Stockport County vs FC Halifax Town

Official Matchday Programme

vs FC Halifax Town Tuesday 6th October Kick-off 7:45pm

Rated Excellent On TrustPilot

Stockport County FC Edgeley Park, Hardcastle Road, Stockport, SK3 9DD

Chairman: Mark Stott Chief Executive Officer: Jonathan Vaughan Directors: Mark Stott (Majority Shareholder), Jonathan Vaughan, Ken Knott, Mark Dawson Club President: Steve Bellis Brand and Communications Director: David Ancell Director of Operations: Richard Simkin Life Presidents: Angela White, Robert Smith Bewley, Arthur Collister, Steve Cree, Richard Hill, Mike Flynn, George Hudson, John Rutter, Arthur Collister Director of Football: Simon Wilson Club Ambassadors: John Fitzpatrick, Freddie Goodwin, Alan Ogley Head of Football Administration: Alex Cowdy First-Team Manager: Jim Gannon Assistant Manager: Dave Conlon Goalkeeping Coach: Karl Lenaghan Physio: Luke Smith Strength & Conditioning: Nick Donnelly Kit Manager: Richard Landon First Team Scouting Consultant: Alan Lord Club Doctor: Amjad Choudry Head of Commercial: Olivia Hanvey Conference and Events Manager: Melissa Ellison Retail & Photography: Mike Petch Online Shop: www.stockportcounty.com/shop Marketing Manager: Alice Gregory Content Executive: Carl Gozem Media Executive: Liam Richardson Ticket Office (matchdays only, from 12:30pm): Sarah Dibben Stadium Safety Officer: Steve Walker Facilities Stadium Maintenance & COVID Manager: Rick Hinks Head Groundsman: Mike O’Brien Community Foundation: Dave Wardle Website: www.scfcfoundation.com Junior Supporters Club: Ian Butterworth, Brenda Williams Stockport County Lottery: Tom Quayle Historian & Statistician: Ian Watts & Marcus Heap Website: gogogocounty.org Stadium Announcer: Kenny Boxshall Turnstile Manager: Pete Kidd Half-Time Draw: Tony Malone Mascot Supervisor: Louise Mellor

county

Editor: Keith Chapman Editorial Contributors: Andy Monks, David Ancell, Alice Gregory, Jonathan Vaughan, Neil Simms, Gareth Evans, Steve Beswick, Mike Petch, Damien Allen, Peter Attfield, Paul Dean, Olivia Hanvey, Ian Watts, Mark Heys, Luke Smith, Liam Richardson, Ian Butterworth, Brenda Williams, Ian Brown, Greg Hall, Jon Keighren, Oshor Williams, Steven Davies, Dave Wardle, Stephen Kenneth, Steve Bellis, Sam Preston, Alex Cowdy.

Thanks to: Kelly Gilchrist at FC Halifax Town FC Design by: Daniel Parker, Duplexity Artwork Stockport County FC is the trading name of Stockport County 2010 Ltd (7254012), which is wholly owned by Stockport Community Leisure Company Ltd (7240006), a private company limited by shares. The registered office is: Edgeley Park, Hardcastle Road, Edgeley, Stockport SK3 9DD

Inside...

04 20

10

36

55

Club Honours

Football League Division Two Runners Up 1996-97 Football League Division Three (North) Champions 1921-22, 1936-37 Football League Division Three (North) Runners Up 1928-29, 1929-30 Football League Division Four Champions 1966-67 Football League Division Four Runners Up 1990-91 Football League Two Play-Off Winners 2007-08 Football League Division Two Play-Off Finalists 1993-94 Football League Division Three Play-Off Finalists 1991-92 Football League Trophy Finalists 1991-92, 1992-93 Football League Division Three (North) Cup Winners 1934-35 Football League Division Three (North) Cup Finalists 1933-34 Lancashire League Winners 1899-1900 Lancashire Combination Winners 1904-05 Cheshire League Runners-Up (Reserves) 1909-10, 1927-28, 1936-37 Manchester Senior Cup Winners 1897-98, 1898-99, 1914-15, 1922-23 Cheshire Senior Cup Winners 1905-06, 1914-15, 1965-66, 2015-16 Cheshire Medal Winners 1922-23, 1924-25, 1928-29, 1929-30, 1930-31 Cheshire Bowl Winners 1933-34, 1948-49, 1952-53, 1955-56, 1956-57, 1958-59, 1960-61, 1962-63 Cheshire Friendly Trophy Winners 1965-66, 1966-67 Cheshire Premier Cup Winners 1969-70, 1970-71, 2010-11 Vanarama National League North Winners 2018-2019

03

We have asked for our group to be committed, hard-working, positive, and disciplined both on and off the pitch. As these are the true virtues of a professional.

04

James Gannon At the start of the season I would love to say to everyone welcome back to Edgeley Park. But such is the strange circumstances that have surrounded all aspects of our lives we are unable to have fans within the ground. I guess I could offer a different type of welcome to our online presentation of information and the game, but it certainly doesn’t feel the same as opening a programme and reading my greeting in person on glossy paper.

However, I can still offer a customary warm welcome to Pete Wild, Chris Millington, the staff and players and the supporters and directors of FC Halifax Town. Pete has done a great job at Halifax since taking over under difficult circumstances last pre-season and all at the club deserve great credit for their consistency throughout last season and earning a play-off spot. We all have had to endure a difficult offseason and a strange, unnerving start to this. But again, well done to the Shaymen on a good start to their season with a home win.

Perhaps we had one of the more difficult opening games with a trip to Torquay United. We were very disappointed with the outcome. Despite not playing outstanding we worked hard, played well for large parts, and did enough to be able to come away with more than nothing. The game had a difficult backdrop and much to unsettle the players. Perhaps the game had some scrappy, disjointed moments, but we also had glimpses of a very capable team that looks hard to stop and difficult to beat.

Not only was the game a real challenge for the players, the loss was a real test for them in how they reacted to defeat, and how they intend to respond. There are some hard lessons in all of that side of the game for our players. We have asked for our group to be committed, hard-working, positive, and disciplined both on and off the pitch.

As these are the true virtues of a professional. We cannot rely on the level of experience, skill, craft, and physical prowess that players possess if they don’t bring the human qualities that determine the effect our skills can have on our game, season or careers.

We have a great opportunity in the coming two games to respond. But it must be with a focus and determination not just borne by emotion. It must be through an application of all the skills we have as individuals and are bringing together in this new team. On our return to competitive games at home, I trust that our players relish playing in the County blue and enjoy being back out on the green of Edgeley Park.

Enjoy the game.

JG

05

Proud to sponsor Stockport County Football Club

togethermoney.com

Club News Good luck Jordan!

Liam Hogan named County Captain We are delighted to confirm that defender Liam Hogan has been named as the new Club Captain for the upcoming 2020/21 season. Following the departure of Club Legend and previous captain Paul Turnbull over the summer, Liam, signed from Salford City back in February, has been chosen by manager Jim Gannon as the man to take on the armband. Despite only making five competitive appearances before last season’s curtailment, the 31-year-old has proven to be an instant hit amongst his team-mates and County supporters and has captained the side throughout pre-season.

A Hatter in Canada Supporting all the way from Ottawa, Canada, is Maxwell King who hopes to attend his first match at Edgeley Park once lockdown and travel quarantine are in the distant past. Maxwell turns one on Friday and so the Club wants to wish him a very Happy 1st Birthday!

Hatters defender Jordan Downing has joined Bury AFC on a one-month loan deal. Academy graduate Jordan, 21, has made six competitive first-team appearances for the Club to date since making his debut as a substitute against Salford City, in an FA Cup tie back in 2016. He went on to make his first start for the Club two years later, playing in a 1-1 draw with Guiseley AFC at Edgeley Park, in August 2018. Having featured in four of County’s six preseason games so far after signing a new contract in the summer, he now makes the temporary move to the newly-formed North West Counties side, where he will play under the management of former Hatter Andy Welsh. Good luck, Jordan!

County on TV! Two of County’s opening Vanarama National League fixtures against fellow former Football League sides have been selected to be televised live on BT Sport. First up will be our trip to the Technique Stadium to take on rivals Chesterfield on Saturday 17th October, with that game now set to kickoff at 5.20pm. Our visit to Notts County in November has also been selected by BT Sport. The game at Meadow Lane was originally scheduled for Tuesday 17th November, but will instead now take place on Wednesday 11th November, with kick-off at 7.45pm.

07

UNLESS WE TAKE RADICAL ACTION THERE WILL BE MORE PLASTIC THAN FISH IN OUR OCEANS BY 2050.

Source: World Economic Forum

We can help your business save time and money whilst doing the right thing for the environment.

For a free waste audit get in touch with your local Viridor team at Trafford Park on 0161 872 0976 or manchester@viridor.co.uk

PROUD SPONSOR OF STOCKPORT COUNTY FC

RECYCLE MORE, WASTE LESS To find out more visit: viridor.co.uk or @ViridorUK

From the Boardroom

There is also a significant amount of work underway at Edgeley Park

Good evening all.

This should be the day that we welcome our loyal fans and supporters back to Edgeley Park after an extended absence. Unfortunately, COVID restrictions have once again impacted our lives and we will have to settle with watching the team via our live stream.

So much has happened since Mark purchased the club back in January and I’m delighted with the progress that has been made on and off the pitch in that time. Our new training centre at Carrington is now fully functional, providing the team with a top-class facility that is on a par with many training grounds in the higher divisions. We plan to share a

We have been blown away by the time and resource that our volunteers are willing to commit to the club.

virtual tour with our fans in the coming weeks.

There is also a significant amount of work underway at Edgeley Park, with improvements being made to the concourse, the Club shop, event space and Home team changing rooms. We can’t wait to welcome our fans back so that they can experience these improvements first hand.

Since we became involved with the club, we have been blown away by the time and resource that our volunteers are willing to commit to the club. A special mention to Help the Hatters who not only have worked tirelessly to make improvements in and around the ground, but were recently honoured with the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service, the highest award a voluntary group can receive in the UK. It’s a huge game tonight, and I’m confident that all the work that Simon, Jim, the management team and the lads have put in pre-season will be rewarded with the three points that we need.

Jonathan Vaughan Chief Executive

09

10

John Rooney Name: John Rooney Position: Midfield Born: Liverpool Date of Birth: 17th December, 1990.

Height: 5’10’’ Previous clubs: Macclesfield Town, New York Red Bulls, Orlando City, Barnsley, Bury, Chester City, Wrexham, Barrow Last season: Barrow (39 apps, 20 goals)

County pulled off arguably their most impressive signing of the summer with the eyecatching capture of attacking midfielder John Rooney from last season’s National League titlewinners Barrow.

The former Bluebirds captain enjoyed an impressive 2019/20 campaign, scoring 20 goals from midfield as Barrow gained promotion to League 2, and picking up the coveted National League Player of the Year award in the process.

However, despite the carrot of the Football League with Barrow dangled in front of him, he had no hesitating in joining ambitious County once Director of Football Simon Wilson and FirstTeam Manager James Gannon came calling.

The talented 29-year-old enjoyed a successful two-year spell at Holker Street, in which he scored 30 goals in 96 appearances and captained the team on many occasions.

“Once I spoke to Simon and the Gaffer I knew I wanted to come,” said John, the younger brother of England striking legend Wayne. “County’s a massive club with a big fan base who want to go up the leagues and get back to where they belong. I was delighted to get it over the line.”

In scoring 20 goals last season, Rooney spearheaded Barrow’s rise to the top of the National League and end their 48-year exile from the English Football League.

Rooney seemed to be conducting his own Goal of the Season competition as well last season,

11

with many fabulous goals, one of which was at Edgeley Park last season in County’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Barrow last August. Rooney’s long range free-kick, though, had supporters admiring his set-piece qualities and County fans no doubt can’t wait to see what he can do in the County blue.

Rooney, who scored his first hat-trick in English football against Ebbsfleet United in January, with the first couple being two of six direct free kicks he put away during the course of the campaign one of those being against the Hatters.

It’s been a difficult period for the football world with no competitive games since March, fans not being allowed into stadiums and large-scale uncertainty when the National League season will actually start. Rooney acknowledged the difficulty for players, but stressed the need to be professional.

“Pre-season was longer than usual,” said John.

“But on the other hand we’ve got new lads at the club and it allowed us to get to know them more and give us all time to gel. We’ve played a lot of games but it’s been an enjoyable pre-season, we’ve played some decent football and picked up a lot of good wins. Pre-season is very important in getting you ready for the season and we’re raring to go for the season now. It will be different

12

playing without fans but there’s nothing we can do about it, we’ve got to be professional and hopefully we’ll get off to a good start.”

A graduate of Everton’s Youth Academy, where he joined at the age of six, he joined Macclesfield town in 2002 and went on to make 41 appearances for the club. In 2011 he moved to the US and played for both the New York Red Bulls and Orlando City in the MLS. On returning to the UK, he played for Barnsley, Bury and made over 100 appearances for Chester City. He signed for Wrexham in 2016 and enjoyed a loan spell at Guiseley before being signed by Barrow in 2018.

Rooney knew all about County from his time as an opposition player and he’s looking forward to the future at Edgeley Park and what he can bring the club.

“I’ve played a couple of times against County. I was pleased with my goal for Barrow at Edgeley Park last season. It was an exciting game and the fans really got behind the team. The fans play a big part. It’s a massive club and it will be great to play at Edgeley Park in front of them.

“I know the league. Last season I got promoted so hopefully I can pass on my experiences last season to the lads here. I loved my time at Barrow

This signing is a real statement of intent on behalf of Stockport County. As a team we needed to add a player with both creativity and attack intent from midfield. In that regard John Rooney is the stand out player in the National League for goals from midfield.

His record last season was exceptional. It’s not just the number of goals, assists and set play quality that makes John a stand out player in this league. He also brings a level of football involvement and leadership that helps a team play to a high standard.

JAMES GANNON and I had a great relationship with the manager Ian Evatt, who left to manage Bolton. But I’m really happy to have joined County. It is great to work under Jim Gannon and everyone has been spot on so far. The players, the stadium, the training ground, everything is in place to have a good season.

John already knew some familiar faces when he arrived through the Edgeley Park corridors.

“I knew a couple of the lads before which helps you settle quicker into a new club. I already knew Ash Palmer and James Jennings and I’ve played against a lot of the lads before during my career.

Favourite TV Programme: Power Favourite Gadget: My phone Facebook or Twitter: Twitter Favourite Film: Shawshank Redemption Best Friend in Football: Matthew Brown Biggest influence on your career: I’ve got to go for my family Boyhood team: Everton Favourite (other) stadium: Goodison Park.

Favourite car: Range Rover Do you have any advice you could pass on to any young County fans looking to get involved in football?: Keep practising and learning, listen to your coaches and keep working hard.

“You could see it was a great dressing room and everyone gets on. All the lads have a good bond, which takes you a long way. They are prepared to run through brick walls for each other.”

This evening our visitors to SK3 - FC Halifax Town - will also be having their eye on another promotion-chasing campaign, and Rooney feels that they will be difficult opponents.

“Yes I’ve played against Halifax before a couple of times,” he said. “I know a couple of their players. They’ve made some good signings, they had a good season last season and will be aiming to be up there again so we will have to be on the top of our game to pick up a result.”

13

Welcome...

FC Halifax Town FC Halifax Town visit Edgeley Park tonight, aiming for a much more profitable visit than our last encounter here, which resulted in a 5-1 Elliot Osborne-inspired County win.

A lot has changed in the world since then of course, with tonight’s empty stands a far cry from the 5,536 in attendance on Boxing Day of last year. A lot has changed in the line-ups of both teams too, with only nine of those in both squads that day likely to feature tonight.

Nickname: The Shaymen Founded: 2008 Capacity: 14,061 Address: The Shay Stadium, Shaw Hill, Halifax Postcode: HX1 2YT Distance from Edgeley Park: 42 miles (49 mins) Last season: 6th (National League)

14

Manager Pete Wild embarks on his second season in charge at the West Yorkshire club with a greatly reshuffled squad. Newly signed up to strengthen The Shaymen down the spine of the team are experienced campaigners Neill Byrne, a centre-back who won the FA Trophy at AFC Fylde, 32-year-old midfielder Luke Summerfield, who represented seven clubs in the Football League, and striker Jake Hyde, who bagged 16 goals for Woking last season.

Meanwhile, former captain and defensive stalwart Matty Brown was amongst more than a dozen players departing The Shay this summer.

Wild was recruited to the manager post just 10 days before the 2019-20 season started, having worked in various posts, including a brief spell in the managers hotseat, at Oldham Athletic for the previous 11 years.

And what a start to the season The Shaymen enjoyed! Six wins in the first eight games saw Town amongst the promotion chasers, having previously been tipped to struggle by many pundits.

The Gaffer: Pete Wild

Their form dipped around the turn of the year, epitomised by their slump here in Stockport, though improvement was achieved in January and when the season ended abruptly Town were sixth in the league, later being awarded a play-off place under the points per game method.

A key signing that sparked that resurgence was Devante Rodney, who joined the club on loan from Salford City, having just finished a loan spell here at County. Rodney bagged 5 goals in 8 games, helping Halifax to several wins in a short and productive spell.

The Shaymen faced Boreham Wood on 17th July in their play-off eliminator match losing 2-1 having led at half-time.

Pete was appointed as manager at FC Halifax Town in July 2019 having previously been in charge of his boyhood club Oldham Athletic.

After playing football as an amateur, Wild took up coaching when he was 18 and rose through the ranks at Oldham, eventually becoming head of the club’s academy.

He first took temporary charge of the club when Frankie Bunn was sacked following a 6-0 defeat against Carlisle on Boxing Day last year, and won four of his eight games at the helm.

His first game in charge was at Port Vale, less than 48 hours later, which Oldham won 4-1.

Oldham then beat Notts County 2-0 in Wild’s first home game in charge before he guided The Latics to a sensational 2-1 win at Premier League side Fulham in the FA Cup. Wild remained in charge for five more games, ending his short stint with a 3-0 win at Crawley before the appointment of ex-Manchester United and England star Paul Scholes.

When Scholes left the club in March, Wild was given the job until the end of the season, winning four, drawing two and losing three of his nine games in charge.

Pete led The Shaymen to 6th place last season before losing in the Play-Offs to Boreham Wood.

With the game in Hertfordshire coming more than four months after they had last played it represented a strange period of intensity at the club in this strangest of years, with the players returning to training post-lockdown in preparation for a game billed by Wild as the club’s “biggest in six years”, since they last reached the play-offs at this level.

Pre-season training for this campaign started in early September, with ‘Fax’s first friendly a trip to Clitheroe, which ended in a 2-1 defeat.

Like County, Halifax also recently travelled to Guiseley, with goals from Niall Maher and Jamie Allen securing a 2-1 win, and took on Curzon Ashton, which finished goalless.

After reaching the play-offs last DID YOU time around KNOW? FC Halifax’s Sh Pete Wild ay Stadium takes and his its name from an old En team glish word ‘s haw’, meaning have set a wood, which represen a tough ts the former life of th benchmark e land the ground st for this ands season’s upon. squad to emulate. Whether they’ll be able to do so remains to be seen, though with an impressive 45% win rate during Wild’s management career so far perhaps Town fans can expect more of the same?

15

Memory Match

The Players JAMIE ALLEN (Born: May 1995, Signed: July 2019) Joined after a two-year stint with his first southern club Dover Athletic. He started out with Fleetwood before being loaned to Barrow, AFC Fylde and Stalybridge Celtic. On his release the striker moved to Southport who sold him to Dover.

2006: FA Trophy Final FC Halifax Town 1-0 Grimsby Town FC Halifax Town eased the pain of relegation from the National League by ending their season on a high with victory over Grimsby Town in the FA Trophy at Wembley.

A stunning goal from Scott McManus was enough to seal a memorable day out for the 10,000-plus fans at Wembley.

Town fans will have felt like kids on Christmas Day on the morning of the game, and got the best present imaginable just after half-time when McManus curled the ball into the roof of the net from 25 yards.

It was a moment no Town fan inside Wembley will ever forget, and will probably means that McManus will never have to buy another pint in Halifax ever again.

JAY BENN (s:Jan 2020) Central defender or full-back who has come through the club’s youth side to sign a pro contract after being connected with Chesterfield.

TOM BRADBURY (b:Feb 1998, s:Aug 2020) Made a permanent return to England from Dundee for a season with Yeovil Town, after a loan stint with York City.

The central defender started with Milton Keynes Dons, followed by spells with Bishop’s Stortford, Ware and Banbury United before heading to Scotland.

NEILL BYRNE (b:Feb 1993, s:Sep 2020) The former Belvedere Boys Club central defender completed his youth career at Nottingham Forest before joining Rochdale in 2012. Loans to Barrow and Southport, were followed by a switch to AFC Telford United. He followed promotion with the Bucks, with a spell at Macclesfield Town and was then at Gateshead and most recently AFC Fylde.

NATHAN CLARKE (b:Nov 1983, s:Aug 2018) Started his career with Huddersfield Town. The central defender went on to play in the EFL on loan for Colchester United, Oldham Athletic, and Bury. He has since added Leyton Orient, Bradford City, Coventry City and Grimsby Town to his CV. JACK EARING (b:Jan 1999, s:Jun 2019) Signed after coming through the ranks at Bolton Wanderers, who towards the end of his time with them loaned the midfield man to Curzon Ashton. He has

16

since been loaned to Spennymoor Town and Farsely Celtic.

KIERAN GREEN (b:Jun 1997, s:Aug 2020) Midfielder who joined from York.

Started with Hartlepool United who loaned him to Spennymoor, Frickley Athletic and Gateshead, the last move becoming permanent. Two spells at Blyth Spartans followed, the first on loan.

JAKE HYDE (b:Jul 1990, s:Aug 2020) Spent last two seasons with Woking having joined them from Maidenhead United. Started with Swindon Town and after a loan stint with Weymouth switched to Barnet, then moved to Hayes & Yeading. Heading to Scotland the forward figured for Lochee United, Dunfermline Athletic and Dundee.

He then added a second spell with Barnet, York and Stevenage.

SAM JOHNSON (b:Dec 1992, s:May 2017) Goalkeeper who signed from Port Vale. After beginning in Stoke City’s youth setup, his only other experience saw spells at Stafford Rangers, Alfreton Town, Gateshead and twice with Halifax, all on loan from Vale.

JEFF KING (b:Dec 1995, s:Aug 2019) Well-travelled midfielder who has figured mainly in the north west with time at Altrincham, Prescot Cables on loan, Nantwich Town, Kendal Town, Trafford, Ashton United, Witton Albion and Droylsden before joining Bolton. They loaned him to FC United of Manchester and he found his way to the Shay via St Mirren.

NIALL MAHER (b:Jul 1995, s:Mar 2018) Midfielder or defender who started with Bolton, before switching to Bury after a loan spell at Blackpool.

Niall Maher

He left England to play for Galway United, returning to most recent previous club Telford.

REUBEN LAZARUS (b:Aug 1993, s:Aug 2020) Winger who started with Barnsley, being loaned by them to Scunthorpe United and Rochdale.

He made a permanent move to Spotland but later was put out of the game by injury. Since recovering he has figured for Chorley, Witton and Golcar United.

DANNY WILLIAMS (b:Jan 1988, s:Aug 2019) Left winger who started with Daisy Hill, FCU of Manchester, Clitheroe and Kendal. After a loan stint with Chester FC he headed north to play for Inverness Caledonian Thistle and then Dundee. Next up were Accrington Stanley who loaned him to Fylde.

JACK SENIOR (b:Jan 1997, s:Aug 2020) Started in the youth ranks at Huddersfield before joining Luton Town. They loaned the left back to Harrogate Town, and he then moved on to spend much of last season with Gloucester City.

MARTIN WOODS (b:Jan 1986, s:Aug 2020) Started with Leeds United, and was loaned to Hartlepool. He moved on to add Sunderland, Rotherham United and Doncaster Rovers to his CV. A loan spell at Yeovil was followed by time with Barnsley then two stints with Ross County sandwiching time at Shrewsbury.

The midfielder’s most recent clubs were Partick Thistle and Dundee.

MATTY STENSON (b:Mar 1994, s:Aug 2020) Spent most of the last two seasons with Solihull Moors after being bought from Leamington who he joined from Barwell. Starting with Coventry the forward also played for Hinckley United and Leicester Road, whilst Moors sent him on loan to Telford.

GEVARO NEPOMUCENO (b: Nov 1992 s: Oct 2020) Dutch winger who joins on a shortterm contract after leaving Oldham.

Earlier in his career he played for Willem II/RKC, Den Bosch and Fortuna Sittard in his homeland plus Rumanian side Petrolul Ploiesti [rom], and Portuguese sides Marítimo and Famalicão.

LUKE SUMMERFIELD (b:Dec 1987, s:Aug 2020) Midfielder who joins after two seasons with Wrexham. He started at Plymouth Argyle who also loaned him to AFC Bournemouth and Leyton Orient. He moved to Wrexham via Cheltenham Town, Shrewsbury Town, York, Grimsby and a loan spell with Macclesfield.

GOLD OMOTAYO (b: Jan 1994 s: Oct 2020) Joined from Yeovil who signed him from Bury, he first joined an English club when he moved to Whitehawk.

The forward initially played for Swiss sides Zürich, Schlieren and Wettswil-Bonstetten. He left Whitehawk for Gigg Lane, and also spent time on loan with Maidstone United.

DOM TEAR (b:Oct 1999, s:Sep 2020) Signed from Huddersfield, where he made his way through the age group sides after being with Harrogate Railway. The midfielder was loaned

by Town to Larne in Northern Ireland and Gateshead.

HARRISON DAVISON-HALE (b: Nov 2000 s: Oct 2020) Goalkeeper who came through the youth ranks with Huddersfield.

He has had time out on loan with Ossett United, Mickleover Sports and Liversedge.

17

Rebellious Jukebox Gareth Evans selects Halifax on the County Rock-Ola, and presses play to discover a link with, and test the credentials of… ED SHEERAN. So, what’s the connection?

Rather fleeting. Ed is Halifax-born, and lived in nearby Hebden Bridge until he was four - when his family upped sticks for the far east to settle in Framlingham. The ‘Castle on the Hill’ immortalised in his 2017 hit was that overlooking the Suffolk town - and not the grand mock-medieval Castle Carr built above the Calder Valley in Victorian times but, sadly, demolished nearly 30 years before he was welcomed into the world just down the road in West Yorkshire’s Calder Valley.

Twenty-nine years, and over 150 million record sales, later, he is one of the best-selling musicians Football fan Ed watching his beloved Ipswich Town

18

on the planet, the UK’s richest celebrity under 30, an Ipswich Town fan, and - in a nod to his briefest of brief residencies in ‘God’s Own Country’ - the fourth-greatest (I kid you not) Yorkshireman ever.

Not a good initial candidate for Rebellious status, then… or might he be? Let’s ‘Take Five’: 1. He ‘broke the charts’ forever.

Ed utterly blitzed the Singles Chart with the release of his third album-proper in 2017 - by occupying 16 (SIXTEEN) of the top 20 places in a hit parade that most of us, by then, had been habitually giving a miss. The UK’s Official Charts Company

frantically purged its lists of future saturation by limiting to three the number of tracks from a new long-player that could enter at any one time - but by then most of us no longer avidly followed the charts, as we and our parents once did. Ed, by making a monolithic mess of them, publicly confirmed this was the way to go.

2. Why bother with words for album titles when maths signs will do? ‘÷’ was Ed’s LP that did for the charts three years ago, following his first two studio albums ‘+’ and ‘x’. He broke rank with his mathematical naming convention when putting out last year’s ‘No. 6 Collaborations Project’ - possibly fearing that an album called ‘minus’ might carry too negative a vibe - although rumours are rife that the next one could be the long-awaited ‘-‘ to get completists into a frenzy.

3. Teaming up for crossovers is nowt new.

While ‘No. 6 Collaborations Project’ saw Ed duet with the stellar likes of Justin Bieber, Cardi B, Bruno Mars and Stormzy, this was far from being a token nod to other genres. For, way back in 2011, he had self-released the ‘No. 5 Collaborations Project’ EP - the fifth in a series

of DIY productions aimed at getting himself a record deal. That one involved numbers with grime stars of the day - including Wiley, who was so narked about fellow rapper Stormzy’s later collaboration with Ed that he got into Twitter rows with the pair, before paying them the ultimate anti-compliment on his diss track, ‘Eediyat Skengman’.

4. He carried on paying staff during lockdown.

Yes, he could afford to - but, to his credit, still chose to when Covid-19 forced the closure in March of the London bar he co-owns. Refusing the furlough scheme, he and his business partner ensured instead that bar and kitchen staff at ‘Bertie Blossoms’ in Notting Hill were kept on full pay. Ed is also said to have donated over £1 million to charities in Suffolk fighting the pandemic.

5. He really, really loves tomato ketchup.

Ed is a lifelong fan of the stuff, and always carries a bottle on tour. His TV advert with a certain household-name company last year saw him mock diners who turn up their noses over tomato sauce in fancy restaurants, and was followed up by the launch of his own ‘Heinz Edchup’ line.

Rebellious Jukebox Rating: ‘Grade 8’, and on the fringes of ‘The A Team’.

19

Tommy Rowe

Pheonix From The County Flames In a brand new feature this season, we will be talking to past County players about their favourite memories from their time at Edgeley Park. This evening it’s the turn of popular winger Tommy Rowe...

Tommy progressed through the Club’s academy, and made his first-team debut for County as an 18-year-old, coming off the bench against Premier League side Watford in the FA Cup Third Round in 2007.

“It was a great experience,” said Tommy. “I didn’t think I would come on, if I’m honest. It was my first overnight stay and I remember the commentator Martin Tyler came to our hotel the night before. He walked past me and said ‘I know who you are!’ and I just thought how does he know who I am. As for the game we were level at half-time, but I remember warming up in the second half and Ashley Young was ready to come on for Watford. He was a top player. Both sets of fans were excellent on the day and it was a good memory.”

Rowe quickly made an impact at Edgeley Park and went on to establish himself in the Hatters first-team during the second half of the 2007/08 campaign. Tommy made 85 appearances for the Club, including the memorable play-off games, as promotion was secured at Wembley against Rochdale – Rowe’s in-swinging cross lead to County’s crucial equaliser to get us back into the game.

“It was a fantastic day. When you are a young player sometimes you don’t really take things in as much as the older players. Older players perhaps have a bit more responsibility. It was unbelievable and great to be part of that team.

20

We showed our quality to come back into the game after trailing but it was a great feeling to win at Wembley and get promoted.”

So how does Tommy look back on his time at Edgeley Park? Was it all positive?

“It was great to be part of Stockport County,” he enthused. “I had some great times and was a privilege to play for the club. I met some great people and enjoyed some wonderful memories and County and their fans will always have a special place in my heart. It was an amazing time.

“I made many good friends. John Hume, Michael Raynes, Pilks, and Adam Le Fondre.

Damo’s (Damien Allen) back at the club, too.

“Ashley Williams was a hero of mine when he was at County, now he’s a team-mate with me at Bristol City we have talked about our memories of playing at Edgeley Park. We’ve both got a huge appreciation and respect for Stockport County.

“One memory I have on a matchday was of a County fan who used to sit in the front row near the tunnel. He was always there urging the team on! He used to shout ‘torment them Tommy!’

I always remember him. It’s a great feeling when all of the crowd are behind you, although there was a touch of sadness when the club experienced serious difficulties later on.”

County Manager James Gannon has deservedly earned so much praise and admiration for his commitment and achievements at the club across many years.

He was full of praise for both Jim Gannon and Peter Ward for giving him his chance when breaking into the first-team, and the impact they had on him as both a player and as a person.

“They were unbelievable,” said Tommy.

“They worked so well together. Jim was very methodical, technically fantastic, he had us so well prepared.

“It was an unbelievable time. We had such a young team in League One – our average age was around the age of 23 – and I learned so much about the other side of football. Cleaning the boots, and looking up to players such as Tony Dinning, were what grounded me massively.”

Tommy’s experience at County increased with the involvement of his younger brother Danny in the first-team at Edgeley Park. Tommy and Danny earned their place in an exclusive club of brothers who have played together in the same team.

“It was fantastic to get the opportunity to play alongside Danny, who has a great talent. We

THE GAME: Rotherham United 1 County 4 THE DATE: 12th February, 2008 THE COMPETITION: League Two THE MOMENT: It’s got to be when I scored a hat-trick at Rotherham. It was my second league game. It was a great moment. Two of the goals were headers, one was a cross from Liam Dickinson. It was a dream day and a memory I will never forget. played on the left hand side, I was left-back and Danny was left-wing. We had to help each other out on that side and I’m proud that we played in the same team together.”

Since leaving the Hatters at the end of the 08/09 season, Tommy has gone on to enjoy a successful career in the upper regions of the Football League, enjoying spells at Peterborough (where he again worked under Jim Gannon), Wolves, Scunthorpe, Doncaster and Bristol City, where he currently still plays.

“We’ve started well,” said Tommy. “We’ve won four out of four in the league and I’m pleased with the start we have made. It’s been a difficult time with fans not being allowed into games and football being stopped, but we’re professional and we’ve got to go out there and win football matches. When we were in lockdown we had our own training regime and had Zoom meetings. But the challenge is that you’ve got to adapt to a new way of playing and we will do.”

Tommy has already been back to Edgeley Park for Rodger Wylde’s testimonial back in 2013 and is hoping to get the opportunity to pop down to watch a County game in the stands.

“Yes, I’d love to be able to get down to watch a game. It would be great to see the fans again, they were brilliant to me and they deserve success. I really hope they get back to the place they feel they should be.”

21

County Colts A new era at the Colts!

With all the positive changes taking place at the club over the last season, we now welcome the new owners along with an update of how it has affected the Colts.

As it stands, there is even more interest in the pathway that the club can now offer from our Colts ‘whites‘ teams at development level, to the more advanced ‘blues‘ teams, to the new junior academy teams (currently at Under-11 and planned for all ages up to the age of 16).

please contact info@StockportCountyColts. co.uk or Damien.allen@stockportcounty.com if interested.

In the meantime, we have even more of our teams who are playing in the higher divisions of the East Manchester League. We feel this is the right league for these teams as it’s well run and competitive. We play on good playing services mainly 4/3G as we try to invest in the best to get the best!

This is already starting to take hold as we welcome our new Academy Director Damien Allen and his team. We also have an extra night‘s training at Aquinas College as a result of our expansion and an invite-only Academy night for all Under-14s, 15s and 16s who are showing potential to become Academy graduates at County.

This is going to be a very interesting year... just looking at the Under-11‘s Academy Premiership team with their unbeaten run of five games played five wins, we now know that this pathway is a sustainable model with the ambitious plans the club is setting out at all levels.

We also invite all prospective non-signed players who are interested in our venture to apply for this, with our post-16 Academy staff in attendance:

Steve Beswick Chairman/Head Coach Stockport County Colts

22

Watch this space!

Academy The Academy players and staff have experienced an action-packed fourteen-week pre-season.

Kai Johnston

County celebrate a fourth goal against Salford

vs Cheadle Nomads

During this time, we have trained four times a week and played twenty-one fixtures. A huge amount of development has taken place for every staff member and player involved. Each fixture has provided different types of problems to solve. Therefore, a variety of learning outcomes have been deliberated.

For example, fixtures against youth teams Salford City FC, Huddersfield Town FC, and Port Vale FC have been blended with fixtures against first team opponents such as Cheadle Heath Nomads, Bury AFC, and Cheadle Town FC. This has provided our players with the opportunity to play matches where they have spent a lot of time in possession. They have had to work harder out of possession against strong physical and direct teams. Some of the standout team performances resulted in convincing wins against Huddersfield Town FC and Solihull Moors FC. The players and staff have reacted positively to the new ideas that have been implemented and the changes we have made. We are really pleased to see six young players gain a professional contract.

These players train with the first team at Carrington on a regular basis and have performed well. Given the difficult circumstances encompassing us all it has been a great feeling of achievement to get the league season started, and the boys have not disappointed to date with strong performances that have been rewarded with positive results. Played five, won three, drawn one, and lost one. We are

particularly pleased with the recruitment of our new first years. Both of our Under-19 teams have several 16-year olds in the starting line-ups in contrast to many of our opponent’s squads in this league whom are predominately made up of 18 and 19-year olds.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Alan Lord who has worked closely with myself over the last four months making this transition and my first few months at the club feel seamless. Coaches Mike Jeffries, Michael Raynes, Joppe Meulensteen and physio Tanya Audas have put in a huge amount of work to implement new ideas and make sure the programme delivered is professional, quality assured, and creates a positive environment.

Finally, we hope to see County fans come and support our young players in the FA Youth Cup this Friday 9th October. The game is away to Hyde United FC and is a 7:45 pm kick-off. Prices are £3 adults and £1 concessions. Cast your eye on some of the exciting young players that will be playing in the game.

Thank you for taking the time to read this academy update.

Best wishes!

Damien Allen Academy Manager

23

Official Partners of The National League

Broadcast Partner

Betting Partner

Learning Partner

Technical Partner

Advertising Partner

Website Partner

Charity Partner

County Ladies Stockport County Ladies v Brighouse Town 27th September 2020

Jess Linford, spectacular save at 0-0

Captain, Fran Davies, appeals for offside

Following a busy few weeks of pre-season friendlies for the First Team, with wins against FC Fylde and Sheffield United Reserves, a draw against Burnley FC and a close fought encounter with Manchester United Under-21s (watched by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer!), they were well prepared for their season opener against Brighouse Town in the FA Women’s National League.

The game kicked off in glorious sunny conditions at Stockport Sports Village. Both teams found it hard to gain a foothold of the game which made the opening exchanges scrappy. Liv Wild hit the bar, but Jess Battle had the best chance of the first half which was well saved by the Brighouse keeper.

HT County 0-0 Brighouse

Emily Bradshaw, assist for the opening goal

The second half started in similar style with both teams searching for an opening. This almost went to Brighouse but County ‘keeper, Jess Linford, pulled off a spectacular save to deny them. The breakthrough finally arrived for County in the 60th

minute when two of our new signings combined, Emily Bradshaw crossed a lovely ball to the back post for Maria Figueiredo to nod home unmarked.

Figueiredo was then involved in the second goal as she played a chipped through ball for substitute, Hanifa Douglas, to calmly chip the keeper. Two goals in seven minutes for County took the sting out of Brighouse attack.

County’s third came via another Bradshaw cross with Sophie Charlton placing her header in the bottom corner to score on her debut. Brighouse were awarded a penalty in the dying minutes, which they converted to make the final score 3-1.

First points on the board for County against a team that had beaten them twice last season.

For anyone interested in joining the club to play or train with any of our teams, e-mail development@ stockportcountylfc.com for more information Follow us on Twitter @SCLadiesFC and Instagram @ stockportcountylfc

25

ELECTRICAL We deal with all aspects of your electrical needs. We have over 30 years experience working within the domestic, commercial and industrial sectors.

Thank you to the NHS

Call 07768 912698

Electrical Installation Certificates | Electrical Installation Fire Alarms | Burglar Alarms | CCTV | Smoke Detectors Door Entry Systems Telephone: 03330 129997 | Email: admin@safeandsecuresolutions.co.uk

The Mad Hatter’s Quiz with Paul Dean

WHO AM I?

TRIVIA

I signed for a fee of £10,000 in 1991 playing 97 games scoring 42 goals and then signed for Crystal Palace in 1994 for £350,000.

1. Which Swedish footballer once had a clause inserted into his Premier League contract that prohibited him from travelling into space?

2. What was the name of the hotel Jose Mourinho lived in when he managed Manchester United?

WORDSEARCH R

E

G

E

P

Z

D

V M Z

H

T

Q C

C G P

K

N

Y

N O

S W G R

S

E

B N

E

U

R

U

T

L

L

F

B

A O

I

S

T

R

E

V

E

E

T

I

M T

C W U

D D W N P

X

H

K

T

L

I

N K D A D S

H M F

E

T

A

Y

J

O

Y

I

Y

H W N

E

F

H G M A

R W E

S

T

B

R O M D C N

T

V

A Q C M U

L

H B

E

G R

T

Y

U

I

E

S

E

N

Y

P W P Q H

A

Z

P G Q S

H

T

A

E

T

C

S

F

R

E

L

Y

Y W G

I

I

L

R

X

N S

B

U

C

N B O

T

O N

X O X

S Q H

D M A H N

E

T

T

O

T

T

A O N W A N K

Y

A

N D

S

I

N

L

Y

J

O O

U D A

E

A

H B M N

F

P O O S

K N W Z

L

U

E

G

F

W O M G P O

L

R H R N B N H R C C

K

R G W N W S D

E

A N Q V

I

I

K

V

H

Y

O C

T

C

I

N B

Y

L

F

U

H N A

B N R

I

K

U C

K M R

R

E

P G

I

M L

R

Y

U

X

E

L

A

S

V

C

H

T

B M

U G

H R

I

V

Z

S

S

E

Q

L

H C

S

T

S

H A

K

R W R

A Q R

C

P

K

A

F

V

C

U N

E

Y

A

V O Q N

Y M V

K

B D D C H M Z

U M A

I

J

H

K M N H

K

X

K

K

Y

B

Z

L

U

A

V

L

G S

V

X

B C

L

Y

H

K

Y

Answers:

Y K

Who Am I? Andy Preece

S U

Trivia 1. Stefan Schwarz 2. The Lowry Hotel

NORWICH WEST BROM BOLTON CHELSEA STOKE CITY MAN CITY TOTTENHAM MAN UNITED FULHAM SUNDERLAND QPR EVERTON ARSENAL NEWCASTLE BURNLEY WEST HAM LIVERPOOL

27

GAME CHANGER footballfoundation.org.uk

Commercial

Pioneer Sponsor County Ladies We’re pleased to announce that our official technology partner, Pioneer, who already sponsor the Club’s Cheadle End stand and the men’s home shirts, are sponsoring the County ladies’ team for the 2020/2021 season. A few of the players made it down to Edgeley Park

last week for a photoshoot in their new kits, they all looked very impressive with the Pioneer logo proudly exhibited on the front of the home shirts.

Stockport County Ladies kicked off their season last Sunday with a 3-1 win against

Brighouse Town. With lots of new signings and coaching staff, it’s shaping up to be an unmissable season. You can follow their season results through our website and on their social channels @stockportcountylfc.

Our New Commercial Brochure We recently launched our new commercial brochure, which is available for you to check out on the Club’s website. You’ll be able to find a breakdown of all the packages we currently offer, with opportunities such as; sponsoring a player, programme advertising and digital sponsorship. With the launch of our new streaming platform; County Live Stream, there’s even more ways to get involved, watch out for all our sponsors around the ground on the stream too.

If you’re interested in partnering with County please get in touch with our commercial department; Olivia. hanvey@stockportcounty.com

29

Steve Bellis Boris U-turns, Dried Pasta and Burning Witches!

‘You see that clock tower in the distance?

That’s where the Wetherspoons is!’

Well here we go! The new season is finally underway and the excitement and optimism around our club is palpable... and with good reason.

Despite the uncertainty and economic difficulties presented by the pandemic our new owner Mark Stott has not wavered in his determination to put Stockport County at the heart of the community and make our beloved ground a place to be proud of.

When you add the acquisition of the Championship standard training ground at Carrington and the substantial investment into the playing squad there is little wonder that our supporters are so eager to get the season underway.

Pre-season was very different but also very promising.

30

My personal highlight was the friendly at Colne as it was the first and as it turned out only time, that our fans could actually attend a fixture.

I arrived early and it was a good job as my Sat Nav seemed to have some difficulty locating the ground resulting in making more U-turns than Boris Johnson.

Once in the stadium it was great to see so many familiar faces and the fact that there was a bar and catering outlet. With regard to the latter it was a good job we arrived early as despite the match being sold out to a capacity 450 crowd, they had only managed to find one member of staff to man the catering hut resulting in queues not seen since we were forced to wait outside supermarkets in a vain attempt to buy toilet rolls and pasta (can you believe people actually raided the shelves to panic buy these items?).

This actually reminds me of my pal Mark Jones whose girlfriend returned from the shop with several packets of dried pasta. He pointed out that they never eat pasta but his girlfriend pointed out that everyone else was buying it so she thought she had better buy some too!

Back to Colne and following a convincing ok field display I was making my way out of the stadium with Sam Minihan’s Dad (lovely chap by the way) when I made the mistake of wishing the guy picking up the litter in the stand a good weekend.

Clearly delighted that someone had bothered to speak to him he led us onto the pitch to give us a brief (or so we thought) history of the club and the surrounding area.

We learned all about Bronte country and the local propensity for burning witches at the stake and the history of pack horses and their value to the area.

We were then marched to the back of the stand where he proudly pointed out a clock tower in the distance. We waited for some more historical significance and were a little disappointed when he declared: ‘You see that clock tower in the distance? That’s where the Wetherspoons is’.

History lesson over, we then headed off for a much-needed pint.

Then followed a friendly at Guiseley a place where we have never won and it was good to see a familiar face warming up with the two assistant referees. The Premier League’s Jon Moss was to take charge making the game feel even more important.

Even Mr Moss could not have failed to be impressed by our performance on the night. A rapid James Jennings hat-trick set the scene for a truly dominant performance in an inspiring 5-1 win.

I did feel sorry for the announcer who didn’t seem to realise that there were actually no fans in the stadium as he tried to whip them up into a frenzy before kick-off only to end up announcing a flurry of goals for the opposition... bless him.

Then there was our secretive trip to York where the home side didn’t want their supporters to

discover that a game was taking place at their soon to be demolished old stadium (looking at its current state it won’t take too long).

On arrival we were instructed to wear our masks at all times and even though two of us had travelled in the same car we were told to sit three seats apart in the stadium.

I politely enquired whether there might be somewhere to get a cup of coffee? I was informed that only place to get a cup of coffee was from the Stockport County team coach which was parked outside the stadium.

I must say that the new team bus is very impressive and the very accommodating driver/ owner Adam even provided a couple of rounds of buttered toast to go with the coffee... what a guy!

We were actually the very first team to ever play at Bootham Crescent (along with York of course) and the place holds some good memories for us.

However, the development of the new stadium is clearly taking much longer than expected as this was third time that this was our ‘last ever match’ at the stadium.

York didn’t want supporters turning up to see this final game so kept it quiet until the full time whistle blew but when they found out, the home supporters were not amused and ‘Boo them crescent’ would have been more appropriate that afternoon.

On the pitch, we won again but York provided stern opposition and should be a force in National League North this season.

Back to tonight and it is great to welcome our old friends from Halifax back to Edgeley Park.

It is also great to know that there will be thousands of County fans cheering the boys on from the comfort of their own homes thanks to modern technology and our wonderful media and IT guys.

We have an exciting new era ahead so let’s enjoy it and give the new owner and all the management, staff and players at the club the support they thoroughly deserve.

31

Opposition View FC Halifax Town supporter Rob Brown gives us the lowdown on our visitors to Edgeley Park this evening.

What are your hopes for the season?

With all of the uncertainty of COVID-19, it would be great to get back to watching live football on a Saturday afternoon again. In terms of action on the pitch, matching last season’s league position would be a great achievement.

Last season’s Boxing Day match stands out for all the wrong reasons!

Who are the FC Halifax Town players to watch?

The team has changed significantly since the last time we watched a league game.

Of our retained players, Jamie Allen is exciting to watch. Jack Earing is a great prospect too.

What has been your favourite memory following FC Halifax Town?

Winning the FA Trophy at Wembley in 2016 was a great day out with 10,000 Shaymen for company!

What do you know about Stockport County?

Everything from the price of the pies in the away end to the discount you get if you pay your

In terms of action on the pitch, matching last season’s league position would be a great achievement.

32

parking ticket inside 14 days for leaving the car in a ‘residents only’ spot on matchday!

Do you have any favourite memories of games against County?

Last season’s Boxing Day match stands out but for all the wrong reasons. The return game on New Year’s Day was a much better performance from us but your team escaped with a 0-0. Football is odd at times.

Score prediction?

2-0 home win (I’m always wrong though!).

Terrace Talk Mark Heys looks ahead to this evening’s big game at Edgeley Park...

Competitive football returns to Edgeley Park this evening as Pete Wild brings his FC Halifax Town side over from Yorkshire for County’s first National League home game of the 2020-21 campaign.

Not since the 1-1 draw with Barnet in March have County played a league fixture at Edgeley Park and like most clubs are chomping at the bit in order to have some normality restored after seven months away from the action.

Of course, the ground will look and feel very different in light of the Coronavirus situation, but this is a problem nationwide whether it be the at the summit of the Premier League or at the very bottom of the football pyramid. These are major changes to the football landscape since the outbreak of World War Two eighty years ago.

Places all around the country have implemented new methods in order to keep people safe and at the moment it is unknown territory as to whether this will be enough in order for football to go back to the way it was. Face coverings, hand sanitisation, social distancing, floor markings, one-way systems are all good and well, but people need to be together on the same page in order for this to work successfully.

Some people have differing opinions on the severity of the virus, but whatever your standing, football can only start to rebuild if these measures are followed. Hopefully it will be a short-term inconvenience, but if it goes into the more longterm time frame then it is something we will have to get used to as part of our football routine.

That’s enough about changes off the pitch, on the pitch there have been a few changes too and hopefully come the season’s end this will culminate in the side achieving promotion back to the Football League.

Mark Stott begins his first full season as County owner and after just missing out on the Play-Offs last season James Gannon has brought in a number of new faces to add to his squad, with ten new additions arriving through the door since 2019-20 was brought to a premature end.

With that, eleven players have also left Edgeley Park including the long-serving Ian Ormson after ten years, Sam Walker and Paul Turnbull, who was in his fourth spell back here after initially breaking through into the first team at just 16 years of age.

Damien Allen and Michael Raynes have both returned to the club to lead County’s Academy and there is a new role for Alan Lord who moves from coach to scout in a new position which will see him become First Team scouting consultant.

One final change means that Puma will from this season be the new official kit manufacturer of Stockport County and once again shirt sponsorship will be kindly provided by the Pioneer Group and Vita.

Paul Turnbull departed this summer after a fourth stint at Edgeley Park

So, changes afoot all round, but matters on the pitch now take centre stage and a repeat scoreline of this fixture from Boxing Day last season will do nicely.

33

The County Years 1980

In a brand new feature, County Historian Ian Watts delves into the archives to bring you some of the Hatters’ more memorable moments from years gone by.

Opening Game New Year’s Day should have seen County host Peterborough United in Division Four (League Two) of the Football League but the match was postponed due to a frozen pitch. The year got going ten days later when 2,898 paid to see a 2-2 Edgeley Park draw with Tranmere Rovers.

County: David Lawson, John Rutter, Steve Sherlock, Phil Henson, Paul Edwards, Mike Czuczman, Oshor Williams, Eddie Prudham, Tommy Sword, Les Chapman and Tony Coyle.

free transfer. The 28-year-old made his debut on Monday 10th March when County drew 1-1 with Portsmouth at Edgeley Park and Dave earned SCAN 853.

Summer Business A few summer departures from the club included trainer Charlie Bell, but only one official newcomer in Martin Fowler from Blackburn Rovers, although Dave Booth turned professional. Players leaving were Eddie Prudham (AFC Bournemouth) with a parting hat-trick in his last game after already being told he would be released,and Paul Edwards (Chorley) along with youngsters Nigel Smith (who would be back the following season) and Jim Connor (Northwich Vic) who was also back in the reserves during 1980-81.

Tranmere included future Hatters Clive Evans and John Kerr.

The visitors took an early lead with Steve Craven netting after just eight minutes, but Sherlock levelled ten minutes into the second half. Ken Beamish thought he had claimed the points with just three minutes to go, but Eddie Prudham earned the Hatters a point with an injury-time equaliser.

First Debutant We had to wait until March to see a new man in a County shirt with the signing of former Sheffield Wednesday striker Dave Sunley from Lincoln City on a

34

Back (L-R): Les Bradd, Dave Lawson, Andy Thorpe, Mike Rogan, Chris Galvin Middle: John Rutter, Steve Sherlock, Steve Uzelac, Tommy Sword, Paul Fowler Front: David Booth, Tony Coyle, Oshor Williams, Sean Moloney, Dave Sunley

Closing Game & Last Debutant On Saturday 27th December, County faced a side they had never taken a point off in a Football League match since they were elected two years earlier.

Nothing was to change as a first half goal from Tony Quinn gave the Latics victory in front of 3,062 spectators.

County: Lawson, Rutter, Sherlock, Fowler, Sword, Les Bradd, Booth (Mark Leigh), Sunley, Bob Mountford, Andy Thorpe, Coyle.

By coming off the bench that day Mark Leigh made his Hatters first team debut and claimed SCAN 858. Mark was previously an apprentice with Manchester City.

Best Run 10 games unbeaten, from 9th August to 15th September, W3 D7.

The Man In Charge Former County player from the 1950s - Jimmy McGuigan was in charge throughout 1980 having been appointed during November of the previous year.

Jimmy McGuigan

And Finally...

Tranmere Rovers programme (26 July 1980) reports that season tickets were £35 for Adults, £25 for Ladies and Under-15s, and £17 OAPs. Match admission was £2 in Centre 4 blocks and £1.50 in the wing blocks. The Cheadle Stand was £1.40 (80p for Under-15s and OAPs) and £1.10 for the terrace (60p Under-15/OAPs).

Marcus Heap presents Mark Leigh with his SCAN certificate

Most Appearances In Calendar Year Lawson 53 (missed two games), Rutter 51, Sword 50.

Most Goals In Calendar Year Sword 9, Prudham 8, Sunley & Williams 7 each.

Worst Run Five consecutive defeats, 6 December to 27 December. Losing run ended in the first game of 1981.

35

Pre-Season Action Sat 15th August ’20 County 0 Fleetwood Town 2 Sat 22nd August ’20 County 0 Rochdale 2 Tue 25th August ’20 County 1 (Reid) Salford City 0 Sat 5th September ’20 Colne FC 0 County 2 (o.g. Thomas)

36

Sat 12th September ’20 County 2 (Reid, Thomas) Curzon Ashton 0 Tues 15th September ’20 Guiseley 1 County 5 (Jennings (3), Bennett, Rooney) Sat 19th September ‘20 York City 0 County 1 (Bell) Sat 26th September ’20 County 2 (Rooney, pen, Bell) Kidderminster Harriers 1

37

38

Welcome to County, Ryan!

The Hatters are delighted to announce the signing of talented midfielder Ryan Croasdale, following his release from AFC Fylde.

The former Kidderminster man has signed a three-year deal at Edgeley Park.

Ryan began his career coming through the Academy at Preston NorthEnd, making one competitive appearance for the Club, whilst also enjoying loan spells at non-league Tamworth and Stalybridge.

The England C international then spent two years at Sheffield Wednesday before moving to Kidderminster in 2016, scoring his first goal for the Harriers against County at Edgeley Park, in a 1-0 away win.

After being named Club Captain in his second year at Kidderminster, Ryan then moved on to AFC Fylde in 2018, for a fee of £50,000. He spent two years at Mill Farm, making over 50 appearances and helping them to the 2019 National League PlayOff Final, and to victory in the FA Trophy at Wembley, scoring in their semi-final victory at Edgeley Park.

He was again on the scoresheet against County last season, but couldn’t prevent his side from falling to a 2-1 defeat, in a season that would go on to see the Coasters relegated.

Manager Jim Gannon said: “Ryan is a player I have always admired since I saw him playing for Kidderminster Harriers. He is a hardworking, very

conscientious and talented midfielder. He always displays a real array of defensive and footballing qualities that mean he looks comfortable in any midfield role.”

“In recent seasons, having watched him in close quarters against County, I have been impressed with the application of his all-round athleticism to add another attacking dimension to his game, and he has scored an impressive number of goals from midfield.”

“We are very fortunate to find such a talented player available on a free transfer due to the situation he found himself in at his previous club. All I can say is that having met the player, and asked many people in the game about him, he has a great character, and professionalism that belies the way in which he has been treated, and the situation that he and his young family find themselves in.”

“I am delighted to have Ryan aboard.

Adding another central midfielder for the season ahead was vital in securing the quality and depth needed for a successful campaign.”

Welcome to Edgeley Park, Ryan!

39

Luke Smith Physio

Good evening everyone.

This pre-season has been excellent in terms of transitioning into full-time training and being able to improve the fitness of our squad.

With extra time to focus on strength and conditioning as well as recovery our injury list is currently very low.

Currently we have Jordan Williams out with a groin strain which he sustained in training. His rehabilitation has been excellent and expect him to be back in first team training next week with a view to being able for selection in the next few weeks.

Furthermore, we have Harvey who sustained a knee injury and is currently completing the final stages of his on-field rehabilitation and expect him to be back training next week.

Jordan Williams has a groin strain

The squad are extremely professional and the new additions to the team have gelled very well with the rest of the squad and have a fantastic work ethic. Understanding the importance of injury prevention and recovery strategies is second nature to them now, so will hopefully remain a small injury list throughout the season.

Thanks, Luke

Harvey Gilmour has picked up a knee injury

The squad are extremely professional and the new additions to the team have gelled very well with the rest of the squad and have a fantastic work ethic.

41

Travelling Fan The

The first game of the 2020/21 season saw County make one of their longest away trips of the campaign, as the next chapter finally got underway behind closed doors at Torquay, writes Liam Richardson.

The day out and getting there No longer a stranger to these long distance away games after many a slog down South during last season’s National League campaign, the journey down to Devon was a relative breeze.

A 4.30pm departure time for the media team, driving down with Kit Man Richard Landon in a shiny new minibus, meant an overnight stay was required in order to break up the journey, and so we set up camp at a Premier Inn at Weston

Torquay United V County Vanarama National League Saturday, 3rd October 2020, 3pm Plainmoor Weather: Heavy rain Distance from EP: 257 miles Journey Time: 4 hours 30 mins Outcome: Late frustration for the Hatters, as opening day ended in a disappointing defeat.

42

super-Mare. Making good time down the M5, we arrived at our destination at around 8pm, even giving us chance to enjoy last sittings at the Hotel Restaurant. An early rise in the morning, via a Premier Inn breakfast, saw us arrive at an eerily quiet Plainmoor at around noon.

Plainmoor Torquay’s home for 99 years, the 6,500 capacity stadium stands just one mile away from the seafront, and on a normal day is capable of producing an intimidating atmosphere in front of its passionate fans. But this wasn’t a normal day, nor are these normal times, with the Covid policies involved in staging a behind closed doors game meaning there will be a new normal in place for the time being.

“There was a lot of expectation on County going into the season opener – and in large parts, the Hatters were excellent.” everything but score, having the ball cleared off the line twice, whilst home ‘keeper Covolan produced a Man of the Match display in goal.

Chances continued to come and go in an increasingly open game, before we were dealt the ultimate punishment deep into stoppage time with the cruellest of sucker-punches, as a ball into the area was scrambled home via a deflection by Connor Lemonheigh-Evans to win it for the hosts.

After a host of temperature checks, form filling and track & trace sign-ins, we took our place on the socially distanced Press Box in the large Main Stand (the camera facing stand, for those watching the host’s live-stream), with plenty of cover from the wet and windy conditions in place at the time.

The game With so much excitement and anticipation gathering over the long Summer (and Autumn) since the end of last season, there was a lot of expectation on County going into the season opener – and in large parts, the Hatters were excellent. Dominant in all areas aside from a brief spell at both the beginning and end of the game, Jim Gannon’s side set about pinning Torquay back inside their own half, with just one crucial element missing – finding that breakthrough goal. Indeed, County contrived to do just about

Getting away One of the few benefits of playing behind closed doors was the ease of leaving the ground, with no post-match traffic ensuring a quick and seamless getaway after our post-match media duties were concluded.

Home-time A swift journey back up the M5, with a brief pit-stop for some much needed food, meant we arrived back at Carrington at a reasonable 10.30pm.

Memory of the day A small but amusing insight into the dark arts of the game from Gary Johnson’s Torquay, as a member of backroom staff was ordered to throw a second ball onto the pitch, in order to stop play whilst a player was down injured, only for the referee to play on regardless!

Travelling fan verdict Journey: 8/10 Stadium: 7/10 Overall match day experience – 6/10

43

Supporters Co-Operative The Supporters’ Co-operative are anxious that, despite the continuing restrictions on contact and movement due to the pandemic, our AGM and elections go ahead in accordance with the Rulebook, thus, acknowledging the aforementioned difficulties, we have decided that the event will take place online, via Zoom (or similar platform) with access for members via an enabling code.

A provisional date of Monday 23 November 2020 at 7.30pm has now been agreed upon, and Caz Burt, our Independent Secretary, is now hard at work organising this important event in our calendar.

We will circulate the relevant documents in good time, inviting nominations for the vacant positions on the Co-operative Board.

In common with similar organisations the length and breadth of the UK, at these times we earnestly seek lively discourse and a contested election for the available positions, but sadly this is usually more of a fervent hope than a firm expectation, but it will not be for the want of trying if currently sitting board members, if willing to stand again, are returned unopposed.

Using Zoom or a similar platform to allow

44

members access to the AGM on line will be a challenge for the Co-operative, but we have been faced with and met important challenges before - for instance, seeking to safeguard Edgeley Park in 2013 we applied for and managed to get Stockport Council to include the stadium in their list of ‘Assets of Community Value’ thus securing the local community the right to be consulted should our spiritual home be up for sale.

This held for five years and we were back in 2018 to ensure that SMBC reaffirmed the Asset of Community Value status for another five years.

Solid achievement, just one of many, possible only with your support - make your voice heard on November 23!

Ian Brown Stockport County Supporters Co-operative

COUNTY JUNIORS WHO AM I?

3. Which club is associated with ‘Galacticos’?

4. Messi has won a record number of Ballon d’Or awards - how many?

5. Which player, with 653 games, has made the most Premier League appearances?

Answers:

2. True or false? It took Cristiano Ronaldo 27 games to score his first Champions League goal.

Who Am I? Jurgen Klopp

1. Who were runners-up in the Premier League last season?

GUESS THE CREST

Spot the Ball A

TRICKY TRIVIA

C

Guess the Ground Elland Road, Leeds United

GUESS THE GROUND

B

Guess the Crest Norwich City

SPOT THE BALL

Tricky Trivia 1. Manchester City 2. True 3. Real Madrid 4. Six 5. Gareth Barry

• I am a Premier League winning manager • I used to manage Borussia Dortmund • I like to wear a cap.

A

45

TORQUAY UNITED Lemonheigh-Evans 90’

STOCKPORT COUNTY -

Saturday 3rd October | Vanarama National League

County’s National League campaign started with a last-gasp 1-0 defeat at Torquay United, as Connor Lemonheigh-Evans struck an added time winner for Gary Johnson’s side.

Despite large spells of dominance for Jim Gannon’s new-look side, the hosts took all three points deep into stoppage time at Plainmoor.

46

1 0

47

All Past Opponents STOCKPORT TOWN

The most recent club to play in the non-league pyramid at Woodley. We have met them at various levels but just two friendly games qualify as first team meetings.

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

FR

A

2

2

0

0

16

0

STOKE CITY

Regular and at times bitter opponents during the early 1990s including a playoff semi-final win and a Wembley League Trophy defeat in a seven-day spell. Stoke had visited Edgeley for a fundraising game in the 1970s, and it was County who won the last FA Cup tie held at their old Victoria Ground.

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

EFL

H

10

5

3

2

14

8

A

10

1

2

7

6

16

EFLP

H

1

1

0

0

1

0

TCO

H

3

0

2

1

2

5

A

3

2

0

1

2

3

Stoke reserves known as Stoke Swifts FR WT

H

6

2

3

1

11

11

A

1

0

0

1

0

1

H

6

2

0

4

7

22

A

6

1

0

5

6

12

STRETFORD

Friendly opponents in our pre-league days of the 19th century, one game being played between Heaton Norris first team and Stretford second string.

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

FR

H

1

1

0

0

3

1

A

2

1

0

1

5

5

STRINES

These sides travelled the Goyt valley for friendly games. The result of one of our home meetings has not been traced but we had a good day when they came to town in October 1886 with Billy Riley getting two of the goals in a clear victory.

A

1

0

1

0

1

1

FAC

A

1

1

0

0

2

0

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

FLT

N

1

0

0

1

0

1

FR

H

2

1

0

0

5

2

A

1

0

0

1

2

4

STYAL FC

Pre-season opponents on Thursday 10th August 1989 when Tony Caldwell scored three and George Oghani (2) in a 6-1 victory.

SUNDERLAND

County line up against Stoke at Wembley

48

A two-legged victory over the then Roker Park side in a second round League Cup tie got County on the back pages in

1980, especially Tommy Sword who scored the winning penalty in the decisive away leg. It would be another 17 years before we first met in the Football League.

SWIFT’S XI

Select touring side put together by goalkeeper Frank Swift which visited County on Monday 2nd May 1955 in a game to raise funds for the benefits of Gordon Wilmott and Fred Kenny.

There were 3,650 in the ground for an oldfashioned testimonial game. With the home side coming out 7-4 winners, with Jack Connor scoring four times and David Herd notching a hat-trick for the visitors on his return to EP.

Tommy Sword

SWINDON TOWN

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

EFL

H

2

0

1

1

1

2

A

2

0

0

2

1

5

FLC

H

1

0

1

0

1

1

A

1

1

0

0

2

1

FR

H

1

0

0

1

0

2

SWANSEA CITY

Our first meeting with the Welsh side came in 1925 when they were still known as Swansea Town.

Memories range from the bad, Brian McCord’s shocking injuries that led to a court case, to the odd, they are one of the teams we have drawn 4-4 with, to the mass media attracting event of George Best’s goalscoring competitive County debut after playing in the Stoke friendly mentioned George Best above.

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

EFL

H

14

9

1

4

27

11

A

14

3

3

8

16

31

FAC

H

2

1

1

0

2

0

A

1

0

0

1

1

2

Trips to Swindon always seemed to end in frustration with regular late goals conceded or below par performances and generally one of the more expensive days out. It comes as no surprise to see we have picked up just three wins at their ground.

Comp

H/A

Pl

W

D

L

F

A

EFL

H

17

8

3

6

31

27

A

17

3

4

10

11

30

49

County Heaven Sandbach Hatter writes: Good evening, County fans!

Under normal circumstances, we always begin our matchday article by welcoming fans – both home and away – to ‘Fortress Edgeley’, however these are anything but normal circumstances.

Never before (and, hopefully, never again) have we witnessed our season commencing so late into the calendar, let alone ‘behind closed doors’, but fingers crossed it will not be too long before we can all take our seats again, to cheer the lads on.

One tradition I do intend to honour in our opening article of the season, is introducing you all to County Heaven, in case you are not already familiar with the name. We are an online forum, run by County fans for County fans – and everyone is welcome. Best of all, the site is entirely free to join, and once you do sign up and become a fully-fledged ‘Heavener’, you can enjoy all that the forum has to offer without adverts.

Aside from the County-related content, such as team news, match reports and rumours, we also have a fantastic ‘Games Room’ (containing prediction leagues, quizzes, a limerick competition and so much more), not to mention our famous ‘Off Topic’ section, where we discuss anything from music and computer games, to weird superstitions and Donald Trump!

We are also lucky enough to have County’s official match reporter, Hatter_in-Macc, among our founder members, who just happens to be not only my friend, but also my esteemed co-contributor in these pages. So, Maccy, as the home campaign kicks off against Halifax, do you think we can ‘bank’ on three points. I mean, how’ard can it be?!

50

Hatter in Macc writes: Got to give you credit for casually depositing a couple of puns at the end there, Sandy - but, in the interests of balance, I shall be leaving them well a-loan…

I will also be one of the very privileged few inside EP this evening - and hoping to see the Hatters get off the mark, points-wise, after such a disappointing last-gasp outcome for our far, faraway curtain-raiser on the English Riviera.

Reporting behind closed doors is the weirdest of experiences after a near-lifetime of watching live football - although covering home friendlies has at least got me a little more used to it ahead of the season-proper, and, as our press area for those games was in the opposite part of the ground from the actual box, I did get to re-acquaint myself with my old Pop Side seat of bygone years!

Unusual though this campaign already is, and is likely to continue to be, we Hatters, however remotely at times, will at least have a club, and a soundly-run one at that. to follow. Supporters of the outfit closer to my home are unable to do so in 2020/21, after financial freefall finally saw time called at The Moss Rose last month. And although the end for Macclesfield Town might not have come as a surprise, its fans have lost the team they loved. I genuinely hope for them, and for the town, that the name can somehow live on in football - at whatever level it may be.

Let us hope that the National League suffers no further club casualties in addition to The Silkmen this term. And that we can bag that all-important first win against The Shaymen tonight.

Animo et Fide. www.countyheaven.com

Imagine Radio Jon Keighren

These may be the strangest programme notes I have ever contributed, as I am unable to welcome you back to Edgeley Park and there is no Imagine Radio commentary to discuss.

However, in these exceptional times, it has been heartening to see Mark Stott and the new Board of Directors working to find creative solutions, not only to keep the club living and breathing, but to ensure that our team is competitive on the pitch.

Carl Gozem and Dan Powell have done an amazing job as we trialled our pre-season friendlies, and we hope you are able to enjoy tonight’s game live and online.

Whilst it’s difficult to find a perfect solution, the new owners have been quick to invest in the technology to pull this off.

It has been a tremendous pre-season, Jim Gannon and Simon Wilson have put together the strongest squad I’ve seen in more than a decade, so it’s no surprise that the anticipation is so high.

In order to protect the revenue from the new streaming service, the club has reluctantly decided to pause its freeto-air radio commentary agreement with Imagine Radio.

Throughout the past six months I have been working very closely with David Ancell, the new Brand and Communications Director, and I am genuinely excited at the plans and resources the new owners have allocated to spread the word about Stockport County.

Although this will disappoint many supporters, we will look at reinstating the commentary as soon as fans are allowed to return to Edgeley Park and the streaming of games has come to an end, and we appreciate Imagine Radio’s support for this endeavour.

Throughout my seven years on the Board, my priority was always to put the Hatters in people’s faces, to make sure we made plenty of positive headlines, despite being outside of the EFL. Our media profile has remained high throughout, but beyond this, I was also anxious that the match day experience for visiting media stayed at Championship level. This ambition was occasionally frustrated by a lack of resources, but the feedback from visiting press has always been encouraging.

Chris Ridgway also remains part of our commentary team and we’re looking forward to being back on the radio when conditions allow that to happen.

The biggest positive step has been the appointment of Liam Richardson as our Media Executive. This is an important, permanent paid position and reflects the new full-time status of the club.

Liam has been working with me behind the scenes for the past two seasons as a student intern. I was delighted to recommend him for this vital new role and I’m looking forward to seeing him flourish over the coming years. He is a great lad but, more importantly, he ‘gets it’ and his priority will remain the same: to keep County front and centre in terms of media profile.

Over the last few weeks, the club has quickly adapted to the ‘new normal’ and we have moved our radio commentary to online streaming, so despite playing behind closed doors, fans are still able to get close to the action with our own live coverage.

Finally, I also want to pay tribute to our sponsor John Whelan and his team at My Digital. Without batting an eyelid, John was happy to transfer his sponsorship from Imagine Radio to County TV and we look forward to having the added benefit of John, Shaun Connor, Phil Whelan and Joey Connor joining me up on the gantry throughout the season.

It’s the first time in 20 years I have had to move out of my seat in the Press Box, but I feel very privileged to be here at all this evening and I hope I can bring you as close to the action as possible, despite the draconian enforcement of the rules which have kept the National League behind closed doors.

I hope the irony isn’t lost on the government that hundreds of our fans will no doubt be gathered in pubs across the borough tonight to watch our live stream, when they could be sitting socially distanced in family bubbles enjoying the game in the open air at Edgeley Park!

Stay safe.

JK

The Smart Accountant for the digital age - specialising on online accounts and tax returns. Call today on 0161 925 6162 for a friendly chat about your accounting needs or visit www.mydigitalaccounts.com

51

Oshor Williams It’s great to see football return to Edgeley Park after what seems like a lifetime away. Unfortunately the buzz of excitement and anticipation which normally permeates the stands at the first home game of the season will be absent when the players take to the pitch tonight, and the famous Edgeley Roar will not ring out around the stadium to drive the lads on to victory as it has so many times in the past.

It may sound like the title of an Agatha Christie mystery but ‘The Rule of Six’ and the Government’s most recent raft of restrictions to control the rise in COVID-19 infection rates mean that it may be some time before we see crowds return to stadia around the country. The cynical amongst you might reasonably contend that it would be safer to go to a football match than to go to university or a White House garden party but rules are rules. As well as the obvious and extremely serious implications of the ban on club finances, what effect will the ban have on the

At times the passion and vocal support of a home crowd can lift the team at critical moments and transform matches from the mundane to the magical.

52

players who have to perform without the Adrenalin boost of what would have been a substantial home crowd?

Any professional footballer will tell you that there is nothing worse than performing in an empty stadium. I should know, in 1984 I played for County in front of a crowd of just over 1,000 fans in a home league game against Southend United.

I’m not sure whether that is an all-time record low but I do recall that at times it seemed like there were more people on the pitch than in the stand.

Maybe that’s why I kept getting dispossessed!

Although the stadium wasn’t completely empty it did look like an exercise in social distancing 36 years ahead of its time, but to their credit and our eternal gratitude the fans did encourage us vocally throughout a fairly drab affair.

The relationship between the team, and the crowd is vitally important and quite symbiotic. At times the passion and vocal support of a home crowd can lift the team at critical moments and transform matches from the mundane to the magical. As a player you do feel the collective emotion of the fans. Hope, despair, joy and disappointment trade metaphoric blows with each other in the stands and on the terraces fuelled by every passage of

Some pundits have branded crowd-free football as a ‘Zombie spectacle’

play on the pitch. Without that particular interplay it will be interesting to see how players respond to the challenge and how it affects the form book.

All the statistics suggest that home advantage is not merely based on a team’s familiarity with the stadium and the pitch, it is heavily centred on the influence of the crowd. Their reactions often determine refereeing decisions and whether directed negatively or positively can affect both team and individual performances.

Many pundits have branded crowd-free football a ‘Zombie spectacle’ whilst others ponder whether empty stadia will lead to more evenly balanced games. It’s too early to make a judgement at this moment in time but from a personal perspective it is great to see the resumption of the National League and all the players can do is go out and perform to the best of their ability driven by a desire to achieve the standards and goals demanded by Jim and his team . There is a real sense of optimism around the club and the recent Government pledge to provide funding support to National League teams is also extremely encouraging. Several clubs have already spoken about the imminent threat of insolvency without some form of intervention. So until revenue from gate receipts and income generating match day activities can be restored this prospective financial support will be a real lifeline.

A little aside about tonight’s opponents. In

a former life I was part of the Management Team at Halifax Town, working alongside the legendary John McGrath as his Assistant Manager for just under two seasons. Although it was a tough gig, working out of a freezing portacabin with few resources and a small squad, it was a great learning experience and I met some wonderful people during my spell at the Shay Stadium. One in particularly was both an ardent Halifax Town fan and a respected academic and lecturer in Classics. One day he said to me, ‘Osh, football is like a Greek saga, full of adventure and emotion. You feed us either the nourishing ambrosia of victory or the bitter gruel of defeat.’ Unfortunately John McGrath and I dished up rather too much gruel which both the fans and the Board found unpalatable. We became a Greek tragedy and were subsequently fired. Nevertheless I look back on my time at Halifax Town for the most part with great fondness and affection.

On a final note, despite not being able to be at Edgeley Park in person I like the rest of the Edgeley faithful will be there in spirit. I’ll be wearing my lucky socks and underpants (freshly laundered) and look forward to a winning start to our home campaign.

Stay safe, stay strong!

Osh

53

The power to engage and connect through Digital Solutions

Unit 5, Hamilton Road, S Park Business Park, Stockport SK1 2AE. info@pioneergroup.co.uk Main partner of Stockport County FC

Wilmslow Road, Didsbury, Manchester, M20 5WZ Tel: 0161 971 7000 Email: hello@waterside-hotel.co.uk

Deadly Duos Steven Davies

Kristian Dennis & Phil Jevons Hello and welcome back to the long-awaited 2020/21 season at Edgeley Park with Stockport County where we enter the Next Chapter. It feels like it’s been a while since we last spoke and wow a lot of things have happened recently on and off the field.

So, with last season sadly ending somewhat prematurely due to COVID-19, we somewhat missed out on what could have been back-to-back promotions.

But I’m not one to dwell too much on the past and I believe that everything happens for a reason, so we now find ourselves the bookies’ favourites on winning the league and with some very strategical signings made with our extended summer.

We currently find ourselves in a peculiar situation with games being played behind closed doors and without fans as well as programmes being made available via digital formats only, so with today’s opponents being Halifax - let’s crack on and start to get ourselves back where we belong in the Football League.

I have a feeling that it’s going to be one heck of a ride, so I hope you have your seatbelts on!

With the long break in-between the seasons I found myself watching old games through County’s YouTube Channel, listening to podcasts as well as getting really into the legends series via Facebook (Stockport County Live). It’s always good to hear what ex-players are doing these days and one interview I really liked and would recommend was ex-County striker Phil Jevons.

So, with this season’s page being dedicated purely to deadly duo’s – I wanted to start today’s page off with a bang to include Kristian Dennis and Phil Jevons who amassed 32 goals between them in the 2013/14 season.

Two players at two different stages in their careers saw Phil winding down whilst playing his last season before retiring, although admitted that he said he felt in hindsight that he could have Kristian Dennis

Phil Jevons

carried on for a few more seasons. Kristian Dennis, however, was on the rise from the non-league and had just come from an impressive two seasons from Curzon Ashton where he had scored 72 goals previously.

It was goals galore that season with some brilliant goals scored between them, and they also both scored hat-tricks along the way. Currently Phil is now working for Everton with the Under-9s which for him is a somewhat full circle as he started at the Toffees in the youth team, and by all means seems to be enjoying himself working with the up and coming players.

Kristian went on to play in League One for Chesterfield and then with League Two sides Notts County and Grimsby, where he recently played in the Wembley Play-Off final before getting a move to Scottish Premier league outfit St. Mirren - where teams like Rangers and Celtic now await.

With the bar being set let’s hope that we can find a new deadly duo in this season’s squad, looking at the pre-season games and current line up I have no doubt that we will.

55

Community Foundation scfcfoundation.com

@scfcfoundation

Stockport County Community Foundation

0161 286 8888 option 3

County and the Community Foundation are back!

Good evening and it is fabulous to be back watching County playing as they start their first home fixture in this season’s National League. Although this evening will be different in many ways, it’s so positive with the all the new developments on and off the field that our new owners have brought to the Football Club. We are all very excited about what the future holds with our aim to get County back where it belongs, in the Football League.

We at the Community Foundation have been working hard to prepare our activities in getting back to some sort of normality after the lockdown as we start to resume the provision we offer and the huge positive impact this has on everyone in the local community.

With this in mind, we are delighted to have once again started our provision within primary schools with our team of sports coaches delivering our Primary Schools Coaching Programme.

Primary Schools Coaching Programme The ultimate aim for our Primary Schools Coaching Programme is to engage with as many local primary school children and give them the opportunity to take part in physical sporting activities throughout the academic year, delivered by our team of sports coaches. We liaise with each individual school to deliver the specific requirements and set out their full academic year of developmental sports sessions that are fun. The coaching team plans a programme in line with the national curriculum and covers a range of sports and skills to get children active and enjoying their lessons each week. Each school that we deliver has the same members of staff each week to develop continuity between the school and members of the Community Foundation. In addition to the delivery of each sports session, we also ‘up skill’ many teachers to increase their knowledge and understanding of this important

56

part of a child’s education. We provide each school with a complete syllabus, including each session with all sessions written up for the school’s use, if necessary.

The strong relationships our coaches build with schools often means that extra-curricular activities such as after school sessions and lunchtime activities are established, further enhancing the development of the children socially, psychologically, physically and technically in the fun environment that we are synonymous with. Now more than ever this programme ensures children of all ages partake in their necessary amount

of physical activity each week in a friendly, professional and developmental environment.

The knock-on effect on our community is profound, as children have a better understanding of the importance of keeping active and a desire to do so both inside the school day and during children’s recreational time. Often players will develop the confidence and ability to take sports on in a team environment also. The project is unique on many levels, not least because we have great player and management support and look forward to developing this further over the coming months.

Paul Turnbull continues his support for the Foundation We are really pleased that Paul has committed himself to stay with the Foundation to continue his work within the Schools Programme. As a fantastic long-serving County player and ambassador for the club he was keen to continue to put something back in to the community.

Paul said: “To still be involved with the Foundation is something I was very keen to do and delighted I have been given this opportunity. To be working in Primary Schools throughout Stockport gives me great satisfaction to share my knowledge on to the children we work with. I was also very honoured to receive the Community Foundation Recognition Award last season and really enjoy being part of the team and looking forward to the months ahead.”

Contact supports Foundation’s Disability and Mental Health Programme 2020/21 The Community Foundation would like to thank leading packaging and flexo plate-making company Contact Originators for their generosity in their sponsorship for our Disability and Mental Health programme for 2020/21.

The Foundation is immensely proud of the opportunities the programme offers within the local community to over 250 children, young people and adults (Male and Female) with a range of physical and learning disabilities and mental health illness and to senior citizens who are maybe lonely and living in social isolation. Their provision now includes weekly football/multi-sport coaching sessions and tournaments for young adults living with a range of disabilities, complex needs and serious mental illness; a Walking Football group for senior citizens and those with dementia and a weekly Drop-in “Sport in Memories” Social Wellbeing Group for people experiencing loneliness and living with social isolation.

This partnership shows a further 12 month support by Contact following on from their sponsorship for last season’s Club’s ball boys and girls for the entirety of the 2019/20 National League season.

Dave Wardle, Foundation Manager, said: “We would like to thank Contact for their fantastic support towards our Disability and Mental Health programme which is so valuable to so many vulnerable people in our local community. The programme of activities that we provide enables us to reach out to a variety of groups with a range of needs, aiming to promote healthy lifestyles, extending opportunity, choice and control – benefitting those attendees physically, socially and emotionally.

“Contact’s generous sponsorship will help towards

running the programme of activities in funding new equipment, activity costs, venue hire, refreshments, tournament and coaching costs. This support is absolutely vital in making such a positive difference to the local community. We are delighted to have Contact as our supporter for this project and hope this will lead to a long and successful partnership!”

Steve Mulcahy, CEO of Contact, said: “Stockport County is our local football team, so this sponsorship deal is a wonderful prospect for the club and Contact Originators. It enables us to give something back to our local community and we are extremely proud and excited to have agreed the deal. The Foundation is a vital asset for the wider Stockport community, supporting some of our most vulnerable members of society. It opens the door to sporting and social opportunities that otherwise would probably not exist for them.”

If anyone would like to get further information about the Foundation’s Disability provision then please contact Adrian Rigby-Bates, Disability Football Development Officer for the Foundation on 0161 286 8888 (option 3) or alternatively email him at adrian. bates@stockportcounty.com

57

Talking Football Sam Preston

The law around handball used to be fairly simple.

The handball given against Eric Dier was described as ‘ludicrious’

If a player deliberately stopped the ball using their hand or their arm, they were penalised. Accidental incidents and ricochets were accepted as part of the game.

It was straightforward for most people with a modicum of football understanding – and that is where the current problem lies.

The new interpretation of handball is backed up by countless slo-mo VAR replays, devoid of any context or inference about the intention of the player.

Looking at a freeze-frame of Joel Ward or Eric Dier’s handball incidents in the Premier League last weekend made them look far guiltier than they actually were.

Of course, this was always the natural consequence of the intense criticism of refereeing

58

decisions; the demand for technology to be introduced to eradicate human error.

In January 2016, Gary Lineker tweeted: “Make it that every time it strikes a hand/arm it’s a free kick/penalty regardless of intent.”

After the penalty against Dier on Sunday, he tweeted: “Ludicrous. Utterly ridiculous law exacerbated by VAR. Can we have our game back please?”

The same people who spent years battering referees for every last wrong decision are now up in arms that the use of technology and removal of officiating discretion is destroying the game.

Essentially, they are realising that you can no more eradicate refereeing errors – or at least the conjecture around them – than a manager can guarantee his striker won’t miss a sitter or his defender won’t drop a clanger.

The Premier League has botched its interpretation of a rule which need not have had such dramatic consequences – but that puts pressure on referees lower down the pyramid as well.

Thiago Silva’s debut error against West Brom was as bad a mistake as you’ll see from a Champions League standard defender.

Alexandre Lacazette missed an absolute sitter at Anfield. Neither man was slated by their manager in the same way a referee would be for making a similarly basic mistake, dropping below the expected standard that much.

The constant search of perfection has removed common sense from the decision making process.

There has been plenty of blame for IFAB, the International Football Association Board, who make the rules.

It’s important to remember the Premier League

interprets them before offering guidance to its referees on how best to apply them.

IFAB have tweaked the handball law ahead of the 2020/21 campaign, but their rules still clearly make a distinction over whether the handball is ‘deliberate’.

This season has seen the Premier League drop any mention of ‘intent, deliberation and hand/arm position’. Their official website about the handball rule this season makes no reference at all to the body position, unnatural or otherwise.

In the Premier League, the handball rule is now – if the ball strikes a player below the armpit in the area, it’s handball. Referees have no discretion at all.

The Premier League has botched its interpretation of a rule which need not have had such dramatic consequences – but that puts pressure on referees lower down the pyramid as well.

Will referees use their own discretion without VAR peering over their shoulder? Or will they be expected to apply the law in the same way as their Premier League counterparts?

It remains to be seen. The good news is that the situation should be resolved by the Premier League altering its guidance to its referees, without any intervention needed by IFAB. The bad news is that the flawed pursuit of refereeing perfection will continue unabated.

Alexandre Lacazette misses a sitter at Anfield last week

59

Hatters v Shaymen

Facts & Figures Head to Head

Goals scored

Played (all competitions): 100

County: 180

County: 47 FC Halifax Town: 30 Draws: 23

FC Halifax Town: 122

First competitive meeting

Last time out

Monday 26th December 1921 Old Division Three (North) Stockport County 0 Halifax Town 0

1st January 2020, National League FC Halifax Town 0 County 0

Last five meetings Wednesday 1st January 2020 National League FC Halifax Town 0 County 0 Thursday 26th December 2019 National League County 5 (Arthur, Osborne 3, Brown o.g) FC Halifax Town 1 (McAlinden) Saturday 28th January 2017 Conference North FC Halifax Town 0 County 0 Tuesday 16th August 2016 Conference North County 1 (Duxbury) FC Halifax Town 1 (Denton) Saturday 4th December 1993 FA Cup County 5 (Beaumont, Frain, Francis 2, Wallace) Halifax Town 1 (Barr, pen)

Last five at EP County: 3 FC Halifax Town: 1 Draws: 1

60

County and fellow promotion hopefuls Halifax played out a competitive goalless draw at the Shay on New Year’s Day. The Hatters had their chances and Adam Thomas set up Tom Walker early on but a point-blank save by home goalkeeper Sam Johnson kept the hosts level before Elliot Osborne flashed an effort across goal for County.

In the second half, Jordan Keane brought another fine save out of Johnson in the Halifax goal while at the other end, Jack Redshaw could only shoot at Ben Hinchliffe in a game of few clear chances.

Team (4-2-3-1): Hinchliffe; Cowan, Palmer, Arthur, Leesley; Turnbull (Capt.), Keane; Thomas (Mulhern, 83), Osborne, T Walker (Rodney, 67); Bell.

Unused Subs: Minihan, S Walker, Ormson.

Booked: Leesley.

Attendance: 3,460 (1,485 away)

They played for both clubs Halifax Town: Bill Atkins, Jim Gannon, Paul Hendrie, Neil Matthews, Tommy Sword.

FC Halifax Town: Cameron Darkwah, Matt Glennon, Paul Marshall, Liam McAlinden, Devante Rodney.

Liam McAlinden

2020-21

CHE

Statistics National League Team Eastleigh Sutton United FC Halifax Town Hartlepool United Woking Wrexham Dover Athletic Torquay United King's Lynn Town Yeovil Town Altrincham Weymouth Bromley Chesterfield Macclesfield Town Wealdstone Aldershot Town Boreham Wood Solihull Moors Notts County Stockport County Dagenham & Redbridge Maidenhead United Barnet

W 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Home L 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

F 0 3 2 2 2 2 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

Away L 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0

D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 -

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

A 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 1 1 2 3 0

W 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Total L F 0 5 0 3 0 2 0 2 0 2 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 2 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 1

D 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Total

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Goals

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Goals

Goals

0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 -

Subs

Subs

0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 -

F 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0

A 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 2 1 1 2 3 5

GD 4 3 2 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -2 -3 -4

Play-Offs: Elimination Round (5th v 6th, 4th v 7th)

Cup Starts

Starts

Josh Barnes Nyal Bell Richie Bennett Ryan Croasdale Jordan Downing Max Greenhalgh Ben Hinchliffe Liam Hogan Jack Hopkins Connor Jennings James Jennings Jordan Keane Mark Kitching Lois Maynard Sam Minihan Ash Palmer Alex Reid John Rooney Macauley Southam-Hales Finley Stanyer Jamie Stott Adam Thomas Jordan Williams Own goals Total

W 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Play-Offs: Semi-Finals (2nd v 5th/6th, 3rd v 4th/7th) League

Player Roll-Call

A 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 5

Subs

Promotion

P 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1

Starts

# 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

STERFIELD FC

0 0 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 -

0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 -

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Pts 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 3 1 1 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Form Last 6 Matches W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - W - - - - D - - - - D - - - - D - - - - D - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - L - - - - Relegation

National League Records

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1

0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Biggest Win

Saturday 3 October 2020 Barnet 1-5 Eastleigh

Most Goals

Saturday 3 October 2020 Barnet 1-5 Eastleigh

Top Goalscorer

Tyrone Barnett (Eastleigh) 1 = 1 Goal + 0 Penalties

John Rooney was one of four players making their debuts against Torquay United

# 1 10 24

National League Fair Play Team Aldershot Town 0 Stockport County 1 Yeovil Town 4

0 0 0

Pts 0 4 16

Cut off dates for number of yellow cards in league matches only, cups are different: 5 = Following 23 fixtures , 10 = Following 37 fixtures, 15/20 = End of the season Automatic league suspension starts next match after an offence, automatic cup suspension starts next match after an offence in the same competition Yellow cards are specific to each competition, red cards apply across all competitions All details up to date as of Sunday 4 October 2020

61

Kit Sponsorship Ben

Sam

Hinchliffe

HOME

HOME

BEN WALKER

STOCKPORT TADPOLES

LEE THORNEYCROFT

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE

AVAILABLE

BENJI BRIGGS 02

Adam

03

John

Thomas

Richie

Rooney

Bennett

HOME

HOME

HOME

ANDY BIRCHENOUGH

MATTHEW STANDING

JACOB THORP

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE 07

AVAILABLE

THE ITALIAN 08

Jamie

09

Jordan

Stott

Macauley

Keane

Southam-Hales

HOME

HOME

HOME

ZANE PEAT

VIRIDOR

AVAILABLE

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE 15

AVAILABLE 16

Josh

AVAILABLE 17

Jordan

Barnes

Harvey

Downing

Gilmour

HOME

HOME

HOME

AVAILABLE

AVAILABLE

AVAILABLE

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE

62

Jennings

HOME

01

21

James

Minihan

AVAILABLE -

AVAILABLE -

To sponsor a player, please contact Olivia Hanvey on 0161 266 2700 or olivia.hanvey@stockportcounty.com

Liam

Ash

Hogan HOME

HOME

IAN DOOLEY

MAYNARD FAMILY

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

KEVIN AND SAM BOON

HJS JOINTING SERVICES LTD

05

Connor

AVAILABLE 06

Jordan

Jennings

Mark

Williams

Kitching

HOME

HOME

HOME

LEE THORNEYCROFT

AVAILABLE

KATE GLASS

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE 10

AVAILABLE 11

Ryan

AVAILABLE 14

Alex

Croasdale

Nyal

Reid

Bell

HOME

HOME

HOME

GARY KIMBER

MIKE WHORRALL

RAY JOHNSON

A WAY

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE

ASHLEIGH THORP

TOMMY ARMSTRONG

18

19

Finley

20

Max

Stanyer

Greenhalgh

HOME

HOME

AVAILABLE

AVAILABLE

A WAY

A WAY

AVAILABLE -

Maynard

HOME

THE MOORE FAMILY

04

Lois

Palmer

AVAILABLE -

63

2020-21

Fixtures & Results Date

Opposition

Comp

Score

Att Pos

October 2020 Sat 3

Torquay United

A NL

Tue 6

FC Halifax Town

H NL

Sat 10

Dover Athletic

H NL

Tue 13

Wealdstone

A NL

Sat 17

Chesterfield

A NL

Tue 27

Solihull Moors

H NL

Sat 31

Weymouth

H NL

Sat 24

FAC4Q

November 2020 Wed 11 Notts County

A NL

Sat 14

Dagenham & Redbridge

A NL

Sat 21

Eastleigh

H NL

Sat 28

Hartlepool United

A NL

December 2020 Sat 5

Bromley

Tue 8

Barnet

A NL

Sat 12

Sutton United

H NL

Altrincham

A NL

Mon 28 Wrexham

H NL

Sat 19 Sat 26

A NL

FAT3

January 2021 Sat 2

Altrincham

H NL

Sat 9

Maidenhead United

A NL

Sat 23

Boreham Wood

H NL

Tue 26

King's Lynn Town

A NL

Sat 30

Woking

A NL

Tue 5

CSC2

February 2021 Sat 6

Yeovil Town

H NL

Sat 13

Aldershot Town

H NL

Sat 20

Eastleigh

A NL

Tue 23

Notts County

H NL

Sat 27

Chesterfield

H NL

March 2021 Sat 6

Weymouth

A NL

Tue 9

Solihull Moors

A NL

Sat 13

Dagenham & Redbridge H NL

Tue 16

Barnet

Sat 20

Sutton United

A NL

Sat 27

Hartlepool United

H NL

H NL

April 2021 Fri 2

Aldershot Town

A NL

Mon 5

Bromley

H NL

Sat 10

Wrexham

A NL

Tue 13

King's Lynn Town

H NL

Sat 17

Maidenhead United

H NL

Sat 24

Boreham Wood

A NL

May 2021 Sat 1

FC Halifax Town

A NL

Mon 3

Wealdstone

H NL

Sat 8

Dover Athletic

A NL

Sat 15

Torquay United

H NL

Sat 22

Woking

H NL

Sat 29

Yeovil Town

A NL

64

0-1

0 21 Hinchliffe

Minihan

Jennings J

Maynard

Palmer

Hogan

Kitching

Key:

CHE

STERFIELD FC

Bold = Goalscorer ¹ / ² / ³ = 1st / 2nd / 3rd Sub / = Yellow / Red Card = Penalty * = Own Goal

Rooney

Bennett ²

Jennings C ³

Reid ¹

Barnes

Stott

Keane ¹

Thomas ³

Bell ²

65

National League News CHE

STERFIELD FC

Neil Simms rounds-up the recent happenings elsewhere in the National League...

After the oddest of off-seasons the 2020-21 season finally commenced at the weekend, more than six months after the COVID-19 pandemic caused league action to end abruptly in March.

At least we’ve started the season now, for even that was in jeopardy just days prior, pending Government funding, though never in the vast majority of fans’ lifetimes has the campaign ahead been so filled with questions and concerns.

Sadly those wonderings are not limited to on-pitch issues, as they usually are, though instead supporters find themselves questioning how many of the clubs that started on Saturday will still be in existence come the season end, and how the league will be affected by such weighty societal issues.

Already the name of our near-neighbours Macclesfield Town has been expunged from National League fixture lists, with many more clubs around the country reported to be on the brink of collapse as the economic reality of fan-free grounds threatens to become a burden too heavy to handle.

Consequently, the playing standard of the league is expected to become poorer for the pandemic, or perhaps more polarized, with many pundits tipping a clear divide between clubs with robust revenue streams or individual investment and those with faltering finances.

66

Yeovil Town and Boreham Wood will expect to be in contention for promotion too, with both teams crucially hanging on to prolific strikers in Rhys Murphy and Kabongo Tshimanga respectively. Murphy had 17 goals to his name when the season ended, whilst Tshimanga had reached 19.

Elsewhere, Dagenham and Redbridge are strongly tipped to improve on last season’s 17th position having brought in the ever-reliable striker Paul McCallum, who has bagged 38 goals in the last two seasons during spells at Eastleigh, Solihull Moors and laterly Barnet.

The Daggers manager Daryl McMahon has won nearly half of the 195 games he’s managed, so the East London side may well be a particularly tough proposition this season.

Surely we can expect better from Hartlepool United, Solihull Moors and Wrexham this season too, with their managers Dave Challinor, James Shan and Dean Keates having had the chance to re-jig their squads this summer, having joined their clubs during the season.

Mind you, an incredible story in a year of utterly unpredictable news events could be unfolding at Wrexham, with Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney set to invest in the club!

Notts County are among those expected to fare well, with Neal Ardley’s men coming within 90 minutes of an immediate return to the Football League in early August, losing to Harrogate in the play-off final at an empty Wembley Stadium.

Since then Notts have stretched beyond the usual realms of recruitment

at this level, signing a Danish international in midfielder Casper Sloth, who once cost Leeds £600k, a 6ft 5in Belgian striker named Elisha Sam from the Bulgarian league and Ruben Rodrigues, a Portuguese forward from the second division in Holland.

Casper Sloth

Whilst Wrexham fans can suddenly dream the American dream many other clubs at this level are just trying to get through each month. Hopefully Government funding ensures the 23 teams that make up the National League table now remain viable through these trying times.

Rated Excellent On TrustPilot

Stockport County

FC Halifax Town

This evening’s other Vanarama National League fixtures (7.45pm unless stated) Aldershot Town v Sutton United Bromley v Dover Athletic Chesterfield v Hartlepool United Dagenham & Redbridge v Barnet Eastleigh v Torquay United Maidenhead United v King’s Lynn Town Solihull Moors v Wrexham Weymouth v Woking Yeovil Town v Wealdstone

1 Ben Hinchliffe

[1357]

1 Sam Johnson

2 Sam Minihan

[1359]

2 Jeff King

3 James Jennings

[1397]

3 Jack Senior

4 Liam Hogan

[1395]

4 Nathan Clarke

5 Ash Palmer

[1372]

5 Neill Byrne

6 Lois Maynard

[1394]

6 Tom Bradbury

7 Adam Thomas

[1373]

7 Jamie Allen

8 John Rooney

[1400]

8 Kieran Green

9 Richie Bennett

[1396]

9 Jake Hyde

[1339]

10 Jack Earing

Assistant Referee 1 Steven Lennon

11 Danny Williams

Assistant Referee 2 Matthew Sowerby Fourth Official Barry Lamb

10 Connor Jennings 11 Jordan Williams 14 Mark Kitching

[1398]

14 Matt Stenson

15 Jamie Stott

[1380]

15 Gevaro Nepomuceno

16 Jordan Keane

[1370]

16 Reuben Noble-Lazarus

17 Macauley Southam-Hales

17 Gold Amotayo

18 Ryan Croasdale

18 Jay Benn

19 Alex Reid

[1399]

19 Luke Summerfield

20 Nyal Bell

[1367]

26 Martin Woods

21 Joshua Barnes

31 Niall Maher

The numbers in brackets are each player’s unique Stockport County Appearance Number (SCAN), showing his position in the list of players to make their debut for the club in a senior competitive game. For more information please visit www.scanscheme.org

Tomorrow Notts County v Altrincham

Match Officials Referee Adam Herczeg

Next At Edgeley Park

Dover Athletic Saturday 10th October 2020 Kick-off: 3pm Vanarama National League