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Blues Eye View
SATURDAY could be a historic day
for.Clitheroe EG as they stand on the verge of winning'the title.
iiWith Mossley playing their final game of the season at home to Rams- bottom on Saturday,* there could be real cause for, celebration at 4^-45 p:m Saturday night. \
. s Regardless of:results, however]
there is still every reason to stay a t the club after the game.
- As it is the'final home fixture of the season; an open invite is issued to
; everyone .‘to have a ’drink with playi; ers; committee and fans in the club house immediately after the game. ,■/
Ian.Townson] who undertookhis tour of football league grounds last
year, will be auctioning off all his merchandise that he picked up dur ing his week-long trip.
' Contributions from Burnley,-
jBlackburmRovers'andfManchester .United are included in what should
be an entertaining evening.
Entry.is free, and while stocks lasfcl
the club' will also be offering free pie' and peas to anyone attending.
:yJf the"club can also,secure7 the championship a t the weekend, it
^promises to^be:a'gre'at:evenirig’s ‘ entertaimnent///-":';'V}*-; ,
-The reserve team also have the
opportunity to get their hands pnsil- verware on Wednesday night when; they play-Glossop North'End in the; Reserve Division Cup Pinal. ';
j /T h e team were awarded a final
place, before their semi-final replay, with Woodley Sports when Woodley] were .expelled fromthe competition for, fielding aninelig£ble~player.:m'^ • The final is to be held at Ashton Town and kicks off at 6-30 p.m., so
: the best of luck to Lee Boyer and his squad.
With the t it le still undecided,
another victory, on Saturday is cru cial, and hopefully the local people will come and support th e team as
.they make a final push towards glory. Andy Alston
Match action - page 62
League tables - page 31
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% Tennis Clitheroe close in on title by Adrian Capstick
SHAWBRIDGE is simmer ing in anticipation of the “biggest step in the history of Clitheroe Football Club.” That is how Saturday’s title
decider - the last home game of the season - is being billed by player-boss Lee Sculpher. And as the game against
Newcastle Town draws ever closer, the excitement in the Clitheroe camp is nearing boiling point. Victory will ensure the
North West Counties First Division title, with the club already assured promotion to a level of football Clitheroe has never seen before. So the club are calling on
Clitheroe to befit a memo rable occasion with a memo rable attendance. Last Saturday’s home game
saw 280 in attendance, and this week the club want to see double that number. Tuesday’s 2-0 victory over
Ramsbottom United teed up the spectacle, and saw the Blues return to the summit of the league, knowing that vic tory on home soil will clinch the title. And Sculpher can’t wait for
Saturday's momentous occa sion to start. He said: “I’m sure there will be a few sleep less nights before now and Saturday. ‘But come the weekend, we
will be ready for the biggest step in Clitheroe’s history.” However Saturday’s game
will prove a battle, as the team from Staffordshire also
LEE SCULPHER
have a shout at promotion if they secure fifth spot. Due to Fleetwood not mak
ing the necessary require ments for UniBond ground status, Newcastle are in a tus sle with Warrington, Alsager Town and Curzon Ashton for the final spot. So Sculpher is hoping
tonight’s League Challenge Cup Final game between Newcastle and Bacup Bor ough will take it’s toll. He said: “Newcastle can
still finish fifth, and if they have applied for UniBond sta tus, then they will be looking to promotion with us. “So it’s all to play for this
Saturday. “They have a tough League Challenge Cup Final game
before Saturday and we’ll happily take any advantage at this stage. “And I ’d ju s t love th a t
game to go to extra time and then penalties!” As well as Tuesday’s away
win, Saturday’s 4-1 victory over Congleton has to be one of the side’s best perfor mances this season - some thing the Blues boss puts down to team spirit. “We’ve had a good three or
four days performance-wise and spirits are high,’’admitted a proud Sculpher. “Great character has been
shown by the lads over the last 10 days, as these games have proven to be the hardest of the season. He added: “Tuesday was a
hard derby game at Ramsbot tom, and we were very com mitted. We have just got to keep going and going and that’s just what we did. “We just wore them down
and gained more and more possession as the game went on. “A team in our position can
become frightened when they go a goal in front, but we kept our composure. “We don’t go out intention
ally looking for just a 1-0 win, because as a coach I know th a t a swift deflection can change the course of a game, so to score four against Con gleton was a great testament to the lads.” However Clitheroe fans will
not be the only individuals interested in the outcome of Saturday’s game, as over
Cavaliers sign-off season
Kirby Lonsdale .............10 Clitheroe Cavaliers . . . .29 IN their last fixture of the season, the Cavaliers were determined to finish the sea son on a high. And with several players on
firs t team duty due to injuries, skipper Rowley was forced to make changes at key positions. Craig English played only
his second game of the season a t scrum half, powerhouse Oldroyd took up the number eight slot, and veteran Mur ray, hooking, and Hitchin and McClone completed the back row. In the backs, Gretton
returned to full back, and Rowlev switched to flv half.
The reformed pack took
hold early on and totally dominated the scrum, with Murray striking two against the head, while Thomber and Hitchin took the share of the lineout ball.
Nineteen-year-old scrum
half English was first on the scoresheet with a smart prob ing run from the base of the scrum, shrugging off two would-be tacklers and scoring a fine try under the posts. Kirby replied within min utes after a well-worked move
from the backs resulted in a try.
Clitheroe countered, and
skipper Rowley insisted the ball was to be moved wide at everv opDortunitv.
Then in true Cavalier style,
a move started deep within the Clitheroe half, and ended with 18-year-old Rob Hamlen dis playing his blistering pace to sprint 70 metres for a fine try. After half-time, with all to
play for, Kirby came close to scoring several times, but the solid Cavalier defence held firm.
Winger David Byrne was
unlucky not to score, but showed his potential with some strong running. McClone was next on the
scoresheet, and shortly after Oldroyd broke from a ruck and powered his way over from 25 metres. By this time Clitheroe were home and drv. but Nick
Hutchinson was forced from the field of play after a leg
injury sustained during heroic tackling. What followed was nothing
short of miraculous as McClone added his second, then with a man down, Clitheroe held off the Kirby attack until the dying moments, when the home side grabbed a consolation try. This was an emphatic win
at the end of a year of suc cessful rebuilding, with many
new and young players com ing through. Next season the Cavaliers
will be looking to strengthen even further. Anyone interest ed in joining should contact Mick Rowlev (427106).
recent weeks several Mossley fans have made themselves known at Blues matches. But Sculpher insists his side
take great pleasure in playing against the heckling. He said: “Mossley have
shown a keen interest in our games, and I ’m sure Rams bottom were greatful for their support on Tuesday. “I t’s been exciting playing
in front of their fans as they’ve been harrassing our players, which has had a posi tive effect as it only reinforces the strong character the lads possess. “I t ’s now up to me and
Martin Eatough to make sure that the players are relaxed, ready and collected for Satur day.”
Sculpher has a full squad
and will, no doubt have, every player vying for a place on the pitch come 3 p.m. He said: “Everyone is fit
and available for selection. “Over the past few weeks
I ’ve had a full 18 a t my dis posal, and I ’ve had to leave some players out of the 14- man selection. “But since the beginning of
the season, every single play er has contributed to the cause and worked exception ally hard to see us to where we
are now - 1 can’t praise them enough. “They’ve been knocked
down with defeats but have got up, dusted themselves down and shown true bottle. “And hopefully this game
will be the culmination of all that effort.”
THE first round of the East Lancashire Open League Tennis Knockout tournament saw Clitheroe A team pitted against their own B team. The game ended in a
predictably comfortable 4- 0 victory for the senior @ pairings. Derek Parrott and Phil
Mileham showed signs of ^ early-season rustiness with W Mileham especially profli- eg* gate at the net.
^ This enabled their
unfancied opponents Barry Taylor and Robert Brass to edge an early lead at 4-3 in the first set, with Brass appearing to have wintered well. However, the top pairing
then hit their true form and reeled off the last nine games to win 6-4,6-0. In the other match, the
familiar duo of Stephen Pym and Tony Bush found spirited resistance in the shape of Steve Higson and John Calvert, who was particularly unfortu nate with a number of net cords going against him. The final score of 6-3,6-
4 confirmed the B team’s X commitment but was not. enough to secure the 5 much-needed victory.
q In the return rubbers,
Parrott and Mileham were now in the groove and ® closed out their match 6-1, 6-2, while Pym and Bush ™ also stayed firm to record a 6-3, 6-1 victory to see Clitheroe A into the finals. Meanwhile, the summer
schedule is starting to take
