Macron Player and Reusch Goalkeeper of the Month awards - February 2018
Wed 7th March 2018 | League Awards | By Ian Templeman
MACRON PLAYER OF THE MONTH AWARDS
PREMIER DIVISION - PAUL SHANLEY OF RUNCORN LINNETS
When Paul Shanley's name is mentioned in North West football circles, it is invariably in despatches.
One manager from further afield - in the highly-rated Ebac Northern League - was prompted by Shanley's performance in opposition to his team earlier in the season to single out the winger as one of the best players he has seen at our level.
Shanley, a former Player of the Year in The Hallmark Security League prior to joining the Linnets in the summer of 2016, has consistently reproduced that high level of performance this season.
A scorer and, equally importantly, a creator of goals, he was Linnets' Millbank Player of the Month for August and has been in strong consideration for each of the subsequent awards.
February saw him return to the top of the pecking order thanks to his influential work on the left flank, posing problems time and again for opposing full backs.
A short Friday night trip to Barnton, beginning the month, proved more troublesome than Linnets might have anticipated thanks to a determined performance by the struggling but spirited hosts, who had worked wonders just to get the game played and promptly took a shock lead.
But as a heavy pitch deteriorated, Paul Shanley came to the fore when seemingly skating over the surface. Keeping onside to breach the Villagers' defensive line out wide, he rounded off a 30-yard dash with a superb sliderule finish from an acute angle to complete a 3-1 comeback win.
An even tougher examination followed with the visit of a very well-drilled Ashton Athletic side in the following midweek. Shanley turned in another top-drawer display, however, and after receiving some rough treatment throughout, he came up with the second and clinching strike in the 2-0 win.
It was a special effort too; a curling shot from outside the area after shrugging off two would-be challengers. It was in from the moment it left the scorer's right boot - a very strong contender for goal of the season, despite the fact there has been plenty of choice with Linnets having netted 97 league goals alone by the end of the month.
After the postponement of games at Padiham and Northwich Victoria, the Linnets were individually and collectively off colour when they reported back for duty after an 11-day rest.
A 0-2 defeat by Widnes put paid to their unbeaten home league record in a display to forget for Michael Ellison's side.
But Shanley, more than anyone ensured this was just a blip by leading the recovery next time out in a 2-1 defeat of 1874 Northwich.
A clear man of the match (the eighth time this season he has been the opposition's choice), Shanley demonstrated his ability to set up goals for others with contrasting crosses from the left.
Firstly, his inviting high ball was headed home by Mark Houghton and after half-time, as Linnets attacked the clubhouse end, he did exceptionally well to keep his feet on a lateral run into the box.
When he could have easily gone down for what would surely have been a cast-iron penalty, under the weight of a foul challenge, the will o' the wisp wideman showed strength of body and mind to deliver a low pass, picking out Runcorn's leading marksman Stuart Wellstead to score at the far post.
The final fixture of the month brought a tricky-looking visit to in-form Barnoldswick Town but after the Linnets had conceded the first goal, Shanley engineered their way back into a contest eventually won 4-1.
A perfectly-placed and weighted pass from the Linnets 'go to' man, this time through the middle, was the winger's most significant action of another busy afternoon.
Having played more games than any other Linnets player, there was an late breather for Shanley when he was substituted late on - to a well-deserved ovation from travelling supporters highly appreciative of the efforts of a player whose skill is matched by his industry and competitive nature.
DIVISION ONE - DANNY WHITE OF PRESTWICH HEYS
Danny has enjoyed an outstanding season so far, and in an unbeaten February, he has scored twice and collected two Man of the Match awards in three tough encounters.
After a Man of the Match performance against Cheadle Town, Danny showed hie mettle in the league game at leaders Silsden.
Danny was the rock around which Heys took the game to a team bristling with talent. Drawing on all his experience, Danny was inspirational, screening the back four and making a series of decisive tackles when it looked like the Cobbydalers were going to run away with the game early on.
Once the onslaught was overcome, he then displayed his range of passing ability, bringing young talent Alfie Belcher into the game. Belcher levelled, and from here, Danny pressed and probed, almost scoring from open play before coolly despatching a penalty kick early in the second half.
Even when Silsden equalised with fifteen to go, it was Danny who urged the Heys team on in the frantic closing stages in search of a winner and deservedly earned the Man of the Match award.
Danny was also pivotal in Heys’ cup win over AFC Blackpool, galvanising the team after they went a goal down.
Danny's strengths very often go unnoticed, with his hard work enabling the players around him to shine, and it was his eye for gaps in the visitors midfield which created space for the pace of Belcher and Wilson-Heyes to get behind the defence, the latter scoring from moves instigated by White.
REUSCH GOALKEEPER OF THE MONTH AWARDS
PREMIER DIVISION - RYAN JONES OF BOOTLE
Since returning to the club back in October - Ryan Jones has settled back into things like he’s never been away.
But since the turn of the year, the keeper has produced a string of fine individual performances, with February being no different.
Despite being beaten by a powerful Declan Fletcher header, the Bucks stopper was fine form in his sides opening game of the month against Congleton Town.
After denying Emini Adegnero from close-range - Jones produced two fine saves on the stroke of half time to maintain his sides 3-1 lead. First, he pushed away Oliver Ford’s effort - before superbly tipping over Fletcher’s curling effort from range.
Bootle’s next game saw the stopper remain largely untested with his side running out 5-0 winners over Northwich Victoria.
But after a quiet 80 minutes, it was in the final 10 minutes where Jones made his mark on the game. After pushing away Allen Weston’s header, the former AFC Liverpool man had to be at full stretch to tip over Joe Whittington’s right-footed effort.
The Bucks’ next outing saw Jones beaten three times, all by the same man, Matthew Reid of Ashton Athletic. But despite conceding more goals in this game than in all the ones played since in the turn of the New Year, Jones still produced a fine display, producing a number of key stops while continually coming for crosses and sweeping behind his defence.
The final game of February saw Jones resume normal service with another clean sheet in the 4-0 win at Winsford United. Despite his side scoring four times, it was the three saves Jones made in the opening 30 minutes that helped his side to a convincing victory.
After denying both Robbie Hatton and Daniel McLaughlin - Jones’ best save saw the stopper superbly tip over James Rothwell’s effort from the edge of the box.
All in all it was another excellent month for Jones and his Bootle team mates.
DIVISION ONE - RYAN MOSS OF SANDBACH UNITED
In the four games he played during the month, Ryan kept two clean sheets and won a man of the match nomination.
He single handedly gained the team 6 points and was instrumental in United extending their winning run to 5 consecutive games.
In the opening game of the month Ryan made two world class saves at Carlisle, denying certain goal scoring chances and securing a 1-0 victory in the last five minutes of the game.
He then made three amazing saves against Cammell Laird 1907 too, also when the score was at 1-0, and kept another clean sheet in the process.
In the LWC Drinks Cup he denied Cheadle Town a goal by making a world class penalty save, and one he had no right to make, tipping it past the post for a corner just before the stroke of half time, which would have seen Cheadle go in 2-1 at the break.
This proved to be the turning point in the game that United went on to win 4-1.
Ryan was an absolute game changer during the month and everyone at the club is hoping his form continues for the rest of the season.
Macron Player and Reusch Goalkeeper of the Month awards - February 2018
Wed 7th March 2018 | League Awards
By Ian Templeman
MACRON PLAYER OF THE MONTH AWARDS
PREMIER DIVISION - PAUL SHANLEY OF RUNCORN LINNETS
When Paul Shanley's name is mentioned in North West football circles, it is invariably in despatches.
One manager from further afield - in the highly-rated Ebac Northern League - was prompted by Shanley's performance in opposition to his team earlier in the season to single out the winger as one of the best players he has seen at our level.
Shanley, a former Player of the Year in The Hallmark Security League prior to joining the Linnets in the summer of 2016, has consistently reproduced that high level of performance this season.
A scorer and, equally importantly, a creator of goals, he was Linnets' Millbank Player of the Month for August and has been in strong consideration for each of the subsequent awards.
February saw him return to the top of the pecking order thanks to his influential work on the left flank, posing problems time and again for opposing full backs.
A short Friday night trip to Barnton, beginning the month, proved more troublesome than Linnets might have anticipated thanks to a determined performance by the struggling but spirited hosts, who had worked wonders just to get the game played and promptly took a shock lead.
But as a heavy pitch deteriorated, Paul Shanley came to the fore when seemingly skating over the surface. Keeping onside to breach the Villagers' defensive line out wide, he rounded off a 30-yard dash with a superb sliderule finish from an acute angle to complete a 3-1 comeback win.
An even tougher examination followed with the visit of a very well-drilled Ashton Athletic side in the following midweek. Shanley turned in another top-drawer display, however, and after receiving some rough treatment throughout, he came up with the second and clinching strike in the 2-0 win.
It was a special effort too; a curling shot from outside the area after shrugging off two would-be challengers. It was in from the moment it left the scorer's right boot - a very strong contender for goal of the season, despite the fact there has been plenty of choice with Linnets having netted 97 league goals alone by the end of the month.
After the postponement of games at Padiham and Northwich Victoria, the Linnets were individually and collectively off colour when they reported back for duty after an 11-day rest.
A 0-2 defeat by Widnes put paid to their unbeaten home league record in a display to forget for Michael Ellison's side.
But Shanley, more than anyone ensured this was just a blip by leading the recovery next time out in a 2-1 defeat of 1874 Northwich.
A clear man of the match (the eighth time this season he has been the opposition's choice), Shanley demonstrated his ability to set up goals for others with contrasting crosses from the left.
Firstly, his inviting high ball was headed home by Mark Houghton and after half-time, as Linnets attacked the clubhouse end, he did exceptionally well to keep his feet on a lateral run into the box.
When he could have easily gone down for what would surely have been a cast-iron penalty, under the weight of a foul challenge, the will o' the wisp wideman showed strength of body and mind to deliver a low pass, picking out Runcorn's leading marksman Stuart Wellstead to score at the far post.
The final fixture of the month brought a tricky-looking visit to in-form Barnoldswick Town but after the Linnets had conceded the first goal, Shanley engineered their way back into a contest eventually won 4-1.
A perfectly-placed and weighted pass from the Linnets 'go to' man, this time through the middle, was the winger's most significant action of another busy afternoon.
Having played more games than any other Linnets player, there was an late breather for Shanley when he was substituted late on - to a well-deserved ovation from travelling supporters highly appreciative of the efforts of a player whose skill is matched by his industry and competitive nature.
DIVISION ONE - DANNY WHITE OF PRESTWICH HEYS
Danny has enjoyed an outstanding season so far, and in an unbeaten February, he has scored twice and collected two Man of the Match awards in three tough encounters.
After a Man of the Match performance against Cheadle Town, Danny showed hie mettle in the league game at leaders Silsden.
Danny was the rock around which Heys took the game to a team bristling with talent. Drawing on all his experience, Danny was inspirational, screening the back four and making a series of decisive tackles when it looked like the Cobbydalers were going to run away with the game early on.
Once the onslaught was overcome, he then displayed his range of passing ability, bringing young talent Alfie Belcher into the game. Belcher levelled, and from here, Danny pressed and probed, almost scoring from open play before coolly despatching a penalty kick early in the second half.
Even when Silsden equalised with fifteen to go, it was Danny who urged the Heys team on in the frantic closing stages in search of a winner and deservedly earned the Man of the Match award.
Danny was also pivotal in Heys’ cup win over AFC Blackpool, galvanising the team after they went a goal down.
Danny's strengths very often go unnoticed, with his hard work enabling the players around him to shine, and it was his eye for gaps in the visitors midfield which created space for the pace of Belcher and Wilson-Heyes to get behind the defence, the latter scoring from moves instigated by White.
REUSCH GOALKEEPER OF THE MONTH AWARDS
PREMIER DIVISION - RYAN JONES OF BOOTLE
Since returning to the club back in October - Ryan Jones has settled back into things like he’s never been away.
But since the turn of the year, the keeper has produced a string of fine individual performances, with February being no different.
Despite being beaten by a powerful Declan Fletcher header, the Bucks stopper was fine form in his sides opening game of the month against Congleton Town.
After denying Emini Adegnero from close-range - Jones produced two fine saves on the stroke of half time to maintain his sides 3-1 lead. First, he pushed away Oliver Ford’s effort - before superbly tipping over Fletcher’s curling effort from range.
Bootle’s next game saw the stopper remain largely untested with his side running out 5-0 winners over Northwich Victoria.
But after a quiet 80 minutes, it was in the final 10 minutes where Jones made his mark on the game. After pushing away Allen Weston’s header, the former AFC Liverpool man had to be at full stretch to tip over Joe Whittington’s right-footed effort.
The Bucks’ next outing saw Jones beaten three times, all by the same man, Matthew Reid of Ashton Athletic. But despite conceding more goals in this game than in all the ones played since in the turn of the New Year, Jones still produced a fine display, producing a number of key stops while continually coming for crosses and sweeping behind his defence.
The final game of February saw Jones resume normal service with another clean sheet in the 4-0 win at Winsford United. Despite his side scoring four times, it was the three saves Jones made in the opening 30 minutes that helped his side to a convincing victory.
After denying both Robbie Hatton and Daniel McLaughlin - Jones’ best save saw the stopper superbly tip over James Rothwell’s effort from the edge of the box.
All in all it was another excellent month for Jones and his Bootle team mates.
DIVISION ONE - RYAN MOSS OF SANDBACH UNITED
In the four games he played during the month, Ryan kept two clean sheets and won a man of the match nomination.
He single handedly gained the team 6 points and was instrumental in United extending their winning run to 5 consecutive games.
In the opening game of the month Ryan made two world class saves at Carlisle, denying certain goal scoring chances and securing a 1-0 victory in the last five minutes of the game.
He then made three amazing saves against Cammell Laird 1907 too, also when the score was at 1-0, and kept another clean sheet in the process.
In the LWC Drinks Cup he denied Cheadle Town a goal by making a world class penalty save, and one he had no right to make, tipping it past the post for a corner just before the stroke of half time, which would have seen Cheadle go in 2-1 at the break.
This proved to be the turning point in the game that United went on to win 4-1.
Ryan was an absolute game changer during the month and everyone at the club is hoping his form continues for the rest of the season.
