prammynewsv NORTHWICH20-01-14

welcome to ramsbottom

Welcome to the Harry Williams RiversideStadium. We’d like to extend a specialwelcome to our match officials andeveryone involved with our good friendsfrom Cheshire, Northwich Victoria, withwhom we enjoyed a seven goal thriller thistime last year down at Flixton. Let’s hopefor more of the same today, ideally withthe same result.

It’s been a rocky couple of weeks by theRams’ standards (though nothing to thesuffering that Northwich Victoria haveexperienced over their long history) andI’d like to commend everyone for the greatsupport they’ve given the club over thattime. It’s testimony to the loyalty of oursupporters that you’ve stuck together, andgot behind new appointments Robbo andEdgy straight away.

If you’re wondering what the heck I’mtalking about then you’re reading the rightpublication! e remainder of thisprogramme was intended for the Traffordmatch that was called off last week, butwe’ve decided to reproduce it in itsentirety to try and explain to everyone justwhat’s been happening at the club. We’vegot columns from Robbo and Phil Edghill,our new managers, as well as a copy of thepress release announcing the departure ofJohnno and Bernard on the next page. eteam lineup is still very much up in the air,with a load of the squad heading off to

Salford and Robbo running around signingthe kind of players that he’d like to seepulling on the Rammy shirt.

At the time of going to press he hasalready signed a raft of very accomplishedplayers including 28-year-old midfielderIan Bennett, 27-year-old Traffordmidfielder Kyle Harrop and former SalfordCity captain and player of the year JamieRother. Lee Gaskell is also returning to theRiverside, as is Tom Brooks and GeorgeBowyer from Bamber Bridge. In addition,Robbo has added Trafford’s Luke Heron tothe squad, a versatile player who is son offormer Trafford manager WayneGoodison.

I went down to the hastily arrangedtraining session last week to take a coupleof photos of a few of the new lads, and Ihave to say that I was very impressed withthe way everyone shaped up. e threenew signings I saw look to be real qualityplayers who I suspect would have nudgedthe mighty Gary Stopforth and ScottBurton out of their spots in midfield.We’re not out of the woods yet, as PhilDean and Dom Smalley gave us somefantastic width, skill and pace that is hardto match, but then Tom Williams andOsebi Abadaki are both tremendous, andarguably more versatile players who aremore than capable of commanding thosewide areas.

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It’s always disheartening for a football clubto lose so many players at once, particularlyplayers that we’ve all come to know so well,and it’s easy for us to all throw up our arms indespair, but this kind of thing happens infootball, and happens quite a lot. e affectedclubs rise above it and continue to thrive,improve and progress. Harry Williams comesin for his fair share of criticism but, asNorthwich Victoria would testify, losingplayers and managers is nothing comparedwith financial problems which affect a club’svery existence. Ramsbottom United’s financeswould hardly require the club to open an off-shore bank account, but those finances doallow Robbo to go out and bring in decent,experienced players to replace those that we’velost. e finances allow the club to replacemissing floodlight bulbs, and make thenecessary ground improvements to permit

promotion to the Vanarama Conferenceshould we find ourselves in a position on thepitch to gain promotion. We’re not rich in thesame way that clubs like Northwich are rich,but we’ve also never had the administratorknocking on our door, and for me that’ll dojust fine for the time being. Progress does needto be made off the pitch, but thanks to Harry’sgreat stewardship of Ramsbottom United, thatprogress can be started from the right place,not from a position of crippling debt.

e following pages contain someinformation that was only relevant for thepostponed Trafford game, but we hope thatyou’ll forgive us this as you read through theother things that are not only relevant, but alsoimportant for the future hopes of the club.

It only remains to say thank you again foryour wonderful support, and we hope that youenjoy this evening’s match.

Just over a year ago Lee Gaskell wason the scoresheet in our 4-3 winagainst Northwich at Flixton

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At an hastily arranged meeting onSaturday Anthony Johnson and BernardMorley explained their reasons forhaving resigned as joint managers ofRamsbottom United having been in thejob for 6 years. Antony Johnson is tobecome manager at Salford City withBernard Morley following suit. JonRobinson has been appointed as playermanager in their place. In all thecircumstances it was perhaps fortunatethat the Rams game away to CurzonAshton that afternoon had beenpostponed.

ey said that they felt they hadreached their limit with what they coulddo within the financial resourcesavailable to them , that they felt thatthey had hit a brick wall and could nolonger do justice to the squad and thatgenerally the club had reached its limitand could no longer match theirambitions.

e appointment of the joint managersappeared risky at the time but in theevent proved to be inspired , the clubrocketing under their stewardship to bewithin 3 promotions off the FootballLeague. Much of their success has beenin identifying young talented players andbuilding a fierce sense of loyalty andfamily within the squad. is greatstrength is now the clubs greatestweakness on their departure . It was clearfrom the sentiments being expressedthat the players identify themselvesmore with the managers than the club. ere is no good time to lose a manager

and many Rams fans , now apprehensiveof the future, will no doubt be wishingthat there could be a change of mind butit is obvious that was not on the cards.e remainder of the season is now likelyto the testing. Whereas at the turn of theyear eyes were on a reinvigorated pushback into the play-off places securing acomfortable mid placed position willnow be seen as an achievement. In duecourse though many may well come tothe conclusion that the managersassessment of where they were with thesquad and the assessment of theaspirations of a club of the size ofRamsbottom United lacking ex -professional superstar sugar daddies andtheir ilk was more than realistic. Quitefrankly a sober analysis is that the clubhas reached its level ,should be quiteproud to have done so, and should becontent with staying there. ere is moreto development than constantpromotions and those who bemoan thatas a lack of ambition should askthemselves, and be able to explain, whatthey see the limit of those ambitions tobe!

And nothing is forever and the onlycertainties are death and taxes. So whilethe departure of Anthony Johnson andBernard Morley could have been bettertimed the best response is tocongratulate them on a job well done,give them best wishes for their futureand to look forward to renewal andbright future under the new managerwho is a very shrewd choice.

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robbo

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I’d like to start by offering a warm welcometo Gary Vaughan, Wayne Goodison and theplayers and supporters of Trafford FC. It’s apleasure for us to be playing host to our oldfriends and I hope you all enjoy your day.

Well, what can I say? is week has been oneof the best, worst and definitely strangestweeks in football for me!

My first memory of Rammy isn't really thebest if I am honest. Fifteen years ago in myfirst start for Salford City I scored two goalsin the Rams worst ever defeat! Like a few ofthe lads, including Johnno and Bernard, I hada long spell with Salford, and the ties betweenthe two clubs run deep. at is one of themany reasons why it is such a pleasure to beable to bring in Phil Edghill, who has alsoearned his Ramsbottom stripes. I wantedsomeone intelligent and experienced, butwho understands what Rammy is all about.Phil fits the bill perfectly.

Going into football management issomething I have thought about for the lastcouple of years and when the rammy job wasoffered to me I knew I couldn't turn it down.I mentioned off the record that I might beinterested in taking the job on, but myinterview was in the tea hut after lastSaturday’s press conference. I was asked thequestion do I want the job and that was that! I think that's all that needed to be said to meas everyone knows what I’m about. I havebeen here a long time that's all that wasneeded. Everyone has been really supportivesince my appointment and hopefully we cankeep the smiles on everyones facesM y hopes for the season - well that's thequestion everyone wants to know the answerto. I feel that we can anticipate a tough

couple of weeks coming up but ultimately I’dlike to hope that a challenge for the playoffsis a realistic goal.

Like I said in my interview on rammy.tv,players will leave - it’s what happens with amanagement change. It’s always going to bedifficult to replace any of those players thatleave, but we will go out hunting and willendeavour to bring quality players back in.

People have asked me whether I agree withJohnno’s assertions that the club wasn’tcapable of progressing, and I don't thinkJonno meant that rammy had gone as far asit can, full stop. I think that what he meantwas that Rammy couldn't get where Johnnowanted to be fast enough. I think he feelsRammy’s developments on the pitch need toslow down so that developments off it cancatch up. I feel maybe a change of directionin one sense was the ideal thing to happen sothings on both sides of the club could bereassessed and brought closer together.

I would like to say a big thank you to Harryfor giving me and Phil this opportunity tomanage rammy and we will be doing all wecan to keep the Rammy Army movingforward to make a push for the playoffs

To the fans I would like to say that althoughthere are going to be changes to the playingstaff hopefully there won't be too much of aneffect on the standard of football. We will trayto make the changes with minimumdisruption I would like to finish by saying a big thank youfor the continued support and loyalty shownby all our Rammy Family and I hope that wecan all look forward to a new era and a brightfuture.

- Robbo

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Welcome to the Harry WilliamsRiverside Stadium, and a slightly belated,but nevertheless sincere “Happy NewYear” to one and all! A special welcome,also, to our match officials and, of course,everyone involved with our good friendsfrom along the M60, Trafford FC, withwhom we have enjoyed many anentertaining contest over the years. Let’shope for more of the same today.

WELL,WELL,WELL!My last column was a review of the first

half of the season. I really did not expectto begin the review of the second half insuch a way! So the king is dead…long livethe king.

Much has been spoken and writtenabout the events of the last seven days,so I won’t ramble on. I’ll just say “ankyou” to Jonno, Bernard, Glenn and Johnfor their excellent work in raising theprofile of Ramsbottom United, and wishthem well at Salford.

And welcome into the hot seat (whichactually is rather cool here at Rammy!)Robbo as he begins his managerialtenure. He is a “Rammy legend”, and I’m

sure his appointment hasgone a fair way to removing

much of thedisappointment we all

felt just one week ago. No-one is morefully committed to the cause thanRobbo, and he will no doubt havestrengthened both the playing squad andthe coaching staff by the time you readthis. To those players who have decidedto stay with us “many thanks” and yourloyalty to the club is greatly appreciated.

As a club, we move on, and togetherlook forward to some more exciting andentertaining times.

MEANWHILE…On a personal note, today is one of

those special days in the year for me, andI well remember a similar day back in1970, which was even more of a specialoccasion.

at happened to also fall on aSaturday, and in those days I was adevout follower of the Shakers. Bury hada home fixture against Tranmere Rovers,so I naturally was hoping to celebrate theday in more ways than one. At half-timethe score was Bury 7 (seven!) TranmereRovers 0! I had Cliff’s “Congratulations”played over the Gigg Lane tannoy at half-time and the Shakers went on to win 8-0.Some celebration! Same again today(with respect to Trafford!) would do verynicely!

tony cunninghamand the wonderful world of

non-league football

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UNBELIEVABLE!e irrationality of our governing bodies

never ceases to amaze me. Over the years Ihave seen examples of stupidity which havehad me shaking my head in disbelief, but Idoubt I’ve ever seen a situation as silly as theone that has affected little Morda FC who arebased alongside the Welsh border inShropshire.

e club wanted to play in the Welsh JTHughes Montgomery League in a bid to cutdown on travelling and expenses, but were toldthey had to compete in the Shropshire-basedMercian League.

As this would have proved almost untenablefor this small club, they appealed, and initiallyboth the Shropshire FA and the Welsh FAturned down their application.

Morda were then on the point of foldingwhen, after much haggling and further appeals,both the FA’s finally relented and allowed thetiny club to play in their preferred league.

Which meant that they could nowcommence this season’s fixtures….inDecember!

So when most clubs are half-way through thecampaign, Morda FC are about to commencewhat will prove to be an almost impossibletask of playing all their games throughout thewinter in an effort to complete before the endof April.

Yet the same two FA’s have allowed, for years,TNS, the only full-time team in Welshprovincial football, to play in the WelshPremier League. Where are they based?

Oswestry….in Shropshire!

Having scored Rammy’s first goal, whocan forget Robbo stripping off to cover innets for the injured Grant Shenton atSalford two seasons ago.

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I think we all appreciate what a fantasticjob Johnno and Bernard did at Rammy,but they seem to think it's a foregoneconclusion that a good proportion of oursquad will join them at Salford. Given theprevious shenanigans down there, I'mnot so sure. How do the lads really feel,and do you think we will lose the greatthing we have here at Rammy?

Johnno and Bern have been amazing forthe lads and the club. I wish them all thebest in their new job and I know they willdo well - I hope they achieve what theyset out to. Every player who puts on theshirt on game days is playing their all forthe badge every single time, so that won'tchange. If clubs come in for any of thelads then that's football but we want tocarry on as a team so there is no doubtin my mind the rammy spirit won't begone.

Do you feel that our ambitions for theseason need to be lowered now thatthings have changed, or do you thinkthat a play-off spot should still be the

aim?In my opinion our goals needto be set to each game: winour next game, don't worryabout previous results that

can't be changed or games inthe future all we can do isplay 90 minutes at a time.

And if you ask me, we can beat any teamin this league. If you win games you canonly move up in the table so let's gettoday's game played and we can talkabout the next game rather than playoffs in May or June.

Although not a huge surprise, it washeartbreaking for the supporters whenwe heard the news of Johnno andBernard leaving for Salford. Did theplayers feel the same?

It's no secret how close our changingroom is so it's not nice to lose the fourmen that we look to for the guidance andmotivation. But we're all men and wehave to move on.

Although some fans put it better thanothers, the consensus seems to be thatwhile a lot of things need to change,Rammy can continue to progress. Wouldyou agree?

I don't get involved with the nonfootball side of things. In terms of playerswe have a lot of talent in the squad butit's a very small squad. If we keep injuriesdown and suspensions then I don’t seeany reason we can't move up the table.

How did the lads receive the news ofRobbo's appointment? Do you think likewe do that he's just the fella to galvanisethe Rammy Spirit?

grant shentonshouting from between the sticks

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I think that for Harry it was a no brainer. Robbohas bags of experience, knows the club, thefans and the squad. So once he wasinformed by Harry on Saturday hecalled for a meeting andannounced the news in typicalRobbo style. So at first welaughed due to the way headdressed us but the laughs didn'tlast long and we all congratulatedhim. We are all happy with theappointment and are lookingforward to what he brings to theteam. And also his assistant PhilEdghill who again we all respect andlook up to. I think we have the perfectpair to give the team spirit a pick meup.

What do you think the club needs toget right in order to progress further?

I don't know how to run a football club so Idon't know. e club is growing quickly so it'sgoing to hit a few speed bumps but lets just getover each one as they come. As long as weperform on pitch the club will carry on its pathupwards.

Is there anything that the supporters cando to help? We don't have billions stashedaway in the bank, but that doesn't make usany less loyal as supporters.

Celieve me we know just how loyal youall are and it is appreciated all the workyou put into the club you support.All I'll ask you to do is keep comingdown to HWRS what ever theweather and cheer us on, becausethat's what this club is about andwhy we love playing here. Soplease just continue what you’reall doing! COYR!

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trafford fcthe north hoping to move upwards

e club was formed in 1990 under thename of North Trafford and was thebrainchild of David Brown, John Harrison,David Law and Bill Whitten, with bothBrown and Law still directors to this day.ey originally shared their home ground,‘Shawe View’, with Trafford Borough RugbyLeague club and joined the Mid-CheshireLeague Division 2 for 1990/91 season.

In their debut season manager David Lawtook North Trafford to second place inDivision 2leading to promotion to Division1, an outstanding start for the new club. Anadded bonus for this successful start saw theclub obtain sole tenancy of Shawe View, viaa 30 year lease, which resulted in substantialground improvements taking place. After aseason in Division 1, where they finished in4th place, ‘e North’, as they areaffectionately known, successfully applied tothe North West Counties League (NWCL),finishing the 1992/93 season in 7thbplace. Astunning second half to the next season sawthe club win 20 out of their 22 matches,gaining them second place and promotionto Division 1 of the NWCL. Promotion wasgranted after further ground improvementstook place, this included the instillation offloodlights and the building of the SouthStand.

e club was launched under their presentname, Trafford FC, in 1994 and finished in4th place in the league and were also beatenfinalists in both the Manchester Senior and

Carling Cups. e next year saw them go onebetter in the league with a 3rd place finishand Trafford also reached the last 16 of theFA Vase, beaten by the eventual winners,Brigg Town. e steady rise of Trafford FCcontinued and they won the NWCL Division1 and were promoted to the UnibondLeague Division 1, with David Law alsoclaimed the NWCL Manager of the Yearaward.

Trafford’s stay in the Unibond Leaguelasted five seasons and saw them pick upboth the Unibond First Division Cup andPresident’s Cup along the way. Unfortunatelyafter a difficult year, which saw them use twomanagers, ‘e North’ were relegated backto the NWCL in 2003.

It would be another four seasons untilTrafford tasted success and promotion again.Under a new management team, with GedKielty as Player Manager, ‘e North’ wonthe Vodkat League Championship by 11points and were promoted back to theUnibond League for a second time afteroriginally winning the title in 1997. FromSeptember 2007, they went on an incredible29 league game unbeaten run, including 18straight wins. e achievement’s kept oncoming with Ged Kielty being namedManager of the Year in first season.

After consolidating their position in theFirst Division North with a 15th place finish,Trafford claimed their second UnibondLeague Presidents Cup, nine years on from

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their first success. e start of 2009/10 sawthe return of former Trafford stalwart GarryVaughan to take over the managerial reinsfrom Ged Kielty. During the 1990’s Vaughanmade 305 appearances and scored 89 goalsin his seven seasons as a player with Trafford.2010 saw them finish in a credible 12thposition and striker Scott Barlow scored 21goals to become the clubs all-time leadinggoal scorer, pushing his manager to secondplace in the history books.

A poor start to the 2009/10 season led toGarry Vaughan making a number ofpersonnel changes at the club. esechanges included bringing back formerAssistant Manager Wayne Goodison andthis seemed to change Trafford’s fortunes onthe pitch, where they gained a respectable14th place in the league. Trafford gainedpromotion to the Evo-Stick Premier Division

in 2012/13, via the Play-Offs beatingCammell Laird 4-2 on penalties after extratime on their own ground.

Last season saw Trafford playing at thehighest level in their history, and consideringthis they had an extremely successful firstyear. ey finished in 10th position in thetable and beat Football Conference sideHyde to win the Manchester Premier Cup atBury FC’s Gigg Lane.

is season has so far proved a difficult onefor Trafford, with only four league wins todate, the club currently sit in the bottomthree of the Premier Division. ‘e North’s’lowly league position should not though betaken lightly, as they possess in their ranks aproven goal scorer in Shelton Payne, who hasnetted 16 goals so far this season to take himto second place in the goal scoring table.

Jordan takes on halfthe Trafford team

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Tom Read (Goalkeeper) Aged 28Previous club; AltrinchamAfter signing for Trafford in 2006, Tom becamea first team regular during 2007-08 VodkatLeague Championship season, whichculminated in him being named Player of theYear. e experienced goalkeeper recoveredfrom a broken ankle to be an ever presentmember of Trafford’s 2012-13 promotionwinning team. Tom has now amassed over 220appearances for ‘e North’.

Nia Bayunu (Centre Back) Aged 24Previous Clubs; Leigh Genesis, FC United YouthTeam, Woodley Sports.Nia signed for the club in August 2009 andmade his debut in the 2-2 FA Cup draw withRossendale United. A real fans favourite, he wasnamed Supporters Player of the Year in boththe 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons. Bayunu wasa member of the victorious ManchesterPremier Cup winning team last season. edefender has played over 280 games for theclub scoring 13 goals in the process.

Shelton Payne (Forward) Previous Clubs; Cardiff City, Blackburn Rovers,Dinas Powys, Port Talbot Town, Chorley,Colwyn Bay.e speedy forward is now in his second spellwith the club after resigning in the close seasonof 2013. Shelton definitely has an eye for goal,he scored an amazing 35 goals in 48 league andcup appearances last season, including all 5 inthe 5-1 FA Cup win at Droylsen. is dangerousplayer scored a hatrick as Trafford defeatedMatlock Town recently for their first victory inthe league since the end of September.

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3 - 2e Weaver Stadium1st January2015Att: 285Rammy Goals: Robinson (14), Dean (81)Nantwich Goals: Burns (31,60), Jones (38)

Robbo rounds the keeperto score the opening goalfor the Rams

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e Rams came in to this New Years Day fixture with halftheir league fixtures still to play knowing that if they areable to double their points total to date they will be closeto the play-off positions. Unfortunately the form that haspresented them with such a promising start to the PremierLeague is proving elusive at the moment and the hope thatthe turn of the year would present a change to December'smisfortunes was misplaced.

Injuries and suspensions are not helping and with thefullest respect to them it is never a good sign when bothof the joint managers are needed to fill out the substitutesbench. Nonetheless in what was a pretty dreary openingperiod the Rams started the brighter and when on 14minutes Jon Robinson seized on a loose cross field ballskated round the Nantwich keeper and rolled the ball arepeat of the recent cup win was very much on the cards.e Rams though were finding it difficult to achieve anypenetration down the flanks which is another bad sign ofpending problems. e nearest they came to scoring againin the first half was a Grant Spencer free kick on the halfhour well saved. Immediately after Nantwich equalisedwhen a shot through a crowded area following a clearedcorner caught out Grant Shenton who could only palmthe ball into the path of Aaron Burns. His scuffed effortrolled slowly into the net despite Tom Williams' bestefforts to clear.From there it went from bad to worse. SteveJones was completely unmarked 7 minutes later and hadthe easiest tap ins to put the home team in front. enwith only a couple of minutes remaining in the first halfthe advantage the Rams would have of the strong wind inthe second half was nullified when Gary Stopforth wassent off after over stretching into a tackle. ere was noapparent intent and the red card was to say the least harsh.

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Wiz gave the lads a ray of hope,bangin home a penalty with justnine minutes remaining

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To their credit the Rams came out fighting. ey rolledthe dice by pushing Steve Howson upfront and forced thehome team deep but struggled to manufacture a clearopening. It was inevitable that gaps would open up at theother end. Jones became increasingly influential .Havingspurned a glorious chance at the far post on the hour hedispossessed Jon Robinson and found Burns unmarked inthe area. His fierce cross shot whistled past Shenton. eRams though refused to lie down effectively playing withjust two at the back .Jordan Hume was twice denied by thekeeper with 15 minutes left and five minutes later PhilDean scored confidently from the spot when SteveHowson was pushed from behind when about to head in.No red card there then ref?

e Rams battled away bravely .Matthew Davies on as asub looks more than a promisingly acquisition and as thegame slipped into time added on his cross was met byJordan Hulme whose header seemed goal bound butsomehow floated wide and that was that. Plenty ofperspiration but a lack of inspiration.

3 - 2e Weaver Stadium1st January2015Att: 285Rammy Goals: Robinson (14), Dean (81)Nantwich Goals: Burns (31,60), Jones (38)

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Minds made up? Johnnoand Bernard ust beforehalf-time at Nantwich

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rammy in exilesky sports statto richard isaacs

Hello everyone! I hope all is well.Well, its been quite a week and today

we start the beginning of a whole new era.Supporting Ramsbottom United over thelast five or so years has been nothing shortof brilliant but, on Saturday, it alldissolved. Bernard and Jonno have theirheads turned finally by Salford City andthe players have begun to pour throughthe exits to follow them or headelsewhere. It is a hugely worrying time forus but ... we have Robbo and the returningPhil Edghill and now our faith and hopesits in their hands.

e place will not be the same again.From that inauspicious start at NewcastleTown back in August 2009, the club hasgrown beyond all recognition from thedepths of rank bottom of the North WestCounties League to the dizzy heights ofthird in the Evo-Stik Premier in the spaceof just five and a half years via someincredible days - the home game againstWinsford, that despairing away day at

Skelmersdale (that I wasn't at butfelt everything) and then that

magnificent evening in BishopAuckland and the subsequent half thatI saw at Bamber Bridge.

But, I can look upon something veryclose to home for some ray of hopeand I refer you to the club that arecurrently sat fourth in the BarclaysPremier League - my home town

club of Southampton.During the summer of 2014, after a

brilliant season, the vultures circled aboveSt Mary's and heads were firmly turned byoffers of great things. Rickie Lambert andAdam Lallana, who had played for theSaints when they were in League One,headed to Liverpool with the promise ofChampions League football as did DejanLovren. Young Calum Chambers waspicked up by Arsenal and another talentfrom the youth academy, Luke Shaw,disappeared for £25m to ManchesterUnited. And to top it all off, the managerPochettino decided that there wasnothing left for him and hopped off toTottenham Hotspur. e great side, whohad achieved so much, was decimatedand the pundits and the like predictedjust one thing - relegation back to theChampionship and maybe beyond oncemore.

It is the 10th January 2015 and 20matches into this 'relegation' season, theyare 4th in the table and fresh from a 1-1draw with the leaders Chelsea and a 2-0success against perennial ChampionsLeaguers Arsenal over the Christmas andNew Year period. So, who is to say that,from the despair of the managers, coachesand players racing for the exits, a newdawn and fresh hope starts today withthis game against Trafford.

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rammy in exilesky sports statto richard isaacs

To Bernard and Jonno, to Glenn andJohn, to Dominic and Whiz, Spenner andScott - those who have confirmed theirdepartures already amidst rumours ofmany more to follow, thank you.

I am pleased that this edition of theprogramme has not gone down the routethat Newcastle United trod when AlanPardew left them recently by devoting nota single word to their former boss.Bernard, Jonno and the lads deserve muchbetter than that. ey transformed ourclub from the utter dire desperation to aclub that people are proud to beassociated with. ey produced a teamwho played top quality football and theirrecord of 4th, 2nd, 1st, 6th and 5th andpromoted and reaching 3rd this year istestimony to what they achieved.

And that is why it is so extremelydisappointing that today, we mark thefirst game in five and a half years withoutthem. We all have our theories, we allhave our thoughts on why now and what

the cause was and those have beenwell versed on the forum of late.

But, as a passionate Rammy supporterwho wears his club colours withunrivalled pride anywhere andeverywhere I go, Saturday was asickening day and subsequentdevelopments have not made thenausea ease. e worry about thefuture will not subside until the

dust of the tyres in the car park of allthose driving away has ended and Robboand Edgy's strategy for the future beginsto take shape.

I am naturally upset that the lads havegone - I had a brilliant relationship withthem during my time as programmeeditor and always on the website as welland I have already thanked thempersonally for what they have achieved. Iam not overly happy with what hashappened but, it has happened now andnothing is going to change it. We havehad to say goodbye, thats the end of it.

I have to say that I am worried for themthough. Today, Bernard, Jonno and Glenncommence their work, ironically atBamber Bridge, the scene of our greatestday. ey have gone from a job for lifewith the Rams within a club that lovedthem dearly to a club run by multi-millionaires owners who could throwthem on the scrap heap very easily, likethey did with their previous manager.

Of course, I wish them all the very bestand will always be grateful for what theyachieved for Ramsbottom United. I justwish it hadn't happened at all and asolution to whatever it was they feltneeded adjusting was achieved. To Robboand Phil - good luck Gents. You know youhave our full support.

COME ON YOU RAMS!!!!!!!

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If your face is featured then congratulations, you’ve just won yourself a cup oftea and a Mars Bar courtesy of Rammy United Supporters Club. Visit the teabar now to claim your magnificent prize!

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1. Which Evo-Stik League club plays at the War Memorial Athletic Ground?

2. What colours do Newtown play in?

3. Which club knocked Gateshead out of the FA Cup?

4. Which club recently did the double over Barrow in Conference North?

5. Steve Kittrick has taken over as manager of which Conference club?

6. Which club did he recently manage?

7. Carl MaCauley, the Marine manager arrived at Rossett park from which other

Merseyside club?

8. Holly Park was the former home of which ex-Northern premier league club?

9. Kirkby Town changed their name in the 1980’s to what?

10. Steve Claridge is becoming involved with which southern based club?

ANSWERS: 1. Stourbridge 2. All red 3. West Bromwich Albion 4. AFC Fylde 5. AFC Telford United 6. Guiseley 7. Vauxhall Motors 8. South Liverpool 9. Knowsley United 10. Salisbury

tony’s teasers

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With our recent run of defeats, and theupheaval with our management and playingstaff, it seems an absolute age ago since theRammy Rocket landed in Matlock on the firstweekend of December. It was not only aRocket full of festive cheer that arrived at theground just after lunch, it was pretty much afull set of Rammy Ultras who had made theshort trip from East Lancashire. Adding tothe festive cheer was the Christmas fair thatwas being held in the park across the roadfrom the ground, which got Mrs Darkside’sand Joanne’s mouths watering and dreamingof Baileys and Hot Chocolate, but before thatwe had more important matters such assome lunch and a couple of pints,somewhere a little warmer than the fair.

We did manage to find somewhere a littlewarmer, but unfortunately it was also a lotsmellier. If you are planning a day out inMatlock then I would suggest you avoid eRailway, unless you enjoy the fragrant aroma

of Eau deCraphouse. ismeant we hadthe sight oftwenty RammyUltras walkinginto the bar, onlyto immediatelyturn round andwalk back outagain. For a

tourist destination like Matlock it is notexactly blessed with many pubs, but weeventually found a trendy little bar calledMoCa which also served a large range of realales and some very tasty steak and onionbaguettes. e bar also had the walls full ofvery tasteful black and white photographs ofrock icons and it was nice to have a couple ofbeers surrounded by e Ramones and eNew York Dolls. Fed and watered, we set offback down the High Street to the sound ofAndy Massey and his magic vuvuzela andstarted to make our way to the ground.

We got to the ground about 2.30, and whilethe girls went for a browse around theChristmas fair, we went to the clubhouse fora final pre-match pint, stopping only to putthe Rammy Ultras flag proudly up on display.e ground only had three sides, the fourthside being a field that was doubling up as carpark for the Christmas fair. e Rams werekicking towards the car park/field end for thefirst half and we gathered ourselves down theside of the pitch to cheer the lads to,hopefully, another three points for our play-off push. We were soon rewarded when TomWilliams put us into an early lead and, justseven days after annihilating Banbury United,we started to dream that this was going to beanother impressive away display. Despitequite a few efforts on goal this was to be theonly goal of the first half and, althoughRammy were pushing forward, Matlock were

from the darksidedarren comer reports on the latest

rammy ultras adventures

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not out of this game by any means. Duringthe first half we had been listening to someMatlock supporter, with a very negative andsomewhat abusive point of view, which heseemed to want us to hear about. As the refblew the whistle for half time, Andy Masseytook the opportunity to sneak up behind acertain abusive Matlock supporter and givehim a blast of the old vuvuzela, at whichpoint a certain Matlock supporter jumpedout of his vindictive skin. is caused a littleuproar (good humoured from the Rammyside, obviously) and Andy getting called afew names that cannot be repeated in apublication that is read by under 16s.

We had a nice, covered terrace to standon for the second half, and with Jack, Ethanand Jake on drum duties we managed tomake quite a bit of noise to try and urge theplayers on to another victory. is made forquite a good atmosphere and stirred a fewMatlock fans to find their voices; especiallythe group of young teenagers amongstthem. He made a good, but ultimately futile

attempt to out-sing us. e second half saw the players looking a

little jaded, especially as the pitch wasgetting much heavier, and Matlock startedto look more and more threatening. Withfive minutes left, and with victory in sight,the happy atmosphere amongst thetravelling support was suddenly burst asMatlock forced an equaliser to make it 1-1and that is how the game finished.

e post-match pint in the clubhouse wasprobably not as sweet as the one at Banburythe previous week, but we couldn’t reallycomplain after the recent run of victorieswe had been witness to.

After checking the other results in the Evo-Stik Premier, and realising we were still wellplaced around the play-off positions, themood took an upswing in time for thejourney home. So, it was a not toodownbeat Rammy Rocket that made itsway through the foggy Derbyshire hills andwinding its merry, little way back toLancashire

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Born in January 1991, this 6ft 2” goalkeeperjoined Rammy from FC United at the end ofAugust 2010. He was number two at FCUnited, but a superb season in 2010/11 sawhim win Player of the Year for the Rams. HeSigned full-time with the club at the startof 2011/12.

Signed from local rivals Radcliffe Boroughafter a spell playing in Australia, the big manis equally at home in the heart of thedefence, or up front poaching goals.

Grant SHENTON

Cedric joined the club in January 2014having impressed the management teamduring his time with rivals Trafford FC.Essentially a defender, Cedric has the abilityto fit in other positions for the team.

e talented left full-back rejoined theclub from Chester during the2013/14 season having had a

short spell here a couple ofyears earlier. His long throw-inis always a dangerous piece ofhis armory.

Lee PUGH

Wing man Tom came on as a sub in the play-off game for our opponents Bamber Bridge.e Rams management team acted swiftlyin the summer to bring him down toRamsbottom

Tom WILLIAMS

Steve HOWSON Cedric KROU

rammy meet

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A skilful battling midfielder who signed fulltime with the Rams during the summer of2012 after coming on loan from AFC Fyldethe previous season and dominating themidfield. In his third season with the club hewas a vital member of the promotion set-uplast term.

Joined the club in December 2011 fromClitheroe via Padiham. Son of a former1990s Rammy favourite Martin, midfielderJordan is highly rated and scored 8 goals forthe Storks before going to Clitheroe. Aversatile player – he can play anywhere fromdefence to striker.

Experienced striker Jon was signed from NewMills and despite plentiful interest fromother clubs has remained loyal to the Ramsfor a number of seasons now, and alwaysfinishes near the top of the goal-scoringcharts. Regarded as a “Rammylegend” in east Lancashire..

Jon ROBINSONA 20 year old player who joined fromConference side Tamworth early in the2014/15 season. George is a highly rated full-back capable of playing on either flank,

giving the Rams additional defensiveflexibility.

George GRAYSON

e speedy wingman joined the Rams at thebeginning of the 2014/15 season, having

spent the previous campaign atfellow Evo-Stik Premier clubNantwich Town.

Osebi ABADAKI

Gary STOPFORTH Jordan HULME

united the lads

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the boogie buson the road with rammy

Next Saturday will see us treading afamiliar path, down through the PeakDistrict, to watch e Rams take on BelperTown in deepest, darkest Derbyshire. Afteraway days at Buxton, Ilkeston and Matlockthis game will complete the four Derbyshireteams in this division and with it beingRobbo’s first away game in charge, let’smake we have an even larger, and noisier,turnout from Lancashire than we usuallydo.

is is actually the fourth incarnation ofBelper Town Football Club and, despite theclub badge proudly claiming 1883, thisversion were formed in 1951. e previousthree attempts at football in Belper allended due to financial difficulties, althoughthe current version seem to be doing quitewell and there have been several upgradesto their ground in recent years, including anew floodlighting system a couple of yearsago.

Christchurch Meadow, or e MarstonsStadium, if for some perverse reason youprefer to use sponsors name instead of

traditional names,also dates back to

1951 and now holds2,500 with seating for500. In the year it wasbuilt it witnessed itshighest ever

attendance when 3,600

saw the local derby with Ilkeston Town. e town of Belper has a history of nail

making dating back to the Middle Ages andthis is evident In their nickname of eNailers.

Like Rammy, Belper spent much of theirpast in the lower, regional divisions of thefootball pyramid, but are now becomingwell established at this level. Also likeRammy, they won promotion, via the playoffs last season, albeit from the Southernsection, when they beat Mickleover Sportby 1-0. Apart from local cups and leagues,Belper Town have never really had anysustained periods of success and you haveto go back to 1887 for their onlyappearance in the 1st Round of the F.A Cupwhen they lost 3-2 at home to SheffieldWednesday.

If you followed the lower leagues of theprofessional game during the late 1980’sand early 1990’s you may recognise theBelper manager, Peter Duffield, who was astriker with teams such as Halifax Town,Crewe Alexandra, Stockport County,Blackpool and Darlington (where are theynow, I wonder).

After Belper’s defeat at e Riversideearlier in the season I was lucky enough tohave a bit of a chat with him at the CricketClub and, to say his team had just lost, hewas more than happy to talk about allaspects of the beautiful game with us.

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Bear that in mind, Jose and Arsene, nexttime you have a hissy-fit in front of theMatch of the Day cameras.

If you are getting there early, which isrecommended as Belper is quite a lovely,little place, and you are planning on eating,you could try the evocatively named eSpanker Inn on the equally evocativelynamed Spanker Lane. If it’s a couple of

pints you’re after there is Black Bulls Head,e Black Swan and Arkwrights Real AleBar, all within walking distance of theground which is located on Bridge Street.

e journey should only take a couple ofhours and Harry is running a coach, so goand see him now to book your place onRobbos Rammy Rocket

Rapture as Robbo headed thefourth in Rammy’s 4-2 thrilleragainst Belper back in October

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e army of volunteers who worked throughout themorning to ensure the frost-bound pitch at the HarryWilliams Riverside Stadium was passed fit, watched on asvisitors Skelmersdale United strengthened their positionat the top of the league courtesy of a 3-0 win.

After the home side were denied following a good movebetween Osebi Abadaki and Jordan Hulme, Skelmersdaletook the lead on 29 minutes when a 20 yard strike fromAidan Kirkbride sailed over home keeper Grant Shentonand in off the underside of the bar.

Phil Dean looked to have equalised five minutes laterwhen he was on the end of a right wing cross, butsomehow visiting keeper Zac Hibbert managed to pull offa point-blank save to deny him.

On 36 minutes, the visitors doubled their advantagewhen Cedric Krou needlessly tripped Danny Mitchley onthe edge of the box, and Mitchley dusted himself downbefore slotting home the resultant penalty.

Dean was again close to putting the Rams on the score-sheet, but again he watched on as his goalbound shot wasblocked out by some desperate defending.

0 - 3Harry Williams Riverside Stadium28th December 2014Att: 372Rammy Goals: Skelmersdale Goals: Kirkbride (29), Mitchley (36,85)

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Despite having much of the possession, thehome side barely looked like breaking down awell-organised Skelmersdale defence, withplenty of effort but nothing to show at the endof it all. With the exception of his first half save,Hibbert had very little to do as his defenderskept the free-scoring Rams attack at bay.

e west Lancashire side wrapped up thepoints on 85 minutes when Mitchley wasplayed in, and with the home defence in tattershe confidently slid the ball past Shenton from

ten yards out to seal all three pointse disappointing reversal meant that

Ramsbottom United have now suffered fourstraight defeats in all competitions, havingbeen knocked out of the FA Trophy and theLancashire FA Trophy, to round off the year indisappointing style.

Hopefully 2015 will see the Rams back inform and looking to regain a place in the play-off spots.

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0 - 3Harry Williams Riverside Stadium28th December 2014Att: 372Rammy Goals: Skelmersdale Goals: Kirkbride (29), Mitchley (36,85)

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Many anks to Angie Leach who took thisbeautiful photo capturing just abouteverything we love about Rammy - just ashame it involves Skem celebrating a goal!

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I would like to welcome everyone to theHWRS for this afternoons game againstTrafford FC.It’s been abit of a crazy week for mepersonally but I am really happy to be backat Rammy for my second spell with theclub. It’s a great opportunity for me at 35years old to now look at the other side offootball with15 years experience at thislevel that I hope to bring into this role.

I left just over a year ago after 18enjoyable months to join Salford City. Ihad a really good time there under PhilPower who unfortunately lost his job lastweek. ey are a club with huge ambitionto get to the football league and with theresources at their disposal I’m sure that willhappen, however there is no magic wand

- it will be tough but with Johnno andBernard in charge they can gainpromotion this season. I have massiverespect for them and Glenn - they aregreat people and have done a fantastic jobhere over the years and left rammy in agreat position. I wish them well down atMoor Lane.

As is the norm at this level whenmanagers leave a club some players tendto follow and that is what me and Robbohave had to deal with this week. Playerswho have been stalwarts of this club formany years have moved on, but that isfootball. We have been busy behind thescenes trying to bring in reinforcementsthat we believe are the right sort of playersto add to this already talented group.

phil edghillon the edge with the assistant manager

No stranger to the RammyRollercoaster - Phil at Skemtwo seasons ago

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Todays opponents Traffordunder Gary Vaughan are alwaysa good footballing side andalthough recent resultshaven’t gone their way we areunder no illusion that this willbe a tough game. Our formhas also dipped lately so weneed to start on the front footand take the game to the visitorswhich will hopefully bring us 3points.

I can guarantee the the hard workgoing on behind the scenes will becomeevident on the pitch. Robbo and I arepassionate and excited about the jobahead and we can only ask that you giveus the vocal support from the terraces.We ask for a bit of patience in this semi-transitional period for the club. My mrsthinks I’m having an affair the amountof phone calls and txts this week, Iassured her it’s mainly Robbo and he’snot my type!

Enjoy the game

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Oh where do you start!I suppose that we all knew the situation

would arise eventually and it’s mercifulthat, given the strong personalities ofHarry and of Johnno, that it’s taken almostsix years, but does that dampen its impact?

At the press conference Johnno citedHarry saying that Bamber Bridge andDarlington were as big as it comes, andthat those feelings would unlikely ever bematched, and that’s the way that I’ve triedto view events over the last few years atRammy. In all my years watching football,the last few have undoubtedly been thebest. Whether you’re watching BayernMunich or Daisy Hill, the elation of gettingpromoted, or of completely outplayingopposition as relatively illustrious asDarlington IS as good as it gets. For everyteam that is promoted, another getsrelegated. For every team that goes out ofbusiness, another is elected to the leaguestructure. Football has as many downs asit has ups, and I have always tried withRammy to enjoy the moment for itself.

is club will never become atop premiership club. e

club can’t keep risingand rising through thepyramid until itreaches the top, thatcan never happen.

Harry, with his 70 yearsof experience knows this,

Tony with his (appreciably

less) experience knows this, and deepdown I think that we all know it. atdoesn’t mean to say that there is not a longway to go yet. I believe Rammy is capableof achieving league football, and I wouldreally love to see us ultimately achieve that,but patience will be needed, and theacceptance that we will face set-backs onthe way.

Johnno wasn’t patient enough. Heneeded the club to support his ambitions,and the club wasn’t able to do that. eclub itself is in a fantastic position, with agreat arrangement with the cricket club,and finances that would be the envy ofmany at our level. FC United, for example,would have killed to be in our positionduring their last ten years, and to even bedebt-free is the dream of many a club.

We do have a very very long way to goyet though. e income the club generatesoutside of turnstiles receipts is woeful fora club at this level, and that isn’t just downto not having an operating bar. e needfor a groundsman who can take some ofthe excessive burden off Harry’s shouldersis becoming more and more urgent as theweather continues to do its worst to thepitch. e need for an expandedcommittee of trustworthy people to helplift this club to the next level is absolutelycritical. ese are the things that Johnnoand Bernard became impatient with, andthey are things that need addressing as amatter of urgency.

supporters clubon the terraces of rammy

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Harry needs help. How can a man of 70,who should be having a nice sit down witha glass of scotch, spend so much of his timeand effort running a football club of thisstature virtually single-handedly? Evensomething as simple as a taxmiscalculation could see him imprisoned,yet the poor fella has to take responsibilityfor that as well as cutting the grass anddivoting the pitch and operating theturnstiles and cooking the peas! Harryneeds help, urgently! Imagine how muchsponsorship money could be generatedthrough pitchside advertising. Imagine ifwe had influential local businessmen onthe committe who could help get thingsdone and help raise income. Imagine if wenegotiated a deal with the cricket club thatwould allow us to sell food and alcohol atthe football club for a share of the profits!

Yes, there is a long way to go, and Johnnowasn’t happy to wait for these things to be

sorted out, but if you’re reading this thenyou (and I) obviously don’t share his lackof faith. is club IS going places - perhapsnot today or tomorrow - but the next day,and the next. Robbo knows this. I’m prettysure that Edgy knows it. Darren, Mauriceand others at that meeting last Saturdayalso know it.

So where do we go from here? We throw our hats in the ring for Robbo

and Edgy - that’s the first step. Maybe we’llend up getting relegated, but with theselads we certainly won’t go down withoutone hell of a fight - and that’s what reallymatters to me. With these lads we havepassion, commitment, intelligence and anever say die attitude. I don’t know howthey’ll fare tactically or at bringing inplayers, but I do know that they’ll give itevery last ounce of commitment, andthat’s good enough for me!

Good luck lads!

Would you want thisman going into battlewith you? Hell yeah!

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Sat 16th Aug H KING’S LYNN TOWN 2-3 322 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer Howson PriestleyTues 19th Aug A Workington 0-1 415 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer * Howson PriestleySat 23rd Aug A Rushall Olympic 4-2 161 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer * Howson PriestleyMon 25th Aug H NANTWICH TOWN 1-4 365 Shenton Smalley Abadaki * Spencer + Howson PriestleySat 30th Aug A FC United of Manchester 1-3 1917 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Spencer Howson WarrenderTues 2nd Sept H MARINE 3-2 250 Shenton Smalley + Pilkington Spencer Howson 1 KrouSat 6th Sept H STAMFORD 3-1 357 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Spencer + Howson 1 WarrenderWed 10th Sept A Whitby Town 0-2 265 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Spencer Howson WarrenderSat 13th Sept A Buxton FAC 1Q 2-3 261 Shenton Smalley Pilkington # Spencer Howson Warrender +Tues 16th Sept H WITTON ALBION 3-2 231 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Spencer * Howson Krou 1Sat 20th Sept A Ilkeston 4-2 422 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer * Howson Krou 1Tues 23rd Sept H CURZON ASHTON 1-1 309 Shenton Grayson * Pugh Spencer 1 Howson KrouSat 27th Sept A Frickley Athletic 2-4 215 Shenton Pilkington Grayson + Stopforth Howson KrouSat 4th Oct A Trafford 1-0 294 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouSat 11th Oct H BELPER TOWN 4-2 371 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Stopforth Howson KrouSat 18th Oct H BUXTON 2-0 470 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Stopforth Howson KrouTues 21st Oct H WHITBY TOWN 4-0 237 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Stopforth Howson KrouSat 25th Oct A Marine 3-1 366 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson 2 RobinsonSat 1st Nov A Whitby Town FAT 1Q 2-1 233 Shenton Smalley * Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouTues 4th Nov H WORKINGTON 1-1 250 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouSat 8th Nov A Halesowen Town 0-2 358 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouTues 11th Nov H WEST DIDS Lancs Cup 3-0 132 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer 1 Robinson + KrouSat 15th Nov A Nantwich FAT 2Q 3-1 238 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouSat 22nd Nov H GRANTHAM TOWN 3-1 351 Shenton Smalley 1 Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouTues 25th Nov H BURSCOUGH Lg Cup 5-1 140 Shenton Williams Piacentile 1 Slaven Howson 1 KrouSat 29th Nov A Banbury United 3-0 235 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth + Howson Krou 1Tues 2nd Dec A Salford City Lg Cup 3-1 189 Shenton Smalley Dean Stopforth Howson KrouSat 6th Dec A Matlock Town 1-1 257 Shenton Smalley Pugh Stopforth Howson KrouMon 8th Dec A Atherton Collieries Lancs 1-2 120 Shenton Smalley Grayson Stopforth Howson PughSat 13th Dec H STOCKPORT COUNTY 3-0 907 Shenton Smalley Grayson + Stopforth Howson KrouSat 20th Dec A King’s Lynn Town 1-2 510 Shenton Smalley Grayson Stopforth Howson KrouSun 28th Dec H SKELMERSDALE 0-3 372 Shenton Smalley * Grayson Stopforth Howson KrouThu 1st Jan A Nantwich Town 2-3 285 Shenton Hulme Grayson Stopforth Howson KrouSat 10th Jan H TRAFFORDSat 17th Jan A Belper TownTues 20th Jan H NORTHWICH VIC LgCupSat 24th Jan H FRICKLEY ATHLETICSat 31st Jan A BuxtonSat 7th Feb H BLYTH SPARTANSSat 14th Feb A StamfordTues 17th Feb H Rushall OlympicSat 21st Feb A Witton AlbionTues 24th Feb A Blyth SpartansSat 28th Feb H ILKESTONSat 7th March A Skelmersdale UnitedSat 14th March H STOURBRIDGESat 28th March A Grantham TownSat 4th April H FC UNITED OF MCRMon 6th April A Ashton UnitedSat 11th April H HALESOWEN TOWNSat 18th April A BarwellSat 25th April H MATLOCK TOWN

fixtur

Matchball SponsorToday’s matchball has kindly been

sponsored by John Turner.

If you’d like to sponsor the club thenplease contact Rob on 07944 038512,

or email rob.sax@musician.org

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Hulme 1 Burton Gaskell Robinson 1* Dean + Pilkington Slaven Abadaki + Ahmadi * CookHulme Burton Gaskell Robinson + Dean # Pilkington * Slaven + Abadaki Ahmadi # CookHulme 1+ Burton Robinson 1# Pilkington Dean 2 Abadaki * Slaven + Ahmadi # Cook WilliamsHulme Burton Robinson 1 Pilkington Dean Williams Slaven Cook * Krou + MorleyAbadaki + Slaven Robinson * Hulme 1# Dean Williams + Krou * Cook # Morley JohnsonAbadaki Burton * Slaven 1 Hulme 1 Dean # Williams # Robinson * Cook + Morley JohnsonAbadaki Burton Slaven * Hulme 1# Dean 1 Williams + Robinson # Cook Morley Krou *Abadaki Burton Slaven + Krou Dean Mota + Cook Williams Johnson Morley

+ Abadaki Burton Krou Hulme Dean * Mota * Williams + Pugh # Johnson Morley Abadaki Burton Mota # Hulme 2 Dean + Pugh Williams # Irwin Slaven * Cook + Abadaki + Burton 1 Pilkington Hulme 1 Williams 1# Dean + Mota # Irwin Slaven * Cook

Abadaki # Stopforth Pilkington Hulme Williams + Burton + Dean * Mota Robinson # CookMota 1* Burton Spencer Hulme Robinson 1# Williams * Cook + Dean # Morley AbadakiAbadaki * Burton Mota + Hulme Spencer # Robinson 1# Williams + Slaven Pilkington Dean *Abadaki 1 * Burton Hulme # Spencer + Dean 2 Williams * Mota Slaven Robinson 1+ Gaskell #Abadaki 1 * Burton Hulme Spencer # Dean 1 + Williams + Mota * Slaven Robinson # PughAbadaki + Burton Hulme 1# Spencer * Dean 1 Williams * Mota Gaskell + Robinson #1 PughAbadaki 1 Pilkington * Hulme Spencer # Dean + Williams + Mota # Gaskell Slaven * PiacentileAbadaki # Burton Hulme + Spencer 1 Dean Williams Mota Gaskell # Robinson + Pilkington *Abadaki + Burton Hulme 1 Spencer * Dean # Pilkington Williams # Mota Gaskell + Robinson *Robinson # Burton Hulme Gaskell * Pilkington + Dean + Abadaki # Spencer * Mota PiacentileAbadaki * Williams Gaskell 1 Mota # Dean 1 Howson + Piacentile Burton * Hulme #Williams 1* Burton Hulme # Spencer 1+ Dean 1 Abadaki * Gaskell + Robinson # Mota PiacentileWilliams * Burton Hulme 1 Spencer + Dean Abadaki Gaskell + Robinson 1* Kuba-Kuba PiacentileAbadaki Kuba-Kuba Hulme 1 * Robinson Spencer 1 Pugh Burton Stopforth Dean * Johnson

Williams # Burton * Robinson 1 Dean 1 Abadaki # Grayson Kuba-Kuba * Slaven + PiacentileAbadaki Burton + Hulme 1 Robinson * Spencer 2 Pugh * Slaven Piacentile Kuba-Kuba + BrooksWilliams 1 Burton Hulme Spencer * Dean + Abadaki Kuba-Kuba* Robinson + Grayson BrooksWilliams * Burton Robinson # Brooks Abadaki + Dean * Spencer +1 Hulme # Hartley MorleyWilliams * Burton Hulme Spencer Dean Robinson + Abadaki * Morley Kuba-Kuba SlavenAbadaki * Burton Hulme Spencer 1 Dean Williams * Kuba-Kuba Robinson + Slaven Brooks #Abadaki Burton Hulme Spencer + Dean Williams * Brooks + Robinson Slaven MorleyAbadaki + Burton Williams # Robinson 1 Spencer * Dean 1 + Davies * Johnson Slaven # Morley

res & results 2014/15

Our Club Needs Our Help

If you can spare as little as half an hour to help Harry Williams keep Rammy’s pitch and ground

in the impeccable condition that we’ve allbecome so proud of then please just come down and

help, any day of the week from 11am onwards.

northwich victoriawill the real northwich please stand up

e Vic’s hoping for more cup glory!e name Northwich Victoria is steeped in

tradition as the football club was named afterthe then reigning monarch, Queen Victoria,when it was formed back in 1874. Equallyhistorical was e Vic’s first home ground,the Drill Field, which was on the site of theformer Drilling Ground for the 22ndCompany of the 3rd battalion of the CheshireRifle Volunteers.

For nearly twenty years Northwich onlyplayed friendlies, but in 1892 they becamefounder members of the 2nd division in theFootball league. After two seasons as aprofessional team the financial burdensbecame too much and they resigned fromthe league, but this was not before theysigned the legendary Welsh ‘wing wizard’ BillyMeredith, who played in their final footballleague season.

Over the next 70 years Northwich played ina number of local leagues that included theCheshire league and the LancashireCombination. In 1968 they were invited tobecome founder members of a newNorthern Premier, where they stayed for afurther 11 years. eir ambition to play at ahigher level in the non-league pyramid wassignalled when they joined the newNationwide Alliance Premier league in 1978.

e 1976/77 season also saw Northwichreach the fourth round of the FA Cup,defeating Football League oppositionRochdale, Peterborough and Watford before

being knocked out by Oldham Athletic atMaine Road. Incidentally, the game againstWatford was witnessed by their thenChairman ‘e Rocket man’ Elton John. Overthe years e Vic’s have gone on to claimother notable football League scalps andhave beaten both Bury and Charlton Athletic.

ey have had more success in the FATrophy, visiting Wembley on no less thanthree occasions. In 1983 and 1996 the Vic’swere beaten finalists, but in 1984 they wentone better and won the trophy after beatingBangor City in a replay at Stoke City’s VictoriaGround.

After a few years of struggling, the 1990’ssaw Northwich start to become a force againin semi-professional football. In 1993 theydefeated Martin O’Neil’s mighty WycombeWanderers at Adam’s park to lift theDrinkwise Cup. eir progress continuedunder the management of Keith Alexanderand in the 1996/97 season they finished aclub best sixth in the Conference.

e tide seemed to turn when Alexanderdeparted for Lincoln City; he was succeededby former Northern Irish international JimmyQuinn, with his stay lasting only two seasonsbefore Shrewsbury Town came calling. Adisastrous spell followed, with threemanagers coming and going in quicksuccession and Northwich finished bottomof the Conference in the 2003/04 season onlysurviving relegation due to groundtechnicalities with other clubs.

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With financial problems getting worse,Northwich moved out of their famous DrillField ground and became tenants of nearneighbours Witton Albion. September 2004saw the club enter their first spell ofadministration and they were deducted 10points, but against the odds manager SteveBurr ensured the club finished outside thebottom three. However, this achievementturned out to be for nothing as e Vic’swere relegated due to an administrationtechnicality and they started life in theConference North in the 2005/06 season.

Under the new ownership of MikeConnett they moved to a new ground, thenewly built Victoria Stadium. e newfacilities saw another great FA Cup run,where they were finally beaten in the thirdround at Premier League Sunderland. Aftera record breaking run of fifteen consecutivevictories, promotion was secured at the firstattempt back to the National Conference.

New owners took over the club, but anyhopes of a bright future were shattered inMay 2009 when the club again enteredadministration after relegation back to theConference North. ey were later expelledand joined the Northern Premier league,where more financial problems affected theclub, this culminated in them losing theVictoria Stadium in 2012, forcing them toyet again ground share.

Due to subsequent relegations Northwichnow find themselves under the stewardshipof former Stockport County legend JimGannon in the Evo-Stick League DivisionOne North. is season has seen an upturnin fortunes with the Vic’s currently on thesame number of points as leadersDarlington 1883, lying second on goaldifference. Tonight will certainly be a sterntest for the Rams against high flyingNorthwich.

Goalscorer Phil Dean takes on theNorthwich defence back in 2013

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Tim DEASYChris SMALLEYMohamud ALIMichael CLARKECallum HENRYStuart COOKBrian SUMMERSKILLMichael RODDYGoodwin ABADAKIGary BURNETTAboubacar ANOGODanny MEADOWCROFTJoe GORMANJack SHERRATTJosh AMISDave SMITH

Manager: Jon Robinson Manager: Jim Gannon

Referee: Andrew HallidayReferee’s Assistants: Mark Hughes, Andrew Daniels

Next home game: Saturday 24th January, 3pm - Rammy v Frickley

Grant SHENTONKyle HARROP

George GRAYSONJamie ROTHER

Steve HOWSONCedric KROU

Osebi ABADAKIIan BENNETT

Jon ROBINSONLee GASKELL

Tom WILLIAMS David KUBA-KUBA

Lee PUGHAndy DAWSON

Malachi SLAVEN Luke HERON

George BOWYERTom BROOKS