28/03/16 Review: Chasetown vs Stafford Rangers

Chasetown 1-0 Stafford Rangers (Evo-Stik First Division South)
The Scholars Ground

Monday 28th March 2016, the morning after Storm Katie had hit Great Britain and left some of the Football League and non-league grounds out of bounds for the traditional Easter Monday fixtures. Locally, Leek Town's game against Newcastle Town was postponed and across the region some of the bigger grounds, like Hednesford Town's Keys Park, were also waterlogged. In an attempt to get to a game, I took to Twitter in the morning to see if anybody was still up for it. In the end, I found myself following updates from Chasetown's page to see that a potential crunch-tie between two Staffordshire rivals as the Chase tried their damnedest to pull together a pitch suitable to host the Evo-Stik First Divison South leaders, Stafford Rangers.

The M6 was doing well- no crashes or broken down vehicles reported for almost 8 minutes

After almost an hour sat in the legendary Bank Holiday M6 Traffic, I pulled off the motorway still in decent time for arrival at a ground in which I had no idea where it actually was. I knew it was in Staffordshire, I knew it was fairly local to Stafford, but I did not know which town it was located in or even if Chasetown was a place. Anyway, as time ticked away I made it to a long narrow street which had ultimately become one-way due to cars parked up for the game. My first indication that I had made it was when a steward popped out from the cars and said to me as I drove past, "it's full." Assuming he meant the car park, I had no option but to carry on until I came across a lucky space between two poorly parked cars which allowed me to park right outside the Scholars Ground. As if by magic, I was here.

Not everybody was as thrilled to be here as I, the crowd was looking decent though

I was happy to be confronted with a queue upon my arrival at the turnstile, mainly because it meant that people had actually bothered to make the journey to what could probably be considered a derby match. Stafford Rangers started the day 10 points clear of their closest rivals, Shaw Lane Aquaforce, who had three games in hand on Boro. The home side, meanwhile, were chasing a play-off spot and were only three points off Lincoln United who occupied the 5th place space in the Evo-Stik. With 17 points out of 24 in their last 8 games, the Chase were going well and with a solid 3-0 victory over Market Drayton in their last outing, they would be hoping to give the leaders a few problems and avenge a narrow 2-1 defeat that they suffered against them on Boxing Day.

6th vs 1st, today promised to be a close encounter

Whilst watching the last few minutes of warm-ups I decided to do my usual scout around the ground and see what was going down at Chasetown. With an average attendance of 187, The Scholars Ground was looking very busy today and in certain parts of the ground there was barely room to manoeuvre. Rangers fans had made the short travel to the game and brought with them hopes of another big win. The Chase would not be a likely side to lay down and take defeat without a fight though, as a side known for much bigger giant-killings than the one that could potentially come forth to them today. In the 2007/08 FA Cup, Chasetown made history as the lowest ranked side ever to reach the Third Round Proper, a feat which included the club's greatest achievement- a 1-0 win against Staffordshire's mighty Port Vale, coming from a replay after a 1-1 draw at Vale Park. The side eventually bowed out to Championship side Cardiff City, despite a 1-0 half-time lead, with a 3-1 home defeat which had memorial photos plastered around the clubhouse.

The fans flocked into the ground in time for kick-off

Continuing my walk around I was impressed by the state of the stands, which were largely seated, and also with the state of the pitch. Considering just up the road Hednesford Town were unable to play their game because of the weather, enough praise cannot be given to all involved with the club for getting the game up and running. As the sun came out to play, so did the players and the officials, which meant it was 3pm and time to get cracking. A couple of minutes of the game had passed before everybody was seated, which meant the away support could begin the afternoon of chants to come. "Staffordshire is wonderful" was sang loud and proud by the Staffordians as they sat over by the home side's goalie. The ground certainly wasn't consistent in style, with one side roofed by a white gazebo-type material over the green seating, another built up with wood and old blue chairs, and then over by the other goal was a metal-sheeted stand.

It was kind of the home-side to put the roof on for the travelling fans

The shouting continued to come from this side and even 10 minutes into the match there was still fans arriving. One senior fan expressed that he had tried to sneak over the turnstile, but couldn't get his leg over. Whilst another, stood behind me, kept asking his mate how Walsall were doing. I was lucky enough to get a good seat by the half-way line and had a decent view of the game on display. Both sides looked decent whilst defending, not something which had always been the case at this level, and seemed happy to play the ball in a tactical and structured manner. Kevin Hemagou had endless running in him throughout the opening section of the match and looked capable of taking on the Stafford defence if given half a chance.

The home fans seemed hopeful

Going forward appeared to be where the strength lied for the Chase, and as they pressed forward the only answer for the away side was to take a chunk out of the midfielder's legs. A chap and his wife had already started to vocalise their opinion on the way Rangers were playing, and he expressed fairly early on that the game was likely to turn nasty. As the fouls did start to come thick and fast, he then turned to his wife and told her the oppositions tactics "they take it in turns to foul, this lot. They do it to avoid the bookings." I'm sure that were this a suitable method of play, that most teams would be trying it out! Just after the 15 minute mark the first real chance fell to the home side. The ball bobbled and bounced around, was flicked up, flapped out and bumbled back in again, before the ball eventually fell kindly on the volley for Paul Sullivan and was powered high over the bar. This was a signal of intent for the Chase though, who were largely on top of the supposed top side in the league. Ahmed Obeng looked to be the Rangers best hope, as he paced up and down the flanks and looked to latch on to clearances and start a counter. The ball never really stayed up there long enough for them though in the first-half and Chasetown continued to seek out the first goal. After a free-kick was give on the side of the box, there was an interesting exchange between the two teams as the away side appeared to refuse to construct their wall at a suitable distance away from the ball. After being warned twice by the ref, ex-Rangers player James Dance had a word with his former team mates and the message was eventually received. In the end the free-kick was headed out for a corner and nothing came of it, but it did leave the crowd wondering why the wall were continuously disobeying the officials.

This guy was fuming!

As the first-half drew to a close the phones began to appear in the hands of some fans, obviously to check how the teams around the grounds were doing. I overheard murmurs of fans talking about Walsall, the Baggies and Hednesford, whilst one Rangers fan made comment on the fact that Shaw Lane had taken a lead in their fixture and at this point reduced the leaders advantage to 8 points. Surely enough the ref blew and the fans piled into the clubhouse to grab a much needed pint. The game was decent enough and showed the feisty nature of any good derby, but with a win needed for both side, there was still an element of frustration amongst the fans that nobody had taken the game by the scruff of the neck to get the opener.

The joy of being able to take your pint out to pitch side 

The two sets of fans swapped sides just like the players, and the second-half was under way. It was clear to see that the Stafford team-talk had kicked the side into action, as they began to show some sign of why they were the top dogs. For at least the first 15 minutes of the second-half it was all Stafford and had it not been for the tank at the back for Chasetown, Henry Eze, it seemed likely that the goal was just around the corner. "We're gonna score in a minute, score in a minute" was a constant chant given out by the away fans as corner followed corner and free kick followed free kick. James Dance, Chasetown's Gareth Bale lookalike, was starting to feel the wrath of his former employers and he was often reprimanded by the referee for persistent fouls.

The Stafford fans could feel a goal coming

A change had to be made by Chasetown and in the end they sacrificed Hemagou to change the attacking line-up. This choice was not met with a good reception from the Chase's right-back, Mike Williams, who shouted out "don't fuckin' take him off!" This didn't seem to do much for the home side though, as Rangers continued to press. On 75 minutes an acrobatic volley was sent wide by Boro and a host of other chances were blocked. An irate fan looked at me and said "did you see that? 52 chances, all blocked!" With not long left, it was seeming that the Chase would settle for a point- so much so, that the Keeper picked up a yellow card for time-wasting. On the counter, a chance did come for the home side and it was only a block from a team-mate lying down in the box which prevented a shot on target. Williams began to get forward well in the latter stages and had a mazy run which resulted in a booking for a dive, which was dubious, but then as the clock hit 85 minutes he made the decisive cross to settle the game. A good counter attack and ball into the danger area was met by a bloke off the bench, Stan Mugisha, who smashed it home with confidence. Chase 1-0 Rangers. A cruel blow for the away side and absolute jubilation for Chasetown Football Club. With 5 minute to go the wind was truly taken from the Rangers sails, who failed to show the grit and determination I'd previously seen them show against Rugby Town back in October, and in injury time it was almost 2-0. Mugisha forced a stunning save from Adam Whitehouse and despite four minutes of added time, there was nothing else to follow on the goals front. Full time and a great victory for the Chase.

The lads in the Press Box must have been chuffed

I quickly headed back to my car, knowing the madness which would follow if I didn't get out quickly, and set off home. A good game which based on the first-half and the last 10 minutes of the second-half was probably a fair one. I'm sure that Rangers will argue that they didn't deserve to lose, but the sad truth for them was that they weren't as clinical as they had been throughout the season and that cost them on a tough away trip.

Onwards and upwards for Chasetown

19/03/16 Review: Harrogate Railway Athletic vs Clitheroe

Harrogate Railway Athletic 1-3 Clitheroe (Evo-Stik First Division North)
Station View

A match that was originally scheduled for the 28th December last year, this was a game in the North Yorkshire town of Harrogate which allowed me to catch yet another afternoon of non-league football. Marking my 24th ground visited, Station View was one that took my fancy as it was a place I could make a detour to on my travel home to Stoke-on-Trent after visiting family in Bridlington. With my favoured Conference North side Harrogate Town playing away at Aggborough, a ground I'd visited earlier in the season, I was still looking forward to watching the Rail instead.

Station View, hopefully a sight for more goals than trains

My need to grab a bacon, sausage and egg butty prior to setting off to Harrogate proved to be a costly mistake, as we arrived at Station View at 3:05pm and therefore missed the opening five minutes of the game. By the time we had parked up and headed for the ground it was 3:10pm and upon approaching the turnstile we heard the announcer read out that the home side were 1-0 down after Louis Mayers scored what has since been called "Goal of the season". Typical! Rail 0-1 Clitheroe.

Missing the opening goal is not cool

Nevertheless, we entered the ground and hoped that more goals would follow. The last two matches I had attended with my girlfriend had both finished 0-0, so the temptation to ask her to wait in the car was always in the back of my mind. Even though we had missed ten minutes and a goal, I couldn't help but take a look around the ground before taking a seat to watch the game. Station View is a small stadium, even for this level, and compared to Queensgate Park and Cantilever Park it certainly looked to need a little bit of love. The Rail sit 21st in the League, with only New Mills (still with only one point all season!) below them. With a goal difference of -53 and time running out to pick up the points HRA were within touching distance of survival, but they would have to get a win to leapfrog Ossett Town who are two points clear of them and the relegation zone. Despite this level of football being the highest the Rail have ever played at, it must be noted that they have twice made it to the FA Cup Second Round Proper. In the 2002/03 season they incredibly beat eight teams to make it to the stage which is still one short of Premiership and Championship entry to the competition, which is where they would eventually come to the end of the line at home to Bristol City. And as if that wasn't exciting enough, they repeated this feat in the 2007/08 season as they yet again made it to the Second Round. Their reward for the success in this campaign saw them face Mansfield Town live on TV and they were this time unlucky to lose 3-2. Within this run, it is also worth noting that Railway Athletic played and won the Harrogate derby against Town!

The FA Cup tie with Bristol City was a proud day for the Rail

Back to reality though, and after popping into the club shop to buy a scarf we took our seat by the Clitheroe goal. It was at this point that I spotted a feature of the ground- a pitch that slanted catastrophically from right-to-left. The first half, what we saw of it, was okay and in fairness was also pretty even. History of Evo-Stik matches wasn't in my favour, with a 0-0 bore draw between Scarborough Athletic and Glossop North End and a 1-0 match at usually exciting Warrington Town being my other experiences of this level. 

It doesn't look so bad if you tilt your head slightly

This match offered much more attacking intent though, and I was certain that I wouldn't have missed the only goal. On my way to the match I had studied the table and made a prediction that high-flying play-off chasers Clitheroe would win 2-1. And as half-time drew close, we were treated to some action. A good run from the Rail had originally had me and many of the fans frustrated, with a player showing great skill to run into a great position. A lack of willing to shoot had led to me shouting out "have a dig!" before he was eventually brought down for a penalty. In fairness, it was a great run and the lad showed excellent skill- still, it would have been so annoying had he not at least had a shot on goal. Alas, he won the penalty and up stepped Amar Purewal, labelled as "the Goal Machine" by the announcer, to slot it home. Rail 1-1 Clitheroe. A much needed goal for the home side saw them go in level at the break, meaning we could continue to check out the ground and grab a brew in the process. The announcer spent the first few minutes going through various random score lines from the other games, naming just a couple from each of the top leagues, before concluding his speech by reminding everybody that they could grab "a glass of your favourite tipple" at the end of the game. Very fancy.

Decent little Club Shop and Refreshment stall

Half-time soon passed us by and even the odd train. We took our seat and had a scout of the Clitheroe subs having some shooting practice and then the two sides rejoined the pitch. I actually have to admit that the Rail's kit colours, Red and Green, really took my fancy and even reminded me of Christmas slightly. The away side played in all Blue and started the match on the front foot. They pressed forward from kick-off and within a couple of minutes the ball found its way into the host's goal. A cross came in and a messy interaction in the box eventually ended with Mayers floating the ball into the net for his second of the day, despite a failed attempt at an 'off the line' bicycle kick clearance from the opposition defence. Rail 1-2 Clitheroe. From then on the game became very open, as both sides looked to get an important goal. Harrogate pushed down the left wing and a decent ball into the area was met by a volleyball punch clearance from the keeper. With a poor home record, the Rail have had a few heavy defeats this term and have been frustrated with three 3-1 defeats before this match already. Surely enough a fourth was on the way as a second penalty of the day was awarded, this time to the away team, just after the hour mark. In search of his hat-trick, Louis Mayers slotted the ball into the net and won the match ball and the game for the Blues. "E I E I E I O, up the Evo-Stik we go!" was belted out by half a dozen of the away followers who were all but guaranteed a fourth league win on the spin. Rail 1-3 Clitheroe.

Harrogate Railway Athletic will need to dig deep to stay in the division

With more doom and gloom for the home fans this afternoon, I wondered how many of them would be back again in two days time to watch their side take on another promotion chasing side in the form of Burscough. Frustration in the crowd started to kick in, with one player being verbally ushered off as he was subbed off to a fans plea of "Come on we're losing, get off the pitch". Following this, the anger turned towards the typically bad officials and at one point the linesman was hit with the repetitive slur "Lino, your guessing!" every time he called an offside. 

Same again on Monday?

With ten minutes left there was a long stoppage as Clitheroe's keeper bravely ran out to an on rushing challenge which ended his afternoon. The away side had no more subs to use which meant that the most dreaded thought in a footballer's career was about to become reality for someone. The manager shouted out from the touchline "what are you like?" to his players as he hoped to gain a response from anyone to stand between the sticks for the last part of the match. Eventually the begrudging left-back James Walker walked over to try on the gloves and shirt before planting himself in the goal. Unfortunately the home side couldn't really test him and even when Harrogate had a chance from a free-kick they opted to cross unsuccessfully rather than have a pop at the stand-in. A few counter attacks from the undermanned away side could have added more goals but as the ref called for full-time there was to be no more.

Not the result that the home team needed

A good game, the best I'd seen in the Evo-Stik on my third outing, meant that I could continue my trip back to Stoke with another ground checked off my list and another match stored in my memory. The hat-trick hero was by far the stand out player for me, and I can only say that I was gutted to miss his opening strike. On my way out of Station View I popped in to see the clubhouse and I was nothing other than impressed at the quality facility that unfolded as I entered the upstairs bar. If I was to rank the ground on the whole as being small and undernourished, I would have to say that the clubhouse was spacious, well decorated and well above the standard of others I'd visited at this level. Well done lads, a shame I couldn't stay for a pint!

"I need a jar or two after that" said one fan on his way up to the bar

05/03/16 Review: Altrincham vs Macclesfield Town

Altrincham 0-0 Macclesfield Town (National League)

Moss Lane

In memory of my Dad, David Knapton, who passed away on Tuesday 2nd March, 2016. An avid Liverpool fan and a believer in all things Stevie G, my Dad loved football and it was one of the things that made us so close. I remember watching some great games with him and some terrible ones too. The David Beckham free-kick vs Greece in 2001, the 2005 Champions League Final in Istanbul and Portugal knocking England out of the 2006 World Cup on penalties were just some of the highs and lows we witnessed together. From the emergence of true Liverpool characters such as Peter Crouch, Djibril Cisse and Emile Heskey, to some unforgettable moments like the infamous Djimi Traore own-goal and of course Jerzy Dudek's penalty heroics in 2005, we witnessed them all together. R.I.P Dad.

A rare weekend off from work usually has an unfortunately clash with a Macclesfield away match that I am unable to attend, so I was pleasantly surprised this Saturday to see that the game was a local derby against fellow Cheshire side Altrincham. A team hovering above the relegation zone partnered against an away team that have just one win so far in 2016 would probably be enough of a sign to most people to stay inside in the warmth. Not me, my friend Will or our girlfriends though, who made the drive from Stoke-on-Trent to the Greater Manchester town in search of a classic. The last time my girlfriend watched a football match was a 7-1 pre-season victory for the Silkmen, but that was always going to be a big ask of two out of form teams. My pre-match prediction was a bore 1-1 draw which wouldn't particularly help either side at this crucial stage of the season.

Moss Lane, home of Altrincham FC

As the match was a local derby, I was expecting a decent crowd, a rowdy atmosphere and hopefully 3-points for the Silkmen as they aim to put to bed a poor run which has seen them fall from the play-off places into mid-table oblivion, as well as being knocked out of the FA Trophy by Torquay United and the Cheshire Senior Cup by Cammell Laird. Altrincham on the other hand would love to swap places with their local rivals to prevent the agony of relegation, but they have found it tough this season and a host of loan signings throughout the campaign have not been enough to prevent them from finding themselves at the wrong end of the table. As we arrived at Moss Lane, not to be confused with the Silkmen's Moss Rose, I instantly noticed a larger than normal amount of police presence. Later on whilst browsing through the programme, I learnt that in the past this fixture had provided trouble amongst the two sets of fans. I must admit that I was slightly surprised to read this, as I hadn't honestly come across a bitter rivalry at this level. And perhaps more surprisingly upon my arrival to the turnstile was that the seating wasn't segregated. When I asked the question to the chap in the booth about where away fans should go, he just said "it's mixed seating, you can sit wherever." which I can't say was a disappointment to me as it meant I could get a decent seat in the main stand rather than standing by the goal in the freezing gusts and stop-start rain.

The Silkmen clan who made the short journey across Cheshire

As I stepped into the ground my first thought was the poor pitch conditions, which was summed-up by Will as being "worse than Brid Town's pitch". In the goal-mouth the away Keeper Shwan Jalal was already blathered in mud and it brought back many memories of playing on similar levels of pitches as a youngster. My second thought was that the main stand was made with wooden panel flooring and it gave a very old-fashioned look to a presumably old-fashioned ground. With over 200 meetings between the Robins and the Silkmen since 1903, Macc had managed to win the reverse fixture back in November by a clear score of 3-0, and as we entered the bar before the game we were just in time to catch the end of another local derby on the big screen. Spurs and the Gunners played out a 2-2 draw which brought a lot of business to the bar pre-match, and also the Macc players who had travelled with the team but weren't playing today. After joining the queue for a pint, we took a seat by the Silkmen lads who were stuffing their faces and enjoying a bottle of water. I was tempted to ask if they were allowed to have a pint if they weren't playing, but I didn't want to be 'that guy' who asks stupid questions to the players. That role would fall to my friend Will after the match and a couple of beers!

The lads enjoying their first big derby of the day

As was the Altrincham mascot

With only a minute or so until the kick-off we approached the main stand to take our seats for the game, reluctantly leaving the comfy surroundings of the bar. We got sat down just in time for kick-off and had a decent view of the game. It was fairly high-up towards the back of the main stand, meaning that we had a good view of the footy but not good enough to see the poor quality of the pitch. The match started off as expected, with some sloppy moves from both sides and very few chances falling to either side. Players struggled to string decent passes together and the heavy showers that came and went ensured that there would be an overall unsettled feel to the game throughout. The Macc players who weren't playing today were sat close-by and I couldn't help but wonder if having them on the field may have made a difference. Danny Whittaker and Theo Bayley-Jones are both players that I'm a fan of and on a day where there wasn't much happening, they were the sort of lads you want on the pitch rather than sat in the stands. The first real chance fell to the Silkmen just after the half-hour mark as the away side won a free-kick about 20-yards out. Top-scorer Kristian Dennis and captain Paul Turnbull both stood over the ball and when Turnbull eventually struck the ball it rattled against the crossbar and prevented the first goal from coming. To say that the game was scrappy was an understatement, with gritty challenges and minor injuries coming thick and fast all over the pitch. Macc played for 10 minutes without a left-back, as Fitzpatrick went off bleeding from his head. The ref did his best to keep the game playing, but after a scuffle between two of the players being brought to his attention by the linesman, he couldn't help but stop the game and call for a drop-ball. Just before half-time I overheard one guy say to his mate, "look over there, someone's having an allotment fire". Clearly the action on the pitch wasn't the highlight for some.

It's getting a bit feisty on the pitch 

With the score level at 0-0 and the rain coming down again I retreated to the bar to join Will, who had already gone to grab a beer and take a seat inside. The football was pretty drab and if there was going to be a goal in the second-half it would be likely to come from a mistake rather than decent football. Josh Ginnelly had been the only decent player on the pitch in the first-half and I sensed that he was the only one who had the potential to break the deadlock. The winger outpaced Andy Halls throughout and he was the heartbeat of all of the Altrincham attacks. The main issue with the play was that he was too quick for his team-mates, meaning that all of his delightful crosses and dangerous runs were unanswered by the strikers as they headed into Jalal's penalty area. An attendance of just over 2,000 Cheshire folk took their seats again for the second-half and we followed suit.

The home fans seem much happier to be having a half-time pint

Despite what appeared to be a slight change in tactic from the home side, the second-half started in the same way and Ginnelly, who was now on the right-hand side, was still the only bright spark amongst the dull display. The Robins target man Michael Rankine was winning his fair share of headers against the Macc defence but he couldn't quite work himself into the goal-scoring positions. The same could be said about the league's top-scorer Kristian Dennis as he also struggled to continue his prolific goalscoring form. Both sides made changes and as the game drew to a close the game livened us slightly. A corner here, a shot there, with a couple of free-kicks thrown in, however, weren't enough to give either side a last-minute winner and as Mr. Barratt blew for full-time the ground made a mass-groan of derby-day disappointment and headed for the exit. The news that Halifax had won meant that the Robins would fall into the relegation zone despite gaining a point. With 5 draws in the last 6 games and only 1 win in 10, it will almost certainly prove to be a tough final 12 games for the home side. Full-time, Robins 0-0 Macc.

The classic we'd hoped for was nowhere to be seen at Moss Lane

We briskly left the wooden stand and the equally wooden performance behind us to return to the bar, where we at least managed to get a picture with Kristian Dennis to remember an otherwise unexciting afternoon by. At this point Will became 'that guy', as his parting words to Dennis were "make sure you get top goalscorer". Between a mouth-full of his curry and chips, he simply replied with "I'll try". With that, we supped up and shipped out of Altrincham after a fairly anti-climactic away day where the Silkmen couldn't quite break their poor run against a struggling Robins side. A draw was fair, albeit a result that neither side wanted.

No goals today for the Stockport loanee