35 Ramsbottom United v Marine

prammynewsv MARINE02-09-14

p

jonnobernard

May I extend a warm welcome to

everyone from Marine FC tonight who have

made the trip from Crosby.

Well it has been a very tough start to life

in the Northern Premier League in terms of

us losing four games out of our first five

matches. But anyone who has been at the

games will know how well the lads have

played - in ALL but one of the games we

have been leading at some point during the

match. e football we have played at times

(Nantwich second half apart) has been

excellent; we have brought our philosophy,

which has taken five years to perfect, into

the Evo-Stik Premier league and have been

lauded by all our opponents.

BUT, that doesn't mean we're happy with

what has happened so far, we have been

punished on set pieces conceding 10 goals

from them. It's fine margins at this level of

football which is where we keep slipping up,

we're working hard to eradicate these silly

mistakes whilst still trying to continue to

play the 'Rammy way'.

It would be very easy for us to make

excuses of injuries (Pugh, Stopforth, Gaskell)

added to Billy Priestley leaving and Scott

Burton missing the FC Utd game but we

must keep faith with the squad we have,

after all these are the same lads that have

had a 70%ish win rate over the last five

years. ey are all desperate to get the

points on the board but as we keep telling

them, we have to continue doing what we're

best at and keep playing football believing

that fortunes will turn.

A lot of our new supporters (last three

years or so) have only ever seen us winning

promotions or battling for play off spots so

to see us slugging it out at the bottom of the

table might worry you slightly but we can

assure you we will be doing everything in

our power to continue the glory days at this

club but we all need to be patient.

As Billy has left we are delighted to

welcome last season’s promotion winning

captain back into the fold. Danny didn't

really settle at Salford City so as soon as we

knew he wasn’t completely happy we

moved and mithered to bring him home. It's

a real coup for us to get Daniel back as he

understand what we as a club are about and

is determined to getting us push up the

league.

I'd also like to congratulate Pilkie on

starting his 200th game last week at Rushall.

As has been mentioned Joel was our very

first signing when me and Bernard took over

and has witnessed as lot of change at the

club, he has been a major factor in our

moves through the league and has been a

pleasure to work with for so long. So well

done pal and here's to the next 200.

- Jonno

p

p

Welcome to the Harry Williams

Riverside Stadium. A special welcome

also to tonight’s match officials, and our

opponents, Marine FC.

I have to go back to my schooldays to

recall the first time I heard of Marine. A

pal of mine was selected for Manchester

schoolboys, and they were down to play

Liverpool schoolboys at a place called

Marine. I had naturally never heard of

such a place, little realising that it was

merely a club name, but assumed it must

have been over Liverpool way (what

powers of deduction!)

Once I became interested in the non-

league game, I soon realised that our

visitors were based in Crosby, and have

since made many visits to Rossetts Park,

which in itself is most unusual. For those

who have never been, most of the

accommodation is behind both goals.

Along one side is a narrow covered

terrace, whilst the land-locked ground

has no access on the opposite side due to

the closeness of the gardens of the

surrounding houses.

When I was asked to join the

committee at Mossley over 30 years ago,

I proudly arrived for my first game as an

official only to be asked to

take over the turnstile, as

the usual operator had

failed to turn up.

Marine had just gained promotion to the

Northern Premier League, and were the

visitors that day. It meant that I missed

most of the first half, as it is impossible to

see the game from the turnstiles at Seel

Park. Not the sort of introduction to the

game that I had expected as a committee

man! Since then, Marine have remained

very much at this level, and proved

themselves to be a very well run club.

Whilst their start to this campaign

would have been a disappointment to

them, they will certainly prove to be

tough opponent’s tonight.

NOT THE START WE HAD HOPED FOR

It’s fair to say that we had hoped for a

better beginning than we have had. ere

was always going to be a need to adjust

to our new level, but four defeats out of

five has come as a bit of a culture shock

after five seasons of almost unbridled

success.

Yet despite the disappointing results,

we have hardly disgraced ourselves, or

looked out of place in Evo-Stik Premier (I

may leave the second half of the

Nantwich game out of that statement!)

e one concern is the amount of

bookings we have received. No-one likes

to see yellow cards banded about, but

even less so, the red ones. We have so far

been on the receiving end of four of the

tony cunninghamand the wonderful world of

non-league football

p

latter, and the resultant bans are bound to

affect the side.

We began last season in a similarly

disappointing manner, but managed to

dig ourselves out of it and gradually haul

ourselves up the table. Let’s hope that

history repeats itself this time round, and

that our full quota for the season of

dismissals has also been reached.

Injuries may well be part and parcel of

football, but we have been particularly

badly hit within a short space of time. A

return of Lee Gaskell, Lee Pugh, Gary

Stopforth and Scott Burton would prove

to be a massive shot in the arm for the

team and the supporters, so let’s also

hope that we see them all back in a blue

shirt before too long.

Billy Priestley’s decision to sign a two

year contract at Bradford park Avenue,

whilst understandable, was a big blow to

us. Fortunately the timely return of former

skipper and fans favourite Danny

Warrender has helped to soften the blow.

We wish Billy all the best over the hill, and

who knows, we may well see him back

here again at some time in the future. In

the meantime, everyone is delighted to

welcome Danny back, as we know just

what he brings to the team.

Enjoy tonight’s game, and let’s roar the

lads back to winning ways!

Enjoy your non-league football!

“despite the disappointing results, wehave hardly disgraced ourselves “

Steve Howson joins everyoneelse in the referee’s book

p

jonno some words from the dug-out

“ I just want people toappreciate how far

we’ve come and howfast we’ve done it“

p

Obviously it’s been a sticky start. Most

of our starts since we’ve had the job have

been sticky. With the success we’ve had

over the last few years, there’s that

expectation of us hitting the ground

running. People perhaps need to

remember where these lads have come

from - 50% have come from Sunday

morning football, one or two from better

clubs, but mainly we’ve picked them up

from smaller clubs. Only one of these lads

has ever played at this level before, so we

knew from minute one that we’d be

going into the unknown. What we owed

to them was a return for the loyalty that

they have shown to us over the past few

years - sticking with us even though

they’ve been getting better offers from

other clubs. en, in that first game,

going 2-0 up in the first ten minutes - all

of those expectations were fuelled even

more. In every game we’ve been in a

position to take the points, so we could

have found ourselves on 13 points

already, but as we’ve seen, football

doesn’t work like that.

One of our problems has been that,

bearing in mind that they’re all proving

to be good players, our bench has been a

bit of an unknown quantity. We’ve not

been able to particularly change a game

partly because we don’t know these

players, and they don’t know us. Bear in

mind as well that we’ve been without

Gary Stopforth, who hasn’t played a

minute yet, we’ve lost our left back, our

top scorer, our centre-back Billy Priestley,

Scott Burton, and although we’ve signed

Danny Warrender, he hadn’t played a

game this season. So not only have we

stepped up a league, but we’re having to

work with new players. We’re also having

to look outside of our own contact books

to find players. Remember that us, FC

United, Skelmersdale, Curzon Ashton

and a few others are trying to compete

with big the spending teams such as

Salford and Warrington Town for decent

players.

Now we won’t just sign a player for the

sake of signing a player. We’re looking for

players who’ll fit into our plans, and me

and Bernard are out on a Tuesday or

Wednesday night at places like

Stocksbridge or Ashton United looking

for the right lads who’ll fit in with the

Rammy way of playing - it’s not a guessing

game.

Believe it or not, we’ve had more praise

from opposition in the first five games of

this season than we’ve had in either of

our promotion seasons. e fact of the

matter is that we’re playing well, and

playing good football, but losing through

costly mistakes. e FC United manager

pulled us over on Saturday because he

couldn’t believe what we did to them in

the first-half with all of the players that

we’ve got missing. Me and Bernard went

hell for leather at the players at halftime

in Rushall, and when I came out for the

second half someone told me how great

it was to watch our team get the ball

down and try to play football, whereas

we think they’re having a bad game. e

problem with this league is it isn’t really

about football, it’s about big teams who

look after the ball. People accuse us of

not having a plan B, but I’ll take that

criticism because we’re not going to just

resort to going long. If we’d have started

the season with what I deem our best

thirteen players, I’d be expecting us to be

pushing top two or three.

I just want people to appreciate how far

we’ve come and how fast we’ve done it.

p

Not everything just slots in perfectly, and

we will not change what we’re about - we

all hold our heads up high and know

what we’ve done for the club. We’ll keep

doing it the Rammy way, rightly or

wrongly.

Let’s go through the games - King’s

Lynn, we could have won it 3-1 with

fifteen minutes to go, but we missed a

penalty and got beat. Second game we go

down to ten men, should have took a

point, they scored the third corner in two

games. ird game we blitzed em.

Nantwich we had ten bad minutes after

going in at 1-0. We conceded three goals

in ten minutes, it’s the way football goes.

ree long pumped balls into our box

and the game is lost - it’s simply that we

didn’t deal with three big balls to the 6’8

lad up front - a big, brutal team played to

their strengths and they beat us.

It’s ruthless finishing of half chances,

but we have finishers who are as ruthless

as anyone. e sides that have beaten us

have been in this division for a hell of a

long time, and they’re top teams. We’re

making mistakes and we’re learning from

them. at’s what is important.

A certain amount of our players have

never known this kind of run - they have

a 70% win rate. But all of a sudden, when

you’re conceding goals and you haven’t

got the strength of Andy Dawson, Gary

Stopforth or Danny Warrender alongside

you, it’s difficult for them. Phil Dean,

Dom Smalley, Jordan Hulme have all

come from nowhere and been absolutely

brilliant, but there’s a lot of pressure on

them when the more experienced lads

aren’t alongside them - it’s like the ‘Class

of 92’ characters all leaving United, it’s

hard for them.

Injury-wise Lee Pugh tore his hamstring

at Rushall, we’re looking at somewhere

between two and six weeks. Lee Gaskell

has knee ligaments trouble and there are

murmurings of him being back very soon,

but if we have him for Whitby then we’re

delighted because Jordan and Robbo are

missing that one. Gary Stopforth had a

scan on Saturday. He’s feeling ok and

doing his weights, but we’re not pushing

until he gets the results of his scan, so we

know what’s wrong. He could be straight

back, or may need an op and end up out

for six months. Scott Burton was away on

Saturday at his stag do.

e flip-side is that we have Danny

Warrender back, who played fantasically.

We had Malaki Slaven who made his full

debut and was fantastic in front of 2000

people, and you’ve got Osebi who only

played his second game for us and ran

himself completely into the ground for

and we’ve got Tom who’s another really

good player who stepped up on Saturday.

We have been accused of being a bit

light at the back, but don’t forget that

Dom really wanted to play at right-back

and he’s been very strong in that position.

Statistically very little has come from that

side, so he’s doing the job. We do miss

what he gives us up front, but there’s

nothing that he’s not giving us as a right-

back. Howson played centre-back all

season for Radcliffe, and then we’ve got

Warrender and Pugh, or Pilkie who are all

strong players. I think we’re ok at the

back. Nearly all the goals have come from

corners, which is infuriating, but these

teams are doing a lot of dead-ball

training. We struggle with practising

corners and dead balls because of where

we train. We’re given £30 a week for

training and so can’t get on a full-size

pitch, that’s just a fact of life for us.

p

at’s not just me moaning, as that’s the

kind of adversity that makes us

successful, that siege mentality. Not one

team has managed to go through us and

score a goal yet, so we do have a good

defence, and if we can get to grips with

the corners then we can get these games

won. e question “Why the hell do we

concede these set pieces” is easy to

answer, it’s because these players are

bigger and they are stronger, and they are

putting in a hell of a lot better delivery

than we do.

Currently we’re missing Danny and

possibly Dom Smalley, and after

Saturday’s game we’ve had an approach

made by FC United for one of the lads, so

unless we get some deals done pretty

sharpish then you might see me and

Bernard in a shirt. Any other woman but

my wife would have left by now, cos I’m

spending all hours on the phone to

everyone I can get hold of, trying to pull

a couple of players in. It was my lad’s

birthday on Friday and I’ve not been able

to go out with him through trying to get

this sorted - this is just the kind of thing

you have to get on with. I love doing this

job, but we need the supporters to

understand that we are doing this stuff

behind the scenes, we’re working our

backsides off to make sure Rammy

achieves, despite the kind of adversity

we’ve faced this last couple of weeks.

We’re not looking to bring in just anyone

though; whoever pulls on that Rammy

shirt will be a good player, and we go out

to win every single match. We don’t go

out to not lose, we go out to win it. We

need the fans to stick with us, be patient,

and understand what it is that we’re

trying to achieve.

We have to remember that our squad

has been incredibly loyal, and we’ve had

a core of brilliant players who’ve grown

up as Rammy lads which has allowed us

to gradually introduce other players such

as Scott Burton, Billy Priestley and Steve

Howson. It’s a condundrum at Rammy

how we go about replacing departing

players like-for-like with the money we

get to spend, particularly with clubs in

the league below having so much more

than us!

Last year me and Bernard got

approached by Salford and Northwich,

and there have been other rumours over

the last couple of weeks. But at Rammy

we’ve started something big. Nearly all

the lads at Rammy started with us really

young, and they’re now 25 and are

achieving at this level. What will they be

like when they’re 26-27, and what can

they achieve. And besides, we’ve taken

our own local team from 80 fans and a

dog watching to where we are today.

We’re not here for money, we’re here to

see how far we can take it with Rammy.

We’re already a major player in

Northwest non-league football. Our

players are loyal to us because we’re loyal

to them, and to Rammy.

We just need everyone to be patient.

Once we have the key players back, in the

next 3-4 weeks, you just watch how we

fly up this league. If we didn’t believe that

then we’d already be gone, we’d have

taken one of those offers - we know that

we can set this league on fire.

I really can’t emphasize enough how far

we’ve come. I really want people to

remember that, and keep the faith that

we can continue taking this club to

bigger and better things.

- Jonno

p

In years to come, when we look back

on the achievements of this great Rammy

squad, one name will immediately leap to

mind as embodying the Never Say Die

attitude that gets clubs such as ours

heading towards the dizzying heights in

non-league football success.

Running himself ragged every match,

regularly out-jumping defender with six

inches height advantage, and even

occasionally popping up in goal if called

upon, helping us avoid a repeat of the

Bernard-e-Cat experience which still

gives Rammy die-hards sleepless nights.

e player is of course Jon Robinson,

and Roving Reporter Liam Smith took

time out from studying for exams to

interview the Rammy Legend for us.

Q - After an injury hit season last time

out, with that long awaited operation on

your ankle, what are your targets for the

upcoming season?

A – I want to play as much as possible

and hopefully help the team achieve their

goals. Missing out so much last season

has made me so eager to do that.

Q – You’ve scored a lot of goals for

Rammy in the past, do you think you can

make the step up in divisions and

continue putting the goals in?

A – Yeah, I don’t see why not. I am fitter

than I have been for a few years and my

ankle is better than it has been for four

years or so. e main thing is, if I thought

I couldn’t make the step up I wouldn’t be

here now, I’d be in the Salford retirement

home!

Q – ere have been one or two players

leave and a few new faces have joined but

the core of the squad is still in place. Does

it help when all the lads have such a close

bond and experience of playing alongside

each other week-in week-out?

A – Yeah of course it does, you learn to

win and lose as a team and that’s a great

thing to have at any standard of football.

Loyalty is lost nowadays so it’s good to be

a part of an established and settled

squad.

jon robinsontireless and committed rammy Legend

p

p

Q – Of the players that have arrived have

they impressed and has anyone in

particular stood out for you?

A – All the players have impressed me,

the work and determination levels they

have shown in training have been at an

extremely high level. As for players

standing out, that’s hard for me to

answer, you would have to be a very

special player to stand out in this squad.

Q – is season has a good feel to it after

what happened at Bamber Bridge last

year. What were the celebrations like after

that game (if you can remember)?

A – Quality by all associated with the

club, I think even Harry Smiled

(Maybe it was just the wind).

One of the best things

about Rammy is

everyone gets on and

drinks together.

Q - How do you think the new lads have

gelled during preseason and how do you

feel it has gone for you and the team?

A – ey seem to have gelled in well and

are coming out of their shells more and

more every week. Personally I am happy

because I have been able to do a full

preseason pain free and I am fighting fit,

e team as a group look very sharp.

Q – With the season fast approaching

what do you and the lads want to achieve

as a club?

A – In an ideal world you would say 10

points clear at the top with one game left

but that’s not going to happen. For me a

realistic aim would be going into the last

five games with a chance of playoffs and

a good cup run, beating Darlo and

Lancaster on the way!

p

“ I’d like us to go into the last ivegames with a chance of the playoffs“

Q – Do you set yourself any personal goals

and if so what are they?

A – I try to stay below ten yellows for the

season with no red cards. I’d like to score

20 goals and stay fit so I can keep my

position in the team the season after.

Quick-fire questions

Favourite food? – Spanish or Italian

Favourite Drink? - A nice bottle of Rioja

Favourite holiday destination? - Any

Spanish resort that has local culture

Favourite film? – e Lord of the Rings

And lastly, a night in with the misses or a

night on the booze with the lads? - A good

night out with the lads doesn’t go a miss

but a night in with the misses and my son

is as good as I don’t have to suffer the

horrors of being rough the next day!

p

A disastrous second half proved to be the

undoing of a Rams side that had looked

comfortable in the first 45 minutes, and had

deservedly gone in at the break in front.

What happened after that break takes

some explaining.

e home side looked the more

accomplished from the start, and Jordan

Hulme’s fine burst into the area was only

stopped by a great save from Town keeper

Terry Smith, diving low to his right.

e same forward almost got on the end

of a long punt from keeper Grant Shenton,

but he couldn’t quite deflect the ball

goalwards, - it was no surprise when Hulme

laid on the opening goal. It came on 21

minutes, and the youngster floated over the

perfect cross from the right, leaving Jon

Robinson with the simplest of headers from

close range to give the Rams a deserved lead.

Osebi Abadaki came close to opening his

account for the club, firstly with a fierce drive

from 25 yards which Smith did well to

smother, and then from close range, but his

effort sailed inches wide.

Whilst the home side were enjoying much

of the possession and chances, Nantwich

looked lively, with lanky winger Vinney

Mukendi a constant threat. Twice he was

denied, as was defender Adam Jones, who

looked on as his looped header hit the bar

before being scrambled to safety.

But as the half-time whistle blew, the one

goal lead was a deserved reward for an

accomplished performance from the Rams.

Joint-manager Bernard Morley was happy

enough at the interval. “All we need now is

to keep a clean sheet in the second half” he

suggested.

What followed made a mockery of that

wish.

Nantwich came out refreshed and

determined to improve on their early

showing.

After Grant Spencer had showed

encouraging signs of adding to the lead, on a

couple of occasions, the visitors took

complete control of the game, with the

home side wilting and apparently short of

ideas as to how to combat their opponents.

e equalising goal came after 52 minutes.

e ever-dangerous Mukendi slipped the ball

neatly to Alex Meaney, and he finished from

close range to level the match.

Two goals in three minutes completely

turned the game, and the Rams rarely looked

like finding a way back.

On 59 minutes, Mukendi profited from

some hesitant defending by poking the ball

home between two dithering defenders,

from almost on the goal-line. Barely had the

visiting supporters stopped celebrating than

they were cheering a third. A quick-fire attack

split the home defence and as the ball was

played into space, Mark Winslade made no

mistake from ten yards out.

1 - 4e Harry Williams Riverside

25th August 2014

Att: 365

Rammy Goals: Robinson (21)

Nantwich Goals: Meaney (52), Mukendi (59), Winslade (62),

Pepper (89pen)

p

Jordan Hulme on the rampage

p

On 65 minutes the Rams task was made almost

impossible as they went down to ten men.

Having had a running battle, and a couple of

warnings from the referee, Robinson head-

butted an opponent in back play, which was

spotted by the referee’s assistant, and out came

the red card.

Max Harrop had the ball in the net five

minutes later for the visitors, but it was ruled out

for offside.

However, the former Bury youngster’s run into

the box on 88 minutes was unceremoniously

ended by the diving Shenton, leaving the referee

with little choice than to award a penalty.

Another red card was feared, but the official

chose the lenient route and produced just a

yellow for Shenton. Up stepped Adam Pepper to

fire home the spot-kick to give the Dabbers a 4-

1 lead.

ere was still time, however, for a second red

card to be produced. is time it went the way

of Hulme. He was cautioned after complaining

about Robinson’s dismissal, but a foul in the

second minute of time added on, brought

another yellow and with it the inevitable

dismissal.

So a game that began so brightly for the Rams

deteriorated into arguably the worst 45 minutes

in the managerial spell of Anthony Johnson and

Bernard Morley.

e lack of ideas and discipline will need to be

addressed quickly as the team gets to grip with

life at the higher level, especially with some big

games coming up.

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ANSWERS: 1. Navy and Pink 2. Gary Mills 3. Welsh Alliance 4. Wrexham 5. Danny Wright 6 Barrow

7. Lyme Valley Stadium 8. Shildon 9. Chatterton 10. Brian Pritchard

tony’s teasers1. What colours do Dulwich Hamlet play in?

2. Who is the manager of Gateshead?

3. In which league do barmouth & Dyffryn United play?

4. Former Bury midfielder Mark Carrington is playing for which Vanarama

Conference side?

5. Which former Wrexham striker has recently left Forest Green Rovers for

gateshead?

6. America-based Paul Casson recently took over which north-west non-league

club?

7. Name the home ground of Newcastle Town

8. Which club knocked Padiham out of the FA Cup last weekend?

9. Where did Ramsbottom United play before moving to the Riverside?

10. Who recently resigned as Witton Albion manager?

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Marine are celebrating 120 years of

football, having been formed by a

group of local businessmen and former

college students – taking its name from

the hotel on the River Mersey sea front

at Waterloo, seven miles to the north

of Liverpool – where the founders met.

ey moved to their present ground

e Arriva Stadium (formerly known as

Rossett Park) in 1903.

Marine quickly made an impression

on local football, winning numerous

titles in the I Zingari League and the

Liverpool Combination. eir greatest

success as an amateur team in this

period culminated in an F.A. Amateur

Cup Final appearance in 1931/32, when

they lost 7 – 1 to Dulwich Hamlet in

front of a 22,000 crowd at West Ham

United. In 1946 they went close again

by reaching the semi-final.

In 1972 Roly Howard was appointed

first team manager and completed

1,975 competitive games over a 33 year

period before retiring at the end of the

2004/05 season. He was recognised by

the Guinness Book of Records as the

longest serving manager in world

football as Marine enjoyed its most

successful period winning some 30

trophies.

e Club relinquished its amateur

status and became professional in

1974. ree Cheshire League

Championships were won in five

seasons before progressing to the

Northern Premier League in 1979/80.

ey have twice been Champions

(1993/94 and 1994/95) as well as twice

being runners-up and have won the

League Cup on three occasions

(1984/85, 1991/92, and 2002/03).

Marine qualified for the UniBond

Premier play-offs in two seasons, losing

to the eventual play off champions on

both occasions.

2014-2015 sees a new management

team at the helm, Carl Macauley was

appointed manager in summer 2014,

having previously been manager at

conference north club Vauxhall Motors

for eight years, and he is assisted by

Gary Martindale & Anthony Wright.

e new trio are keen to work on their

success at their previous club, having

brought in a new squad ready for the

2014-2015 campaign.

Marine’s best performance in the F.A.

Cup was reaching the 3rd Round in

1992/3 when they lost 3-1 to Crewe

Alexandra. Marine have also achieved

ten first and two second round

appearances in the FA Cup and have

beaten two Football League Clubs

(Barnsley and Halifax Town) in the

competition. Marine have twice

reached the semi-finals of the F.A.

Trophy in 1983/84 and 1991/92 and

have been winners of 13 senior county

cups.

Marine have won the Liverpool

Senior Cup seven times (most recently

in 2008) and the Lancashire Challenge

Trophy three times (most recently in

1999/00).

e club are looking to make

continuing improvements to their

Arriva Stadium base, two years ago

new floodlights were installed at a cost

of £70,000 and further improvement

over the next few years is planned, with

planning application received for a new

130 seater stand and snack kiosk to be

located at the Crossender Road end of

the Stadium to balance out spectator

facilities

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Andy Fowler – Forward

Fowler re-joined the club in July 2012. He

originally began as ex-Everton trainee who

left after four years to join Bootle in April

2010. He then made the step up to Evo-Stik

Premier League football, joining Northwich

Victoria, scoring 19 times in league and cup

in his first season.

Lewis Codling – Forward

Ex Everton Youth Codling joined Bala Town

from Aberystwyth Town in July 2012 after

leaving the Seasiders due to work

commitments in January 2012. Liverpudlian

Lewis was released by Everton in 2010 but

has made 78 (+24) appearances in his spells

with Aberystwyth and Bala Town scoring 20

goals.

Danny Fearnehough – Defender/Midfielder

Danny, 22, is a product of the Barnsley

Academy who was released in the summer

of 2011 before signing for Vauxhall Motors in

September 2011. His impressive early

displays prompted Carl Macauley to put him

on contract and he continued to impress. He

is happy either playing as a wing back or

equally in midfield. Danny made 40

appearances for the Motors last season.

Andy Nicholas – Central Defender

30 year old Andy has over 140 football league

appearances spanning five seasons for

Swindon Town before joining Rotherham

United in 2008 where he stayed until 2010.

He then moved on loan to Mansfield Town

before moving to Vauxhall Motors finally in

2010 after a short spell at Barrow. He started

his early career at Liverpool before joining

Swindon Town in 2003 under manager Andy

King.

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Sat 16th Aug H KING’S LYNN TOWN 2-3 322 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer Howson Priestley Hulme 1Tues 19th Aug A Workington 0-1 415 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer * Howson Priestley HulmeSat 23rd Aug A Rushall Olympic 4-2 161 Shenton Smalley Pugh Spencer * Howson Priestley Hulme 1 +Mon 25th Aug H NANTWICH TOWN 1-4 365 Shenton Smalley Abadaki * Spencer + Howson Priestley Hulme Sat 30th Aug A FC United of Manchester 1-3 1917 Shenton Smalley Pilkington Spencer Howson Warrender Abadaki +Tues 2nd Sept H MARINESat 6th Sept H STAMFORDWed 10th Sept A Whitby TownSat 13th Sept A BuxtonTues 16th Sept H WITTON ALBIONSat 20th Sept A IlkestonSat 27th Sept H SKELMERSDALE UTDSat 4th Oct A TraffordTues 7th Oct H CURZON ASHTONSat 11th Oct H BELPER TOWNTues 14th Oct A Frickley AthleticSat 18th Oct H BUXTONTues 21st Oct H WHITBY TOWNSat 25th Oct A Blyth SpartansTues 28th Oct A MarineSat 1st Nov A Whitby Town FAT 1QTues 4th Nov H WORKINGTONSat 8th Nov A Halesowen TownTues 11th Nov H BURSCOUGH LGCUPTues 18th Nov A Witton AlbionSat 22nd Nov H GRANTHAM TOWNSat 29th Nov H BARWELLSat 6th Dec A Matlock TownSat 13th Dec H RUSHALL OLYMPICSat 20th Dec A King’s Lynn TownFri 26th Dec H ASHTON UNITEDThu 1st Jan A Nantwich TownSat 3rd Jan A Curzon AshtonSat 10th Jan H TRAFFORDSat 17th Jan A Belper TownSat 24th Jan H FRICKLEY ATHLETICSat 31st Jan A BuxtonSat 7th Feb H BLYTH SPARTANSSat 14th Feb A StamfordSat 21st Feb A StourbridgeSat 28th Feb H ILKESTONSat 7th March A Skelmersdale UnitedSat 14th March H STOURBRIDGESat 28th March A Grantham TownSat 4th April H FC UNITED OF MCRMon 6th April A Ashton UnitedSat 11th April H HALESOWEN TOWNSat 18th April A BarwellSat 25th April H MATLOCK TOWN

fixtures & results 2014/15

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Hulme 1 Burton Gaskell Robinson 1* Dean + Pilkington Slaven Abadaki + Ahmadi * CookHulme Burton Gaskell Robinson + Dean # Pilkington * Slaven + Abadaki Ahmadi # CookHulme 1 + Burton Robinson# 1 Pilkington Dean 2 Abadaki * Slaven + Ahmadi # Cook WilliamsHulme Burton Robinson 1 Pilkington Dean Williams Slaven Cook * Krou + MorleyAbadaki + Slaven Robinson * Hulme 1 # Dean Williams + Krou * Cook # Morley Johnson

fixtures & results 2014/15

Ramsbottom United Football ClubChairman: Harry WilliamsVice Chairman: Chris WoolfallSecretary: Tony Cunningham Matchday Secretary: Andy Edmunson Treasurers: H Williams, C WoolfallCommittee: Harry Williams, Chris Woolfall, Andy Edmund-son, Kevin HitchenRecent Senior Honours: Bolton Comination Div 1 Champions: 1972/73Bolton Comb. Premier Champions 1976/77: Bolton Comb. Div2 cup runners up: 1979/80,1982/83Bolton Comb. Div2 runners up: 1982/83Bolton Comb. Cup winners: 1976/77, 1979/80, 1983/84Bolton Comb. Div1 runners up: 1984/85Bolton Comb. Cup runners up: 1985/86, 1987/88Manchester League Cup Winners: 1990/91Manchester League Champions: 1990/91Yorkshire Cup runners up: 1993/94Northwest Counties Div2 Champions: 1996/97Northwest Counties Div2 Trophy: 1995/96Bolton Hospital Cup winners: 1974/75, 05/06. 06/07, 07/08Northwest Counties Premier runners Up 2010/11Northwest Counties Premier Champions: 2011/12Northern Premier League Div1 playoff winners: 2013/14The Harry Williams Riverside, Acre Bottom, Ramsbottom, LancashireTel: 01706 822799

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For many football followers the Summer

can be a barren time, even in a World Cup

year, and one of the highlights is when the

new seasons fixtures are announced to a

waiting world. One of the first fixtures I was

looking out for this year was the Rams visit

to play our neighbours over at F.C. United as

I was looking forward to a visit to their

brand new stadium at Moston. Imagine my

disappointment then when I saw we were

down for a visit before August was over, as

their new stadium would not be open by

then. So, last Saturday it was an exodus from

Ramsbottom, as the travelling Ultras made

their way to Stalybridge Celtic, hoping to

build on the previous weeks win at Rushall

Olympic.

For this game myself and Mrs Darkside

travelled on the Traitor’s Bus with my good

friend, and dedicated FCUM supporter,

Howard and his young son, Jake. We set off

at 12.30 and our first stop was e Village

Hotel just off the M66, to meet up with

another FCUM follower, P.D, to watch the

first half of the Burnley v Manchester United

game. I have been to a few FCUM games in

the past with Howard, Jake and P.D. and

from the darksidedarren comer reports on the latest

rammy ultras adventures

“ FC United proved themselves tobe real football supporters“

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from the darksideDisbelief as goal number three finds the net

always enjoy their company (anyone who

turns their back on the Premier League to

watch football at non-league level is more

than OK in my book and a true supporter

of the beautiful game). When we arrived at

e Village, a soulless bar for travelling

salesmen, we met up with a few travelling

Rammy supporters and for the only time in

the day we outnumbered the FCUM fans. I

was not too bothered about the Premier

League, although was willing a Burnley goal

to go in, and had a chat with the Rams fans

about todays game.

We left e Village at half time of the

Burnley game and made our way to

Stalybridge where our destination was e

Church Inn, about a mile from the ground.

I was hoping some of our supporters would

be in there but myself and Mrs Darkside

were lost in a pub full of FCUM supporters.

Despite this we proudly sported our colours

and enjoyed a good pre-match atmosphere

with a couple of pints of waites best

bitter (and half a lager and lime for my

better half).

We arrived at the ground for 2.40 and,

despite a crowd of nearly 2,000, could see

quite a bit of blue and white mixed in with

all the red, black and white of FCUM. A few

of us congregated behind the goal to get

behind the lads and I had a good pre-match

chat with fellow forum member, Carlsberg.

We stayed here for the first half as Rammy

were attacking the goal where we were

situated and tried to make ourselves heard

above the many FCUM supporters around

us. Despite us being outnumbered the

atmosphere was excellent and we enjoyed

some good banter with our opponents,

without a single negative comment being

passed, and they proved themselves to be

real football supporters.

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It was a pleasure to spend time amongst

them and a big thank you goes out for

the welcome they gave us. After an early

goal from Jordan ‘from the halfway line’

Hulme, we went in 2-1 down at half time.

Luckily I was situated near the bar where

a large queue was developing and I was

one of the lucky few to gain entrance. I

got talking with a FCUM supporter in

the bar who had attended the Northern

Soul nights at Ramsbottom Civic Hall

and I spent an enjoyable 15 minutes with

him telling me all about his days

frequenting the legendary Twisted

Wheel club in Manchester back in the

1970’s.

e second half was enjoyable, despite

going 3-1 down and we never really

looked like getting back into the game.

We had moved to the side of the pitch

for the second 45 minutes alongside

Little Katie, Andy W, Andy H and Hilary.

Despite our urging Rammy on to the end

it was never going to be our day and

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despite another excellent effort from the

players we found ourselves coming away

pointless again. We stayed back for five

minutes after the whistle for a chat with

ex- physio and new mother, Katie, and her

Dad, Stephen, before meeting up again

with Howard, Jake and P.D. on e Traitor

Bus. Once on board we soon found

ourselves stuck in the traffic coming away

from the ground which is quite a unique

experience at this level and we had a

lengthy discussion about the special buses

that used to be put on in the 1970’s to take

supporters to Manchester City and

Manchester United for their home games.

After dropping P.D. back off at e Village,

we arrived back in Ramsbottom just before

6.00 with a promise we would go and

watch young Jake when he makes his

debut for Walshaw Sports Club in a couple

of weeks time. Another defeat, but we are

still trying to play our football in the right

way and the Rams fans I spoke to are still

confident this will be a good season for us.

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rammy in exilesky sports statto richard isaacs

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Well this is fun isn't it. No one said it

would be easy this league - despite my

tongue in cheek comment after 9

minutes of the season, and with injuries

and suspensions already starting to have

a major effect on the team we are putting

out, things are looking difficult. But we

only have to look back at the start of last

season to know that this set of lads won't

let a mere few defeats affect their

thoughts and desires. Bernard and Jonno

won't let it happen! So faith is still at its

premium so let's not get too concerned.

It has been quite a busy few weeks for

me with T20 finals day a couple of weeks

ago where Lancashire fielded a guest

player in the final in the shape of one

Andrew Flintoff and then England's

miserable demise in the one day

internationals followed straight off.

Now I have had my hands on some

pretty special trophies in my time - top

of the list being the North West Counties

League trophy a couple of seasons ago

and the magnificent Play Off trophy last

May. But the chance to hold the Cricket

World Cup whilst the rain came down in

Bristol on Monday last week was pretty

special! Not as special as the NWCL or the

play off one but nearly!!

Tonight I will be heading north after

the latest England loss at Edgbaston so

depending when I get away, I

might get the last half hour of

the game there! Otherwise i

will be up for the Stamford game

on Saturday. Can't wait to

cheer the lads on and join in

the fun as always!!!

Come on you Rams!!!!!!!!!!!

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Ramsbottom United’s difficult start to life at

Evo-Stik Premier level was hardly helped by the

absence of four influential regulars, all out

through injury.

Under such circumstances, a visit to title

favourites FC United was always going to

prove a difficult obstacle to overcome, but,

despite going down to another defeat, the

thread-bare squad performed well and took

an early lead at Stalybridge Celtic’s Bower Fold

ground.

In the opening minutes the Rams took the

game to their hosts, with Jordan Hulme being

denied as his header was blocked on the line

with barely two minutes on the clock.

With ten minutes played, the visitors

deservedly took the lead. A corner from the

left was met by Hulme, and this time his

header did reach the back of the net via a

deflection off the underside of the bar.

Osebi Abadaki almost doubled the lead

when he raced down the right wing, only to

screw his shot wide of the far post, and the

same player was denied from close range by a

block from home keeper David Carnell.

e Rams had looked good value for their

lead, but they let it slip on 33 minutes, when a

saving tackle was played back to Grant

Shenton as he raced out of his goal. Confusion

reigned as keeper and a defender failed to clear

the danger, and FC’s Tom Greaves gleefully

nipped in to walk the ball into an empty net.

at was harsh on the Rams who were

inches away from regaining the lead three

minutes before the break. Jon Robinson’s

tenacity won the ball on the left and his

perfect cross found Hulme’s head, but the

attention of a defender saw the ball beat the

keeper but also the wrong side of the post.

Just as the Rams were preparing to curse

their luck, after a half they edged, a killer blow

was struck in time added on. A corner from

the right was not dealt with, and as the ball

was headed back across goal, Greaves was in

the right place to head home from close range.

at goal seemed to deflate the visitors,

whilst the hosts were determined to press

home the advantage as they stepped up a gear

in the second half. Playing down the slope, the

Reds looked the more likely to add to the tally,

and so it proved on 63 minutes when they

made the game safe. Having seen a dipping

shot from Matthew Wolfenden clip the top of

the Rams bar minutes earlier, Liam Brownhill

swung in a corner from the right, and the

unmarked Chris Lynch applied the merest of

touches to guide it into the back of the net.

A fourth was ruled out for offside, as

Wolfenden’s close range effort was tucked in

from a couple of feet out by Mike Norton, but

a further goal was always likely to go to the

home side.

Some stout defending ensured that it did

not happen, whilst the closest the Rams came

to reducing the lead was when Cedric Krou

broke through, but his effort was blocked.

3 - 1Bower Fold

30th August 2014

Att: 1917

Rammy Goals: Hulme (9)

FC United Goals: Greaves (33,45), Lynch (62)

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Steve Howson and Grant Shenton wonder what went wrong.

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To round off a miserable afternoon, yet

another red card went against the visitors,

their fourth of the season. Malachi Slaven,

having been booked in the first half, found

himself on the wrong side of an opponent

as time added on ticked down, and as the

player hit the ground, the referee reached

for the yellow card once more, swiftly

followed by the red.

e leap up in to Evo-Stik Premier is

proving a tough one for the team, as they

search for the winning formula which has

evaded them in all but one of the opening

five matches, but a return of the injured

players may well instil some stability as the

Rams become accustomed to playing

against better quality opposition.

Jordan opens the scoring

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SERIOUSLYSTRONGSERIOUSLYVERSATILE

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IT EVENWORKSUNDERWATER

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Oh, it’s painful isn’t it! To watch Rammy

get beaten by FC United and Nantwich

was really unpleasant, and hard to take

for us fans who are used to seeing

Rammy romp to victory. As I sat in the

stand at Stalybridge (and I NEVER sit at

the footy unless it’s really bad) with my

head in my hands, I started reminiscing

about the Crap Old Days of watching

Preston. It’s easy to remember the great

moments, like promotion from Division

4 and tonking the Donkey Lashers, but

the woeful despair of at Away Game at

Whitley Bay in the FA Cup, or losing at

Hartlepool in front of three mock-

Geordies and a whippet come all too

readily flooding back.

is is the time when football separates

out the men from the boys. When we see

the team taking the pitch with Bernard

and Johnno listed as subs, without

Stopforth and Burton in the

middle, without Gaskell up

front, and on the back of a

poor run of form, we

know we’re going to

have a long and

desperate 90 minutes.

And then, to make

matters worse, a goal from

Jordan, a bit of hope! Time to

mis-quote ‘Mr Stimpson’, ably played by

John Cleese in that great Sunday

afternoon film ‘Clockwise’: “It’s not the

despair Laura, I can cope with the despair

- it’s the hope that’s the real killer!”

And then we get yet another player sent

off. Bernard’s reaction said it all for me,

though I can’t repeat any of it here.

Let’s be honest folks, we’re struggling to

cut it at the moment. We’re starting

brightly, with enthusiasm and va-va-

voom, but we’re getting shoved around

and frustrated. We’re playing out of our

supporters clubon the terraces of rammy

Jordan’s gettinghis wages dockedfor setting aboutthe fence aftergetting sent off!

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skins to compete, and have to keep it

going almost twice a week for the rest of

the season. It’s frightening me, to be

honest.

We do have to remember that this is a

very high level of football that we’ve

reached now. e lads are giving it their

best shot, and trying to adjust to what I

feel to be the biggest leap we’ve made in

footballing terms. I always suspected that

the transition from the Northwest

Counties would be difficult, but with just

one going up from that league, you have

to be pretty good to even get the

promotion. Skem, Trafford, us, Salford

have all shown that step to be ok. is one

though - just look at the professionalism

of some of the players that lined up

against us for Nantwich and King’s Lynn,

let alone FC United - who earned their

first win of the season against us on

Saturday!

We need to be brave and strong, and as

fans we’re going to have to dig deep and

keep the support going. It’s easy to jump

in the car and watch us win playoffs, but

the real support is when we’re struggling

to put out a team, or are getting put to the

sword after a four hour trip down the M1.

I still have faith that we can turn things

around, but if we don’t then let’s not turn

our backs and jump off the Rammy

Bandwagon. We’re here for the long haul!

Come on you Rams!

“ e despair I can cope with - it’s thehope that’s the real killer“

Play the man first - the ‘professionalism’ at thislevel is something we’re struggling to adapt to.

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Matthew COOPER

Stephen WAINWRIGHT

James SHORT

Ian LATHAM

John SHAW

Daniel FEARNEHOUGH

Karl CLAIR

Andy FOWLER

Aaron BURNS

Matty WILLIAMS

James FOLEY

Jonathan GOULDING

Lewis CODLING

omas OWENS

Andy NICHOLAS

Managers: Anthony Johnson,

Bernard Morley

Manager: Carl Macualey

Referee: Peter Gooch

Referee’s Assistants: Oliver Lynn, James Morgan

Next home game: Saturday 6th September 3pm, Rammy v Stamford

Grant SHENTON

Dominic SMALLEY

Lee PUGH

Grant SPENCER

Steve HOWSON

Dan WARRENDER

Tom WILLIAMS

Scott BURTON

Jon ROBINSON

Lee GASKELL

Phil DEAN

Jordan HULME

Sam COOK

Osebi ABADAKI

Gary STOPFORTH

Malaki SLAVEN

Cedric KROU