Motoring

The name of Vauxhall has spread far and wide in transport circles. The first reason is not entirely verified, but a group of Russian engineers building a new railway inspected the London & South Western Railway in the 1840s. Vauxhall seemed an important station, so the name became the Russian word for a large railway station. More verifiably, an iron works in the area became the Vauxhall Motor Company, now the UK operation of General Motors. Prescot Cables' visitors this week, Vauxhall Motors, started life as a works team for the company's plant at Ellesmere Port.

Having missed last week's game, this was the first time I saw the pitch since last week's rain, and the improvement achieved by the Supporters on the Pitch scheme was much more apparent.

Antony Shinks takes a free kick on the much improved playing surface

As we get closer to the start of the season, conditions are closer to a league game, with less substitutions. This was also the first game of the pre season programme where the team sheet was posted in the clubhouse, so the process of learning the names of new players can begin in earnest.

Mike Smith

Starting with a new team can mean the players need to head to the shops: whilst the club supplies the kit, the laws of the game provide that undershorts have to be the same main colour as shorts, and undershirts have to be the same main colour as the sleeves of the shirt, so those undergarments that were perfectly fine with a different club last season are heading for the cupboard. Referees can and do send players to change any clothing that does not comply, and they often notice at the most inconvenient moment.

Kyle Riley

At the game, we learnt of a departure and a return to the team. Jon Bathurst has joined Rhyl, where we played a couple of weeks ago. I can see why the Welsh Premier League is an attractive option. The standard is higher than our Division, one I am sure Jon will have no trouble meeting. For a player with heavy time commitments for work and who had to take time out last season to rest an injury, there is an additional attraction, no midweek games, and five of the twelve clubs in the league are along the north coast.

Jon Bathurst - enjoyed Rhyl so much he decided to stay

Returning to us was Nick Culkin in goal, after his involvement last season was ended by an injury at work.

Nick Culkin

When I posted my photos from the game on the club Facebook page, the system decided people needed the link in Swedish: strangely, I have also had a larger than usual number of hits on these pages from Sweden in the last week.

The rest of the pictures from the game can be seen here.