Division One Preview - Saturday 8th April 2017
Fri 7th April 2017 | General | By Martin Wild
Two years ago, a mate of mine – who’s a wannabe clairvoyant – predicted that Leicester City would win the Premier League in 2016, and see their manager sacked before reaching the Champions League Quarter Finals the following year.
Now, having had him study the Division One league tables for me over the past seven days, he thinks it would be easier to pick the locks on the Bank of England Vaults than to pick the three teams that will be promoted to the Premier Division. Yes, the regular campaign has just three weeks to go people, and it’s still tighter than a pair of Speedos on a sumo wrestler.
All of the top three sides recorded midweek victories but it’s still very much a pin-a-tail-on-a-donkey kind of exercise, with so many permutations for the title, or automatic and play-off places.
The first game to preview takes place at Woodland Court where home side Alsager Town’s promotion hopes have suffered three successive hammer blows.
Consecutive home losses to Chadderton and Charnock Richard hardly instilled confidence going into Monday night’s trip to Daisy Hill, and so another defeat (2-3) in Bolton leaves tomorrow’s clash against City of Liverpool a must win game in many respects for The Bullets.
Too bad for them then, that Simon Burton’s CoL side have hit form at just the right time with the Purples scoring goals for fun, whilst also boasting a miserly defence that barely concedes these days.
A 6-1 midweek romp at home to Carlisle on Tuesday underlines their obvious strengths, and with 9 wins and a draw from their last 10 going into last night’s Macron Cup SF with Chadderton at the DTS, Burton’s men will provide the sternest of tests for Alsager.
Phil Stafford’s Litherland REMYCA have the afternoon off, having played several games more than most of their rivals, so will doubtless be glued to social media for a couple of hours watching events unfold elsewhere.
Remy were under pressure to pull off a result at Sandbach in midweek, and did just that with two second half goals enough to keep them top of the pile. A win for their Merseyside rivals at Alsager, however, will knock Remy off their perch at a crucial stage.
Charnock Richard host Daisy Hill at Mossie Park and have been posting some impressive results of late – most notably against Prestwich and Alsager. The Lancashire side must be considered as title candidates - especially after another impressive win in midweek against in-form Chadderton.
For the second game in a row, the greens came back from a half-time deficit away from home to run out 2-1 winners, and that demonstrates character. But there are no easy games at this stage of the campaign and with Ashley Stott back in form for Daisy, the home side won’t be taking anything for granted.
Widnes recorded a sixth straight league win on Monday by beating Ashton Town 3-0 at the Select Security Stadium, and extended that run with another at Bacup on Thursday, and they look to round off a good week when they face St Helens Town.
Town were also in action on Thursday as they hosted promotion chasing Whitchurch Alport, going down 3-2, and one suspects that Saints will need to keep the shackles on Kev Towey and the Lomax brothers to take anything at their local rivals.
You’ve got to feel a degree of sympathy for last year’s whipping boys, Whitchurch Alport. The club has undergone a complete transformation since the appointment of Luke Goddard and Carl Everall as joint managers last May, after a wretched first season that saw Alport finish rock bottom.
The Reds have led the table on more than one occasion this season but with 5 of their last 6 away games postponed (before last night’s clash at St. Helens), it’s left them playing catch up. With just eight league games played since the turn of the year, Alport now have the same number of games to squeeze into a three-week period – including a 308 mile round trip to Carlisle on a Tuesday night!
Yockings Park will continue its unblemished record tomorrow of staging every match on their scheduled dates, but the penultimate game at the Park is no shoe-in. Alport have been beaten six times at Yockings and visitors Holker Old Boys have inflicted two defeats on the Shropshire side already this term.
A 3-0 win at Rakesmoor on the second Saturday of the season was followed by a 3-2 extra-time win before Christmas in a League Cup Quarter Final tie at the same venue. A third defeat to the Barrow boys would surely rule out any hopes that Whitchurch might have of an unlikely title?
Sandbach United host Carlisle City and what an amazing debut season in the Counties the Cheshire side has had. With a League Cup Final date already assured, United are still in with a very reasonable shout of league glory too.
That midweek setback against Remyca though, means their hopes of automatic promotion have diminished somewhat. City will want a response after the mauling in Bootle, but Sandbach are in exactly the same boat and with home advantage, they should be too strong you feel. However, the pressure is undoubtedly on the hosts after the home defeat on Tuesday night, and striker Josh Lane is almost certain to miss out through injury.
Atherton LR’s defeat at home to Stockport Town on Tuesday night leaves them only just above the dotted line, and with Prestwich Heys still in the running for one of the four play-off places, it promises to be a feisty encounter at Crilly Park.
The Mancunians narrow 2-1 win at home to Cheadle on Wednesday keeps them hot on the heels of both Alsager and Sandbach. It’s hard to work out which one of the sides is in the greater need of the points. But Prestwich need to apply caution: although Atherton have lost 11 of their last 12 matches, Remyca and CoL both had to work extremely hard at Crilly before escaping with 2-1 and 1-0 victories respectively.
The rest of the round-up features sides whose campaign perhaps now focusses on rebuilding for next season.
Cheadle Town were beaten play-off semi-finalists last term but have failed to replicate the consistency shown 12 months ago. That said, they can be formidable opponents at their Park Road Stadium, so AFC Blackpool could be in for a difficult afternoon underneath the flightpath to Manchester Airport.
Relegation threatened Eccleshall have the unwanted tag of the division’s leakiest defence, and for the second time in four days come up against Silsden.
The midweek clash at Pershore Park saw the Yorkshiremen run out 4-2 winners thanks to two late goals but inconsistency has been the blight of Silsden’s season. Despite 12 home defeats in all competitions, you can’t see past The Cobbydalers recording a quickfire double tomorrow.
FC Oswestry Town host Chadderton at Park Hall Stadium and Mike Barton’s Oswestry side are sat comfortably in mid-table so don’t have to worry too much about the outcome of the game. At this level though, every side is competitive so it’s unlikely to be an afternoon stroll for either team.
Chadderton have hit form since the turn of the year and they might be ones to look out for next season, so they may well come back from Shropshire with another three points.
Basement boys Ashton Town have been rooted to the bottom of the table all season and unless they can make the most of four successive home games - albeit in a very short time frame - they look goners.
Bacup Borough provide the opposition and the East Lancashire side also have a hugely demanding schedule ahead of them this month. Both teams will be playing their third game inside a week, so fatigue may well play a factor in this one.
Enjoy your football and good luck to all member clubs!
Division One Preview - Saturday 8th April 2017
Fri 7th April 2017 | General
By Martin Wild
Two years ago, a mate of mine – who’s a wannabe clairvoyant – predicted that Leicester City would win the Premier League in 2016, and see their manager sacked before reaching the Champions League Quarter Finals the following year.
Now, having had him study the Division One league tables for me over the past seven days, he thinks it would be easier to pick the locks on the Bank of England Vaults than to pick the three teams that will be promoted to the Premier Division. Yes, the regular campaign has just three weeks to go people, and it’s still tighter than a pair of Speedos on a sumo wrestler.
All of the top three sides recorded midweek victories but it’s still very much a pin-a-tail-on-a-donkey kind of exercise, with so many permutations for the title, or automatic and play-off places.
The first game to preview takes place at Woodland Court where home side Alsager Town’s promotion hopes have suffered three successive hammer blows.
Consecutive home losses to Chadderton and Charnock Richard hardly instilled confidence going into Monday night’s trip to Daisy Hill, and so another defeat (2-3) in Bolton leaves tomorrow’s clash against City of Liverpool a must win game in many respects for The Bullets.
Too bad for them then, that Simon Burton’s CoL side have hit form at just the right time with the Purples scoring goals for fun, whilst also boasting a miserly defence that barely concedes these days.
A 6-1 midweek romp at home to Carlisle on Tuesday underlines their obvious strengths, and with 9 wins and a draw from their last 10 going into last night’s Macron Cup SF with Chadderton at the DTS, Burton’s men will provide the sternest of tests for Alsager.
Phil Stafford’s Litherland REMYCA have the afternoon off, having played several games more than most of their rivals, so will doubtless be glued to social media for a couple of hours watching events unfold elsewhere.
Remy were under pressure to pull off a result at Sandbach in midweek, and did just that with two second half goals enough to keep them top of the pile. A win for their Merseyside rivals at Alsager, however, will knock Remy off their perch at a crucial stage.
Charnock Richard host Daisy Hill at Mossie Park and have been posting some impressive results of late – most notably against Prestwich and Alsager. The Lancashire side must be considered as title candidates - especially after another impressive win in midweek against in-form Chadderton.
For the second game in a row, the greens came back from a half-time deficit away from home to run out 2-1 winners, and that demonstrates character. But there are no easy games at this stage of the campaign and with Ashley Stott back in form for Daisy, the home side won’t be taking anything for granted.
Widnes recorded a sixth straight league win on Monday by beating Ashton Town 3-0 at the Select Security Stadium, and extended that run with another at Bacup on Thursday, and they look to round off a good week when they face St Helens Town.
Town were also in action on Thursday as they hosted promotion chasing Whitchurch Alport, going down 3-2, and one suspects that Saints will need to keep the shackles on Kev Towey and the Lomax brothers to take anything at their local rivals.
You’ve got to feel a degree of sympathy for last year’s whipping boys, Whitchurch Alport. The club has undergone a complete transformation since the appointment of Luke Goddard and Carl Everall as joint managers last May, after a wretched first season that saw Alport finish rock bottom.
The Reds have led the table on more than one occasion this season but with 5 of their last 6 away games postponed (before last night’s clash at St. Helens), it’s left them playing catch up. With just eight league games played since the turn of the year, Alport now have the same number of games to squeeze into a three-week period – including a 308 mile round trip to Carlisle on a Tuesday night!
Yockings Park will continue its unblemished record tomorrow of staging every match on their scheduled dates, but the penultimate game at the Park is no shoe-in. Alport have been beaten six times at Yockings and visitors Holker Old Boys have inflicted two defeats on the Shropshire side already this term.
A 3-0 win at Rakesmoor on the second Saturday of the season was followed by a 3-2 extra-time win before Christmas in a League Cup Quarter Final tie at the same venue. A third defeat to the Barrow boys would surely rule out any hopes that Whitchurch might have of an unlikely title?
Sandbach United host Carlisle City and what an amazing debut season in the Counties the Cheshire side has had. With a League Cup Final date already assured, United are still in with a very reasonable shout of league glory too.
That midweek setback against Remyca though, means their hopes of automatic promotion have diminished somewhat. City will want a response after the mauling in Bootle, but Sandbach are in exactly the same boat and with home advantage, they should be too strong you feel. However, the pressure is undoubtedly on the hosts after the home defeat on Tuesday night, and striker Josh Lane is almost certain to miss out through injury.
Atherton LR’s defeat at home to Stockport Town on Tuesday night leaves them only just above the dotted line, and with Prestwich Heys still in the running for one of the four play-off places, it promises to be a feisty encounter at Crilly Park.
The Mancunians narrow 2-1 win at home to Cheadle on Wednesday keeps them hot on the heels of both Alsager and Sandbach. It’s hard to work out which one of the sides is in the greater need of the points. But Prestwich need to apply caution: although Atherton have lost 11 of their last 12 matches, Remyca and CoL both had to work extremely hard at Crilly before escaping with 2-1 and 1-0 victories respectively.
The rest of the round-up features sides whose campaign perhaps now focusses on rebuilding for next season.
Cheadle Town were beaten play-off semi-finalists last term but have failed to replicate the consistency shown 12 months ago. That said, they can be formidable opponents at their Park Road Stadium, so AFC Blackpool could be in for a difficult afternoon underneath the flightpath to Manchester Airport.
Relegation threatened Eccleshall have the unwanted tag of the division’s leakiest defence, and for the second time in four days come up against Silsden.
The midweek clash at Pershore Park saw the Yorkshiremen run out 4-2 winners thanks to two late goals but inconsistency has been the blight of Silsden’s season. Despite 12 home defeats in all competitions, you can’t see past The Cobbydalers recording a quickfire double tomorrow.
FC Oswestry Town host Chadderton at Park Hall Stadium and Mike Barton’s Oswestry side are sat comfortably in mid-table so don’t have to worry too much about the outcome of the game. At this level though, every side is competitive so it’s unlikely to be an afternoon stroll for either team.
Chadderton have hit form since the turn of the year and they might be ones to look out for next season, so they may well come back from Shropshire with another three points.
Basement boys Ashton Town have been rooted to the bottom of the table all season and unless they can make the most of four successive home games - albeit in a very short time frame - they look goners.
Bacup Borough provide the opposition and the East Lancashire side also have a hugely demanding schedule ahead of them this month. Both teams will be playing their third game inside a week, so fatigue may well play a factor in this one.
Enjoy your football and good luck to all member clubs!
