All Things Stockport County

Unfortunately health issues prevent me from covering County`s game at AFC Fylde today. hedgegrower

This was one of those days……you know the ones where to have stayed in bed instead of venturing out, would have turned out to be a great idea. Yes….a bumper crowd at Edgeley Park witnessed County surrender their unbeaten record to local rivals Stalybridge Celtic, when all in SK3 and around rather fancied a fairly easy County victory pre-kick-off. The score line of 0-3 was depressing enough, but the manner of the reverse was several degrees worse, County having been reduced to 9 men in a 5 minute spell in the first half perhaps best forgotten! Firstly we saw power house figure Glenn Rule done studs up by Aaron Chambers, and get a red for his perceived indiscretions in response. The tackle by Chambers was an abysmal one, and deserved a red, and….if…..and I say if…..Rule`s response was an illegal one, then he too must get a red, but…despite County getting the free kick, it was Rule who walked and the felonious `tackler’ who got shown a feeble yellow. It only needed a br...

OLD TIME CHESHIRE DERBY Saturday's fixture goes back 93 years to the days when Stalybridge had their brief spell in the Football League. Meetings would have gone back even further, as County were supposed to play their first team in the Cheshire Senior Cup and were drawn to play Celtic in 1912. However, County were fined for playing a weekend team in the first round and pulled out of the competition in protest. After the solid start to the season the game could give County the chance to put pressure on the leading two teams, although modern matches against Celtic always seem to be a bit of a struggle, even the high scoring ones. PAST MEETINGS County reserves were playing Celtic in the 1912-13 season as our visitors first team were fellow members of the Central League. But the first clash between the senior sides came in the 1921-22 season. Having been relegated to the newly formed Football League Division Three (North) County were on their way to the title. They beat Cel...

I've had a break from the Player profiles whilst here were two games a week, but they return this week with a look at Calum Dyson. Calum, one of County's loan signings from Everton, first made the national press as a 7-year-old. A story in the Liverpool Echo during March 2004 outlined his 14 hat-tricks or better in 16 games for Barlows in the Hightown Mini League. This was picked up and used as a football snippet by some of the nationals. The article also reported that he already had a tally of 129 goals that season. Calum had been playing for Barlows since before his 5th birthday, with his speed and ability being a major contributing factor in the impressive record. His performance attracted interest through the senior professional clubs in the North West but Calum was already training with Everton. Hailing from Fazackerley, Calum continued to make good progress with Everton, eventually signing a contract and joining their Under 16 side. Meanwhile his schoolboy fo...