Rainworth Mw 4 - 1 Hucknall Town

Another one of those games which both clubs will see as a must win, everyone involved at both clubs is in the glare of the headlights...Players, Coaches, Chairmen, the fans and even the Tea-Ladies want this one in the bag..(excuse the pun).

Two local sides who`s recent history make this more than an average league game..local pride and a sense of one-upmanship now shroud this one, no doubt this was the first fixture both clubs would be looking for when they were released back in July.

Recent encounters have predominantly favoured the visitors, winning the last three fixtures, none-the-less above all the other fixtures this season this one really has me engrossed in it`s final outcome.

With little recovery time since Saturday`s FA Cup tie`s it`s going to be a big ask for ninety minutes of end to end football but hopefully pride and inspiration will at least provide us with an entertaining game.

Rainworth came out of the blocks in the first ten minutes with Blair Anderson and Ian Holmes looking the business, recent signing Ewan Clarke also looks very sharp. As on Saturday at Watnall Road, Jamie Brown was the life and soul of the Hucknall`s advances and if not for yet another outstanding performance by 'The Wrens' skipper Mark Camm he probably would have inflicted more damage upon a less robust defence.

Jared Holmes, Danny Bacon and Callum Lloyd look to have the mid-field in their pocket although at times awareness of the width available did cause them to trip themselves up at times, Jared really has impressed me since his arrival at Kirklington Road.

Slack has a dink at Rainworth early doors

Both sides enjoyed some early end to end action and the first half an hour looked fairly evenly balanced although the home-side did pose a bigger threat in the area and also seemed to be doing a better job of picking up the scraps.

Anderson weaved himself down the left by-line on several occasions being well supplied by Ryan Goward with Bacon and Holmes playing some neat one-two`s enabling him to slip in beyond Hucknall`s defence.

Anderson has Hucknall on their toes

Joe McCormack looked a bit jittery at the start but soon got his head in gear and did some sterling work to keep Slack and Brown`s advances under wraps.

Anderson`s endeavours finally open the door as he once again got in down the right and managed to sneak in a tight cross which fell for Clarke who swivelled a thunderous volley which caught Fisher napping, 1-0 on forty minutes and that`s how the first half ended.

Holmes looks on as Clarke`s volley beats Fisher

Having been boosted by a half-time Pep Talk, Hucknall come out of the traps quickly putting McCormack to the test immediately which he manages to collect with no trouble.

'The Yellows' next break see`s Slack in on goal leaving the keeper no other option but to brave it out and although Joe manages to deny him a goalscoring opportunity it results in both players taking a decent knock.

Slack and McCormack both feel the pain of a brave challenge

With both players back on their feet and play resumed Rainworth now enter into a spell of dominance and seem to be picking their chances as they wish, Kieran Walker finds himself now able to press on deeper into Hucknall`s half down the right wing. 

A wide ball is swept into the box with two quick-fire shots being returned quickly back into the field of play only for Ryan Goward to slam a ferocious shot into Fisher`s goal through a crowded box. 2-0, ten minutes into the second half.

Goward`s shot head for Rainworth`s second goal

Tbh within minutes the game should have been settled as Ian Holmes sidled in from the right and weaved his way right through the entire Hucknall defence having at least two or three chances to pull the trigger but just ran himself out of space on the left-hand side of the goal..cracking work though!!

Thinking the second goal would seal Hucknall`s fate couldn`t have been more wrong, they got up dusted themselves down and within three minutes the ball was in the back of Rainworth`s net as Ben Good took the bit between his teeth and went goalwards down the left and managed to crash the ball far beyond McCormack`s reach left leaving the ball nestling in the right-hand corner.

Good No9 looks on as his ball beats McCormack

The goal really picked the pace of the game up for the next ten minutes but slowly Rainworth get back down to business once again and look to have the visitors pegged back into their own half.

Looking livelier on the break it`s Ian Holmes who manages to squeeze in behind Hucknall`s defence and powers all the way into the box beating two defenders and Fisher to put the game out of reach for the visitors with twelve minutes left.

Holmsey sinks Rainworth`s third goal

I don`t know as to whether Brett Marshall thought the game was beyond their control by this point but I was really surprised that neither team made any substitutions but in all fairness Kev Gee had no need to really.

Hucknall make one more last ditch attempt at McCormack`s goal in the remaining ten minutes but fall foul to over-commitment and give 'The Wrens' another break which is scooped up by Clarke who gallops down the right wing and he replicates Holmes` goal beating Rob paling and Fisher to make it 4-1 and game over.

Ewan Clarke put`s the game to bed 4-1

Was 4 -1 the story of the game..not entirely, in spells Hucknall did pose a threat and had enough chances to at least square the game, were they the better side on the day?  No, not at all but it wasn`t as easy a victory as the score line would lead you to believe.

No doubt the hard core Hucknall Fans will have found this result hard to take given the fact they had beaten the Wrens on the three previous occasions but the transition of what was an Ncel side to compete in the Evo-Stik doesn`t fall into place overnight as Rainworth are living testament to. "Give Marsh some time and he`ll deliver, He takes his football to seriously not to".

Full credit to Kev Gee for the squad he has assembled at Kirklington Road and in Ewan Clarke I think he`s just slotted the final piece into the Jigsaw..


Attendance - 135


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The Wrens: McCormack, Walker, Anderson, Bacon, Camm, Cooksey, Lloyd, Clarke, J. Holmes, I. Holmes, Goward. Subs not used: Payne, West, Spargo, Hanson, Barcherini.

Hucknall: Fisher, Baugh, Paling, Hayes, Nightingale, Austin, Topliss, Carty, Good, Slack, Brown. Subs not used: Hatfield, Ludlow, Leggitt, Slawson, Ganderson.

Hucknall Town 0 - 1 Retford United - FA Cup Preliminary Round

After weeks of promising Steve Peat I`d get over to see how things are taking shape at the new look Hucknall Town this fixture was the one to lure me over to Watnall Road given the intrigue of the fixture.

After steering Retford United to the top of the Ncel Prem last season, Brett Marshall, who had already made his decision to leave the club prior to the end of last season now finds himself (and the bulk of the players) at Hucknall Town competing in the Evo-Stik Division 1 South.

"Aye, aye" must have gone through many minds involved with both clubs as the draw for the Preliminary Round of the FA Cup unfolded, "Irony or just Fate"!!

Despite the fact they not only lost their manager and virtually all of the squad Retford have started the new campaign has they finished the last..in good form, winning three out of their first four games.

'The Yellows' on the other hand have had a mixed start to their season having had a draw away at Newcastle Town last Saturday and suffered a 1-3 defeat at the hands of Kings Lynn on Tuesday night.

Dudsey drops onto the M1 at Junction 29 as he`s promised to drop Mrs H off on the Giltbrook Retail Park en-route, the sky`s looking seriously black ahead and within a couple of miles it starts, raindrops the size of  golf balls and minutes later it blazing hot sunshine but that was just the start of it for an afternoon of weather which begged belief.

Starting the game in bright sunshine, Retford take the kick-off and look to the wings to make a way into Hucknall`s half, within minutes it`s easy to see they play a decent game and use every available inch of the pitch.

Hucknall look for a quick start to the game

Karl Slack and Julian Topliss who both had goals in abundance last season at their respective clubs are eager to press the visitors but 'The Badgers' back four are well composed and look hard to breech despite a few quick attempts to catch them on the break.

Retford`s No 10...Kyle Hadley looks particularly useful on the right-wing and penetrates deep down the bye-line and is a beautiful crosser of the ball. Hucknall try to open up the game a bit, but the battle of the mid-field is being won by the lads in stripes with Adam Scott and Danny Frost also creating problems with some good link-play.

Slowly but surely the visitors are taking control of the game, Hadley`s inch perfect crosses are becoming a real problem and are being very well received by Retford`s No 5 (Rob Sanderson) who is winning every header in the box.

Another high ball in the box for Hucknall to deal with.

The game is still in the balance and although Retford have the upper hand it still remains evenly poised as to where the first goal will come from, young Jamie Brown is looking a threat down the left hand side for Hucknall but it`s not falling right in the final quarter.

'The Yellows' skipper Rob Austin looks very able in doing the cleaning up in the area although when Rob Paling makes one of his attacking foray`s down the left in his wing-back role the void he creates sometimes seems to be overlooked leaving a gap for Hadley to exploit.

Jamie Brown looks to tee-up Slack

The rumble of the thunder had been echoing in the distance for a while and on the half hour it was well and truly above us, and boy did it come, an absolute deluge and although the feeling in the stand was one that the Ref wouldn`t allow play to continue for much longer...he was having none of it and the game continued in truly abysmal conditions....Thunder, lightening, Rain, Hail.. "you name it we were getting it".

"Sooner you than me Chaps"

Top marks to both sets of players for keeping the momentum going but understandably it`s becoming increasingly harder to maintain possession and gauge a decent pass whilst it`s so tricky underfoot although there are some lovely slide tackles being made.

Even in a spell where the conditions left little to be desired the visitors where still sharper on the ball and looked more adept at picking up any loose balls.

Fortunately the weather does ease off and play starts begins to flow again, Retford still have the slight edge and now look favourites to sneak the first goal and look to have got the break they deserve as Danny Frost finds himself in on goal as he charges in from the right in the last minute of the half but Jason Fisher makes himself big enough to thwart the shot from the pacey No11. All square at half-time.

Danny Frost (11) put Fisher to the test.

I`m sure Hucknall`s half time team talk would have been a little more direct than the one in the visitors changing room as they certainly haven`t imposed so much of a threat as inspected in the opening half.

Irrespective of what had been said 'The Badgers' look the brighter of the two sides once again immediately after the interval and Rob Sanderson`s dominance in the box was to bear fruit on this occasion.as he rose high against the opposition again and nodded the ball beyond Fisher within ten minutes of the re-start.

Sanderson, Cooper and Co celebrate Retford`s goal

The goal seemed to give Hucknall the kick up the arse they needed and immediately their game starts to gain some momentum, Chris Baugh was doing some sterling work down the right as a series of balls into the box have the visitors on the back foot for the first time in the game.

It`s starting to look as though an equaliser is on the cards as the corner count has now turned full circle and it`s Retford who have to turn their attentions to defending, penned in their own box with Kyle Ludlow just off the centre line picking up any clearances and duly returning them accurately deep back into Retford`s eighteen yard box but the visitors are holding on and manage to keep it clean.

Retford`s turn to 'dig in deep'

An innocuous challenge in the centre circle which for me was just one of those challenges brought about by the conditions didn`t go down to well with some of the Hucknall players, none more-so than Karl Slack (who wasn`t actually involved in the incident) sparking a mass breakout of handbags, luckily for Slack today`s Referee, Richard Woodward only deemed it worthy of a yellow card..Lucky Lad!!

Unfortunately for Hucknall not only did Slack`s actions bring the game to a halt it also brought his sides spell of dominance to an end as the stoppage completely killed any momentum they had enjoyed for the last ten minutes.

Handbags!!

The obligatory series of changes takes place... the very industious pairing of Hadley and Frost are withdrawn for 'The Badgers' being replaced by Tom Dorgan and Scott Bibby whilst Paling and Brown are replaced by Theo Ganderson and Danny Blair.

Even without Hadley and Frosts presence it`s Retford who are looking the better of the two sides once again and with the wind behind their sails once again they took the game into their own hands and pressed on once again.

Gavin Cooper is now spear-heading the advances and on any other day he would have probably doubled the visitors tally as he put Hucknall`s defence and Fisher to the test right up until the final whistle.

Cooper puts Fisher to the test in the closing moments

The game finishes with a brief spell of open play as the Referee indicates five minutes of extra time but Hucknall are out of steam and more-so ideas leaving Retford  to take the £1750 prize money back to Cannon Park.

A really good game of football in far from ideal conditions but non-the-less very entertaining. Retford look a very good side and will in my opinion be there or there-abouts at the sharp end of the Ncel Prem table again this season. They came with a point to prove today for the club and fans alike and perhaps..just perhaps the lads in stripes wanted it that little bit more today.

Attendance - 220

Teams - Hucknall - Fisher, Baugh, Paling , Hayes, Austin, Carty, Wilby, Ludlow, Topliss, Slack, Brown. Subs: Blair, Leggitt, Watson, Slawson, Ganderson.

Retford - Ward, Nesbitt, Severn, Walkden, Sanderson, Smith, Stannard, Cooper, Scott, Hadley, Frost. Subs: Bibby, Dorgan, O'Neill, Slack, Phillips, Aspinall, Howard (GK).

Click here for match pictures.

Last but by no means least, a big Thank-you to Derek, Steve, Ivan and Brian for the kind hospitality they gave me today.... Nice to see you all again.

Rainworth Mw 1 - 0 Sutton Coldfield

Thank the Lord...August the 18th!! After weeks of enduring the friendly season, a baron spell for which no particular reason Dudsey hates, tedious, monotonous, call it what you want... I just don`t and never have liked it!

Having sampled a few other games, Staveley v Worksop Parramore was a decent outing and last Saturday the lure of the FA Cup took me to Shirebrook Town v Kirby Muxloe`s Extra Preliminary Round.

At last the Evo-Stik season finally kicks off and today`s visitors for the opener of the season are Sutton Coldfield. Looking at Sutton`s line up there`s only Luke Chapman and Dean Rathbone left from the squad that lined up against 'The Wrens' back in October.

Not to say that there hasn`t been wholesale changes at Kirklington Road during the close season, twelve out and ten in for Kev Gee`s side, most of which I would consider as good acquisitions, none more-so than young Blair Anderson who is on a long-term loan from Alfreton Town. This wiry framed lad is everything you could want in a striker.. direct, skillful, tricky feet and is full of running with plenty of game-craft.

Rainworth win the toss and get the 2012/13 season underway. From the off Sutton look a good strong side who pass the ball around neatly and their No 2 has already caught the eye, Daryl Taylor is a wing-back and a half...a thoroughbred and his athleticism is causing all sorts of problems for the home-side down the right flank.

'The Royals' skipper Scott Rickards has got them well organised across the mid-field with Danny Bartram, Matt Gardiner and Luke Chapman looking to do the business at the sharp end., yet uncharacteristically Rainworth`s usually dependable defence are looking a little edgy at times and if not for another faultless performance by skipper Mark Camm it could have been a different story today.

Adam Burton is called upon to defend for 'The Wrens'

Against the initial run of play and despite some decent link-play from the visitors, Adam Burton managed to nod the ball beyond Paul Hathaway but the liner had got his flag up well before the ball crossed the line half way through the first half.

Jared Holmes and Danny Bacon are looking to have forged a decent bond in midfield but their joy is short lived as Sutton`s back four look pretty resolute and seem to be getting the upper hand in thwarting Rainworth`s advances. 

It`s nice to see Joe McCormack bag in goal, Rainworth now have the luxury of two decent keepers but for me Joe has a slight edge, he`s quick to respond and reads the game well and played some cracking games last season..especially away at Brigg where he played the bulk of the second half with broken fingers, "the way things are panning out in the first half he`s in for a busy shift today".

'The Royals' seek to get an early advantage

The right hand side remains to be the main in-road for Sutton which is stifling Ryan Goward`s trade mark flank work down the left hand side, "he`s far too busy keeping Taylor at bay to be causing a nuisance of himself".

Kieron Walker was trying to make in-roads down the right but the ball just keeps coming back towards Rainworth`s goal. The remainder of the first half remains cautiously edgy, with McCormack by far the busier of the two keepers on a very warm afternoon. 0-0 at half-time.

A busy first half for Mc Cormack

It`s easy to be critical in games like this...but lets be realistic, it`s the first game of the season, red hot and both teams have under-gone significant changes in recent months and no-one wants to get off to a bad start.

The second half starts as the first finished, with a little trepidation from both sides although Sutton still looked like favourites for the first goal but with the the magical hour mark approaching changes were always going to be made. Danny Bacon makes way for Anderson whilst Bartram and the influential Matt Gardner are replaced by Harry Harris and Joey Butlin for Sutton.

Sutton still continue to press early on in the second half

Whether it`s down to the hot conditions or just in response to Rainworth`s changes the game immediately looks completely different, the afore mentioned Anderson is making a significant impact on the game. If there is something defenders don`t like it a pacey striker who will run directly at you and this is Blair`s forte, before they have a chance to breath he is behind them and more importantly...on-side.

A couple of early breaks give 'The Royals' a taste of what this lad is capable of and because he is able to beat the off-side trap he automatically gives the players behind him a chance to come into the game more and position themselves accordingly.

'The Wrens' enjoy their short spell of dominance

Dudsey`s spent he bulk of the second half with his 'Twitter Buddy' Jamie Morgan and it really looked as though today wasn`t going to bear any fruit for the home-team but Rainworth are actually looking the better of the two teams at this point.

Within minutes another break see`s Anderson tee up a perfectly weighted ball which gave Ian Holmes the ideal one-on-one with Hathaway which the ex-Matlock striker has no trouble in converting. 1-0 with twenty minutes to go.

Rainworth push one wide of Hathaway`s goal

Sutton are looking a little shaky after the goal and Anderson find himself free again with time and space to burn but having done all the hard work he only manages to scuff it well wide of Hathaway`s goal

Despite a few more flurries by both sides the hot conditions were gradually bringing the game to a close and although Sutton had had the lions share of possession it simply wasn`t their day and the single goal separated the sides.

Kev has his point to put across after the game.

A welcome three points but Kev Gee decides to keep the lads out to discuss the game after the final whistle, sometimes it can`t be all whistles and bells but a win is a win. For sure Sutton will be disappointed not to have at least got a point  from a game in which they enjoyed a lot of the possession, but in all fairness they shouldn`t be to despondent as they did give a good account of themselves.

My Men of the Match - Rainworth - Camm and McCormack  Sutton - Daryl Taylor

Attendance - A disappointing 88 

To view all the Match Pictures click here

Staveley Mw 2 - 1 Worksop Parramore - Ncel Prem

With the start of the Evo Stik season still two weeks away and my inability to gel with the pre-season friendlies, Dudsey decides to take in Staveley`s first game of the Ncel 2012/13 campaign. This season opener really whets my appetiite as 'The Welfare' take on newly promoted Worksop Parramore.

I drop the girls off in town (Chesterfield) and make the short journey back to Inkersall Road, I arrive early, "way too early" and decide to have a good look around the ground.

At the risk of sounding boring..everytime I return here I am always taken aback on how much this place has been improved for the better and the man responsible for this, Terry Damms deserves a big pat on the back for the standard he has got the ground to.

I decide to sample some of the very best fayre the Ncel has to offer and ask the afore mentioned Mr Damms if there`s a team-sheet available, "not at the moment, he replies..but I `ll sort you one out when they`ve been printed", within minutes Dudsey is perusing through today`s sides.

Staveley win the toss and get the new season under-way. Bright out of the blocks and keen to impress, the home-side push on, mainly down the right-flank via wing-back Scott McGrory who has absolute acres of space down the bye-line, his desire to push on is leaving a big hole at the back which Parramore are quick to exploit.

The opening spell is pretty evenly contested on what has turned out to be a gloriously sunny afternoon and if not for a little wastefulness on the ball in the final third the visitors could have had Staveley in trouble early-doors.

Up and out Griffiths, 4 takes a knock

A clash of heads see`s Parramore`s No 4 (Griffiths) withdrawn with a nasty cut above the eye being replaced by Hall. The tall No 15 looks very able in keeping Staveley`s advances at bay as he fills in as centre-back.

Parramore play a route one game, over the top and to good affect with the exception of the ability to remain on-side, a handful of opportunities go amiss in the opening quarter of an hour but it was only a matter of time before it dropped right for them and eventually skipper Scott Bates and fellow strikers, Holmes and Whittington manage to beat the trap and present Staveley with their first taste of what might be on offer today

Luke Herriot gets a taste of things to come

Having found the way in, the visitors look be be on the ascendancy and within a matter of minutes from Herriot`s first test the second was to prove a tad to quick for him as Lee Whittington makes a good run into the area and plants the ball beyond the Staveley No1's reach. 0-1 on seventeen minutes.

Lee Whittington celebrates Worksop`s maiden goal in the Ncel Prem

Staveley dust themselves down and look to press through McGrory`s wide-play with Jordan Eagers, Andy Fox and Simon Barraclough looking to create the problems in the box and create a good spell of pressure forcing the Ncel Prem newbies onto the back foot.

The home-side are starting to take hold of the game and a good spell of play forces a late challenge out on the left side of the box which left today`s referee James Thornhill no option but to point to the spot.

Andrew Fox squares the game from the spot on 25 mins

Sensing a possibility that the goal would stifle Parramore`s game Staveley look to apply more pressure upon the men in orange but at times still falling foul to the quick break from the visitors as the ball is lofted quickly back down into the opposite half, it looks a little alien for the home-side to defend against looking a little disjointed at times and you wouldn`t rule out a second goal for Worksop.

Parramore keep Staveley on their toes as opportunities arise

It`s still pretty evenly matched and turning out to be a decent game with good spells of football from both sides. Once again the young Staveley side push in from the right and the ball falls to the toes of  Whittington who gets a direct a direct run at goal and is given enough space and time to unleash a beautiful curler which is met by a equally impressive save from Worksop`s No1, Steve Hernandez who forces it out to his right.

Hernandez`s fine save from Hawthorne

Both teams continue to put each other to the test up until the break, but it remains evenly poised as a very enjoyable first half comes to an end. Dudsey is walking round to the tea-bar as his phone rings..It`s Halesy and Pocco who despite having planned to take in Retford United`s game against Heanor Town at Cannon Park have decided to swing into Inkersall Road instead.

I`m gonna hold my hands up and confess I spent to much time gabbing during the second half and totally lost all my momentum, but in all honest Billy Fox`s half-time team talk saved my blushes as he got the Staveley lads fired up and as a result the second half was definitely one-way traffic in favour of the home-side.

Parramore seem flustered in the second half

Kicking towards the Club-house Staveley hog the midfield and although they have lost their way going forward in the second half Parramore have a very well structured defence and managed to thwart wave after wave of attacks coming in from wide left.

You can only defend for so long before the much awaited break comes and on seventy five minutes Simon Barraclough`s persistence paid dividends as he finally manages to sneak the ball beyond the reach of the impressive Hernandez, 2-1 to Staveley and a bridge too far for the visitors under so much pressure for the duration of the half.

A decent afternoon out at one of the Ncel`s best venue`s and although Parramore ran out of steam going forward in the second half they gave a good account of themselves especially in defence and in Hernandez look to have a very capable keeper.

Admission - £5

Attendance - 132