CURRENT SEASON'S ARCHIVE page |
16 to 20 August, 2004
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16 to 20 August, 2004 |
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RICHARD AT WOODLEYNL Daily reports that goalkeeper Richard Acton (left) has followed former team-mate Paul Robertson to Woodley Sports in the UniBond First. Richard (24) remains registered for Conference North at Moss Lane. He was first-choice keeper in 2002-03 and was then injured at Harrogate early last season. Before he recovered, Stuart Coburn had returned to the club from Leigh RMI and he remains the first-choice keeper at Moss Lane. Richard had a short spell at TNS in Wales at the end of last season. |
Of this Saturday's game Graham says, "It is yet another derby; Ashton on Monday, Stalybridge on Saturday - it's like London and the Premiership round here and I think those games can be detrimental to your ambitions". Early in the season "you are in the dark and until you see the teams you can't make a true judgement... I am not setting any targets... I just want to progress again".
Craney scored with "a superb solo run and strike from all of 30 yards" at Morecambe this week. Coleman said, People might be surprised at Craney's goal but nobody in the changing room is. We have seen him do it in training... I signed him because he's capable of scoring goals like that. I'm certain there are plenty more where that came from".
SAM quotes Stuart Coburn after Saturday's win: "We were speaking in the dressing room after that and we were saying that last season we would have lost that kind of game or we would have conceded an equaliser when 2-1 up... However, Graham told us at half time to keep playing our football. He urged us to get it on the ground and I think the better play showed in the second half. Once the new faces in the side settle in there could be good times ahead for us", he added.
"Altrincham manager Graham Heathcote (right) said, 'There are a lot of physical sides in this division. I saw Hinckley against Worksop last night and none of the three centre-backs on the field were under six foot four in height. But, there are ways around players like that. We have played really well in patches over the course of the first two games, and now it's a matter of extending those patches and controlling entire games. I am confident we have the players who can do that. The new signings have done well but so have the guys who stayed loyal to this football club... I think we deserved to win on Monday night at Ashton, simply by the amount of chances we created... We've got to try to see every team in the league as quickly as possible - which is what Dalton and myself are trying to do - and then we can take stock of what we are up against and plan accordingly".
The AGM of STAR, The Altrincham FC Supporters' Trust is on Friday 10th September at 7.00pm [nb changed time] in the Noel White Suite. "STAR will be running a Fans' Forum featuring a panel of celebrity guests including the legends, John King, John Hughes and Rod Thornley among others... followed by the draw for the AGM prize raffle, made by a select band of the current playing squad, so please remember to get your tickets and monies in on time, if you haven't already done so. The AGM is open to STAR members only, so bring your membership card, and entry is free. If you're not yet a STAR member, you can always join up now or at the event! says the STAR website which also has details of other initiatives, including:
The NW Evening Mail says that "Barrow AFC shirt sponsor Colin Moore believes the on-going battle for the board is a factor in the team’s poor start to the season". After his team lost to Southport, manager Lee Turnbull "laid into them at the final whistle with a verbal lashing as they slumped to second bottom in the Nationwide North".
Lancaster Today says that "City boss Phil Wilson was a happy man this week after his side picked up four points from their two opening games". Aftervtheir draw with Stalybridge he added, 'Stalybridge are not going to lose many games at home this season'... One negative from Tuesday night were the injuries to goalkeeper Jamie Speare and defender Jamie Murphy... Speare's injury meant that City gave a debut to new signing Ryan Yeomans, an 18-year-old keeper from Blackpool".
"Mark Cartwright will be hoping lightning doesn't strike twice on rejoining Runcorn. The 31-year-old goalkeeper was unfortunate to be on the receiving end of the Linnets' record home defeat on the first appearance of an earlier loan spell from Wrexham... as Stevenage won 8-0 in the Nationwide Conference at Canal Street in November 1995,.. Now, almost nine years on from the torrid debut, Cartwright is returning as cover for Tony McMillan... In 1994-95, he was in the Welsh squad for their visit to Georgia and a home game against Bulgaria" says IC Cheshire.
Worksop Today quotes "Tigers' boss Ronnie Glavin... 'Sure it is disappointing not to take a win in your first two games, but there is a lot to come yet,.. Slowly but surely we will come through and eventually we will be a tough team to beat.. I want them to play good football'".
Worcester City "must prepare to fork out around £20,000 to provide disabled toilets, a viewing ramp and better access into the social club at St George's Lane. The club hope to finish the work before the Disabled Discrimination Act comes into force on October 1. Chairman Dave Boddy has made the appeal for fans to buy shares with all cash raised going towards the project which is not covered by grants from the Football Foundation... Boddy said: 'Previous share appeals have been very successful'", he told This is Worcester City.
After Wednesday's game, Alty stay top of the League Table.
Wednesday 18th
Pictured, right, is Niell Hardy after Saturday's game, as Colin Little receives his man of the match award in the background..
Howard Watts's Through the Years data is here for Saturday 21 August, when we play Stalybridge, away. The Bower Fold is not a lucky ground for the Robins. Between 1979 and 1992 Altrincham and Stalybridge did not meet, as Altrincham were in the Alliance/Conference and Celtic were not. Since then, there have been nine league meetings at the Bower Fold in either the Conference or NPL - and Altrincham have lost eight of them! There has not been a draw but Alty won 3-1 on 15 March 1994. In that time Alty have scored just two goals against Celtic, the last being in 1999. We lost 1-0 there last season. Saturday's game should see Stephen Rose's 100th start for Altrincham making him the 9th current "centurion" - the others, in descending order, are Maddox, Coburn, Talbot, Scott, Hardy, Thornley, Adams and Band.
This is Lincs reports on Gainsborough's second defeat of the season, against Alfreton. "'We were robbed for the first goal, Matt was a mile offside, but we played well and scored a great goal to get back in it', said Blues' boss Paul Mitchell. 'We passed it about for fun after the break and looked like Real Madrid, but then we lost our concentration'... Alfreton have one of the biggest playing budgets in the league and the gulf between the two clubs was highlighted once the teamsheet appeared before kick-off. With last season's top scorer Gareth Grant and striker Simon Bird both missing through injury, Trinity could only name three substitutes. The visitors, packed with experience, had former Boston United hitman Peter Duffield and ex-Mansfield striker Mark Sale on the bench. Included in their starting line-up were former Lincoln City pair Lee Butler and Grant Brown along with former Boston United man Ben Chapman, who made his debut".
Runcorn "boss Chris Lightfoot has pleaded with fans to give the club some much needed support", says This is Runcorn. "Only 270 people turned up to Runcorn FC Halton's first game, a 1-0 defeat to Redditch, in the new Conference North... 'We need more coming week-in, week-out', said the player manager... Lightfoot is also calling on his players to pull their socks up in a bid to win back the fans".
In contrast, This is Worcs reports that "City manager John Barton was delighted with his team's display. 'It doesn't happen week in week out as we have seen. But when they hit the right spot, that's what happens. It's in our locker to do that with the players we've got'", he said.
Another date to note is Monday 27 September when Alty Youth kick off their FA Youth Cup campaign at Moss Lane against Southport (7.45pm).
Transfers:
From NL Daily "Nuneaton Borough continued their policy of signing young talent when manager Roger Ashby snapped up highly-rated striker Michael Frew from Eagle Bitter United Counties League side Yaxley just ahead of the new campaign. Ashby has labelled Frew as the new Malcolm Christie... The 19-year-old is an aggressive and speedy front-runner who has been outstanding since joining Yaxley on his release from neighbours Peterborough United".
The Trinity website now has a report on last Saturday's game against Altrincham.
BBC North Yorkshire reports that [Harrogate's] John Reed "is refusing to get too carried away this season, despite the weekend's win over Barrow in Conference North. However, Reed admitted that 'the signs are promising'. Barrow boss Lee Turnbull told the NW Evening Mail that his game plan was left in tatters on Saturday when ex-Doncaster Rovers midfielder Jamie Patterson failed to arrive at Wetherby Road, after a tyre on his car blew up as he travelled to the game from Scotland. 'Our game plan was built around Jamie on Saturday... Losing Jamie almost gave them a goal start'".
Hucknall boss Ernie Moss told This is Nottingham after defeat on Saturday, "Several players never got up to the pace of the game and we never really got started".
Stalybridge, whom we meet on Saturday, reported that for Tuesday's game there were "doubts about Gregg Pearce, who received a severe knock [on Saturday]... Celtic still have injury woes, with Bowker, Caldecott and Denham all on the physio table, and with the suspension of Calcutt. This leaves the team almost picking itself: Dootson, German, Whealing, Keeling, Pearce, Wharton, Sykes, Parr, Hayward, Eastwood and Monk".
Above: Action from the Ashton game - Gary Scott goes for a header as Alty play in their new yellow kit.
Match report here.
Ashton lost 1-0 at Nuneaton on Saturday . In The Pink, manager Gerry Quinn said "Alty have, in my view, made some great summer signings and so this is going to be a real test for us". Howard Watts's Through the Years data for today has been added here.
Worksop Town boss "Ronnie Glavin has signed three more players this week with defenders Brian O'Callaghan and former Frickley player Antony Jackson putting pen to paper. Glavin has also snapped up Chris Davies from Hucknall Town" and also "A goal just 12 seconds into the second half by Tigers striker Gary Townsend, ensured the points were shared with their visitors Stalybridge Celtic in this opening day of Nationwide Conference North. In a tale of two halves which saw Celtic take a 1-0 lead in the 16th minute when Nathan Wharton converted a left wing cross from close range, the visitors enjoyed the majority of play in the first period, but the Tigers were in charge in the second half and at the end of the day both Ronnie Glavin and his counterpart Dave Miller must have been satisfied with a share of the spoils in this opening fixture. "
Nuneaton Borough had an unusual initiative on Saturday. Their "Supporters' Club invited ALL fans to a post-match hot meal with the players, manager and staff following the first home game of the season against Ashton United on Saturday August 14th. Select your meal when you buy your ticket from either fish and chips, chicken and chips etc... Tickets are just £5 for Adults".
Worksop Town "are pleased to announce that both Ryan Davis and former skipper Linden Whitehead have been taken off the transfer list".
STAR's half-time buckets raised £72.74, for which the club sincerely thanks collectors and contributors alike. STAR's new Nationwide North t-shirts are available at just £6.50 from their website.
Copyright: ©
Compiled by John Laidlar