Stokesley FC 1 v 4 Seaham Red Star 09/09/09

Tonight we made the trip to Stokesley for the first time this season as they took on Seaham Red Star. Both sides were mid table and both on the same amount of points so were looking to push on and start moving there way up the table. From the kick off it was Stokesley who were immediately on the attack as a shot from 25 yards was easily saved, the next few minutes was all Stokesley really however against the run of play Seaham grabbed the opening goal in the 5th minute. A long ball was headed forward by a Seaham player straight into the path of the oncoming striker who then headed home to the keepers right to give them a 1-0 lead early on. For the next 10 minutes of the game Stokesley struggled to get the ball to one another and were'nt keeping there shape, this became even more of a problem when in the 17th minute a Stokesley defender tried to clear but it rebounded straight off a Seaham player and luckily into the path of the forward. He then carried the ball for a few yards, looked up picked his spot and curled it in from 20yards to the keepers left giving Seaham a 2-0 lead and giving Stokesley alot of work to do if they wanted to get back into the game. Just over a minute after the restart Stokesley were deep in trouble as Seaham grabbed their 3rd after a ball was played down the left wing for the winger to chase, the defender than casually went to clear the ball not realising that he had a player chasing him down from behind. The Seaham winger then nicked the ball away from the defender and ran away down the left hand side, he then whipped a good ball into the box. However in the process he was taken out by the defender trying to make up for his mistake but the referee played good advantage and let the play go on, the cross fell to the Seaham striker who had an easy finish to the keepers left giving them a 3-0 lead and what looked like the 3 points. It had to be said that Stokesley didn't look at all organised and they deserved to be 3-0 down, no one seemed to want to take the game to Seaham and at least give them a bit more of a game. They seemed flat and didn't' seem to know how to go about grabbing a goal back, however they did manage it in the 33rd minute from a corner from the left. The initial header was saved well by the keeper, the ball then rebounded around a bit finally falling to a Stokesley player who put the ball in the net making it 3-1 at half time. We then made our way to the tea hut for our usual refreshments and in the process finding out that England were 2-0 up against Croatia via the radio to our pleasant surprise.
Into the second half and it started very much like the first in the sense that Stokesley were pressing and searching for a goal. They were also looking for a way back into the game and although they never managed it they had periods of sustained pressure on the Seaham goal and at least they looked like they were more organised as a team. However it was starting to get frustrating for the Stokesley players and this showed as the yellow card count started to slowly increase, this lead to the manager having to tell his players to step off it a bit and be care full as another yellow card would mean a £150 fine for the club, one they could do without having to pay. Seaham made Stokesley's misery even worse in the 77th minute when a defender tried to clear but played the ball straight into the path of a Seaham player, the resulting through ball fell to the Seaham striker who's initial shot was saved by the keeper. The rebound then fell to the incoming Seaham player who put the ball into an empty net making it 4-1 and game over as far as the result was concerned. Overall a poor night for Stokesley and a performance they will want to quickly forget, however you can't take it away from Seaham that they pounced on the opportunity and made them pay for it, a decent performance and one that they can build on.

Billingham Town 0v3 Darlington 10/07/09

A nice evening over Billingham set the perfect tone for the evening. The pitch was in immaculate condition at the newly-named Rowney Ltd. Arena. People turned out in force to see the game, and a strong Darlington contingent were present. I eagerly anticipated my 1st visit to the Tea Room before the game, as my memories of my last visit to the ground made my mouth water, and was not disappointed!! My 1st helping was a can of coke and a Mars Bar, which saw me through the 1st half.
The teams briskly made their way onto the pitch, and a certain Dean Windass brought up the tail for this new-look Darlington team. This man is; in my eyes a true footballer. He has dropped from the Premiership to League 2 in 1 season, and no doubt a big pay cut for the privilege. But he obviously doesn't care if he plays at Old Trafford or on the Rec on a Sunday morning. His game is brimming with passion. At 40, he could out-do any young player, for pace, strength, and size of meals!!! He will put his all in anywhere, and wouldn't be suprised to see him play at 50. When he had a rant at the linesman in the 1st half, he showed how much he cares about the game, whether it be a Championship Play-off Final at Wembley, or a Pre-Season friendly at Billingham Town. A top notch player, and a great bloke. If you read this Sir Dean, you are a football legend!!
Back to the game. Billingham matched Darlington in the opening exchanges, and weren't shown up early doors. In fact, they kept Darlington at bay until the 37th minute, when Windass scored an athletic overhead kick to give the visitors the lead. Before this, Darlington had a golden opportunity from a corner, with 2 efforts beating the keeper, but been blocked on the line by the same defender, who then cleared it out of the danger area.
Windass was at it again soon after, as he caressed a 20 yard free kick into the top left-hand corner of the net on 42 minutes to give Darlo a 2 goal advantage going into the second half.
Half-time saw me and my companions visit the Tea Hut again, this time to purchase one of the wonders of Non-League football: A Steak Burger!! One of the best half-time "snacks" I have sampled so far!!
Town came out fighting in the second half, and after 65 minutes Andy Burton had a good near post effort saved by the Darlington Keeper, and 20 minutes later Town saw another great effort tipped over. Sandwiched between these chances, Darlington's young centre forward rattled the bar, and in the 90th minute, Darlington's dynamic number 7 playing centre midfield chipped the ball over his man, and slid it across the face of goal for an easy tap-in for the centre forward.
Billingham Town gave a very good account of themselves, and should look forward to a successful season in SNL1.
Admission: £5

Penrith FC 0v2 Gretna 08/07/09

We attended our first pre-season game of the 2009-10 season last night. We made the trip up to Southend Road for what is one of the last games to be played there before Penrith FC make the move to there new ground Frenchfields.
The game went as a true pre-season game would. Play was quite slow with neither team looking to push forward early on. After around 25 minutes, Gretna stepped it up a gear with some good passing and driving forward, and clipped the bar before the end of the first half, the best chance of the half.
HT- 0v0
The second half began in a similar fashion to the first. After about 10 minutes, the pre-season tradition of half squad subs took place by Gretna. Gretna grabbed a goal on the hour, after some slack defensive play by Penrith, and some shabby decision-making by the Linesman, who flagged for a foul 40 yards away from him, in which the referee ignored. The Penrith keeper tamely flapped at the 25 yard effort, and saw the ball hit the back of the net. Penrith then stepped up their game, but the force of this revived Gretna team; beginning their second season as a reformed team, who went on to score a second late on. A good turn out for the game, with the temporarily-opened Southend Road Car Park nearly full!!
It will be sad to see this old ground in the centre of Penrith go. A ground with the true Non-League feel to it. They are moving out-of-town, and the new ground at Frenchfields will not have the same atmosphere as Southend Road.
Admission: £2
Photographs are available for viewing opposite.

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Welcome to Non-League's Newest blog (as of 8pm on the 25/06/09)!! This blog is been moderated and ran by 2 non-league enthusiasts in the North East of England. Our love for the game is huge, and our aim is to show our love for the game by bringing you this up-to-date blog with our own news, views and reviews of all things Non-League.
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