LANCASTER HONDA NORTH LANCASHIRE AND DISTRICT FOOTBALL LEAGUE (MEMBERS OF THE LANCASHIRE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION)

REPORT SATURDAY MARCH 6^th 2010

In the Sam Price Memorial Cup 2^nd Round Ingleton brought off the shock of the competition and of the day when they easily beat high flying Tic Dynamos by 5-1. The damage was done to Tic in the opening minutes after Ingleton scored twice, Dave Whitfield scored the first then Nathan Jackson followed that to make it 2-0. Tic battled back in an attempt to get back into the game, but was being well held by a good solid Ingleton defence. In the 20^th minute Tic thought they had pulled a goal back when a rasping 30 yard shot hit the underside of the bar and bounced on the line with the Tic appealing for a goal which was over ruled by the referee. Tic suffered another blow when Ingleton went further ahead after 25 minutes when Whitfield scored his second to make it 3-0 which they held till half time. Tic just could not handle Whitfield as he was outstanding in the first half. The second half again saw Ingleton dominate most of the half with Whitfield again showing a clean pair of heels to complete a great hat trick to make it 4-0. Tic tried to reorganize and it worked for a short while when Stuart Rushworth found the back of the net. But any chance of a revival was cut short when Tic shot themselves in the foot when they conceded an own goal scored by long serving Brian Lennon who tried to find his keeper with a back pass but unfortunately for him he guided the ball passed him and into the net. In the semi-final Ingleton will be at home to Highgrove on Saturday March 27^th 2010.

In the Squires Sports Bar/Fisher/Howson Remembrance Cup 2^nd Round holders Storeys Reserves had a hard fight on their hands before beating a good solid Carnforth Rangers Reserves side that just would not give in. They pushed the more experienced Storeys side all the way before losing to a single Simon Diamond goal. In Round three they will play away to Morecambe Royals Reserves.

There was a good close game between near neighbours Bentham Reserves from Division Two and Division One side Ingleton Reserves. Both sides played well at the same time which made the game very interesting and saw plenty of goals scored. Bentham’s goals being scored by Ian Robinson, the goal of the game by young Matthew France and Jake Fawcett. The more experienced Ingleton came out on top with goals scored by, Danny Rose, Jonathon Boadle (2), Alex Hartley and Ben O’Hagan. In round three Ingleton will be at home to College AFc Reserves.

Division Four side Arnside Reserves beat Division Two side Caton United Reserves by just 1-0 in a good exciting cup game with very few chances created. Both defences played really well. Caton had slightly more of the possession and most of the half chances but it was Arnside who triumphed when in the 88^th minute James Thornton scored the only goal of the game to send his side into the third round where they will be away to Galgate Reserves.

In the Premier Division the real six pointer between second from bottom Kirkby Lonsdale and third from bottom Bowerham went the way of the visiting side Bowerham. After being put under early pressure by Kirkby the young Bowerham side showed their intentions of staying in the Premier Division as they took control of the game after going close on a number of occasions, the impressive Joe Bouskill opened the scoring which appeared to settle his sides nerves and from then on the team went on to score a further three goals scored by Robin Dalglish, Ben McSorley and Simon Gillespie. This win moves Bowerham up one place above Bentham. Kirkby are now two points behind Bentham who they have still to meet in another six pointer.  

The match of the day was played at Galgate where the home team entertained Carnforth Rangers. From the first whistle to the last both teams played outstanding football, the way it should played, with hardly a foul in the game. It must have been the referee’s dream to take charge of a game as good and as sporting as this one. It was a credit to the league and to both teams in the way they played and conducted themselves in this great game. The game was fast, good open football with both defences outstanding. The only goal of the game was scored for Carnforth by Danny Syson.

Another game producing a hatful of goals was at Halton where the home team scored three times but lost out by conceding four goals. The game was end to end as both sides wanting to win the game. Halton who are at the foot of the table and in desperate need of points played as well as it has done all season but the stronger Slyne side was just too good for them. Liam Beaton, Jamie Garside and Theltomski  scored for Halton, Tom Kilifin, Lee Fox (2) and the winner by Daniel Dainty for Slyne with Hest 

Highgrove were surprisingly beaten by a Cartmel side that just would not lie down, they fought for every ball and hassled the Highgrove side at every opportunity. The Cartmel defence was very good on the day and snuffed out the eager and often dangerous Highgrove strikers. Cartmel scored two goals out of nothing with some fast counter attacking as they caught Higrove out of position. The goals were scored by Joel Drinkall and Mike Robinson. This defeat almost surely stops Highgrove from retaining its title it won last season.

Morecambe Royals who are in the habit of playing well then poorly did it again against Bentham. The Royals started very well knocking the ball about with ease and putting relegation haunted Bentham on the back foot in the opening 20 minutes. During this period of domination Steve Howley struck twice. The remaining 25 mniuted of the half saw Bentham dominate the game but poor finishing let them down. The opening 20 minutes of the second half again saw the Royals dominate the game, scoring just once when Howley completed his hat trick. Again the Royals went to sleep allowing Bentham to have the biggest share of possession, this time they made the break through when Gary Louth scored a decent goal. But the shot shy Bentham side could not get another goal to put them back in with a chance. By losing this game Bentham now drop down to third from bottom.

Marsh United the leader of the division had a very good first half against second placed Storeys but could not convert its chances into goals as they dominated most of the play. The only goal of the first half was scored for Marsh by Lee Sparks, but it could have been a few more. The second half saw Storeys improve tremendously and played some really good open football which should have resulted in more than the one goal they scored through Tim Percival, his first of the season to end the game in a 1-1 draw, a result that did not suit either team as the season starts to sort positions out in the divisions.

In the Division One Holdens Solictors Cup Semi-Final Freehold won through to its third successive Final when they beat Millhead in a titanic game by 3-2. Millhead enjoyed the better of the early exchanges but it was Freehold who took the lead when Ian Palwamker controlled the ball and hit a superb unstoppable volley past the Millhead keeper. Millhead rallied and replied on 35 minutes from a freekick scored by Robert Crump that left the Freehold keeper Derek Davies with no chance. However Freehold hit back and went into a 2-1 lead when Richard Chambers ran onto a Jimmy Watters through ball to smash home giving Freehold a 2-1 halftime lead. Freehold came out for the second half looking to kill the game off and it was Nicholas Johns who put Freehold into a 3-1 lead with his first goal of the season. Freehold were now firmly in the driving seat and it was only the crossbar and post which saved Millhead with both Alan Davies and Liam Morgan hitting the woodwork. Millhead rallied again and in the 85^th minute made it 3-2 when leading scorer Matthew Palmer scored from an excellent cross which eluded everyone except Palmer. Millhead turned up the pressure in the remaining time but the good Freehold defence held firm.  Freehold will meet the winners of this weeks semi-final between Ingleton Reserves and Caton United.

In the league leaders Bolton le Sands suffered another heart break when they lost at home again this time to College AFc by 2-0 but still keep the top spot. Bolton Le Sands as in previous weeks started exceptionally well but fell down in front of goals, they had two simple chances to have scored in the early stages but missed when it looked easier to have scored. If it had not been for stand-in keeper Chris Dyson the score could have been much higher, he made some impossible saves to deny the College side. He could not be blamed for the two goals scored by Richard Howard and Aaron Caldwell. With a hard run-in to the end of the season Bolton Le Sands are going to inject some form into their play if their aim of Premier football is fulfilled.

Cartmel Reserves started its game against Highgrove Reserves in a determined frame of mind. It paid dividends when they opened a 3-0 lead by the time the half time whistle sounded after Scott Burrow, Will Anderson and an unfortunate Highgrove own goal. The second half saw Highgrove fight back playing some goodo pen football which had the Cartmel defence running ragged, Justin Doyle scored one for Highgrove before Callum Rodgers added a second to make Cartmel’s defenders panic but just held  out to claim all three points to make its position in the divison look safer.

Caton United got off to a perfect start when within two minutes they took the lead. A flowing six man move ended when recent signing Kyle Reardon got behind the Overton and Middleton’s defence to slot the ball passed the keeper. Overton who are fighting for survival in the division fought back but were at times outplayed by a Caton team that has only played nine games due to the weather. Caton could not increase its lead due to some good defending by Pat Riley and veteran Stuart Lowther who hardly missed anything in the air. It came as a bit of a surprise when just before halftime Overton on a rare excursion into the Caton penalty area drew level when leading scorer Ollie Wellock beat his marker to shoot into the net. The second half started with Caton looking to take the lead again, playing some good football but without being able to penetrate the Overton defence. In the 55^th minute Caton took the lead with an identical goal to its first, when an Overton attack was stopped, Caton played some good football with a six man move which ended when Reardon got behind the defence again to make it 2-1. Caton started to pile on the pressure but had to be watchful when Overton threw men forward looking for the equalizer, but they got caught out in the 85^th minute when they gave away a needles free kick 30 yards from goal. The kick taken by John Longhorn just went over the Overton wall, Dave Bamford had the task of steering the ball into the net but missed with his initial kick but as the ball bounced he just managed to turn the ball into the net with his other foot to make the game safe for his side at 3-1. With just two minutes remaining Caton had a succession of corners and from one of them there was a comedy of errors from Overton’s defence allowing Mark Burkitt to score a lucky goal as he saw the ball trickle to a defender lying on the goal line and as he swung his leg to kick it the ball rolled over it and into the net.

Swarthmoor looking to bounce back into the Premier Division at the first attempt had its work cut out to stop a determined Marsh United Reserves from winning the game. It was cut and thrust for most of the game and a draw was just about the right result. David Webster scored for Marsh with Joe Lackey scoring for Swarthmoor who are now six points behind leaders Bolton Le Sands with six games in hand.

Morecambe Royals Reserves won only its second game of the season when they beat Boys Club by a single goal scored inside the opening 10 minutes. As the Royals attacked recent signing Richard McDonnell starting his first game for the team was brought down inside the area. He picked himself up and scored from the resultant penalty. The rest of the game was hard fought by both sides as Boys Club threw everything at the Royals but could not make the break through.

In Division Two leaders before the start of play were Allithwaite Rangers. They entertained mid-table Arnside in a game that both sides needed to win. Arnside although sixth in the division have games in hand over the leading group. They started in scintillating form as they played some superb football through out the team, by half time they had Allithwaite out for the count as they led 5-0 with goals scored by Adam Richardson, James Kirkham, young brothers Jamie Smith (2) and Matthew Smith scored the goals. The second half went down hill after the performance in the first half, both sides had a player sent off, Allithwaite ended the game with nine players after another one was injured. The only bright note for Allithwaite was the goal scored by David Cowperthwaite, the best of the lot. Allithwaite dropped to third place after this defeat.

Another team with high hopes of gaining promotion is Furness Rovers. They travelled to play Grange and came away with a narrow 1-0 win thanks to a Will Lowe special. Furness Rovers have only lost once so far this season, but against a determined Grange side they could have lost its second game as Grange had as many chances as Furness. The game was held up for 40 minutes due to a Grange player when he suffered a nasty leg injury. The two teams meet again this weekend.

Torrisholme got back to winning ways when they beat bottom team Halton Rangers Reserves by 2-0 in a hard fought game. Both sides missed easy looking chances before goal a game Bobby Townsend and Scott Shields got the goals that counted. This win moves Torrisholme back into a promotion place on goal difference from Allithwaite Rangers.

Westgate Wanderers had a hard game against a Kirkby Lonsdale Reserves side that is trying its hardest to avoid relegation. Westgate started the better side but could not make the break through. The first half ended without a goal being scored. The second half again saw Westgate start much the brighter side, they took the lead with a well taken goal scored by Kevin Burns soon after the re-start. But within minutes they were shaken when Kirkby deservedly drew level when Eric Bradbury scored a fine goal. Westgate raised its game and soon got the lead back when Andy Thirlwell beat the keeper to make it 2-1. Kirkby rallied but just could not manage another goal. The goal of the game finished off a gallant Kirkby side, Stuart Gordon beat four defenders as his mazy run took him into the penalty area where he flashed the ball into the net to make it 3-1, substitute Paul Greer got on the score sheet with another fine goal to make it 4-1 but Westgate remain in fifth place behind Furness Rovers.

In the Division Three Fairclough/Woodruff/Parkinson/Collegian Cup Semi-Finals AFc Moorlands missed a great chance of reaching the final when they played Morecambe Gold. The first half was quite even, both sides had chances to have scored but the chances were lost. AFc Moorlands started off very well as they opened the Gold defence in the early stages, but poor finishing cost them goals. At the other end John Eccles had the best chance in the opening 10 minutes but he snatched his shot which went wide with only the keeper to beat. The speed of the Moorlands attacks often had the Gold in trouble. John Eccles was the main danger to the Moorlands side but he missed further chances when his first touch of the ball let him down. Lee Bradbury was in tremendous form for the Gold with Nigel Borrass they provide most of the danger to the Moorlands side. Dave Brown was also tremendous in the Moorlands mid-field, he sprayed passes to his forwards with deadly accuracy, one such pass found Andy Woodcock with a great chance to score in the 30^th minute but his shot from a narrow angle hit the side netting. The start of the second half saw the Gold raise its game even further and finally made the break through when Paul Rose scored. Instead of tirng as everyone expected from the team of veterans the goal lifted them and it brought the second goal scored deservedly by John Eccles to make it 2-0. Moorland threw everthing at the Gold side but the defence was just too good on the day. The Gold added a third late on when Lee Bradbury scored. In the Final on Giant-Axe the Gold will play Boys Club Reserves.

Boys Club Reserves won through to another final when they beat Highgrove Colts by 2-0. Boys Club played probably played its worst football of the season against a struggling Colts side that did not have a lot to offer on the day. Goals by James Short and Stuart Leeming finally ending the Colts challenge.

In the League Galgate Reserves launched themselves into a promotion challenging position when they beat Gregson, one of the favourites. With the game goalless Gregson thought they had taken the lead when Tim Hall scored what he said was a good goal but was ruled out by the stand-in referee after the match referee failed to turn up. From then on Galgate took control of the game and ran out winners by 3-0 with goals being scored by Jamie Fairclough, Simon Gould and James Khann. This win moves Galgate into third position, Gregson stay on top.

Moghuls lost ground in its quest for promotion when they were held to a 2-2 draw by a battling Burton Thistle side that deserved all three points for its gutsy performance. Jaffa Bojand scored both goals for Moghuls, two youngsters Matthew White and Martin Looker scored the Burton goals.

Bolton le Sands Reserves have finally gained its first point of the season when it managed to draw 1-1 with local rivals Villa Royale. The game was not pretty after Villa had taken the lead with a goal scored by Steve Griffiths. Bolton Le Sands tried to get back on level terms but their shooting for goal was wayward. As time moved into stoppage time Bolton le Sands launched one last attack, a long hopeful shot by Antony Lewis hit the Villa crossbar and bounced down where a defender was on his back, the ball hit him on the back of the head and went into the net in the 93^rd minute and last kick of the game.

In Division Four the biggest shock was the defeat of third placed Millhead Reserves by lowly Overton/Middleton Reserves. Overton started very well shaking the Millhead side with its speedy and accurate attacks. It was no surprise when they took the lead with a fantastic Richie Lyons strike. Millhead played some attractive football when they had settled down. It was easy to see why they are looking for promotion. They deservedly got on level terms before halftime when Ashley Lowe scored. The second half again saw some good football played by both side’s, chances came and went with Millhead being the main culprits. They were made to pay for this when Overton broke out of defence with Lyons beating the keeper for the second time. As the football deteriorated the game got to be scrappy as Millhead threw everything at Overton in a bid to salvage something from the game. But credit to Overton they held out for a great 2-1 result.

Heysham Reserves, next to bottom should have beaten a Carnforth Rangers ‘A’ side that ended the game with just nine players due to injuries. Heysham went into a 1-0 lead when Darren Kerr scored from an inch perfect cross from Ian Marshall. The score remained the same till half time. The second half saw Carnforth reduced to 10 players, but they still fought hard and got its reward when a shot come cross from the touchline by Jake Beaton deceived everyone and landed in the back of the net. Heysham went back onto the offensive and got its reward when Danny Ridley put his side into the lead. Still Carnforth never gave up and despite losing another player they attacked whenever they could and got its reward when they were awarded a penalty converted by Robert Parker.

The battle of the two favourites for promotion Trimpell Reserves and Pilling turned out to be a damp squib. There was only one team it and that was newcomers Pilling and Gerry Clarkson who scored all four of his sides goals. Andy Armistead scored what turned out to be a consolation.