Mickleover Sports FC

Premier Division
Saturday was a good day for Premier Division leaders Chester FC, netted for the 24th consecutive game on their way to a 2-1 win over struggling Mickleover Sports, who announced in midweek that they have been forced to cut their playing budget (see NEWS IN BRIEF)
The Seals day was improved by a loss for their nearest challengers Hednesford Town, who went down 2-0 to an FC United of Manchester side that appear to be taking their customary launch at promotion in the second half of the season. Fellow play-off chasers Chorley also dropped points, drawing 2-2 with Stafford Rangers.
Marine meanwhile seem to be finding a rich vein of form, as they ended Northwich Victoria’s six game unbeaten run with a 2-1 win, and Bradford Park Avenue rediscovered their winning touch with a road victory over Worksop Town.
At the bottom of the table, Buxton’s woeful form continued as they lost 3-1 to surprise package Rushall Olympic – the Bucks have won just one of their last 21 games – but it was much better news for Stocksbridge Park Steels as they ran out 7-0 winners over North Ferriby United, who haven’t scored a goal in 2012.
Elsewhere, Matlock Town were subjected to another home defeat thanks to a Mark Peers brace for Ashton United, while there were draws between Kendal Town and Frickley Athletic, and Nantwich Town and Chasetown – who have gone four games without a goal.
The relegation six-pointer between Burscough and Whitby Town was postponed due to a heavy overnight frost in the North-West.
The only midweek game in the Premier Division saw Hednesford Town miss their chance to go top as they lost 1-0 to Marine.
First Division North
AFC Fylde continue to flex their muscles at the top of First Division North, with in-form Garforth Town the latest victims on their nine game winning run. The Coasters sit atop the division on goal difference, but Curzon Ashton are keeping a good pace as they extended their unbeaten run to seven games with a 3-1 win at Radcliffe Borough.
Witton Albion are now in third position on a four game winning run after a comfortable 4-0 win at Ossett Albion, and Skelmersdale United are now well and truly back in the hunt for promotion following a 2-0 win at lowly Harrogate Railway, who have just one win in their last eight games.
Lancaster City are also in the race for a play-off place after a 4-1 win over promotion rivals Farsley, and Bamber Bridge were the day’s big winners, smashing Cammell Laird 7-0 to extend their run to just one defeat in eleven games.
Warrington Town picked up their first home win in four games with a 4-2 defeat of Salford City, while Durham City picked up their first win in five games with a 3-2 win at Trafford.
Relegation threatened Wakefield have now gone 21 games without a win, but snatched a late equalizer to earn a point against Clitheroe.
The games at Mossley and Prescot Cables fell victims to the winter weather, with frozen pitches causing the postponements of their matches with Ossett Town and Woodley Sports respectively.
Bamber Bridge beat Ossett Albion 4-0 in the division’s only midweek fixture, after Ossett Town’s clash with Salford City was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch
First Division South
Free-scoring Carlton Town returned to the top of First Division South with an 8-0 rout of Quorn. Ian Brown scored a hat-trick in the drubbing, which follows last week’s 7-1 win over Leek Town.
With Grantham Town’s match at Leek Town postponed, Ilkeston FC had the chance to steal a march on the Gingerbreads, but their mid-season wobble continued with a 2-2 draw against in form Loughborough Dynamo.
Promotion contenders Sheffield FC were also without a game after their clash with New Mills was postponed due to a frozen pitch, giving Stamford the chance to close the gap thanks to a Bruno Holden treble that saw them past Sutton Coldfield Town.
At the other end of the table, 21st placed Shepshed Dynamo’s fans united on Twitter behind the hashtag #greatescape in a bid to rally the team, and it certainly appeared to work as Dynamo notched their first win in eleven games, beating Newcastle Town 1-0.
Market Drayton Town gave themselves some breathing room with a 2-1 win over Romulus – their first in five games – while Kidsgrove Athletic also moved away from trouble with a point at Lincoln United, which extends their unbeaten run to six games..
Elsewhere in the division, Coalville Town notched their first home win in five with a 3-1 won over Goole AFC – the Vikings had won their last four games on the road.
There were no First Division South games in midweek.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Special delivery for Stafford’s Morris
An Evo-Stik NPL player opened the scoring for his team last Saturday - before dashing off at half time to be at the birth of his first child.

Stafford Rangers striker Chris Morris, 22, was in the thick of the action when he got a message his girlfriend Claire Anderson had gone to hospital.

Minutes later he netted against Stocksbridge Park Steels on his home debut and headed off at the interval.

He turned up at Stafford Hospital still wearing his kit and was there to see baby Savannah being born.

He said: "My girlfriend started getting contractions on Saturday morning. She phoned the midwife. She said to stay at home and go through your normal routine, so I carried on getting ready for football."

The couple's baby had been due to arrive a week later, on 29 January. Chris received the message about Miss Anderson 30 minutes into the game.

Morris said: "There was about 15 minutes before half time and I thought I need to get there. Five minutes later on my home debut I scored. There were so many things going round my head.

"I got my stuff and drove off with the Stafford Rangers kit still on. There was mud everywhere."

Chris made it to his girlfriend's bedside to watch the birth of Savannah, who weighed six pounds and half an ounce (2.73kg).

He added that if the baby had arrived just a day before her due date it would have been more difficult to get to the hospital, with Stafford scheduled to play away at Chorley.

Back at Stafford Rangers' Marston Road ground, the home side went on to beat Stocksbridge Park Steels 5-1 in their Premier Division clash
Story courtesy of BBC Stoke and Staffordshire
Marginson demands discipline from FC United
FC United of Manchester manager Karl Marginson has warned his players about the dangers of ill-discipline as his team embarks on a crucial series of fixtures over the next few months.

FC’s yellow card count this season is currently the second lowest in the league, but worryingly the club has had more players sent off during the campaign than any other team. FC’s manager is determined that recent red cards don’t become a trend and spoke out this week after talking to his squad about discipline on the pitch.

Marginson said that he wants his players to focus on pushing for a play-off place and, to achieve that aim, losing men through suspension was the last thing the club needed. "Ill-discipline cost us dear last season with players ruled out of the play off final after needless sending offs. I’m pleased to see our yellow card count being reduced this season, but I won’t tolerate silly reds or yellows that end up leaving the squad short at a crucial stage of the season."

Marginson revealed that he has told the players that they will face a fine if there is further ill-discipline.

"With games coming thick and fast over the coming months, we need the widest pool of players to choose from for every match if we’re going to stay in the hunt for a play-off place come the end of the season," said Marginson.
Sports cut playing budget
Premier Division side Mickleover Sports have been forced to cut their wage budget ahead for the remainder.
As with many non-league clubs, the economic climate has forced the Derbyshire side to make a mid-season adjustment to their financial plans, but they have been boosted by the news that all of their current playing staff have agreed to stay at the club.
Manager Dick Pratley has been given a new, lower weekly sum to work to, with Sports thirteen games away from the end of the campaign.
"Everyone in the club, including myself, has had to take a cut," said Pratley. "I was given a figure to work with and spent last weekend with pen and paper trying to make it work.
"It was put to the players on Tuesday night – but, to their credit, none of them came forward at that point and said they wanted out."
The result was the same last night, when the club's directors met the players to explain the situation.
"We had a very positive and professional meeting and the players responded very well," said chairman Stuart Clarke. "We lost a major sponsor last year and there's not as much money coming in as we would have hoped.
"We have imposed short-term and minor cuts to ensure that the club are able to move on again next season."

Reid replaces Ridler at Prescot
First Division North side Prescot Cables have announced Shaun Reid as their new manager.

Reid replaces Dave Ridler, who resigned in December to take a coaching role in Australia.

Shaun, who lives in Prescot holds a UEFA A coaching badge and has had spells coaching at Swindon Town and Plymouth Argyle.

Brother of former Plymouth manager Peter Reid, he played over 400 games at Rochdale, Preston North End , Bury and Chester City.

He has also scouted for Sunderland and Portsmouth and worked as an agent.

A brief statement was released last night by the club to confirm the appointment concluding, "The Board of Directors would like to thank Karl Bell who has been caretaker manager for the last 4 weeks , for the work he has done with the team"
Ilkeston winger trials with Birmingham
Tyrell Waite, Ilkeston FC’s talented young striker, has spent the week on trial with Birmingham City.

The Championship promotion-chasers are just one of a number of clubs who have been keeping a close check this season on the progress of the 17-year-old Academy product and when they requested the chance to take an even closer look, Kevin Wilson felt he couldn’t stand in Waite’s way.

Said the manager: “Tyrell has created a lot of interest this season and rightly so because he’s a lad with great potential. I think he has bits and pieces of everything.

“He certainly has plenty of pace and power, and can score a goal. And although he is still very much work in progress, I think he can go a long way in the game. Whatever comes from this week, it will be good experience for him to work with other coaches and players.”

Birmingham have been given permission to play Waite in a match this week - as well as training every day - but he returned to the Robins in time for Saturday’s clash with Loughborough Dynamo

Added Wilson: “I think this is a real statement about the way we operate our Academy and hopefully Tyrell will be the first of many talented young boys who emerge from the ranks to attract interest from a higher level.

“People in football now realise that we do things properly with our Academy and I see it as a tremendous compliment. The object of the exercise always has been that we develop young players who will serve our club well and then, if they are capable enough, will move up the ladder.

“In the longer-term, we want to be so far up the ladder that they might prefer to stay with us than move on... but that’s some way in the future.”

There’s no telling what the immediate future could hold for Waite, who is on contract to Ilkeston FC, and Wilson said: “We will wait and see what transpires.”
Albion help in referee development
First Division North side Ossett Albion have stepped in to help with referee education in West Yorkshire.
Following a request from West Riding CFA Referees Development Officer and local Football League Referee Bobby Madley, Albion and Blue Square Bet North side Harrogate Town have offered their assistance in developing the next generation of referees.
Madley is head of the West Riding’s Referees School of Excellence and as part of their development need to assess a fellow referee on his performance. The referee for Ossett Albion’s Quarter Final County Cup tie against Harrogate Town on Tuesday 31st January is Ricky Wootton who is a coach on the School, and has kindly agreed to be guinea pig for the exercise.

Albion Chairman Steve Hanks said “When Bobby asked me if we would be agreeable to him bringing along 20 – 25 of the County’s up and coming referees I was delighted to be able to assist. The young referees are vital to the future of the game and need as much encouragement as possible. We are looking forward to meeting them on the night and hope that they have an enjoyable and useful visit.”

Ossett Albion have also offered their assistance for future courses and would like to thank Harrogate Town , who have also offered their facilities for a referees course in April, for their much appreciated co-operation.
New secretary at Cantilever Park
Warrington Town Football Club has a new secretary at the helm.

Chris Henshall has stepped up from match day secretary to football secretary with immediate effect following the departure of Keith Maguire.

Chris, who recently retired from full-time employment, has vast experience in non-league football having previously been with Runcorn when they were in the National Conference.

He has been a regular at Warrington as the club's match day secretary for the past five years.

Chairman Gary Skentelbery said:"We are very fortunate to have someone of Chris's calibre right on our doorstep as he lives within walking distance of the ground.He is well respected in non-league football circles and is a key member of our team."

Speaking of Keith's departure Gary commented "We would like to thank Keith for holding the fort during the past 12 months and wish him well in the future. He will always be welcome as a friend of Warrington Town and has provided the club with great service during the past year."
Fans’ Award announced
Another award has been added to the line up for March's Player of the Year ceremony, with Evo-Stik NPL supporters having a say in the winner.
The Fans' Player of the Year award has been created to honour the player that the league's supporters believe is the best they have seen in 2011/12.
The award - which is in conjunction with the supporter-run Northern Premier League Facebook page - will be presented at the 25th March ceremony, which will be attended by players and club representatives, as well as a host of former Football League stars.
Fans have until Friday 10th February to nominate a player of their choice on either the aforementioned group or by following the instructions on facebook.com/evostikleague. Once all the nominations have been collected, a shortlist of five players will be announced by a panel of the group's administrators, with the eventual winner being announced at the awards.
Tickets for the event are currently on sale exclusively to clubs, with the remainder going on general release in February.
Chorley vs Chester – 4th February
The forthcoming Chorley v Chester FC Premier Division fixture scheduled for the 4th February will now kick off at 1pm.

After a number of meetings involving both clubs and local police the agreement for the earlier kick off was unanimous with the Evo-Stik League happy to approve this change.
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TRANSFERS
Premier Division

CHASETOWN
Daniel QUINN - Hednesford Town (Loan)

CHESTER
Stefan COX - Fleetwood Town (Loan)

KENDAL TOWN
Carl OSMAN – Clitheroe

NANTWICH TOWN
Jordan CONNERTON - Crewe Alexandra (Loan)

STOCKSBRIDGE PARK STEELS
Darren STEPHENSON - Bradford City (Loan)

WORKSOP TOWN
Karl CUNNINGHAM - Lincoln City (Loan)

First Division North

CLITHEROE
Sam MADELEY - Ashton United

MOSSLEY
Daniel HUDSON - Bury (Loan)

RADCLIFFE BOROUGH
John HARDIKER – Droylsden

WAKEFIELD
Adam JONES – Mossley

First Division South

HUCKNALL TOWN
Lee McANULTY - Stafford Rangers

MARKET DRAYTON
Paris BATEMAN - Crewe Alexandra (Work Exp)

NEWCASTLE TOWN
Mario ADAGGIO - Rushall Olympic
Harry CLAYTON - Crewe Alexandra (Loan)

QUORN
Jordan FAIRCLOUGH - Boston United





TOP GOALSCORERS
Premier Division
Name Team League Cup Total
Neil Harvey Marine 16 2 18
Steve Foster Chorley 15 2 17
Michael Norton FC United of Manchester 14 5 19
Alex Steadman Mickleover Sports 14 0 14
Mark Beesley Hednesford Town 13 1 14

First Division North
Name Team League Cup Total
Shaun Tuck Skelmersdale United 22 1 23
Michael Oates Trafford 18 1 19
Richard Allen AFC Fylde 15 6 21
Daniel Hattersley Lancaster City 15 6 21
Joseph Shaw Trafford 15 0 15

First Division South
Name Team League Cup Total
Ian Brown Carlton Town 18 3 21
Ruben Wiggins-Thomas Carlton Town 18 1 19
Anthony Malbon Newcastle Town 17 13 30
Dave Walker Kidsgrove Athletic 16 4 20
Jamie Clarke Loughborough Dynamo 16 3 19
Marvin Johnson Romulus 16 2 18