■ 62 Clitheroe Advertiser & Times, February 3rd, 2005


www.clitheroetoday.co.uk


Missed chances costly for Blues!


Clilheroe........................1 Woodley S p o r ts ........... 1 THE old adage of two points lost rather than a point won doesn't do jus­ tice to how Clitheroe allowed victory to slip from their grasp in this game. Chances on goal were


plentiful, hat-tricks could have been had by several players and th a t 's not including the two penalty calls th a t d id n 't go the -Blues' way. Gary Jackson did mark


his return to the team with a great goal though in the 36th minute which, typi­ cally, was the least likely opportunity to score all game. He picked up a diagonal through ball from John Paul Fagan and rifled a fierce shot past John Scargill from 15 yards out. Unlike the numerous


chances th a t were to fol­ low, if this shot had missed it would have been quickly dismissed and the game


'^'moved on, but in Byron's own words it was “crimi-


Jackson then had a


header go wide of the post, and all of this happening before the Blues took the lead before half-time. However, the most con­


troversial moment of the half came when Paul Stansfield was scythed in half in the area by a Woodley centre back, who left his stud marks to prove it. Curiously a penalty wasn't given - but i t wouldn't be the only decision ruled against Clitheroe. The second half saw fur­


ther chances squandered and, typically, as the door was left open for Woodley to get back in, the south Manchester side capi­ talised on Clitheroe's only lapse in concentration. Woodley striker Paddy


Gary Jackson


n a l” the number of chances Clitheroe spurned. Neil Spencer enjoyed


the best opportunities of the first half. He was put through only to shoot


early and have his weak shot saved then he got his head to a Fagan cross after diving in the six-yard box only to see his effort bob­ ble wide.


Wilson ghosted in past Russell Clark and quickly had the ball in the back of net in the 64th minute. But recompense at the


other end was sought five minutes later by Jackson only the ball again eluded the back of the net.


Having tracked down


Woodley's last man, got between the defender and the keeper before rounding the latter, Jackson went to ground. Whether or not he was tripped by the keeper and i t was a penalty is debatable but it was defi­ nitely a great opportunity to seal the game and the effort deserved a goal. Kris Richens had to pull


off a great save a t the other end off Damien Morrison, but the action quickly returned to the Woodley area when Jack- son had another shot deflected over. And then from a


Spencer shot Jackson scrambled to claw the ball over the line but it just would not squeeze in the right side of the post. This was a command­


ing, creative, somewhat frustrating display from the Blues, that well and truly hammers home the importance of a killer fin­ ish.


ADRIAN CAPSTICK Locals slump to heavy reverse


Old Bedians RUFC . J8 Clitheroe RUFC ___ 12 OUTCLASSED and out­ flanked, Clitheroe slumped to a heavy reverse at the hand of strong Didsbury side Old Bedians. Too much pace on the


wide outside and ultimate­ ly too much power up front, was the hallmark of this disappointing defeat. With the regular skipper


unavailable, it was Andrew Rigby who took up the captain's armband for this one. With Nathan Peel moving to the scrum half berth and youngsters William Tattersall and Joe Newton coming into the back line, and the pack stuffed full of familiar faces, the team was quietly optimistic of their chances.


^ ■ However old habits cer- 'ta in ly die hard for this team, after spending the first half hour bogged down in th e ir own 22 it was hardly surprising that the defence would eventu­ ally be breached. But on the all too rare


foray out of their half, Clitheroe looked quite dan-


i.C-


* gerous. A lovely individual break by centre John Goodwin, with a chip and chase followed by an old fashioned foot rush, saw him bag his tiy. Peel was on cue with the conversion. The early second half was Clitheroe's best peri­


od, putting pressure on the Bedians line. And after a protracted series of driv­ ing mauls and rucks from the forwards, Tattersall sneaked in round the


fringes for his tory. This was as good as it


got. The longer the game progressed the stronger Bedians became, and con­ versely, the more tired


Clitheroe looked. All the earlier defending took its toll in the last 15 minutes, when they shipped a few too many soft tries, which perhaps gave the score a


slightly unfair slant. The first home match of


the new year for the senior XV is this Saturday when Old Salians are the visitors to Littlemoor.


Solid defence sets up first victory


Rossendale....................0 Clitheroe Buccaneers 17 UNABLE to play the match at Littlemoor as planned the Clitheroe Buc­ caneers Under 15s squad had to travel to a gloomy and gusty Rossendale for the fixture to go ahead. The change of venue


however did not bring about a change in attitude or commitment from the young players as they fought hard for victory against a more experi­ enced side. This, their first victory


was set upon the rock of tenacious defence, high work rate, superb attitude and the pride of donning the maroon and gold jer­ sey of the town's team. With a fierce tackling


style similar to that of his older brother Joe, Alex Newton put a stop to any Rossendale attempts of making ground, while up front, the rest of the pack made easy work of steal­ ing possession. This allowed the ball to


find itself in the hands of an exceptionally talented Clitheroe back line headed by fly half Elliot Art- ingstoll, making numerous breaks past his opposite man but unable to find his way over the whitewash. It was strong running


from outside centre Joe Lee th a t put the first points on the board for the Buccaneers with Art- ingstoll just falling short with the conversion. Rossendale soon began


to fight back though, and through good defence, kept Clitheroe from scor­ ing any more in the remainder of the first half. After the break was a


different story as the pack, led by captain Rob Ash­ worth, playing his first game a t number eight, piled on the pressure ensuring th a t Clitheroe would get over the Rossendale line again. This time it was in the


form of a cheeky blind side move by scrum half Jack McKeima setting up winger


Charles Campbell in the comer. With the ^vmd not in favour, Clitheroe were again unlucky not to convert but there would be further opportunity later in the game. Finally, with only min­


utes of the match remain­ ing, Clitheroe went further ahead with Newton power­ ing his way through the Rossendale defence to score under the posts. This time Artingstoll was successful with the boot adding a v ital two points to the tally. Man-of-the-match was try scorer Joe Lee. Putting victory behind,


and with a home derby against Colne and Nelson looming ever closer, fur­ ther hard work is needed over the next few weeks. Training resumes 10-15 a.m. on Sunday morning at Clitheroe Rugby Club, Littlemoor. Meanwhile the Under


10s team put up an excel­ lent performance with five tries, two each from Saul Hemingway and man-of-


the-match Sam Grooby plus another from Johnny Bailey, but just fell short of the target required to beat an experienced Rossendale side. Their team mates in the


Under 12s squad did not fare so well, with one or two quite exceptionally fast Rossendale players making it very difficult for Clitheroe to defend effec­ tively. And a strong front row made forward progres­ sion equally challenging. There was however


some good determined ball play from Clitheroe, one move resulting in a try from Sam Higson, and the team are adding to their match experience all the time. Tom Walton and Sam Higson were the side's star players. For more information on


Clitheroe Buccaneers visit www.clitheroerugby.co.uk, contact Declan O'Duffy in the evening or at the week­ end (01200 428292) or ring the Buccaneers Club Hot­ line (07930335806)


Clitheroe 422324 (Editorial), 422323 (Advertising), Burniey 422331 (Classified) Blues Eye View


SATURDAY’S game was another story of missed opportunities for the Biues as our inability to put the bail in the back of the net and kill teams off was once


more exposed. The only real difference between this performance


and previous games was that we did create chances. Quite often this season we have missed one or two


golden chances that could have turned the game in our favour, but on Saturday we could have been four or five in front by half-time.


- After Lee Cryer and Craig Sargeson were given


scraps to feed off in the last two games, Neil Spencer and Gary Jackson both could have boosted their goalscoring tally for the season with the opportunities


they had. • John Paul Fagan provided a creative spark in mid-


field that seems to have been missing in recent weeks, indeed he seemed to make a difference against Shep- shed the previous week when he was pushed further


forward. And with Neil Reynolds due back in a couple of


weeks it provides another headache for manager Paul


Byron. ; , Obviously he could slot Fagan back in at left back,


but hopefiilly we can sign a naturally left-footed player


to plug that gap. Lennie Reid made his debut on Saturday, and is a


player worth another look I feel. He didn’t set the left wing alight but showed several nice touches and will no doubt improve with that game


under his belt The lack of new faces, despite much work from


Byron is a cause for concern but as we have said all season, if we can stay in this league then the close sea­ son may bring more joy in attracting new players to the club. There is certainly more work to be done for Byron


and we will only be able to see what he can bring to the club when he is successful in signing some much need­ ed new blood. Hopefully we can gain some reward from our long


trek to Spalding on Saturday and keep the daylight between ourselves and the clubs below us.


" Pool league’s


annual meeting THE Clitheroe and Dis­ trict Pool League annual meeting is to be held at the Legion on Wednesday. All nominations for


committee members should be submitted


immediately care of 8 Harewood Avenue, Simon- stone Burnley. All entries for the


Michael Humphries Tro­ phy should be sent in or brought back to the meet­ ing along with the registra­ tion fee. No entry will be permitted without the fee. The league is still having


problems with teams not phoning the result in. The score cards are sent to a separate person, it is the responsibility of the win­ ning captain to phone with the result for the bonus points. Transfer fees are also


due at the annual meeting for players who have trans­ ferred from the Rose and Crown to the Buck B to avoid points being lost. Also will the following


teams please supply score cards for the following to be included with the mer­ its for the player-of-the- year.


November 11th: Pendle


X Factors 6, Pendle B 6. November 25th: White


Horse A 3, Pendle X Fac­ tors 9; Pendle Witch 6, Pendle Hotel B 6. December 2nd: Bay Horse 6. Bridee B 6.


- B y A n d y A ls t o n . Whalley open


the floodgates Whalley Under 11s . .12 Brierfield C e l t ic .......... 1 THE floodgates were opened as Whalley swept their way to this emphatic win over a Celtic side who must be congratulated for never giving in. I t took a good 20 min­


utes before Henry Farnell opened the scoring after a powerful run into the area. After that the goals


came at a steady pace. Tom Fielding and Chris Hayes made it three before Celtic gave themselves hope by netting their only goal of the game. And then William James scored the first two of his five before the half-time break. After that it was one­


Clitheroe 422324 (Editorial), 422323 (Advertising), Burniey 422331 (Classified) Fun with


a purpose IT was fun with a purpose a t Clitheroe Dolphins’ training session this week. The swimmers decided


th a t they would like to raise money for the Tsuna­ mi Appeal by paying £1 for permission to swim in their clothes. Even more fun was had


when the juniors paid £1 each for being allow'ed to throw coach Jonathan Preston into the pool fully clothed. The event was much enjoyed by swimmers and Jonathan alike, and over £200 was raised. (s)


T— r J


www.clitheroetoday.co.uk J _


m


Clitheroe Advertiser & Times, February 3rd, 2005 63 ~rr


Rimington graft out a valuable point


I-


R im in g to n ..................0 Colne United ............. 0 RIMINGTON picked up a point in a game of few chances, with both keepers having little to do.


Eight-goal Wolves stay top of league Wolves Under 12s R e d ......... 8


Ighten L e ig h ..........................0 HAVING had three recent matches postponed in the War- burtons Youth League it was a relief that the locals were able to resume their league fixtures with a win after a six-week break. Although the victory was a


comfortable one, it was clear that the team have suffered from this break as their football was at times very disjointed and the passing moves which had graced their play in many matches in the first part of the season proved to be absent in this per­ formance. Nevertheless, the match was a


personal triumph for Clarkson who gave his best performance of the season as he scored five of the goals. His second, where he chipped the keeper, and his fourth, a curling shot from out near the right hand edge of the penalty area were extremely well executed. Astin scored two other goals,


one a header from a comer and a solo effort in the second half, before Dewhurst headed in a Clarkson corner before unfortu­ nately sustaining an ankle injury. While the result was good,


more convincing performances will be required if they are to remain on top of their league. Wolves Under 13s..................7 Haslingden ............................2 THE young Blues continued on their title challenge at the week­ end showing no mercy to their visitors from Haslingden. The game was played in excel­


way traffic in the second half as Fielding completed his hat-trick with a couple of one-on-ones with the beleaguered Brierfield ^ keeper, followed by a cracking left foot drive from Mathew Nolan. Farnell scored again


o


lent conditions and on a well- maintained pitch which is a cred­ it to the local council. This was their 10th win from


11 games having only lost to Nelson who the boys play in a top-of-the-table showdown this weekend. Wolves are ju s t two points


and Sol Wallbank netted his first of the season before James completed ,■" his five goal haul with a '■ mesmerising run into the area followed by a noncha­ lant flick past the brave Celtic keeper. With a bit more disci-


pline Whalley could have @ and should have scored many more goals. Man-of- . the.match was William - |- James.


p l p p i t i n p p O T T O


adrift on their weekend oppo­ nents with three games in hand. So a win against Nelson will put them in a comfortable position. Five goals from Charlie Col-


lenge and one each from Ben White and Jack McKenna wrapped the game up. Man-of- the-match was Mathew Docherty. Rishlon Uld B l u e .................0


cylinders. Wolves eased past a battling Rishton side. The first half was a tight affair


with Wolves keeping the ball in the Rishton half but found it dif­ ficult to create any real openings. The closest they came was when Calum O’Connell took a ball from Michael Tomlinson and beat the keeper only to see it slip past the post. Rishton were proving danger­


ous on the break but Paul Cow­ ard and Kaigan Witts kept a tight rein on their attackers. The second half began much


the same as the first, and Jack Taylor had to produce a magnif­ icent save to keep the scores level. While Zeno Leoni, who had


been having a quiet match, sud­ denly sprung forward from the half way line, beat three players and slipped the ball into the net for a tremendous goal. This lifted Wolves and they


became much more dangerous. Tom Farrar came close with two long range shots before Alex Mullin disposed the Rishton cen­ tre half and fired past the goal­ keeper. Winger Mullin was unstop­


pable and his running and cross­ ing was causing numerous prob­ lems to the Rishton defence. With a few minutes to go he


fired in another cross which was expertly finished by Alex McDonald at the far post to complete the scoring. Another clean sheet and an


excellent all-round team perfor­ mance with everyone contribut­ ing and Mullin winning the ref­ eree's man of the match. Haslingden .........................1 Wolves Under 16s...................4 KICKING into a stiff wind Wolves made a bright start that dictated the end result to this game. Just seven minutes in the


locals were rewarded when Tim Swarbrick finished with an exquisite lob from 20 yards. However, Wolves put them­


selves under tremendous pressure by not dealing with the long ball and captain James Scriven was forced to make several fine saves. But he could not do much


lFo/i;es Under 11s...................3 about the equaliser on 30 min- THE recent wet weather left the Rishton pitch in surprisingly good condition, if resembling Blackpool beach a little in places and despite never firing on full


utes as despite saving well at the feet of the Haslingden forward, his defence gifted a goal to the opposition after some bizarre, almost comical, defending.


The second half saw Wolves


dominate. Anthony Gawthorpe topped a good performance with a 30-yard rocket that near­ ly broke the post and left the keeper gobsmacked. Then Tim Swarbrick rounded off a fine performance with a well taken second. Dean Gudgeon made an unfor­


gettable debut when he gave away a penalty after some enthusiastic defending but Scriv­ en made another tremendous penalty save - his third in two games to ensure victory. The game was then wrapped


up by a Tom Rutherford volley following good work by Danny Dilworth. Kino was Man-of- the-match. Church Ju n io r s ..................0 Wolves Under 9 s ..................14 A CLEAN sheet kept by James Barsby was only one of the high­ lights of this exciting game in which a great team performance was capped off with hat-tricks from Robbie Read and Luke Nolan. The pick of the first half goals


came from a looping header by Nolan on the end of a Robbie Read cross as the right winger reigned supreme as usual. Next came the comedy


moment of the match when Dominic Telford scored when the ball bounced in off his stomach. And Oliver James followed this with two cracking goals. After the break two changes


saw Sean Duckworth come on and immediately score from a low hit shot. Then Christian Barsby bagged two goals by twisting and turning in the box after coming on the pitch with just 10 minutes remaining. A late push by Sam Buchanan,


encouraged by his team-mates, led to the final goal while David Spouse added to the attack with a few long-range shots from defence. Wolves Under 13s Blue . . . .1 Langho Ju n io r s .....................3 FAILURE to find the target ultimately cost Wolves dear in this game. Langho on the other hand had


no such problems and quickly capitalised five minutes later with two well taken goals, cou­ pled with a third towards the end of the first half. After the break both sides


started well but Wolves and Langho were guilty of failing to


take advantage when opportuni­ ties arose. King made numerous good saves and commanded his area well to prevent Langho from extending there lead. Wolves eventually scored


when Brownless ran on to a good through ball and made no mis­ take this time as he placed the ball into the top comer from out­ side the box. But with just 10 minutes left a


final a ttem p t by substitute Edmundson just passed the post to end what was a thoroughly entertaining game. Man-of-the- match was Anthony Stinson. Haslingden ............................4 Wolves Under 1 4s..................0 WOLVES took the game to their high flying hosts playing a fast passing game but despite going close the hard working locals failed to score. Tandy Binney and Finnegan


all had a ttem p ts saved well before Haslingden issued a suck­ er punch on 20 minutes when they netted with a 20-yard chip that looped over the defence and into the back of the net. Minutes later another good


move and a great finish made it 2-


0. After the break both sides


found it difficult to get on top until Haslingden took advantage of two defensive slips by Wolves to bury the game. Clitheroe did have a late surge


only to be twice denied by the Haslingden keeper. Readslone Uld .................... 2 Wolves Under 14s..................4 WOLVES came away with all the points in this local derby match thanks to some flowing football and staunch defending. As the first half wore on


Clitheroe applied pressure and took the lead through Matthew Oakley before Daniel Meyler added a second. A fluke own goal allowed


Readstone back into the game and then the home side equalised 10 minutes into the second half. Clitheroe once again had to


defend well before once again dominating procedures. Further strikes from Jay Howard and Jordan Rhodes secured the points for Clitheroe. Chris Scott was named the


manager's man-of-the-match while Ben Frankland, Matthew Oakley, Matthew Winckley and Richard Clarkson were praised for their abilities


The hosts started


brightly and were almost in front when Braith- waite’s free kick was deflected and turned round the post. The home side dominat­


ed, Mth Heald and O’Neill dangerous down the flanks, but could not find a way through. Colne’s f irs t chance


came following a mix-up in the home defence, but Kershaw spread himself well to smother the shot. Both sides struggled to


put together flowing moves on a bobbly pitch, and shots on goal were kept to a minimum. But it was Colne who


had the best chance of the second period when a free header looped onto the roof of the net. Watkins


almost


snatched the winner for Rimington, but his effort was cleared off the line. And they will hope for


better on Saturday when they travel to Settle. Enfield Reserves..........2 Riminglon Reserves . .2 WITH a 9-1 defeat in the reverse fixture between these two sides, Rimington had a lot to prove against a very capable Enfield side. New signings Stephen


Booth, Ian Czapowski and Ben Walker all started their first games for Rim­ ington this season. On a very sticky Towne-


ley pitch, the away side found themselves 1-0


down early on as the Enfield front two worked together to tap home an early advantage. But to their credit, the


young village side showed some great determination to get back in to the game and drew level when mid­ fielder Glen Dinsdale let loose a 20-yard shot which left the keeper no chance. With just 10 minutes


remaining before the break, Rimington with some sloppy defending, found themselves behind for the second time in the game as an Enfield striker headed home from half-a- yard out. In the second half a few


changes were made in per­ sonnel and formation resulting in Rimington drawing level. A poor clearance by the Enfield keeper fell kindly for Scott Brunker who with an open goal in front of him coolly' slotted home for his second goal in as many games. As the game wore on the


Accrington side became more and more frustrated by the village side's stub­ bornness. And with the recent result between the two teams still fresh in their minds the game ended with the village side taking home a well-earned and deserved point. Rimington Reserves


next game is at home to Langho on Saturday. All players to meet 1-30 p.m. for a 2-15 p.m. kick-off.


Dog bow out of cup


DOG INN bowed out of the Terry Cattermole Tro­ phy after losing 8-2 at First Division high-fliers Griffin's Head.


Despite missing at least


five key players, the Bud- weiser Boys started bright­ ly and were good value for the lead given to them by Ben Dewhurst's 12th- minute free-kick, his first goal for the club. However, slack defending


invited the Huncoat side back into the game and two more mistakes saw Dog trail 3-1 at the interval. The necessary second-


half recovery never materi­ alised and further lapses saw Griffin's Head close out the game. Dog's consolation coming from John Parkin's shot which took a deflection on its way into the net. Disappointed manager Simon Kerins said: “During


the week, someone said to me that football was a big kid's game. Well, after 20 minutes, this big kid thought that we were going to cause a monumental upset. “That we didn't was


down to two things: we made so many unforced errors and Griffin's Head, being an excellent side, took full advantage of them. They were runners-up last year and, in my opinion, they are capable of going one better this time around. “Good luck to them, I


hope they go on and win the cup. As for us, there is only one way to put this disap­ pointment behind us, return to winning ways in the league against Wood- nook ne.xt week. They are the leaders, but we are more than capable of stalling their promotion challenge.”


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33