Jonny and Jason complete the London Marathon (Sun 26 Apr)
Reds player Jonny Wright (pictured) and his brother Jason Pascoe completed the London Marathon today in memory of their brother Richard.
Richard suffered from Microcephalia, a disorder that affected the size of his brain. Sadly Richard passed away aged just 24.
Jonny and Jason are raising money for the charity Contact a Family, a charity providing support to families with disabled children.
Jonny Wright completed the marathon in a time of 4 hours, 44 minutes, 28 seconds alongside his brother Jason. Jonny suffered a groan strain after around 21 miles and struggled for the last 4 miles but got there in the end.
King's Lynn relegated from BSN (Thu 23 Apr)
King's Lynn have been threatened with expulsion from the Conference over ground grading issues.
The club have 14 days to launch an appeal against demotion after failing to meet Conference deadlines on remedial work to the council-owned Walks Stadium.
The local Borough Council who own the ground, have agreed to carry out an estimated £250,000 upgrade ahead of next season's league kick off but this has been rejected by Conference officials.
The council was first approached by the club for assistance in December, after a ground inspection highlighted areas which needed improvement.
The council agreed to provide financial assistance and contract support to enable KLFC to get the major works completed that included setting aside a budget of £250,000 to carry out works to increase the size of the changing rooms and to provide officials' changing rooms and a medical room for players. This sum also included an upgrade to the floodlighting. The smaller items were to be carried out by KLFC themselves including improving signage, adding two extra turnstiles and providing additional room in the dug-outs.
The club have 14 days to launch an appeal to the league. Lynn would be demoted to the Unibond Premier if they lose.
Tamworth win the league (Tue 21 Apr)
Tamworth gained victory over Hickley United by the single 65th minute goal from Nick Wright. With this victory giving the lambs a clear five point advantage over Gatehead heading into the final fixture at the weekend it ensured promotion for the Lambs to the Blue Square Premier.
The play-offs for the final promotion place will be contested between Gateshead, Southport, AFC Telford United and Alfreton Town.
Down and outs (Sat 18 Apr)
Following Saturday's games the three teams dropping out of the Blue Square North league have been confirmed.
With Hyde losing at Redditch United and Burscough losing at Stalybridge Celtic, both teams are relegated along with already relegated Hucknall Town.
New contracts agreed (Fri 17 Apr)
Following last nights County Cup victory against Carlisle United, Lee Andrews (pictured left) and Kyle May each signed a new two year contract confirming them as Reds' players up to April 2011.
Both participated in last night's cup victory and featured in the build up to only goal of the game scored by Gareth Arnison four minutes before the end of extra time.
The Cumberland Senior County Cup final will be played next Wednesday, 22nd April at Brunton Park, 7:00pm kick off. The Reds opponents in the final will be Penrith.
Mr Indestructible (Fri 17 Apr)
There were worries after Monday's game against Burscough that Kyle May had played his last game of the season following breaking his nose in the game. Kyle was replaced by Darren Edmodson to avoid further damage to his broken nose.
Kyle saw a specialist on Thursday who informed him a operation was required on the nose; the operation was scheduled for 11am this Friday morning.
Meanwhile, Kyle rang manager Darren Edmondson on Thursday asking if he could play in the County Cup Semi-final against Carlisle later that evening. Kyle played the full game including extra time.
Following the operation Kyle may make himself available for the trip to King's Lynn, depending how the operation goes.
OFK's Shaun Vipond injured on debut (Mon 13 Apr)
The English midfielder was injured in Thursday's friendly match for Swedish team Östersund against Norwegian side Byåsen and was taken by ambulance to hospital.
The injury occurred in the 29th minute when Vipond collided with a Byåsen player. Vipond was left writhing in pain after the collision and was carried off on a stretcher. Ambulance staff present at the ground believed he had broken his collar bone and Vipond was taken directly to Östersund hospital.
OFK's coach, Kalle Björklund said afterwards, "It is incredibly sad, we feel very sorry for Shaun. Typically enough, he started this game very well".
Vipond, making his debut for OFK, was attempting to force his way into the starting eleven for the forthcoming season.
Asked if following this injury that Shaun may go back to England, coach Kalle Björklund said, "That is for the Board to decide, but football really is tough. We cannot allow an injured player to take up a place in a competitive squad".
Ernie Talbot (Sun 12 Apr)
There was a moment of silence prior to kick-off on Saturday as a mark of respect to a former player and a supporter.
Ernie Talbot, a player from the fifties, and keen supporter Tony Waiting both passed away recently and our condolences go to the respective families.
Ernie’s finest hour in a Reds’ shirt was during the 1956-57 season when he scored twice in the famous 3-2 away win over Derby County. He only made 19 first team appearances over six seasons with the club during the fifties.
He did make his mark in North Eastern League football, though, scoring over fifty goals for the Reserves including a seasonal best of 17 during the 57-58 campaign.
Four of those goals were netted against Blyth Spartans who were the opposition when the minute of silence was observed on Saturday.
Ernie bagged two hat-tricks for the Reserves including four goals in a 5-3 win at Stockton.
After leaving Borough Park, Ernie signed for Netherfield.
Hopping along (Sun 12 Apr)
Club skipper Tony Hopper is presented with an engraved memento from chairman
Humphrey Dobie in recognition of his 200 (league and cup) appearances for the Reds.
Skipper Tony Hopper is the latest player at Borough Park to join the 200 club having reached that personal milestone in the home game against Hucknall Town on Tuesday. He produced another awesome performance and was unlucky not to mark the occasion with a stunning goal – his sweet volley ruled out because of an offside decision.
Tony made his Reds’ debut back in the 2000-01 season in a Unibond League First Division game against Lincoln United. Wearing the number 7 shirt he took his place in this line-up: Gary Hoggeth, Alan Gray, Gavin Skelton, Billy Barr, Wayne Johnson, Graeme Carr (Gary Milne),
Tony Hopper, John Wharton, Barry Irving (Graham Goulding), Brian Dawson and Mark Jones. Sub: Marc Green.
Since then he has made the number eight shirt his own in 200 league and cup appearances – 170 of which have been in the league – scoring fifteen goals in the process.
Season-by-season summary:
Season Appearances Goals
00-01 1
02-03 23+2 3
03-04 22+1 3
05-06 31+2 1
06-07 38+3 1
07-08 50 4
08-09 36+2 3
Hewson injury woes (Sat 11 Apr)
Injured Reds' skipper Dave Hewson received the worst possible news this week when he recieved the results of his ankle scan.
Dave has been out injured for nine weeks already and could face up to another eight months out of action confirmed by manager Darren Edmondson following Saturday's Blyth Spartans match.
Darren confirmed that Dave Hewson requires an operation on the injured ankle and it could possibly be around Christmas time before Hewson could resume playing.
New main sponsor (Fri 10 Ap)
John Rowlands with Reds chairman Humphrey Dobie.
The club is pleased to announce that John Rowlands, Managing Director of Romar Innovate and a lifelong Reds supporter, has agreed to Romar Innovate becoming the main club sponsor for the 2009-10 season.
Cumberland Cup semi-final date (Mon 06 Apr)
The date for the semi-final clash against Carlisle United in the Cumberland Senior County Cup has been agreed.
The fixture is to be played on Thursday 16th April, 7:00pmkick off at Borough Park.
News signings ahead of deadline (Fri 03 Apr)
Reds' manager Darren Edmondson has signed three recruits to the first team squad ahead of the deadline.
Former Morecambe youth player, Callum Ruttledge (pictured left) was present on the bench on Tuesday evening for the Fleetwood Town match.
Along side Callum on the bench was Adam Main (pictured right) has steeped up from the Reds Reserves.
Also signed, returning to the Reds fold, is goalkeeper Aaron Taylor (pictured left). Aaron has been training with the Reds for a few months now and is seen as a direct replacement for Adam Collin for next season.
Reserves game postponed (Thu 02 Apr)
Friday evenings Reserve team game against Lancaster City Reserves has been postponed as Lancaster are unable to raise a team.
The next Reserve team game is against Chorley. The match is to be played at Borough Park on Tuesday 14th April.
Mirehouse Cumberland Cup preview (Thu 02 Apr)
Reds’ manager Darren Edmondson will be playing himself in the quarter final tie at Mirehouse this evening.
Goalkeeper Adam Collin will be the other first team member playing along with new first team squad recruit Adam Main, (pictured left).
The winner of this tie will face Carlisle United in the semi-final.
Edmo v. Alfreton (Sun 29 Mar)
Reds’ manager Darren Edmondson has enjoyed mixed fortunes in the eight encounters against Alfreton Town during his time at Borough Park.
As a player, Darren played against Town four times and never lost winning twice and drawing the other two. In addition, he scored in two of those games – one at home, one away. Not bad when you consider he only netted three league goals in total for us.
As a manager, however, Edmo has come up against Alfreton four times and has yet to taste victory having drawn once and lost three times.
The hypothetical question is: Would we have got something from the game had he introduced himself to the action via the bench on Saturday?
Viv goes back to York (Sun 29 Mar)
Assistant manager Viv Busby was one of many former York City players who attended a reunion dinner last Thursday to mark the 25th anniversary of the memorable 1983-84 season.
Viv, who finished his playing days with City, was assistant manager to Denis Smith back in the mid eighties when York became the first Football League team to obtain 100 points on their way to the old Fourth Division title.
Most of the squad from that season were present plus many other York City greats from different eras in an event hosted at York Racecourse.
Darren Edmondson and Lee Andrews are two other members of the present Reds’ set-up with York City links and they join a list which includes the likes of Gus Alexander, Tommy Brownlee, Clive Colbridge, Tommy Spencer, Tommy Spratt, John Ward and Ian McDonald all of whom have spent time at Bootham Crescent and Borough Park at various stages of their respective careers.
Keith Armstrong (Sat 28 Mar)
A player who served Reds during the late seventies/early eighties has become a TV star in Finland.
Newcastle-upon-Tyne born Keith Armstrong, 51, has spent the best part of thirty years in Finland enjoying success as a player, coach, manager, TV pundit and summariser.
Keith first played for Reds during the 78-79 season making his debut thirty years ago in a home draw (2-2) v. Frickley Athletic. A few days later, in an away game at Boston United, he scored a ‘wonder’ goal in a 2-1 defeat and subsequently netted 1 v. Altrincham, 2 v. Northwich Victoria, 2 v. Morecambe and 2 v. Stafford Rangers. Keith also netted four goals in the Cumberland Cup including our consolation goal in the shock 3-1 defeat in the final at the hands of Cleator Moor Celtic in 1979.
His first of nine clubs in Finland was with Oulun Palloseura (OPS) whom he played for whilst at Reds. He went onto score 60 League goals in 179 appearances whilst his European goal tally ‘famously’ included one in a 10-1 defeat against Liverpool. He had the satisfaction of playing for and managing Finnish teams in European ties against Liverpool.
Keith won three titles as a player – OPS in 79 and 80 and Kuusysi in 84 – then five as a manger plus two cups. A league and cup double was obtained in 2003 and he was twice winner of the ‘manager of the year’ accolade.
For the past twelve months, Keith has been working as a TV presenter and is one of the scouts employed by the Finland national team under their manager Stuart Baxter.
He now has dual nationality and has mastered the Finnish language.
Keith made fifty appearances for Reds scoring 14 goals in the process.
WAFC career:
Season Appearances Goals
78-79 18 12
80-81 18 + 5 2
81-82 2 + 7 -
Ex-skipper on the mend (Thu 26 Mar)
Dave Butler, who made over 200 appearances for Reds between 1964 and 1970, is back ‘at work’ after recently undergoing surgery following a heart attack.
He celebrated his 64th birthday earlier this week with a bit more gusto than normal after the health scare.
Dave, now scouting for Portsmouth, left Reds thirty-nine years ago for Watford and subsequently qualified as a physiotherapist. He became a close friend/colleague of Terry Venables and worked under him at Queens Park Rangers, Tottenham Hotspur and, of course, the England national team.
From Borough Park to the Camp Nou (Thu 26 Mar)
Reserve team secretary Herbert Briggs has also experienced the contrast between the basic and luxurious recently when he visited Barcelona’s Camp Nou for the first time.
After watching Reds struggle to a draw v. Hyde United at archaic Borough Park, Herb’s next game was watching the Spanish League leaders demolish Malaga 6-0 at one of the top football venues.
After seeing Messrs Xavi, Messi, Henry and Eto’o get amongst the goals it is back to reality on Saturday!
From Borough Park to Wembley (Thu 26 Mar)
Saturday Borough Park, next week Wembley.
That is the interesting contrast which sees Wallsend official, Dave McCallum refereeing the Blue Square North fixture v. Alfreton Town before heading south for next week’s Johnstone Paint Trophy Final between Luton Town and Scunthorpe in which he will officiate as an assistant referee.
I have never been fortunate to visit the new Wembley dressing rooms but I am quite confident it will be a grade or two higher than the less than basic facilities at Borough Park.
Enjoy your big day Dave.
Reds' Conference marksmen (Thu 26 Mar)
We are now coming to the end of our fourth season in Conference North football and during that time we have scored no fewer than 220 league goals.
Can you remember who scored our first goal at this level at the start of the 2005-06 campaign? It was, in fact, Graham Goulding who netted what proved to be a consolation goal in a 2-1 home defeat against Worksop Town.
A few days later, Tony Hopper scored our first away goal in a 1-1 draw at Hyde United and the skipper is the only player to score in each of the four seasons to date. David Hewson and Craig Johnston still had the opportunity to do the same before injury ended their season prematurely.
‘Johnno’ topped Reds’ scoring chart in the first two seasons, scoring 10 and 15 respectively, while Jonny Wright did so last term with 11. Jonny and Gareth Arnison lead the way this season on 13.
Anthony Wright’s superb winner at Harrogate Town on Tuesday lifted him one place in the top ten which reads:
29 Craig Johnston
24 Jonny Wright
16 Anthony Wright
15 Gareth Arnison
12 Steve Birks
10 Graham Anthony
10 Matthew Berkeley
10 Mathew Henney
9 Tony Hopper
9 Michael Reed
Tony Hopper has scored in each of our four seasons in Conference North.
Andy Cook's loan extended (Mon 23 Mar)
The loan deal with Carlisle United bringing young striker Andy Cook to Borough Park has been extended to a second month.
Andy has made has made 5 starts and 4 substitute appearances in his first month scoring two goals.
Cumberland Cup quarter final date set (Fri 20 Mar)
The date for the Cumberland Cup quarter final tie against Mirehouse has finally been set with the game to be played on Thursday 2nd April at Mirehouse.
Mirehouse have recently been having work done on their floodlights and if the work is not completed in time for the tie it will be switched to Borough Park.
The kick off time for either venue has yet to be agreed.
Vandals strike again (Wed 18 Mar)
Vandals have attacked Borough Park yet again, this time completely destroying the home dugout. The dugout was burnt down after wheelie bins were set alight inside the dugout. Advetisement hoarding were also damage in the incident.
The incident happened on Sunday afternoon, around 3pm. If anyone can assist the club in catching the culprits please contact the club or Workington police.
Saturday's game against Hinckley United is set to go ahead as planned as a replacement dugout should arrive on Friday.
WAFC - a good decade (Tue 17 Mar)
One or two supporters left the ground last week somewhat disgruntled that we had produced a below par performance against fellow strugglers, Hyde United, and, for the third game in a row, had failed to win on home soil.
What ever happens between now and the end of the season, and we remain very optimistic about retaining our place in Blue Square North, the fact is the past decade has been a very good one for Workington AFC.
The turning point was the season in the North West Counties League which was our salvation but also, almost, the beginning of the end.
We had to bounce back at the first attempt otherwise one wonders where we would be now - if we had still been here at all. Bounce back we did but it was subsequently discovered at a cost.
A former chairman accumulated huge debts and, if it wasn’t for four members of the current board and several other individuals, I am sure the club would have folded. They ensured a future and for that we will be forever grateful. There have been plenty of highlights during the past ten years - certainly more than the previous two decades – and if we can continue in the same vein for the next decade (new stadium or a re-vamped Borough Park permitting) the future, although not guaranteed, would be promising.
It is, of course, ten years on since we embarked on that memorable fourteen match winning sequence which eventually clinched the North Western Trains League title.
We were still in 5th position when the run got underway with a somewhat fortunate 3-2 win over Ramsbottom United on 6th March, 1999. Seven wins later, we were still in 5th position eventually moving up to 4th then 3rd. After a 3-0 success at Glossop North End (the eleventh win of that wonderful sequence) we moved to 2nd and the situation was now in our own hands. All that was needed was another three victories which we managed to eventually go top on the final day following victory over the previous leaders, Mossley.
It will be sometime, if ever, before we see the like again but some supporters, it would appear, expect that as the norm!
Alan Suddick 1944 - 2009 (Mon 16 Mar)
Alan Suddick, who played for the Reds during the 1981-82 season, passed away suddenly today aged 64.
Born in Chester-le-Street in 1944, alan played 144 games for Newcastle United after becoming their youngest ever debutant at 17.
After five years at St. James’, he moved to Blackpool in a £63,000 transaction spending a decade at Bloomfield Road before a spell with Stoke City. He subsequently played for Bury, Southport, Barrow and Lancaster City.
Earlier in his career he was capped by England at Youth and U23 level.
He joined Workington in September 1981 (signed by Sean Gallagher) making his debut in a 1-0 home win over Gainsborough Trinity and was a member of the Reds’ team that thrashed Morecambe 7-1 later that month. Played a dozen league and cup games for us as a ’stop-gap’ signing.
Alan has been living in the Blackpool area for the past thirty years.
His father was a professional with Barnsley while his son, Jarrod, played for Reds during the
95-96 season.
Reserves' game postponed (Mon 16 Mar)
Saturday's proposed Reserve game against Clitheroe has had to be postponed as it clashed with the Cumberland FA U18 game against Sheffield & Hallamshire U18
The Cumberland U18 side draws heavily from the Reds Reserves side with the like of Matthew Charters, Daniel McDermott, Michael Grayson, Greg Mitchell, Gareth Brunton, Nicholas Holden, Liam Jackson, Callum Lee, Adam Maine, Stefan Scott, Callum Lee, Ryan Moody and Aaron Roberts representing both sides.
Dean Gordon (Mon 16 Mar)
Vastly experienced ex-Palace and 'Boro defender Dean Gordon has joined the Reds on a week-to-week basic.
Gordon, 36, will be helping out the management team in training where his experience will be invaluable.
He has other offers on the table and will decide in the next few weeks if he wants to come full time.
Gordon started his career with Crystal Palace, being a local lad from Croydon, progressing through their youth ranks. A pacy left back in his prime, he played over 240 matches for Palace scoring some spectacular goals including a hat-trick against West Bromich Albion in 1995. He won a Championship medal with Palace and also an England U21 call up getting 13 U21 caps.
Gordon joined Middlesbrough in July 1998 for a £900,00 fee spending four seasons at 'Boro where he played 63 games in the Premiership scoring 4 goals.
He additionally has played for the following teams in his playing career:
Cardiff City (on loan), Coventry City, Reading (on loan), Grimsby Town, APOEL (Cyprus), Crook Town, Worksop Town, Albany United (New Zealand), Aukland City (New Zealand), New Zealand Knights (New Zealand), Lewes, Torquay United, Whitby Town and Ilkeston Town.
Player of the month award (Sun 15 Mar)
Prior to the Hyde United game on Saturday, Phil McLuckie, who was named the BSN Player of the Month for January, received his prize of a bottle of champagne and an engraved Blue Square trophy from Reds' chairman Humphrey Dobie.
Five on the road (Thu 12 Mar)
Scoring five goals in an away match was something of a rarity for Reds for over two decades but they have been plentiful in recent seasons with Tuesday’s nap-hand at Farsley the eighth time we have done so in the past five years.
Only once during that period have we gone on to net half-a-dozen (Redditch United) so I have not included that in our list of fivers.
A reminder of the big wins on the road:
Stalybridge Celtic 5-0 (FA Cup), Vauxhall Motors 5-2 (League), Netherhall 5-0 (Cumberland Cup), Lancaster City 5-1 (League), Spennymoor United 5-1 (League), Bamber Bridge 5-1 (FA Cup), Kendal Town 5-0 (League).
In addition to the aforementioned, Reds have won friendly matches at Gretna (5-2) and Whitehaven (5-1).
Thank you Bury (Tue 03 Mar)
Jack Dorney (pictured left) and Ricky Anane (pictured right) are the latest players who will be able to list both Bury and Workington on their career CV following their month on loan with Reds.
They returned to Gigg Lane on Monday after saying their goodbyes following the Southport game.
Both had been involved in our previous six games with Jack, 19, playing some part in all of those including his full debut v. Droylsden while Ricky, 20, got some limited field time against AFC Telford United and Tamworth.
During our Football League days, the likes of Bill Bradbury, Hugh Cameron, Billy Griffin, Barry Lowes, Alan Tyrer and Dave Howitt had played in both the white of Bury and the red of Workington at various stages of their respective careers with Griffin and Lowes actually switching allegiance in the same transaction.
More recently, the likes of Gary Hoggeth, Lee Connell, Rob Debenham, John Borg, Gary Messer and Mark Donnelly spent time at Borough Park after starting their football life with Bury.
Spot-on (Thu 26 Feb)
For the second time this season, Adam Collin thwarted Droylsden with a spectacular penalty save helping Reds to another 1-1 draw against the Manchester side.
His superb save on Tuesday to deny Sean Newton was every bit as good as the one he made at Droylsden last September when he kept out Neil Prince’s first half spot-kick.
Adam’s heroics in the home match were probably more dramatic because it was he who gave away the last minute penalty which he atoned for in style.
Asked why he was not red-carded referee Paul Marsden explained, “When the goalkeeper tripped the Droylsden player everyone assumed Adam Collin would be sent off but Steve Halford had knocked the ball towards three Workington defenders who, in my opinion, would have cleared the ball first. Therefore, it was not a goal scoring opportunity.”
A situation which clearly went in our favour to counter balance a decision which went against us at Tamworth in the previous game.
Adam was subsequently named the sponsor’s ‘man-of-the-match’ just like he had been in the earlier meeting at Droylsden – an unusual double.
It was his eighth penalty save for Reds (not including the five he has made in penalty shoot-outs).
House of Lords (Fri 20 Feb)
Workington AFC, along with all other sixty-seven Conference clubs, will be represented at the House of Lords on Monday when, for the first time, a reception will be held giving our colleagues and us the opportunity to meet their local MP and other influential parliamentarians.
It is being hosted by Lord Faulkner of Worcester, vice-president of the Conference, with the event kindly sponsored by Setanta. It will give us all the opportunity to demonstrate to MPs the immense amount of good work Conference clubs undertake in the community and the contribution we make to the local area.
Reds’ director Colin Doorbar (pictured) will be our representative with MP, Tony Cunningham, hoping to attend the event “ if at all possible”.
Colin will be travelling to London on Monday for the evening reception and should be back in west Cumbria for Tuesday’s home game versus Droylsden.
The event is being held in the Cholmondeley Room in the House of Lords commencing at 6pm.
Hero Hopper (Sun 15 Feb)
Tony Hopper marked the eighth anniversary of his Reds debut with a ‘man-of-the-match’ performance that helped topple high flying AFC Telford United on Saturday.
The ‘new’ skipper was outstanding for the eighty-five minutes he was on the pitch and received a well deserved standing ovation when he was replaced by Ricky Anane just before the end. He led by example throughout and was an inspiration to the rest of the team some of whom are ten, or more, years his junior.
His Reds career got underway during the 2000-01 season when he played a ‘one-off’ game for us whilst on loan from Carlisle United. He helped Reds to a 2-2 draw against Lincoln United at Borough Park wearing the number 7 shirt in this line-up: Gary Hoggeth, Alan Gray, Gavin Skelton, Billy Barr, Wayne Johnson, Graeme Carr (Gary Milne), Tony Hopper, John Wharton, Barry Irving (Graham Goulding), Brian Dawson, Mark Jones. Sub: Marc Green.
In the seven seasons since, Tony has been a regular in six of those with last term his best making fifty league and cup appearances culminating in him being nominated the Players’ ‘Player of the Year’.
The only problem now is getting the 32 year-old out for two demanding games a week between now and the end of the season. If he plays well the team responds accordingly as was the case on Saturday.
Team of the Round award (Sun 15 Feb)
Gary Alpin from the Football Association was a guest at Borough Park on Saturday where he made an on field presentation to Workington AFC.
Our victory over Barrow in the FA Trophy Second Round was judged by the FA as the "Team of the Second Round" performance.
Gary Alpin presented the Team of the Round award to the Reds injured duo of Craig Johnston and Dave Hewson prior to the Wrexham game.
Also, prior to the game, Gary was photographed with Reds manager Darren Edmondson in the Shankly lounge with the award.
Ton up for Wrighty (Sun 15 Feb)
Anthony Wright, one of only two ever-presents in the Reds’ line-up this season, recently celebrated his 100th Workington game. He reached the milestone appearance in the 3-0 FA Trophy win at Barrow last month with his century of outings consisting of 83 in the league and 17 in various cup competitions.
‘Little Wrighty’ originally joined Reds in the 2004-05 season and made his debut as a substitute in a 3-2 Unibond League Premier division defeat at Lincoln United. He made eight substitute appearances in the early part of the season but a lack of first team opportunities prompted a switch to Penrith where he was a regular for the best part of two seasons. One of his appearances for Penrith was against Reds when the Blues of Southend Road knocked us out of the Cumberland Cup.
He made a welcome return to Borough Park in 2006 and has been an integral member of the side since. Anthony made 43 starts in his first full season with the club scoring nine goals in the process. Injury hampered his progress somewhat last term although he still made 30 starts but managed just one goal. In the current campaign, he has netted six goals in his 32 league and cup outings.
Anthony, 22, has now made 105 (+ 15 as a substitute) appearances for Reds and has 16 league and cup goals to his credit.
Paul Lloyd (Mon 09 Feb)
Paul Lloyd’s Reds’ career is over before it had even started.
The midfielder’s registration with Reds was cancelled on Monday and he will sign for Forest Green Rovers on Tuesday.
He was a non-playing substitute in the Trophy game against Wrexham so will be eligible for Forest Green in their 4th Round tie at Stevenage Borough.
Player of the month award (Fri 06 Feb)
Phil McLuckie has been named BSN Player of the Month for January and will be presented with a bottle of champagne and an engraved Blue Square trophy at a future home game.
Jonny Wright was amongst the other players short listed but Phil got the nod.
Craig Johnston was the last Reds’ player to pick up the award in September 2006.
Defender Scott Garner (Mansfield Town) and goalkeeper Matt Lovett (Hampton and Richmond Borough) were the other recipients in Blue Square Premier and Blue Square South respectively.
Gateshead’s Ian Bogie was nominated Blue Square North manager of the month for January.
Billy Watson 1928 – 2009 (Thu 05 Feb)
Billy Watson, Reds' groundsman for 39 years, sadly passed away on Wednesday 4th February after losing his brave fight against cancer.
Billy started as groundsman in January 1952 after leaving the Royal Signals. He joined the army at the age of 18 just as the Second World War ended in 1945. He saw active service in Palestine as a wireless operator.
During his time as groundsman, Billy became friends with Bill Shankly who managed the Reds from January 1954 to December 1955.
Bill Shankly kept in contact with Billy after he moved on and offered him the groundsman's job at both Huddersfield and later at Anfield where he became a legend as manager of Liverpool FC.
Billy Watson was deeply shocked by Shankly’s death from a heart attack at the age of 67.
Bill attended Shankly’s funeral at West Derby in Liverpool and was surprised to find that the canon who took the church service asked to see Billy.
His name was Harry Myers and he was once the vicar at St Mary’s Church in Harrington and remembered Billy Watson from his time there.
Billy was born on the Quay where he attended Lawrence Street Junior and Infants School on the Marsh. After moving to Salterbeck when he was 10, where he lived for 60 years, he attended Harrington Juniors in 1938 and then Guard Street Senior Boys School.
Billy's funeral service will held at Our Lady and St. Michaels church on Thursday 12th February and he will be inturred at Salterbeck Cemetery.
New date (Tue 03 Feb)
The Blue Square North game v. Hucknall Town, originally scheduled for the 31st January at Borough Park, has been re-arranged and will now take place on Tuesday 7th April, 2009 kick-off 7.45pm.
The match had to be cancelled to accommodate Saturday’s Trophy clash against Wrexham.
Andy Halliday (Tue 27 Jan)
Match referee, Andy Halliday, will be following in his brother’s footsteps when he takes charge of his first ever game at Borough Park on Saturday.
Elder brother Jim was on duty here in September when he refereed our FA Youth Cup tie versus Ashton Town having previously been on the line at Borough Park for the pre-season friendly v. Carlisle United. Now Andy will take centre stage for the FA Carlsberg Trophy match against Wrexham.
Andy has the better pedigree, though, and has had his share of the limelight already in a blossoming career.
He was an assistant referee at the Millennium Stadium in 2005 for the League 1 Play-off final and also on the line for the FA Trophy final the same year. In addition, he has three UEFA cup ties under his belt.
Earlier this season, he was involved in a controversial incident in the Hull City v. Aston Villa Premier League encounter at the KC Stadium.
Referee Steve Bennett awarded Hull a penalty following a corner believing the ball had been helped over the bar by Ashley Young’s raised hand. The ball actually hit the bar.
After being persuaded to consult his assistant, Andy Halliday, the decision was reversed. Last week, Andy was on duty in the Championship fixture – Blackpool v. Birmingham City.
Scouting mission (Sat 24 Jan)
Wrexham first team coach, Brian Carey, must have been impressed when he assessed Reds’ strengths and weaknesses at Bower Fold on Saturday.
The Blue Square Premier outfit, who visit Borough Park for the first time in thirty-nine years on Saturday, will be well informed of what we have to offer once Carey’s report has been digested by Dean Saunders and his staff.
Carey, a recent Wrexham manager, has a wealth of experience as a player and coach having played for the likes of Cork City, Manchester United, Leicester City and Wrexham. He was also capped three times by the Republic of Ireland.
His report will be incomplete, however, as he left the ground just before the end and missed our two secret weapons, Dan Robinson and Andy Hardman, combine to score a fine fourth goal.
The Wrexham connection (Thu 22 Jan)
Our encounter with Wrexham will be the first cup tie between the sides and the first meeting of any kind for thirty nine years.
We met regularly during our Football League days, twenty four times in fact, and our record against the Wrexham Reds was very good – particularly at Borough Park. It was a bit different on Welsh soil where we only tasted victory on two occasions but each of those contributed to a league double. Wrexham’s only win here helped them to a league double too.
It was back in the 1951-52 season, and Third Division (North) football, when 7,492 fans turned up at Borough Park to witness a Workington victory (2-0). The return match was played a week later at the Racecourse Ground and finished goalless. The attendance, incidentally, was just 97 fewer than the previous week.
Chris Simmonds netted the first hat-trick in the series and that contributed to our best win (4-0) overall during our second season in the League.
The 24th October, 1953 will be etched into our history as the day we suffered a record FL defeat with Wrexham inflicting the damage (0-8). One of several heavy reverses when we ventured over the border.
The 55-56 clashes saw us win for the first time at the Racecourse with a 1-0 Boxing Day success quickly followed, next day, by a 3-1 victory at Borough Park thanks mainly to an Ernie Whittle threesome.
Home and away successes were again obtained during the 61-62 campaign with our 3-2 win at Wrexham watched by a huge crowd of 14,471 –the best for a fixture between the two clubs. Wrexham had the last laugh, though, winning promotion as we finished 8th
Their only double at our expense was season 67-68 with the Borough Park leg attracting, by contrast, the lowest gate in the series – just 1,765 supporters passing through the turnstiles. A similar response today would leave us delighted; how times change.
The twenty-fourth tussle, in April 1970 saw Wrexham emerge 4-1 victors with veteran striker, Les Massie, the last Workington player to score in this particular fixture.
SUMMARY
Season Home Away
51-52 2-0 0-0
52-53 4-0 0-3
53-54 1-1 0-8
54-55 2-1 1-1
55-56 3-1 1-0
56-57 3-0 0-3
57-58 4-2 1-1
60-61 3-1 1-2
61-62 1-0 3-2
67-68 1-2 0-5
68-69 0-0 0-1
69-70 2-0 1-4
A handful of players have played for both clubs with two, Earl Godding and Stewart McCallum, coming to us from Wrexham and one, Brian Tinnion, transferring in the opposite direction. The Tinnion transfer earned us £15,000 some forty years ago and, most probably, kept the club afloat at that time.
Two others, Gordon Livsey and Stuart Mason, came to us during our non-league days having previously played for Wrexham earlier in their respective careers.
Gordon, in fact, was our first post-Football League manager but he left after less than six months in the job. Stuart came to us from Bangor City where he had been player/manager.
Trophy trivia (Thu 22 Jan)
Walter Gillott scored Reds first goal in the FA Trophy.
Our first win in the competition was 1-0 at Burscough (thanks to an own-goal).
We have been involved in three Trophy penalty shoot-outs; losing against Harrogate Town and Rocester but winning v. Burton Albion.
The best attendance for a Reds’ trophy tie was the 1,643 present for the Kettering Town clash at Borough Park (99-00), the lowest a mere 53 spectators at Kirkby Town (80-81).
Graham Gill, with four goals v. North Shields, was the first and only Reds player to net a Trophy hat-trick.
Our record win was the 7-1 success at Rothwell Town, the heaviest defeat 0-5 at Leicester United.
Reds have obtained a welcome £15,000 from the FA prize fund for their three Trophy wins.
Trophy Tears and Triumphs (Thu 22 Jan)
Our FA Trophy adventure began thirty-one years ago with a match against Altrincham but, since then, it is fair to say we have experienced more tears than triumphs in almost eighty ties in the competition.
Replay defeats against the likes of Glossop, Northallerton Town, Great Harwood Town, Leicester United and Rocester (to name a few) have left Reds fans wondering if we will ever make a significant contribution in the Trophy. In the past, and too often, one win for us has represented a ‘cup run’ so with five victories over this season and last Reds fans may just be starting to enjoy the competition.
This season sees us playing in four rounds for only the second time with successes over Tamworth, King’s Lynn and Barrow earning us the right to take on Wrexham who have been billed as one of the favourites as they partake in their first FA Trophy tournament.
The previous time we generated ‘cup fever’ was during the 99-00 campaign when we played seven matches – going through in replays against Bilston Town, Burton Albion and Worksop Town before falling to Kettering Town at Borough Park.
In that particular run, we managed to be the focus of attention when we met Burton Albion at Borough Park. Off the field, there was the presence of Sky, Border TV and radio crews from BBC Cumbria and Derby not to mention then Newcastle United manager Bobby Robson in the stand. On the pitch there was a midfield battle between two former Liverpool players – Paul Stewart (Reds) and Nigel Clough (Albion). It finished all square so a trip to Eton Park (in the days before the Pirelli Stadium) on the Tuesday saw our heroes triumph in a penalty shoot-out. In the crowd was Nigel’s dad, Brian – VIPs at both games.
Worksop Town (away) was our reward for overcoming Albion and, in another replay, we overcame higher placed opposition (they were Unibond Premier at the time) for only the second time in the competition.
Reaching the last sixteen was quite an achievement considering we were still Unibond First at the time and there was no disgrace in a 1-0 defeat by Conference outfit Kettering Town.
We have had other memorable afternoons in the competition and my favourites would have to include a 5-4 win over Brandon United in the mid-eighties when Reds went in front for the first time when scoring the fifth goal and our record Trophy win at Rothwell Town a decade later when Reds, struggling in the league at the time, emerged 7-1 victors.
Even those cannot compare with the recent win at Barrow in the last round when our nearest rivals were somewhat relieved that we only netted three!
Which brings us to Wrexham who go into the tie as odds-on favourites. It would be beyond fantasy to make the last eight but, at least, we have generated some creditability in the competition after years of abject failure.
One of our guests today is Gary Aplin who is on the FA Trophy committee. Gary, who once refereed an FA Trophy tie at Borough Park, is here to present us with an FA memento to mark our ‘Team of the round’ performance at Holker Street.
Ex-Reds (Mon 19 Jan)
Twelve months ago, Matt Berkeley was still ‘flavour of the month’ at Borough Park having just scored that stunning goal at Braintree Town – an equaliser which earned the replay three days later.
He only netted two more goals for Reds (in the superb 5-0 win over Tamworth) before the end of the season to finish with 11 in total.
Matt moved on in the summer and has since spent time with Altrincham, Droylsden, Leigh Genesis, Mossley and Hyde United. Far from ideal for a young talent who should be settled and playing for a club on a regular basis.
He is on the move again, however, having recently joined Welsh Premier League outfit, TNS.
Matt scored his first goal at that level on Saturday helping his side to a 1-1 draw against Newtown.
If Matt stays there a bit longer than the time spent at some of his previous clubs, he could meet up with another former Workington player in the WPL – Paul O’Neill is still at Rhyl.
Another striker who has led a nomadic existence since leaving Reds is Neil Tarrant (8 appearances for us in 06-07). He is still playing in the Northern League but recently dropped a division when he switched from Sunderland Nissan to Darlington RA.
Geoff Lumsden (Sat 10 Jan)
Lifelong Reds fan Geoff Lumsden 48 sadly passed away on Fri 9th Jan after losing his brave fight against cancer.
Geoff started following the Reds as a youngster in the late 60's early 70's and had been a dedicated supporter both home and away ever since.
He was also for many years an active member of the supporters club which included two spells as treasurer. He also spent countless unseen hours doing jobs at Borough Park including several spells working alongside brother Mark as joint Groundsman. Geoff was a meticulous hard worker who had the Borough Park surface looking it's best since the 'Billy Watson' era.
His other interests included scootering, music and narrowboats and although he had no family of his own he was very close to his sister Elaine, brother Mark and their families.
Funeral service is to be on Fri 16th Jan at Distington crematorium
Stafford Rangers (Thu 08 Jan)
The Blue Square North fixture against Stafford Rangers, postponed because of a frozen pitch on 3rd January, will now take place at Marston Road on Tuesday 17th March, 2009 kick-off 7.45pm.
The only fixture to be confirmed at the moment is the Cumberland Cup tie at Mirehouse which is due to be played the week commencing 2nd March.
Another new date (Mon 05 Jan)
The Blue Square North fixture against Fleetwood Town, postponed on New Year's Day because of a frozen pitch, will now take place at Borough Park on Tuesday 31st March, 2009 kick-off 7.45pm.
A new date for the fixture at Stafford Rangers has yet to be confirmed.
First ever derby in the Trophy (Sun 04 Jan)
Whilst Barrow have enjoyed the better of things against Reds in league (Football League, Northern Premier League and Conference North) matches, we have the slightly better record in cup competition.
It's twenty-two years since we inflicted a league defeat upon the Bluebirds but we have enjoyed success in Unibond cup ties in recent years. Our record in both the Football League Cup and FA Cup, albeit decades ago, is also favourable. Indeed, we have beaten the Holker Street men 9-1 in both the aforementioned cup competitions.
Saturday's tie is a first-timer in the Trophy and is expected to be well supported in view of the interest generated in the Furness area for the Middlesbrough game.
Should a replay be required, it will be played at Borough Park on the following Tuesday (13/1). Had Barrow drawn with 'Boro, a potential Trophy replay would have been put back a week.
Reds' record in cup-ties v. Barrow is detailed below:
FA CUP
Home Away
1903-04 9-1
1905-06 0-1
1907-08 6-2
1909-10 2-1
1922-23 0-1
1927-28 3-1
FOOTBALL LEAGUE CUP
1962-63 2-3
1964-65 9-1
1969-70 0-0 1-3
1970-71 2-0
UNIBOND LEAGUE CHALLENGE CUP
2000-01 2-0
2001-02 2-0
UNIBOND LEAGUE PRESIDENT'S CUP FINAL
2003-04 4-3 2-3
SETANTA SHIELD
2007-08 2-2 (lost 7-6 on penalties)
New date (Sun 04 Jan)
The Blue Square North fixture at Solihull Moors, originally scheduled for 10th January but postponed due to Reds' involvement in The FA Trophy, will now take place at Damson Park on Tuesday 17th February kick-off 7.45pm.
New dates for the league games v. Fleetwood Town (home) and Stafford Rangers (away) have still to be confirmed.
Eight weeks in charge without a game (Fri 02 Jan)
With the latest cancellation of the Reds' reserve team game against Formby due to the Borough Park pitch not having thawed sufficiently for the game to go ahead, 'new' Reserve team manager Steve Lee has now been in charge eight weeks and has yet to play a game!
Hopefully the current cold spell will abate before the 23rd of the month for the Lancaster City fixture to go ahead and Steve will finally be able to start his Reserves' managerial career after 9 WEEKS in the job.
Reds in 2008 (Fri 02 Jan)
Reds record over the last calendar year reflected our league position at the end of last season and where we were at the end of 2008 - a lower half of the table side.
We started the year with a narrow win over Leigh RMI but it was another six games before we managed another victory although it was worth the wait - a 5-0 success over Tamworth at Borough Park. They would avenge that defeat in style a few months later when they won 4-1 in west Cumbria. The best home win and heaviest defeat against the same opposition.
Tamworth was also the venue for a morale boosting FA Trophy win in November - a rare, but thoroughly deserved, success on the road.
One of the problems overall was our inability to win on a regular basis - we win, on average, every four or five games and failed to register 'back-to-back' victories in the league throughout the year.
Operating with a wafer thin squad has limited the manager's options considerably but Darren has also had to contend with no fewer than seventeen player departures. Not all those who have left were an automatic choice but a half decent squad nevertheless.
We served up some excellent performances on the road but could not convert draws into victories and our only win on foreign soil was back in April at Hyde. We should have won at Hyde again, of course, but had to settle for a draw having been 4-2 ahead.
Jonny Wright can look back on a successful year and, despite missing a few games through injury, scored goals (13) on a regular basis. Others who started and finished the year with us - Adam Collin, Kyle May and Tony Hopper - have been immense.
We played 51 league and cup games throughout 2008 but our success rate was just under 25%.
League record:
P. 43 W. 10 D. 15 L. 18 F. 48 A. 59
Cup record:
P. 8 W. 3 D. 3 L. 2 F. 15 A. 10
Not exactly 'annus horribilis' but a very tough, challenging year and, no doubt, it will be much of the same during 2009. Survival is the name of the game and not a lack of ambition on the club's part. It is called reality!
Boxing day blues (Thu 01 Jan)
There was little festive cheer for Reds fans at Fleetwood last week with the team suffering a fourth consecutive Boxing Day reverse in Blue Square North.
Our record on the 26th December in recent years has been poor and we have not tasted victory since 1998 when we managed a 3-0 home win over Holker Old Boys.
Since then, we have drawn at Kendal Town (3-3), lost at Vauxhall Motors (1-2), lost at home to Leigh RMI (0-1), lost at Leigh RMI (1-2) and lost at Fleetwood Town (0-1).
Strong links with CUFC (Wed 31 Dec)
Links between ourselves and Carlisle United have always been strong with the geography of the two clubs one of the main reasons.
The link has been particularly strong over the last few decades with non-league Reds recruiting many of those unfortunate to be released from the professional ranks at Brunton Park. Our current 'first eleven' contains no fewer than eight players with Blues' links.
Paul Harrison's excellent book 'Carlisle United The Complete Record' highlights the various connections between the clubs and there are dozens of players who have worn the red and the blue at different stages of their careers.
In a list of Carlisle United's Top 100 players the following appear: Darren Edmondson, Paul Fitzpatrick, Kevin Gray, Bobby Owen, Malcolm Poskett, Richard Prokas and Dennis Stokoe. With the exception of the latter, none of those had outstanding careers at Borough Park but the service, at the end of their playing days, was appreciated nevertheless.
Les O'Neill and Allan Ashman were both listed in United's top 100 and both later managed Reds while the likes of Bill Shankly, Clive Middlemass, Billy Barr and John Ward (who all managed the Blues) either managed or played for Reds.
It leads me to the question:
Who is the best player to play for Reds having previously played for Carlisle United?
I think the quartet who started this season with Reds - Kyle May, Tony Hopper, Craig Johnston and Graham Anthony - will be up there in contention, along with Alan Gray, while older supporters may opt for Dennis Stokoe, Brian Heslop, Frank Kirkup etc.
Certainly plenty of scope for some healthy debate.
Christmas day (Tue 23 Dec)
In the olden days, football was regularly played on Christmas Day and Reds enjoyed mixed fortunes in nineteen matches played on the 25th December.
Throughout the twenties, thirties, forties and fifties, we played regularly often against the same team home and away on Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
During our North Eastern League days, we met Carlisle United Reserves seven times winning five of those and losing twice.
The 36-37 'derby' was a bit special with Reds thrashing United's Reserves 7-1 at Lonsdale Park and Dougie Sewell helped himself to a personal tally of four goals.
That fine achievement was bettered in 1950 when Jackie Oakes bagged five in a 6-2 home win over Eppleton CW.
Sunderland Reserves and Middlesbrough Reserves were other regular opponents on NEL business.
As a Football League club, we played five times on the 25th but two draws and three defeats was the best we could muster although there was ample consolation in 1954 when 9,502 spectators watched our home defeat to Southport.
Managers and players moan about the busy 'Christmas schedule' nowadays but during the 47-48 season Reds played on the 25, 26 and 27 and that followed an earlier match on the 20th.
Our complete record on Christmas Day reads: P. 19 W. 7 D. 4 L. 8 F. 42 A. 36.
Finally, and still on the Christmas Day theme, Shaun Vipond celebrates his 20th birthday today - congratulations from all at Borough Park.
Mo Matadar (Mon 22 Dec)
Referee Mo Matadar probably won't forget his first appearance at Borough Park - even though it was ten years ago.
The Accrington official was an assistant referee for Reds' North West Counties League fixture against Holker Old Boys on Boxing Day during the 98-99 season.
The conditions were so bad (wind and driving rain) that Mo was forced to retire at half-time after suffering from hypothermia. He spent the second half in the dressing room and Shankly Lounge recuperating while local referee Bob Crawford took his place on the line.
Several players were also suffering, including Reds' Darren Wilson, but none quite as bad as Mo.
He has been back at Borough Park since and actually refereed a pre-season friendly versus Blackburn Rovers in July, 2005.
Mo has made good progress since his days in the North West Counties League and now referees in the Conference as well as 'assisting' in both the Barclays Premier League and Football League.
On Sunday he was on the line at St. James' Park for Newcastle United's fixture v. Tottenham Hotspur.
During the half-time interval at Newcastle, the Blyth Spartans squad was invited on to the pitch in recognition of their FA Cup exploits and 40,000 Geordies gave them a standing ovation while manager Harry Dunn gave a live interview on the pitch.
FA Community Shield fund (Fri 19 Dec)
Reds interest in the FA Cup was short lived this season but their exploits for the 2007-08 campaign, when they reached the first round proper, will benefit three local charities thanks to the FA Community Shield Distribution Fund.
All 124 teams who played in the first round and beyond last season were invited to take a share from the fund and donate to a maximum of three local charities.
The amount received was £5,000 per club.
The recipients from Workington AFC on this occasion will be:
WEST CUMBRIA HOSPICE AT HOME
AGE CONCERN NORTH WEST CUMBRIA
ALZHEIMER'S SOCIETY
In the last three years, nearly 750 charities countrywide have benefited from donations via the FA totalling almost £1,940,000.
Billy sees red for Blues (Wed 17 Dec)
In only his fourth game for Penrith, former Reds' maestro, Graham Anthony, was sent off during extra-time of the FA Vase 4th Round tie against Whitley Bay.
He was enjoying a good game for the Blues but was given a straight red for a tackle on Bay's Chris Fawcett mid-way through the first period of extra time.
An even contest was goalless after ninety minutes but former winners, Whitley Bay, clinched victory with a wonder goal from Darren Reay just prior to 'Billy's' dismissal.
Other players with Reds connections on duty for Penrith included James Holland, Alan Gray, David Lynn, skipper Michael Reed, Matty Lea, Mark Jones and Ryan Errington.
No strangers to Borough Park (Wed 17 Dec)
On Wednesday of last week, we had thirteen players available for the Trophy tie but some sterling work from the manager resulted in two more 'bodies' obtained in time for kick-off.
Darren Campion (left) arrived on a month's loan from Carlisle United while former Morecambe player Andrew Langford (right) joined us on non-contract terms.
Both made their debut in a re-shaped back four and helped the Reds make progress in the competition.
Neither were strangers to Borough Park with Andrew, in fact, having played at the ground several times. He played here for Morecambe Reserves in Lancashire League matches and then in a pre-season friendly in 2007.
Match winner, Darren, played for Carlisle United in the August friendly.
Unsung hero (Wed 17 Dec)
Who was your 'man-of-the-match' in Saturday's thrilling Trophy win over King's Lynn?
Darren Campion, Gareth Arnison, Jonny Wright, Gari Rowntree or even Phil McLuckie perhaps.
All made more than useful contributions, as did the other six players, but the top accolade for me went to groundsman Jeff Curwen (pictured).
It was a 'no-win' situation for Jeff, and the club, with King's Lynn already parked up for the night just six miles from the ground and the match referee travelling on the day.
A routine inspection of the pitch on Friday evening revealed it to be in superb condition with the heavy rain already underway.
A second look at the pitch early on Saturday morning confirmed that the pitch was very much playable although very wet.
By mid-morning, Jeff was working on the pitch attempting to drain the surface water and doing so in a torrential downpour.
Had we been playing 'more local' opposition, there was a good chance the game would have been called off at noon but, thanks to our unsung hero, the game started and was completed.
From a near perfect surface at 3pm, it quickly became a morass and by the finish was a bit of a mess.
All Reds supporters left the ground on a high but Jeff then faced the unenviable task of putting things right for Saturday - difficult enough in half decent weather - but more rain throughout this week has left him to perform another miracle.
New signing (Fri 12 Dec)
Reds' manager Darren Edmondson signed Carlisle United's Darren Campion (20) on loan last night. The club is awaiting for confirmation from the FA and Conference that the registration has gone through in time for him to feature in tomorrows FA Trophy tie against Kings Lynn.
He played against us for Carlisle in the pre-season friendly and has been at Brunton Park for the past sixteen months.
Born in Bromford, West Midlands, Darren was originally with Birmingham City and has a handful of first team appearances for Carlisle to his credit.
Andrews knee op date change (Sun 30 Nov)