 -03/11/2012 -06/11/2012 -10/11/2012 -13/11/2012 -17/11/2012 -24/11/2012 -01/12/2012 -08/12/2012 -12/01/2013 -02/02/2013 -12/02/2013 -16/02/2013 - 23/02/2013 -

Atherton Laburnum Rovers 0 - 6 ChaddertonNelson 5 - 2 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 4 - 2 Rossington MainAtherton Laburnum Rovers 2 - 1 Daisy HillOldham Boro 1 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 0 - 3 Warrington TownAtherton Laburnum Rovers 1 - 4 Kinsley BoysAtherton Laburnum Rovers 4 - 1 West DidsburyAbbey Hey 2 - 1 Atherton Laburnum RoversAshton Town 2 - 2 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 1 - 0 AFC DarwenRochdale Town 0 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversAshton Athletic 0 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 0 - 0 IrlamFormby 1 - 4 Atherton Laburnum RoversCongleton Town 3 - 2 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 2 - 4 Leek CSOBAFC Fylde 6 - 2 Atherton Laburnum RoversIrlam 0 - 2 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 1 - 2 Cheadle TownAtherton Laburnum Rovers 1 - 2 Northwich VillaWest Didsbury 2 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 2 - 5 Rochdale TownEccleshall 1 - 1 Atherton Laburnum RoversLeek CSOB 0 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversFormby 2 - 0 Atherton Laburnum RoversAFC Darwen 2 - 1 Atherton Laburnum RoversAtherton Laburnum Rovers 0 - 0 Holker Old BoysCheadle Town 1 - 0 Atherton Laburnum Rovers

NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1FA CUPNWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1FA CUPFA VASENWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1LANCASHIRE TROPHYLEAGUE CHALLENGEFIRST DIVISION TROPHYLEAGUE CHALLENGENWCFL DIVISION 1LANCASHIRE TROPHYNWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1FIRST DIVISION TROPHYNWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1NWCFL DIVISION 1

Results 2012/2013

Leading Goalscorers

Andy OlsenAndy GriffithsTom DisleyMark AdamsBen HydeDavid SargentJerome MatthewsLewis CoyleChris LomaxCraig BoothbyJack McKayJoe Jennings

744322221111

Match Report

Ashton Town took all three points,and stole a march on Colls in thefight for promotion as the twoteams met at Edge Green Street onTuesday night. The previousmeeting between the two sidesback in September saw Town knockColls out of the FA Vase with a 4-2victory at Alder House.

Going into the match, Ashton sat inthird place whilst Colls were in fifth. Avictory for Colls would have seen themdraw level on points with Ashton, whohad a superior goal difference.

In recent weeks Colls had maintaineda settled squad, with only one playermissing through injury; Paul Prescott.This was evident in recentperformances, where the team havebeen in good form.

Manager Steve Pilling made just theone change from the weekends winaway at Nelson, with Aaron Cringlereplacing David Hill.

The teams emerged on to a wellmaintained pitch given recent weatherproblems. Ashton Town in their usualred and white stripes, Colls were intheir change strip of emerald green.Ashton Town – shooting down theslope – came straight at the visitors.

An attack down the left wasn’t cut out,allowing a shot to fly in. Colls keeperCarl Williams could only parry the ball,and it fell straight into the path ofMichael Boyle, who poked the ball intothe back of the net.

Colls attempted to play their usualpassing game, but a relentless pres-sure from Ashtons midfielders meantan attack rarely occurred.

The lead was doubled on 24 minutes.Sam Wilkie took a free kick from 30yards out. The ball deflected off thewall, and Kevin Pollard sent a loopingheader back across the face of goal tobeat the helpless Williams.

Gaz Peet was running well down theleft hand channel, and he causedproblems for the Town defence on acouple of occasions. Mitchell Leecewas also trying his best to breakthrough a solid back line, and abreakthrough came on 28 minutes.

A ball was played over the top of theAshton defence. The Ashtongoalkeeper looked favourite to dealwith the danger, but Leece slid into the50-50 and got his toe to the ball. Theflick saw the ball loop over the keeper,and bounce into the back of the net togive Colls a momentary lifeline.

Ashton Town 3 - 1 Atherton Collieries19/02/2013

Match Report

However, it wasn’t to be for Colls asthe night went slowly downhill fromthere. They found themselves 3-1 on36 minutes when Phil Davies fired theball into the bottom right hand cornerfrom a tight angle. This came justmoments after Carl Williams had madethree saves in quick succession.

On the stroke of half time, Colls DannySmith headed just over the bar from acorner kick.

Half time arrived, and you sensedColls would have to work incrediblyhard to get anything out of the match,in this promotion six pointer; if everthere was one.

Just a few moments into the secondhalf, and the match began to boil over.Ashton Town are a very vocal outfit,and this is something Colls haven’t hadto deal with this season. Everydecision was contested vocally, andarguments soon turned into physicalbattles on the pitch.

The away side did have morepossession in the second half, and hada couple of chances early on to pull agoal back.

The game changed for the worse on55 minutes when Sam Wilkie wentdown under a challenge from the Collsmidfield. The referee waved play on,whilst Wilkie was down holding hisface. The resulting phase of play saw

Michael Boyle fire in a fantastic crossfrom the left, only for Colls defenderJonah O’Reilly to block the cross withan outstretched arm. O’Reilly had de-nied Robinson a goalscoring opportu-nity, but the Ashton striker capitalisedon the loose ball and smashed it intothe back of the net.

The goal was remarkably disallowed,and a penalty was awarded. After theplayers and coaching staff of Ashtonhad composed themselves, Kevin Pol-lard stepped up and played the ballstraight at Carl Williams in the Colls netwho made a great save.

On 63 minutes Simon Howard wasbooked, and that opened thefloodgates as the referee went on tobook several other Colls players.Frustrations showed when just 6minutes later, Howard was shown asecond yellow for going into a headerwith intent.

That was the end for Colls, on a nightthey would rather forget.

Ashton Town thoroughly deserved thethree points. Town manager JohnBrownrigg did say after the match thathe thinks Colls will be up there at theend of the season. He pointed out thatwe have played the majority of the big-ger teams in the division, and there arestill 16 games left to play.

Atherton Collieries Association Football Club,Alder House,Alder Street,Atherton,Manchester,M46 9EY

Telephone:Email:Website:Twitter:

[email protected]@ACFC1916

Atherton Collieries AFC are members of The Lancashire County FA & The North West Counties Football League

President:Vice Presidents:Chairman:Vice Chairman:Committee:

Secretary:Manager:Coaches:Physiotherapist:

Mr David NorrisMrs Diane Norris, Mr Arthur Evans, Mr Tom WalkerPaul GregoryMark RileyDavid Protano, Frank Anderson, Martin Hook, Anthony Hook, Dennis Hickey,Bryan Connett, Paul Humphreys

Emil AndersonSteve PillingGareth Hall, Chris RichardsonKeith O’Brien

Bolton Combination Champions:

Lancashire County FA Shield Winners:

Bridge Shield Winners:

N.W.C.F.L Third Division Champions:

N.W.C.F.L Second Division Trophy Finalists:

N.W.C.F.L Floodlit Trophy Finalists:

N.W.C.F.L Division Two Runners Up:

Bolton Wanderers, Goldline Trophy Winners:

Worthington Challenge Trophy Finalists:

N.W.C.F.L Division One Trophy Winners:

Bolton Hospital Cup Winners:

1919/20, 1936/37, 1937/38/39, 1940/41, 1944/45,1956/57, 1958/59, 1960/61, 1964/65

1919/20, 1922/23, 1941/42, 1945/46, 1956/57,1964/65

1985/56

1986/87

1991/92

1994/95

1995/96

2001/02

2001/02

2010/11

1973/74, 1986/87, 2011/12

Ashton Town - Match ActionPhotos by Joseph Gibbons

Match Report

Having beaten Northwich at theircurrent Flixton home back inJanuary, Colls were hoping to getback on track on home soilfollowing the midweek defeat atAshton.

The visitors were hardly in the gameand were kept in their own half foemuch of the first 45 minutes. BradCooke fired a warnig shot across thebows in the 7th minute and fiveminutes late, Colls thought they had apenalty. The referee judged the foul tohave occurred just outside the areaand the free kick came to nought.

The onslaught continued and DannySmith forced a save out of TomNewton in the 27th minute, beforeBrad Cooke headed wide threeminutes later. Mitchell Leece reallyshould have scored in the 34th minuteand a goalmouth scramble saw threechances somehow fail to score withseven minutes of the half remaining.

It was frustrating for the home side tohave gone in at the break withouthaving the match sewn up. Northwichwere allowed back into the game bydefault. The longer the match went on,the greater the chance seemed of anupset. And so it nearly happened justbefore the hour; a free kick on the

edge of the Colls penalty area forcedCarl Williams to make what wasprobably his only real save of thematch.

The home side's almost relentlesspressure finally paid off in the 65thminute. A free kick was floated in forDanny Smith to slot home. DespiteColls' dominance, it was still only 1-0and there was always a worry that Villamight nick a point late on.

The men in black and white gavethemselves breathing space in the84th minute. Paul Atherton just had tobe there to tap home an inch-perfectcross and settle the nerves, and thenet bulged to seal victory.

In reality, it could have been a cricketscore, but three points and a cleansheet will do nicely after Tuesdaynight's defeat.

Atherton Collieries Team: Wiliams,Cringle, Swanton, Howard, Holland,Rothwell, Cooke, K Atherton,Townshend, Leece, Peet Subs: P Atherton, Smith, Mitchell

Atherton Collieries 2 - 0 Northwich Villa23/02/2013

Northwich Villa - Match ActionPhotos by Kai Trenbath

Match Report

Colls travelled to the AnchorGround to meet AFC Darwen in atop of the table clash. Colls won bythe odd goal in seven at AlderHouse in October, and this wasalways going to be a good game.

It took the visitors a few minutes to getinto the Darwen half, but once they did,they were there for most of the fist halfan hour. A crucial moment came in the7th minute when Brad Cooke got theball in the back of the net.Unfortunately, the assistant refereemay have been guilty of ball-watchingand flagged for offside. Even the homedefender thought Cooke was onside.Phil Holland had a chance to rectify theerror three minutes later but scuffedhis shot.

Colls bombarded the Darwen penaltyarea for a full half hour, but the closestthey came was a Paul Athertoncross-cum-shot that was scooped outof the top corner by the homegoalkeeper.

Completely against the run of play, amistake at the back allowed BobbyLangford to beat Carl Williams at thenear post and give Darwen anill-deserved lead. A revival sparked bythe goal sent Colls into panic modeand it was more by luck than

judgement that they went into thebreak only trailing by a single goal.

The second half was a much moreeven affair, but Colls still shaded it.Indeed they really should have beenon terms, missing relatively easychances in the opening minutes. It tookuntil the 55th minute for parity to berestored, but when it came it was agood one. A free kick close to the edgeof the area was taken by Danny Smith,who lifted the ball over the wall and itcurled beautifully into the top corner.

Ten minutes later, a cross-cum-shotfrom Gareth Peet narrowly went wideof the angle of post and bar. Both sideshad chances to steal all three pointslate on, but neither managed to scoreagain in what was a thrilling match ona crisp February night. Colls wouldhave taken a point before the game,but to come to a place like Darwen andbe disappointed with a draw says a lotabout the potential of the squad.

Atherton Collieries Team: Wiliams,Cringle, Swanton, Howard, Holland,Rothwell, Smith, Lawton, Cooke,P Atherton, Peet Subs: Leece

AFC Darwen 1 - 1 Atherton Collieries26/02/2013

AFC Darwen - Match ActionPhotos by Joseph Gibbons

Origins: The Flatcap Derby

For years we have worked hard to conjure upa distinctive name for the Atherton derbymatch. We were close to abandoning ourefforts, when one day last year, we cameacross the term “Flatcap Derby” online.

The term came from Tony and Johnny, twogroundhoppers who we have featured inpervious matchday programmes. TheDroylsden double act have been travelling thecountry following FA competitions for the last twoseasons, and were lucky enough to take in lastseasons meeting between the two sides; in TheFA Vase.

Tony and Johnny can often be found in a pub inDroylsden when the cup draws are made. Theyget straight down to business, and plot their nextgroundhop.

“We couldn't pass up the chance to blog abouttwo teams from Atherton, especially when theyboth have weird names (in a football sense!). Iblogged about the match and introduced thenation to Colls and Laburnum Rovers. It wentwell.”

Despite being presented with the infamousBolton Road bridge closure of 2011, the two ofthem eventually made it to Crilly Park.

“The game was good for a neutral, even thoughit was probably one of the most one-sided gameswe've seen at this level. Colls were by far thebetter team but as ever in cup games LR had 3attempts on target and scored on eachoccassion! The fans seemed a friendly enoughbunch but I thought there would be a bit morebanter between them. We weren’t keen on the LRpie woman! We much prefer Emma!”

“Visiting Atherton was like going inside an LSLowry painting with woodbines, clogs, flat caps &whippets!”

The process of picking the final name for blog

purposes was a strenous one, but the bloggerssoon came up with a name that stuck.

“I was trying to be creative with my writing. I wasstill trying to get my feet (ok, foot) under the tableat Wembley. We all know that those southern folkseem to picture us with woodbines, whippets,cotton mills, black puddings, hob-nail boots,pigeons and of course flat cloth caps. I toyedabout with a few combinations, to come up witha title for the match...

The Atherton Hob Nail Ho-down (didn't really sayfootball match)

The Pigeon Fanciers Football Frolic (said footballbut didn't sound right)

The Woodbine & Whippet Derby (made sense tome but Southerners think whippets aregreyhounds and anyone who knows whatwoodbines are, well... they are over 70 years oldor dead from smoking them)

Cotton Mills are too dated & black pudding ismore of a Bury thing, so I was left with Flat Capsand Derby! lt seems to have worked though! FAHistorian and Wembley programme writer DavidBarber said it was 'a great title for such a game'.

The two groundhoppers were surprised to findout that the people of Atherton had actuallyadopted their name for the match.

“I was really surprised to see it on the Collswebsite under the 'Flat Cap Derby' heading. I tryto make the things I write amusing where I can toattract other readers as well as football fans. Ihad no idea at the time how much it would catchon!”

We have had various discussions on where totake the Flatcap Derby next. A suggestion is thatwe buy 22 flatcaps, and make the two teamsemerge on to the pitch wearing them. That is themost sensible suggestion to date anyway...

To celebrate the launch of the Flatcap Derby,today we will award the man of the match with aflatcap. It will be like no other prize the playershave ever won, and will surely be the pinnacle oftheir career.

Brad Cooke will hopefully win the flatcap, as heis in need of some decent headwear.

Our vision is to have Sky Sports covering theFlatcap Derby live on TV. It will be the highlightof the sporting calender, worldwide.

We honestly think this match has a lot of potential

thanks to Tony and Johnny’s humour, but weneed everybody else to get behind it too! Sowhen we meet again in 2013, why not wear aFlatcap, and get behind your respective team?

No doubt Tony and Johnny will have somethingelse to say about this fixture, and you can viewtheir brilliant groundhopping blog at:

www.1legonthecup.com

They have watched Colls twice this season, andwe have lost on both occassions. So hopefullythey won’t turn up today!

NWCFL Results

2nd March 2013

AFC BlackpoolBacup Borough

Barnoldswick TownBootle

Congleton TownGlossop North End

Norton UnitedSquires Gate

Stockport SportsStone DominoesWinsford United

Premier Division

Alsager TownMaine RoadWigan Robin ParkAFC BlackpoolRuncorn TownColnePadihamSt Helens TownRuncorn LinnetsSilsdenAshton Athletic

3 - 02 - 11 - 12 - 10 - 01 - 11 - 2 3 - 02 - 23 - 22 - 0

2nd March 2013

Atherton Laburnum RoversChadderton

EccleshallHolker Old Boys

NelsonNorthwich VillaRochdale Town

AFC DarwenAshton Town

First Division

1 - 00 - 20 - 21 - 35 - 10 - 30 - 0

0 - 12 - 0

Oldham BoroAtherton CollieriesCheadle TownWest Didsbury & ChorltonIrlamFormbyLeek CSOB

Abbey HeyDaisy Hill

First Division Trophy

NWCFL Tables

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FormbyAFC DarwenAbbey HeyAshton TownAtherton CollieriesWest Didsbury & ChorltonCheadle TownOldham Boro *NelsonChaddertonLeek CSOBRochdale TownAtherton LRIrlamNorthwich VillaEccleshallDaisy HillHolker Old Boys

Pts

484746424240383428272624212121171613

Premier Division

P

172320212122232622222320222422232219

W

16151513131211118776556444

D

021334544656663541

L

164556711109118111313141414

F

646057595346404640383729233328323118

A

263816243331373948465037375357635247

GD

38224135201537-8-8-13-8-14-20-29-31-21-29

First Division

12345678910111213141516171819202122

PadihamMaine RoadRuncorn TownBootleRuncorn LinnetsBarnoldswick TownWinsford UnitedCongleton TownColneGlossop North EndStockport Sports *Alsager TownWigan Robin ParkAFC BlackpoolNorton United *AFC LiverpoolSilsdenBacup BoroughAshton AthleticSquires GateSt Helens TownStone Dominoes

P

28312826302827283030313229282823282530302729

W

1919171816151513131212111110119887653

D

7373685778974632312354

L

294585781010101414121412171621211722

F

65736650625655636560595240364441432936383724

A

284630254529303942524457524463466444696774104

GD

372736251727252423815-5-12-8-19-5-21-15-33-29-37-80

Pts

64605857545350464644424037363329272523212013

NWCFL Fixtures

Monday 4th March 2013

Maine RoadRuncorn Town

Premier Division

Barnoldswick TownStockport Sports

vv

Tuesday 5th March 2013

BootleSt Helens Town

Wigan Robin ParkWinsford United

Premier Division

vvvv

Ashton AthleticBacup BoroughAFC LiverpoolStone Dominoes

First Division

Monday 4th March 2013

Atherton CollieriesFormby

vv

Atherton Laburnum RoversWest Didsbury & Chorlton

First Division

Tuesday 5th March 2013

Leek CSOB v Ashton Town

Premier Division

Wednesday 6th March 2013

Silsden v Padiham

First Division

Wednesday 6th March 2013

NelsonNorthwich Villa

vv

PadihamAbbey Hey

Statistics

Atherton CollieriesFormbyAshton TownEccleshallIrlamNorthwich VillaDaisy HillHolker Old BoysNelsonWest Didsbury & CChaddertonAbbey HeyAFC DarwenLeek CSOBCheadle TownAtherton LROldham BoroRochdale Town

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Where To See League GoalsLast 4 Seasons in the NWCFL Division 1

Games Match No. 11/1209/10 12/13Average 10/11

899

14121010911111312119

13111311

424543644638383440404743383043353830

5.255.004.774.573.833.803.803.773.633.633.613.583.453.333.313.182.922.72

Goals

Colls Points Comparison

0011147

10101112121515182121242730333336363942424545464649

145581114171717171718212427303333363740404144475050505053565760

3344777

101316161720232627282831313437404043434649505151515252

3369

1212121518192225252831323535383942

PlayedWonDrawnLostForAgainstPoints

Black and WhiteEmerald Green

LeagueCups

CautionsDismissals

21885

231731

211272

301641

211335

533342

1513

WLWWWLLWWDWWLWWDWLWDWWWLLLLL

Below is a breakdown of results if we counted 1stand 2nd halves of league games seperately

1st 2nd Actual

Colour Kit Worn

Discipline

Form Guide (Home matches in bold)

0-1516-3031-4546-6061-7576-90

Total

Goal Times

977

108

12

53

548754

33

1

224

9

522123

15

9-108-6

7-1012-810-716-7

62-48

A Game of Two Halves

For Against For Against TotalLeague Cup

292

333

Us Oppo’s

Colls Cuisine

“Recipes to warm theheart and soul from

Badgers Pantry”CORNED BEEF AND BUTTER BEAN CASSEROLE - SERVES 4

1 (8oz) Can of corned beef

1 (8oz) Can of butter beans

1 (10½oz) Can of carrots, drained

1 (10½oz) Can of condensed cream of mushroom/chicken/celery soup

1) Put ingredients into casserole in layers, pouring the soup over the toplayer

2) Bake in a moderatly hot oven. 30 minutes (Gas mark 5 - 375°)

Happy eating!Badger.

Weather Woes

The bad weather that we have seenin the past couple of months hasmeant numerous matchpostponements and createdproblems for groundsmen andleague officials alike.

Possibly one thing that has come outof this however is the problems thatclub officials have in calling games offthrough the conditions, especially formidweek matches.

This situation has been evident formany years now, with the lack ofavailability of referees with the releventqualifications to say “Yes” or “No” as towhether the game takes place. Thisparticular problem is proving especiallydifficult in our area.

Years ago we had two divisions of theBolton Combination as well as theLeigh and District Sunday League.Both of which provided referees forsuch problems... but these are longgone.

However, even if we did have morereferees in the area, the problemswould still exist; especially in midweek.

Imagine the scenario that faced ourclub a couple of weeks ago when wewere scheduled to play Holker OldBoys at home on a Monday night. Ourhome game two days before had beencalled off because of a waterloggedpitch, followed by 24 hours of

incessant rain. Our secretary works inManchester but nevertheless he wason our Alder House ground at09:30am, and even a blind man couldsee that the pitch was not fit for pur-pose.

To make matters worse, Holkerneeded an early decision for travel pur-poses as they are based in Barrow. Tocompound the matter further, themorning paper said there was a poten-tional for four inches of snow in Cum-bria.

All that was required was a referee torubber stamp the cancellation, but inour area even Paul Daniels the magi-cian would have had a problem.

In my opinion, the problem couldsurely be solved by having more re-spect for club groundsmen and in sim-ilar scenarios to the one justmentioned, letting them make the de-cision. However, the general consen-sus of opinion seems to be that clubswould call games off for trivial excuses,for example, if they had a player un-available. In my opinion that is rubbish.Groundsmen are as enthusiastic aboutthe game taking place as everybodyelse.

We have had two instances this yearof mistakes made by the refereesproving that they are not infallible,when deciding whether the gametakes place or not.

Weather Woes

Oldham Boro who share our groundhad a home fixture and prior to thegame there had been overnight frost.As luck would have it the sun shoneand at 1.30pm it had all thawed outapart from the far corner of the pitch,which had a firm area of around 5square yards.

The referee travelled down fromLeeds, walked up and down the pitchfor a few minutes before saying“Health and safety was a priority. Thematch is postponed”. He was back inhis own county before scheduled kickoff time. He had claimed his expenses,leaving Oldham with a pile of

programmes and food. Totally baffled.

Colls had a similar problem with ourlast match against LR on Boxing Day,as I’m sure you’ll all remember! Thematch should never have taken place.The referee, opting not to listen to ouradvice allowed the game to kick off inmonsoon conditions. He abandonedthe game after 25 minutes.

This is not a witch hunt againstreferees who do an excellent job indifficult conditions, but surely there areoccasions when the homegroundsman does know best!!

Duncan’s Ten Teasers

Who is the first non-British or Irish player to make 400 Premier League appearances?

Which nation has provided the most goalscorers in both this years Champions League & Eu-ropa League?

Who are the top 5 African scorers in the Champions League?

Which player has played the most Premier League away games without ever winning one?

Who is the top scoring defender in Premiership history?

Who is the top scoring defender, excluding penalties, in Premiership history?

Where did Hull City used to play?

Who is the only defender to score for 5 Preniership teams?

Who are top 3 English scorers in the Champions League?

Who are the only top flight team to have won more of their first 27 matches than Man Utdhave this season?

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

1. Sylvain Distin2. Brazil3. Didier Drogba, Samuel Eto'o, Emmanuel Adebayor, Michael Essien & George Weah4. Kenny Miller5. David Unsworth6. John Terry7. Boothferry Park8. Hernan Hreidarsson9. Wayne Rooney, Paul Scholes & Frank Lampard10.Spurs (1960-61)

NEXT HOME FIXTURE

ATHERTON COLLIERIESV

LEEK CSOB

COME ALONG AND SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL TEAMAS THEY PUSH FOR PROMOTION

15:0009/03/2013

Groundhoppers View of Colls

In my previous blog posts I havetalked about supporting a non-league team and sticking with themfor a season or two. The one teamthat came into my mind wasAtherton Collieries FC.

The day started off on a downer for mepersonally as Moss Bank (the teamthat I play for) lost 2-1 in a close game,we were unlucky really. I, in net,produced a fine string of saves thatkept us in the game, then on about the70th minute an own goal was scored,not by me, for once...

I have been planning to go to Athertonand meet up with fellow blogger Joe(http://gibbos92.wordpress.com/) onvarious occasions, but sadly thebeautiful North West weather hasthwarted my opportunities.Unfortunately, Joe was unable to joinme at this game due to League CupFinal commitments.

Anyway, I had planned it all out andasked Dylan (who is a City seasonticket holder) to join me. The plan wasfor Dylan to meet me at my house at1:00pm and catch the trains needed toget to Atherton.

I was looking forward to the Colls vs.Northwich game because I hadn’tbeen to a non-league game for arounda month. The weather problems andBurnley having a good string ofgames, had delayed my trip. This was

also Dylan's first non-league experi-ence, he was looking forward to it. Iwas hoping that the game would notbe a boring 0-0, and thankfully itwasn't!

Alder House is an easy place to get to.There are many bus and train routesyou can use. I and Dylan opted for thetrain as, in the end, it worked out as thecheapest and fastest option. My gamefinished at about 12:45 from their itwas a very quick journey home for avery quick shower. Dylan met me atmy house at a 1:00pm and our journeybegan. Bromley Cross train station ourdestination. Once there we purchasedour train tickets for the day and got the1:23pm train from Bromley Cross toSalford Crescent. We would go ontocatch the 12:35pm train to Atherton.

Once I and Dylan had arrived atAtherton train station it was a simplecase of finding Alder Street. Luckily, Ihad planned a journey using thatGoogle map thing, very useful! All in allaround a ten minute journey.

We approached Alder House. Theentrance is very welcoming, on anormal day I would be paying only£3.00 to watch the mighty Colls play,but thanks to the clubs kindness Imanaged to squeeze through thehistoric turnstile for free. I bought avery well presented programme for£1.00.

Groundhoppers View of Colls

The programme was superb valueconsidering it’s priced at just £1.00. Ithad detailed match reports from theprevious games played. It hadinformation of all the teams that arewanting to enter the NWCFL and whatimpressed me most was that I got amention! Thanks!

As for Alder House, yeah, overall I wasimpressed! Sure, people may say it's alittle dated but in my opinion it’s notdated. It’s nice and welcoming. I like it!

As you go though the turnstile, to theleft of you is what I am going to callThe Changing Room End. As you mayhave guessed this end is home to thechanging rooms and the very modernEmirates stadium like tunnel.

In front of you is what I am going to callthe club house stand. The clubhouse,refreshments area, a small 3 row deepseating stand and a small standingterrace can be found here.

To the right is The No Name Stand, Ican’t think of a name for this one.Finally, to the side of you is theDugouts End. This consists of the twodugouts and a seated stand that runsaround 1/4 length of the pitch.

After going through the turnstile andsoaking up the ground, I and Dylanwent searching for some food. Whilstsearching I heard someone say "Irecognize that face, you’re the one I

need to impress!", it was the voice ofclub secretary Emil Anderson. Aftertalking for a while, little did Emil knowthat my granddad is ex Colls player-Brian Taylor. Emil still couldn’t get overthat, and he talked about my Grand-dad playing for the Colls, nicknamesetc.

Little did I know that Emil knows myMum. In fact, my family! When Emiland my Mum were kids his family andmine went on holiday together. I canhonestly say Emil is one of the nicestpeople in football!

Anyway, enough of that!

The game. Colls needed three pointsto continue their promotion push andafter a Tuesday night defeat to AshtonTown, they needed to catch up.Northwitch were pretty much safe inmid-table!

The first half was a good one, despiteno goals being scored. It was rare toactually see Northwitch get out of theirown half. Atherton sent wave afterwave of attack but could not find theirway past the Villa keeper.

It was clear the Colls work on their setpieces at training as they were superb!After the 10 minute mark they had astring of about 3 corners and each timethey always ended up on target.Atherton very nearly took the lead onaround the 20 minute mark, Mitch

Groundhoppers View of Colls

Leece made a superb run and the ballwas played through to him. He shot,but just wide of the Villa goal.

Half Time!

At half time I went in search forsomething to eat. I came across thewell-presented refreshments area onthe Club House side and bought oneof the best and probably biggest pies Ihave had in a while. I don’t know whothe baker was but they deserve amedal! I also bought a hot chocolatefor 90p which again was good value.

Second half and the Colls kept pilingthe pressure on the Villa goal withwonderful football. The pitch at AlderHouse isn’t the best, but fair play to theColls; they played some wonderfulpassing football. The deadlock wasfinally broken on the 65th minute witha goal by Danny Smith. A set piecegoal, free kick was whipped in andSmith was there to riffle the ball in theback of the net.

On the 85th minute Colls doubled theirlead thanks to Paul Atherton, awonderful cross was whipped into thebox and Atherton had the simple taskof placing the ball into the back of thenet.

Full Time! Superb Game!

After saying bye and thanks to Emil,myself and Dylan headed back toAtherton train Station and waited forthe train to arrive. When it did we gotthe connection from Salford Crescentto Bromley Cross after a quick stop offat McDonalds.

Overall, I had a superb day at AlderHouse, Atherton Collieries are aprogressing football club who, in truthdeserve to be in a higher division. Iwould like to thank Joe for my mentionin the programme and of course Emilfor his superb hospitality. I will bedefinitely be visiting the Colls againand looking forward to it!

You can read more of Zach’sadventures at:

www.thehalftimewhistle.blogspot.co.uk

We look forward to seeingyou again soon Zach!

Appearances & Goalscorers

AINSCOW HeathATHERTON KarlATHERTON PaulBRAY MatthewBURKE JackBURNETT GaryCOOKE BradleyCRINGLE AaronFIELDING JoeHARRIS JoshHILL DavidHOLLAND PhilHOWARD SimonLAWTON MikeLEECE MitchellMITCHELL TomMULROONEY MikeNORRIS DannyNOVAK LeeO’KEEFE GavinO’REILLY JonahPANTLIN PhilPARKER MatthewPEET GarethPENDLEBURY SimonPRESCOTT PaulPRINCE MarkROTHWELL SteveRHEAD MichaelSMITH DannySTANDRING RyanSWANTON RobertTHOMAS ZacTOWNSHEND PaulWALKER AndyWARD CraigWILLIAMS CarlWILLIAMS Phil

519

22011

11101117469912

6

10110

17

7112644187

61

1

31

2222

12

2126

611

15

331

1

113

1

2

9

1

5

3

2

25

165

52261

641

1111

2514

3

31314

11

112

1

111

1

111

1

11

2

2

1

1

724

32616

1612132356151322171110315121

71156754911

171113

41

3332

13

2126

722

16

441

1

113

1

2

11

1

5

5

1

3

League Cup Total

Apps Apps AppsSubs Subs SubsGoals Goals Goals

Today’s Teams

Atherton Collieries Atherton Laburnum Rovers12345678910111214151617

CARL WILLIAMSAARON CRINGLEROB SWANTONSIMON HOWARDSTEVE ROTHWELLPHIL HOLLANDANDY WALKERDANNY SMITHBRAD COOKEMITCHELL LEECEGAZ PEETTOM MITCHELLDAVID HILLKARL ATHERTONJONAH O’REILLYPAUL PRESCOTT

CHRIS CHEETHAMNEIL UNSWORTHCRAIG BOOTHBYLUKE GIBSONSTEVE TAYLORLEWIS COYLEROBERT SEABOURNIAN FRAZERALFRED AKIDTUBEN HYDEJACK McKAYDANIEL REGANMARK ADAMSJOE NEWSONSAM PULLINGERCALLUM WESTHEAD

12345678910111214151617

STEVE PILLINGGARETH HALLCHRIS RICHARDSON

PHIL PRIESTLEY

REFEREE - A HussainASSISTANTS - T Thomas & N Burke

Black/White Blue/Yellow

NWCFL Division One - Monday 4th March 2013 - 19:45

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