78 Clitheroe Advertiser & Times, September 30th, 2004
Glitheroe go off the boil - but hold on for victory
Clitheroe RUFC . . . . .19 Carnforth ....................12 AS opposed to last season, when Clitheroe didn't wake up in many games until i t was too late, this season seems to be follow ing th e reverse trend - starting well, notching up points, then going off the boil in the second half. This happened yet
again on Saturday, three tries to the good a t half- time,' hut with no further
- improvement a f te r the interval. But a win is a win, and
skipper Dave Watson, despite having to retire injured during the game, was quietly satisfied with the result. Once again th e back
' line was unchanged, and there are clear signs of them beginning to gel as a unit. However, i t was Carn
forth who were first on the scoresheet, scoring under the posts. This got the Littlemoor
men's gander up and they were soon marching for ward into enemy territo ry, the pack making the hard yards with some powerful driving mauls. Then, exploiting the
p a ^ a r row side well from a '*^scrum, big wingman Ed Hacking bulldozed his way through several would-be tacklers for the opening score, and N a th an Peel was true with the extras to tie up the scores. Not to be outdone, it
was then the turn of the opposite winger, Alex Hough, to get his name on the score sheet. This time, some close,
K*?- duicb ruck ball was spun ^ - out wide, and the young s te r had the pace and space to win the race for the line. The vis itors , visibly rocking at the onslaught.
were now seeming a t the mercy of Clitheroe. Hacking again powered
over the line, but in trying to over-embellish the situ a tio n , by going round under the posts, he got pushed over the dead ball line. After some black looks
from the skipper and coach, he made up for it, in repeating his earlier effort, smashing his way over for the Littlemoor team's try number three. Peel again converted
and Clitheroe were sitting pretty, 19-7 up a t the break. A forced reshuffle with
Jim Moody moving to scnun half, for the by-now departed captain, with Russell Shiels replacing him a t full back, seemed to deprive the back line some of it’s fluidity. But with both flanker
Allan Nutta ll and lock Bob Wilkinson being replaced by Richie Edmundson and Ed Thornber respectively, some extra impetus was expected up front. Though it is safe to say
th a t the visiting pack never got on top of the home eight, they did manage to score a close- range consolation try late on.
Even when the visitors
had a man in the sin-bin, Clitheroe weren't able to make the extra man count. Perhaps they need to be
more ruthless and focused in dispatching sides for the full 80 minutes. They will certainly
need to be in future out ings, starting this Satur day when they travel to unbeaten Garstang. Charley 2 n d s ............7 Clitheroe 2 n d s ..........42 CLITHEROE Cavaliers gave the first team selec tors something to think
about with this impres sive victory. The seconds s ta r ted
well, with an early try fol lowing a spell of hard- tackling which pres surised Chorley into giv ing up possession and eventually relinquishing the game. James McAloonan cre
ated Clitheroe's first five points, and a quick suc cession of good handling led to two try advantages, which saw Danny Glover claim his first. However, the home side
rallied, and Chorley scored their only t ry of the game following a lapse in the Clitheroe defence. The locals re-grouped
though, and Glover claimed his second try. Converted cricketer
Simon Coulter played with the confidence of a seasoned professional in just his second outing by scoring two well-earned tries. And young full back
Craig English then scored after Brian Woods' good work put him in the clear. Scotsman Russell Shells
then scored a corker after beating five would-be tacklers with an awesome tu rn of pace to score under the posts. The rout was then com
pleted with possibly the try of the season from the effervescent McAloonan, who picked up a loose ball at the base of the scrum, and, finding a wall of defenders, kicked the ball out of the 22, before re gathering to run unop posed under the posts. In the absence of regu
lar captain Mick Rowley, vice-captain Mark Jack- son was inspirational a t the helm, insisting th e policy of “run the ball at every opportunity” was upheld in Rowley's absence.
Locals forced to pull out of new badminton season before start
CLITHEROE D team have had to pull out of the new badminton season before their campaign had even begun. They join two other sides, Salesbury A
from the F i r s t Division and fellow Fourth Division side Olympic B, as all three have been forced to resign from playing in the Blackburn and District Badminton Association League due to a lack of interested players. And now many clubs are asking why
' ^ This matter was debated a t the Annu-
' ^ al General Meeting in June, and there was a unanimous vote that the current team standings would remain.
Clubs were warned that there would If;
be a problem this coming season, and this has already proven to be the case. Independent Badminton Club have publicly made known that they are now
the Association didn't change the size of teams to six players to combat the lack of new players.
in a position that they may be forced to withdraw altogether, meaning that two further teams could leave. So future fixtures very much hang in
the balance, and will be decided on Fri day, October 8th a t the Association's committee meeting. However, in the local games th a t did
get underway. Third Division Clitheroe A, who were relegated last season, start ed their campaign for promotion against Abacus B. The locals didn't allow their opponents
to se ttle down, and although th ey dropped two mixed doubles and lost a single men’s doubles game, Clitheroe continued the pressure to record a confi dent victory. And Salesbury, who have lost all but
one of their first team players - the rea son for dropping their A team - were comfortable winners against struggling club Independent B.
y Clithcroc Tennis Club trophy-winning members on their presentation night. (A240904/8b) o
Clitheroe Tennis Club, winners of the Junior East Lancashire League Trophy, from left, Andrew Hartley, Will Aspinall, Mark Higson and Jennifer Holgate. (A240904/8a)
Chairman Mary is biggest success story as Clitheroe Tennis Club hail winners
CLITHEROE Tennis Club chairman Mary Brass presided over the club’s annual presentation evening last Friday, a t which professional coach Iain Taylor was the guest of honour. With the season wind
ing down after a hectic summer. Brass paid trib ute to the work that Tony Cross has been doing behind the scenes, as the club looks to fashion its vision for the future. While she concentrated
on the achievements of other members of the club
in her address, there was no hiding from the fact that the biggest individu al success story of the summer belonged to Mary herself. Not only did she man
age a clean sweep of club knockout tournaments to keep the trophy engravers
■ busy, but she also proved herself as one of the top lady tennis players in East Lancashire by win ning the East Lancashire individual ladies’, singles t i t le in a one-sided encounter against Kirsty Kern from Towneley.
The other major
achievement of the sum mer belonged to the jimior A team, which once again took the honours in the East Lancs Junior League, in the face of fierce opposition from Burnley Tennis Club. The young B team
demonstrated that they are ready to fill the shoes of their A team counter parts by holding their own in mid-table. One of the end of sea
son prizes that is held in greatest esteem by the club members is the most
improved junior player. ■This year the runner-up
was Clare Higson, while Taylor awarded the trO' phy to Rachel Cornish. So with the hopes of the
club in the hands of such eager youngsters, the future looks very bright indeed. Meanwhile, the mixed
A and B teams, as well as the open A team, finished a creditable third in their divisions, while the open B team struggled some what in the Third Divi sion.
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Blues defensive record out of the window
by Adrian Capstick
Clitheroe.........................® Kendal Town ............5 AS games go, this was poor by anyone's standards ^ Clitheroe suffered their heaviest home defeat for
some time. The locals have been
shored up by their defen sive displays all season, but Tuesday night displayed that if the back four have an off night, then the whole team suffer as a con
sequence. Lee Sculpher's men saw
their back line exposed after just 14 minutes when Dave Foster latched onto a diagonal cross into the area to put Kendal ahead. I t soon became quite
clear why the visitors had, going into this game, scored 18 goals and con ceded 18, as they poured forward but looked equally as exposed at the back in the opening exchanges. But yet again the Blues
failed to capitalise on their opportunities, with Lee Cryer twice going close early on only to smash
over and into the side net ting. And after th a t, the
locals proved unable to find a winning formula in the Kendal half as they ignored the wings to play everything through the middle in the hope tha t Glyn Barker or Cryer could craft a goal. As a result, the rest of
the first half proved to be all long ball tactics, with a Barker header over the bar the only real sight of goal. However, it was the sec ond half th a t stunned
Clitheroe. After just two minutes,
Kendal exposed the same frailties that led to their first when a diagonal ball from the right flank caught both Chris Nestor and Sculpher unawares, and Kenny Mayers nipped in to make it 2-0. A third soon followed
from Dene Whittal- Williams when the tall centre back beat everyone in the air to nod home a Kendal comer. And on the hour, Ricky Mercer struck goal num
ber four from the edge of the area to beat Kris Richens. The Blues were carved
open and continued to take further punishment as Kendal netted a fifth. ' Kendal midfielder Rus sell McKenna combined well with Foster to see the former go untroubled to net Kendal's final goal from just inside the area. Both Robbie Smith and
Steve McDonald forced the visiting keeper into saves late on, but Clitheroe were well and tmly beaten.
lEEiaiSf CHANCES: Lee Cryer Todhunter’s penalty miss proves crucial by Adrian Capstick
Clitheroe.....................0 Kidsgrove Athletic . . . .7
SATURDAY saw Clitheroe return to their UniBond First Division fixtures with a bump as Kidsgrove Athletic ended their seven-match unbeat
en run. The Blues have made
themselves hard to beat - their goals against column underlining th a t fact - but 10-man Kidsgrove proved th a t they too know how to defend. After last week's FA
Cup success against all odds at Wakefield-Emley,
Glyn Barker
this game saw the tables turned as the Blues found themselves unable to pen etrate Athletic, despite the visitors having a man sent off. The locals dominated
the second half with some of the most attack-niind- ed football they have dis played all season, as man ager Lee Sculpher revert ed to three at the back. But despite all their
efforts, and most notably a Stuart Todhunter penal ty miss, Clitheroe couldn't retrieve the fixture. The game had been fairly evenly matched
until Kidsgrove centre back Andy Thomas was sent from the field on 35 minutes for unnecessarily kicking out at Lee Cryer. But before the Blues
had time to make full use of this advantage, Kids grove broke the deadlock at the most pivotal point of the game. Right on the stroke of
half-time, Steve McDon ald gave away a crucial free kick on the edge of the Blues' box, and visit ing midfielder Ryan Baker comfortably tucked it away. At half-time, Clitheroe
manager Sculpher made some distinct attacking changes, substituted him self, and sent out a side th a t pushed forward a t every opportunity. And i t was from this
style of football th a t Cryer thrived, making a welcome return to the side after five games out with injury. I t was his trickery,
teamed with a threaded through ball from Glyn Barker, that brought the penalty. Barker had received the
ball, with his back to goal, from Barrie Hart, before
weaving a pass through to Cryer, who rounded the keeper only to be hauled to the ground. However, the ball didn't
ripple the back of the net, as Kidsgrove keeper Stew a r t Heeps, who didn't even receive a warning for his foul on Cryer, saved Todhunter's initial shot, as well as the rebound. Several scrambles
ensued in the Kidsgrove area after th is golden opportunity, but the Blues failed to convert. Paul Stansfield made
his return to the side and had a shot blocked by
Heeps, and Barker was unlucky not to convert the rebound when i t would have been easier to score. I t just wasn't to be, but
new signing Robbie Smith, joining the Blues from Rossendale United, had a strong debut on the right wing, and several regulars returned from injury. Unfortunately Gary
Jackson was out injured, and i t showed, as Clitheroe have come to rely on his goalscoring ability.
Six of the best for Clitheroe Wolves in away win
Rossendale U td ............0 Wolves Under 10s..........6 WOLVES won their first away game of the season by netting six of the best against fellow Accrington League side Rossendale. They dominated the first
half, but the Rossendale keeper made some fine saves. ■ George Hutchinson
opened the scoring with a close range shot into the roof of the net, and Jack Haslam made it 2-0 from the penalty spot after his shot was handled on the line.
V. The Wolves followed this up in the second half, giv ing the home defence prob lems throughout. Goals from Andy Rams-
den, Tom Robinson, Joe Gallagher and a second for George Hutchinson made sure of all three points. Keeper Ashley Moran
was rarely troubled, as defenders Connor Hitchen and then Bobby Capstick niade sure there were no chances of shots on target. Jake Lloyd was excellent
in midfield, and the man- -Pf-the-match deservedly Went to Joe Gallagher for nis tireless running and
unselfish passing. Wolves Rangers V12s . . .3 Akso Juniors Orange . . .6
WOLVES can think them selves unlucky to have lost this match. Although they went 3-0
down early on through two break away strikes and an own goal, the locals made a great comeback. Two goals in as many
minutes in the second half gave Wolves hope, as Declan Bradshaw scored the first from a superb cross from Nick Wright. And the second came
when a long through ball was fed to the feet of Mark Davies, who ran 25 yards before chipping a delightful shot over the advancing goalkeeper from the edge of the area. Akzo responded well,
and five minutes later a back pass from George Nelson was picked up by Wolves keeper Aaron Booth, and the resulting free kick was slotted horne. Akzo then scored again, before Bradshaw netted his second to give Wolves
hope. But then a long punt up
field led to a controversial oenaltv. and Akzo's last
goal, when Wolves keeper Booth was adjudged to have upended the Akzo centre forward. Man-of-the-match was
Booth. Wolves Under 10s......... 4 Langho Junior Blue----3 THE Wolves started their new season with a fine win over Langho Junior Blue. Playing their home fix
tures at Grindleton, the Wolves went into a 2-0 lead through Andy Ramsden and Louis Horrocks, before the Langho boys came right back into the game to
level at 2-2. The Wolves once again
took the lead through Ramsden, but the visitors never gave up and
equalised. However, the Wolves had
the last say when Ramsden completed his hat-trick to
give the Wolves a 4-3 victo-
ry. Rishton Uid R e d ......... 5 Wolves Under 10s......... 0 t h e second week of the
season saw the Wolves come back down to earth with a massive bump as they were soundly beaten by Rishton United Red. They never got into the
game and were three goals
down within seven minutes. They did improve after
the break, but were still no match for the skilful home team. Bobby Capstick was
Clitheroe’s man-of-the- match for his non-stop work in defence. Wolves Under 10s..........1 Fulledge Colts............. .0 THIS was Wolves' best performance to date, with an exciting home win over Fulledge Colts. The only goal of a
thrilling . end-to-end encounter was scored by Jack Haslam with a great header from a Tom Robinson cross. Against a very skilful
visiting team, the Wolves showed their potential with a fine all-round team effort, including one excellent save from keeper Ashley Moran at 0-0. Jake Lloyd was
nominated the Wolves’ man-of-the-match, but all the players contributed to the victory. Wolves Girls Open age .21 Rossendale Ladies........1 A FANTASTIC double hat-trick from Vicky Smith, backed bv four
goals from Karen
Hanson, guided Wolves’ Girls to a mammoth victory. Further
excellent
football saw Joanne Green and Chelsea Crook net three apiece, with a brace each for Sarah Ronnan and Carly Thomas, and one from Sara Forrest. Overall, this was a team
fantastic performance from the
girls. Wolves Under 15s.......... 5 Baxenden Villa..............0 THE Wolves put in another fine performance to beat Baxenden Villa Early exchanges gave
the impression that the game would be a tight affair, but once Wolves took the lead through Henri Lawson, the result never looked in doubt. And when Ben Allen
co\nverted a penalty, after James Dickinson had been upended in the box, the result looked a certainty. Shortly after half-time
Wolves scored again through Nick Parkinson, with a fine shot from the edge of the box.
Then Lawson and
Parkinson both managed to grab second goals to complete the scoring. M a n -o f - th e -m a tch
went to Simon Holden. Barrowford Ce ltic........3 ' Wolves Under 11s Blue . .3 WOLVES played the first 10 minutes of this game as if they were still in their pyjamas. As after a horror show
of bad passes, shocking defending and powder- puff tackling, the locals found themselves 3-0 down, with Barrowford appearing to be able to score at will. However the visitors’
third goal appeared to waken Wolves from their sleep, and they began to play their way back into the game, and finished the half by creating a number of chances. After a half-time pep-
talk, the local youngsters began the second half as if their, lives depended on it.
Mullin,
Midfielders Alex Michael
Tomlinson, and Zeno Leoni, took a firm grip of the game, and Tomlinson got the first goal after
good work from Leoni. Leoni then added a
second midway through the second half after good work form Mullin, as Wolves dominated the play. Wolves then laid siege
to the Barrowford goal in search of the equaliser. But the Barrowford
keeper was in inspired form, using every part of his body to keep the ball out, and when it went past him, the woodwork came to his aid. So with seconds Calum
remaining,
O’Connell cut the ball back across the box, and Daniel McGrath fired a fierce shot through a ruck of bodies into the comer of the net, and the Wolves supporters went wild. Credit to Wolves for a
stirring fight back, with special mention to Alex McDonald, who added some defensive solidity when he came on, and debut keeper Robert Douglas, who was blameless for the goals, and produced some fine saves.
Clitheroe Advertiser & Times, September 30th, 2004 79
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