(Click here to view the 2008-09 season results and match reports)
(Click here to view the 2009-10 season results and match reports)
(Click here to view the 2010-11 season results and match reports)
LATEST RESULT
21 January 2012 - Northop Hall Old Boys 5 Upton Magnets 2
PREVIOUS RESULTS
14 January 2012 - Shotton Steel Veterans 8 Northop Hall Old Boys 5
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21 January 2012 - Northop Hall Old Boys 5 Upton Magnets 2
Another large squad meant a procession of changes for the Old Boys against an Upton side sporting a couple of 60 year olds in one of the oldest back fours we've played against, although a bit of "youth" further up the field kept things more than competitive on a day when the wind and heavy pitch had a big say in proceedings.
Anthony Woosey and Kieran Whelan were amongst returnees from missing the previous game whilst Paz Maletta made his first appearance since Bonfire Night last year. Jeff Britton was back between the sticks as Northop Hall looked to stem a flow of goals against that saw eight go past at Shotton the week before.
Despite their age, the visitors back line stood firm against leading scorers Darren Brierley and Anthony Woosey, both of whom were limited to shots off target in the opening exchanges which the Old Boys just about shaded, Jeff Britton also having to fend more from behind his goal than in front.
The home side were first to strike on twenty minutes as good work by Phil Southern set Gary Peters through and his sweet right foot finish curled past the keeper. It could and maybe should have been two soon after, a disputed call for a throw in was played on and Craig Jones looping cross was dropped behind the line by the keeper. However, the referee retrospectively pulled it back for the throw despite no clear evidence either way, everybody around having a differing view.
However, the relief for Upton was short lived. It should have been two when Mike Maletta replaced Gary Peters at the midway point of the half and with his first involvement was through on goal, spooning his shot over the keeper only for it to be cleared off the line by a last gasp defensive lunge. Mark 'Sparky' Ray came into the game on the half hour and announced his arrival with a measured low finish into the bottom corner to finally put the Old Boys two up.
As half time approached, Upton broke the offside trap but the striker couldn't beat Jeff Britton as he ran through. Minutes later and Sparky had a second, his low left foot drive had pace and direction but the keeper will be disappointed that the ball went through his hands.
Half Time 3-0
The turnaround gave Upton whatever slight advantage lay with the wind and they were soon putting a lot more pressure on, although Northop Hall twice caught them on the break and should have done better, Mike Maletta and Darren Brierley both denied the important fourth goal. However, Upton came closest when they got in behind down the left and presented a chance for an oncoming midfielder. His first shot hit the post and the rebound was blocked on the line by Craig McTavish.
Kieran Whelan set off from the back on another of his trademark marauding runs and put Anthony Woosey in, the latter having a shot blocked as Kieran looked for a return pass.
Eventually, the fourth goal did come and it was Sparky Ray completing his hat-trick again finishing coolly as the ball bobbled around the edge of the box from more good work. Further opportunities came and went too, the keeper making good saves to deny Mike Maletta and Anthony Woosey.
However, Anthony Woosey did finally find a finish to match his approach play with a neat left foot lob over the keeper as he came out and at 5-0 the home side were well and truly coasting. But they took their foot off the gas and the visitors finished the game strongly, firstly registering a goal of their own courtesy of a massive deflection at the end of a passing move from midfield that wasn't closed down, and then doubling that when the left back inadverently cut out a ball going through to the keeper only to present the striker with an open goal as a result.
It could have been worse too, Dave Henrys adjudged to have fouled the striker in the box by pushing his chest into the back of his marker (very soft!), but justice done as the spot-kick struck the post and Ian Powell first to react cleared the danger.
A good result all told, although disappointed that we took our foot off the gas a bit second half and allowed Upton to come back into it, whilst squandering good chances at the other end. Ian Powell, Kieran Whelan and Mark 'Sparky' Ray were all mentioned in the mix for man-of-the-match, but the opposition vote finally went to Anthony Woosey.
Team: Jeff Britton, Phil Elder (Paz Maletta), Pete Dessington (Kieran Whelan), Craig McGorian, Dave Henrys (Dave Pritchard), Phil Southern (John Edmunds), Craig Jones (Ian Powell), Phil Ward, Gary Peters (Mike Maletta), Anthony Woosey (Mark Ray), Darren Brierley
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14 January 2012 - Shotton Steel Veterans 8 Northop Hall Old Boys 5
Having reduced an oversized playing squad down from 21 on the morning of the game, three last minute drop outs left the Old Boys covering a couple of gaps against a strong looking Shotton side. The return of Alan Jones in goal gave Dave Pritchard a return to defence, Phil Ward was back for his first game in over a month and Ian Powell was also making a welcome return from injury, but Anthony Woosey, Kieran Whelan and Gary Peters were amongst those missing from the previous game.
The game had a lively start with both sides seeing plenty of the ball, Shotton more so as they managed a couple of early shots wide of Alan Jones' goal, but the visitors also mounting a couple of decent attacks from the right. However, it was the home side who took the lead with a neat move involving players pouring forward through midfield to join the attack, something that Northop Hall failed to get to grips with all afternoon.
The lead was short lived though. Another good move played Graham Wilks in down the right and his low cross was diverted past his own keeper by one of the defenders. However, with ex-Old Boy Darren Peters pulling the strings down the Shotton left, the home side were soon piling on the pressure and keeping both defence and keeper busy. One deep cross was perfect for the young veteran striker to place a header back across the keeper and into the corner of the net.
Darren Brierley was causing the Shotton defence a few problems with his pace and had already come close to scoring when he was sent through on goal again to provide a second equaliser with a neat lob over the oncoming keeper.
However, Shotton were ahead again before the break when Alan Jones poor kick out conceded dangerous possession and the striker made the Old Boys pay with a crisp shot into the corner. Craig Jones, who had earlier seen a couple of shots go wide, got a powerful header in from a corner but that also went the wrong side of the post.
Half Time 2-3
Ian Powell was switched to the right at the start of the second half to try and stem the flow from that side and had an immediate impact in the other direction intercepting a kick out and finding Phil Ward who was able to feed Darren Brierley for his second goal of the game and a third equaliser.
If the visitors thought they were going to come close though, it was blown away with a series of fine passing moves and finishes from Shotton that left the Old Boys chasing shadows at times. Alan Jones managed to keep some of the barrage of shots out but was left pretty helpless as the home side racked up five unanswered goals in the next half hour.
Northop Hall continued to push forward (one of the Shotton goals coming from the breakdown of an Old Boys attack) and Darren Brierley had further chances but couldn't find the target with them. With ten minutes left Craig McTavish pushed into midfield and fed Darren again in the inside right channel, this time his finish was measured and completed his hat-trick with his 22nd goal of the season.
There was still time for a fifth goal to regain some respectability, the home keeper coming off his line to clear straight to Darren Molyneux in an advanced right midfield position who calmly slotted the ball home from 40 yards out.
In the end, a comprehensive victory for Shotton in a hard fought game in which Craig Jones got the opposition vote for man of the match for the second game running. The Old Boys could still blame a little rustiness but that excuse won't wash from now on and more hard work is needed in the weeks ahead.
Team: Alan Jones, Darren Gatehouse, Darren Molyneux, Dave Pritchard (Craig McTavish), Dave Henrys, John Edmunds, Craig Jones, Phil Southern (Phil Ward), Mark Ray (Ian Powell), Graham Wilks, Darren Brierley
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07 January 2012 - Northop Hall Old Boys 0 Halkyn Veterans 3
A new year began with a third encounter of the season against Halkyn, with honours even in the two previous games, both away wins. Northop Hall had a few players missing, notably in goal where Jeff Britton's return was halted by an ankle injury sustained during the week and Alan Jones being away and Dave Henrys still nursing a finger injury meant Dave Pritchard stepping back between the sticks for the first time in more than 12 months.
Dave Henrys appearance in the back four was his 100th in an Old Boys shirt, while returns for Kieran Whelan, Mike Maletta and Mel Barnes made up for some of the absentees, but there was still a dirth of defenders for what looked a tricky fixture.
A goalless first half was short of chances as both sides shrugged off the excesses of the Christmas period, the Old Boys back line standing firm in the face of some decent pressure, the midfield getting stuck in too, but only scraps being created for the strikers, the best falling for Darren Brierley on the end of Mark 'Sparky' Ray's left wing cross but the wind deceiving him and the planned header goalwards striking him on the face and forcing him off for a clean-up.
Dave Pritchard was confidently containing everything coming at him at the other end, although he was fortunate to see one ferocious drive come back off the crossbar.
Half Time 0-0
The second half saw the visitors have more of the ball and create a few more chances, Dave Pritchard diving to his right to keep out a low drive at the foot of the post. At the other end, Mel Barnes thought he'd scored when Craig Jones played him in but his shot too was well saved by the keeper.
The game turned on a penalty decision three quarters of the way through, Mike Maletta in an emergency right back role adjudged to have brought down the Halkyn striker, although it was a far from clear decision. However, the penalty from former Northop Hall Veterans player and manager Neil Hewitt sent Dave Pritchard the wrong way to open the scoring.
The Old Boys should have been level soon after. A direct free kick from Anthony Woosey was dropped over the line by the Halkyn keeper but the whistle had gone for an offside in the middle, away from play, not the best interpretation of the current rules. However, Anthony was played through one and one on goal soon after by Craig Jones but his chip over the keeper also went over the bar and the best chance of the game had gone begging.
As is so often the case, it was to prove costly. There was a warning sign as Dave Pritchard could only deflect a left wing cross into the path of a Halkyn player but his goalbound shot was cleared off the line. However, moments later failure to clear a right wing cross left the Halkyn player free in front of goal and it was 2-0.
The Old Boys pushed up to try and get back into it and Kieran Whelan was unlucky to see a header from a corner power just wide but gaps left at the back were exploited when the left midfielder was given too much time to hammer home a third at the end of a neat passing move, although the scoreline flattered them a little.
Craig Jones lively performance in the middle of midfield earned him the man of the match vote and several others can be pleased with their efforts. For the rest, the Christmas break behind them, it's time to get going again starting next week at Shotton.
Team: Dave Pritchard, John Edmunds, Darren Molyneux, Kieran Whelan, Dave Henrys, Graham Wilks, Craig Jones, Phil Southern (Mike Maletta), Gary Peters, Darren Brierley (Anthony Woosey)(Steve Bodey), Mark Ray (Mel Barnes)
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17 December 2011 - Rossett Veterans 5 Northop Hall Old Boys 6 (at Gresford)
The prospect of playing on the 3G pitch at Colliers Park in Gresford, training ground of Wrexham FC, enticed a squad of 18 to travel over to play against Rossett Veterans and, despite a little surface water which held the ball up at one end, the decision to play on such a surface probably saved the game from postponement given the weather conditions in the days leading up to the match.
With Dave Henrys having cracked a finger standing in as keeper the previous week, it was fortunate that Alan Jones was available again to take the number 1 shirt with Jeff Britton away for a few weeks too. For Alan, Gary Peters and Mark 'Sparky' Ray, it was as close to home as any of the away fixtures, a welcome change from the long drive up to Northop Hall no doubt. Dave Pritchard, Graham Wilks, Pete Dessington and Phil Elder were amongst the returnees against a side that had shipped nine goals at Northop Hall in February, but who looked as if they had strengthened their own squad in the meantime.
This certainly looked to be the case in a competitive opening stage, but it was the Old Boys who knocked the ball around well on the true surface and saw early chances for Darren Brierley and Anthony Woosey flash past the goal. 'Sparky' Ray was also threatening whenever the ball was played up and was able to turn inside from the right channel on to his favourite left foot and unleash an unstoppable effort into the top corner to open the scoring, immediately followed by another distinctly less impressive cartwheel celebration!
Rossett were also popping their passes around, particular from left midfield and served notice of their own intent with a slick ball through the right back area that Alan Jones misjudged and was grateful for Craig McTavish getting something painful in the way of the goalbound shot before the rebound was slotted the wrong side of the post.
The equalising goal had a suspicion of offside about it as the front line sprung the offside trap and although Alan parried the shot well, the striker reacted first to poke home from close in. At the other end Dave Henrys saw a volley go just wide as a headed clearance fell invitingly at a corner while two efforts from Craig Jones came closer, the first just over the bar, the second bouncing up and back off the upright.
However, somewhat against the run of play having not really tested the keeper with just a couple of long range efforts, Rossett took the lead, a deep cross cum shot from the left looped high toward the Old Boys goal where Alan Jones backpedalling furiously could only palm the ball down in front of the oncoming striker to score again. Soon after though it was three as Rossett sprung the offside trap down their left with the back four anything but a solid line, Alan given no chance with the clinical finish.
Darren Brierley continued to cause problems with his pace up front and forced more than one save from the home keeper as Northop Hall pushed to get back in the game. Anthony Woosey fired a free kick over the bar and Darren again dragged a left foot effort wide. On the stroke of half time though a corner from the right was cleared to Phil Elder who unleashed a right foot shot from the edge of the penalty area that the Rossett keeper didn't get close to saving.
Half Time 2-3
With a close score at the turnaround, the Old Boys would have hoped to push on for an equaliser but it was Rossett who extended their lead with an unstoppable shot of their own from the edge of the area. Darren Molyneux and Kevin Hoyland were providing more pace down the right and a good right wing cross from Darren eventually dropped for Graham Wilks to fashion a shot at goal and was unlucky to see it hit the crossbar and rebound back in.
A foul on Kevin Hoyland (one of a number on him and Craig Jones in the middle of midfield that eventually earned a yellow card for the player responsible) brought a free kick just outside the box. Craig's effort again struck the woodwork as the Rossett goal led a charmed life. Alan Jones had not been particularly busy in the Northop Hall goal but Rossett scored a fifth goal, again getting the benefit of the referee's decision not to award offside against a player standing practically on the goal line as he received a pass that he crossed in to the middle. The away side still had chances to clear their lines but failed to get the ball away and eventually the Rossett striker was able to poke home. Darren Molyneux's protests only succeeded in him seeing the second yellow card of the game from the over-zealous official.
At 5-2 down and with the floodlights illuminating the increasing darkness the Old Boys launched a succession of attacks, Darren Brierley and Anthony Woosey again off-target at the end of them before Anthony met a left wing cross with a mis-hit shot which bobbled into the corner of the goal past the surprised keeper. Two minutes later it was back to a one goal deficit as Phil Elder's throw in from the left went across the goal unchallenged, Anthony quickest to react to stab home his 11th goal of the season.
It was definitely game on again at this point and although pressing up left the back-four a little vulnerable, they were equal to the task to snuff out a couple of dangerous looking counter attacks, with each of them in turn getting forward into good positions to help out the attack.
The equaliser resulted from a stroke of fortune as the ball fell to John Edmunds on the right. His cross shot was certainly on target and may or may not have been saved before the centre half jumped to head it away and only managed to deflect it out of the keeper's reach to make it five goals apiece.
The Old Boys continued to press and a meandering run from the back from Craig McTavish almost took him all the way through on goal before a last ditch tackle curtailed the chance. Soon though a clear cut chance was created, the ball bouncing around the box before leading scorer Darren Brierley finally put his frustrating afternoon behind him to tuck home what would be the winning goal on the day fifteen minutes from time.
Rossett had come very close to winning this game and will have been very disappointed to have lost from the position they were in as the Old Boys closed out the game. The win was probably deserved on the balance of play but that is now 15 goals shipped in the last 3 games and there is a need to tighten up at the back again. Hitting the woodwork three times was unlucky but there is also a need to be more clinical at that end of the pitch too. However, a three week break for Christmas comes before we get the chance to work on these things again. The opposition's vote for man-of-the-match went to Craig McTavish for a very solid performance at the heart of the defence, just pipping two-goal Anthony Woosey to it.
Team: Alan Jones, Darren Gatehouse (Darren Molyneux) Pete Dessington, Craig McTavish (Dave Pritchard), Dave Henrys, John Edmunds (Eifion Jones), Craig Jones, Anthony Woosey (Kevin Hoyland), Gary Peters (Phil Elder), Darren Brierley (Steve Bodey), Mark Ray (Graham Wilks)
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10 December 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 3 Warrington Croft 4
After the recent run of having so many players available culminating in the 21 at Saltney on Bonfire Night, it was back to anticipated levels as winter starts to bite. Both keepers were unable to play so Dave Henrys had to don the gloves for the first time in over a month, which coupled with other defensive absentees meant shake-ups in position for Craig Jones and Anthony Woosey amongst others ahead of him again. There was the bonus of the returns of Dave Bradley, Steve Buckley and Mike Maletta although all are short of match fitness. A last minute appearance from Anthony Woosey was also welcome, although it did affect the substitution plans a little which came back to haunt the Old Boys in the second half.
Warrington Croft had the best of the opening exchanges and created a number of early half chances for themselves that resulted in shots over the bar or wide. Although the Old Boys passed the ball around well at times they were finding it hard to fashion any openings at the other end, despite a couple of marauding runs from the back from Craig Jones and with Mike Maletta in particular tigerish in the middle of midfield ensuring that the opposition had plenty of work to do.
Northop Hall opened the scoring a little against the run of play when a long clearance from Craig Jones flicked off a defender's head to put leading scorer Darren Brierley through on goal and his right foot finish was clinical for his 17th goal of the season.
The away side continued to pepper the Northop Hall goal from distance without really testing the keeper, including a couple of free kicks from the edge of the 18-yard area, the closest chance coming when Dave Henrys was completely unsighted to a chip that just cleared his crossbar after a melee in the penalty box.
Darren Molyneux and Gary Peters were working well down the left side and as well as snuffing out a number of away attacks they had initiated several attacks that had seen Anthony Woosey and Mark Ray have shots saved and Dave Bradley hit one wide when put through the right channel. A corner on the left gave Gary Peters the opportunity to find a big cross to the box. However, his short chip to the unguarded front post fooled everybody, including the goalkeeper who missed his catch and saw the ball bounce off his chest and into the goal instead.
The Old Boys withstood further pressure to go into the break a rather unlikely two goals up.
Half Time 2-0
However, it was a different story after the restart, with Croft changing their formation to target some of the older Old Boys and immediately fashioning more chances as their pass and move from midfield left the home side at sixes and sevens. It wasn't long before one such move put the striker through and he finished clinically to reduce the deficit.
Suddenly more shots were finding the target and Dave Henrys in the home goal was being kept much busier and also reliant on Craig Jones to clear off the line at the front post. Attempts to play out on the break were being thwarted despite the pace of Darren Brierley up front and the pressure that kept being applied eventually led to the Warrington equaliser, a crisp low right foot shot into the corner of the goal from just inside the box.
Dave Henrys then had to tip over a shot from a corner and was fortunate to see another tip save crash onto the crossbar and drop down just the right side of the line from the Old Boys point of view. However, a deep cross saw Craig McTavish head the ball onto the striker he went up with and the ball looped agonisingly over Dave's reach behind despite getting fingers to it and the Old Boys were behind for the first time.
Warrington Croft's lead didn't last long though as another long ball was chased down the inside right channel by Darren Brierley who beat the oncoming keeper to lob in the equalising goal.
The Old Boys at that point needed to get a foothold on the half and settle things down but found their passes too often going astray and inviting more pressure. Dave Henrys had to dive full length to his left to tip a left foot effort round the post but could do absolutely nothing with the next one, a curling shot into the bottom corner after the full back missed his clearance.
There was still time for another equaliser and once again it was Darren Brierley bearing down on goal from the right but this time his shot was well smothered by the goalkeeper while at the other end another one-on-one was also hit straight at the grateful keeper. In the end the 4-3 result was a close one but the opposition certainly deserved it for their second half efforts in particular.
Darren Brierley collected another man-of-the-match nomination for his performance up front, although again there were merits for several others for their effort in keeping the score so close.
Team: Dave Henrys, Darren Gatehouse (Kevin Hoyland), Darren Molyneux, Craig McTavish, Craig Jones, Steve Buckley, John Edmunds (Eifion Jones), Mike Maletta, Gary Peters, Darren Brierley (Anthony Woosey), Dave Bradley (Mark Ray)
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26 November 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 8 Dee Rangers Veterans 5
A first encounter with new veterans side Dee Rangers from Chester also saw a return in goal for Alan Jones, who previously had the number one shirt for the home match with last week's opponents Halkyn last January. With Kieran Whelan a late drop-out and Paz Maletta still injured, the defence needed patching up and Craig McTavish's return was welcome. Pete Dessington, Phil Southern and Graham Wilks all returned to the squad after missing recent games, while a broken wrist has put Gary Peters out of the reckoning for the near future.
It was only the second ever run out for Dee Rangers and for the first twenty minutes it was all one way traffic as the Old Boys made their experience tell with a really bright start that brought shots just off target for Phil Ward and Dave Henrys. A neat team move saw Phil Southern put Mark 'Sparky' Ray in and he placed a left foot drive perfectly into the bottom corner to open the scoring for the day and give himself double figures for the season. It didn't feel like it would be the only goal of the game but nobody could have anticipated the way the rest of the game would pan out.
The Chester side survived further attempts at their goal by Phil Ward and Dave Pritchard, while Sparky also kept the away keeper busy. The opposition showed that they carried a threat of their own up front but had been kept to long range shooting until their midfielder danced through a static defence and smashed an unstoppable shot past Alan Jones.
They could have taken the lead soon after but wasted a good opportunity as Alan smothered a through ball that he didn't look favourite for. However, half hour changes brought leading scorers Darren Brierley and Anthony Woosey into the game and with almost his first touch Anthony restored the lead, the ball bobbling around the box before dropping centrally for Anthony to lob the keeper with a shot off his knee.
Darren was soon grabbing a goal of his own before half time, latching on to a through ball to beat the offside line and make no mistake with a crisp low shot across the goalkeeper into the corner.
Half Time 3-1
After the break it was suddenly a different story as a few errors crept into the Old Boys play and Dee Rangers took full advantage, firstly to capitalise on a poor clearance from Alan Jones and then a contentious offside decision that saw the referee change his mind, after first awarding the home side the offide call against the striker who was offside as his co-striker bundled past him to score, another of those debates about the interpretation of 'interfering with play'.
However, before the hour mark Northop Hall were back ahead, good work from Craig Jones releasing Darren Brierley in the inside right channel to race through and finish clinically again.
Following the second set of substitutions, Phil Ward found himself at centre back and was still adjusting to the unfamiliar position when his underhit pass let in the Dee Rangers striker to level things up again and two minutes later his collision with Eifion Jones left the same man free to bear down on Alan Jones goal and again give him no chance.
Alan also had to make a couple of notable saves to keep the gap at one as Dee Rangers enjoyed increasing pressure in the middle of the half, however a superb left foot strike from Anthony Woosey into the top corner made it five-all and set up a barnstorming finish. Another long through ball produced a race between the Chester keeper coming out and Darren Brierley rushing in, which Darren won with a brave header that rolled in to complete his hat-trick.
From a corner at the other end Alan Jones made his best save of the game to keep out a close range header and on the breakaway from that 'Sparky' Ray eventually tapped in after Anthony Woosey's shot was half stopped by the keeper. As the away side faded at the end there was still time for a rather undeserved eighth goal and yet another for Darren Brierley, his right foot shot saved low to his left by the keeper but having too much power and squirting out and over the line for his 16th goal of the season.
Darren Brierley's four goals weren't enough on this occasion to overtake Anthony Woosey for the opposition's man-of-the-match vote, while Alan Jones saves, particularly in the frenetic second half, would also have put him in the frame. After the tight displays of the previous two games, this was a poor effort overall despite scoring eight goals and we were lucky that the opposition ran out of steam at the end of the game or they could have had a result for themselves. Considerable improvement is required for next week.
Team: Alan Jones, Darren Molyneux (John Edmunds), Dave Pritchard, Craig McTavish, Dave Henrys, Phil Southern, Phil Ward, Craig Jones (Anthony Woosey), Pete Dessington (Eifion Jones), Graham Wilks, Mark Ray (Darren Brierley)
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19 November 2011 - Halkyn Veterans 0 Northop Hall Old Boys 2
This was Halkyn's first game since the sad news of Algy's death and it immediately felt strange to arrive there and not to be greeted by him. A beautifully observed minute's silence preceded the match itself, particularly poignant for the Halkyn guys and the older members of the Northop Hall team whose allegiances with this fixture go back a long way.
A number of injuries had decimated the home squad and they had none of the problems that the Old Boys face with rotating their large squad and trying to keep everybody happy. Phil Ward returned in midfield and Darren Brierley added his considerable pace to the attack to cover for a number injuries and work commitments, but there were still six substitutes to rotate.
For once, Northop Hall started the game the strongest, particularly defensively with keeper Jeff Britton seeing little of the ball as Halkyn's early attacks were snuffed out ahead of him. Darren Brierley was always the dangerous outlet up front and he twice closed down and robbed home defenders to set up opportunities for himself, seeing one shot wide and another saved.
Mark 'Sparky' Ray was also earning space for himself up front and he too saw a couple of snapshots miss the target before being presented with a simple tap-in after Darren broke the offside trap down the right and squared for Sparky to register his 9th goal of the season.
A period of domination by the away side over the remainder of the half was only occasionally interupted by Halkyn popping a shot wide of goal or a couple of testing crosses that Jeff Britton dealt with well.
His opposite number by contrast was seeing lots of the ball as the Old Boys probed beyond the back line for a second goal, both strikers seeing shots well saved. Eventually the goal that the play deserved duly came, no surprise that it was leading scorer Darren Brierley beating the offside trap to Craig Jones' through ball, clipping it over the onrushing keeper to put himself in front of an open goal and duly smashing the ball home from close in to end the frustration. Moments later the same striker found himself through on the keeper again in an almost identical position, this time his attempted chip to goal went over the top.
Although changes on the half hour did little to change the course of the game, Halkyn did take advantage to provide Jeff Britton with his first test, a low shot that he was equal to. Sparky had the best chance to extend the lead as the half drew to a close, meeting a low right wing cross with his left foot but seeing it saved by the keeper's legs.
Half Time 2-0
The second half was a more even affair, Halkyn starting to exploit space on the Old Boys right side and force a number of corners that were again well defended. Mel Barnes had a shot wide at the other end before Sparky led a left wing break and delivered a deep cross for Anthony Woosey who somehow headed over unchallenged from close in.
Further substitutions on the hour brought Darren Brierley amongst others back on and he was soon testing the keeper again, forcing a fine save after another strong run. Darren Gatehouse also crashed a shot wide and Kieran Whelan had a couple of trademark marauding runs from the back only halted by last ditch tackles as the Halkyn defence held firm.
Anthony Woosey came closest to scoring the next goal, albeit at the wrong end, mistiming a defensive header towards his own goal and fortunate to see it bounce back off the crossbar with Jeff Britton stranded. Soon afterwards a corner from the Halkyn right found an unmarked team mate just eight yards out but his header was placed straight at the Old Boys grateful goalkeeper, the closest the home side would come to spoiling a rare clean sheet.
There was time for a few more threats on the Halkyn goal, Darren Brierley firing over when put through the inside right channel again and Mel Barnes seeing a low shot saved being the closest to a third Old Boys goal.
The lively return up front earned Darren Brierley the opposition man-of-the-match nomination (the Halkyn keeper being the recipient of the Old Boys vote said much about the way the game went) although other contributions, particularly at the back, were worthy of note. Clean sheets are a rare event at this level, there have only been two in each of the last three seasons before this, but it follows two other low scoring games to show a measure of improvement over recent weeks that we would hope to see continue.
Team: Jeff Britton, Phil Elder, Darren Gatehouse (Darren Molyneux), Kieran Whelan (Dave Pritchard), Dave Henrys, Eifion Jones (John Edmunds), Phil Ward, Craig Jones (Anthony Woosey), Gary Peters, Darren Brierley (Mel Barnes), Mark Ray (Steve Bodey)
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12 November 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 2 Eastham Veterans 1
After last week's "double team", Kieran Whelan, Craig McTavish and Darren Brierley dropped out of the running for the visit of Eastham leaving a more sensible number of players to rotate, although the manager's plans were torn up before the start with the news that Jeff Britton was stranded at Liverpool Airport and would be late arriving at best. As it was, he did manage to take his place between the sticks some 20 minutes in to the first half after Phil Elder had stood in admirably and kept a clean sheet.
Elsewhere, Anthony Woosey, Ian Powell and John Edmunds all returned after missing last week, injury victims Paz Maletta and Graham Wilks amongst those unavailable.
It was the visitors who started strongest, but the home defence also began well and Phil Elder's cameo in goal was generally an untested one. Anthony Woosey was influencing things from midfield and Darren Molyneux in particular was getting lots of room on the right to get forward. Chances on the visitors goal were as rare as the other end in the first half though, Anthony, Mark 'Sparky' Ray and Ian Powell all shot wide from the better opportunities.
Jeff Britton had little more to do in the home goal as the defence continued its solid start other than carefully watch a couple of shots pass his post, and with Mel Barnes height and aerial prowess a growing threat at the other end and Anthony Woosey pushed up to attack on the introduction of Craig Jones, the Old Boys began to take control of the game and work the Eastham defence.
Eventually, the deadlock was broken with one of the best flowing moves that Northop Hall have put together. Starting with a neat interchange of passes from the left of defence to get out of trouble, the ball was worked through midfield, wide to the right and back left where Eifion Jones fed Mel Barnes whose perfectly weighted pass inside gave Gary Peters the chance to cut inside and shoot hard and low to squeeze in the opening goal at the near post, his first 'competitive' goal for the club.
So comfortable were the home side as the interval approached that they won't have wanted to hear the half-time whistle. The ball was being knocked around at will and Anthony Woosey benefitted but saw his header well saved by the Eastham goalkeeper.
Half Time 1-0
Indeed it was that after the turnaround, Eastham had regrouped and plugged a few gaps. Darren Molyneux found his space denied as the away side pushed up and they were soon threatening the Old Boys goal and testing Jeff Britton's handling ability, but not finding it wanting. However, he could do nothing about the equaliser when it came. A long kick out from the Eastham keeper was flicked on and the striker was suddenly away on his own to round the keeper and slide home.
Moments later there was almost another as a breakaway down the right got the other striker through, but this time he was forced wide and shot wide. There was soon a golden opportunity for Northop Hall to regain the lead though. Pete Dessington's curling corner clipped the crossbar as it fizzed across and Mel Barnes looked odds-on to nod home as it came down to him at the far post but his header only found the outside of the post. Soon after that, Craig Jones curled a free-kick narrowly wide with Mel close to getting a touch at the far post.
A very even second half then played out with chances at both ends testing the respective goalkeepers, Jeff Britton turning two shots aside and diving full length to take a dangerous low cross before it reached the striker. For the Old Boys, Gary Peters had a rasping shot turned over the bar and Anthony Woosey saw another header saved and even the rebound turned away as the second goal just wouldn't come. Mike Maletta and Sparky both had shots high and wide as the pressure mounted.
Eventually, the second goal did arrive, courtesy of a delightful through ball from Ian Powell to set Sparky away. As he rounded the keeper it looked as if the chance may have gone as two defenders got back on the line, but his left foot shot found the far corner to spark a very dubious cartwheel celebration!
Eastham pressed for an equaliser and had a very big penalty shout turned down as Mike Maletta's attempted clearance from a corner struck his own arm as it went out. It would have been a very harsh decision but that didn't stop the opposition sideline from a ferocious protest that ended with one of their subbed players being dismissed from pitchside.
Again the home defence stood firm as pressure mounted and with good support from around the pitch, held on to record the victory. Jeff Britton was awarded the opposition's man-of-the-match vote for his solid performance between the sticks once he'd sorted out his transport arrangements, but once again there were a number of other candidates from a very good hard working team display.
Team: Phil Elder (Jeff Britton), Darren Molyneux, Darren Gatehouse (Gary Peters), Dave Pritchard, Dave Henrys, John Edmunds (Mike Maletta), Phil Southern (Mel Barnes), Anthony Woosey, Ian Powell (Eifion Jones), Pete Dessington, Mark Ray (Craig Jones)
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5 November 2011 - Saltney Veterans 2 Northop Hall Old Boys 1
There have been one or two occasions in the past when it has come close, but for the first time ever the Old Boys fielded two separate teams in a game (in the style of England in friendly matches under Sven), as so many players declared availability and didn't want to stand down even though it was only going to be a 45 minute run-out. Other than returning first choice keeper Jeff Britton, only Craig Jones and Phil Ward of the first half team had time on the pitch after the break as "Birthday Boy" Darren Brierley did his best Carlos Tevez impression and decided not to enter the fray - Graeme Souness has so far declined to comment!
Injuries, family crisis, holidays and work commitments usually combine to keep enough players out every week to make the squad manageable but the returns of half a dozen longer term absentees combined with recent high numbers anyway brought about the unusual situation, which could have been even worse if Anthony Woosey hadn't taken a turn to step down and Ian Powell, Steve Buckley and John Edmunds not been unavailable, not to mention Ady Binnersley recovering from his summer operation who made a welcome appearance to spectate.
On an unseasonably mild November afternoon then, Saltney started strongly against the first half team, probing from the off and causing problems down the middle as the Old Boys took time to settle. Darren Molyneux was quickly into his stride though, making a number of important interceptions and starting attacks from the back, and looking to break the high offside line himself only to be cynically tripped.
Craig Jones followed Molly's example soon after though, pushing the ball through the back line and following it through himself as the offside appeals went up to bear down on the Saltney goal. Although his first effort was parried by the home keeper, he kept his cool to slot home the follow-up for his first goal of the season.
Saltney continued to play a high line and should have been punished on several more occasions only to be saved by some generous refereeing and then by Kevin Hoyland's failure to hit the target when he was put through on the right side.
The game turned on a mad two minutes in the middle of the half though. Firstly the defence didn't close down the striker quickly enough as a long ball came over the top and his crisp shot into the corner gave Jeff Britton no chance, then a second goal came as a couple of passes around the edge of the area put the other forward in to finish equally clinically.
The visitors recovered sufficiently to keep their opponents at bay for the remainder of the half with some better defensive organisation and midfield cover, the only real moment of alarm coming as Jeff Britton dropped a deep cross under pressure but was able to pounce on it before the opposition reacted.
At the other end, Mark 'Sparky' Ray replaced the injured Graham Wilks and Craig Jones blazed over as a clearance from a corner fell to him on the edge of the area.
Half Time 1-2
Wholesale changes then for the second half, only Jeff Britton remaining in position in goal and Craig Jones pushed up front for a spell to cover. Immediately the visitors were creating chances as Gary Peters and Mark Ray both found crosses from the left that led to shooting opportunities for Eifion Jones and Phil Southern that they couldn't get clean strikes on.
Defensively the Old Boys remained solid with Kieran Whelan at the helm and Jeff Britton had little to do but watch a few long range efforts disappear high and wide.
With chances at a premium at both ends, Mike Maletta on his return from a nasty summer holiday injury found himself free at the far post on the end of a neat move, but failed to trouble the keeper as his snapshot went just wide of the post.
Jeff Britton had to stretch to tip a lob shot over his crossbar and Phil Elder headed off the line from another cross shot while a 'Sparky' corner at the other end saw Darren Gatehouse head narrowly over the bar.
In the closing minutes, Steve Bodey was sent on for another cameo appearance and his crisp one-two with 'Sparky' sent the striker away down the inside right channel but trying to shoot with his left foot saw the effort hit the side netting only.
In a game of two halves, the "second half" Old Boys claimed the high ground with the goalless 45 minutes but apart from the two goals conceded, the visitors played well in both halves and were unlucky to lose in the end. The opposition selected two men-of-the-match on this occasion, one from each half, Craig Jones getting the nod for his efforts in the first and Mark 'Sparky' Ray for a much improved performance in the second.
Team: Jeff Britton, Paz Maletta (Phil Elder), Darren Molyneux (Darren Gatehouse), Craig McTavish (Dave Pritchard), Dave Henrys (Kieran Whelan), Kevin Hoyland (Eifion Jones), Phil Ward (Phil Southern), Craig Jones, Pete Dessington (Gary Peters), Mel Barnes (Mike Maletta) (Steve Bodey), Graham Wilks (Mark Ray)
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29 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 4 St Marys Veterans (Liverpool) 3
In contrast to another large squad available to the Old Boys, the visitors from St Marys in north Liverpool, the longest trek for any of our opponents, could only muster a bare eleven for their trip, a problem we have experienced in the past ourselves for the longer journeys. However, it's quality that counts and the visitors have plenty of that as they've shown in recent matches against us, so there was no under-estimating their threat.
Darren Molyneux, Kev Hoyland, Gary Peters, Phil Southern and Mel Barnes were returnees with Ian Powell, Phil Ward, Dave Pritchard and Darren Gatehouse all unavailable. A late call-off by keeper Jeff Britton for family reasons left player-manager Dave Henrys to take the gloves for the sixth time this season with Craig Jones pulled back from midfield to cover in the back four.
The visitors started extremely well and started to get regular joy with their extra pace down the left hand side. However, their first chance was presented to them down the middle when Craig Jones received a short kick out on the edge of his area but was robbed of the ball. The first time strike was venomous but cannoned back off the crossbar and was cleared. The reprieve was short-lived though. Another couple of shots had fizzed wide when a right wing cross found their pace man ahead of the defence breaking the offside trap and finishing clinically.
Gradually though the Old Boys started to get a toe hold in the game with Anthony Woosey and Craig Jones almost getting the strikers away with long passes, but it was the left side combination of Darren Molyneux (looking to get forward at every opportunity) and Pete Dessington that carried the most threat, one of their interchanges resulting in a high left foot cross from Mark 'Sparky' Ray that bounced in the box. The St Mary's keeper fatally hesitated and of all people it was one of the older Old Boys John Edmunds who seized the opportunity to head home his first goal of the season.
With their tails now up, Northop Hall created a few more decent openings including one down the inside right channel finding Graham Wilks whose first time right foot shot was too powerful for the keeper and nestled in the bottom corner of the net.
It wasn't one-way traffic by any means although the visitors shots were evading Dave Henrys' goal in the main. However, their long ball looking to release the pace up front was a constant danger and the Old Boys weren't always coping well with it, Darren Molyneux's misplaced header back to the keeper a case in point, Craig McTavish providing a last ditch clearing tackle as the keeper was wrong-footed and slipped.
Changes on the half hour brought Darren Brierley into the attack and he was soon causing havoc with his own pace, winning a free kick 30 yards out. Kieran Whelan's quick thinking from the kick put Anthony Woosey through on goal and he finished comfortably as usual with his 7th goal of the season.
Half Time 3-1
The second half had a similar pattern with St Mary's if anything carrying a slightly greater threat again with a bit of breeze at their backs. They certainly took advantage to score a route one goal, both centre backs deceived by the lengthening flight of the ball and the pacy striker in again to leave the keeper with no hope with a neat finish.
In an increasingly open half, both sides then had spells of pressure, leading scorer Darren Brierley seeing a goalbound shot in front of goal turned away by the Liverpool keeper before a typically accurate Pete Dessington cross found his head at the far post to squeeze a header in for his 11th goal in nine outings and restore the two-goal cushion.
At the other end, the Old Boys were thankful for Mel Barnes aerial prowess as a succession of corners tested the defence, Dave Henrys having to tip one header over and stop another close range shot with his legs as St Marys looked to cut the lead. They had a penalty appeal against Kieran Whelan turned down in favour of a free kick on the right edge of the 18-yard box, the subsequent kick joining a number of others on the bottom field as it blazed over the bar.
The home side were guilty of giving away a few needless free kicks and from one on the right side the defence stood and watched the ball to the far post met with a cross back in where any one of three St Marys players were waiting to bundle home their third goal.
Chances at both ends could have resulted in either an extension of the Old Boys lead or a St Marys equaliser but Darren Brierley shot wide of the post with a shot across the keeper, Sparky Ray shot high and wide with a typical left foot thunderbolt and put a header wide from a perfect Kevin Hoyland cross to the middle of the goal. At the home end, one effort clipped the outside of the post and Anthony Woosey blocked another shot smacked straight at him from a corner just inside the Northop Hall penalty area to optimistic handball appeals before Dave Henrys, at full stretch, tipped a goalbound effort around the post to keep the score at 4-3.
A first ever man-of-the-match nomination from the opposition was Dave Henrys' reward for his efforts between the sticks but once again there were many other contenders in a hard-fought win against really good opposition, with no lack of energy in all areas of the pitch.
Team: Dave Henrys, Paz Maletta (Kevin Hoyland), Darren Molyneux, Craig McTavish, Craig Jones (Kieran Whelan), John Edmunds, Phil Southern (Mel Barnes), Anthony Woosey, Pete Dessington (Gary Peters), Mark Ray (Darren Brierley), Graham Wilks
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22 October 2011 - Woolton Veterans 4 Northop Hall Old Boys 6
A bright and breezy October day in Liverpool brought many problems for the team defending into the sun and wind, which was the Old Boys in the first half. A decent sized squad made the trip over to Woolton and despite a few having difficulty finding the ground everybody just about managed to make it on to the pitch for kick-off. Anthony Woosey and Darren Gatehouse were amongst the returnees, player-manager Dave Henrys once again covering Jeff Britton's absence between the sticks.
It took barely two minutes for the home team to press home their advantage as Northop Hall struggled to clear their lines and gave away a free kick some 25 yards out. The Woolton striker used the wind at his back to float the ball into the top corner of the goal.
It was almost two-nil minutes later as the same striker broke through the back-line but Dave Henrys managed to narrow the angle and keep the ball out. However, he was beaten again soon after when an Old Boys corner was quickly counter-attacked down the Woolton right before the winger squeezed his shot inside the near post.
The Old Boys were struggling not only with the weather conditions, but also with the longish grass underfoot which was halting some of the mazy runs being attempted to counteract the wind blowing forward passes back at them. They did manage to get Darren Brierley through for one good chance though, but the keeper stuck out a hand to his attempted chip finish and kept it out.
Woolton for their part were peppering the Old Boys goal, but very little needed a save despite a couple of clear cut chances being carved out, while the defence held up well under the pressure to make it through to half time at two down.
Half Time 2-0
As expected, the second half was a different story, with Ian Powell and Anthony Woosey in particular very involved in support of the strikers. As the home side started to struggle with the conditions against them, chances began to be carved out. A corner from the left was fired over by Pete Dessington and Darren Gatehouse ran in unchallenged to power a header home for his first goal for the club.
Graham Wilks was put through on goal, but under much pressure from his marker (perhaps unfairly) he could only prod his shot wide. The equaliser did soon come along though, courtesy of a route one goal that owed everything to the conditions. Dave Henrys huge kick out from his hands eluded the Woolton full back and Ian Powell raced in from the left to half-volley the ball home from just inside the penalty box.
Woolton were still putting pressure on despite the conditions though and they were soon back in front as a right wing cross was met just in front of Craig McTavish by the right boot of his considerably younger opponent to hook in past the unsighted keeper. Darren Brierley was then controversially denied an equaliser when his header from a right wing cross was saved well behind the line by the keeper, but his honesty let him down as he refused to acknowledge the goal and the referee was too far away to judge otherwise.
Fired on by that, the Old Boys continued to create chances with Mark 'Sparky' Ray shooting high and wide twice before being involved in the third goal, feeding Ian Powell on the left who picked out Anthony Woosey at the far post for an exquisite chip into the corner. Ian was in again at the back stick soon after and was unlucky to see his left foot shot rebound back off the post as Northop Hall pressed home their advantage.
Darren Brierley eventually got compensation for his earlier unallowed goal when he beat the offside trap and raced through to score despite the keeper getting a half stop on it. The goalie was forced into action again soon after to keep the away side from going further ahead as Anthony Woosey's testing lob was clawed from under the angle to safety. But it was a brief respite as 'Sparky' Ray ended a nice move into the area with a cool low finish under the keeper and it was soon six as the same player cut in from the right and unleashed an unstoppable left foot shot into the bottom corner, the third time the Old Boys have hit six this season. It might even have been seven as Kieran Whelan marauded forward from defence and found himself with just the keeper to beat, but his low shot struck the oncoming goal minder and deflected away.
With the home side well and truly out of it, the referee gave them a consolation minutes from time with an extraordinary decision. Having awarded a free kick to Woolton on the edge of the area he was striding out the yards for the two-man defensive wall and dragging them back into position when the home team cheekily chipped the ball into the box. Nobody moved except one striker who sheepishly poked it home as everybody anticipated the referee's whistle to take the kick properly when he was ready, but he embarrassed himself somewhat by allowing the goal to stand.
Anyway, 6-3 or 6-4 it was still an excellent second half turnaround with Anthony Woosey getting the opposition nod for man-of-the-match, but with a number of other contenders running him close, including Ian Powell and Darren Gatehouse, for whom their goals capped their best performances of the season so far.
Team: Dave Henrys, Paz Maletta (Darren Gatehouse), Pete Dessington, Kieran Whelan, Craig McTavish (Dave Pritchard), John Edmunds, Phil Ward (Anthony Woosey), Craig Jones, Mark Ray (Ian Powell), Darren Brierley, Graham Wilks
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15 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 1 Bedford Argyle 2
On September 6th 2008, Northop Hall Old Boys played their first 'competitive' match, a 4-3 win at Shotton Steel. Just over three short years later, today's game with Bedford Argyle (Rock Ferry) marked the 100th match with equally difficult opposition. With all-time leading goalscorer Anthony Woosey missing amongst others and Kieran Whelan and Jeff Britton late arrivals, a bit of reshuffling was needed.
For the first 20 minutes, the ball seemed camped in the Old Boys half as Bedford, with a bit of a breeze behind them, sprayed the ball around without really threatening too much, although Dave Henrys in goal had to sweep up a couple of times as the last line was breached. At the other end a breakaway looked on, but the away side held a high line and thwarted the Old Boys attack with their offside trap.
However, as is always likely at this level, the trap was sprung following good work from Craig Jones to set Darren Brierley away and this season's leading scorer put away his 9th goal of the campaign with a right foot shot low into the far corner. Ian Powell had a good chance to make it two soon after as Pete Dessington's excellent cross to the far post found him unmarked but the header went wide. Next, Ian returned the favour, crossing for Pete to shoot for goal, but his finish was hasty and wide.
As Bedford continued their pressure on the home goal they carved out their best chance with another well worked move, this time the shot steered high into the top corner to level the scores giving the keeper no hope. Further shots continued to fly high or wide without testing the goal further.
It was a different story at the other end though as Graham Wilks burst in from the right and only a fingertip save from the Bedford keeper kept the second goal at bay. The best chance of a further goal came again from Darren Brierley though, cutting in from the left and beating everybody with his shot only to see it come back off the foot of the post.
Half Time 1-1
Jeff Britton replaced Dave Henrys between the sticks for the second half, but his first job was to pick the ball out of the net, the defence having stopped, looking for an offside decision that didn't come and they were the ones punished this time as the striker slotted home unchallenged.
Hard fought as the remainder of the second half was, the Old Boys were once again left to rue missed chances. A long bouncing through ball beat the goalkeeper and came back off the crossbar and in the ensuing skirmish that left Graham Wilks in the net and Pete Dessington tangled with the goalie, the ball was cleared.
Craig Jones saw a left foot shot narrowly clear the crossbar while Mark 'Sparky' Ray had a free-kick that was further away. A number of crosses into the Northop Hall box were comfortably dealt with, Jeff Britton only having to really make one save of note in the half.
The best chance fell to Graham Wilks, again the offside trap broken amidst opposition complaints, but Graham delayed and hit his shot straight at the sprawling goalkeeper and the opportunity had gone.
Ian Powell also came close in similar style as the Old Boys finished strongly but couldn't find the equaliser that their overall play deserved on the day.
Darren Brierley again caught the opposition eye for the man-of-the-match vote amongst a host of workmanlike performances, his goal on the day being the 297th in 100 games for the Northop Hall side, a very healthy goals-per-game ratio that just couldn't be kept up today.
Team: Dave Henrys (Jeff Britton), Paz Maletta, Darren Molyneux (Phil Elder), Craig Jones (Craig McTavish), Dave Pritchard (Kieran Whelan), Pete Dessington, Phil Ward (Graham Wilks), Phil Southern, Ian Powell, Darren Brierley, Mark Ray
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08 October 2011 - Chester Nomads 4 Northop Hall Old Boys 4
The Old Boys headed to Boughton Hall Cricket Club to face one of the Chester Nomads veterans sides, welcoming back Jeff Britton between the sticks and Gary Peters, Phil Ward and Ian Powell in midfield replacing several absentees from last week including a late withdrawal from Kieran Whelan that meant some late positional switches.
It was the opposition who started the brightest laying early siege to the Northop Hall penalty area without testing Jeff Britton as the defence got to grips, but it was with their first shot on goal that they took the lead as a run in from the left and low shot from inside the area found the bottom corner of the net as the Old Boys failed to close down the opponent.
As the away side found their feet and some passing fluidity they were rocked by a second Chester goal, a far post cross was headed into the ground but hard enough to bounce up and over Jeff Britton's reach.
Both Darren Brierley and Gary Peters had come close to breaking the offside trap and beating the home keeper and eventually it was Gary who was put through only to be denied by the goalkeeper. Fortunately Graham Wilks was on hand to continue his goal-scoring run and stroke home from close range.
Jeff Britton then had to tip over a looping shot to keep the Old Boys in it and soon after that Mark 'Sparky' Ray's through ball saw Graham Wilks beat the offside call again and this time finish neatly for his fourth goal in three games.
Half Time 2-2
Northop Hall turned round to kick up the slope and took the lead after successive headers from Mark Ray and Graham Wilks put leading scorer Darren Brierley through to add to his season's tally with a typical run beyond the defence and finish past the keeper. They were still grateful to Jeff Britton for a fine tip over as he back peddled to keep out another looping effort.
Graham Wilks should have made it four soon after, screwing a left foot shot wide after Darren had forced another save from the goalie. Nomads were clearly rattled and Sparky's tackle with a numbnut in the opposition resulted in a melée that saw the referee floored by the opposition player as he swung for his tackler, but not before Sparky had his shirt ripped almost from his back in an infantile moment that should have seen the mindless opponent sent off but somehow didn't. (And it wasn't as if his own team weren't guilty of leaving a foot in their challenges either).
Of course, sod's law had it that the same player would score the next goal just to rub salt in the wound. The Old Boys defence failed to track runners and make their tackles and the loose ball was cracked home.
At the other end Anthony Woosey's crisp left foot shot was turned wide at full stretch by the keeper and from the resulting corner Craig Jones came close to restoring the lead, his goalbound header beat the keeper but not the defender on the line. Moments later, the away defence was again found wanting, failing to clear from a ruck in the box and paying the penalty as Jeff Britton was again given no chance from close range as Nomads went back into the lead.
The Old Boys continued to press for a deserved equaliser and finally it arrived, a delightful left foot chip from 'Sparky' Ray clipping the post before dropping tantalisingly behind the goal-line. There was still a golden chance to take the game at the last as the Old Boys worked an opening for Ian Powell at the far post but the keeper smothered his left foot effort.
So the feisty affair ended in a draw, probably the right result on the day, with the "speedy one up front" Darren Brierley getting the opposition nod for man-of-the-match.
Team: Jeff Britton, Paz Maletta (John Edmunds), Darren Molyneux, Craig McTavish (Ian Powell), Dave Henrys, Steve Buckley, Craig Jones, Phil Ward (Mark Ray), Gary Peters, Anthony Woosey (Darren Brierley), Graham Wilks
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01 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 6 Wirral Veterans 3
On the hottest October day on record, with the temperature gauge hitting the high 20's, Wirral Veterans arrived with only 10 players due to late let-downs so John Edmunds (and later Phil Southern and Paz Maletta) took a blue jersey for the opportunity for extra playing time. The Old Boys themselves were much changed from recent weeks with Mark Ray, Eifion Jones, Mel Barnes, Phil Ward, Kieran Whelan and Ian Powell amongst others all unavailable. However, this was balanced by the returns of Phil Elder, Darren Molyneux and Darren Gatehouse and the bonuses of first appearances of the season after injury for Steve Buckley and Paz Maletta. Jeff Britton was also missing in goal so player-manager Dave Henrys again took the gloves.
In a bright first half both sides passed the ball neatly around, the Old Boys marginally holding the attacking advantage and making it tell with the opening goal. Darren Brierley had already been very close to springing the offside trap as Wirral held a really high line, but Phil Elder's long clearance saw Graham Wilks away and as the keeper hesitated he slotted home the opener on the day and his first of the season.
The lead didn't last long though. Craig McTavish had already made a vital interception and Dave Henrys had watched several shots go wide or over the bar before one of several corners resulted in a shot that Pete Dessington stopped on the line at the foot of the near post, only for a Wirral foot to poke home from six inches despite the keeper getting hands on the ball.
Phil Southern's header at the other end forced a fine save from the away keeper and Graham Wilks saw a shot deflected onto the crossbar before Phil's through ball set Darren Brierley on his way and he finished clinically to restore the lead. It could and probably should have been more when Craig Jones saw a shot cleared off the line and his follow up header come back off the crossbar before Phil Southern stabbed the loose ball narrowly wide.
As it happened, the misses proved costly as Wirral continued to press the Old Boys goal. Firstly a terrific shot from range beat the keeper all ends up, struck the left post and careered across goal and out for a throw on the right side. That let-off was only temporary though as a Northop Hall move down the right broke down and ended with a Wirral player being allowed to wriggle free in the penalty area and slot through a couple of defensive legs to equalise.
The visitors came close to going ahead soon after when a header at goal was turned around the post at full stretch by the stand-in home keeper. With further pressure at the other end as Darren Brierley and Anthony Woosey both had shots wide it was a relief to go ahead once more with a fine individual effort from Darren Brierley resulting in a blistering finish.
Half Time 3-2
The second half was a much more one-sided affair. Wirral lost an influential defender and as the Old Boys rotated their squad, the fresher legs produced a series of chances which Darren Brierley, Anthony Woosey, Graham Wilks and Pete Dessington all saw saved or shot wide.
It was Anthony Woosey's reliable left foot that broke the deadlock in the end after a neat interchange with Darren Molyneux down the left wing, another clinical finish into the corner. Wirral continued to pose a threat and a deflected shot almost produced something for them only for Paz Maletta to be covering and make the clearance.
A contentious call at the other end brought about a fifth goal for the home side. Graham Wilks appeared to be brought down in the area but only a throw in resulted. However, Phil Elder's throw bounced over several players in the area leaving Graham a free header at the far post which he put in off the underside of the crossbar.
Back came the gallant opposition and an interchange in the area resulted in a thumped shot that Dave Henrys, who had been relatively untroubled during the half, could only pick out of the back of the net. However, further pressure on the Wirral goal finally produced a sixth goal and a margin worthy of the performance. Again it was Darren Brierley completing a third hat-trick of his Old Boys career with another individual run and finish that proved too good for the opposition back line.
Despite his three goals, Darren was pipped for the man-of-the-match nomination by Anthony Woosey whose performance from midfield laid the platform for the victory today. Again, there would have been others running him close in another good all-round display.
Team: Dave Henrys, Phil Elder (Paz Maletta), Darren Molyneux, Craig McTavish, Dave Pritchard (Darren Gatehouse), Kevin Hoyland, Craig Jones (Steve Buckley), Phil Southern (Anthony Woosey), Pete Dessington, Darren Brierley, Graham Wilks
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24 September 2011 - Warrington Croft 3 Northop Hall Old Boys 6
A healthy sixteen-man squad made the trip to Warrington Croft, short of late absentee Kieran Whelan through illness. Gary Peters also missed through injury and Jeff Britton and Darren Molyneux were away, although Graham Wilks was back for his first game since the end of the cricket season and Kevin Hoyland also returned after missing a couple. Dave Henrys again took the gloves as stand-in goalkeeper, but this and other defensive absences meant Craig Jones and Anthony Woosey shuffling backwards from their normal midfield and striking roles respectively.
Despite the changes, the Old Boys started well enough in an even first twenty minutes in which neither side created many chances but knocked the ball around a bit. However, the home team fashioned their first opening by releasing their player through the inside left channel and he gave the keeper no chance.
The Old Boys were soon level however, Darren Brierley cutting in from the right wing and drawing a clumsy challenge from the full back that the referee had no hesitation in awarding the spot kick for. Anthony Woosey duly dispatched the penalty in off the post for his fourth goal in four games.
The away side then took the lead almost immediately, Mark 'Sparky' Ray cutting in from the right and unleashing one of his trademark left foot howitzers, although straight at the keeper he found it too hot to handle and dropped it over the line, the bit of luck Sparky needed to get his season going.
The goal merely served to galvanise Croft's attacking efforts though, Dave Henrys forced to tip a shot around the post that came straight back from one of his kick-outs and to punch clear twice running following one of several corners that the home team forced. Kevin Hoyland also rescued the Old Boys more than once with some timely interventions. In the end however, they equalised with a mirror image goal to their first, again through the inside left channel.
Graham Wilks' introduction on the half hour had an immediate effect, sent away down the right and bearing down on a possible goal he instead squared the ball inside for Sparky to turn and find the bottom corner. Now well and truly into his stride, Sparky had his third before half time finishing another flowing move to go joint-top scorer and record his third hat-trick for the Old Boys, as he and his team-mates continued to stroke the ball around well and it would have been more if the Croft keeper hadn't atoned for his earlier error with a smart double save to keep out Anthony Woosey and Sparky again.
Half Time 2-4
Both teams had chances as the second half unfolded, John Edmunds deflected effort striking the crossbar and the keeper making another good save to keep Anthony Woosey's shot out and Dave Henrys called into action at the other end to turn a low shot wide. With Craig Jones and Kevin Hoyland both making excellent last ditch tackles and the back four as a whole holding firm, the score stayed at 4-2 for quite a while. Ian Powell and Anthony Woosey both had shots wide as did a couple of Croft players at the other end.
The decisive breakthrough came when Kevin Hoyland's long through ball set Darren Brierley away and there was only one winner in that race. The only question mark after anxious recent weeks was whether he could find the target, but this time there was no doubt about that. The same couldn't be said moments later when he finished a 65-yard run from inside his own half with a shot wide with Anthony and Graham both well placed for a cross.
As it was, an attack down the Croft left saw their striker go over Craig Jones' clumsy challenge and the referee awarded his second penalty kick of the day, again well struck to give the keeper no chance.
At 5-3 Croft might have thought they could get right back in it but second half substitutes Steve Bodey and Eifion Jones combined on the right to find Darren Brierley inside and his pace again took him through and his hammered shot on the run even sent the keeper the wrong way for his own fourth goal of the season. The three goal cushion was maintained to the end for Northop Hall to record only their second victory of the season.
Those two eye catching finishes in the second half tipped the opposition vote for man-of-the-match in Darren's favour to cap an excellent week for the father-to-be. Kevin Hoyland (particularly) and Craig Jones at the back would have been very close for the award on a day when everybody performed well and the confidence returned in front of goal.
Team: Dave Henrys, Kevin Hoyland, Dave Pritchard (Pete Dessington), Craig McTavish, Craig Jones, John Edmunds (Eifion Jones), Mel Barnes (Phil Ward), Anthony Woosey (Steve Bodey), Ian Powell, Darren Brierley (Graham Wilks), Mark Ray
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17 September 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 0 Shotton Steel Veterans 2
Following successive defeats and nine goals conceded, the aim was simple for today; defend better and score some goals. The return of Jeff Britton in goal helped to bolster the defence towards the first objective and with leading scorer Anthony Woosey back to lead the front line, optimism was high, although Shotton are always a difficult opposition.
The first half was a fairly even affair with a scattering of chances, the Old Boys quickly into their stride and Gary Peters was the first to find his route to goal blocked by the oncoming keeper after Anthony put him clean through.
At the other end, solid defending by the back four and good handling from Jeff behind them kept shots mainly from distance, although the keeper did have to turn a good effort around his right hand post at full stretch.
The opening goal came from nowhere really, with a ball over the top which Shotton's striker dinked calmly over Jeff Britton as he came to narrow the angle. The Old Boys continued to threaten at the other end without really creating too much, a succession of corners at both ends seeing out the first half.
Half Time 0-1
After the break, Northop Hall came stronger into the game and began to wear down the opposition a little. Mel Barnes on his first appearance of the season saw a header from a corner cleared off the line at the far post, while Craig Jones and John Edmunds both shot high from distance and Ian Powell snatched his left foot shot well wide when set up by Anthony Woosey.
The best chance of the half fell to Darren Brierley latching on to a through ball but crashing his first time shot over the bar with just the keeper to beat. Anthony Woosey came closest to equalising with one of his trademark chip shots from 20 yards which brushed the far post with the keeper well beaten, whilst Phil Southern and Darren Brierley both headed wide at the far post.
At the other end, Jeff Britton was fortunate to see a long range effort drop wide with him in no mans land following a scuffed clearance, but he made up for it with a quality save to turn a shot from the inside left channel away.
However, as the clock ticked towards 90 minutes, Northop Hall were done by a sucker punch, former player Darren Peters finding himself in acres of space on the Shotton left scuffed his shot past the keeper only for Craig McTavish to clear off the line but only up into the air. Jeff certainly looked impeded as he jumped to claim the loose ball and as it dropped their striker clipped it home.
Cruel luck at the end, but realistically it meant the game finished 2-0 instead of 1-0, the home team struggling again to find the onion bag when it mattered. Anthony Woosey earned the opposition man-of-the-match for his efforts and there may have been many other contenders if the award was made for endeavour. However, having achieved the first stage of the plan and improved at the back, we will be looking for a return to last season's clinical finishing in front of goal to halt the losing run as soon as possible.
Team: Jeff Britton, Dave Pritchard (John Edmunds), Darren Molyneux, Kieran Whelan (Craig McTavish), Dave Henrys, Phil Southern (Ian Powell), Craig Jones (Mel Barnes), Phil Ward, Gary Peters, Anthony Woosey, Mark Ray (Darren Brierley)
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10 September 2011 - Upton Magnets 5 Northop Hall Old Boys 4
The Old Boys made the journey to Upton defending a 100% record at the County Officers' ground in the three years since formation. Last season's player of the season Kieran Whelan was back at the heart of defence, just as well as Dave Henrys had to cover Jeff Britton's absence in goal, whilst last season's leading scorer Anthony Woosey was also missing. On the plus side, Darren Molyneux was back from the holiday that forced him to miss last week's Charity Shield final.
A fairly strong wind was blowing end-to-end and it was the Old Boys who had to defend into the teeth of it in the first half, resulting in a number of overhit passes from the home team that kept the goal kick count high. Meanwhile though, Northop Hall set off really well and Darren Brierley was soon making a nuisance of himself up front, stinging the keeper's hands and rattling the crossbar with a fierce drive as Darren Molyneux marauded from left back and Phil Ward and Ian Powell took control of the midfield.
It was the Old Boys who took the lead, Phil Southern in a rare advanced role alongside Darren Brierley played his strike partner in down the inside-right channel after good approach play from Darren Molyneux and the powerful low right foot shot nestled in the far corner to open his account for the regular season.
A number of other efforts rained in on the Upton keeper before Darren Brierley doubled the advantage with a carbon copy strike, getting himself beyond the Upton defence and beating the oncoming keeper again.
With Dave Henrys barely tested, a goal back for Upton came out of the blue, a free header from a right foot cross looping over the keeper. However, the Old Boys were soon two goals ahead again, Mark Ray meeting a Pete Dessington left wing cross but seeing his shot saved but only as far as Ian Powell to stroke home his first goal of the season from close range.
As half-time approached Upton created a few more chances, shooting wide when through on goal before fashioning a left wing cross that was met with a powerful header by their striker to score from close range.
Half Time 3-2
After the break the Old Boys continued to create chances with the wind now at their backs, Craig Jones, Ian Powell and Gary Peters all shooting wide, but were undone again as the defence watched as another cross into the box was met with a free header close in to equalise.
Upton had their tails up at this point and were suddenly threatening every time they got the ball, several shots hooked high and wide before a thunderous shot from the left beat Dave Henrys on his near post to put the home side ahead for the first time in the match. Still Northop Hall pressed and the reintroduction of Darren Brierley resulted in more saves from the keeper and another shot crashing back off the crossbar as Mark 'Sparky' Ray also tested the last line of defence.
As the Old boys took more chances in search of the equaliser, so the gaps at the back started to become exposed and Dave Henrys had to turn a good shot away and watch in relief as another bounced back to him off the crossbar. In the end though he was beaten by another incisive move clinically finished hard and low to his right for 5-3.
The Old Boys were still plugging away though as the clock ran down and a long through ball from Sparky caught the wind and immediately the home keeper was struggling as the ball bounced awkwardly his way before dropping over him and in to register his first of the season - they all count! In the dying minutes, further chances came and went but the equaliser never arrived, the Old Boys suffering a second defeat in successive weeks.
Darren Molyneux was awarded the opposition's man of the match vote on his return. In the final analysis, maybe a few too many changes on the day contributed to the defeat, but every member of the squad gets decent game time when they turn up for the Old Boys and that is the main criteria. It was also a case of bad decision making with the ball at times too, particularly when the pressure started to come. For the first 20 minutes it was business as usual but we just seemed to lose our way a little after that. Fitness may be an issue with several players not having played for a while, but hopefully as the weeks progress and they get playing time in, things will improve all round.
Team: Dave Henrys, Phil Elder (Eifion Jones), Darren Molyneux (Gary Peters), Craig McTavish (Dave Pritchard) Kieran Whelan, John Edmunds, Phil Southern (Craig Jones), Phil Ward, Pete Dessington, Darren Brierley, Ian Powell (Mark Ray)
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03 September 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 2 Halkyn Veterans 4 (Charity Shield Final)
After ending their long wait for a first trophy back in May, Northop Hall Old Boys started the weekend with a very real chance of their second in three matches when they hosted Halkyn Veterans in the final of the In Vogue Veterans Charity Shield. Victory against Northop Hall Nomads in the semi-final meant that confidence was high, but the Old Boys knew that they had to be wary of a Halkyn team who had comprehensively beaten Rhewl in their own semi-final.
As it was, it proved to be a game of two keepers with Jeff Britton, man of the match in the semi-final, having a very rare bad performance. His opposite number meanwhile pulled off a string of good saves to earn himself the man of the match award. A poor first half cost the Old Boys and having found themselves trailing 3-1 at the interval a string of good saves and wasted chances followed as Halkyn won 4-2.
Faced with a huge squad of available players, the Old Boys welcomed back last season’s leading goals-per-game ratio scorer Darren Brierley while Ian Powell played his first match for them in over a year having returned to the Welsh National League last season. There was also a welcome return to the side for Dave Pritchard after surgery early last season. Lining up against the Old Boys was former Northop Hall Veterans manager Neil Hewitt to add a bit more fire to the occasion.
The match itself began cautiously with both defences finding themselves comfortably on top of their opposing forwards. Chances were limited, although Halkyn’s midfielder shot narrowly over from the edge of the box while Mark ‘Sparky’ Ray shot into the side netting at the other end and Anthony Woosey’s ambitious long-range effort was mishit out for a throw-in after he had received the ball from a poor Halkyn goal-kick.
Fifteen minutes in however, disaster struck for the Old Boys as the usually highly reliable Jeff Britton failed to properly gather a slide-rule pass into the area to leave Hewitt of all people with the easiest of tap-ins. The Old Boys responded well though and Anthony Woosey had a shot cleared off the line after running on to Britton’s long drop-kick and lobbing the ‘keeper.
Just minutes later Woosey did find the back of the net however when he broke the offside trap down the right-hand side, cut inside and put a curling left-footed shot into the top corner. Halkyn’s defence protested the lack of an offside decision vehemently but the goal stood and the Old Boys found themselves level at 1-1.
Northop Hall continued to create chances and Ray shot wide across goal after running on to Woosey’s flicked header. The pressure didn’t tell however and another goalkeeping error was to cost them dearly. Jeff Britton called to come and collect a corner but after opting to catch the ball at a stretch rather than punch, he dropped the ball to provide another easy Halkyn tap-in.
Halkyn seized the initiative and began to play some really good football, passing the ball quickly and launching some good moves. At the same time the Old Boys lost their shape and struggled to retain possession. Opting to play too many long-balls the ball was constantly being given away. A right-footed Halkyn shot from the left wing went over but a third goal soon arrived in sloppy fashion befitting of the Old Boys’ performance.
When Phil Ward conceded a free-kick 22 yards out, Britton in goal called for a four-man wall immediately. Slow reactions however meant that no such wall arrived and with the ‘keeper still trying to organise the Old Boys’ defence Halkyn were allowed to take the kick quickly and found the bottom corner to make it 3-1 just before half-time.
Half Time 1-3
Immediately after the interval Halkyn came agonisingly close to making it four when another right-footed shot from the left side cannoned against the inside of the post, came across the face of goal and somehow stayed out.
Perhaps sensing their fortune the Old Boys finally started to put some good passing moves of their own together. Darren Brierley shot high and wide after the opposing centre-back had misread Anthony Woosey’s header into the box, and Brierley saw another shot blocked wide after a great one-two with Ian Powell.
Allowed to push forward more than in the first half, Powell began to impress and linked well with Brierley and Woosey up front. After Phil Ward had headed the resultant corner wide, Woosey, Powell and Brierley combined again to create another chance which the latter headed wide from Woosey’s cross.
As Northop Hall made their customary substitutions on the hour-mark Powell was replaced however a move which coincided with Halkyn coming right back into the game. Darren Gatehouse was forced into a smart block on the line from a shot from six yards out and Jeff Britton made slight amends for his earlier error with a spectacular fingertip save to deny Halkyn’s striker a well-deserved goal.
At the other end a good run and cross from Craig Jones was met by Brierley but the striker missed the target on the volley, and he shot wide again shortly afterwards when Anthony Woosey’s shot was blocked and the ball fell into his path. On another day both would have had hat-tricks by this point but as time began to run out the Old Boys’s chances of getting back into the game became increasingly slimmer especially as the Halkyn goalkeeper began to pull off a string of good saves to deny both of them in quick succession.
Jeff Britton’s day continued to get worse however at the other end and he was grateful for Craig MacTavish’s sliding block when he had attempted to chest the ball clear and only succeeded in glancing the ball into the Halkyn striker’s path, although he redeemed himself soon after with a flying save to tip a goal-bound shot over the bar.
While his errors were the more obvious it was not just Britton who underperformed for the Old Boys however, and had MacTavish and fellow centre-backs Dave Pritchard and Dave Henrys not provided some solid performances the game could have been out of reach. In the event it soon was anyway.
Anthony Woosey squandered a good chance when set free on the right but tried to shoot with his left-foot instead of the more obvious right and Halkyn passed the ball forward quickly and crisply again, as they had for much of the game, and scored a fourth. The goal was slightly against the run of play but the move, which ended with the striker running through and placing a shot beyond Britton and into the far corner deserved a goal.
The Old Boys did eventually pull one back when Craig MacTavish met Anthony Woosey’s left-footed cross to head the ball over the ‘keeper to cap his own good performance with a goal but the full-time whistle blew shortly afterwards to confirm Halkyn’s place as the first name on the new Charity Shield. In all it had been a disappointing day off the pitch, although the news that £500 had been raised for the ‘Save the Family’ charity through the proceeds of the two match days tempered the blow and reminded all of the real purpose of the games.
The opposition awarded Craig Jones with their vote for man-of-the-match, although Ian Powell and Craig MacTavish must also have been in the running. Aside from them very few players stood out for the Old Boys but as players return to match form over the next few weeks it will surely be something that will be improved on.
Team: Jeff Britton, Phil Elder (Dave Pritchard), Pete Dessington, (Darren Gatehouse), Craig McTavish (John Edmunds), Dave Henrys, Kevin Hoyland, Phil Southern (Ian Powell), Craig Jones (Steve Bodey), Gary Peters (Phil Ward), Anthony Woosey (Darren Brierley), Mark Ray
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27 August 2011 - Northop Hall Nomads 1 Northop Hall Old Boys 4 (Charity Shield semi-final)
In brand new green and black colours, the Old Boys started their first game proper of the new season with a 'local derby', having been drawn away in the 'In Vogue' Charity Shield semi-final to Northop Hall Nomads. The tie saw debuts for the Old Boys for Darren Gatehouse and Gary Peters after impressing in pre-season, while Jeff Britton was back in goal and Craig McTavish returned in defence allowing others to settle into more usual positions.
Both sides started a little rustily, Nomads having played a fortnight previously in their first game of the season first to get their passing going in the middle but missing the target on the longer ball, while the Old Boys looked for the pace of Mark 'Sparky' Ray up front to get things going. Craig Jones headed over from a Dave Bradley corner and Sparky had a couple of shots at the keeper, while at the other end, the defence was coping well enough, although had one lucky escape when the striker got away but shot wide of the upright as Jeff Britton closed him down.
The contest progressed as a fairly-even affair until late in the half when Sparky's deep left foot corner from the right was met with a trademark header by Anthony Woosey at the far post to break the deadlock.
Soon after, the Old Boys doubled the lead as Sparky and Anthony combined to put Dave Bradley through on goal, the ball sitting up lovely for a first time right-foot half-volley on the run that the keeper had no chance with, Dave's first goal for the old Boys after a blank opening season.
Half Time 0-2
The turnaround saw the Nomads attacking downhill and they started the second half very brightly, pulling a goal back almost immediately with a smart finish. There followed a period of sustained pressure that saw the defence severely tested and Jeff Britton having to produce a couple of saves low to his left to keep the Old Boys ahead.
Gradually, the tide turned again and with Anthony Woosey pushed up to a more familiar striking role and Darren Molyneux leading the charge from defence whenever possible, a third goal arrived to give the 'greens' some breathing space. There seemed little danger when Anthony collected the ball some 25 yards from goal, but spotting the Nomads keeper off his line, the chip was exquisite over his head and under the bar for a second of the game for last season's leading scorer.
The opposition pressed again to get back in it and it needed a really fine tip over from Jeff Britton to keep one Nomads shot out and another to tip a cross shot around the post as the defence again dug in well to keep other potential threats at bay.
The killer fourth goal that eventually settled the tie came from an unlikely situation, Pete Dessington floating a left wing free kick from out by the touchline over everybody and into the far corner of the goal as the Nomads' keeper flailed desperately to keep it out.
Despite a lot of neat midfield interchanges by the Nomads, the Old Boys stood firm to see the game out and secure a place in next week's final where Halkyn will provide another strong test. The first man-of-the-match nomination was awarded by the opposition to goalkeeper Jeff Britton for a flawless performance between the sticks.
Once again, despite the pleasing result, the most important aspect of the day is that another sum of money has been raised for the 'Save The Family' charity, with more to come from next week's Finals Day.
Team: Jeff Britton, Kevin Hoyland (Darren Gatehouse), Darren Molyneux (Neil Sparrow), Craig McTavish (Phil Southern), Dave Henrys, John Edmunds, Phil Ward (Anthony Woosey), Craig Jones, Pete Dessington (Gary Peters), Dave Bradley, Mark Ray
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19 August 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 5 Moneysupermarket FC 5
For the third time, and two years to the night since the first meeting, the considerably younger Moneysupermarket FC team provided a pre-season opportunity to shake off the summer cobwebs with no great expectation. The previous meetings had resulted in 0-3 and 1-4 reverses with the age gap being the significant difference between the teams despite plucky performances from the Old Boys.
Holidays and shift work is always a problem for an evening kick-off this time of year, but Northop Hall were still able to rotate a squad of 17 on the night and get everyone well involved. There were first opportunities for new faces Darren Gatehouse and Gary Peters to show that they could convert their 6-a-side performances onto the bigger pitch, whilst Steve Buckley was back in the yellow shirt for the first time in almost a year. Dave Henrys had to take the keepers' shirt again which meant Craig Jones and Darren Molyneux providing a centre-back partnership that neither would have chosen.
Although Moneysupermarket saw a lot of the ball in the early stages, they threatened little against a solid defence and had to be alert in front of their own goal to the early menace from Darren Brierley in particular as Phil Ward and Steve Buckley made the midfield competitive. However they did go ahead around the midway point when failure to close down one of their better players resulted in a pinpoint strike from 20 yards into the top corner.
However, the Old Boys struck back and it was a near post flick on from Mel Barnes that landed nicely for Darren Brierley to strike home right footed. Unfortunately, straight from the kick off the Old Boys paid the price for a lack of concentration and their opponents broke free unchallenged to slot home their second.
Despite a few chances at the other end going begging, the keeper making a couple of handy saves to keep out Darren again and Mark 'Sparky' Ray, the away side extended their lead before half-time with an extremely fortuitous goal, a series of deflections falling into the paths of the oncoming midfielders before another one on the shot had Dave Henrys going the wrong way and despite getting a hand to the ball it had just enough on it to carry it over the line.
Half Time 1-3
The second half saw the Old Boys playing up the slope and for a short while against a suddenly stronger breeze and Moneysupermarket took advantage to keep the pressure on, with a series of corners and long range efforts to defend.
However, the Old Boys rode the storm and got themselves back in the game with Graham Wilks stabbing home as the ball bobbled invitingly around the 6-yard box. Again several further chances were spurned before Mel Barnes converted another cracking Pete Dessington corner at the second attempt to level things up after his initial header was cleared off the line.
Both sides might have taken the lead from there. Moneysupermarket were denied when the home keeper saved in a one on one whilst at the other end their own keeper dived to turn aside a deflected Craig Jones shot that looked in. Darren Brierley might also have had a penalty on another day, getting injured in the process and having to be withdrawn.
After a lengthy period of level pegging the away side eventually broke with a ball over the top for their winger to nip in and round the keeper to score. Soon after that it got worse for the Old Boys as a right wing cross deflected off a defender away from Dave Henrys who again got a hand to it to steer it wide but could only watch agonisingly as the Moneysupermarket striker was able to win the race to the line and knock the ball across and in.
It was cruel luck on the Old Boys who were well in the game and finishing the game strongly, despite it being the first outing for almost three months, and chances were still being made with one seeing Phil Southern's low cross being converted at the far post by Gary Peters on his first appearance for the Old Boys to cut the deficit again.
Minutes later as the clock wound down to the final whistle a final thrust down the left saw Mark 'Sparky' Ray put through the channel and his finish across the keeper resulted in a well-deserved equaliser at five-all.
There was plenty to be pleased about on the night, not least an excellent performance and result against much younger opposition. Craig Jones and Darren Molyneux had particularly solid games at the back, but everybody played their part during the evening and it sets the foundations for what should be another hugely enjoyable season.
Team: Dave Henrys, Darren Gatehouse (Pete Dessington), Neil Sparrow (Kev Higgins), Darren Molyneux, Craig Jones, John Edmunds (Phil Southern), Steve Buckley (Mel Barnes), Phil Ward, Gary Peters, Darren Brierley, (Steve Bodey), Mark Ray (Graham Wilks)
07 January 2012 - Northop Hall Old Boys 0 Halkyn Veterans 3
17 December 2011 - Rossett Veterans 5 Northop Hall Old Boys 6
10 December 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 3 Warrington Croft 4
26 November 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 8 Dee Rangers Veterans 5
19 November 2011 - Halkyn Veterans 0 Northop Hall Old Boys 2
12 November 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 2 Eastham Veterans 1
5 November 2011 - Saltney Veterans 2 Northop Hall Old Boys 1
29 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 4 St Marys Veterans (Liverpool) 3
22 October 2011 - Woolton Veterans 4 Northop Hall Old Boys 6
15 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 1 Bedford Argyle 2
08 October 2011 - Chester Nomads 4 Northop Hall Old Boys 4
01 October 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 6 Wirral Veterans 3
24 September 2011 - Warrington Croft 3 Northop Hall Old Boys 6
17 September 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 0 Shotton Steel Veterans 2
10 September 2011 - Upton Magnets 5 Northop Hall Old Boys 4
03 September 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 2 Halkyn Veterans 4 (Charity Shield Final)
27 August 2011 - Northop Hall Nomads 1 Northop Hall Old Boys 4 (Charity Shield semi-final)
19 August 2011 - Northop Hall Old Boys 5 Moneysupermarket FC 5 (pre-season friendly)
- report by Colin Henrys (Sports Editor - 'The Courier' - Newcastle University)