The latest in the series features clubs in the 1st Division as I took advantage of the Wednesday evening early season matches.
409.Wrekenton Blue Star
Birtley St Josephs 1v1 Cramlington Town
Northern Alliance 1st Division
Wednesday 13th August 2014
I visited Birtley St Joseph’s Welfare Ground at the end of last season and I declared that I would make a point of watching them again this year, as they are based just a ten minute drive away. Since then they’ve relocated to Eighton Banks at the home of Sunday League outfit Wrekenton Blue Star, so they moved even closer, just over a mile from door to door. The club will be renewing their lease in Birtley, but will be playing at Blue Star for a couple of seasons, although the newly formed development team are still using the facilities at the Welfare. The ground is found just off the Longbank in Back Lane, next to the village hall. The pitch is fully railed off with changing rooms & shower facilities and retractable dugouts.
Matchday StatsBSJFC 1(Smith 60pen) CTFC 1(Brown 57)
Att.37(HC)
Top Bloke - Tony Smith(Birtley St Josephs)
Admission and programme:none
411. Biggs Main
Wallsend Boys Club 8v1 Blyth Isabella
Northern Alliance 1st Division
Wednesday 20th August 2014
The original club premises were a series of wooden huts on Station Road, erected by workers from the shipyard, which were destroyed by a fire and rebuilt in the mid-1960s.In 2008 the club was awarded the Freedom of the City of North Tyneside, in recognition of its community work, the deputy mayor describing the club as a "factory line of talent"
Whitelaw took advantage of some more slack defending to grab his second before a rare foray into the Wallsend penalty area, saw a spot-kick awarded to the visitors after an off the ball push. Christen Priest dispatched the penalty to make it 5-1 at the break.
In the second half the Boys Club added three more to the tally, with impressive work rate and good finishes by substitutes Chrissy Brennan and Michael Starkie, sandwiched in between with Whitelaw completing his hat-trick with an easy tap in from a corner kick. Apart from bagging eight goals they also hit the crossbar four times in the second half so the final score could have been well into double figures.
Matchday StatsWBC 8(Robertson 2,29 Whitelaw 26,39,70 Nisbet 36 Brennan 54 Starkie 80) BIFC 1(Priest 42pen)
Att.22(HC)
Top Bloke - Jordan Robertson(Wallsend BC)
Admission and programme:none
415. Newburn Leisure Centre
Heddon 4v1 Hexham
Northern Alliance 1st Division
Wednesday 27th August 2014
Newburn is a semi rural village on the north banks of the River Tyne, approximately 5 miles west of Newcastle city centre. The Newburn Leisure Centre is found at the far end of the village next to The Keelman, the home of the Big Lamp Brewery, one of my favourite local beer makers. The centre has several pitches with Heddon using the roped off bottom pitch with the changing facilities at the back of the leisure centre facing the ground.
Hexham responded immediately but Lewis Loughead’s penalty kick was saved and they were instantly punished, as Fradgley completed his hat trick running onto a threaded pass before another tidy finish. Between the 71st and 76th minutes there had been three goals and a missed penalty and Fradgley wasn’t done, as he bagged his fourth of the night in the last minute to round of a great individual performance.
HdFC 4(Fradgley 71,73,76,89) HxFC 1(Coates 31)
Att.15(HC)
Top Bloke - Paul Fradgley(Heddon)
Admission and programme:none
Heddon at Bulloksteads - Around The Alliance - part two
Birtley St Joes at the Welfare Ground - Around The Alliance - part ten