Thursday 26th April 2018
Toolstation NCEL Premier Division
Penistone Church 1-1 Liversedge
Scorer for Church – Kieran Ryan 62
Scorer for Liversedge – Aaron Fell 15

After the game Church manager Ian Richards had this to say,
Firstly a huge congratulations to our reserves who deservedly won their cup final yesterday against High Green Villa it was a good contest, I thought High Green Villa tried to play good football, they’d three good lads in mid-field but we just had too much quality going forward and we got the well-deserved win and the trophy that the last two seasons of success have deserved. Obviously it was a dampener for them that Tom Adams broke his leg. We wish him all the best for his operation.
Tonight well done to Liversedge in the way they acquitted themselves it was their fourth game in six days, they are a good side they’ve got some very good players and they did well to stop us winning, I think we were the better team, we created more chances we could have scored four or five in the first half, we put a number of balls across the box. In the second half we just couldn’t convert and be ruthless and clinical enough to win. We didn’t earn the right to play quick enough in the first half we just expected it to happen we allowed them to get a foothold in the game and score, it was a brilliant strike and it sparked us into life as we were the better tea in the last twenty five minutes.
In the second half we were the better tem throughout apart from after a five or ten minute spell after we equalised where we thought we’d done enough and didn’t then go again and go and get the second goal.
We tried to go forward and win the game in the last ten or fifteen minutes of the game, we had five forwards on the pitch and it still didn’t happen, sometimes those things don’t happen but I’m not going to take anything away from the players, they’ve been excellent, they were excellent tonight they did everything they could not to make it an end of season nothing game.
I can’t fault the players, its twenty games unbeaten at home in the league, twenty three in all competitions since September the twenty-third, it’s a brilliant achievement.
Were guaranteed to finish seventh, we can mathematically finish fifth but whether we finish fifth, sixth or seventh is an exceptional achievement in the league and I’m very pleased for the players that they continue that unbeaten run at home.

Saturday 28th April 2018
Toolstation NCEL Premier Division
Penistone Church FC 6-0 Clipstone
Scorers for Church - Tom Brennan 41, Brett Lovell 45, Kieran Ryan 60, Nathan Keightley 90, 90+2
Church Man of the Match - Ryan Johnson

After the game Church manager Ian Richards summed up,
“The lads were excellent right to last minute of the last league game of the season, it was an excellent performance and an excellent result.
Credit to Clipstone who came here with the right attitude, gave one hundred percent and kept going right to the end and never gave up but I think it was just our quality firstly but more our experience our organisation our system and style of play won us that game and we just constructed a really good win.
First thirty minutes we had good possession they got bodies behind the ball and we scored, we did very well from corners and that opened it up for the second half. That bit of rain that came down made the pitch more conducive to our passing game and we played some excellent football and we created numerous chances. Six-nil was a good result but it was a much deserved result.
I’m very pleased with the performance today, I’m very pleased with how we went about ourselves on the last game of the season and it just ends a phenomenal season at step five in the NCEL Premier Division, our first one, to finish seventh is a great achievement especially after the start we had. You look at last season AFC Mansfield only came seventh, Hemsworth ninth and Hemsworth thirteenth first season so to do what we’ve done in the manner that we have is a credit to the players and to have three-hundred and twenty-seven watching today on a free entry day created a real community celebration.
It’s a great feeling a for a manager to look and around and see that and see the juniors on the pitch taking penalties at half time because it isn’t just about the first team which is my priority it’s all so about the club, we have a great infra structure, we have a well-run club that does things in the right way and the first team gets the better the club gets, we wanted today to be a club celebration and we certainly got that and it’s a great way to finish, that’s thirteen games unbeaten, that’s only one loss in the league in the last twenty-two games and only two loses in all competitions in the last twenty-seven games, it’s a phenomenal achievement and consistency by the players.
We now are going to give the players two weeks off, in that time they’ll go to Benidorm and enjoy their end of season do and when we come back from there we’ll train three times before the cup final and we’ll have complete focus and effort to go and win that cup final. It won’t be a case of turning up and putting a good account of ourselves we want to go there and win it and whether it’s Shaw Lane or Frickley we’ll go there with confidence, belief and we know we’ve got the momentum behind us.
Today we celebrate a brilliant season, a great result and as a community we come together and thank everybody for their support this year and we hope this continues and we see you second of May at Bramall lane and next season at The DSM Memorial Ground

AFC Penistone Church

Wednesday 25th April
Association Cup Final at Parkgate FC
AFC Penistone Church 2-0 High Green Villa
Scorers for Church – Jack Moore 13, Tom Adams 73

On Thursday 26th April AFC Manager Steve Lenthall had this to say
This was a great win for us in the Association Cup Final. I thought we set our stall out brilliantly we took the game to High Green Villa.
We said in the changing room that they’d be a good footballing side so it would be up to us to set the pace of the game, I thought we did that tremendously in the first half. We had two or three chances in the first five minutes, Mitch Savage missing with a “bit of an air kick”.
We looked like the premier league team, moving at a fast pace and keeping the ball and we looked after it and defended well when we had to and I thought we did everything perfect for the first half.
On thirteen minutes we deservedly went one up through Jack Moore, it was a great little play down the right wing from Brad Kemp he put the ball in and Jack Moore got a good set back and put the ball in the back of the net and sets us on our way and put us on the front foot.
I thought they had a ten minute spell in the first half where we sat off them a little bit and Jared Oxley, our keeper pulled some decent saves off and kept us in it at one-nil.
We went in at half time one-nil up and I don’t think anybody could argue that we deserved it
In the second half we came out a little bit on the back foot, credit to High Green Villa I thought they came out with a different game plan, they took the game to us and created a few chances and Jared Oxley again made a couple of good confident saves, and we rode the storm. It doesn’t matter who you play each team will have five or ten minutes but we defended well and we set off again.
It was again how quick we could get the ball back and play and I thought we did that tremendously well , Scan Scrivens and Brad Kemp on the wings were causing havoc, Tom Adams up front holding the ball up playing as a striker, I thought he was brilliant throughout the game and we just took the game to them.
We had missed a few chances and then Brad Kemp put the ball in from the right win and Tom Adams taps it in for two-nil, we looked comfortable, were seeing the game out and with two minutes to go Tom Adams gets a “challenge”
You can’t say anything out of order, but it was a bad challenge and Tom has ended up with a horrible, horrific injury which has marred the cup game, marred the occasion for AFC Penistone.
The only thing I can say is we wish Tom a speedy recovery. He’s going to have an operation before Saturday. Our thoughts are not on the cup at the minute but are all with Tom Adams, I’m sure that goes through out the players, both Penistone and High Green Villa, the management of both sides and all the supporters what were there.
I thought the final was a great occasion, two teams trying to play football, credit to High Green, they’re a great outfit, and they’ll do well next year if they get promoted into the premier league.
I thought the lads from Penistone were an absolute credit to themselves, a credit to me and Wetts, a credit to the football club, they stayed out there for an hour and ten minutes waiting for the ambulance, they never got changed, they had the cup presented with Tom making sure he was a part of it. I take my hat off to those lads, I think it showed what a group of players they are and what a group of friends they are and I’m really proud of that. When Tom gets out of hospital we’ll celebrate the cup win properly.
We’ve created a little bit of history for the football club yet again, it’s the first time the reserves have won the Association Cup, it’s another step forward and I’d just like to thank everybody for their support and well done to Dave Hampshire for everything he does.
This is what you get when you put the hard work in you’ll get rewards from it.
UP THE CHURCH
Club secretary Dave Hampshire added,
The Final last night, from a club point of view was tremendous. It’s the second time in consecutive years AFC Church have got to the Association Cup Final and it’s a great feat for them.
I take my hat off to Lenny and Wetts* they’ve kept them motivated when things haven’t gone right and I said them this is a cup you really should be winning and last night was great, they applied themselves very well and to have our name on that trophy is tremendous.
There’s a bit of a sour taste in it as what happened to Tom Adams, there was no need for that challenge right at the death of the game and it did take a bit of a shine off it, but you can’t take away from how well they’ve done, winning the trophy and getting to the final in the second year running. It raises the profile of them, it raises the profile of the club.
The last time we won a county FA trophy was in 1938 when we won the junior cup, we were the first winners of that in 1908 so it’s been a while coming and now the pressures on Ian and Duncan to deliver the senior cup.
UP THE CHURCH!
*Steve Lenthall & Mark Wetton

Penistone Church Sunday Side

Sunday 29th April 2018
Blades Super Draw Sunday Sports League Premier Division
Woodseats Club 1-1 Penistone Church Sunday Side (a)
Scorer for Church Sundays - Lewis Dickinson
Man of the Match – Danny Howes

Penistone Church U18s/19s

Pat Rice Trophy U19s Final
Nostell Miners’ Welfare U19s 0-0 Penistone Church U19s (a)
Nostell Miners’ Welfare win 4-3 on penalties

Penistone Church Ladies

Sheffield & Hallamshire Women’s County Football League Division 1
Penistone Church Ladies 2-3 Barnsley Reserves Ladies
⚽️Tibbz
⚽️Tiegan
The Penigals came up short in a entertaining 2-3 loss against local neighbours Barnsley Development.

Manager Sophie Ferns reflected after the match-

“The Penigals started off strong and compact from the back dealing with Barnsley’s fast and tricky wingers. We pressed and marked well which became increasingly frustrating for our opponents. The goal came for us just before half time, we soaked up pressure and took our chance from a set piece to give us a 1-0 lead going into the break. The equaliser came early into the second half after failing to clear a corner, then unfortunately for us an own goal and a long range strike was the difference but credit to the ladies for showing grit and determination for getting it to 3-2 going into the final few minutes to make it a nervy finish. A much better performance which bodes well going into the remaining fixtures of the season”.

Fixtures Summary
Monday 30th April 2018
Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior Premier Division
AFC Penistone Church v Grimethorpe Sports (h)
Kick off 7-45 pm

Wednesday 2nd May 2018
Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior Premier Division
AFC Penistone Church v Denaby Main (h)
Kick off 7-45 pm

Thursday 3rd May 2018 we host
Sheffield County Senior League Cup Semi-final
Sheffield Medics v Stocksbidge Park Steels Reserves
Kick off 7-30 pm

Friday 4th May 2018
A Charity game in aid of The Lullaby Trust
Kick off 7-00 pm

Monday 7th May 2018
Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior Premier Division
AFC Penistone Church v Wombwell Main (h)
Kick off 7-45 pm

Tuesday 8th May 2018
Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior
League Cup Final
Kick off 7-30 pm

Wed 9th May 2018
Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior Premier Division
Houghton Main v AFC Penistone Church (a)
Kick off at 6-00 pm