New Boots and Panties

The rain at Prescot Cables' game at home to Clitheroe last week rather tested my clothing. I still had to visit a waterproof trouser shop, and I also found my boots, after several years service, had sprung a leak. I went shopping during the week ready for our FA Trophy home game to Stalybridge Celtic.

I need not have worried, as the weather turned out to be fairly uneventful with only a few spots of rain. However it was quite windy, and the trousers sold themselves, with justification, as windproof too.

This turned out to be a fairly defensive game that can be a bit difficult to photograph and write about. We started playing, as usual when we win the toss, towards the Safari Park End so I divided my time between the two sides of the goal. We came close to scoring, hitting the post, and a solid defence kept the visitors at bay.

Louis Coyne, Man of the Match

I always keep an eye out for the sponsors - they are paying to be seen after all - and with the North West Roadshow banner back in place at the end they have sponsored, I took the opportunity of the better conditions this week to crop a few pictures to get it in.

Josef Faux

This was the last game before the clocks go back, and the pitch had a decidedly autumnal covering from the trees at the back of the ground.

Jordan Southworth prepares to take a corner

The second half started with a good save from Marcus Burgess denying the visitors, and our finding the woodwork again.

Low light started to push the ISO settings up.

Jordan Wynne

James Sloane made his first appearance from the bench.

James Sloane

One of the substitutes for the visitors came from famous footballing roots - Jake Charles is the grandson of the great Welsh international player John Charles.

Jake Charles

Neither side was able to break the stalemate, making for our first 0-0 draw of the season.

After this game there were presentations, with Louis Coyne being the Man of the Match, Harry Cain picking up a delayed Player of the Month award for September after a bit of a mix up closing the poll, and James McCulloch collecting his award for 300 appearances.

Harry Cain

The rest of the pictures from the game can be seen on the club website here, and on Google Photos here.

Final score: Prescot Cables 0 Stalybridge Celtic 0

When Sunday comes

I am not keen on commercial football on a Sunday. I am happy with occasional recreational or charity games, but Saturday for football and Sunday for church seems a good division to me. Unfortunately, with ground shares, some games have to move, which happened with Prescot Cables' FA Cup First Qualifying Round game away to FC United of Manchester, currently playing at Stalybridge Celtic. I am not sure it was a necessary clash, this round of the Cup was drawn before Stalybridge's league fixtures, so it would have been possible to give the landlords an away fixture. Not that the FA are even capable of doing that for a team's own fixtures, a couple of years ago Dulwich Hamlet were given a fixture on the weekend of the second qualifying round of the FA Trophy against opponents who had already drawn a bye to that round.

Fortunately, I was able to make it to the game after my church duties. At this level, if you spot someone in team colours, you can assume they are going to the match and safely go in the same direction. There were a few home supporters on my train, so I was in something of a procession, even if I joined the part that stopped for a sandwich at Tesco on the way.

I initially thought the programme was a slim volume, but it was mostly content, and a decent amount of it. Wires may have been crossed between our clubs on our information, as they listed most of our current squad, but still had Dave Powell as manager - and included a picture of Shaun Reid. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

Stalybridge is a much better ground for FC United's crowds, usually around the 2000 mark, than their previous home at Bury: using all sides of the ground makes for a better atmosphere for home and visiting supporters. They had their usual collection of banners - printed ...

James Cairns

... and a bit more hand made.

Joe Evans

Whilst this blog approves of the catering choices expressed, sources tell me a prawn sandwich was spotted in the board room, although I am not sure if the landlords manage the food supply. There was a sweet stall, so I bought some good old fashioned pear drops - the roof of my mouth should grow back in a couple of weeks.

The home team's shirts had a retro feel, with no advertising apart from the League sponsor, and a shade of red less vivid than many available on today's synthetic fabrics, that gives the look of a traditional cotton shirt. Modernity is represented by the socks.

Sam Corlett

FC United have held a strong position in the Premier Division for some years, so they were always the favourites. It is quite possible to upset the league order if everything goes right and you catch the higher placed team on an off day: I watched Worthing doing precisely that against an injury hit Dulwich Hamlet the previous day. There was to be no upset today, with what looked as though it would be four goals without reply.

We hoped for a penalty when Jack Phillips was brought down, but the photographic evidence suggests the referee was correct in awarding a free kick. Supporters are usually watching the player, and see him land in the area, whereas the referee is trained to look at the feet, which are what matter in determining a foul and its location.

Jack Phillips is brought down ...

... and Mark Kilroy takes the free kick

However, Jon Bathurst came forward with a long range shot scoring a last minute consolation goal.

Jon Bathurst

At 1,001 the crowd was one of the the best of the round, and the share of the gate receipts will provide a welcome injection to club funds, but this was 45% down on FC United's League crowd this season. Dulwich Hamlet's crowd against Worthing was a quarter down on the average - partly due to less interest in the Cup, and partly to League figures including all season ticket holders. However, some of the drop must be due to the timing - for supporters at our level, Sunday is often for something other than football. In later rounds drawn two weeks before the game, this is unavoidable, but the fixture compilers could have avoided it here.

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

Final score: FC United of Manchester 4, Prescot Cables 1 (Bathurst)