Ashton Town AFC v Daisy Hill FC 6/8/19 - North West Counties First Division North

PHOTOGRAPHY BY DAWN MARSHALL

GROUND SPONSOR

Charity No:

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1151548

ASHTON TOWN AFC The Scott Rees & Co Stadium, Edge Green Street, Ashton in Makerfield, Wigan, WN4 8SL

# Onward Onwards s & Upwards

COMMITTEE

President - Jimmy Cahill Chairman - Mark Hayes Vice President - Stephen Barrett Secretary - Stefan Ochwat Clubhouse Manager - Clare Peters Committee Member - Peter Williams Committee Member - Kieran Johnson Committee Member - Joanne Round Committee Member - Joanne Bourne Committee Member - Jayne Watkinson Catering - Denise Brady Advertising & Programme Editor - Ian Pomfrett All Advertising enquiries - i.pomfrett@yahoo.com Welfare Officer - Gordon Johnson Grounds Team - David Bourne, Jimmy Cahill, Keith Peacock

www.facebook.com/ashtontownafc Twitter - @ashtontownafc Life Member - Billy Pomfrett Club Photographer - Dawn Marshall

This Club is Unincorporated PHOTO BY JOHN MCKIERNAN

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WELCOME TO OUR CLUB Good evening, and welcome to the Scott Rees & Co Stadium for this North West Counties First Division North fixture against Daisy Hill.

Wow !! What an opening game of the season !!

Saturday was nothing short of epic. Not only did we win convincingly, but we did it against one of the pre season favourites, AFC Liverpool, whom finished 3rd last year.

Full back John Edgy took the Scott Ree's & Co Man of the Match but there was much more than that. The centre halves dominated, Dylan Glass got two good goals, Jay Tomo had a solid debut, and Alex McMillan and Jesse Dowling were on fire. Edgy though, himself like a new signing at right back was colossal, as he literally has been in every game since owning that position.

So onto tonight and Daisy Hill. A derby, and against a team who themselves had a great opening day victory winning 3 1, and who where 3 0 up by half time. A this stage of the season there will be some surprises as it is slowly revealed how teams have built over the summer, however at the end of the day its 11 v 11 and I know ours, if on form, will be capable of beating anyone.

As always your support is both vital and appreciated, hereâ€&#x;s hoping Dempsey and his lads can put on another show for you.

Enjoy the game Mark Club Chairman Ashton Town AFC 3

@northernpromise

Set up in August 2012 and based at The Ashton Town Football Club, the Radio Club was formed with a view to promoting the fascinating world of Amateur Radio to the wider community. The club is open for training and is also an Examination Centre, as you will need a licence to transmit on the Amateur Radio Frequencies.

As of now our club can boast contacts in the following countries as well as many others: USA, Brazil, the Azores, Falkland Islands and Tasmania.

For more information please visit: Website: www.aimarc.co.uk Or contact us on: Email: mx0htr@gmail.com

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WORDS FROM THE MANAGER Good evening, Thanks once again for coming and supporting the Ashton Town players In our second game of the season.

Our last game ended in a 5-1 victory against a strong AFC Liverpool team. Last time out we applied ourselves in the right manner and looked like we wanted to win the game more than our opponents right from the off. This was great to see as it is something that we have been trying to implement from the start of pre-season, that winning way. We have only got through one game out of 38 and as a management team we will not be getting ahead of ourselves. It was a great win but there is a long way to go and the next challenge is tonight against an in-form Daisy Hill side.

Tonight‟s game I feel could be the kick-start we need this season.

It is a game that we will be looking to win and anything other than three points will feel like failure. Tonight‟s opponents last time out won 3-1 Against Bacup Borough. I am positive Daisy Hill will be coming here tonight expecting 3 points so my players have got to make that task as difficult for them as possible.

We can‟t wait to get started again and hopefully build on Saturdays win with another three points generating that winning momentum that is needed early on in any season. Your support on the weekend was excellent as always and we are hoping that you enjoy yourselves just as much tonight as you did against AFC Liverpool on Saturday.

I hope my players made you as proud of them as I was...

Cheers Everyone Demps NEXT LEAGUE GAMES Sat 10/08/19 Prestwich Heys A 15:00 Sat 17/08/19 Bacup Borough H 15:00 Tue 20/08/19 Emley AFC H 19:45 5

By Dave Dempsey

HALF TIME QUIZ QUESTIONS

By Gordon Johnson 1. Which goalkeeper has the record of 138 clean sheets for the same Premier League team?

2. How many clubs have never been relegated from the Premier League?

3. How many teams were in the first ever Premier League?

4. The lowest attendance was 3,039 in 1993 when Everton played away to which club?

5. Which two non-English clubs have played in the Premier League?

6. How many times has the league been renamed?

7. Which Swede had a clause in his contract banning him from travelling into space?

8. In 2005, Newcastleâ€&#x;s Lee Bowyer had an on-pitch scrap with which team-mate?

9. For what club did Paulo Di Canio play when he pushed referee Paul Alcock?

10. Against which team did Wayne Rooney score his Premier League first goal?

managers reaction A home win, and three points to start the season saw David Dempsey a happy man, "The players did exactly what was asked of them today. Our game plan was to concentrate on our own performance and take the form into the league that we had created through pre-season. We've been moving the ball extremely well and that showed in the second half.

"Our players have been working hard with Chris Stammers and myself in the sessions working on implementing a brand of football that is different from past years.

At times in the second half, this shone through and our best goal of the game was deemed offside. The lads are delighted with today's win and we are looking forward to building on that come Tuesday. The new players have come in and gelled with last seasons players extremely well, we couldn't have asked for a better dressing room, to be honest with you and we've got a lot of competition in every area.

It's only one game down and we will certainly not be getting carried away with ourselves. However, it is a great way to start the season and the lads have done everybody proud today!"

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Tonight’s NWCFL FIXTURES

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NWCFL WEEKEND ROUN Arguably one of the biggest games in the NWCFL top flight was at the Vestacare Stadium as last seasons First Division North two promoted sides Avro and Longridge Town went head-to-head. Michael Shenton had given the home side the lead just after the break, but two goals in ten minutes for Longridge from Paul Turner and Samuel Maddox turned the tie on its head to gift Lee Ashcroft‟s side the win. Fellow promoted side Rylands (winners of the NWCFL First Division South last season), also managed to claim all three points as they mounted a 3-2 victory over last season‟s 6th placed Charnock Richard. Rylands led after fifteen minutes, only for Carl Grisham to equalise on twenty-eight minutes. Then two quick goals for Rylands looked set to have clinched the points but a late goal set-up a grandstand finish, however, Rylands held on for the three points. Elsewhere, 1874 Northwich ran out comfortable 4-1 winners over Padiham to claim the top spot on goal difference. Four different scorers on the day will please managers Paul Bowyer and Wayne Goodison as they look to better their mid-table finish last season. Runcorn Town and Whitchurch Alport were the other winners of the day, with wins over Squires Gate (2-1), and Northwich Victoria (1-0) respectively. Runcorn raced into a two-goal lead with a Joe Holt and Craig Cairns finish mid-way through the second-half; Squires scored with eight minutes to go but Runcorn held out for the maximum points. Over in Wincham Park, fans of both sides were fumbling for their car keys seconds before the end, when Sean Griffiths netted a 93rd-minute winner much to the delight of visiting manager Luke Goddard. There were four score draws which rounded off an entertaining afternoon. Skelmersdale United came from behind twice away at Ashton Athletic as John Kearney netted the 92nd-minute equaliser as the game ended two a-piece. At the Silent Night Stadium, the 141 spectators were treated to a superbly entertaining matchup as Barnoldswick Town and Congleton Town shared a 6-goal thriller. Initially, Barnoldswick led through Joseph Noblet, but a brace from Emini Abegbengo turned the tie on its head. However, Barnoldswick came back to level mid-way through the second half, only for Congleton to take the lead once more with a Jordan Lorde finish. The scoring was complete seven minutes from time when Ashley Brierley slotted home. Last season‟s runners up looked like they were heading for a single-goal victory through a Carl Peers first-half goal but Hanley Town huffed and puffed and eventually got a late, late 93rd-minute equaliser as they ended the day thirteenth and fourteenth in the standings respectively.

In the First Division North section, three new sides were all in action as Golcar United, Pilkington and Emley AFC were all raring and ready to go at 3:00 pm. However, only one of the three new sides in Golcar managed to claim all three points with a narrow 2-1 victory over last seasons fifth-placed Prestwich Heys. Ben Burnett put Golcar in front, only for Heys to equalise when Will Shawcross netted. Alex Hallam, did, however, net moments before the break which sealed the win for one of the new boys on the block. Pilkington and Emley did not have the same luck as Golcar as the former went down 3-0 to long travellers Cleator Moor Celtic, James Bell, Callum Birdsall and Josh Charlton with the goals for Craig Routledge‟s side. Emley certainly did not have the rub of any green on Saturday away at Lower Breck after as in the first half The Pewitt's saw themselves two goals down within twelve minutes, and two men down due to injuries. Emley did cause Breck some concern on forty-eight minutes when John Lududu netted, but just as the official signalled for injury-time, Conor Roberts settled the tie for Gary Moore‟s Liverpool side. The best result of the day fell for AFC Darwen who ran out 6-1 winners away at Holker Old Boys. The victory, which included braces for Jack Iley, Aaron Fleming and single goals for Luke Holden and Corey Harrison, saw Luke Evan‟s side travel back down the M6 with three points and the top spot for at least a few days.

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NDUP 3RD AUGUST 2019 Ashton Town has certainly made a name for themselves off the field recently after tying up with Darts Professional Stephen Bunting and they certainly hit the big fish, defeating AFC Liverpool 5-1 to secure the second spot on opening day. Meanwhile, Daisy Hill pulled off a superb 3-1 win over Bacup Borough. Hill finished second-bottom last season whilst Bacup will be hoping to push on from their eighth-placed finish last term, and with goals from Joseph Mullarkey, an own goal and a Jordan Hussey finish, secured all three points. 120 fans packed into Chadderton‟s ARK Fleetech Stadium and saw David Fish‟s side come from behind twice against St Helens Town and eventually seal all three points thanks to a Leon Lluobe strike on sixty-nine minutes. Whilst Steeton and Shelley rounded up Saturday‟s First Division North winners with 2-1 wins over AFC Blackpool and Garstang respectively. All three goals at the Mechanics Ground came in the first half with Steeton racing to a two-goal lead through Ben Clarkson and Jack Richmond. Seconds later, Blackpool had one back when Joe Robinson scored but they couldn‟t muster another goal in the second half. Whilst in Lancashire, Craig Billington netted a brace for Shelley, their first-ever league win over Garstang. The only draw of the weekend in the NWCFL First Division North came at Nelson as they came from behind against last season‟s bottom side Atherton LR. William Higginson put Atherton ahead on fifty-three minutes, but just 90 seconds later the score was level as Jack Coop scored as the game ended 1-1.

And in the First Division South, fans were treated to a feast to super value-for-money games up and down the region. Just two new teams entered the league this term as West Didsbury & Chorlton and Abbey Hey were both relegated from the NWCFL top flight last season. There were mixed fortunes for both sides as West ran out 4-0 winners away at Eccleshall, whilst Abbey suffered a 4-2 defeat at home against last season‟s runners-up Vauxhall Motors. James Cottee, Jamie Forbes, Matthew Eckersley and Joshua Tinker all netted for West as they look to return straight away to the NWCFL Premier Division. However, Abbey fell to a defeat at the hands of one of the favourites Vauxhall, as Abbey initially took the lead through Deane Smalley, but the visitors rallied with four goals, two in either half as they took control at M18.

A further consolation goal was scored by Abbey‟s Smalley, his second of the afternoon but that was it in front of 124 spectators.

Two big winners in the division were FC Oswestry and Barnton who ran our 4-0, and 3-0 winners as both sides kept clean sheets. Oswestry saw goals for Michael O‟Reilly, a brace for Kevin Renshaw and a single goal from David Howard secured the opening day victory away at Abbey Hulton United. Whilst, Barnton sprinted to a good afternoon‟s victory away at Ellesmere Rangers, Samuel Houghton, Luke Wilson-Jones and Connor Anderson all were on the scoresheet. Two other teams had two-goal margin wins with St Martins running out 3-1 victors at New Mills and Cammell Laird 1907 wining 2-0 at home against Cheadle Town. St Martins initially fell behind from the penalty spot but a brace from David Easthope, and a single goal from Jamie Hands secured the win Paul Moore‟s team. Whilst, Ollie Nugent and Michael Furlong scored at polar opposite ends of the game as Cheadle Town were eventually put to the sword. Maine Road, Sandbach United and Wythenshawe Amateurs all won by a single goal to secure three points on a warm afternoon in the North West (South). Maine defeated Alsager Town 2-1, Ben Davidson with a decisive brace, Sandbach had to wait until the eighty-eighth minute as Ryan Allcock netted his second of the afternoon securing the win, and Amateurs defeated Stockport 2-1, Alan Dolan and Terry Mupariwa finding the net.

Lastly, completing the thirty fixture and the 111 goals scored on Saturday afternoon was Cheadle Heath Nomads one-one draw with Stone Old Alleynians, both goals coming in the first half, Richard Tindall for Cheadle and Luke Askey for Alleynians.

nwcfl.com

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NWCFL NEWS The North West Counties Football League are delighted to announce a league radio station launched on Wednesday evening 31 July at 7.30pm.

NWCFL Radio, an internet radio station covering just the NWCFL, will provide previews, live games and debates across the season.

The link to the station will be made available on the NWCFL home page and is below also: http://station.voscast.com/5d38a13a0c138/

NWCFL STATS UPDATE The first 30 games are now under our belt and a few milestones to mention. Firstly Ashton Town’s 5-1 win against AFC Liverpool was their 350th league victory, then AFC Darwen’s fourth goal in their 6-1 win at Holker was their 600th in the league.

Some good attendances on the opening day, none bettered by the excellent 379 who watched Golcar‟s first-ever NWCFL game as they beat Prestwich Heys 2-1. Other newbies, Pilkington also had a great turnout of 224 at their 0-3 defeat against Cleator Moor Celtic. The best Prem attendance was the 275 at 1874 Northwich‟s win against Padiham.

No hat-tricks were recorded in the first round of games, though 13 players scored two each. Quite a few penalties were slotted home and none more so than at Abbey Hey 24 Vauxhall Motors, where each side scored two. Just two own goals to report, one for Winsford and one for Daisy Hill.

The first league goals of the new campaign were scored by Sam Turnbull for Burscough in the first minute, followed by Tyler Wood of Holker Old Boys in the second minute – strangely both sides lost their respective games.

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NWCFL NEWS Following a lot of work from NWCFL website brainchild Martin Fallon, we are delighted to announce that we are able to bring live matchday updates.

From 45 minutes before kick-off, we will be having live updates at www.nwcfl.com/live, until around 30 minutes after the full-times start to come through.

With live updates also come live scores and up to the minute tables so you will always be right up to speed with the NWCFL action.

You can also get involved by using the #NWCFLLive on your tweets on a matchday.

The NWCFL are very excited to bring this unique feature to the fans who can keep right up to speed from the action throughout the region.

MAN OF THE MATCH AWARD

Many man of the match performances Saturday in our outstanding 5 1 win over AFC Liverpool.

Jesse with two great goals, however an absolute stand out performance from John Edgy takes the champers from our sponsors Scott Rees & Co Solicitors presented by our Chairman, Mark Hayes.

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MATCH REPORT 3/8/19 ASHTON TOWN AFC 5 V 1 AFC LIVERPOOL The opening day fixture is sometimes a cautious event, especially when playing one of the pre season league favourites in AFC Liverpool, who finished 3rd last season behind the impressive Longridge and Avro.

Town came out of the blocks fast with winger Jesse Dowling cutting inside and a fantastic effort beat the away keeper.

Town with five starting debutants only held the lead for less than a minute as James Howell beat debutant Town keeper Ben Purdham with an absolute rocket.

With the sides going in level at half time it was Town again who started quickly, and just two minutes in the referee awarded a penalty and Alex McMillan stepped up and sent the keeper the wrong way.

After that it was a complete masterclass from Town. The impressive Jesse Dowling got his second following great work from MOM John Edgy, and then striker Dylan Glass sealed an emphatic win with two goals in the closing 15 minutes. #UpTheTown #DareToDream

WIGAN CUP NEWS Ashton Town begin their defence of the Wigan Cup on Thursday 8th August 2019 with a 7.30pm home tie against Shevington FC, who many will remember gave a good account of themselves here at the Scott Rees Stadium in the Quarter final stage of last yearâ€&#x;s competition.

Since last season Shevington have resigned from the Wigan Amateur Football League and are due to start the new campaign in the Central Lancashire Football League.

As the early stages of the Wigan Cup Competition are always played in group stages, this game will be followed a week later, on Thursday 15th August 2019 when Town will travel to Winstanley Warriors from the Wigan Amateur League, this time for a 6.30pm kick off.

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By Gordon Johnson

Results

HALF TIME QUIZ ANSWERS 1. Petr Cech 2. Six 3. 22 4. Wimbledon 5. Swansea City and Cardiff City 6. Four 7. Stefan Schwarz 8. Kieron Dyer 9. Sheffield Wednesday 10. Arsenal 13

By Gordon Johnson

MATCH PHOTOS ASHTON TOWN A

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Photos by Da

AFC 5 V 1 AFC LIVERPOOL 3/8/19

awn Marshall

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ASHTON TOWN AFC SP

Sponsors are a vital part of our team here at Ashton Town, w This club is unincorporated, meaning it is owned by no-one and is Pitchside signs are available to businesses for ÂŁ150 yr1 followed by a r and social media sharing, not to mention the signs featuring in photographs

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PONSORS AUGUST 2019

without their financial support we would simply not survive. s held in trust for the community of Ashton in Makerfield forever. renewal fee of ÂŁ100 yr thereafter. This includes a spot on our website and being shared far and wide. Interested ? Contact i.pomfrett@yahoo.com

afc.co.uk/sponsors

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FOOTBALL FOR FREDDIE Keith Peters is one of our club volunteers here at Ashton Town AFC and an avid supporter of the club. On the 2nd September 2018, after 3 days of labour, Keith‟s son Freddie was born prematurely after a pregnancy of only 23 weeks and 3 days. Freddie weighed only 1.9lbs and the nursing staff at Arrow Park hospital worked so hard to keep Freddie alive. Unfortunately after 6 hours and a miss pneumothorax Freddie sadly passed away with mum and dad present holding his hand. So many hopes and dreams were gone in that very moment. The following few weeks went by in a blur for Keith and his family. Claire house children‟s hospice where there for the family every step of the way, helping them to make precious memories. Without Claire House Keith and his family wouldn‟t have been able to spend quality time with Freddie. This was only possible due to the specialist equipment and support that was provided by Claire house. They have two butterfly suites that are fully equipped so families are able to stay, grieve, make memories and be supported in planning their next steps. For Keith and his family this was the funeral, all appointments hat were required were arranged for them, they really couldn‟t have asked for anything more.

As part of their moving forwards and dealing with the grieving process Keith and his family wanted to give something back in acknowledgement of the support that they had received. So with Keith being a football fanatic it seemed appropriate to organise a charity football match in Freddie‟s memory and to raise funds in support of the Claire House Charity. In January 2019 Keith was approached by Gary Berkley, the founding member of FOLLO FC, inviting him to play with other bereaved fathers. Keith then approached Mark Hayes, the Ashton Town club chairman, with his idea of a charity fundraising game and this is when „Football for Freddie‟ planning began. An opposition team were needed and a group of guys playing for a Wigan Athletic fans team were keen to get involved in the venture.

Sunday 26th May 2019, the big day soon arrived. Many other activities to compliment the football game were planned, with raffles, tombola, a BBQ and other activities for the kids attending. The turnout and support on the day was fantastic.

Keith and his family later acknowledged that without the support of everyone at Ashton town, Follo fc and the Wigan Athletic fans the event would never have come to fruition. The game itself finished 6-4 to the Wigan fans team, with Follo FC‟s goals coming from a hat trick by Town‟s first team manager Dave Dempsey and fittingly the final goal being scored

by Keith Peters himself.

Keith and his family would like to say an extra special thank you to everybody who continues to support them to this day. The total raised on the Charity day was in the region of £2000. All monies being donated to Claire House Hospice to help with the upkeep and services provided within the butterfly suites.

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By Gordon Johnson

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1ST DIV NORTH LEAGUE TABLE

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WHO’S PLAYED AT EDGE GREEN ST Kevin Cyril Davies was born on the 26th March 1977 and is a former English former professional footballer who played as a striker for Chesterfield, Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Millwall, Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End. During the 201718 playing season Davies was appointed as manager of nearby Southport FC before his contract was terminated on 30 April 2018.

Kevin Davies originally made his name as a vital part of the Chesterfield team which reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup in 1997. He left Chesterfield at the end of that season, having made 148 appearances for the club and joined Premier League club Southampton in May 1997. He only spent one season at Southampton, making 30 appearances, before he joined Premier League club Blackburn Rovers in a then club-record £7.5 million deal. Once again, he spent a single season at the club, making 29 appearances, before re-joining Southampton in 1999. In his second spell at Southampton. Davies made 95 appearances but also spent part of 2002 on loan to First Division club Millwall, where he made nine appearances. He was released by Southampton at the end of the 2002–03 playing season, at which time he joined Premier League club Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer. He was made Bolton team captain in January 2009, but began to fall out of favour at Bolton towards the end of the 2012–13season, and the club decided against renewing his contract.

Davies made 407 appearances for Bolton, scoring 85 goals before leaving for Preston North End where he spent a further two seasons before retiring.

Davies made three appearances for the England under-21 team between 1997 and 2000. At the age of 33, Davies made his one and only full international appearance for England which was in a 0–0 draw against Montenegro on the 12th October 2010,coming on as a second-half substitute.

Kevin Davies made his one and only appearance here at Edge Green Street on the 12th March 2017. This was when he put together an All Star Select XI team that beat the Great Britain Olympic Deaf Football Team 3 -2 in a fundraising game to assist the GB deaf team to take part in the Deaf Olympics later that year in Turkey. Davies‟s motivation to assist in the fund raising efforts stemming from the fact that his father had been deaf and also a previous member of the England International Deaf Football team.

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By Gordon Johnson

HISTORY OF ASHTON TOWN AFC Ashton Town Association Football Club originally joined the Div 2 of the Lancashire Combination in 1903 and were promoted Div 1 in 1st season.

However, relegated back to Div 2 after finishing 16 in first season of Div 1.

Towards the end of 1910/11 season club withdrew from league and fixtures taken over by Tyldesley Albion. The Club was reformed in 1953 as Makerfield Mill FC and after a short spell in the Wigan Sunday School League, they played in the St Helens Combination League for three years before joining the Warrington and District Amateur League in 1958. The founder was a persistant man named Derek „Mick‟ Mycock.

In 1962 the Club was forced to move from its original ground at Windsor Road because of land development and it was at this point the Club name was changed to Ashton Town AFC. Home games were played on a public park pitch at Whithill Street Recreation Ground in Bryn until 1964, at which point the Club purchased a piece of land at Edge Green Street, previously the home of Stubshaw Cross Rovers. This became the Club`s new home, and development of the ground began. In 1969 the Clubhouse was completed, and was opened by Liverpool and England star Roger Hunt, and in 1975 the present dressing room facilities were built. During this period the Club joined the Lancashire Combination in 1971, and then in 1978, they left to join the Cheshire County League for four years.

The formation of the North West Counties Football League 1982 saw Ashton Town join as founder members, and the Club has remained in the league since then with the exception of season 1985-86, when they played in the Manchester League while essential ground maintenance work was carried out to bring the ground up to stringent ground grading requirements for the NWCF League.

Throughout the years there have been many custodians of the club, owned by no-one, powered by volunteers. I‟ll surely miss out a host of names here but….Notable is the involvement of Jack Longstaffe, Pat Dooney, Barry & Sandra Longstaffe, Gordon Ellis,, Les Bailey, Len Riley, Malcolm Magrath, Billy Pomfrett and Jimmy Cahill. The latter two who have clocked up over a hundred years service to Town and Jimmy is still here on a daily basis.

In more recent times, Clare and James Horner made a massive boost to the club with the long overdue formation of a Junior section. As did the arrival of our current Chairman, Mark Hayes, who has helped build the profile of the club both locally and nationally. Other volunteers to mention are Steve, Stefan, Denise, Ian, Dawn, Peter, Clare and more recently, Keith whose dedication and workrate is second to none on quite often a day to day basis. It would go amiss if I didn‟t mention at this point Brian Cunliffe, who has on and off, over the years worked behind the scenes painting, digging or mending often without the right resources for the job…..it‟s people like this who really make a place what it is. So Many to mention, others to forget, but we are here and that wouldn‟t exist if it weren‟t for those who give up their time and effort to keep the club alive. Our motto „Onwards & Upwards‟ sums us up as we now strive for promotion.

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HISTORY OF DAISY HILL FC Situated one and a half miles south of Westhoughton town centre, four miles from Bolton and five miles from the the Macron Stadium, home of Bolton Wanderers, the village of Daisy Hill first saw football in season 1894-95 although it is possible that football was being played in the area for some years prior to that date.

The first known honours for the club came in 1896-97 when the Wigan and District League Championship and the Westhoughton Cup were won without losing a match.

The location of the clubs ground in those days is unknown but the present ground was used during the first world war period when the club played in the Leigh and District Senior Sunday School League. The club then joined the Westhoughton League and during the 1920's and 1930's won many honours in what was one of the strongest local leagues at the time. Little is known of the period leading up to the second world war but the club reformed in 1951 playing in the Westhoughton League on the St. James Street Recreation Ground/Cricket Ground until the landowner made an offer to the club to return to New Sirs in 1957. The acquisition of the lease was a major step forward and gave aspiration to move into the Bolton Combination and develop into one of the most formidable clubs in the area. Dressing rooms were erected at the ground for the start of the 1968/69 season whilst on the field the club won the Bolton Combination Premier Division on four occasions, the Bolton Combination Cup on four occasions and the Lancashire Amateur Shield twice during the 60's and 70's.

In 1978 the Club was accepted into the Lancashire Football Combination and with the advent of the Non-League football pyramid and the subsequent amalgamation of the Lancashire Football Combination and the Cheshire County League the Club became a founder member of the North West Counties League giving them the opportunity to play in and bring national competition to the village.

With the National League System requiring clubs to meet new standards for facilities, new dressing rooms and a clubhouse for social activities were erected at New Sirs in 1982. Since then improvement of the clubs facilities has been ongoing and for the 20052006 season a floodlighting system has been installed which has allowed the club to remain in the National League System and return to National and County competitions.

The club also comprises an U/18's Youth Team playing in the North West Youth Alliance and a thriving junior section playing in the Bolton, Bury and District Junior Football League.

Notable players include: Dick Pollard and Billy Farrimond, both of whom went on to play cricket for Lancashire and England, Alf Watkinson, grandfather of the former Lancashire Cricket Club Captain Mike Watkinson went on to sign for Blackpool. ( Mike himself had the odd game for the club). Sam Marsh (Bolton Wanderers and Bury), Alf Gray (Torquay United and Lincoln City), Greg Strong (Motherwell) and Danny Williams (Inverness Caledonian Thistle) began their careers in senior or junior football at Daisy Hill Football Club.

Other notable people / sportspersons born in Westhoughton who may or may not have been associated with the club: Ethel Johnson (Great Britain Olympic Athlete), Joe Bromilow (American Olympic Athlete), Jack Bruton (Blackburn Rover, Burnley, Bournemouth and England). Joe Clare (Accrington Stanley, Norwich City and Lincoln City).

Tommy Woodward (Bolton Wanderers and Middlesborough), Francis Lee (Bolton Wanderers, Manchester City, Derby County and England) and Robert Shaw (Actor).

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OUR CHOSEN CHARITY Joseph Michael Kendrick was born on the 9th May 2009, after an unremarkable pregnancy at 42 weeks. After his birth, although Joe was very quiet, he was thought to be otherwise healthy by the doctors. However, over the next couple of days, Joe rapidly deteriorated, and fell into a coma. Joseph was immediately taken to the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit where they began to test him to find the cause of his lethargy and low muscle tone. After six days, the Kendrick family found out that Joseph had a severe form of a very rare genetic disorder known as NKH. The Kendricks received the devastating news that Joseph was unlikely to live past 10-days old, and almost certainly wouldn‟t reach his first birthday. Luckily for the Kendrick‟s, they were surrounded by a very supportive family who helped get them through the dark first few days. Paul, Emma, and the family waited every day around Joseph‟s cot, praying that he would wake up, open his eyes or cry.

The family was informed of a special medicine (sodium benzoate), which may help Joseph to wake up, and remove some of the glycine from his brain, but not from his cerebral fluid. On day 13, to the relief of his family, Joseph finally „woke up‟, started to cry and act more like a „normal‟ little baby. Joe‟s parents were able to change his nappies, feed him through his tube and cuddle him, which meant everything to Paul, Emma and the family. Paul and Emma were told that he was very jerky due to a seizure called a myoclonic jerk, and if he lived, they would turn into other types of seizures. Joe managed to fight through the horrible days in hospital and was able to go home for the first time with his family around a month after his birth. Paul and Emma had a very worrying year waiting for him to fall very unwell as they were told by doctors and to stop breathing, but thankfully Joe never did. Joe is doing really well despite his condition. Joe still has frequent seizures but takes medicine to help control them. Having ate orally until he was 4-years-old, Joe now has a gastrostomy for milk and medicines which is much easier to feed him through. Joe still manages tasters of food when he‟s well, and really enjoys yoghurt and ice cream in the summer months. Joe is also a very proud big brother to Sam and Tom and is doing really well at school.

Joe‟s parents are very proud of their “strong and resilient” little boy and are proud on how well he has done to exceed all expectations. Joe made it very clear to his parents in showing that he wants to fight all the way, and his parents were inspired from this to fight on his behalf to help create awareness of this heart-breaking condition, find better treatment for him, and one day find a cure for NKH. Parents, Paul and Emma Kendrick formed the Joseph’s Goal charity in 2012 and have raised over £700,000 since their foundation just seven years ago. Joseph‟s Goal are fighting to find better treatments and hopefully, a cure for NKH, with raised funds being sent to Dr Johan Van Hove at Colorado University, Denver, USA, and Professor Nick Greene at UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health in London for further research into the condition. Both doctors have presented their research findings to NKH families at conferences in the North West organised by Joseph‟s Goal, and trustees of Joseph‟s Goal have twice attended NKH conferences at Harvard University in Boston, USA. The many varied defective genes that have been found in different children/families in the brain that causes NKH have been identified, and the task now is to find a route to replace it with a healthy gene. There is finally some light at the end of a very dark tunnel, with real grounds for optimism that better treatments for NKH are not far away.

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www.josephsgoal.org

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JOHN COURTNEY BEN PURDHAM JOHN EDGERTON LUKE EDWARDS JAY TOMO MICHAEL WHITE ANTHONY SHINKS ALEX NOONAN ANT POTTS JAMES SIGSWORTH JESSE DOWLING JOE WHITTINGHAM ALEX MCMILLAN JACK RICHARDS CHRIS HILL BRAD SMART TOM MOLYNEUX DAVID MOORES CHARLIE DUKE DALEY WOODS DYLAN GLASS JASON CAREY Manager: David Dempsey Asst. Manager: Lee Bignell Head Coach: Chris Stammers Coach: Karl Bell GK Coach: David Billington Physio: Kaydrion Drimmie Colours: Red & White Shirts, Red Shorts, Red Socks GK: Purple

Dean Williams Jacob Ridings Jordan Hussey Sheldon Renshaw Priest Dean Singleton Nicholas Critchley Jean Khasa Jake Foster Jamie Ramwell Joseph Mallarkey Matthew Knowles Hensley Mills Dexter Brierley Kane Duffy Alex Spencer Danny Warburton Peter Lancaster Gareth Roberts Craig Haynes Craig Naylor Manager: Brian Hart Asst Manager: Steve Iley Coach: Craig Thomas Player Coach: Matthew Knowles

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COLOURS: ROYAL BLUE SHIRTS, ROYAL BLUE SHORTS, ROYAL BLUE SOCKS GK: GREEN

Referee: Kieran Chell, Assistant 1: David Martindale, Assistant 2: Henry Naylor

NEXT GAME HERE: Thursday 8TH august V shevington FC 7:30PM