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ONE PAPER ... ALL THE NEWS from Dewsbury, Batley, Ossett, Mirfield, Liversedge, Birstall, Heckmondwike, Cleckheaton & Spen Valley
Delight at new base for project
Friday January 25, 2019
No. 878
Pioneer delayed ‘til 2020
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VICTORY IN FREE PARKING BATTLE Proposal for charges in North Kirklees towns dropped in the face of 9,000-strong petition...
By Tony Earnshaw Local Democracy Reporter FREE PARKING will continue in North Kirklees towns after councillors backed down on proposals to introduce charges. Ten months after it announced it was considering the controversial policy – which could have pumped £250,000 into coffers – Kirklees Council dropped the idea. In Huddersfield Town Hall last
Wednesday evening council leader Shabir Pandor announced: “Let me assure everybody in the council chamber: we are not going to impose car parking charges in Cleckheaton.” He was swiftly followed by his Cabinet colleague Coun Graham Turner, who added for clarification: “No charges are going to be imposed anywhere.” They were responding to a petition signed by more than 9,000 people objecting to the introduction of
charges on car parks in Cleckheaton. Cleckheaton has nearly 300 spaces available. Batley has 10 car parks offering more than 400 spaces. Heckmondwike, Birstall and Mirfield also have free council-run car parks but in Dewsbury drivers must pay from 8am to 6pm, Monday to Saturday. Cleckheaton’s Liberal Democrat councillors led the fight against the proposals. Coun Andrew Pinnock said the 9,000-strong petition was presented because traders were concerned that parking charges would have a detrimental impact on business. He warned that businesses on the margins of viability could fail if shoppers were deterred by paying to park. He pointed out that whilst some areas were popular with tourists and required a turnover, Cleckheaton’s surplus of town cen-
tre spaces meant it did not fall into the same category. “Is the income from car parking charges more important than the financial viability of a town centre? The two aren’t necessarily compatible,” he said. Conservative group leader Coun David Hall said it was wrong to pit communities against each other via the imposition of parking charges. He called on the council to use its budget to commit to a regeneration strategy that covers the whole of the borough “and not just Dewsbury and Huddersfield”. He added: “It’s not just Cleckheaton. We can look at the other small towns. “Over a period of 10 years we have seen Dewsbury left to rot, Huddersfield left to rot, awful news about Marks & Spencer this week and you just think, where next? We really need some action in these small towns.” Coun David Sheard, deputy
Labour group leader, urged caution around what he called the “mythology” about car parking. “There is no such thing as free parking,” he said. “Shopkeepers pay through their rents for the car parking. To keep towns viable people have got to be able to park. It’s not the charging, it’s availability and ease. “Parking is always up for review but we shouldn’t discount any methods to help towns stay vibrant. “Charges are used in many places to manage parking, otherwise people wouldn’t be able to park. It becomes a problem when people use it to leave their car for a full day and go somewhere else. “The budget decision is right but if we lifted charges in all cases, all the car parks near the town centre which shoppers want to use would Continued on Page 2
... but your council tax is set to rise PAGE 5
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ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
Spen business chief has his say on free parking decision Deaths BLACKER (NEE OLDROYD) MARJORIE On January 14, suddenly in hospital, aged 86, wife of Ken. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Wednesday February 13 at 12.30pm.
On January 5, peacefully at Mill Lodge Care Home, formerly of Heckmondwike and Wibsey, aged 87, mum of Michelle. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Friday February 8 at 10.30am.
BOFFIN (NEE JOHNSON) BARBARA
DAVISON PETER ANTHONY
On January 10, peacefully at Pinderfields Hospital, of Dewsbury, aged 87, wife of the late Kenneth. Funeral service will take place at St Paul’s Church, Hanging Heaton, on Thursday January 31 at 1pm.
BOULD JOHN On January 18, peacefully at Fieldhead Court, Thornhill, aged 72, husband of Jean. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Thursday February 21 at 12.30pm.
CLAXTON RONALD (RONNIE) On December 21, peacefully at Dewsbury and District Hospital, of Mirfield, formerly of Thornhill Lees, aged 89, husband of the late Mollie. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Thursday February 7 at 10.30am.
special friend of Pauline. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Friday February 15 at 11.30am.
CLAYTON (NEE ISHERWOOD) BETTY MURIEL
HARPIN DENIS On January 13, suddenly but peacefully at his home in Mirfield, formerly of Brighouse, aged 93, husband of Alma. Funeral service will take place at The Elim Church, Hall Street, Halifax, on Tuesday February 5 at 1pm.
On December 29, of Liversedge, aged 70, husband of Teresa. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Tuesday February 5 at 10.30am.
DRIVER AUSTIN On December 24, peacefully after a short illness at Linson Court Care Home, Batley, aged 72, husband of the late Margaret. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Monday February 4 at 12.30pm.
On January 14, suddenly at home, Dewsbury, aged 57, dad of Mark, Adam and Matthew. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Monday February 18 at 12.30pm.
On January 16, peacefully in his sleep at St Catherine’s Hospice, Scarborough, originally from Dewsbury, aged 86, husband of Jean. Funeral service will take place at All Saints Church, Kilham, on Monday January 28 at 12pm.
JAGGER COLIN On January 13, at Pinderfields Hospital, of Heckmondwike, aged 85, husband of Cynthia. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Thursday February 14 at 11.30am.
HALEY JEFFREY On January 9, peacefully at home, of Roberttown, aged 91,
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Sadly on the 6th January at Calderdale Hospital. Florence aged 88, beloved wife of the late Albert, Mum to David and Mother in Law to Pat. Devoted Grandma to Nicola and Sean also Great Grandma to Harvey and Frankie. Funeral service will take place on Friday 8th February 11.30 at Dewsbury Crematorium. Family flowers only, donations to Make a Wish Foundation. LEACH WALTER
On January 5, peacefully at Kirkwood Hospice, aged 89, partner of Marjorie. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Monday February 11 at 11.30am.
Of Thornhill, aged 78, husband of Jean. Funeral service will take place at Wakefield Crematorium on Monday February 11 at 1.40pm.
Nee Firth Florence Elizabeth
HEPWORTH ANTHONY ‘TONY’
HEPWORTH DERRICK
GREEN JAMES ‘JIM’
LAYTON
MCGAW HILDA On January 4, peacefully at York House, Dewsbury, aged 98, wife of the late John. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Tuesday February 5 at 11.30am.
MORTIMER KEITH On January 18, in hospital, of Thornhill, aged 89, husband of the late Mavis. Funeral service will take place at Wakefield Crematorium on Wednesday February 6 at 11.40am.
SHAW ERIC VINCENT
On January 14, peacefully at Ashworth Grange, Dewsbury, aged 94, a beloved auntie. Funeral service will take place at Huddersfield Crematorium on Thursday February 7 at 10.30am.
On January 9, peacefully at Pinderfields Hospital, of Lupset, formerly of Dewsbury, aged 91, husband of Eileen. Graveside service will take place at St Peter’s Church, Birstall, on Tuesday February 5 at 1.30pm.
KNIGHT DESMOND CHARLES
SMAJE ANN ELIZABETH
On January 2, aged 90. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Monday February 4 at 11.30am.
On January 15, peacefully at Kirkwood Hospice, of Birkenshaw, aged 83, a dearlyloved wife, mother, grandma and friend to many. A service
of thanksgiving will be held at Gomersal Methodist Church on Wednesday February 13 at 11.45am.
“The chamber of trade welcome the decision and would like to thank the 9,000 regular shoppers who made their voice heard through signing petitions in town centre businesses. “Cleckheaton is a well-liked and vibrant town weathering the current retail storm well. “We still have an excellent bank offering and have attracted several new and very different businesses over the last two years. This news should offer confidence to any business currently looking to invest in our town centre.”
Continued from Page 1
managing it.” Commenting on Twitter, longserving Cleckheaton councillor Kath Pinnock wrote: “Victory!! Council says NO parking charges. 9,000 people had their say and it made a difference.”
be filled instantly in the morning and shoppers would not have any parking. Charging and time restrictions are ways of
THORNTON JOHN MALCOLM On January 16, peacefully at Kirkwood Hospice, of Mirfield, aged 81, husband of Doreen. Funeral service will take place at Huddersfield Crematorium on Wednesday February 13 at 2pm.
TURNER (FORMERLY SANGSTER) (NEE GOTHARD) BERYL On January 10, peacefully at Avery Mews Care Home, formerly of Gomersal, aged 77, wife of the late David. Funeral service will take place at Park Wood Crematorium, Elland, on Thursday January 31 at 11.15am.
WHARTON ROBERT ‘BOB’ On January 12, peacefully at Bradford Royal Infirmary, of Birkenshaw, aged 84, partner of Betty. Funeral service will take place at St Paul’s Church, Birkenshaw, on Monday February 4 at 11.30am.
WOFFENDEN MAUREEN On January 10, following a long illness bravely fought in Pinderfields Hospital, aged 84, mother and mother-in-law of Lynne and Philip. Funeral service will take place at Dewsbury Moor Crematorium on Thursday February 14 at 10.30am.
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FOLLOWING the news that parking in Cleckheaton will remain free, Spenborough Chamber of Trade president Mark Hepworth told The Press: “It made grim reading in 2018 when Kirklees announced a review of existing parking charges and the option to look at introducing charges into other towns where free parking existed. “Cleckheaton is not a commuter town and has an excellent parking offer which isn’t abused, so any introduction would have been purely revenue-generating rather than problem-solving.
Support in towns A MOBILE cancer support service is visiting North Kirklees next week. On Wednesday (January 30) and Friday (February 1) Macmillan Cancer Support will be manning a bus in Dewsbury and Batley for anyone who needs help dealing with cancer. Whether you’re living with cancer or know someone who has it, the mobile service is open to everyone. A team of cancer information specialists will be on hand to answer questions, give advice and inform people about local cancer services and support. The bus will be in Dewsbury Market Place from 9am-4.30pm on the Wednesday and then at Tesco Extra Batley on the Friday from 8am to 3pm. Hazel Greaves, a Macmillan information and support specialist on the unit, said: “It’s really important that people living with cancer are able to access the financial advice and support they are entitled to, so they can focus on what’s most important: their health. “Whether you want to know what symptoms to look out for, need advice about managing the side effects of your treatment, or want to find local support for carers, come along and see us. We’d be happy to help.”
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BATLEY: Three boys riding a moped crashed into a car before fleeing the scene on Sunday. The trio were allegedly riding without helmets when the smash happened at around 5pm on Purlwell Lane. One of the riders on the back of the motorbike hit the windscreen of the car before getting back on the bike and riding away with the others. Coun Mark Thompson (Con, Birstall and Birkenshaw) said the problem of anti-social biking by youths has “gone on for too long”. A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said: “If you have any information regarding the location or riders of any bikes used for anti-social behaviour this can be reported via our online report form, non-emergency number 101 or to crime stoppers on 0800 555111.”
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
Child sex abuse: MP’s plea for police resources BATLEY & SPEN MP Tracy Brabin wants a “cast iron guarantee” from the government that West Yorkshire Police will have all the resources it needs to protect victims of child sex abuse and catch the perpetrators. The Labour MP’s intervention comes after 55 people were arrested in Batley, Dewsbury and Bradford in connection with non-recent child sexual abuse in the district from 2002-2009. Ms Brabin made the plea during Home Office questions in the House of Commons on Monday. She said: “The Home Secretary, like me and many others in North Kirklees, will have been shocked and concerned to hear last week about 55 local arrests in relation to child sex abuse. “This vital investigation will put extra strain on the police and local authority, whose resources are already stretched to breaking point. “Can the Home Secretary give my constituents a cast iron guarantee that the
police will have the resources they need to protect victims in the long term and short term and make sure that the perpetrators are brought to justice – something that I’m sure the whole House would agree with.” Home Secretary Sajid Javid responded: “There is a huge focus by this government and by local police forces and others such as the National Crime Agency on child sexual exploitation and abuse. “She’s raised this horrific case in Kirklees and I can give her an assurance that we want to make sure that all the resources that are necessary are available. “I think the recent police settlement for this year will certainly help, but also there is more to be done, including with the tech giants and those who groom our children online.” Ms Brabin added: “Victims of these horrendous crimes have shown incredible bravery in coming forward and we have a responsibility to ensure they are given the justice they deserve.”
News In Brief Makeover plans for town centre buildings DEWSBURY: Prominent town-centre buildings are to have a makeover. Among the sites selected for refurbishment are 9 Market Place, for 70 years occupied by Bailey’s Cafe, and the neighbouring Black Bull pub. Work has already started on revamping the pub, while the new owners of Bailey’s Cafe intend to restore it as a branch of Frankie’s – the Batley-based burger restaurant. The improvements are part of the five-year regeneration programme Dewsbury Townscape Heritage Initiative, set up to preserve and enhance key buildings. It was awarded £2m by the Heritage Lottery Fund, which was matched with £1.7m from Kirklees Council. Dewsbury will also benefit from a £525,000 spend on street furniture, lighting and ‘green features’ to aid its revival as a market town.
Tot’s bath-time rescue CLECKHEATON: Firefighters had to rescue a two-year-old trapped in the bathroom at his home in Waltroyd Road during bath-time. When the door was closed, the mechanism inside it broke. A crew from Cleckheaton fire station had to break it down and rescue the toddler, who had become “hysterical”.
Dewsbury teenager Mohammed Umar Khan has been missing since Monday
Missing teen may be in London POLICE searching for a missing teenager from Dewsbury believe he could be in London. Mohammed Umar Khan, 16, was last seen in the town at around 4.30pm on Monday (January 21) and was reported missing later that night.
It is thought he travelled to London the same evening. He is described as 5ft 8ins tall, of slim build, with short, black hair shaved at the sides, and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a green Forbidden winter coat with a fluffy brown hood, black satin Adidas jogging
Another 18 months before ‘Pioneer’ is ready for students By Steve Martyn DEWSBURY’S iconic Pioneer House will remain empty for another 18 months. The prominent town centre building is due to become part of Kirklees College’s ‘Learning Quarter’ but will not open to students until September, 2020. Work is taking longer than anticipated to complete, according to Kirklees Council, which owns the Grade II-listed building on Northgate. A spokesman said: “The majority of restoration and structural works are due to be completed by the end of February 2019. Our partners at Kirklees College then intend to take possession and begin fitout works with a view to the new college building opening to students in September 2020.” Originally built for the Dewsbury Pioneers’ Industrial Society in 1878, over the years Pioneer House became home to a wide variety of tenants, including a theatre, cinema, library, French polishers, butchers, cobblers and a renowned Italian restaurant. In recent years it fell into disrepair and the local authority began legal proceedings in 2009 to compulsorily purchase
it from notorious developer Stayton in order to protect it from further decay, resulting in a public inquiry in November 2010. Kirklees won Government permission to take it from Stayton in March 2011. Almost eight years later it is still empty. Before Christmas, a £2m council grant was spent making the building wind- and water-tight. The latest £2m grant brings the total council funding for the building to £4.9m. An additional £0.85m was made available through Heritage Lottery Funding, leaving the overall cost at £5.79m to date. “Pioneer House is one of the centrepieces of our ambitious, multi-million pound plans to regenerate towns and villages across Kirklees,” the spokesman said. “This is an exciting development for Dewsbury, alongside other regeneration projects for the area, including schemes at Northgate, Corporation Street and the former Black Bull pub, as well as the Station Gateway project. “We are determined that these projects are sustainable and develop areas where people want to live, visit and spend money. We are investing
£750k to make the area clean and green, with several more million also being invested. “With Pioneer House, we are determined it is finished to a high quality and unfortunately this is taking longer than anticipated due to the complexity of the works involved.” Dewsbury MP Paula Sherriff was unaware of the delay and said: “Dewsbury stands to benefit greatly from the regeneration of Pioneer House and the additional footfall that the college students will bring, so I’m concerned and disappointed to hear that this has been put back. “I’ll be making enquiries with the council as to why the move has been delayed.” Coun Eric Firth, whose Dewsbury East constituency covers the town centre, said: “We are disappointed but what’s more important is that we get it right. “Bringing this fantastic and iconic building back into use will breathe new life and vibrancy into Dewsbury and will be welcomed by all. “We owe it to Kirklees residents, the college and present and future students to make it the best it can possibly be. Who on earth would argue with that?”
bottoms with stripes and green Nike Airmax shoes. He was carrying a blue backpack. Anyone who has seen him or has information of his whereabouts is asked to contact West Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting log 1887 of January 21.
300 homes scheme BATLEY: More than 300 homes could be built on land off Soothill Lane. Barrett Homes have submitted a plan to Kirklees Council for 309 dwellings and 60 extra care units on green space surrounding Lydgate Junior and Infant School and Lydgate Lodge care home. Residents have raised concerns that the nearby roads won't be able to cope with the extra traffic and that schools and doctors’ surgeries will suffer. People have until Tuesday (January 29) to have their say on the development.
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News In Brief Summer fun day MIRFIELD: The family and friends of a mum who died of cancer last year have organised another charity event to raise money for Kirkwood Hospice. Sarah Green passed away last January and a second family fun day will be held in her memory on Saturday, June 15, at Battyeford Playing Fields (1pm-8pm). Last year’s event raised over £12,500 for the hospice. There'll be stalls, entertainment, food outlets, children’s activities and much more. Search for Sarah’s Wish for Kirkwood Family Fun Day on Facebook for more info.
Winter warmer BIRSTALL: St Saviour’s Church is hosting a ‘winter warmer lunch’ tomorrow (Saturday, 11.30am-1.30pm). Everyone is welcome to enjoy the menu of corned beef hash with Yorkshire pudding or jacket potato (£3.50) and plum crumble or rice pudding (£1.50).
Halal campaigners accused of stirring up racial hatred By Tony Earnshaw Local Democracy Reporter KIRKLEES Council has gone on the offensive over its policy of serving non-stunned halal meat in schools. Council leader Shabir Pandor accused those campaigning for the policy to be reversed of using animal welfare as a tool to stir up racial hatred. He said they were taking advantage of communities and playing with fears on an issue that ran deep.
In rejecting calls to end the policy, he said: “This debate has been generated deliberately on the back of creating divisions, hatred and putting communities against one another. “We cannot afford this council chamber to be fooled into a situation where we create a scenario that we cannot control.” In a strong rebuke to anti-halal campaigners, he said their moral outrage was “politically motivated”. He added: “I cannot commit myself MIRFIELD or my cabinet to review this policy. The WF14 0DQ our Facebook Page to keep updated with special offers: answer has to be ‘no’.” The announcement disappointed the www.facebook.com/haighsfarmshop National Secular Society, which last year raised the issue of non-stunned meat in school. It said the council was “normalising cruelty to animals”. Coun Pandor’s comments followed deputations both in support of serving non-stunned halal meat, and against. The debate was prompted after more than 7,000 people signed an online petition calling for all meat served in the borough’s schools to be stunned before slaughter. Forty-three Kirklees schools receive halal meat via the authority’s catering service. Seventeen schools with predominantly Muslim children do not offer a non-halal meat alternative. Coun Pandor added: “Conversely, the same applies where there are no Muslim children, so there is no option other than a single menu, which is non-halal meat. How do you draw the line there?” Petition organiser Aleks Lukic said those signing the petition were “dismayed” that the council had chosen to pursue a policy “that sponsors and normalises non-stun slaughter” by serving such meat in local schools. He argued that scrapping the policy would mean “a significant improvement” for the welfare of animals. He said: “It would also ensure that the long-standing religious exemption in British law” – which allows animals to be legally slaughtered without stunning for consumption by followers of Islam and Judaism – “is no longer *e&oe undermined in our borough.” Reacting to the council’s admission that 17 schools in Kirklees do not pro-
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“Debate has been generated deliberately on the back of creating divisions, hatred and putting communities against one another...I cannot commit myself or my cabinet to review this policy.” – COUNCIL LEADER SHABIR PANDOR
“The council has failed to provide clear information to families on the type of meat being served (and) has tried to pass the blame on to the schools. But... the council is ultimately accountable.” – CAMPAIGNER ALEKS LUKIC
“If people bringing this petition start to champion other choices in the food we eat, rather than those affecting other communities, I may believe they have a genuine concern for animal welfare.” – ANDREW COOPER, GREEN PARTY vide a non-halal meat alternative, he said children of non-Muslim families had been led into consuming products of non-stun slaughter “without their knowledge”. “The council has consistently failed to provide clear information to families on the type of meat being served (and) has tried to pass the blame on to the schools,” he added. “But it is the council that runs the catering service and it is the council that provides the menus for families to consider. It is the council that is ultimately accountable.” Conservative group leader Coun David Hall (Liversedge and Gomersal) said a comprehensive review of food in all the borough’s schools was overdue. He pointed out that several nations,
including Belgium, Denmark, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway and Iceland, have banned religious ritual slaughter on the grounds that “animal rights come before religion”. “My group does not seek to gain any political capital out of this issue and I deplore those who are trying to turn one community against another. That’s not what this debate is about.” Coun Andrew Cooper (Green, Newsome) questioned whether those behind the petition, which was being presented as an issue of choice, were genuine animal rights activists. “The issue before us is about one aspect of animal welfare in our food system among many,” he said. “If the same people bringing this petition start to champion other choices we have to make in the food we eat, rather than those affecting other communities, then I may really believe they have a genuine concern for animal welfare, rather than simply being people only interested in animal welfare as it relates to a particular community.” National Secular Society chief executive Stephen Evans said: “It is bitterly disappointing to see councillors in Kirklees, particularly the council’s leader, trying to silence debate over the supply of non-stun meat to schools in this way. “While anyone who uses this issue to stir up anti-Muslim prejudice should be condemned, the scientific consensus is clear that stunning animals before they are slaughtered is more humane than not doing so. “By supplying non-stun halal to dozens of schools, Kirklees Council is normalising cruelty to animals. And its response to criticism of this appears to be to deflect attention by making blanket accusations against its critics. “These mendacious silencing tactics must be called out for what they are. “These councillors are dismissing the concerns of Kirklees residents who do not wish their council to supply this meat to children, including Muslims who reject the hardline interpretations of Islam that the council has effectively endorsed. “Indeed, the council’s policy flies in the face of the fact that the majority of halal meat consumed by Muslims in the UK is from animals stunned prior to slaughter. “Those who claim to be standing up for Muslims are in fact helping to stir social resentment and entrench reactionary views both among Muslims and against them.”
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A FORMER pub in Mirfield could be transformed into an Italian restaurant. The owners of Capri in Horbury have submitted a planning application to turn the Thirsty Man pub, which closed its doors on Old Bank Road just before Christmas, into a swanky new restaurant. Designs sent to Kirklees Council include extending the building and revamping the whole of the exterior. Paymen Karimi, owner of the Capri group, said: “Mirfield is very populated. A lot don’t realise the potential there. It is almost a city within itself with lots of villages like Liversedge and Heckmondwike close to it.” Public consultation on the application ends on February 3, but so far it appears to have been well received by residents.
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
News In Brief Four men wanted in hunt for burglars
Speaker’s Corner In this feature, we give a platform to local people to get things off their chest. ALEKS LUKIC is Leader of the Dewsbury Borough Independents. He taught in a local secondary school from 2013-2017.
Local democracy in the gutter T HAS BEEN nearly three months since I first raised concerns in this newspaper over Kirklees Council’s use of halal meat produced from non-stun slaughter. At that time I wrote, ‘Why would anyone speak out when it would be so easy to accuse them of racism and avoid any meaningful discussion?’ Now you can read how our council leader Shabir Pandor responded in the debate that was finally held last Wednesday. Apparently Mr Lukic “should actually apologise to the many thousands of people that he has ratcheted up and creating divisions in our community.” (sic) Apparently, Mr Lukic’s petition was “actually generated on false pretences and misled thousands of people”. Apparently it was “religion, race and hatred” driving the debate and it was “generated deliberately on the back of creating divisions, hatred and putting communities against one another.” Coun Pandor also tweeted “… Those questioning our provision of halal don’t have animal welfare at heart. They have targeted sections of the communities which had caused fear…” He offered no evidence for these claims from anything I have ever said, whether in the council chamber, within this newspaper, on social media or on the petition itself. Just a day after our debate in Kirklees, we also saw Diane Abbott scrambling for the race card after being challenged on
I
Question Time. Labour politicians try this on all too often when trying to shut down debate, and it only serves to undermine more genuine claims of racial and religious hatred. I consider Coun Pandor’s remarks to be very serious personal smears. The Code of Conduct for councillors requires them to be truthful and to treat others with respect and I have made a formal complaint about this breach. The truth of the matter is that the petition explicitly upheld the right for everyone to observe and practice their religion in a free society. It did not judge anybody who chooses to eat non-stunned meat in their personal lives. The petition simply pointed out that the majority of certified halal meat is actually from animals that were stunned before slaughter, so there is no need for the council to provide non-stunned meat. It called for our council to treat animals in a more humane way and provide full transparency to families on what it is doing. That is why it attracted thousands of local supporters in just two weeks. As animal welfare is a universal concern, the petition also gained further support from outside Kirklees with thousands of national and international supporters. When I first started to get involved with local issues, I resolved that I would not hold back from raising sensitive concerns where warranted.
I felt that baseless accusations against me could be easily disregarded. But being personally targeted in our council chamber without the opportunity to respond would cause significant strain for anyone. I have always considered it important to treat opposing voices with respect, and I have sought to build polite and courteous personal relationships with local politicians from all parties over the years. Hearing opposing points of view is a highly undervalued benefit of living in a democratic society, and the openness of debate is key for making our communities the best that they can be. I hope that Coun Pandor takes the step of publishing an unreserved apology and retraction of his allegations. I believe this would help to restore the reputation of our local democracy and promote a climate of mutual respect. I would also like to thank the many people who have sent supportive comments via email and social media. We will not be deterred by these allegations and our campaign will continue.
Top Tory slams budget By Zoe Shackleton TORY group leader David Hall has warned council leader Shabir Pandor to “get a grip” ahead of moves to set the latest Kirklees budget. Coun Hall (Liversedge and Gomersal) has hit out after it was revealed that council tax is likely to increase again – by 2.99 per cent. The tax hike would add an extra £5.2m of investment into the council. While Coun Pandor (Lab, Batley West) described budget plans as ‘ambitious’, Coun Hall says Kirklees simply aren’t delivering. He said: “Depressingly, yet again the Labour administration chooses to increase council tax by the maximum they can, while residents see their services deteriorate. “The bin service over Christmas was deplorable, our towns and villages become dirtier, there is a shortage of school places in many areas and our high streets are withering away. “No-one I speak to thinks that Kirklees Council is now delivering, even with the windfall of several millions in unexpected grants from the government this year. “I see in the local papers Labour councillors waxing on about the issue of regeneration: the truth is there is no regeneration money in their budget for any town or village centre other than Dewsbury and Huddersfield. “And even that money doesn’t get spent, apart from wasting millions doing up some old buildings. We are still awaiting Labour’s promised regeneration plans 10 years on.
“Labour couldn’t run a whelk stall, never mind a council. They are fiddling while Rome burns: Coun Pandor, for heaven’s sake get a grip!” Kirklees says the budget will be used to focus on investing in key services and protecting the most vulnerable people. Coun Pandor said: “This is a budget of ambition which shows our commitment to making a real positive difference in the lives of our citizens. “It sets out our vision and ambition to improve quality of life and reduce inequalities by developing a strong and sustainable economy. “Our plans will protect the vulnerable, invest in young people and rejuvenate the local infrastructure. It sends a positive message and supports the whole of Kirklees. “We have a focus on adult social care, which is a growing pressure across the country. Another key priority is to help children and young people enjoy the best start in life. We will do this in many ways, including through money for youth provision and disability services. “We are committed to regeneration, for example by investing in all of our town and village centres, supporting businesses and by improving the environment on a ward-byward basis.” The full budget proposals can be viewed at https://bit.ly/2HuNk3e. Kirklees’ cabinet meets next Tuesday evening to discuss the budget proposals. The Press also approached Liberal Democrat leader Coun John Lawson for a comment.
BATLEY: Police have released CCTV images in relation to an attempted burglary and a burglary on New Year’s Day. The images are from the first incident, where the suspects approached a property on Ashcroft Close at around 5.25pm. They tried to get in through a side door and patio door but fled in a white three-door Audi when the occupants of the house shouted to disturb them. A few minutes later, entry was forced to a property on Deighton Lane by four male suspects who locked a woman in the cellar before taking a number of items of jewellery and a watch. It is thought the men drove off in the same Audi. Three of the suspects are described as Asian and one as white. Anyone with information is asked to contact Kirklees CID via 101, quoting crime reference number 13190001081. The pictures can be seen at www.thepressnews.co.uk.
Gang foiled in store break-in attempt RAVENSTHORPE: A gang of men tried to break into the Heron Foods store on Sunday night. The front of the shop on the Ravensthorpe Retail Park was smashed and an alarm was sounding when the group fled the scene shortly after 5pm, according to an eyewitness. A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police confirmed a group of men attempted to force entry at around 5.10pm but were unable to get in and fled via a car park at the rear of the premises before making off on foot towards North Road. Enquiries are ongoing and anyone with any information should contact Kirklees CID via 101, quoting crime reference number 13190035398.
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Shoplifter punched pensioner A SHOPLIFTER has been locked up for three months after punching a pensioner in the face. Ibrar Mehrban was confronted by the victim, in his late 60s, outside the Nisa local store in Staincliffe Road, Dewsbury, on December 28 because he had noticed him taking some milk from the shop. The 30-year-old then punched the elderly man in his right eye, causing it to bleed, before walking off down the street.
Kirklees magistrates heard that the victim called police and Mehrban was arrested. When he was interviewed, prosecutor Alex Bozman said that Mehrban claimed he only slapped the victim once because he had called him ‘a paedophile’. However Mr Bozman said: “That’s not something that the prosecution accepts.” That allegation is being investigated. The court was also told about another incident on October 27 when
Mehrban was arrested following a disturbance at a property in Dewsbury. As a result, he kicked the window of a police vehicle. Mehrban, of Springfield Avenue in Batley, was subject to a conditional discharge at the time of the offences. He pleaded guilty to criminal damage and assault by beating. He was sentenced to 12 weeks behind bars and will have to pay a £115 victim surcharge when he is released.
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Friday January 25, 2019
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LIFE IN BLACK AND WHITE Danny Lockwood
Cards used to trump all reason Y FIRST conversation with the relatively new Batley West councillor Shabir Pandor was in the early days of The Press, when we were busy exposing the scourge of the district’s drugs gangs. Recent news suggests their criminal cousins in rape gangs were equally busy across the district. The same week that we reported a young man’s heroin overdose in Staincliffe, I found myself confronting Yunus Shaikh in a dowdy flat on Manor Way. His windows had been shattered and his car firebombed, and he would shortly be beaten up and hospitalized. He was in his late 40s/early 50s, a wizened thing, sitting cross-legged on the floor. I sat on a sofa between two very large young men. Shaikh’s girlfriend was a young local lass – white, obviously – who I watched staggering round the room, emaciat-
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ed, her arms raddled with needle marks, eyes rolling in her head. I’d watched from my car as people went to the heavily bolted door, knocked and put money through the letterbox, before receiving their ‘goods’. Yunus claimed the attacks were because someone wanted his flat – glass still on carpet, what looked like blood on walls and ceiling – and not because he was a drug dealer on someone else’s turf. He said he couldn’t possibly be a drug dealer, because he was somehow related to Coun Shabir Pandor and was from the same village. Pandor would vouch for him! The local councillor for Manor Way did no such thing of course and, as you’d expect, nearly soiled himself in panic and denial. But neither did the councillor destined to lead Kirklees Council visibly do anything about the drug war and asso-
Council leader Shabir Pandor ciated fatalities in his ward, or act on the plight of that girl who looked weeks from death. That was left to the late and much-lamented councillor, Margaret Bates, who had no civic Batley responsibilities but was a proud former Staincliffe lass. As Pandor kept his head
BATLEY IRISH DEMOCRATIC LEAGUE CLUB
down, Margaret got angry. The den was shut down, prison sentences followed. That young woman wrote to me from HMP New Hall in Flockton saying it saved her life. I’ve not had many conversations with Shabir Pandor over the years, but such as we’ve spoken it’s largely been off the record. I’ve always found him pleasant. And no, I won’t reveal those private conversations, even as he acts with what I consider malicious intent and treats the citizens of Kirklees with utter contempt. His scurrilous attack on people raising legitimate concerns about the covert supply of non-stunned halal meat in schools exposes him as a man of limited intelligence, poor political judgment and – worst – a dangerous player of the race card. Can’t argue based on logic? Call ‘em racist. Won’t discuss a touchy subject? Call ‘em racist. It demeans a position he is clearly unfit for. I like my curries. I’ve eaten lots of halal meat – most of it humanely slaughtered I expect, because to the vast majority of UK Muslims, that’s acceptable. I make an informed choice and this entire subject boils
down to that simple issue for most reasonable people. It’s only the religious fundamentalists – people like Shabir Pandor’s brother, mufti Mohammed Amin Pandor – who insist on nonstunned. And as we’ve come to expect from Kirklees Council, those people are the highly political faction they pander to – riding roughshod over ordinary people’s sensitivities and a basic right to information and choice. Others who oppose cruelty to animals have an equally valid argument, one that would ironically be defended to the hilt by Labour activists in any other circumstance but this. But they don’t because the ‘M’ and the ‘R’ words can be played, like Jokers in a pack of cards. They are used to trump all reason, all rational argument, to defame honest people and to demean the issue. It’s shameful. No-one is, or has, criticised – let alone attacked – a community or a creed here, just a questionable practice and the deceiving of the wider populace. It’s as simple as that. As such the only people playing the divisive game are councillors Shabir Pandor, Fazila Loonat and their mob
of far-left keyboard warriors. Coun Loonat is currently trying to blame some alleged abuse she’s received on a column I wrote in November. You should have informed us Fazila, because that’s unacceptable and we will always challenge it. But – and it’s a big but – given the subject matter involved, the adage ‘don’t like the heat, stay out of the kitchen’ is quite apt, because what she will still not acknowledge or take responsibility for, is her part in bringing that ordure down on her own head. Faced with defending an uncomfortable situation when the halal story broke, she chose to throw the race bomb, then run and hide. It was cheap and divisive – and if Loonat and her fellow Momentum devotees who are busy trying to intimidate me and blacken my name haven’t yet realised, that doesn’t work either. But hers was a minor error of judgement compared to Pandor’s. Launching a full-frontal race attack by way of shutting down debate was outrageous and the man should resign. Mind you – so should every cowardly Kirklees councillor that didn’t roundly condemn him for it.
An accusation that genuinely hurts A PPARENTLY I’m a bully, which came as both a surprise and a disappointment. Not a physical bully – let’s be honest, I’m a bit over the hill for that. But verbally and literarily (and try saying that when you’re three sheets to the wind!) it seems I’m a bona fide beastie. And worse, much worse to my mind, I stand accused of being a misogynistic bully, in that I pick on women. Women in politics, specifically, but not exclusively. I’ve been made aware of this mostly via a wave of far-left hate, courtesy of recent TV appearances on the BBC. I won’t be going back on Newsnight or Politics Live, because even General Custer wouldn’t have gone back to get ambushed again. Twitter’s been binned. I was almost literally gobsmacked when Emily Maitlis dropped a bombshell that female Labour MPs wouldn’t share a TV platform with me. My shocked request that she reveal their identities made me a sinister revengeseeker, it seems, one step removed from Thomas Mair. No matter that my reaction would have been the same if it had been Labour men, I’d fallen into the Beeb’s trap. More fool Locky, but that’s what we’re up against, folks. As someone who suffered childhood bullying and whose every significant adult role model was female, that accusation hurts. It’s one human characteristic I despise and
ENTION of equal opportunity platforms and take a minute to look at the letter sent by the Freemasons on p8. It seems my mickey-take about the ‘shared characteristics’ of the 55 men arrested
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will combat wherever I see it – but of course there’s an agenda here, there always is. Who were those MPs? I’d guess people not well equipped for intelligent debate like Naz Shah or Diane Abbott – and no doubt that makes me a racist and sexist bully. But I’d happily say the same of men of very limited intelligence like Jeremy Corbyn, or intellectually pompous ideologues like Vince Cable. You see, this supposedly enlightened age of sex and race equality applies only so far as it suits either the sex or race rottweilers – because only they get to define who can say what, before they weaponise the hate-labels that belong exclusively to them. I’m accused of bullying Fazila Loonat in November, the clear subtext being that it was because she’s female/Muslim. No. She’s an elected councillor and Momentum activist. In the game, by choice. And pray tell, what category did my ‘bullying’ come under when holding to account ex-MP Simon Reevell (Tory) or ex-Kirklees Labour leader David Sheard? This column deals in equal opportunity insults, both ways, and I consider the bullying tag a cheap cop-out. We pride ourselves on giving prominence to critics so bring it on, but bring your best game, because just as you question me, I’ll question back. Isn’t that what debate and opinion is about?
on historic child sex allegations has “angered and upset many members”. In the words of the great Castleford rugby league pundit Mick Morgan, “ah carnt speyk”. Still, I won’t add further
insult to the injury felt by the Grand Master Poohbah and his well-meaning acolytes. Instead I’ll stand by the door awaiting notification from the Vatican of my excommunication from the church…
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
Charity’s street kitchen offers new hope for homeless people
By Zoe Shackleton THE Batley Homeless Project has gone from strength to strength since its inception two years ago. Now the team behind the charity is striving for even more success after opening the doors to a new indoor street kitchen. Spearheaded by chairman Derek Hallas, the homeless charity was given a National Lottery grant of more than £5,000 to open a warm shelter. For the past few years, volunteers have been braving cold Friday nights on the bandstand outside Dewsbury Town Hall to provide warm meals. Now they have an indoor base to provide people with “food, drink, clothing, toiletries – anything they
need to help”. Derek and the rest of the team opened the new premises at 4 Bond Street in Dewsbury town centre on Friday evening. Dewsbury MP Paula Sherriff attended and spent time talking to service users and hailing the “fantastic community charity”. Derek has plans to make it into an outreach community centre in the future, but he said: “We wanted to walk before we could run, but it will be extended. “Now we know we’ve got most things in place we can just grow and grow from there.
“It has taken a lot of hard work to get to this stage. Everybody pulled together to make it happen, it’s been lovely to be part of. “There are quite a lot of plans and working together with other organisations to make a difference. “There’s a distinct lack of things like this in Dewsbury and Batley at the moment. All in all it’s a fantastic change for us.” The charity opens the street kitchen on Friday evenings and does community outreach work in Leeds on Wednesday nights. Derek is exploring options to open
“There’s a distinct lack of things like this in Dewsbury and Batley at the moment. All in all, it’s a fantastic change for us.” – DEREK HALLAS, BATLEY HOMELESS PROJECT
the doors more than just one night a week. The charity needs funding to install an actual kitchen at the premises – at present, everything is cooked at home and brought in. Derek says that is something they can apply for through the National Lottery, and he hopes to be able to provide cooking lessons for service users. The charity also has a close relationship with drug and alcohol advice service CHART Kirklees. A representative comes down each Friday to talk to the homeless and give them advice. Derek said: “It’s just the beginning. From where we are now to where we were 12 months ago, we’ve got everything in the right place and we feel really confident. “Where we were on the bandstand at Dewsbury Town Hall, you were limited to what you could do. There was no privacy, no sitting down; now we’ve got that and it’s so much better. We can offer so much more.” Miss Sherriff said: “I’ve been greatly concerned with the growing numbers of homeless people and the deaths of rough sleepers at a time when local services are being cut and struggling to meet growing demand. “Batley Homeless Project is a fantastic community charity that does a great job. Well done to chairman Derek Hallas and all the volunteers and supporters who have helped make this happen.” Anyone wishing to volunteer for the charity can get in touch on Facebook.
News In Brief ‘Lollipop’ appeal BATLEY: Parents at Mill Lane Primary School are urging people to apply for the vacant crossing patrol warden post. The school is situated on a dangerous blind bend and parents say it’s only a matter of time before there’s a serious accident. There hasn’t been a warden in post for over a year. Anyone wanting to take up the job can apply via the Kirklees Council website. A spokesman for the council said: “We’re always keen to hear from people who are interested in becoming a school crossing patrol.” Details can be found at https://jobs.kirklees.gov.uk/SearchResults.a spx?ocg=2091. The closing date for applications is Sunday, March 3.
Speaker change BATLEY: There’s a change of speaker at the Batley History Group meeting on Monday (January 28, 7.30pm). John Lyte will now give a talk on famous hymn composers and their local links. Admission is £2 for members and £4 for non-members.
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Friday January 25, 2019
Politicians should all feel ashamed I wonder how many British girls have fallen victim to the predatory rape gangs that prowl our streets. It must be thousands, possibly tens of thousands. According to a June 2018 Spectator article on the Rotherham rape gang: “We see an urge to degrade and destroy innocence which the institutions of society condoned in thousands of cases over years.” That’s right, while all this was going on the authorities sat on their hands and refused to do anything about the plight of these vulnerable girls – their only action being to threaten with arrest anyone who dared raise concern. The majority of these girls have a working-class background, many of them are estranged from their families and subject to the so-called ‘care’ of the state, and as such they were until relatively recently seen as expendables in the great scheme of things. The priority for our politicians as always is the maintenance of the increasingly fragile multi-cultural society that they’ve imposed on us.
So much cash on HS2 project From: Len Gardner, Batley I understand the HS2 train is billions of pounds over budget. I didn’t know there was that much money to spend in an austerity-minded government. Somebody said the ‘costing’ team had underestimated the compensation element completely. Did they really think people would give up excellent houses, beautiful villages, green belt land and years of inconvenience to make sure that the 10 per cent of the nation who desperately wanted to arrive in London 20 minutes earlier would give up everything for a nominal sum? If today’s organisation of our railway system is any-
Letter of the Week: Steve Cass, Mirfield The only reason that the authorities have begun to act is that the problem has got so big not even they can ignore it. That said, they still keep everything as hush-hush as they possibly can – imagine the furore for instance had the perpetrators and victims of these evil crimes been members of other demographics. We’d never hear the end of it. This is yet another fine mess that our incompetent wishful thinking and essentially dishonest politicians have got us into. Nigh-on everything they touch turns to dust and their latest bright idea inevitably works to our detriment. Lib, Lab, and Con have all presided
thing to go by, the supertrain’s likely to be 20 minutes late – that’s if it’s not cancelled on a day-to-day basis altogether. Then again, we wouldn’t want to stop the private sector making enormous profits out of this white elephant enterprise, would we? I haven’t travelled on a train for a long time, but I remember when I did seeing people using their electronic device, so someone please tell me what difference arriving in London 20 minutes earlier (maybe) will it make to their working day? I am one of the few who would rather see an upgrade and managament improvement to our present system – especially in the north of our great country. Finally, I object to this vast amount of money being spent on a minority of our population. I’m not sure a publicly-
over suicidal immigration policies that fly in the face of public opinion and indeed of common sense. And it is these immigration policies and the politicians that designed and supported them that we have to thank for the presence today on Britain’s streets of rape gangs that prey on our most vulnerable children. From Blair’s “rubbing the noses of the right in diversity” to Cameron and May’s broken promises to reduce immigration, they’ve all played their part. How they’ve got the brass neck to continue putting themselves forward as fit to govern defies understanding; they should all be hanging their heads in shame.
owned railway would be any better, but it couldn’t be much worse.
I worry about our future From: Ms C Bartholomew, Liversedge Referring to the letter from Mr A Roberts (Forum, 11/1), I’m in agreement with him. The good times are over for most and the good times haven’t lasted so long. I can remember ‘job creation schemes’ and all through my working life looking over my shoulder wondering when yet another job was going to vanish. I went to borrow some books from Dewsbury Library and objected to using the booking-in and out machine in there, telling the lady I wasn’t a laboratory rat.
LATEST PLANNING APPLICATIONS H Dalton, formation of vehicular access, 381 Bradford Road, Birkenshaw. A Shan, alterations to former mill to form seven dwellings, 6 Bar Street, Batley. C Cundall, work to tree(s) within a conservation area, 4 Oxford Road, Dewsbury. M Walshaw, extensions and alterations to convert industrial unit to three dwellings, adjacent to 23 Providence Street, Scholes, Cleckheaton. Michael Wood (Morley), work to TPO(s) 10/96, Carden, Wheelwright Drive, Dewsbury. Watson Property Management, work to TPO 07a/01, The Hawthornes, Mill Lane, Birkenshaw. I Laher, work to trees TPO 33a/96, 90 Millbrook Gardens, Dewsbury. Y Umarji, two-storey rear and single-storey front and side extensions, 26 Old Mill View, Thornhill Lees. H Sekhon, change of use of A1 (Retail) to snooker lounge and games room D2 (Assembly and Leisure) (within a Conservation Area), Mina House, 47-51 Daisy Hill,
Dewsbury. Z Hussain, two-storey side and rear and single-storey front extensions, 17 Lincoln Avenue, Heckmondwike. Lala’s Batley Limited, change of use of part A1 (Shops) to A3 (Restaurants and Cafe), Lala’s Restaurant, 351A, Bradford Road, Batley. R Murtaza, the proposal is for erection of single-storey rear extension. The extension projects 6m beyond the rear wall of the original dwellinghouse. The maximum height of the extension is 4m, the height of the eaves of the extension is 2.5m, 12 Ravens Avenue, Scout Hill, Dewsbury. Mr Iqubal, the proposal is for erection of single-storey rear extension. The extension projects 6m beyond the rear wall of the original dwellinghouse. The maximum height of the extension is 4m, the height of the eaves of the extension is 2.5m, 73 Mortimer Avenue, Healey, Batley. K Mahmood, single-storey rear extension, 11 Field Lane, Ravensthorpe. D Sandison, first floor extension,
43 Rectory Drive, Birstall. Craven Timber Batley Ltd, advertisement consent for erection of non-illuminated signs, Craven Timber Batley Ltd, 36, Wormald Street, Millbridge, Liversedge. A Marshall, work to trees TPO 42/80, 46 Leeds Road, Littletown. S Thornhill, work to tree TPO 22/95, 9 Fair Ways, Upper Hopton. Pakistani Muslim Association, discharge condition 3 (air conditioning units) and 4 (external doors) on previous permission 2015/93465 for removal of upper floors and installation of new ground, first and second floors, new steps and doors to entrance, access platform to internal lift, roof lights and solar panels to roof and repair of stonework and window (within a Conservation Area), Rashid Rabbani Madni Jamia Masjid, Northgate, Dewsbury. G Hancock, detached dwelling, 375 Halifax Road, Hightown, Liversedge. K Waller, single-storey side extension, 1 Kitson Hill Crescent, Mirfield. Carlinghow Mills Ltd, discharge condition 3 (Phase I Desk Study Report) on previous permission
2018/92734 for erection of singlestorey industrial units (within a Conservation Area), Carlinghow Mills, Unit 41a, 501 Bradford Road, Batley. S Patel, the proposal is for erection of single-storey rear extension. The extension projects 6m beyond the rear wall of the original dwellinghouse. The maximum height of the extension is 3.42m, the height of the eaves of the extension is 2.55m, 17 Wayne Close, Batley. A Smith, certificate of lawfulness for existing double detached garage with room over, 619 Bradford Road, Birkenshaw. WSG Property (Holdings) Ltd, discharge conditions 18-21 on previous permission 2018/90186 for conversion of former fire station to four residential apartments and office and erection of factory outlet, former fire station, Huddersfield Road, Scout Hill, Dewsbury. I Mayet, discharge condition 3 (ventilation) on previous permission 2018/92397 for erection of extensions, repairs and alterations to restaurant (within a Conservation Area), 9 Market Place, Batley.
I told her we are a third world country, she genuinely thought I was wrong. I don’t blame people for giving up and living on benefits, but it isn’t a stress-free existence, the people are treated very shabbily indeed. The trouble is the large companies do everything they can to avoid paying taxes and prefer to pay dividends to shareholders and directors etc. I really worry about the young and the mess they will have to cope with. I can see our government going the same way as totalitarian regimes just to keep the status quo.
Their posturing is a disgrace From: Steve Oliver, Heckmondwike I can follow Steven Whitelock’s argument (Forum, 18/1) about constituencies voting for either Leave or Remain in the referendum, but I am puzzled about his figures of 270 for Leave and 129 for Remain? His total of 399 is far short of the total constituencies (and MPs) which is 650. The figure for Leave was 396 (61 per cent) with Remain at 254 (39 per cent). Of the 481 MPs who were canvassing for Remain, as many as 227 (41 per cent) of them were humiliated by a vote to Leave. The current parliamentary political manoeuvering and posturing is a disgrace and a grave insult to the democratic process. The idiotic calls for a ‘people’s vote’ is just the losers grasping for “let’s have another try” or “double or quits” – then what? The next idiotic excuse for
another vote is that 16-17 year olds should now be given the vote and also one million+ people will have died since. This seems to imply that the new voters would vote Remain and all the deceased voted Leave. Considering that in the referendum, 57 per cent of the younger voters (18-24) chose NOT to bother voting, then giving the vote to the even younger 16-17s would probably show an even worse figure, as it might distract them from their devices glued to the hand or the ear. How many of those 396 MPs (in the Leave constituencies) are still backing Leave? Witnessing the debates and the voting in the House of Commons, many of them are now sticking to their Remain leanings. I agree with Steven Whitelock when he wrote: “The difficulty is making MPs accede to the will of the people. Democracy in action?” … NOT!
Why are they all on my TV? From: Mr PH Rhodes, Mirfield With all the political upheaval, uncertainty and lack of proper leadership of our country, there seems to have been an explosion in people who know all the solutions, appearing on our screens. Consumer behaviour experts, think tanks, retail analysts/consultants, watchdogs, policy advisors, comissions for this and that, trusts, civil servants, counsellors, monetary experts, economists – did any of them predict the 2008 crash? Some burst into excitement
and ecstasy, telling us mostly what we already know – eureka! What do they study at university? How to get the best jobs! All nationalities are getting on the gray train. Americans, Australians, Irish and Canadians, they certainly know where to come – soft-touch ‘candyfloss’ UK. ‘Bureaucracy is the enemy of productivity’.
Lodges appeal to everyone From: David S Pratt, Provincial Grand Master of the Masonic Province of Yorkshire West Riding Dear Mr Lockwood, As the head of the Freemasons in West Yorkshire, I am responding to your Ed Lines opinion piece dated January 18, 2019. Whilst I understand the sarcasm is directed at the prosecuting authorities, referencing Freemasons in this way is most unwelcome, and has angered and upset many members, which I’m sure wasn’t your intention. Over the centuries our organisation has attracted many great and distinguished men to join our ranks. Your belief that our lodges are “stuffed full of cops” is simply not the case. Freemasonry appeals to men – and yes, women – for many different reasons, and our members who do wear “pinnies” (or correctly – “aprons”) with pride in our ceremonies and at public occasions, come from many walks of life, including those working in your own profession!
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
2019 Brochure now available From page 8
Just where do they stand? From: Ian Fitton, via email I see from last week’s article in The Press that both Tracy Brabin and Paula Sherriff have voted against Theresa May’s Brexit deal . Whilst I agree that this would not be an ideal solu-
tion and some would say it may even be a betrayal of the Brexit voters, could I please ask what both these MPs’ stance/solution is? At present we have a Labour Party who have failed to produce an alternative option on Brexit and seem to be as disorganised as the government, some Labour politicians advocating soft Brexit, others another referendum and others would support remaining. Their leader even refused to talk to the Prime Minister
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even though in the past he has held talks with this country’s enemies (Hezbollah, PLO and IRA). Therefore, as Tracy says this is ‘the most important decision of our times’, could I ask just where do you stand on this? As the prospect of a General Election may occur soon I feel all the voters in your constituencies should be aware where you stand on this major issue as this could very well affect the way they vote.
Sixth form centre showcased PROSPECTIVE students at Heckmondwike Grammar School got to see the new Jo Cox sixth form centre for the first time at an open morning on Saturday. The state-of-the-art centre will be officially opened on Wednesday, but local residents, potential future students and their parents were given guided tours of the new facilities in the converted annex of St James’ Church throughout the morning. Current sixth form students were also on hand to talk about the school and the subjects it offers. Headteacher Peter Roberts said: “It gave a tingle down my spine by how proud I am of our students and staff and the almost unimaginable quality of the facility we now have for our sixth form students. “From a dilapidated old church hall to this splendid study and social space is beyond what I thought was achievable. “To have it named after our dear friend and former head girl Jo Cox is the cherry on the
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News In Brief Housing scheme drop-in event MIRFIELD: Residents are invited to view plans for the massive Dewsbury Riverside housing scheme at a drop-in event next month. More than 4,000 homes could be built on green belt land between Mirfield and Ravensthorpe, along with schools, primary care facilities and retail premises. The plans have received widespread backlash from campaigners who believe the proposed housing numbers are too high. The drop-in session will be at Mirfield Community Centre on Thursday, February 7 from 3.30pm-7pm. Anyone not able to attend can email their comments to andrew.rose@spawforths.co.uk or call 01924 876876.
Post Office closure MIRFIELD: Greenside Post Office, in the One Stop shop, is set to close next month. The Post Office has issued a letter to customers saying that the branch operator has resigned and the premises will be withdrawn from use. However it described the closure from February 16 as “temporary” and that it would welcome “any applications from potential retail partners interested in running the branch locally on our behalf.”
Band concert BIRSTALL: The Hammonds Saltaire Band is performing at St Saviour’s Church on Brookroyd Lane next month. Admission to the concert on Saturday February 16 (7.30pm) is £8 and tickets can be bought on the door or in advance by calling Sue Edwards on 01924 477635.
Competition winner COMPETITION: The winner of The Press's recent Total Travel competition was Mrs Claire Moir of Heckmondwike. Mrs Moir won a £500 Jet2 Holidays voucher, courtesy of Total Travel, after being drawn out randomly from almost 300 correct entries. Thank you to everyone who took part.
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Friday January 25, 2019
Kirklees set to pay high price for revamp of recycling system By Tony Earnshaw Local Democracy Reporter PEOPLE in Kirklees are to be encouraged to “reduce, re-use and recycle” as part of a wide-ranging revamp of the borough’s recycling system. The remodelling of the service comes as part of a national project steered by the government, which includes separating food waste to help reduce greenhouse gases from landfill. Plans to oblige councils to separate food waste, with the mandatory ruling coming in by 2023, were announced in December. The scheme is likely to cost Kirklees Council dearly, but senior officers have warned that doing nothing would result in serious financial implications for the authority. As well as cutting food waste, which costs the council £1m each year, the recycling revamp will include a deposit return scheme, a chargeable garden waste collection service, as well as the introduction of home compost bins, wormeries and green cones. A £5,000 pilot project on reduc-
ing food waste took place in Ravensthorpe and was well received. In outlining the scope of the overhaul Karl Battersby, the council’s strategic director for economy and infrastructure, said ending the authority’s waste and recycling contract with French-owned Suez (formerly Sita) would be expensive. But he added that the government’s proposals represented an opportunity for the council to completely remodel the service to take it in a different direction – “and that’s something we fully intend to do”. Figures released last month show just 27 per cent of household waste is recycled, down from 30 per cent in 2016/17. The level – 17 per cent below the national average and 21 per cent worse than neighbouring Calderdale – makes
“Clearly, we have a very steep hill to climb given our current recycling rate. It’s something I’m not proud of. This will require significant investment. ‘Do nothing’ is not an option” – KARL BATTERSBY, director for economy and infrastructure
recycling citizens and to accept that the council itself would need to “dig deep” to cover the cost, which would “hurt financially”. But there was also a call for greater scrutiny of the project, which Tories warned would be “damn expensive”. Reassurance was sought that the impact of the scheme would not result in three-weekly bin collections. The Liberal Democrats’ Kath Pinnock (Cleckheaton) described the council’s proposals as “an ambition, not a strategy”. She said the drive to encourage householders to recycle had been on the decline for almost a decade and that the situation was “depressing”. “Our figures in Kirklees are a disgrace for recycling. There is nothing at the moment that we can be proud of,” Coun Pinnock said. “Recycling doesn’t work if there is no trust by the people doing the recycling. “Unless we think of the recycling from the household to the user end of it, then we’re not recycling. It might do our figures good but we’re not saving the planet.”
School maintains ‘good’ rating
Club’s £590 poppy boost BATLEY’S branch of the Royal British Legion (RBL) has been handed a cheque worth £590. The Batley Irish Democratic League Club donated the money for the branch’s poppy appeal. It was raised at their Remembrance Day gig on Sunday, November 11. Jean Foley, the ‘Nash’s’ charity organiser, handed the cheque to RBL members Mary Day and Peter Brierley. The Batley branch was at risk of having to close a few months ago as membership dwindled but there are now enough members to continue their work. They meet at the Irish ‘Nash’
Kirklees the 25th worst borough at recycling out of about 350 across the country. “It’s probably the only service the council delivers that affects every single household in the borough,” said Mr Battersby. “The service does need to change and improve. We’re not pretending that it’s an excellent service. “Clearly, we have a very steep hill to climb given our current recycling rate. It’s something I’m not proud of. This will require significant investment. ‘Do nothing’ is not an option. “The service is costing us a lot less than our neighbours but clearly it’s not the service we wish to provide to our residents.” The strategy provoked much debate. The council was urged to cut a better deal with contractors, to encourage residents to be better
Poppy boost... from left, Jean Foley, charity organiser for the Batley Irish ‘Nash’, with Peter Brierley and Mary Day, members of the Batley branch of the Royal British Legion. at 11am on every third Wednesday of the month. Everyone is welcome.
A SCHOOL in Dewsbury has maintained its ‘good’ rating from Ofsted. Bywell Church of England Voluntary Controlled Junior School was also deemed ‘outstanding’ in two out of the four main inspection areas. Inspectors visited the Bendigo Road school last year and found its quality of teaching, learning and assessment and outcomes for pupils ‘good’ – while its effectiveness of leadership, management, personal development, behaviour and welfare was ‘outstanding’. The report said headteacher Zaheda Adam
“leads the school with a strong moral purpose” and “her unwavering vision for all pupils in the school to succeed is adopted wholeheartedly by leaders, staff and governors”. It also said teachers and teaching assistants are highly skilled, pupils’ behaviour is “impeccable” and there is a varied curriculum. To improve even further, the school must develop pupils’ basic skills in writing across all subjects. At the time of the inspection there were 378 pupils enrolled – boys and girls aged seven to 11.
■ FLATTS Nursery School in Dewsbury remains ‘outstanding’, according to Ofsted. Inspectors visited the Ashworth Green school in December for a short inspection. The school had been rated ‘outstanding’ at a full inspection in 2014. Officials found that its 104 children, aged two to five, are happy at the school, which has a wide range of activities. But inspectors said leaders should give adults more opportunity to reflect on and improve their practice and enable children to make better progress.
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ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
Inspectors praise upturn in children’s services By Tony Earnshaw Local Democracy Reporter
Advice on responsible drinking ASDA Dewsbury linked up with a leading alcohol education charity to give free advice on responsible alcohol consumption. Drinkaware set up a stand at the Mill Street West store last week to give customers the opportunity to access advice and ask questions. Dewsbury MP Paula Sherriff went along to support the cause. She said: “For many people, cutting down on alcohol can bring significant short-term and long-term health benefits whilst saving money too. “It’s great to see that Dewsbury ASDA is working with Drinkaware to help inform local people about how they can make changes to improve their drinking habits and improve their health this January.” The partnership was formed to help encourage people to think about their drinking habits and highlight the health benefits of having more drink-free days.
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CHILDREN’S services in Kirklees may have turned a corner. A monitoring visit last month led to Ofsted inspectors praising the “significant progress” made since the service was judged inadequate in September, 2016. Staff are now said to have growing confidence and positivity around the direction in which they are moving, indicating that good work is being done and lessons have been learned. Two years ago a damning inspection report led to government intervention. Now the education and children’s watchdog inspectors say improvement is gathering pace. In outlining the findings of the visit on December 4 and 5, Steve Walker, interim director of children’s services, said it was positive. “The workforce attitude to this visit and prior to it was one of confidence. People were queuing up
(and asking): ‘Are Ofsted going to have a chat with me?’ There was lots and lots of positivity and the feedback from Ofsted was welcomed. We have still got things to do but this was a positive visit. “We note some of the challenges. The workforce is striving to keep on with these improvements, as are the management team.” It is not expected that Ofsted will undertake any further monitoring visits. Instead ‘full inspection mode’ will follow within the coming six months. The council’s newly-appointed director of children’s services, Mel Meggs, who joined the authority in December from Rotherham, where she was deputy director of children’s services, said “small steps” were the secret to recovery. “It’s quite normal on improvement journeys to feel as if you’re not really making any progress and then, suddenly – although it’s because of all the work that’s been done – you see progress,” she said. “That’s the pattern of our
Woman jailed six months for racist abuse A WOMAN has been jailed for six months for shouting racist abuse at takeaway staff and a policewoman. Laura Heywood, 24, of Laurel Drive, Birstall, pleaded with Kirklees magistrates not to send her to prison but after hearing details of a string of previous offences they ignored her request. She admitted two charges of racially-aggravated assault, racially-
aggravated harassment, two counts of criminal damage, theft from a shop, being drunk and disorderly in public, three charges of failing to surrender to court and committing a further offence while subject to a conditional discharge. On May 4 last year, Heywood was drunk when she entered Dixxi Express takeaway on St James Street in Batley with her friend.
She called two staff members ‘P**i b******s’ and threw drinks cans at them. Heywood and her friend then tried to board a bus but police had been called and she became aggressive. Once she was in the police van, Heywood called a female officer a ‘black b*****d’ and ‘n****r’. Magistrates jailed her for 24 weeks.
News In Brief 70mph police chase DEWSBURY: An unlicensed driver led police on a 70mph chase down a busy main road in Dewsbury. Officers tried to pull over Lewis Bennett on Leeds Road shortly after 10am on December 22. But the 21-year-old sped off as they tried to catch up with him. Kirklees magistrates heard that he drove “in excess of 70mph...when the speed limit was 30mph”. He told police he panicked. Bennett, of New Laithe Lane, Lowerhouses, pleaded guilty to offences of dangerous driving, using a vehicle without insurance and driving otherwise than in accordance with a licence. He is due to be sentenced at Leeds Crown Court on Thursday, January 31, and was banned from driving in the meantime.
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improvement letters. You can see small steps, small steps, small steps... Now we have to keep on with the push. What we’re working on now is how we get ready for the full inspection.” Ms Meggs said staff would be put through their paces via the introduction of an outsider who will look at the children in care service at the same level of the Ofsted monitoring visit. Ofsted’s 38-page report, published in November, 2016, said services for vulnerable children in Kirklees were “inadequate, due to serious widespread failures which result in some children not being protected or having their needs met”. It revealed that the Kirklees Safeguarding Children Board raised the alarm about social work standards in August, 2015, prompting then-chief executive Adrian Lythgo to launch an independent review. A review of 226 cases found 10 per cent were of concern, with urgent action required to help some children.
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ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
Throughout 2019 local historian Mike Popplewell will be searching through his newspaper collection from the 1920s and 30s for some of the biggest headlines from home and abroad – while also taking a look at stories making the news in our own district. Readers are welcome to provide feedback if any of these features are remembered personally, or you can recall being told them by an earlier generation.
How little things change Mark Eastwood with volunteers in Dewsbury
Clean-up success RESIDENTS in Dewsbury joined forces with the town’s Tory hopeful for a clean-up at the weekend. Following a number of complaints from people living around the Kirklees College area, Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate Mark Eastwood organised a litter pick in the area on Saturday afternoon, attended by a large number of local residents, Dewsbury Conservatives and members of Kirklees Conservative Group. Mr Eastwood said: “After being contacted by a large number of residents living near the college, I was more than happy to put together a team of volunteers and was delighted by the number of people, not just Conservative activists, who turned out to help out with the clean-up. “Wherever you go in Dewsbury it is noticeable that fly-tipping and littering is becoming a major issue for the town and I would ask that the council does more to alleviate the problem.” Sajid Hussain managed to recruit a number of volunteers from his local mosque to help out. Mr Hussain said: “It was brilliant to see people from our local community pulling together to help clean up our streets and to highlight an issue that is a significant worry for my friends, family and neighbours.” Mr Eastwood was selected in December by the Conservatives to fight the Dewsbury, Mirfield, Denby Dale and Kirkburton seat held currently held by Labour’s Paula Sherriff at the next general election. He intends to organise more ‘community action days’ in the coming weeks. If you would like to get involved or have any comments regarding Conservative policies at a local or national level, he can be contacted by emailing markeastwood4dewsbury@gmail.com.
WO HUNDRED and seventy years ago this month JeanBaptiste Alphonse Karr, a French critic, journalist and novelist, wrote ‘la plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose’ which, translated, suggests ‘the more things change, the more they stay the same!’ Comparing news stories from January 1921 with those of today makes it very difficult to argue with old Jean-Baptiste! We don’t seem to be able to go for long without stories of financial problems for the Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, of which Dewsbury Hospital is part, but looking back to the early post-WW1 years we find that it wasn’t just the less prosperous north that was affected by these things, for St Thomas’ Hospital in London found itself with enormous financial problems. Today St Thomas’ is recognised as one of the UK’s leading hospitals and has been associated with public health care since the 12th century and Florence Nightingale was based here prior to her work in the Crimean War. However, despite these connections, even this illustrious establishment failed to escape the financial collapses going on around it. In January 1921 the Daily Mail carried a large advert in which the hospital declared an urgent appeal for £100,000 (worth nearly £5million today) explaining that a fifth of the available beds were unoccupied due to a lack of funds. That sum had accumulated as a debt during the war years (1914-18)
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and the £7,000 funding for patient care was being used to pay the interest on that loan. Mental health issues for children, bombs in Ireland, issues with benefits, strikes and housing problems, all familiar news stories this month, were also in the news 98 years ago. One story which had a tragic, if not macabre, resonance was the account of a prisoner in Armley Jail who had secreted two bobbins of cotton on himself, after working in the prison weaving shed, and carefully intertwined them until making a strong enough yarn to hang himself. The report of the inquest added a note that he was actually due for discharge the day after the inquest was held. In the light of reports in the past few years of Armley having the highest suicide rate in any British prison it is amazing to think that nearly 100 years of experience of
such incidents have failed to see anyone come up with a failsafe system of prevention. Although the Republic of Ireland had declared itself independent of Great Britain at this time there was still another year to go before it actually established itself as the Irish Free State, so trouble co-existed with negotiation throughout 1921, while elsewhere on the international scene Mahatma Ghandi’s return to India from South Africa led to a growing resistance to British rule. In January 1921 there were reports of revolts with Ghandi’s policy of non-co-operation causing widespread disription of Government affairs which ultimately landed him a six-year prison sentence. Unemployment benefits and food prices were the main concerns for large sections of the population and a Dewsbury housewife could have
expected to pay about 10 per cent of an average weekly wage on groceries - that’s providing there was a working wage coming into the household. However there was always sport and entertainment by way of a distraction from these difficult times, and wherever you were in the country the famed cartoonist Tom Webster was sure to relay the sporting news in a highly entertaining way. Dewsbury has had its share of professional boxers in recent years, like James Hare, Gary Sykes, Jensen Garforth, Michael Smith and Steven Conway, but none could compare with one of Britain’s greatest – Jimmy Wilde. In January 1921 we saw Welshman Wilde, known as ‘the Mighty Atom’, ‘Tylorstown Terror’ and ‘Ghost with a Hammer in his Hand’ and various other nicknames, fight, and lose, to the American Kid Herman at the Royal Albert Hall, one of only three defeats in a 20-year career, and Webster duly recorded the event in his own inimitable style. Wilde was a flyweight, considered the greatest ever at that weight, but was so good he often fought heavier men. How ironic then, that in 1965, at the age of 73, he was mugged at Cardiff station and, having never really recovered from his injuries, died in 1969. Having survived, even thrived, through the hardships of the interwar years Wilde, like so many boxers, spent his last years in poverty – at a time the politicians were telling us ‘We’ve never had it so good’.
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
It’s so much more than just a diner! Advertising Feature BATLEY'S hidden ‘Jem’ has just got bigger, better and even tastier. The bike experts at Jem Speed Shop have responded to huge customer demand by completely transforming their Bradford Road premises to create an all-new dining experience that has to be seen to be believed. After launching in 2017 Jem’s Pit Stop Diner proved to be a hit with customers, located downstairs in the unique ‘streetstyle’ area beneath the bike showroom. It was such a success that the owners decided to expand the concept and, after months of hard work from the 25-strong team, the diner has been relocated upstairs in a real labour of love that launched just before Christmas. Everything that customers loved about the diner remains, but now there’s even more to whet the appetite. The kitchen is four times bigger and the menu has been improved and expanded, but many local residents still aren’t aware of what lies just off Bradford Road. This is more than just a diner, and customers are already flocking to the stunning and surprising venue. The Pit Stop menu includes mouthwatering burgers, pizzas, steaks, sharing platters and hot dogs, some of which will tame the hungriest of appetites! Many of the meals have a motorsport theme, and breakfast is a speciality, with plenty to choose from including pancakes, omelettes and skillet hash. Now open late seven days a week, Jem’s Pit Stop also has THORNHILL: The next meeting of the Thornhill Probus club is on Thursday (January 31). Guest speaker Noel Moroney will give a talk on the Vikings. Everyone is welcome from 10am for a 10.30 start at the Thornhill Social Club on Overthorpe Road. For more
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an impressive bar area with craft beers, wines and gin all available. Families come back again and again to the Pit Stop as there really is something for everyone – and it’s impossible not to be wowed by the table built inside a real VW Camper van! To cope with demand, every Saturday and Sunday coffee, cakes, shakes and sandwiches are also being served downstairs in what was the original Pit Stop diner. The dog-friendly space is perfect for people who don’t want a full meal but still want that Jem’s experience. But first and foremost, Jem Speed Shop is still all about the bikes, and it’s gained a sterling reputation with thousands of bikers across the country. Now based downstairs, the dealership does a roaring trade selling quality used machines to clients all over the country, with collectible and rare bikes from marques including Harley Davidson, Ducati, Triumph, Yamaha and Honda. Across the showroom floor lies the intriguing cobbled street, which has been finished to an incredibly high standard. The Barber Shop will have you looking your best, while the resident tattoo artist can provide you with custom and freehand tattoo designs and piercings in the Voodoo Tattoo studio. And at the end of the street there is a real ale ‘pub’ with a pool table. Jem’s Biker Village is becoming a real destination – and it’s really not just the preserve of the biker community. Customers looking for something a bit different are flocking to Jem’s Pit Stop for a great meal and staying to browse what else is on offer, both upstairs and downstairs. It’s a truly unique experience, make sure you don’t miss out!
information ring 01924 423363. RAMBLERS: The next two walks with the Dewsbury and District Rambling Club will take place in a week's time. On Wednesday February 6 a walk is planned in Spofforth and Sicklinghall, meeting
David Townend at 10.30am at Castle Street. Then on Sunday February 10 there's a Silsden walk, meeting Stuart Gledhill at Wellington Road car park at 9am. Last Sunday a group set off from Stanley Ferry and rambled through Heath, Crofton, Sharlston and Warmfield on a 12.6-mile walk.
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Friday January 25, 2019
Ramblers’ corner FORTHCOMING walks with the North Kirklees Group of the Ramblers – non-members are always welcome. Please call the walk leader for more details.
SATURDAY JANUARY 26 HARTSHEAD CHURCH Meet at 10.30am at Oakwell Hall Bottom car park (SE211267) Field paths and bridleways Contact: Geoff 01422 379921
Plenty on at Centre BATLEY Older People’s Centre has a number of activities planned next week. ‘Social Sunday’, featuring a buffet plus entertainment from the Batley Poets and musician Joshua Smith, runs from 2pm to 4pm. On Monday (January 28), there is the popular Movement and Games group at the centre on Upper Commercial Street (10.30amnoon). On Tuesday the ‘First Time For E v e r y t h i n g ’ scheme is holding a Pilates class from 1.30pm to 3.30pm. On Thursday, the Lunch Club meets from 11.30pm to 1pm – pre-booking is essential. For details on any activities call 01924 446 100.
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 2 AROUND & ABOUT AGAIN Meet at 11am at Mirfield Library car park (WF14 8AN, SE203197) 7 miles – moderate Contact: Noel 07780 328561
Pat praises parish panto MIRFIELD-BORN actor Sir Patrick Stewart has sent his best wishes to the Mirfield Team Parish pantomime who are celebrating 70 years of productions this year. Sir Patrick used to perform with the pantomime team alongside his brother Trevor before going to drama school in 1957. And although he won’t be a part of next month’s performance of Aladdin, he congratulated the team for their unbroken 70-year run. He said: “It makes me very happy to wish the Mirfield panto happy birthday and congratulations on an unbroken 70-year run. “I am not sure that I was in number one, although I very well could have been. “I am grateful to Mr Wood who organised the early pantomimes and played the piano. He set my feet on the path, which at 78 I am still excitedly
following. I am often amazed and disbelieving when I look back at my career, particularly as it still seems to be flourishing. “I have three films to be released over the next six months or so and in April I begin filming a new Star Trek series in Los Angeles. “It all seems a long way from Dick Whittington but without Dick, Aladdin and company, I would never be where I am today.” The show at St Mary’s Church Hall in Mirfield runs from Wednesday February 6 to Saturday February 9. Tickets are sold out for the show on the Friday, but it’s £4 per ticket on Wednesday (7.15pm), and then £6 for adults and £4 for concessions on Thursday (7.15pm) and Saturday (1pm and 5.30pm). Tickets are available from Julia Wilding on 07973 745510 or jwilding17@sky.com.
Ensemble acting at its best – times 3! ‘Lifex3’ presented by Dewsbury Arts Group Review by Ursula Dean LIFEX3, Yasmina Reza’s darkly comic play of manners, conflicts and chocolate finger biscuits was brought to life this week at Dewsbury Arts Group’s Artspace. Wittily and elegantly directed by Mark Bailey, this tale of two couples (and a never seen, but often heard, six-year-old) set husband against wife, older couple against younger couple and men against women in a confusion of anxiety, jealousy, flirtation and humour fuelled by many bottles of Sancerre and bags of cheesy Wotsits. Set in the Paris apartment of the younger couple, Henri and Sonia, (Matt Bailey and Lacey Telford) the play revolves around the arrival of
Photo: MD Ashwell
Henri’s boss Hubert and his wife Ines (Richard M Brooke and Maria Bailey) for dinner a day earlier than expected. Arguments over Henri’s career, child rearing, laddered stockings, infidelity and the meaning of life follow as the same scene is played out three times, each one cleverly leading the four protagonists to a different outcome. Although, at times, Christopher Hampton’s translation of the play from the original French was a little clunky, the four actors threw themselves into their roles with gusto, bringing out different aspects of their characters with each running of the scene. This was ensemble acting at its best in a play which was a pleasure to watch. The minimalist set was excellently understated and the sound – particularly that of Arnaud, the child in his
bedroom shouting for his mother, his father, food, drink, hugs and anything else to delay the final bedtime – was outstanding. Lucas Fletcher, playing the prerecorded Arnaud was a natural – one to watch out for in the future! The play ends tomorrow (Sat) and some seats are still available. Go to www.dewsburyartsgroup.info or call 01924 505861.
SPEN VALLEY Historical Society’s next meeting is on Wednesday February 13, 2019, when John Lyte will give a talk on the hymn Abide With Me, by Henry Francis Lyte. Meetings are held in the Catholic Church Parish Hall on Dewsbury Road, Cleckheaton, starting at 7.30pm, with refreshments served from 7.15pm. The cost is £2 per meeting for members, £4 for guests and membership is £10 per year.
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Marketplace Nomination for Rastall GOLF
Turn your unwanted items
into cash £££s 1) Ring Angela on 01924 470296 (9.30am-4.30pm). Have your advert ready and you can pay by debit card (30p surcharge). 2) Call into the office at 31 Branch Road, Batley WF17 5SB and pay by cash, cheque or debit card (30p surcharge). 3) Post your advert and include your name and a contact number, along with cheque for payment. ADVERTS must be no longer than 50 words. (We cannot accept the following items: Motor vehicles, caravans, livestock. All listings will stay in Marketplace for a maximum of two months. If you wish to amend your listing, or cancel when sold, contact or call 01924 470296. NEW Rabbit/guinea pig hutch. Solid wood, two compartments. 5ft wide x 2ft deep. Excellent condition, £20. Tel 07925 127198. (2344) Dehumidifier for sale. Good condition £55. Tel 07816 132472. (2345) Samsonite hard shell suitcases. 1 large, 1 medium with keys and cylinder locks, £50. Tel 07713 367264. (2347) BABY/CHILDREN’S GOODS Britax Maxi Cosi child’s car seat. Suit child 6 months to 4 years. Good condition, £6. Tel 01924 477178. (2329) DIY Mono super 140watt stick welder plus some rods, £30 ono. Tel 01924 430088. (2343) Metal tool box, red with keys. Four drawers. Full of engineering tools, £110 ono. Tel 01924 430088. (2343) ELECTRICAL Dyson DC33 Vacuum. Very good condition, £25. Tel 07722 280160. (2334) Samsung 43” HD Freeview TV with stand, £75. Tel 07722 280160. (2334) FABRIC/FASHION Man’s light brown leather jacket, zip fastening, size large, as new and hardly worn, 12 months old, £50.00. Tel: 01924 451693. (2339)
Handbag, ideal gift, unused, suitable for all ages. First to see will buy, cost £38, sell for £14. Tel Jo on 01924 442711 (Batley). (2336) Unusual cast-iron Christmas tree stand, good quality with 4 strong screws for the trunk, green with green and gold reindeer and sleigh decoration, 6 1/2 “ diameter, £20. Tel 01924 274137. (2337) Ladies’ brown hiplength leather jacket by Arma. Size 12. Excellent condition, worn twice. £20. Tel 01924 477178. (2331) Faux leather pilot’s jacket, size 8-10. £6. Tel 01924 726595. (2332) FOOTWEAR Arco work boots, new, size 9, £10. Tel 07867 692185. (2325) Campri snow boots, new, size 8, £12. Tel 07867 692185. (2325) FURNITURE Mahogany inlaid dining table, £25 ono. Tel 01924 402931. (2342) Cane two-seater oval table. Good condition, £35. Tel 01924 470866. (2335) HOUSEHOLD Luxury 6ft pre-lit Christmas tree. Green with flashing multi-coloured lights. Light-up parcels on the tree. Bought last Christmas cost £135.00. Perfect condition £60.00 ono. Tel 07752 131277 (Liversedge
HOW MUCH DOES IT COST? ITEM bands
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Up to £7: £8 - £25: £26 - £50 £51- £100 £101-£200 £201-£500 £501-£1450 £1,451 plus area). (2340) Reclining sun lounger, green with full size cushion, rarely used, folds up for easy storage with wheels for easy moving, £25. Tel 01924 274137. (2337) Unusual cast-iron Christmas tree stand, good quality with 4 strong screws for the trunk, green with green and gold reindeer and sleigh decoration, 6 1/2 “ diameter, £20. Tel 01924 274137. (2337) KITCHEN Kenwood Mixer (small) with liquidiser and other tools, (£90 in Argos) sell £40 ono. Tel 01924 430088 (2343). Three bowl steamer, hardly used, £12. Tel 07867 692185. (2325) Food processor, hardly used, £12. Tel 07867 692185. (2325) MOTORING Roof rack to fit Vauxhall Astra, com-
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plete with keys. £10, Tel 01924 430088. (2326) MUSICAL Tenor trombone (ex demo), like new. Complete in original hard lightweight case and original mouthpiece. Made in Elkhart, Ind. USA. All Scholistic quality and just ready for playing! (I can demonstrate if required). If cared for could last a beginner to semi or even pro level. Price £110.00 Ring Batley 01924 477016. (2341) PET GOODS Metal dog crate, used, good condition. Doors on front and side. 75cm L x 51cm D x 59cm H. Folds flat for transportation, £10. Tel 01924 465760. (2323) SPORTING/EXERCISE Three-wheeled golf trolley, push type. £15. Tel 01274 876748. (2330) Step machine, £12. Tel 01924 479647. (2324)
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HOWLEY HALL head professional Ryan Rastall has been nominated for a national award with golf retail buying group TGI. Rastall is one of four shortlisted by the group for the ‘Golf Shop of the Year’ and the winner will be announced when TGI holds its annual conference at Trump Turnberry on February 5. A key part of his offering is club fitting which is carried out in his teaching, performance and custom fit centre where golfers can try out the very latest gear from a wide range of manufacturers and see their results using Trackman 4, which captures every detail of the club and ball at impact. Rastall said: “As an individual pro shop we probably have more demo clubs than anybody else in Yorkshire, but I always try to be honest with customers and if I can’t find them something which gives them more distance
or accuracy or will not improve their game then I recommend they stay with what they are currently using.” The Lincolnshire native is in his third year as head professional at the Scotchman Lane club, having previously served as assistant to James Whitaker. “The club have been very supportive in helping me develop the pro shop with enhancements like a new ceiling with great lighting and I have also invested in point of sale and merchandising to help create the right kind of impact,” he said. “The majority of our customers come from outside of the club membership and I have a great team here in my brother Tom and Ben Hutchinson, and just to be nominated for the Pro Shop of the Year from the hundreds of members within the TGI group is a great accolade.” Former Yorkshire amateur champi-
HAPPY SHOP: (L-R) Ryan Rastall, Ben Hutchinson and Tom Rastall on Hutchinson is playing full-time amateur golf and helps out when not competing. The Morley-born golfer made his England debut in the Costa Ballena octagonal match in Spain this week. Rastall’s reputation as a club fitter has been further enhanced by website Golfshake.com, who recently named him equipment expert, and he now conducts equipment testing on their behalf which can be viewed at Golfshake.com. Rastall is attending the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, Florida, as part of the Golfshake team. The convention attracts over 40,000 golf professionals and industry experts from around the world and showcases the latest trends in golf equipment and technology.
RACING PREVIEW WITH MIKE SMITH
Dingo can bring the Dollar A LAN KING has warned he could switch Sky Bet Chase favourite DINGO DOLLAR to a race at Cheltenham if he deems the ground at Doncaster to be too quick for his market leader. The seven-year-old has been favourite for the Town Moor feature tomorrow (Saturday) since the entries were published and is as short as 9/4 with Carrigill’s to land the £100,000 pot. But he also holds an entry in the Spectra Cyber Security Solutions Trophy Handicap Chase at Prestbury Park on the same afternoon where the going is currently good to soft, good in places with four to five millimetres of rain forecast before race day. King has saddled two of the last three winners of this race and, writing in his Racing Post Weekender column, said: “He needs some rain at Doncaster and I wouldn’t run him if the ground was as it was for the last meeting there. In that case he could switch and run in the 2m5f chase at Cheltenham. “That may be a little sharp for him, but he needs an outing and that race would give him experience of the course, which would be important as he is a possible for the Ultima Chase at the Festival.” Second favourite at the time of writing is O O SEVEN, a smart handicapper from Nicky Henderson’s Seven Barrows stable who made a winning return from eight months off (having had a breathing operation) in a five-runner event over C&D last time, staying on to lead near the finish after looking held two out. He made hard work of that,
though, and the percentage call is that he’ll struggle having been raised 5 lb in the weights. But there’s been significant support and Carrigill’s now have him at 6’s after opening at 14-1. Or will it be another Saturday winner for Paul Nicholls? His most recent win in this race came with Big Fella Thanks in 2009, and he looks to have several likely contenders, headed by last year’s runner-up WARRIORS TALE. He was beaten only a head by Wakanda – from a 6lb lower mark – 12 months ago and proved at least as good as ever when resuming winning ways in the 21f Grand Sefton Chase at Aintree by one and a half lengths from Brandon Hill last time. A subsequent rise in the weights makes life tougher here,
though, but the in-form team at Carrigill’s make the 8-1 shot (down from 16’s) their weekend nap. Arkle Trophy favourite LALOR is the star name among 10 entries for the Grade 2 Napoleons Casino & Restaurant Owlerton Sheffield Lightning Novices’ Chase on the same card. Kayley Woollacott’s stable star made a sparkling debut over fences at Cheltenham in November, but odds-on backers had their fingers burnt when he could finish only third behind DYNAMITE DOLLARS in the Henry VIII Novices’ Chase at Sandown on his next start. Despite that reverse, he is a general 5-1 favourite for the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival in March and those odds will likely shorten further if he can get back on the winning trail on Town Moor at 1.30. It’s Trials Day down at Cheltenham where there should be plenty of pointers for the March Festival, and Mick Channon’s GLEN FORSA can complete a hat-trick in the Timeform Novices’ Handicap Chase (1.15), a race his yard won 12 months ago with Mr Whitaker. BLACK OP is expected to have a big run back over hurdles in the Cleeve (3.35) and the growing partnership between FRODON and Bryony Frost can score again in the Cotswold Chase.
CARRIGILL’S NAP: (money back as a free bet if finishes outside top 4): WARRIORS TALE, Saturday, Doncaster, 3.15. AUGUR’S BEST BET: GLEN FORSA, Saturday, Cheltenham, 1.15.
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
21
FOOTBALL
United out of luck as winning run is ended Evo-Stik East Division
OSSETT UNITED CARLTON TOWN
1 1
MANAGER Andy Welsh lamented Ossett United’s poor fortune as their perfect start to 2019 came to an end with a draw against Carlton Town. They took the lead early in the second half through striker Tom Greaves, but were pegged back by Carlton’s Riece Bertram and had to make do with a point after a scrappy finale which saw three red cards brandished. Welsh admitted that it was “frustrating” not to pick up another three points after being the stronger side throughout. “Overall I can’t question the commitment and the work rate,” he said. “I think we dominated the game in large spells. “(We had) a big chance with Greavesy hitting the crossbar, (and) Chippy (Aiden Chippendale) came on and put some excellent deliveries in that we’ve got to dive for to try and get our bodies at. “The luck just wasn’t with us today, the ball wasn’t bouncing in areas where in the last few games it’s landed at someone’s feet and we’ve finished it.” Welsh named an unchanged starting line-up for the third match in a row, and made a strong start with Shiraz Khan having two chances cleared off the line by the away defence. Adam Priestley saw a shot
FRUSTRATED: Ossett United manager Andy Welsh deflected wide while Greaves failed to stretch the goalkeeper with a good opportunity, as United went into the break on level terms. Marko Basic was brought on for Khan at half-time and Ossett came out with renewed vigour, with Corey Gregory firing wide before the opening goal came in the 51st minute. Former FC United of Manchester forward Greaves got ahead of his marker at a corner, heading the ball in from the centre of the box to set them on course for a fourth win on the bounce. However, they suffered a setback 15 minutes later when Bertram levelled at the other end for Carlton, ending United’s spotless defensive start to 2019 after 336 minutes of action. They had a massive chance to respond and retake the lead two minutes later, but goalscorer Greaves failed to add to his tally as his effort
PHOTO: John Hirst
smashed off the crossbar. The home side, with Chippendale and Tom Corner on to bolster their attacking options, did most of the pressing for a winning goal, but Corner missed their best chance to claim maximum points when the keeper got behind his effort at the start of added time. That wasn’t the end of the drama though, as three players were dismissed in the final moments. Oliver Robinson and Ossett’s James Burke engaged in a disagreement in the fifth minute of added time and were both shown red, and with blood still boiling, Tyler Blake lunged into a reckless challenge seconds later and received his marching orders to reduce Carlton to nine men. The point was enough to keep United a point outside the play-offs ahead of the trip to Gresley tomorrow (Saturday, kick-off 3pm).
Great goals galore but Sedge fall short NCEL Premier Division
MALTBY MAIN LIVERSEDGE FC
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A HAT-TRICK from Jordan Turner helped Maltby Main to an exciting win over Liversedge. Fans were treated to a number of high-quality goals to warm the hearts on a cold January afternoon, but Sedge came out on the losing side despite opening the scoring early on. Mason O’Malley came into the side for his debut, joining Oran Thompson in arriving at the club on work experience from Huddersfield Town’s academy. Liversedge took the lead after seven minutes thanks to a superb solo goal. Emile Sinclair cut inside, went past the defender and unleashed a superb strike from outside the box which flew over the head of goalkeeper James Pollard, for his first goal since joining the club.
Rhys Davies could have doubled the lead but his curling shot went over the bar, and the home side quickly responded when goalkeeper Ed Wilzynski failed to clear the danger and the ball came to Steven Hopewell, who backheeled it to Turner to compose and finish. Things quietened down as the half wore on, with the two defences establishing some control over proceedings. Maltby Main could have taken the lead a minute before the break, but Wilzynski did superbly well to stretch and keep out a Matt Moore effort that was heading for the top corner. Moore wasn’t to be denied shortly after half-time though, delivering a rasping shot from 25 yards that the goalkeeper could only stand and admire as it whistled into his bottom corner. Moxam sent a volley wide of the target as the home side searched for more goals, and their lead was extended in
the 71st minute when Moore played in Turner. The forward still had plenty to do, but he cut into the box from the left and curled a great strike into the far corner. His hat-trick goal seven minutes later came from the same position, although this time there was an element of luck as the ball took a flick off a Liversedge defender, leaving Wilzynski, not for the first time in the afternoon, helpless. The goalkeeper did make a top save to keep out Moore in a one-on-one situation, denying the hosts a fifth goal that would have been very harsh. In injury time Liversedge did have a little more to show for their efforts, thanks to yet another beauty as Davies smashed the ball in from distance with the help of the crossbar. Liversedge, who remain in 15th place in the league table, did have another fixture scheduled for last Tuesday but their clash with Goole, which had originally been moved from December, was postponed again. They return to action tomorrow (Saturday, kick-off 3pm) when they travel to Lincolnshire to face play-off chasing Bottesford Town.
HEAVY WOOLLEN FOOTBALL
Deighton move level at the top DEIGHTON WMC moved joint-top of the Heavy Woollen Sunday League Premier Division with a 5-2 win at bottom side Cock of the North. They join Walkers Hounds on 22 points, although Hounds do have a game in hand. Birstall Cricket Club are a point clear at the top of the Championship following a 5-2 over Battyeford. Kyle Walker and Shaun Housecroft both hit doubles for Birstall who also had Jack McDermott on target. Jake
Marshall and David Sheard hit Battyeford’s consolation efforts. Adbullah Mayat and Mohammed Adam both bagged braces as second-placed Mount Pleasant won 4-2 at Overthorpe Sports Club, who had Elliot Brooke and Sean Hodgson on the scoresheet. Snowdon lie a further three points back in third place after they won 2-1 at Inter Batley, who replied through Mahfoozur Kola, while Clifton Rangers Athletic won 3-0 against St Ignatius.
RUGBY UNION
Cleckeaton suffer third defeat on the bounce North One East
HUDDERSFIELD YMCA 26 CLECKHEATON RUFC 13 CLECKHEATON fell to a third consecutive defeat in a full-blooded encounter with Huddersfield YMCA at Laund Hill. Despite the loss Cleck did retain the John Bower Trophy, which is decided on the aggregate of the two games. Having won the home rubber 27-13 earlier in the season, Cleck took the spoils by just a single point. For the trip to Huddersfield, new signing Damian Pearson made his debut after joining the club recently and Mike Swetman returned at outside centre after missing last week’s defeat to Bridlington. Dale Breakwell had two attempts at penalty goals in the opening five minutes when YMCA were caught offside, but the normally reliable outside half was wide of the mark.
Gavin Stead put YMCA on the board with a penalty after 10 minutes and then doubled their lead to 6-0 five minutes later, after the referee deemed a Cleckheaton player had failed to clear the ruck. It was then third time lucky for Breakwell, who added a penalty from 30m, to cut the lead to 6-3. The game wasn’t able to flow as the whistle-happy referee kept blowing for some dubious decisions, much to the annoyance of both sets of supporters. On the half-hour mark James Wilson was sent to the sin bin for an alleged high tackle but YMCA were unable to take advantage of the situation. As the interval approached, Cleckheaton got the first try of the game. A sweeping move to the left saw right wing Mikey Hayward come into the centre and give a scoring pass to Danny Booth, who crossed for his eighth try for the season. Breakwell sent the conversion over the posts from
MY BALL: Ryan Piercy (left) looks to steal a lineout ball the touchline to give Cleck a 10-6 lead at half-time. At the start of the second half, Andy Piper and Pearson were replaced by Henry Iwanejko and Ben Etchells. YMCA were dominating possession and on 46 minutes Sam Hodge, standing off the back of a five-metre scrum, crashed over for an unconverted try, putting YM into a narrow lead. Josh Plunkett was sent to the sin bin on 50 minutes, and although he was deemed offside at the ruck the yellow
PHOTO: Gerald Christian
card seemed severe as it took place in Cleck’s half of the field. YMCA increased the tempo in his absence and attempted several powerful thrusts down the middle of the field but Cleck’s line held firm. When YM’s forward’s had given it their all put failed to break through, the ball was spread to their man of the match, Stead, who capitalised on a tackling mix up between Wilson and Swetman to score under the posts. Stead converted his own
try and the lead was extended to 18-10. Breakwell reduced the arrears on 62 minutes with his second penalty of the game before Stead replied to restore the eight-point advantage, and with just over 10 minutes to go the scoreboard read 21-13 in the home side’s favour. Cleckheaton gave away possession too many times in the second half, largely from kicks rather than from errors. Huddersfield YMCA, like Bridlington and Scarborough in previous weeks, were quite happy to keep possession and work their way up the field with plenty of patience. Cleckheaton, on the other hand, opted to kick when this was going to achieve little real outcome. This included at least two kicks that bounced into touch only for the ensuing line-outs to be uncontested and the ball quickly propelled from whence it came. Cleckheaton did have some chances as the game neared
its end. Breakwell found Booth with space to run with a great cross-field kick, but it was thwarted by the whistle and a very contentious offside call. Cleckheaton were destroying the YMCA scrum at this stage with their man of the match, Paul Turner, showing his power, but the referee continued to intervene in their efforts and with two minutes left to play, YMCA put the game out of reach with a third try in the right corner by Hill which was unconverted for a final score of 26-13. This was an improved performance from Cleck after last week’s lacklustre display, full of commitment, but the concession of 21 penalties and the handing over of possession too often, ultimately cost them points against promotion-chasing YMCA. Nevertheless, there should be some positives for the team to take into tomorrow’s testing clash with table-topping Morpeth at Moorend (kick-off Saturday, 2.15pm).
ThePress
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Friday January 25, 2019
AMATEUR RUGBY LEAGUE
Joined-up thinking aiding Celtic revival As he embarks on his second year as Dewsbury Celtic head coach, Brendan Sheridan explains how he is trying to bring more young players through and continue the first team’s improvement... FTER requiring a final day victory to stave off the prospect of re-election in the NCL in 2017, last season could certainly be seen as an improvement for Dewsbury Celtic. Brendan Sheridan took the reins after Division Three safety was confirmed, and steered the club to a seventh-place finish in his first year in charge. In fact, they would have made the play-offs if not for an administrative error early in the season which saw regular Adam Egan deemed ineligible to play, and Celtic docked two points in the league table. The progress made is clear though, and the next step is building on that start as former Birstall Vic coach Sheridan embarks on his second year at the helm. With the help of assistants Mark Brierley, Danny Lee, Dom Byrne and Josh West, he is taking charge not only of the first team but Celtic’s second team in the Yorkshire Men’s League and the under 18s side as well. “I’ve got all three squads running with me at the moment,” Sheridan explained. “It’s just the way that I’m coaching and the systems I’m running. “At a younger age group, you’re just looking at getting the best out of them, enjoying the game and the sport in general, so you can only touch on aspects of the game because you don’t want to take that enjoyment out. “But as they get older, the younger guys coming into the older end of the age groups need to be playing the same system so that when they do come through to the first team they’ve got some knowhow, and it’s not taking pre-season after pre-season trying to get everything across. “So it’s a three- or four-year plan that we’ve looked at, and I’ve just decided that it would be beneficial for the club. I’ve got my assistants who are all on board, and it’s just
A
TEAM TALK: Dewsbury Celtic receive instructions during last weekend’s pre-season defeat to Shaw Cross Sharks trying to get across what I need from them to benefit the club in the long term.” The aim for every amateur club is to see their young players successfully make the move into the first team, and Sheridan believes that this joined-up approach will help Celtic’s current crop make the transition. “The young guys that played a bit of second team last year were still 16 and 17, so there’s a lot of experience there for them with regards to playing at a higher level, not so much in regards to skill but obviously the physicality of tackling blokes that are older and two or three stone heavier than the 18year-olds. “As it stands, we’ve got a couple of new players but you don’t know until you’ve actually got your teeth into the season whether they’re actually going to stick around, but 95 per cent of the squad (remain). “With Dom Byrne and Danny Lee retiring (and) Josh West moving into coaching, we’ve lost a lot of
experience there. It’s time for some of these young kids to step up now; they’ve been at the club long enough.” The remaining old hands in the team will be crucial in this process and few players at this level have the experience that Danny Thomas, fresh from helping Jamaica to World Cup qualification in the autumn, brings to the club. Sheridan admits that the fullback is a “massive” figure at the club, adding that “he’s vocal, he’s very experienced, and he’s very good around the young kids. “Danny got the coaches’ player of the year last year so that just shows you the type of season that he had, and he kicked on with the Jamaican squad. He’s going to be really big, especially when it comes to the changing room and the on-field stuff. “You’ve got to reinvent yourself every year, and Danny certainly does that because he stays on top of his fitness and looks after himself, and he’s a role model to any young
Shaw Cross claim hard-fought win to retain Ben Restall Memorial Trophy Friendly
DEWSBURY CELTIC 8 SHAW CROSS SHARKS 12 SHAW CROSS SHARKS retained the Ben Restall Memorial Trophy with a hard-fought victory at Dewsbury Celtic. In the first game of 2019 for both sides, Nathan Wright, Luke Somers and Callum Barker scored the tries for the Sharks to seal a narrow win over their local rivals. Dom Senior and Anthony Dunford touched down for the hosts, and coach Brendan Sheridan believed they could have got more from the game. “We started pretty well but we just lacked a bit of pace,” he admitted. “I think we expected to win the game in the first half but it doesn’t work like that. “There was a lot of change in the second half which lost our cohesion in certain positions, but other than that I was pretty impressed with them. “Obviously the negatives will be looked at on the training field, but the positives are the first half where we had plenty of chances to get over the line and there was a bit of naivety for the first game.” For his opposite number Paul
March, there were plenty of positives to take as a young line-up managed to get over the line for the win. The Sharks coach said: “I did speak about when they get into a dark place when they get physically tired, just to keep going and see if they could come through the other side. Watching the game, I thought they did that very well. “The skill levels were good in the conditions and we’ll get better in that. Obviously we had a lot of young lads out there with some under 18s and two under 16s, but I thought they did a credit to themselves, and if we’re producing youngsters like that then the club’s going to be in a good state in years to come.” The Sharks got off to the perfect start with a try after eight minutes. It wasn’t the silkiest, but a kick in behind ricocheted and fell for Wright to score in the corner. Their lead was soon cancelled though as Celtic hit back, with Senior driving through the Shaw Cross defence and then evading two more defenders to touch down and level the scores. Celtic were the more dominant force for much of the rest of the first half, but the Sharks defended their try line admirably as the sides went into
the break even. However, it was a different story in the second half as the visitors came out rejuvenated, and they could have scored within seconds of the restart when Cam Benson broke clear and looked to sprint the distance, but Danny Thomas was able to block and haul him into touch. Shaw Cross kept on the front foot and their efforts paid off eventually, when Sam Ottewell placed a grubber kick perfectly for Somers to touch down on the right edge and regain the lead. They backed that up five minutes later with a superb try. Celtic coughed up the ball close to the visitors’ line, and Barker was sent away to sprint the length of the field and extend their advantage to eight points. With the clock ticking down the home side did find a response, with Dunford scoring in the left corner to give Celtic hope going into the final four minutes. Shaw Cross were able to see out those final seconds though to win the Ben Restall Memorial Trophy and secure a good start to their pre-season, ahead of this weekend’s Challenge Cup tie with Haydock and the start of their NCL Division Two campaign in March.
kid that can still be playing at that age and picking up player of the year awards.” Last season’s mid-table Division Three finish was, according to Sheridan, a fair reflection of their efforts throughout the campaign. He said: “The games that we lost we didn’t deserve to win, because we were either not good enough or we did things in games that we just wouldn’t accept to get a win. The games that we did win we deserved. “I think there were massive steps forward for the club, to go from third bottom to finish just two points out of the play-offs. You’ve got to look at the squad and the players and how they reacted in certain situations, and I’d say it was a pretty good season from where we started to where we finished. “But it all comes down to consistency with training, and you can’t be having blokes turning up one week for training and then not turning up the next. It’s got to be a continuous sacrifice across the board.”
This season’s Division Three has been expanded to 14 teams, and Sheridan admits that the admission of Batley Boys, Hensingham and Heworth, along with big clubs dropping down from Division Two, will make the league much tougher this time around. “It’s going to be very tough but we just need to get off the blocks quickly, get off to a flying start, and make sure we give ourselves the best opportunity, and that starts from the training field,” he said. “If you’re not training then you’re not going to get that consistency and that cohesion with your work colleagues, and that’s what we’ve been looking for. I’ve been impressed with the pre-season that we’ve had so far, so I’m looking forward to this year.” Celtic had their first hit-out of pre-season last weekend, losing by four points to local rivals Shaw Cross Sharks in the annual Ben Restall Memorial game. Sheridan admits that there is plenty still to work on, but says that having dominated for spells, “another three or four games down the line, passes stick and people pass the ball rather than thinking about themselves and we’d get over a couple of times.” With Celtic not taking part in the Challenge Cup this year, they are hoping to arrange another pre-season fixture before the league campaign begins on February 23 with a trip to Salford City Roosters. Having come so close to making the Division Three play-offs last season, it is no surprise what they are aiming for this time around. “We were two points off there but we were in a position where, with the run of results that we should have picked up, we could have finished second or third,” Sheridan said. “We’ve got to be looking at the top six. Anything below that is not the standard that I set from last year.”
BADMINTON
Heckmondwike claim gold HECKMONDWIKE Grammar School Key Stage 3 and 4 boys’ badminton teams competed in the West Yorkshire championships hosted by the Grammar School at Leeds. The Key stage 4 boys’ team of Anthony Zhao, David Peng, Nandakishore Kahumani and Srinath Ravi were drawn in a tough group but put in a spirited performance, losing their first three matches by only a single point. They bounced back to produce an excellent win against Beckfoot, and finished in third place overall. The Key stage 3 boys’ team of Asish Chittamuru, Suhas Gudla, Akhil Maddula and Sumedh Chittamuru stormed through the group stages, beating Beckfoot, North Huddersfield and Q.E.G.S without losing a game. In the final against The Grammar School at Leeds, they made a great start with Asish winning his singles
match. Suhas and Akhil then secured a doubles win, followed up by Sumedth winning the second singles match with some high quality play. The players went on to comfortably win the remaining two doubles matches and secured the
YOUNG STARS: Heckmondwike Grammar School’s teams gold medal as West Yorkshire Champions. They will now play in the Yorkshire Championships at York Railway Institute on March 19.
ThePress
Friday January 25, 2019
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RUGBY LEAGUE
Bulls claim Yorkshire Cup Yorkshire Cup
BATLEY BULLDOGS BRADFORD BULLS
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Stephen Ibbetson at Fox’s Biscuits Stadium BRADFORD BULLS were crowned Yorkshire Cup champions in a pulsating final against Batley Bulldogs at the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium. Not everybody had been won over by the legitimacy of this reincarnated tournament over the last three weeks, but it has gone a long way to gaining credibility after a match which contained no lack of drama, excitement and typical Yorkshire biff. Some coaches have insisted that these remain pre-season fixtures first and foremost, but nobody seemed to have told the 40 players who took to the field on Sunday. With a number of flare-ups, five sinbinnings and only a penalty kick proving the difference, this game had plenty of action to warm up the more than 2,000 fans who assembled at Mount Pleasant on a typically chilly January afternoon. Both clubs were strongly represented on the terraces and it was a game that, in truth, neither team deserved to lose, and Bulldogs coach Matt Diskin certainly felt that his side were “the best team all day long.” Batley made just one change to their 20-man line-up with Paul Brearley, who signed a permanent deal with the club a few days earlier, replaced by Adam Gledhill, while Bradford named a strong side after splitting their squad in half for two matches the previous weekend. T h e B u l l d o g s played up the YORK CITY KNIGHTS: slope in the Matty Marsh 8 first half and, Ash Robson 8 despite losing Jason Bass 7 Ashley Gibson Brad Hey 8 to injury Perry Whiteley 7 inside the first Ben Cockayne 9 60 seconds, Connor Robinson 7 Graeme Horne 7 Bradford put Will Jubb 8 them under Jack Teanby 9 pressure in the Mike Kelly 7 opening 10 Liam Salter 7 minutes. Marcus Stock 7 W a y n e Subs: Reittie stopped David Petersen 8 the Bulls’ best
MATCH STATS
Ronan Dixon Josh Jordan-Roberts Joe Porter Judah Mazive Kevin Brown Reece Rushworth Tries: Petersen (25), Robson (34, 74), Stock (38), Marsh (50), Mazive (59), Rushworth (70). Goals: Robinson 3/7. DEWSBURY RAMS: Andy Gabriel Rob Worrincy Jack Richardson Danny King Tom Halliday Jacob Thomas Lewis Heckford Jode Sheriffe Liam Mackay Toby Richardson Charlie Martin Daniel Igbinedion Kyle Trout Subs: Sam Day Lucas Walshaw Jack Ray Tom Garratt Tries: None. Goals: None. Referee: J McMullen Half-time: 14-0 Penalties: 8-4 Man of the match: Jack Teanby (York) Attendance: 483
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chance for a try by claiming Rowan Milnes’s high kick ahead of Rhys Evans. The home side grew into the half though and began to build momentum, with James Brown coming off the interchange bench early and making an impact. He was involved when Alistair Leak found him with an offload and he and Dave Scott broke up the field, but they couldn’t take advantage of a subsequent penalty as Dane Manning was hauled into touch. Jon Magrin then knocked on for Bradford though, and Louis Jouffret’s kick earned a drop out from which, following a good run from Dom Brambani, Leak almost scored the first points of the match but saw the ball slip from his grasp as he stretched for the line. Another drop out bore no reward for the Bulldogs, and Bradford came forward with Jy Hitchcox looking to score but seeing play brought back for a forward pass. Moments later the Bulls were gifted the only try of the first half, as Jouffret’s pass landed straight in the hands of Ross Oakes to run in and touch down, with Milnes converting. Milnes forced a drop out five minutes before the break as Bradford grew in confidence on the ball, although they could then have been caught out when Jordan Lilley’s pass was intercepted by Johnny Campbell, but the winger only had the pace to break to the half-way line. There was drama on the half-time hooter as Bradford’s George Flanagan, after taking a high, late hit in the final seconds, sought revenge and sparked a mass brawl. Once the referee had the teams separated again, both Flanagan and Brown were sent to the sin bin. With the teams both returning to the field with 12 men, Batley made a brilliant start and scored within three minutes. After pushing for the line with a number of offloads, they carried to within a metre of the line on the left edge, from where Campbell burrowed over from dummy half. Scott added a tricky conversion to level the scores. The winger could have had another a few minutes later after a quick passing move, with Lewis Galbriath’s quick offload just missing Campbell on the touchline. Bradford pushed back and the Bulldogs struggled under the pressure of a revitalised forward pack. George Milton was held up for the Bulls, after
YORK CITY KNIGHTS 34
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at that point like the trophy belonged to the Bulls. With the slope in their favour and Danny Yates bringing a new element off the bench, Batley found new reserves to push on, and after Jouffret’s kick had earned a drop out and the Bradford defence had put in some lastditch tackles, Brambani spotted a gap in the line and sprinted over, with Jouffret’s conversion narrowing the difference to two. Bradford were able to hold on in the final three minutes though, claiming the Yorkshire Cup in a contest that was more than worthy of the great old competition’s name. After the game, winning coach John Kear admitted that his team had to work to get the win over his old side. He said: “I think the players believe me now when I said that when you go to Batley, if you’re going to get anything (then) you’ve got to work for it, and at times you’re going to be made to feel uncomfortable and they’ll be very physical and they’ll come at you and won’t stop coming at you for 80 minutes. “I think it’s been a great occasion and it’s probably a big vindication of the relaunch of the competition. It’s been a big crowd, and it’s been a pretty competitive game with no quarter asked or given. I just think anybody who’s been has been royally entertained by two fully committed teams.”
Knights put Rams to the sword Yorkshire Cup
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CUP TRIUMPH: Bradford Bulls lift the Yorkshire Cup trophy after beating Batley Bulldogs which another penalty went their way with Toby Everett sent to the bin for a high tackle on Matty Wildie. James Green then looked to have grounded the ball for Bradford but referee Tom Grant ruled that he had been held up, with Steve Crossley then kept out a metre from the line on an impressive return following shoulder surgery. The Bulldogs gave away another penalty when Flanagan drove close to the try line, and Lilley opted to take the two points from in front of the posts to edge Bradford back in front. Another couple of penalties saw Batley placed on a team warning, but when the yellow card next came out there were two sent to the bin after Flanagan and Galbriath had a disagreement. It came just after the Bulldogs bombed a huge chance for a try, following Reittie’s lung-busting break up the field. Although he slipped 10m from the line, Manning should have slipped the ball outside him with numbers to his left, but went himself and was held out before Jouffret knocked on. Scott had the chance to level the scores again with 12 minutes to go when Batley were awarded a penalty, but his kick fell just wide from 40m out and the Bulls would soon punish them. A sweeping move to the right edge involving Lilley, Brandon Pickersgill and Jake Webster was finished by Ethan Ryan in the corner, and it looked
DEWSBURY RAMS
0
at Bootham Crescent YORK CITY KNIGHTS produced a strong defensive performance coupled with a clinical attacking showing to dispatch an experimental Dewsbury Rams side with ease on Saturday evening. The Knights showed the defensive solidity which stood them in good stead throughout last year’s League One title-winning season, while the Rams will have cause for concern as squad players failed to stake their claim for a place in the team. In freezing conditions, the game was littered with knock-ons from both teams but there were some exceptional attacking moments, especially from York. After Jack Teanby – playing against the club he left to join York – had a try ruled out by the
official, it was recent signing Dave Petersen who opened the scoring in the 25th minute, diving over next to the sticks after good work from Ronan Dixon, Will Jubb and some magic from Matty Marsh. Ten minutes later winger Ash Robson scored the first of his two tries. After half-back Ben Cockayne’s passing angle was cut off, his improvised kick into the corner was kept in play by the feet of Robson, with the 23-year-old scoring in the corner. Marcus Stock was next to score, the former Coventry man capitalising after a superb break from Brad Hey took the Knights upfield. Robinson missed again but the Knights were completely bossing the game. When the hooter went with the score at 14-0, Dewsbury had barely threatened the Knights’ line and, on the rare occasions they did, they were effectively repelled by James Ford’s men.
Towering forward Lucas Walshaw, however, did cause the Knights a few problems after being introduced from the bench. The first score of the second half was a memorable one when Hey once more streaked clear. Breaking through the line on the left edge, his out-of-the-hand offload mid-tackle released winger Judah Mazive who, after drawing in the full-back, gave the Knights’ Marsh the easiest of run-ins with Robinson converting. Mazive then joined in the tryscoring action when Jubb had sprayed the play wide after a pair of York penalties, an excellent delayed pass found Mazive wide. After jinking past would-be tacklers, he grounded well under pressure as the Rams scrambled. Robinson hit the post with the conversion but the score stood at 24-0 Now visibly tiring, the young Rams team conceded two quick tries, the first of which was scored by York trialist Reece
Rushworth who dived over. Robson then scored a second after again linking effectively with Cockayne. The former Hull KR man threw a couple of dummies before finding Robson on an arcing run and, once the ex-Castleford back had created space by throwing a dummy of his own, he raced through. Powering over Dewsbury’s Andy Gabriel at fullback, he crossed for the game’s final try. While understandably pleased with the win, Knights coach Ford was certainly not getting carried away. He emphasised that the Dewsbury team York will face in their second league fixture will be a very different team. He did, nevertheless, state his contentment after seeing his team hold their opponents to nil, showing the resilience he felt was prevalent in the previous weekend’s reverse in the Yorkshire Cup semi-final at Batley Bulldogs.
MATCH STATS BATLEY BULLDOGS: Dave Scott Wayne Reittie Sam Wood Lewis Galbraith Johnny Campbell Louis Jouffret Dom Brambani Adam Gledhill Alistair Leak Toby Everett Dane Manning Jack Downs Tyler Dickinson Subs: James Brown Sam Smeaton Tom Hemingway Alex Bretherton Michael Ward Danny Yates Keenen Tomlinson Tries: Campbell (43), Brambani (77). Goals: Scott 1/2, Jouffret 1/1. BRADFORD BULLS: Brandon Pickersgill Ashley Gibson Ethan Ryan Ross Oakes Rhys Evans Rowan Milnes Jordan Lilley Liam Kirk Matty Wildie Jon Magrin Connor Farrell Elliot Minchella Mikey Wood Subs: Jy Hitchcox Jake Webster Steve Crossley George Flanagan James Green Matty Storton George Milton Tries: Oakes (28), Ryan (71). Goals: Milnes 1/1, Lilley 2/2.
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Referee: T Grant Half-time: 0-6 Penalties: 7-10 Sin Bin: George Flanagan (40, fighting), James Brown (40, fighting), Toby Everett (54, high tackle), Lewis Galbraith (61, fighting), George Flanagan (61, fighting) Man of the match: Matty Wildie (Bradford) Attendance: 2,278
More live TV games BATLEY BULLDOGS and Dewsbury Rams will both feature at least three times on Sky Sports this season. The RFL confirmed this week that there will be more live coverage of the Championship and League One in 2019 than ever before. In addition to the two sides’ derby clash at the Summer Bash, their fixtures against Toronto Wolfpack will also be shown on Sky. Sky will also broadcast the Championship playoffs, including the PlayOff Final which will determine which team will be promoted to Super League. There will also be additional Championship and League One coverage throughout the season on the Our League app. Meanwhile, it is reported that Batley’s away clash with Toronto on March 17 is set to take place at KCOM Craven Park in Hull.
2019 brochure now available
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Some Rams ‘not at Championship level’ By Stephen Ibbetson Sports Reporter sport@thepressnews.co.uk
DEWSBURY RAMS head coach Lee Greenwood voiced his disappointment with some of the squad’s fringe players after last weekend’s 34-0 loss at York City Knights. Having lost in the Yorkshire Cup semi-finals the week before, Greenwood named an experimental 17-man line-up at Bootham Crescent to give different players a chance to impress. However, in the final pre-season game before the Rams’ Championship campaign gets underway against Rochdale on February 3, a huge defeat to last season’s League One champions left the coach less than pleased. “Obviously you’re never happy with losing to nil, nor do you want to concede 34,” he said. “I don’t want to say it was expected, but I wanted to see more out of some people, just so they could put themselves in contention. “It probably showed what the coaching staff knew, in that some lads aren’t quite ready for this level yet. “I’ve told them that that’s what it’s like every single week, and probably tougher than that at some places, so some lads have got a bit to go yet, or they probably won’t ever be quite ready for this level. That’s just the harsh reality of it. “We’ve tried all different things to give everyone a fair chance, because I’m a firm believer in giving people a chance like that, and that’s done now.
LOCAL DERBY: Dewsbury Celtic and Shaw Cross Sharks went head-to-head for the Ben Restall Memorial Trophy last weekend, with the Sharks winning 12-8. REPORT AND REACTION: P22 “It’s now a couple of weeks’ training and then Rochdale comes, and it turns a bit more ruthless if I’m being honest. That’s when the serious stuff starts and there’s no minutes handed out for the sake of it. “There are a few lads that you probably won’t see now and that’s just how it is, it’s just unfortunate. I never thought for one minute that, bringing all the lads in, all of them would be Championship-ready. “What I couldn’t have told you is which ones were going to be and which ones weren’t, and some lads have proved that they are up to this level, which has been a positive over pre-season. “(There are) others who I think may not be ready straight away at the start of the season, but over the course of the season I think they will get better. It’s just
hard to give them the game time to get them up to speed, because some of them have improved in each friendly as we’ve given them things to work on.” Despite the disappointing signs from the final pre-season match, the three other fixtures, which saw them compete closely with fellow Championship sides Batley Bulldogs and Bradford Bulls and beat Featherstone Rovers, still provided a useful insight for Greenwood as he gets to grips with his squad. “In all four games I wasn’t that bothered about the result if I’m being honest,” he said. “I know we’ve had the Yorkshire Cup brought in this year so obviously it would have been nice to win every single game and lift the trophy, but for where we’re at, it was about getting to know the players pretty quickly, and it’s all been
about getting ready for game one. “It ticks the boxes for what we wanted to see (against York). It was about the lads showing how far they were off. Obviously there’s a lot to work on, but it was about the lads putting their hands up for Rochdale, and some have done that. “If you look at it (the scoreline) it doesn’t make good reading. Am I that bothered about it? No. It was more about the lads getting game time, and just seeing where we were at.” Meanwhile, the Rams are inviting all supporters to attend a fans’ forum tonight (Friday) at 8pm in the Royal Suite at the Tetley’s Stadium. Fans will be able to put their questions to head coach Greenwood. The event is free to attend and the bar will be open for refreshments.
Local sides prepare for Challenge Cup
EYE ON THE PRIZE: The Challenge Cup has a new title sponsor in Coral
FOUR amateur sides in the Heavy Woollen area are in Challenge Cup action tomorrow (Saturday) as the knockout competition gets underway. Thornhill Trojans appear to have the toughest task after being drawn away at last season’s unbeaten NCL Premier Division winners Hunslet Club Parkside in the first round. The Trojans are back in the top tier themselves this year and coach James Ratcliffe believes that Parkside should be “as wary of playing us as we are of them.” He added: “It’s a great challenge for us; it’s a challenge we’re all up for. It gives us a starting point as to where we are. It’ll either give us a big shock or actually make us realise we are good enough to stay in this division.” The Trojans beat East Leeds in the first round of the competition last season before bowing out to Pilkington Recs, while Hunslet Parkside made the third round before being knocked out by semi-professional Workington Town. Another amateur side who made the
third round last season were Batley Boys, and they will be looking for more heroics this time following election into the NCL. Having dramatically edged out both Underbank Rangers and the RAF by a single point last year, they travel to East Leeds in the first round of this year’s Challenge Cup, and joint-coach Terry Bairstow would love to see a repeat of their achievements. “We had a great time in it last year and there were some good memories made, and hopefully we can try and repeat it and go even better if we can,” he said. Another intriguing clash involves Dewsbury Moor, who host a Skirlaugh side that they will join in Division One next season following their promotion. “It is the first time Moor have been in the Challenge Cup for a few years, so it’ll be exciting for us as a club. It would be nice to play a professional team,” said new head coach Danny Maun. “I just think the experience of the Challenge Cup for the younger lads will be good, and set them all up for the season because Skirlaugh are a good team and
we’ve got to go and have a crack at them and see what we can do. “It’ll be a massive benchmark for ourselves and I don’t see why we can’t go out there and turn them over. I expect to win every game and it’ll be no different against Skirlaugh in the Cup.” Shaw Cross Sharks reached the second round of the Cup last year, beating Beverley before going out to Oulton Raiders, and they welcome North West Counties side Haydock. Sharks coach Paul March said: “They build confidence, the Cup runs. We started off well against Dewsbury Celtic at the weekend and if we can back that up this week in the first round of the Cup then it will breed confidence and set us up. “It’s all about effort and if we put the effort in that we did against Dewsbury Celtic, we won’t be that far off.” The 26 winners from the first round of the competition will find out their second round opponents when the draw takes place on Monday (January 28) at 6pm on the BBC Sport website.
Cup should have been ours - Diskin COACH Matt Diskin believes that his side’s discipline, combined with a questionable refereeing performance, cost Batley Bulldogs the Yorkshire Cup. Batley matched Bradford Bulls with two tries each in the final at the Fox’s Biscuits Stadium, with only a penalty separating the sides as the visitors claimed the trophy. The match featured plenty of typical Yorkshire biff, with five yellow cards shown over the course of the game by referee Tom Grant, including three for the Bulldogs. Despite falling just short, Diskin has no doubt that his side were the better team in the game. “The old cliché is that the best team lost. I thought that we were the best team all day long,” he said. “A little bit of ill-discipline cost us. It’s easy to blame the referee and I do blame him for a couple of poor decisions, particularly the Toby Everett (sin binning for a high tackle), that was a really poor decision which turned the momentum. “It’s a shame that the man who has such an influence on the game doesn’t need it as it was a great spectacle without it. “My boys were ill-disciplined but also the man in the middle lost control of that and it had a snowball effect. So he needs a bit of help and we need to be better.” Diskin also took issue with what turned out to be the crucial try for the Bulls, calling for a forward pass when Ethan Ryan touched down nine minutes from time. Overall though, the former Bulls hooker could be more than pleased with the effort that his Batley side put in against opposition made up largely of full-time players. “We played the majority of the second half against a full-time team and they struggled to break us down,” he said. “We made them work for it and I thought we were the best team throughout. Our boys are gutted because we deserved more out of that game. “It does mess you up a little bit when you’ve got 20 players and you’re trying to give everyone game time. It is hard to juggle as a coach and as players, but we wanted to win that and I thought we deserved to. I think we were really unlucky to be on the losing side.” Despite not getting his hands on the trophy, Diskin believes that the resurrection of the Yorkshire Cup as a pre-season tournament has been a big success after over 2,000 fans descended on Mount Pleasant to watch the final. “It’s a great crowd, a good final and I think it was really good that it was here as well. It was nice and close (and had) a really good atmosphere,” he said. “I think you can see how people have bought into the Yorkshire Cup concept. It’s easy for the teams that have dropped out early to just water it down. We’ve approached it and been competitive in every game, and I think we’re very unfortunate not to do better.”