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Showing posts from April, 2015

Non League Heaven Non League Hell

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As the current season peters out to a conclusion we can now ‘look forward’ to a fifth consecutive season outside the Football League. Whilst I think that there may be some plus points in following football at this level there are, invariably some pretty awful ones too. Although I have attended all but a handful of games at EP at Conference national/north level I have been unable to get to that many away games so there will be an innumerable amount of people better qualified to pen an article on this theme than me. By way of balance I suggested to hedgegrower that I pen a separate article highlighting the plus points of none league football; However.... after he fell about laughing manically I got the message. So here goes:   The scene at EP 22 October 2011 Forest Green at Edgeley Park 22 nd October 2011 The scene is set, several thousand people including the usual smattering of away fans and press assemble on time. One ingredient however is missing – the away

County 2 Harrogate Town 1 ( Conference North ) 25 April 2015

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County had more than enough left in the tank to propel themselves to a much needed win, against Harrogate Town, at Edgeley Park today, thus bringing a fairly disappointing season to a relatively happy conclusion. The match was a mess really for long periods, and it was massively disappointing to see Harrogate take advantage of refereeing largesse to sneak the lead after 6 minutes. Relative unhappiness reigned in Row R and around   after this ,with neither side looking about to over strain themselves in the cause, until Chris Churchman`s very own   Roy of the Rover moment( of which more later) transformed what had, up until that point been a fairly nondescript game. After the break, County did seem to step things up a notch or two, and it was not a great surprise when Danny Glover, who had bludgeoned the bar minutes earlier with a shot, ended County`s misery by ignoring `the Curse’ and   putting    a lovely finish away from close in! It was a close call I suppose, but Co

County Development Squad 2 Workington 1( Lancashire League West) 15 April 2015

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Unsurprisingly perhaps, it took a team of lawyers many months to finally get a judge in a US Court to grant a writ of Habeas Corpus, this week, freeing two chimpanzees from captivity in a biochemical research unit, whereas it took County`s highly promising Development Squad just 3 minutes to make their mark, last night,   against a decent Workington team, at Edgeley Park, thus establishing a lead they were not to relinquish in 90 odd minutes of thoroughly excellent entertainment! The goal was a little belter….set up by Ryan Hanson, whose speed and skill stood out all game long, and put away coolly by Charlie Russell. Another goal followed from lively full back Elliott Watson, early in the second half. The Cumbrian side did claw one back in the form of a Tommy Whitehead penalty, but there was absolutely no doubt at any point as to where the points were going, after another mightily encouraging performance from Alan Lord`s side.   Hancock in charge ! Top men for m