Apologies again for the lack of updates recently. I’ve been watching plenty of football but university and other things haven’t left me with much time to write about it.
This season has taken me all over Teesside and beyond, taking in the delights of Whitby Town, the ‘ghost town’ experience of Jarrow Roofing and the warm and friendly welcome of Penrith.
I’ve seen Marske United suffer a 10-game winless streak and more recently, a two-and-a-half month unbeaten run in the Northern League. I’ve seen a goalless draw played in near-hurricane force winds and a nine-goal thriller that I only went to because other games had been called off.
So much to talk about and so little time…
Sadly, as I reach the end of my degree course, the realisation grows that my weekly obsession with non-league football in this part of the world may soon be coming to an end.
The end of university means hunting for jobs and for a would-be journalist like myself, Teesside probably isn’t the best place to be, meaning moving elsewhere if I am to pursue a career.
One opportunity has already arisen but it’s a long way from home. Nothing is ever guaranteed but I don’t want to be sitting around without a job when I finish university so if I am offered the position, I will have to take it, especially as I have far fewer reasons to stay (football aside) than I did when I started my course. But that’s another story.
In the meantime, I’ll still be trying to watch as much football as I can, visit as many grounds as I can and, time permitting, update this blog as much as I can.
There’s still much to play for this season with the honour of being Teesside’s top team still up for grabs and Billingham Synthonia still harbouring Wembley ambitions after reaching the last 16 of the FA Vase.
I’ve seen games at 16 different grounds so far this season, double the number I managed in the whole of last season. My total is put to shame however, by Footy Ramblings’ James Williams who is on course to complete the full set of all 44 grounds in a single season on his Northern League Tour.
Wherever I am, the blog will keep going because football keeps going and my passion for the non-league game will keep going.
And wherever my future career takes me, deep down I will always be A Northern Soul.
A while back I mentioned the hypothetical Teesside mini-league involving the six clubs from the area in Division One of the Northern League, so let’s see how things are looking six weeks into the new season.
RESULTS & FIXTURES:
17/08/11 – Stokesley Sports Club 0-5 Billingham Synthonia
24/08/11 – Guisborough Town 6-0 Stokesley Sports Club
29/08/11 – Stokesley Sports Club 0-0 Norton & Stockton Ancients
17/09/11 – Guisborough Town 3-3 Billingham Synthonia
17/09/11 – Norton & Stockton Ancients 3-0 Marske United
20/09/11 – Billingham Town 2-1 Norton & Stockton Ancients
08/10/11 – Billingham Synthonia v Marske United
12/10/11 – Stokesley Sports Club v Billingham Town
15/10/11 – Billingham Town v Marske United
29/10/11 – Stokesley Sports Club v Marske United
05/11/11 – Norton & Stockton Ancients v Guisborough Town
19/11/11 – Billingham Synthonia v Guisborough Town
26/11/11 – Billingham Town v Guisborough Town
10/12/11 – Stokesley Sports Club v Guisborough Town
26/12/11 – Billingham Synthonia v Billingham Town
26/12/11 – Guisborough Town v Marske United
26/12/11 – Norton & Stockton Ancients v Stokesley Sports Club
07/01/12 – Norton & Stockton Ancients v Billingham Synthonia
13/01/12 – Norton & Stockton Ancients v Billingham Town
28/01/12 – Billingham Synthonia v Stokesley Sports Club
04/02/12 – Billingham Town v Stokesley Sports Club
18/02/12 – Marske United v Norton & Stockton Ancients
03/03/12 – Marske United v Billingham Synthonia
10/03/12 – Marske United v Billingham Town
24/03/12 – Marske United v Stokesley Sports Club
31/03/12 – Guisborough Town v Norton & Stockton Ancients
06/04/12 – Billingham Synthonia v Norton & Stockton Ancients
I haven’t posted for a few weeks. Some will have noticed the lack of posts coincides with a seven-game losing run for Marske United but that isn’t the reason.
Occasionally, there are more important things that football and those things have been taking up my time recently.
However, my mind is turning back to football now and this post comes on the back of Marske ending their losing run in dramatic fashion against Bedlington Terriers on Tuesday.
The losing run confirmed my worst fears when I saw the fixture list at the start of the season.
After an opening day win at Tow Law, Marske were due to face many of the league’s big guns in quick succession. It was a run of games where every point gained would be valuable but having battled to a draw against champions Spennymoor, comprehensive defeats at the hands of Newcastle Benfield, Whitley Bay and Dunston followed.
The defeats clearly affected the team’s confidence and they were beaten comfortably by Penrith twice in the space of four days. With all due respect to Penrith, who fully deserved their victories, those were games Marske would have been expected to take points from in normal circumstances.
Another defeat followed at Norton & Stockton Ancients but I felt there were some positives to take out of the game – most notably the way the team kept hold of the ball much better than they had in previous games – even if there was a distinct lack of chances created.
However, with the next game against Bedlington Terriers, still giddy from smashing 24 goals past Stokesley in two games, many would’ve predicted another lopsided scoreline.
But things finally clicked for Marske and they matched Bedlington blow for blow over the course of the game, battling to a well-deserved 2-2 draw. Marske equalised in the 90th minute after the Terriers had taken the lead for the first time just three minutes earlier.
Both teams could have won it in stoppage time, with Marske striker Chris McGill, who’d scored his side’s first of the evening, finding himself crowded out by defenders after taking the ball past the Bedlington keeper.
Bedlington then had a penalty claim turned down right at the death when their striker went down under a challenge on the edge of the box. The visiting fans screamed penalty but the referee waved play on and there was little protest from the Terriers players.
So have Marske finally turned the corner? They have another double header coming up (having already played Tow Law, Whitley Bay and Penrith twice in the space of a week this season) with high-flying West Auckland Town due to visit the GER Stadium in the FA Vase and the league.
Another positive result in one of those games could be a fantastic momentum-builder and could set the tone for the rest of the season.
Watching your team lose can produce a mixture of emotions.
Sometimes it’s sadness, sometimes it’s anger, sometimes it’s a feeling of helplessness that increases as the ball hits the back of the net again.
It’s a feeling I had on Saturday as I watched Marske United lose 4-0 at Whitley Bay.
It’s a feeling of wanting to get out there yourself to try and turn things around in the belief you could somehow produce a Roy of the Rovers performance.
I couldn’t, obviously. Not that I’m particularly bad at football, I’m just not that good, either. I’ve got pace, or at least I used to – I was faster than anyone in my year at school (a year that included former Northern League player Jonathan Stott). I can whack a decent cross in now and again. But I lack the sheer skill to get anywhere near the bench of a Teesside League team, let alone the Northern League, and my fitness levels are seriously lacking, as shown by my slow and unsteady efforts on Marske United’s 23-mile sponsored walk in July.
And so the highlight of my footballing career remains being part of the Wilton Primary School team that won a 5-a-side tournament at Gillbrook School in 1992 – our little team of giant-killers from Lazenby village beating the likes of Cromwell Road and Beech Grove on our way to lifting the trophy.
Since then my football experience has been limited to watching on TV and more recently, going to support Marske.
And in a way, that’s the best and worst thing about being a football fan. You can’t go out there and try to score yourself. All you can do is go to the games, support the team as much as you can and hope for the best.
And when your team loses, you want the next game to come as soon as possible so you can get that winning feeling back.
I can’t begin to imagine how Stokesley’s fans felt on Saturday, watching their team being demolished 15-0 at Bedlington Terriers, who were showing off their funky new scoreboard.
Perhaps they weren’t as willing for that next game to arrive but they only had two days to wait before their team was in action again.
And wonder of wonders they drew 0-0 with Norton & Stockton Ancients on Bank Holiday Monday, not only earning their first point of the season, but climbing out of the Division One relegation zone.
It’s still a long, hard road ahead for Stokesley, and many other teams in a similar position around the country. But all the fans can do is keep supporting the team and believe things will get better.
I don’t know about you but as a kid, I used to get really excited just before the start of the football season when Shoot used to give away their league ladders and team tabs.
Even if we were on holiday, I’d still get them the day they came out because I couldn’t wait until we got home again.
Eventually Shoot replaced them with those stupid static sticker things that would fall off the wallchart.
Match copied the league ladders idea and did their own team tabs. They still do them now but Match has never been the same since dey started talking like dis for da kidz. And at my age, a big, stupid multi-coloured Match wallchart would look a bit out of place in my house.
But wouldn’t it be great to have those old Shoot team tabs back? And wouldn’t it be great to have a non-league version?
The start of the football season also means the start of the FA Cup and it’s something that’s rather close to my heart.
My Marske United obsession started here a year ago and I was also lucky enough to be one of the 1500 present for Norton & Stockton Ancients’ breathtaking cup tie against FC United of Manchester, when they led 2-1 only to fade in the latter stages and go down 5-2.
Almost every year, someone manages to emerge from the Extra Preliminary Round to find themselves in the hat for the First Round Proper. The journey along the way is filled with famous names from the past, like Blyth Spartans, who famously came within minutes of the quarter-finals and Sutton United, the last non-league team to beat top-flight opposition.
It’s eight years since a Northern League club reached the First Round Proper, Shildon eventually losing 7-2 at Notts County. And you have to go back a long way for the last appearance from one of Teesside’s non-league clubs (a search around suggests it was Billingham Synthonia in 1989, unless someone knows otherwise) so an appearance in the first round by one of our clubs is long overdue.
Sadly, there’ll be no repeat of last season’s heroics by Norton, as they made the long trip to Whitehaven and lost 3-0. Stokesley’s difficult start to the season continued as they were thumped 6-1 at home by Newcastle Benfield.
But Teesside still has clubs going strong in the cup.
For the second Saturday in a row, Marske United made their way to Tow Law. Thankfully I was able to leave home on time and arrived with plenty of time to spare. The ground was bathed in sunshine, unlike the previous week when storm clouds lingered overhead.
The game itself was similar to the first one in many ways. Again, Marske had the better of the first 45 minutes but this time they managed to find a breakthrough, with Chris McGill nodding home to give them the lead and they really could have been two or three up by the break.
Before half-time I was joined for a chat by former Marske chairman Billy Park, now the club’s treasurer. He was still delighted after the midweek result against Spennymoor. It’s always fascinating to hear different people’s perspective of a game and Billy has probably heard more than most. I wouldn’t be surprised if he spoke to every single Marske fan as he wandered around the ground.
Early in the second half, Karl Charlton finished off a flowing team move to make it 2-0. That should’ve killed the game but Marske seemed to switch off and Tow Law, as they did a week earlier, came back into the game and started to threaten.
A generously-awarded free-kick saw Tow Law pull a goal back with a shot curled around the wall into the bottom corner.
Irate Marske boss Paul Burton was given his marching orders by the ref and watched the rest of the game from near one of the corner flags. Sending off managers doesn’t really have the same effect at this level as it does in the Premier League.
Tow Law’s goal set up a nervous last 20 minutes and the home side continued to knock on the door. But right at the death, it looked like Marske had a third when substitute Craig Skelton lifted the ball over the oncoming keeper and towards the empty net, only to see the ball bounce up off the turf and hit the crossbar.
The Lawyers weren’t able to find the equaliser and after consecutive trips to Tow Law, Marske’s fans now have the prospect of going to Whitley Bay two Saturdays in a row after the triple FA Vase winners came from behind to beat Bishop Auckland.
It was a great day for Billingham’s two Northern League clubs as they scored 13 goals between them to reach the next round.
Billingham Synthonia won 7-2 at FA Cup debutants Newton Aycliffe to book a meeting at either Penrith or North Shields in the next round.
Billingham Town’s fans might be happy just to be able to watch their team at all after their run-in with Hartlepool United last season. They set up a clash at Bedlington Terriers after beating Crook Town 6-2. It will have been a welcome first win of the season for Billy Town, after losing 5-4 at home to Jarrow Roofing on the opening day.
Their Bedford Terrace ground is now one of the few Teesside venues I haven’t visited so it’s very high on my “to do” list.
North Riding Senior Cup winners Guisborough Town edged out Jarrow Roofing 2-1 and will be at home to Shildon in the next round. Guisborough will also play host to the Northern League’s second Teesside derby of the season when Stokesley visit the King George V Ground. It’ll be very interesting to see who comes out on top of this mini league-within-a-league and it’s something I’ll be keeping an eye on during the season…
The start of any season always has its mix of optimism and uncertainty. If you can’t be optimistic at the start of the season, when can you be?
But the feeling of uncertainty is always that bit stronger when your team has just been promoted.
And the feeling of euphoria that came with promotion can quickly disappear if your team gets off to a bad start in its new division, and before you know it you’re looking over your shoulder at that trapdoor that leads back to whence you came.
No! Stop! Optimism! First game! The season starts here! Everyone starts on zero!
Ah, that’s better. So, for their first game back in Division One of the Northern League, Marske United (who started the day joint top!) travelled to the heart of County Durham to face Tow Law Town.
Until the end of March, I’d only watched Marske at home but as their impossible promotion dream started to become a reality, I found myself travelling further and further afield to support my team.
Sadly, the promotion clinching trip to Carlisle for the 2-0 victory over Gillford Park was just a bit out of my range but trips to Northallerton and North Shields showed my commitment to the cause.
And so I found myself at Ironworks Road for Marske’s first Division One game in seven years. I’d raced up from Redcar after a late dash to buy chinchilla food (don’t ask) and got through the turnstile about two minutes before kick-off.
As I usually do when I visit a new ground, I got my camera out so I could walk around the ground and take some pics.
The entrance at Ironworks Road takes you into the ground right behind one of the goals and right in front of me was Marske goalkeeper Jonathan McDonald, who recognised me and politely said hello.
Making my way around the ground, I was able to see what a delight it is. Built on a hillside, the pitch slopes from one side to the other and the ground offers fantastic views of the surrounding hills and fields.
After making my way around three-quarters of the stadium (nearly ending up on my backside after slipping on what I hope was mud), I reached the terracing where many of the Marske faithful were standing.
I was pleased to see the Division One sweets were being passed round. I’m not sure they were any different to Division Two sweets, though they probably taste a lot sweeter. Claims that the Division One sweets had been saved up since 2004 were strongly denied.
Marske started their new Division One life strongly, dominating possession in the first half, and creating several chances but the sides went in goalless at half-time.
The hosts showed a big improvement after the break and were the better side for large spells. During the last 15 minutes they put Marske under constant pressure, winning corner after corner, all from the high side of the pitch and McDonald had to be at his best to keep the Lawyers at bay.
It looked like Marske were going to hold on for a point until a somewhat harsh penalty decision with just five minutes remaining. Veteran Micky Waller, making what was likely to be a one-off appearance, was penalised for handball – the ball striking his arm as he slid in to make a challenge. The referee didn’t blow at first but awarded the penalty after the linesman (who was much further away) started waving his flag like he was trying to guide in a plane for landing.
It seemed Marske’s defensive stand would be for nothing but cometh the hour, cometh the man and McDonald was able to save the spot kick with his legs to keep the score at 0-0.
It was to get even better for the travelling Seasiders in the 90th minute as Craig Skelton, who’d only just come on as a sub, beat the offside trap, found himself in acres of space and calmly slotted home past the keeper (or hit it straight through him, depending on where you were standing) to give Marske a winning return to Division One.
It was a vital three points with heavyweights Spennymoor, Newcastle Benfield, Whitley Bay, Dunston and Bedlington Terriers all on the schedule before the end of September. Perhaps my earlier worries about getting off to a good start make more sense now.
But Marske produced a determined display in holding Spennymoor to a 1-1 draw in midweek. Last season’s top scorer Danny Brunskill put them ahead just before half-time with a spectacular free-kick before the champions equalised just after the break.
What followed was a bombardment with Spennymoor dominating but Marske took everything that was thrown their way and earned a well-deserved point.
Tow Law didn’t fare so well in midweek, going down 5-0 at Benfield, who’ve made a storming start to the season.
Saturday sees me heading to my new favourite away ground again as Tow Law host Marske for the second weekend in succession, this time in the FA Cup. It’s the second season in a row that Marske have faced the same opponents in the Cup the week after their league opener.
A win for Tow Law would kick start their season. Victory for Marske would continue a fantastic start to their campaign and might result in some FA Cup sweets being passed round…
