
















Lairds
Georgians
4 February 2023
programme #20 2022/23
Lairds
Georgians
4 February 2023
programme #20 2022/23
Legal entity: Unincorporated association
President: Roy Williams
Vice-president: Eddie Trotter
Chairman: Lee Atherton
Vice-chairman: Tommy Potter
Junior section chairman: Andy Grant
Director of Football: Stuart Humphreys
Secretary: Anthony ‘Toddy’ Wood
Treasurer: Shaun Holmes
Other committee members: Geoff Quick, Tony Thelwell, Chris Wood
Media officer: Patrick Burke
Manager: Stuart Keir
Assistant manager: Jordan Scott
Coaches: Josh Hine
Goalkeeper coach: Judd Lewis
Physio: Matthew McDonald
Website: https:// www.cammelllairdfc1907.com/
Twitter: @cammelllairdfc
Facebook: Cammell Laird 1907 FC
Cammell Laird 1907 FC can trace its history back to 1899 when a team from the Upper Boilers Shop of Laird Bros played in Birkenhead Park, before turning to the rugby code. It was not until June 1907 that the Cammell Laird Institute AFC was established, with its first fixture taking place on 2nd September 1907 against Tranmere Rovers, finishing 9th in the West Cheshire League in their inaugural season (1907/08).
In the early years, the Club played at a number of grounds and won their first trophy, the Shipley Cup, in April 1921, before in the summer of 1922 they moved to St Peters Road (which still remains their current home) as Kirklands FC. They disbanded in 1939 but reformed in 1946. The Club had their most successful period during the 1970s and 80s, winning the West Cheshire League on a regular basis. 1994/95 saw the club reach the FA Vase quarterfinals before losing to Arlesey Town.
The early part of the new millennium saw the Club reach new heights. They started the rise through the pyramid, making history by becoming the first
Club to win the championship of the Second and First Divisions of the North West Counties League, which they achieved in 2004/05 and then 2005/06. In the same year as that First Division triumph, the club reached the FA Vase semi-finals, losing to eventual winners Nantwich Town, and two years later, the Club gained promotion to the Unibond Premier League. However, they were relegated after just one season due to ground grading.
Having fought relegation battles successfully, the Club finished bottom of the Evo-Stik Division One North in 2011/12, but were reprieved, and bounced back the following season by finishing league runners up before losing on penalties in the play-off final against Trafford.
Season 2013/14 saw Lairds finish 11th, but the decision was taken to resign from the Evo-Stik NPL and form a new Club: Cammell Laird 1907 FC.
New
The new Club was formed on 28th May 2014 and entered the NWCFL Division One for their inaugural campaign in 2014/15. In October, the Club lost manager Tony Sullivan to Witton Albion, and appointed Paul McNally in the same month. He ably guided the team to promotion, which was achieved on Saturday 4th April. In the end, Lairds finished 21 points clear of 3rd placed AFC Darwen.
2015/16 saw the Club finish 15th in its first season in the NWCFL Premier Division. Early on, Lairds didn’t get the results that their performances deserved, drawing or even losing games that they largely dominated. However, they soon found their feet in the Premier Division. Their best result was an emphatic 4-0 victory against eventual champions Colne in October. In February, Tony Sullivan returned to replace Paul McNally as manager, and the Club ended the campaign with a solid mid-table finish.
At the end of the season, Sullivan departed and was replaced by former Prescot Cables and AFC Darwen manager Neil Prince. The new man in charge made an excellent start, two fine performances deservedly seeing off the challenge of AFC Darwen in the FA Cup. It is fair to say that luck was not on the side of Prince’s team at the start of the league campaign, with several fine performances not getting the results that they deserved. However, after the 3-1 defeat to Squires Gate in September, Prince resigned on good terms with the Club, who were very appreciative of his efforts, and both parties wished each other well for the future.
Prince was replaced by former Lairds striker Mick McGraa, who had taken
over the Reserve Team in the summer. McGraa has worked tirelessly to assemble a very promising young side, and again with a tad more luck in games that Lairds dominated, they could have picked up more points. Everything finally came together on Saturday 18th March 2017, as a brilliant performance saw Lairds beat AFC Darwen 4-1 to record their first league win of the season, which they followed up three days later with a 2-1 victory against in-form Hanley Town. Ultimately, results elsewhere consigned Lairds to relegation by the end of March, but the Club was now in a much stronger position ahead of the Division One campaign to follow in 2017/18. The rebuild commences
That season started off perfectly, the 4-1 win against a higher-ranked Maltby Main side in the Emirates FA Cup a sign of things to come! Lairds were eliminated from that competition despite a valiant effort at Evo-Stik League outfit Leek Town, but after a slightly shaky start, they went from strength to strength in the league. From 5th September to 21st April, they dropped just two points at Kirklands, also defeating Premier Division Congleton Town with ten men on their own patch in the Macron Cup. Lairds initially struggled on the road, but also improved on that front after the turn of the year. They finished the regular campaign as one of the division’s form teams, securing the final play-off place courtesy of a sensational 4-1 victory over championselect Silsden. The Cammells also enjoyed a run to the final of the LWC Drinks Cup, recording a notable 4-0 triumph at fellow top six challengers Alsager Town along the way. In the final against Prestwich Heys at Runcorn Linnets FC, Joe Malkin’s header drew Lairds level at 1-1 just before the hour mark. Despite hammering at the Prestwich door for much of the second half, there was a sucker punch as a brilliant late strike from John Main, followed by an even more incredible save by Heys’ Russell Saunders, saw McGraa’s men on the wrong end of a 2-1 scoreline. However, Lairds responded brilliantly in the play-off semi-final just three days later, stunning the division by going to a Prestwich side, who had hammered them 3-0 on the opening day and finished the season on 91 points, and coming from behind to win 4-1. That set up an all-or-nothing midweek play-off final away at Whitchurch Alport. There was to be more heartbreak as a nightmare start saw Lairds fall 2-0 behind within ten minutes. It just didn’t click for the visitors on the night, and despite Charlie MacInnes giving them hope late on, it was a case of so near yet so far. Two defeats in finals were a horrible ending to what was an outstanding campaign which saw McGraa’s team restore the pride around Kirklands, and deliver long-lasting memories.
opportunity to compete in the Wirral Senior Cup Final, which they had reached courtesy of victories over Poulton Royal, Ellesmere Port Town and Mersey Royal.
For the 2020/21 campaign, the club’s home at Kirklands was renamed the Prabhu Ventures Ltd Arena as part of a new sponsorship deal, while former player Stuart Humphreys was appointed as Director of Football. After a solid start to the delayed season, the North West Counties Football League was suspended from the start of November until mid-December as lockdown restrictions were re-imposed. During that time, Phil Burton and his backroom staff resigned after two-and-a-half years in charge. The season briefly resumed in December, but the season was soon curtailed due to Covid-19 after Lairds had played just seven league matches, with them team placed 13th in the table.
With Lairds unable to play competitive football until May 2021, the club took their time before making a permanent managerial appointment. Stuart Keir was chosen as the man to take the club forward, the former AFC Liverpool boss’ CV impressing the committee as well as his strong reputation for developing youth players.
The Cammells finished 14th after a mixed season in the First Division South, but their exploits in the cup competitions were astonishing and made it a campaign to remember. A 3-0 victory over Heswall in the Wirral Senior Cup Final on 23 April 2022 clinched the first team’s maiden piece of silverware under the 1907 name, which was an afternoon to remember for all concerned. However, their season did not finish there, and an astonishing set of results sent them into the cup finals of both NWCFL cups. A famous comeback win in the A41 Derby at Vauxhall Motors was secured in the last minute by Jay Harvey, and featured in a successful Macron Cup run. Two semi-final wins in the space of four days – against Ilkley Town on penalties in the First Division Cup and Premier Division outfit Congleton Town in the Macron Cup – ensured that Lairds’ campaign would finish with two cup finals. The Macron Cup represented a remarkable feat for Keir’s team given that it included all 60 NWCFL clubs, but sadly the final against Charnock Richard, played at Chorley FC, proved a bridge too far as their opponents ran out 5-0 winners. The First Division Cup Final proved a more closely-fought affair away to promoted FC Isle of Man. Despite matching their opponents throughout, the Cammells unfortunately went down to a 1-0 defeat and they had to settle for finishing as runners-up. However, the incredible end to the season and appearance in three cup finals provides strong evidence that Keir’s team are on the right track going into the 2022/23 campaign.
An eventful close season saw McGraa depart for Vauxhall Motors, who rejoined the Hallmark Security League. The majority of the squad followed the manager to Rivacre Park, but the Committee acted swiftly and made a very exciting appointment in Phil Burton. He guided the club to a solid 15th place finish in the new First Division South, two cup quarter-finals, and extraordinarily Lairds became the lowest ranked team ever to reach a Cheshire Senior Cup Final, where they lost out to Nantwich Town. The 2019/20 campaign started off brightly for Burton’s team, and they were just outside the promotion places at Christmas, but their form then dropped off and only began to pick up shortly before the league was suspended in March due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Lairds were 13th after the final fixtures were played, but the decision was made by the FA to null and void the season. The premature end to the season meant that Lairds missed the
Good afternoon, and a warm welcome back to the KR Couriers and Transport Ltd Stadium for today’s game against Stockport Georgians. We hope that the players, staff, officials and supporters from our visitors enjoy their stay with us here. After the weather-related disruption to our schedule, it has been nice to get back to playing regular football in the last couple of weeks, with some decent results to go with it.
Our first home game of 2023 did not go the way we wanted it to as we fell to a 2-0 defeat to Barnton on the Tuesday before last.
However, we bounced back on our longest away trip of the season to an improving Rocester side, who were unbeaten in their previous four matches. A fine goal from Kieron Frost on his return from suspension was followed by a quick-fire double after the restart from Kalif Koura and Ryan Smith. That put us in cruise control at 3-0, before we made life more difficult for ourselves than we needed to by conceding goals on 75 and 85 minutes. However, the lads saw the game through to its conclusion and collected a welcome three points.
We then faced another long road trip on Tuesday night to Foley Meir, and showed good character to twice come from behind to earn a 2-2 draw. It sounds as though it wasn’t a vintage performance on the night, but it was important to come away with something, and goals from Ryan Smith and Danny Stephens ensured that we did just that.
We’ve had some new additions to the squad in the last few weeks, and the likes of Richard Wincer and Louie Lancaster have settled in extremely well and have already earned regular places in the starting XI. It will certainly require a strong collective effort over the next two-and-a -half months to ensure we finish the season as high up the table as we
can.
Today, we are up against a Stockport Georgians side who have had a fine debut season in the NWCFL, challenging for the play-off places in seventh. They are seven points adrift of Ellesmere Rangers in fifth but with two games in hand, and have proven themselves to be a strong outfit. The reverse fixture on the Bank Holiday Monday in August was in the balance with 15 minutes remaining, but three quick-fire goals from the hosts took the contest away from us and earned them a 3-0 win. Despite their excellent season so far, Georgians have lost their last three matches, so I am sure they will be very keen to bounce back today and we will have to be wary of that hunger.
We of course played regular pre-season friendlies home and away against today’s opponents in years gone by, and there is a great relationship between the two clubs. It is fantastic to see them thriving at this level, and I wish them all the best from after today’s match.
Thank you to Stockport Georgians and Rocester too for agreeing to move our two Saturday home fixtures in February to the earlier kick-off time of 2pm. There are two Tuesday night games here this month as well a Wirral Senior Cup tie against Higher Bebington Kelma on 14th, and a league game against Sandbach United on 28th.
Many thanks for your valued support, without which we as a club could not survive and thrive.
I hope you enjoy today’s issue and the game.
Up them Cammells.
All the best, Patrick Burke
Kick-off times are 3pm for Saturday games and 7:45pm for midweeks unless stated
Substitutions indicated by ›/‹ arrows
Goal times as per the NWCFL website
Man of the Matches as awarded by the opposition
* = won 4-3 on penalties
** = won 3-1 on penalties
Kelly, Carr-Lowe ›, Hamm, McGregor, B. Wood ›› • Koura ‹‹, Philpott ‹, B. Kelly, Hughes • 25’ Kubwalo Edwards, Galt ›, J. Kelly ››, Hamm, B. Wood • Carr-Lowe ‹, Koura ‹‹, Doran, Hughes Hamm (15’) • 39’, 58’, 87’ Edwards Smith, Carr-Lowe ›, Hamm, B. Wood ››››, Koura ›› • Doran ‹‹‹, J. Kelly ‹, Frost ‹‹, Waring ‹‹‹‹, Hughes Kubwalo (51’), Frost (65’), Doran (78’) • 13p, 18’, 28’ Smith Kubwalo ›, Smith, Edwards, Hamm ››››, B. Wood, Waring • Doran ‹‹‹, Bolton ‹‹, Hughes, Frost ‹, Koura ‹‹‹‹ • 36’, 64’, 85’ Waring Smith ©, Edwards ››››, J. Kelly ›››, Downey, Koura › • J. Wood ‹‹, B. Wood ‹‹‹, Bolton, Frost ‹, Galt ‹‹‹‹ J. Kelly (4’), Rodgers (53’), Smith (61’) • 39p, 64’ Kerr Smith, Edwards ›››, Koura ›, Downey, Frost ›››› • J. Wood ‹‹, B. Wood ‹, Galt ‹‹‹, Philpott ‹‹‹‹, Hughes B. Wood (55’) • 31’, 41’ Smith Smith, Rubin ›››, B. Wood ››, Downey, Frost • J. Wood ‹, King, Jones ‹‹‹, Koura, Hamm ‹, Hughes Frost (34’) • 76’ Smith © ››››, Rubin, Hamm ›››, Downey ›››››, Frost ›› • Galt ‹‹‹‹, Edwards ‹, B. Wood ‹‹, Koura ‹‹‹, Carr-Lowe ‹‹‹‹‹ • 75’, 82p, 84’ Rubin Galt ›››››, Jones ››››, A. Lyons, Hamm © ››, B. Wood › • Bolton ‹‹‹, Frost ‹‹, Rubin ‹‹‹‹,, Koura ‹, Carr-Lowe ‹‹‹‹‹ • 5’, 44’, 67’ Waring Rubin, Downey, Hamm ©, B. Wood ›, Frost • Carr-Lowe, Koura ‹, Philpott, Hughes Frost (3’), Rubin (12’), Hamm (72’) • 39’, 45+5’, 79’ Downey Downey, Bolton ›, Hamm, B. Wood ›››, Koura ›› • J. Wood ‹, Carr-Lowe ‹‹, Rodgers ‹‹‹, B. Kelly, Hughes
• 8’, 65’, 79’, 88’, 90’ Stephens Stephens, Downey ›››, Bolton ››››, Koura, B. Wood, Frost • J. Wood, Kerr ‹‹, King ‹, Carr-Lowe ‹‹‹, B. Kelly ‹‹‹‹ Koura (10’), Bolton (18’) • 36’, 89’ B. Wood Kubwalo, Waring, Bolton ›, Koura, B. Wood, Downey • Smith ‹‹, King ‹‹‹, Carr-Lowe, Rubin ‹, Stephens
B. Wood (87’) • 33’ Rubin ›, Downey, Koura ››, B. Wood, Harvey • Cain, Jones ‹‹, Carr-Lowe ‹, B. Kelly, Hughes
Koura (11’), Rubin (21’) • 17’ Hulley Rubin, Jones ››››, Koura ›››, Downey, Harvey • Cain, Stephens ‹‹, B. Wood ‹‹‹‹, Bolton ‹, Hamm ‹‹‹ Harvey (5’) • 51p, 76’ Jones ››, Bolton, Hamm, Downey, Harvey ››› • Kerr ‹, Waring, B. Wood ‹‹, Koura ‹‹‹, Dineley Hamm (38’), Koura (90+4’) • 79’ Waring, Bolton ›, Hamm ››, Downey, Harvey • Kerr ‹‹‹, Smith, B. Wood ‹, McGregor, Koura ‹‹, Rodgers, Dineley Hamm (20p) • 41’, 81’ Waring ››, Downey, Koura, Frost ›, Harvey • Rodgers, Smith ‹‹, B. Wood ‹‹‹, McGregor ‹, Hughes • 38’
Doran Waring ›, Downey ››, Hamm ›››, B. Wood, Harvey • Smith ‹, McGregor ‹‹, Frost ‹‹‹, Koura ‹‹‹‹, Dineley Hamm (52’), Harvey (74’) • 82’
B. Wood Waring ›, Downey, Hamm ››››, McGregor, Harvey • Smith ‹, Jones ‹‹, Frost, Koura ‹‹‹‹, Rodgers ‹‹‹ Harvey (18’), Hamm (31’, 68p, 70p), Doran (60’) • 22’ Hamm Waring, Downey ›, Koura, Smith, Harvey • Bolton, McGregor ‹, B. Wood, Rodgers ‹‹‹, Ogiugo ‹‹ • 73’ Harvey Waring, McGregor ›, Harvey ›››, Smith ›››››, B. Wood ›››› • Downey ‹, Jones ‹‹‹‹‹, Hamm ‹‹‹, Koura ‹‹‹‹, Ogiugo ‹‹ B. Wood (8’, 31’), Harvey (60p), Downey (90’) • 20’, 32’, 47’
B. Wood Smith, Waring ›››, Hamm ›, B. Wood, Koura ›› • Bolton ‹‹‹‹, J. Kelly ‹‹‹, Frost ‹, McGregor ‹‹, Dineley Hamm (12p) • 24’, 66’, 73’, 90+2’ , Jones ››, Harvey, B. Wood ›››, J. Kelly ›››› • Smith ‹‹, McGregor ‹, Hamm ‹‹‹, Galt ‹‹‹‹, Davidson Harvey (26’, 74’) Waring, Jones ›, Hamm ››, Smith, Harvey • McGregor ‹, J. Kelly ‹‹, B. Wood, Frost ‹‹‹, Galt • 13’, 31’, 90+3’ Waring ›, Smith, Hamm, B. Wood ››, Harvey • Frost, J. Kelly ‹‹, Jones ‹, Galt, Downey Hamm (60’), J. Kelly (90’)
Harvey Downey ››, Smith ›››, J. Kelly, B. Wood, Harvey • J. Wood, McGregor ‹‹, Frost ‹, Ogiugo ‹‹‹ Harvey (80’), Ogiugo (84’) • 23’, 28’, 90+4’
B. Wood Waring ››, Downey, Harvey, Smith ©, B. Wood • McGregor ‹‹, J. Wood ‹, Koura ‹‹‹, Hughes • 68’ Smith ››, Downey ›, Hamm, Smith ©, Koura • Lancaster, McGregor ‹, Oguigo ‹‹, B. Wood, Clewlow
Wincer (72’) • 7’, 84’
Koura ›, Downey, Galt, Koura ››, Smith ©, J. Kelly • Clewlow ‹, W. Lyons ‹‹, Rodgers ‹‹‹, Hughes • 45+1’, 52’, 67’ Downey, Galt ››››, Hamm, Smith ©, J. Kelly ››› • J. Wood ‹, Rodgers ‹‹, Koura ‹‹‹, W. Lyons ‹‹‹‹, Clewlow • 28’, 90+1’ Downey Waring, Downey, Koura, Smith ©, Frost › • J. Kelly ‹, Galt, W. Lyons ‹‹, Rodgers Frost (38’), Koura (52’), Smith (57p) • 75’, 85’ Downey Waring ›››, Downey ›, Koura ››, Smith ©, Frost • Galt, Rodgers, W. Lyons ‹‹‹, Hamm ‹‹, J. Kelly ‹ Dineley
Year formed: 1908
Nickname: Georgians
Ground: Cromley Road
Record attendance: 478
Chairman: Andy Jenkins
Secretary: Jeff Owen
First team manager: Andy Jenkins
Twitter followers: 2,878 (@OfficialSGFC)
2021/22
Manchester Football League Premier Division: 3rd/15, 60 points (promoted)
Gilgryst Cup: Second round
Cheshire Amateur Cup: Runners-up
2020/21: 1st/15, 24 points, Manchester Football League Premier Division. Curtailed after nine games
2019/20: 6th/15, 37 points, Manchester Football League Premier Division. Curtailed after 21 games
Record vs Lairds
Lairds wins: 0
Draws: 0
Stockport Georgians wins: 1
Aggregate score: Lairds 0-3 Stockport Georgians
After a successful period in the Manchester Football League, Stockport Georgians made the step up to the NWCFL this season and have been right at home at this level, currently sitting in seventh place and challenging for the play-off spots.
Recent seasons
The Manchester Football League Premier Division regulars have enjoyed a fine couple of recent seasons, culminating in a third-place finish and promotion last term. Georgians also had a terrific run in the Cheshire Amateur Cup, reaching the final before losing 2-1 to West Cheshire League champions Mersey Royal.
The campaign so far
After a winless first five games, Stockport Georgians kicked on and won 10 of their following 15 league matches, including a 3-0 triumph over Lairds back in August. They also performed brilliantly against two Premier Division high-flyers in the Macron Cup, knocking out Prestwich Heys and taking Avro to penalties. However, Andy Jenkins’ team travel looking to end a run of three straight defeats 2-0 at home to leaders Stockport Town on Boxing Day and then 2-1 at Ashville last week and at home to Eccleshall on Tuesday.
Ones to watch
Kyle Wych has been a regular source of goals for the visitors, scoring seven from his 18 outings this season including two in his side’s 4-3 victory over Maine Road. Oliver McFadyen and Jack Woolley have chipped in with six apiece too. The former has picked up six Man of the Match awards. Georgians also have the best defensive record outside of the top two, conceding just 25 from 22 games, helped by the efforts of Paul Connor with his four MOTMs.
Stockport Georgians 1-2 Eccleshall
Tuesday 31 January 2023
NWCFL First Division South
Ashville 2-1 Stockport Georgians
Saturday 28 January 2023
NWCFL First Division South
Stockport Georgians 0-2 Stockport Town
Monday 26 December 2022
NWCFL First Division South
Stockport Georgians Football Club has its origins in St. George’s Church on Buxton Road in 1908. Games were played at a ground on Nangreave Road in Heaviley in the Stockport Sunday League.
All football was suspended during the First World War but resumed in 1919 and with the church having made some land available in trust for sporting activities. Minutes from a general meeting from October 1923 confirm that the club is to be called St. Georges (Stockport) Athletic Club. At that time, in addition to football, there were clubs for cricket, hockey, tennis and, for the younger people, scouts and girl guides. It is interesting to note from those minutes that “qualification for membership shall be as follows: attendance at Divine Worship held in St. George’s Church or membership of the Men’s Bible Class”.
The club played in the Stockport League in the 1920s with success in the 1926 and 1927 seasons when they were champions, having acquired the current site in February 1925 in a conveyance “of a plot of land containing eight acres and twenty seven perches situated at Woodsmoor, Stockport”. This area originally belonged to Mirrlees Bickerton. In 1931 the club was elected to Division Two of the Lancashire and Cheshire Amateur League.
Football was again suspended during the Second World War but by the early 1950s a third team was playing in the Lancashire and Cheshire Third Division, and in 1964 the club won Division wo of that league.
Between 1970 and 1973 due to deterioration of the playing surface Georgians played at Woodbank Park and Davenport School, and during this time the changing rooms at Woodsmoor were tragically burnt down. In 1973 new facilities were built alongside the prefabricated building of the Cricket Club with assistance of a Sports Council grant and the sale of some of the land.
In 1975 Georgians entered a team in the Stockport and
District Sunday Football League Division Four. but the side had folded by the mid-90s.
In 1987 the football club amalgamated with Adswood Amateurs which greatly increased the number of players available, raised the profile of the club and established an even stronger committee, which all amateur clubs need to stay alive. This merger was the foundation of the club as it is today.
As part of the merger Stockport Georgians took the place of Adswood Amateurs in the Manchester Football League and finished as champions in season 1987/88. They would go on to win the league in 2001/02 and again after a 13 year wait in 2015.
They had numerous other successes in cup competitions and a few near misses in the Cheshire Amateur Cup, which remained an elusive prize.
The push to become a North West counties club started after the 2015 title win when they lost several of that talented squad to clubs in the NWCFL. It was then that ambitions grew to grow the club and start the planning and preparation to improve all areas of the organisation.
Season 2021/22 ended with a third-place finish in the Manchester League and a narrow 2-1 defeat to Mersey Royal in the Cheshire Amateur Cup, but after years of hard work and endeavours on and off the pitch, they were delighted to be promoted to the North West Counties League.
Now they are looking forward to the challenge of becoming a semi-professional club, maintaining their standards, visiting new grounds and continuing to grow the club in honour of all those individuals who helped build Stockport Georgians Football Club over the last 114 years.
After a disappointing midweek home league defeat against Barnton in which both teams struggled to dominate, the visitors gained the points when exploiting two defensive errors to win a battling fixture and take home the spoils in a 2-0 success.
But on Saturday (28th January) a visit to Rocester saw Lairds get back to winning ways as they won a five-goal thriller. The first half was a very even affair as both sides created and missed openings and goalkeeper Dave Potter made some excellent saves, but a brilliant solo goal from Kieron Frost in the 38th minute gave Lairds the lead at the break.
The opening 15 minutes of the second half saw Lairds take control as they surged into a 3-0 lead thanks to a glancing header by Kalif Koura in the 52nd minute and in the 57th minute captain Ryan Smith blasted home a penalty following a
The game looked safe for the visitors but a poor back pass with 15 minutes remaining allowed Rocester to reduce the arrears and with five minutes remaining they scored again due to an unchallenged header, bringing the home team back into the game.
Despite the hard work of Joe Downey and Ross Waring in the Lairds midfield no further goals were scored, but they had to be grateful to goalkeeper Potter who saved well following a scramble in the dying minutes of the match to secure their 3-2 victory.
It’s another midweek road trip to Stoke-on-Trent for the Cammells on Tuesday, this time to mid-table Abbey Hulton United.
Russell Leadbetter’s team have enjoyed a steady season so far, and claimed a very impressive 5-1 victory at Abbey Hey on Tuesday night. They have also knocked Wythenshawe Amateurs out of the Edward Case Cup, and currently occupy 11th place in the league table.
This is our first meeting with Abbey Hulton this season, and it was a fixture that favoured the away side last term. Abbey triumphed 2-0 here in August 2021, but Kieran Hamm grabbed the only goal of the game to clinch a Lairds victory last January at Drayton Beaumont Park.
Distance to Drayton Beaumont Park: 60.5 miles
Directions: Take the M6 to junction 16, and turn left onto the A500. From the A500, take Leek Road A52 towards Leek. Turn left onto Birches Head Road, and go over the narrow bridge. Continue past the junction with Redhills Road, then turn right into the ground.
Nearest train station: Stoke-on Trent
Distance travelled so far 2022/23: 1,545.5 miles
Elsewhere in the NWCFL First Division South
Today: Wythemshawe Amateurs vs Rocester (2pm); Abbey Hulton United vs Ellesmere Rangers; Alsager Town vs Ashville; Barnton vs Stafford Town; Brocton vs Foley Meir; Cheadle Town vs Abbey Hey; New Mills vs Cheadle Heath Nomads; Sandbach United vs Eccleshall; Stockport Town vs Maine Road
Manager: Stuart Keir
Assistant: Jordan Scott
Colours: Royal Blue
Players No. Gls Notes
Nathan Davidson (GK)
James Dineley (GK)
David Potter (GK)
Conor Robson (GK)
Dominic Cain
Charlie Clewlow
Jake Doran
Joseph Downey
Kieron Frost
Ethan Galt
Kieran Hamm
Jay Harvey
Benjamin Hughes
Michael Jones
Jack Kelly
Kalif Koura
Gabriel Kubwalo
Louie Lancaster
William Lyons
Cameron McGregor
Joel Ogiugo
Lee Rodgers
Ryan Smith ©
Daniel Stephens
Ross Waring
Richard Wincer
Ben Wood
Jack Wood
Manager: Andrew Jenkins
Colours: Red and black
Players No. Gls Notes
James Hodges (GK)
Joel Atkinson
Finlay Bartram
Paul Beresford
Callum Campbell
Paul Connor
Samuel Corbishley
Adam Dahou
Samuel Hind
Samuel Marshall
Oliver McFadyen
Euan Melia
Thomas O’Brien
Sam Oliver
Thomas Russell
Isaac Turner
William Wareing
Jack Woolley
Kyle Wych