Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

COUNT

ONLINE DIS

CE FOR ADVANETS MATCH TICK

CLICK HERE

Match Sponsor

BALL Sponsor Interactive MATCHDAY PROGRAMME

v Macclesfield Town FC Saturday, August 31 2019 | Kick-Off: 3.00pm

AHEAD OF THE GAME

I

t feels good to be home! Find the latest news relating to each home match in the Ahead of the Game section of each Matchday Programme.

MATCHDAY TIMINGS… Club Shop/Ticket Office: Open from 12pm & 15 minutes after final whistle Broadhall Suite Bar: Open from 12pm-3pm & 4:45pm-7pm (Home & Away supporters welcome) Hospitality: Open from 1:30pm Kids’ Zone: Open from 1pm-2:30pm Turnstiles: Open from 1:45pm

REVAMPED KIDS’ ZONE The Kids’ Zone will be revamped and rebooted ahead of Saturday’s match with new colour, decoration and activities for kids and families to enjoy. Play Giant Connect 4, stick your head through the new Face in the Hole board, get your face painted or take part in any of the other fun and games that are available from the Kids’ Zone at every home matchday.

The Kids’ Zone is also the place to sign up for and collect your Junior Boro Membership packs or get your Junior Boro Passport stamped. PLUS, a selection of First Team Players visit the Kids’ Zone each week between 2pm-2:30pm, so bring your autograph book along and snap a selfie with one of your favourite players!

Click here for further ticket information

PIE & PINT FOR JUST £5 Make sure you stop by the Broadhall Suite on Saturday where the Club is once again holding its “Pie & Pint” offer for just £5. Open from 12pm and welcoming both home and away supporters, The Broadhall Suite is your #1 stop for food and drink prior to and after each home match.

2 | www.stevenagefc.com

NORTH STAND UPDATE North Stand Season Ticket Holders are to be advised that the North Stand will not be in operation for Stevenage Football Club’s upcoming home fixtures against Carlisle United on Sat 14th Sept 2019 and Northampton Town on Tues 17th Sept 2019.

With this in mind, Season Ticket Holders in the new North Stand can now visit the Club Shop/Ticket Office to collect their complimentary tickets in either the West Stand or East Terrace for both fixtures.

A further update on the progress of the North Stand will be published in due course.

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

All photos by Jim Steele unless otherwise stated

TICKET INFO… Tickets for today’s match range from £5 for Kids to £17 for Adults and are available online or in-store ahead of kick-off. Remember, all home tickets must be purchased before reaching the turnstiles and supporters can now scan their way in using their phone.

Macclesfield fans wishing to buy their tickets from the stadium on Saturday must do so from the South Stand turnstiles, where card and cash options are available.

NOW T U O ’ M A E T S ‘ NEW LEVEL

I don’t want a job I want to work for O2 Reason No.

Kick off your career with us At O2 we have all kinds of career routes. Whether you are looking for the next company you want to work for, the next step in your career or want to change direction completely, we have opportunities that will take you to exciting new places.

If you are passionate, driven and always want to do the right thing for customers then we want to hear from you.

Take a look at our job opportunities. o2.uk/stevenage

THE GAFFER

CLICK HERE

DINO MAAMRIA

for info on how to sponsor this page

G

ood afternoon everyone and a warm welcome to the Lamex Stadium for today’s game against Macclesfield Town FC. Despite not recording our first win yet this campaign, our performance levels have been getting better and better each week.

We are still not sure how Bradford City have gone away with 3 points against us in our last home game! We totally dominated them from the start to finish, but the experience in a well financed squad paid dividends on the night, finding a way to win despite being second best all over the pitch.

Then we travelled away to Mansfield over the weekend. To come back with a fantastic clean sheet, and a well earned draw from a very tough place to go, was a credit to our backline especially for the way we defended throughout the game.

The margins between losing a game and winning are so small, as we experienced ourselves over the last four games.

We accepted that we were poor in the opening game against Salford but in the following games against Exeter, Orient, Bradford and Mansfield, we could have easily won them! We competed well, we were organised, together and fully committed to win.

We know what we have to do to win games, it’s obvious that we need to do more to score goals, but let’s make sure that we are not overlooking or taking for granted the resilience and solidity we showed to keep a clean sheet as a defensive unit.

It’s well documented the horrific injury list we currently suffer from with a total of 12 players on my last count! But that gave us the chance to give some of Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

our U18s the experience to play first team football, Arthur Iontton, Jack Smith and Luis Fernandez all played their part in the last few games and they showed they can cut it! It was well deserved to reward them with their first Pro contracts, I’m sure they will keep growing and getting better each week.

Your support has been magnificent and inspiring, we have faced a lot of adversity in our first month of the season but that will only make us stronger together and I can’t wait to celebrate our first win with you this afternoon.

Love the game.

www.stevenagefc.com | 5

Using digital to speak directly to your customers

Tel: 07539 782979 Email: hdmdigitalsales@gmail.com www.hashtagdigitalmedia.co.uk

THE CHAIRMAN

SPONSORED BY

PHIL WALLACE

A

warm welcome to the directors, officials, players and supporters of Macclesfield Town FC. I hope you enjoy your stay with us and have a safe journey home.

Another battling performance at Mansfield last Saturday saw us come away with a point and that’s now 2 clean sheets in a row away from home.

Actually, if we put the Salford game behind us we’ve conceded 2 goals in the last 4 league games, which is testament to our resilience at the back, despite the original 1st choice back 3 being changed due to injuries.

However, we haven’t hit the back of the net yet and that’s something we obviously need to put right if we want to start banking 3 points. Looking at our injury list we could perhaps create a new record as I think 50% of our senior squad are in the physio room and unavailable for selection. We expect 3 or 4 to be back within a couple of weeks but until then we’ll continue to give opportunities to our young players to be part of the 18. This is my 20th year at Stevenage FC and I’ve seen all sorts of starts to the season. Injuries are part and parcel of the game but I tend to think over a season they even themselves out, so I’ll be expecting a nice long run of injury free games in the months ahead! To be serious, I always tend to see situations as opportunities.

17 year olds Jack Smith and Luis Fernandez have earned themselves full time pro contracts by being part of the 1st team squad and showing what they can bring to the group in training. If it wasn’t for injuries to almost all of our defenders, we’d never have seen that young Luis was prepared to step up and put in strong performances full of Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

control, tenacity and grit. He’d still be over playing for the U18’s in front of a handful of people, so there’s always a silver lining… what I do know from 20 years of running a football club is that a tight group is the most valuable asset any manager can have when the lads play for each other. We’re at that stage now – we saw it emerging in the battling displays against Orient and Mansfield and we saw it when we played Bradford off the park. There is a pattern emerging of these lads giving everything they have for the shirt and for each other.

Let’s start winning and celebrating 3 points, taking one game at a time.

Transfer deadline looms on Monday.

We expect to add 2 or 3 signings, but frankly getting back the likes of senior lads like Cuthbert, Nuge, TVC, Sonupe, Parrett, Digby, Tyler, Kurtis etc will be like making new signings. That’s a lot of experience to lose from a group, but as I alluded to earlier, one man’s misfortune is another’s opportunity. The shirts are there to be taken and it’s simply great to see lads rising to the occasion. Let’s hear you get behind the lads today.

Enjoy the game! www.stevenagefc.com | 7

Until August 31st, we’re offering 0% APR representative across almost 300 used cars that we have in stock at Norton Way Nissan, Honda and Mazda.

NORTON WAY NISSAN

NORTON WAY HONDA

NORTON WAY MAZDA

Norton Way North, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1BL Call 01462 418 722 www.nortonwaynissan.co.uk

Norton Way North, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1BL Call 01462 754318 www.nortonwayhonda.co.uk

Norton Way North, Letchworth Garden City SG6 1BL Tel: 01462 754440 www.nortonwaymazda.co.uk

69 PL4TE NOW AVAILABLE

O

S EV A

L EN E

AT N NOUS RT ED O C N AR W S AY

T

Providing all your motoring needs in your local area.

Norton Way Est. 1989.

TO SEE WHAT WE HAVE AVAILABLE, PLEASE VISIT WWW.NORTONWAY.COM OR VISIT ONE OF OUR DEALERSHIPS 0% APR Representative: Used Car Sale Event Offers valid until 31st August 2019. 0% APR Representative finance on used vehicles on a 24 month Hire Purchase (HP) Agreement. Visit our website or speak to a member of staff to discover the selected offer vehicles. This offer is available on a maximum financed amount of ÂŁ20,000 with a minimum 50% deposit. This offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other discount or promotional offer. The offer cannot be claimed retrospectively.

Management reserve the right to remove this promotion without prior notice. Credit provided by Black Horse Limited. Registered office: 25 Gresham Street, London EC2V 7HN. Black Horse Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. Registered number: 661204 England and Wales

TO ORDER AT NORTON WAY.

DELIVER A MORE SECURE TOMORROW. www.mbdacareers.co.uk

MATCH

CLICK HERE for info on how to sponsor this page

ACTION

MATCH HIGHLIGHTS

0

0 STEVENAGE FC

Mansfield Town FC

Possession

Shots on Target Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

SHOTS

Corners

Fouls

www.stevenagefc.com | 11

TODAY'S MASCOT Our mascot today is 8-year-old Benji Cox Benji attends Sutton VA, C of E Lower School, Bedfordshire and lives in Potton, Beds.

His hobbies include Beavers although he is about to start Cubs and he loves football, sailing, art and looking after his dogs Baxter and Zia. He is one of the few Beaver Scouts in the country to achieve every single badge possible. Just before the

12 | www.stevenagefc.com

summer Benji organised to raise some funds for his school and he climbed Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon) the week before school broke up for summer (he made a full ascent and descent via the longest path - Llanberis path), he has single handedly managed to raise over £500 so far for his school’s new classroom!

He is a keen footballer (Dad Adam played to a high standard and Mum Lucy played Pro) and has a great left foot, his favourite player is Ben Kennedy.

He has a younger sister, Alyssa, who is 6.

Benji’s mum is one of the original Boro Bears and also produced much of the old Boro Bear artwork, and helped produce the old Baby Boro’ book. Dad still sweeps up after games keeping Jim Briscoe’s legacy going.

For the 2019/2020 season, the price to be a Mascot has been frozen for the third successive year at only £100!

If you’d like to discuss a mascot package in more detail or making a booking then please contact the Foundation on 01438 223223 (Option 6) or via community@ stevenagefc.com

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

JUNIOR BORO MEMBERSHIP PACKS You can collect and buy your Junior Boro memberships from the Kids’ Zone before Saturday’s match...

The Junior Boro membership scheme was launched last month and over 100 young supporters are already signed up. Membership for the first 200 to join costs just £5 and includes a whole host of benefits, gifts and discounts: Junior Boro members will receive a membership pack that includes a Junior Fan Passport (exclusive to Junior Boro Members this season), membership card, drawstring bag, velcro wallet, water bottle and pen, as well as the following.

• • • •

Invitation to a VIP first team event Draw to be a mascot at each home 2019/20 league game 10% off all club shop merchandise Access to North Stand discount ticket prices

To become a Junior Boro Member, parents of young supporters can purchase their child’s membership online and upon completion, will be sent an application form to complete and return. Alternatively, you can purchase membership from the club shop.

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

www.stevenagefc.com | 13

FROM THE

ARCHIVES

F

or those who have followed the club since the early days, August 28, 1984 was a major landmark.

On that day some 35 years ago Stevenage Borough entertained Kingsbury in what was their first match in the Isthmian League. It was a Tuesday evening kick-off for the Division Two (North) clash with Kingsbury and a game which Boro won 5-2 with goals which included strikes from Paddy Butcher, Ricky Marshall, Jim Beech and Kevin Lowe.

The campaign was to show Boro had no fears at the higher level as they went on to finish fourth that year.

for info on how to sponsor this page

Sunday September 2, 1984

Stevenage 5 Kingsbury 2

CLICK BELOW TO CHECK OUT THE PROGRAMME

ON THIS DAY Saturday August 31, 1991 Waltham Abbey 0 Boro 1 For our on this day of August 31 we go back to 1991 and an FA Cup Preliminary Round visit to Waltham Abbey.

Boro began the match in front of a crowd of 219 as hot favourites and with a starting 11 which included Richard Wilmot, Paul Bowgett and Shaun Marshall they were to grab the upper hand with a Colin Cardines goal which was eventually to prove the difference.

Sadly Boro were drawn at home to Sutton Coldfield in the First Qualifying round and went on to lose 2-0, although the silver lining came in the league as victory in three quarters of all their games saw Boro win the title by a full 14 points.

Information kindly supplied by www.boroguide.co.uk Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

CLICK HERE

www.stevenagefc.com | 15

Battling Boro earn a point from the One Call Stadium

B

oro made it another point and another clean sheet on the road when they came away from the One Call Stadium with a hard fought

0-0 draw.

Still suffering from a growing injury list, Luis Fernandez was the latest to fall victim when he was injured during the warm up. But despite the reshuffle, 16 | www.stevenagefc.com

Boro nullified the home side and it was Paul Taylor who had the best chance for the visitors when he found himself free on goal, only to fire straight at keeper Conrad Logan in the 12th minute.

Mansfield upped a gear after the break but a well organised and hard working Boro defence and some heroics from keeper Paul Farman meant there would be a reward for all the endeavour.

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

Photos by Chris & Jeanette Holloway, The Bigger Picture.media

www.stevenagefc.com | 17

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

PLAYER

QA

AND

Luther James-Wildin

This Or That…

18 | www.stevenagefc.com

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

FIRSTS & LASTS…

First…

Car: Vauxhall Astra 55 plate – had that up until about 6 months ago Football shirt you owned: It was the Burgundy Arsenal 2006 shirt Celeb Crush: Beyonce and Rihanna Footballer you idolised: First was probably Thierry Henry but as I developed as a player, I would say Marcelo Music you owned: 50 Cent – The Massacre on CD Overnight roommate: Alex Reid Thing you do when you get home from training: Call my Dad

Last….

Thing you watched on TV: Peaky Blinders Thing you bought: A new toothbrush Football Match you went to: Watched Steve Seddon play in and score for AFC Wimbledon at Luton towards the end of last season Thing you ate: Jimmy’s Shepherds Pie at lunch Time you lost your temper: Earlier in training. Me and Stokesy had a disagreement Good deed: I let somebody out at a roundabout on my way here Goal you scored: Away at Newport last season Song you listened to: Gladiator – Now we are Free

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

TOP 3s…

Moments in Career: Signing for Stevenage, making debut against Tranmere and scoring for Antigua Takeaways: Turkish, Chinese and Fish ‘n’ Chips Players of All Time: Messi, Ronaldo, Ronaldinho Players you have played with: Ilias Chair, Ronnie Henry, Paul Farman Stadiums you have played in: Carrow Road, Home Park, Sincil Bank TV Shows: Peaky Blinders, Super Sunday, Game of Thrones Films: Troy, Hitch, The Equaliser Sports: Football, Basketball, Golf Musical Artists: Drake, Beyonce, Eminem Meals: Lasagna, Dad’s Macaroni & Cheese, Steak & Sweet Potato Fries Countries to visit: South Africa, Bali, USA Breakfast Items: Coco Pops, Porridge, Fruit Salad Desserts: Sticky Toffee Pudding with Custard, Blackberry & Apple Crumble with Custard, New York Cheesecake with Blueberries Apps: Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat Fruits: Pineapple, Mango, Blueberries Items you take everywhere: My Brush, Durag and Phone

www.stevenagefc.com | 19

Match day shuttle bus

just ÂŁ1.50 return every 25 minutes get your ticket from your driver Stevenage Bus Station > Stevenage Rail Station > Stevenage Football Club 12160724 Half B5 banner-AW.indd 1

23/04/2018 09:36

K.B.COINS

Dealers in English Coins and Medals. Excellent prices paid for single items, collections or accumulations (especially proof sets)

K.B.COINS PO Box 499 Stevenage, Herts SG1 9JT T: 01438 312661 F: 01438 311990

www.kbcoins.com

STEVENAGE FC

Academy

T

his summer, myself and Ronnie came to a crossroads in our football career with the opportunity to take on exciting new coaching roles within Stevenage Football Club. Over the past few years, whilst playing, we have both developed a keen interest in football coaching and managing. We have learnt from some experienced managers and coaches but have also studied and completed the UEFA coaching badges.

Making the decision to stop playing football has been one of the toughest decisions I have personally had to make but when you get offered an opportunity that is exciting in terms of a new challenge and new career direction whilst remaining in the game you love, it just felt the right time. I am excited to teach and mentor the upcoming stars of the future as to what it takes to succeed as a professional footballer.

Football is tough at times but can also be the most rewarding and truly remarkable job you could ever experience. It gives you unforgettable memories that will live with yourself, your family and fans from generation Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

to generation.

I believe it is our job as the lead coach and assistant coach of the Under 18’s to not only coach and develop the players’ football knowledge and skills but also to develop a deeper understanding of what it actually takes and the demands that will be put on you both physically and mentally to make it as a professional footballer.

There is some really exciting talent coming up through all the ages and the staff at the academy and we are working extremely hard to develop the players both in terms of football talent but also as well-rounded professionals.

We are aiming to create a culture of being your best and giving 100% in every training session and every game.

To always ‘work hard’ and to ‘never give up’ is what we should all strive to achieve not only in football but in every aspect of life. I believe these factors have helped me through my footballing career so far and will positively impact the players under our guidance to achieve their full potential.

Alex Revell

Lead Professional Development Coach www.stevenagefc.com | 21

STEVENAGE FC

FOUNDATION Foundation Golf Day Returns Inspired by the historic Tiger Woods comeback at Augusta, Stevenage FC Foundation are announcing their own comeback with the return of their charity golf day in partnership with Mill Green Golf Club in Welwyn Garden City on Wednesday 18th September.

The fundraiser is being supported by Stevenage FC players and staff who will be involved in the day.

With 54 spaces available to the general public, businesses or other organisations. Entries can be made as individuals or in teams of three starting at just £45 per player which will include breakfast on arrival at 11:30am and a one course meal after the round where the SFC Foundation Golf Day Trophy will be presented to the winners.

TO BOOK ONLINE CLICK HERE or for more information please call the Foundation office on 01438 223223 or alternatively you can email event coordinator Bob Makin at rcmakin6@ gmail.com

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

WHY THIS CHARITY GOLF DAY The Stevenage FC Foundation Charity Golf Day is being supported by Stevenage FC and its players. As a result each 3 ball taking part in the day will receive an extra golfer in form of the Stevenage FC first team player or member of staff.

This year’s event aims to raise money to support our Community Kitchen project, providing families with the chance to make meal times fun again and learn vital life skills.

To find out more about the Foundation’s Community Kitchen project, please click here

SPONSORSHIP Another great way to be involved in the day is by sponsoring one of the 18 holes at Mill Green Golf Club. This includes having the tee branded with your organisations’ promotional material and banners as well as the opportunity to have information in the clubhouse and be included in all the PR linked to the event before and after.

The fee to sponsor a hole is just £100.

www.stevenagefc.com | 23

LAMEX FOOD GROUP

proud to Be prIncIpal sponsors of steVenaGe fc Importer and exporter of food products worldwIde

Offices in UK, USA, Ireland, Holland, Switzerland, Sweden, Spain, Poland, Germany, Canada, Russia, Thailand, Vietnam, Hong Kong, China.

Turnford Place, Turnford, Cheshunt, Hertfordshire. t: +44 (0) 1992 473 888

For career opportunities email info@lamexfoods.eu

www.lamexfoods.eu

Proud to support youth football in Stevenage

STEVENAGE FC

WOMEN A word from the Gaffer‌ Sunday was the determining round of the FAWNL cup.

We welcomed Yeovil to the County Ground and knew we were going to be in for a really tough game against a team who were previously in the WSL 2.

To add to that we had 5/6 players missing, though this was a chance for some Development players who have impressed me during pre season to make their WNL debuts.

For the first 30 mins we contained Yeovil and were restricting them to long range efforts. Towards the end of

the first half Yeovil’s quality started to increase, which gave them a 3-0 lead going into the break.

We made a couple of changes at halftime due to the heat and this gave another two players their debuts.

Within five minutes of the second half, Yeovil scored a fourth and that really hit us hard so quickly after the break.

For the remainder of the game we were giving every ounce of energy to try and contain Yeovil, unfortunately we conceded three more goals, although we could have netted with plenty of pressure in the last 10 minutes.

On the whole I could not have been more proud of every player that played, the workrate and effort they gave me in excruciating conditions was there for everyone to see.

We now go into a run of really tough league games starting this weekend away to Norwich.

Mark Dicker

SUPPORT US!

Home games are generally played at 2pm on Sundays at the following address: The County Ground, Letchworth Garden City SG6 2EN.

UPCOMING FIXTURES

Follow the Women on Twitter @StevenageFCW for all the latest news and views!

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

www.stevenagefc.com | 25

SUPPORTERS ASSOCIATION

LATEST NEWS WELCOME Good afternoon and a big Boro welcome to our good friends from Macclesfield.

I will always harbour fond memories of the ‘Silkmen’ for a number of reasons.

My very first time to Moss Rose was on May 6th 1995.

Stevenage won that game easily 3-0, but Macclesfield had already been crowned champions of the Conference, and to see them conduct their endof-season lap of honour holding that pyramid trophy aloft, brought a tear to my eye.

They were denied promotion to the Football League because of inadequate stadium facilities (where have I heard that before?), but we were to meet again on August 7th 2010 – our very first fixture in the Football League. For that, Macclesfield, you are forever a part of Stevenage’s history.

LATEST SA MEMBERS It gives me great pleasure to welcome the latest members to the Supporters’ Association ‘Baby Boro’ scheme.

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, I give you Bobby and Charlie Hollinger.

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

Born in Barnsley on April 17th, the identical twins live with mum (Laura) and dad (Rob) in Sheffield.

So, why’s a couple of Yorkshire Tykes supporting Stevenage I hear you ask?

Well, they are the great grandsons of Boro’s founding father, Jim Briscoe.

Sadly, Jim passed on four years ago this month, but wouldn’t he have been “chuffed” with these two Bobby Dazzlers!

BORO BUS to CHELTENHAM This coming Saturday (7th), Stevenage journey to Gloucestershire. Our destination is the Jonny Rocks stadium in Whaddon Road to meet our old friends Cheltenham.

I vividly remember going there back in February 1998, when the stadium was evacuated just before kick-off.

2,600 people descended onto the adjoining recreation ground which was facilitating a Northern Senior League fixture of Crescent United v. Hardwicke.

Both Stevenage and Cheltenham fans wore red and white that day, and what a great time we had cheering on this game.

Stuff of folklore!

Happily, it was a false alarm and we returned to the ground – but that’s a tale to be told another time.

What I can tell you is that our buses leave The Lamex at 10:00am and it’s £20 for members and £25 for non-members.

To guarantee your place on one of the buses, please contact John Carroll on 01438 814285 after 6:00pm, or book online via the SA’s website.

Lloyd Briscoe Chairman of Stevenage FC Supporters’ Association www.stevenagefc.com | 27

WELCOME

There’s a familiar face at the helm of Macclesfield Town as we welcome back Daryl McMahon to the Lamex Stadium.

The 35-year-old is assisted by Steve Gritt and Danny Whitaker.

Installed just two weeks ago as boss of the Silkmen, Boro fans will remember McMahon for his spell when he joined from Leyton Orient in the January 2007 transfer window.

The left-sided midfielder was signed

by Mark Stimson following a two year spell at Brisbane Road which saw him carve out 50 appearances. He made his debut on February 3 2007 in a 1-1 FA Trophy draw at Morecambe, fittingly in

a competition which Boro were to go on and win that year in their famous 3-2 success over Kidderminster at the new Wembley.

McMahon became more influential under Stimson in the first half of the following season which truly saw Boro make a realistic push for the Football League, an ambition only thwarted when Stimson was lured to Gillingham and Peter Taylor installed for his ill-fated reign.

This period saw McMahon marginalised and although new boss Graham Westley convinced him to stay on for another year even though his contract had finished in June 2008, he eventually moved up the road to Cambridge.

Dubliner McMahon achieved his break in the game in 1998 when he joined the youth ranks at West Ham United.

He was quickly spotted by his national side - for whom, he appeared at a variety of youth levels.

After a loan spell at Torquay United, he moved to Port Vale and then on to Leyton Orient back in 2004, helping The O’s to League Two promotion two years later, before moving to Boro.

Moves to Cambridge United, Farnborough, Boreham Wood, Eastleigh and Dover Athletic ensued, before he first arrived at Ebbsfleet United in 2013.

He made sixty-six appearances for The Fleet during a two-year period at

Steve Gritt, Daryl McMahon & Danny Whitaker

28 | www.stevenagefc.com

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

Stonebridge Road, before a brief spell back at Boreham Wood completed his playing career.

After temporarily occupying the managerial hot-seat at Ebbsfleet in 2014, he was named as the club’s permanent manager the following year.

McMahon secured two consecutive second place finishes in the National League South - with the latter seeing The Fleet enjoy promotion glory following a play-off final victory over Chelmsford City in 2017.

In his first season in English football’s fifth tier, he masterminded the Kent side reaching the National League play-offs - which was a phenomenal achievement given that it was their first year back at that level.

Ultimately they were to be eliminated

by Tranmere Rovers - yet he gained much admiration from the footballing world in general, for what represented a hugely impressive season.

He left Stonebridge Road in November 2018 and then became a regular face on BT Sport, as part of their National League coverage.

Steve Gritt enjoyed a playing career which spanned eighteen years and a managerial career which has lasted almost three decades.

After starting out at Bournemouth, he moved to Charlton Athletic where he remained for sixteen years - other than a brief spell at Walsall in 1989.

He was joint player-manager at The Valley in 1991 and alongside Alan Curbishley, helped lay the foundations for the successes of the late 1990’s and went on to be named in sole charge of Brighton and Hove Albion in 1996.

After helping The Seagulls avoid what seemed to be inevitable relegation he then moved to Millwall before returning to The Valley as part of the club’s academy management.

Most recently, he has been Assistant Manager at Ebbsfleet United, where he nurtured a successful and vibrant Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

working relationship with new Head Coach, Daryl McMahon.

Danny Whitaker has enjoyed an illustrious playing career with The Silkmen.

STORY SO FAR It may have been a turbulent start to the season for Macclesfield but on the field they have been a class apart, currently sitting in fourth place in Division Two. Three wins and two defeats from their first five games have given a good points haul, although it began sluggishly as the Silkmen fell to an opening day defeat, losing 1-0 at Exeter to a strike two minutes from time.

They made amends on their first home start with a comfortable 3-0 success against Leyton Orient, a Theo Archibald strike on the half hour setting them on their way while Emmaunuel Osadebe and Theo Vassell netted after the break to secure the win.

A midweek trip to Northampton also proved profitable as Macclesfield emerged with a 2-1 win, a first half goal from Ben Stephens was equalised before the visitors clinched the win with an Archibald winner on 90 minutes.

Back at Moss Rose Macclesfield frustratingly failed to build on their good start as they slipped to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Morecambe who took the points with a second half winner.

But they got back on track on Saturday when they won their back-to-back home clash with a 1-0 success against Scunthorpe, a 54th minute penalty from Joe Ironside enough to see the home side into the play-off places in this formative table.

www.stevenagefc.com | 29

FIXTURES & RESULTS 2019/20 DATE

OPPONENT

RESULT

BORO SCORERS

AUGUST 2019 Sat Aug 03 Salford City

2-0

Sat Aug 10

0-1

Exeter City

Tue Aug 13 Southend United

1-2

Sat Aug 17

0-0

Leyton Orient

Tue Aug 20 Bradford City

0-1

Sat Aug 24 Mansfield Town

0-0

Sat Aug 31

Parrett

Macclesfield Town

SEPTEMBER 2019 Tue Sep 03 MK Dons Sat Sep 07 Cheltenham Town Sat Sep 14

Carlisle United

Tue Sep 17

Northampton Town

Sat Sep 21

Forest Green Rovers

Sat Sep 28

Cambridge United

OCTOBER 2019 Sat Oct 05 Colchester United Tue Oct 08 Wycombe Wanderers Sat Oct 12

Grimsby Town

Sat Oct 19

Port Vale

Tue Oct 22 Swindon Town Sat Oct 26

Morecambe

Tue Oct 29 Fulham U21 NOVEMBER 2019 Sat Nov 02 Scunthorpe United Sat Nov 16

Oldham Athletic

Sat Nov 23 Walsall DECEMBER 2019

League Table

Sat Dec 07 Crawley Town Sat Dec 14

Newport County

Sat Dec 21

Crewe Alexandra

APPEARANCES Paul Farman.........................................................................6 Thomas Soares..................................................................6 Luther James-Wildin.....................................................6 Christopher Stokes...................................................... 5 Paul Taylor....................................................................5 (1) Kurtis Guthrie............................................................. 4 (1) Daniel Newton........................................................... 4 (1) Noor Husin..................................................................... 4 (1) Scott Cuthbert.................................................................4 Terence Vancooten......................................................4 CHARLIE CARTER.................................................................. 3 KELLAND WATTS................................................................... 3 Emmanuel Sonupe.....................................................2 (1) Joel Byrom............................................................................ 2 LUIS FERNANDEZ...........................................................2 (2) Arthur Iontton........................................................ 2 (3) Dean Parrett................................................................2 (1) Jamie Fielding.................................................................1 (1) Charlie Lakin....................................................................... 1 JASON COWLEY................................................................ (3) Ben Kennedy..................................................................... (2) Joel Rollinson................................................................(1) (Sub appearances in brackets)

P

W

D

L

6 Crewe Alexandra

5

3

0

2

-1

9

Sun Dec 29 Plymouth Argyle

7 Grimsby Town

5

2

2

1

4

8

JANUARY 2020

8 Cheltenham Town

5

2

2

1

4

8

Wed Jan 01 Northampton Town

9 Bradford City

5

2

2

1

3

8

10 Swindon Town

5

2

2

1

2

8

Thu Dec 26 Forest Green Rovers

GD Pts

Sat Jan 04

Colchester United

Sat Jan 11

Port Vale

Sat Jan 18

Cambridge United

11 Cambridge United

5

2

2

1

1

8

Sat Jan 25

Plymouth Argyle

12 Crawley Town

5

2

1

2

1

7

Tue Jan 28

Grimsby Town

13 Leyton Orient

5

2

1

2

-2

7

14 Mansfield Town

5

1

3

1

1

6

FEBRUARY 2020 Sat Feb 01

Leyton Orient

Sat Feb 08 Exeter City

15 Salford City

5

1

3

1

0

6

Tue Feb 11

Bradford City

Sat Feb 15

Salford City

16 Port Vale

5

1

3

1

-2

6

Sat Feb 22

Crawley Town

Sat Feb 29

Walsall

17 Colchester United

5

1

2

2

-1

5

18 Morecambe

5

1

2

2

-2

5

MARCH 2020

19 Walsall

5

1

2

2

-3

5

Sat Mar 07

Crewe Alexandra

Sat Mar 14

Newport County

20 Northampton Town

5

1

1

3

-2

4

Tue Mar 17

Swindon Town

21 Carlisle United

5

1

1

3

-4

4

Sat Mar 21

Morecambe

22 Oldham Athletic

5

1

1

3

-4

4

Sat Mar 28

Scunthorpe United

23 Stevenage

5

0

2

3

-4

2

24 Scunthorpe United

5

0

1

4

-7

1

APRIL 2020 Sat Apr 04 Oldham Athletic Fri Apr 10

Mansfield Town

Mon Apr 13 Macclesfield Town Sat Apr 18

Cheltenham Town

Sat Apr 25

Carlisle United

CLICK HERE FOR FULL TABLE AND STATS 30 | www.stevenagefc.com

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

STEVENAGE FC

COMMERCIAL Today’s match against Macclesfield Town is sponsored by Premier Drainage Services Limited with the Mitre Match Ball being sponsored by Black & White Fire Security.

This afternoon’s match is sponsored kindly sponsored by Premier Drainage Services Ltd. Based in Stevenage but covering the whole of the Home Counties and London areas, Premier Drainage Services is a family run business with over 20 years’ experience of solving all types of drainage and sewage problems. They operate a fleet of specialist vehicles that are all fitted with the most up to date equipment. Such is the quality of their workmanship that most of their business is gained by third party recommendations from satisfied customers.

For more information, or a free, no obligation quotation, please call 07976 979190 or visit www.premierdrainageservices.co.uk

Based in Stevenage, Black and White Fire and Security is a one stop shop for all your fire and security needs. They can help with all your legal requirements regarding fire risk assessments and the supply, installation and commissioning of fire alarms, fire extinguishers, emergency lighting, CCTV systems and intruder alarms. Their business strategy is underpinned by a traditional belief in ethical and moral values.

Visit their website at www.bawfs.com or call 01438 735777

Stevenage FC v Macclesfield Town FC

Sportsman’s Dinner We are delighted to announce that our next Sportsman’s Dinner will be held in the Broadhall Suite on Friday 20th September, with the guest speaker being Ian Holloway.

Ian Holloway He’ll be ably supported on the night by TV and radio presenter and general football nut, Mark Clemmit.

With almost 600 first team games to his credit, and just under 1000 games as a Manager, Ian certainly knows his football and his charm and wit has seen him make many TV appearances, he currently makes regular guest appearances Mark Clemmit on Alan Brazil’s Sports Breakfast show on Talk Sport.

He has some fantastic stories to tell, and he’ll tell them in a way that will have you totally enthralled.

As usual, we’ll be serving a traditional three course dinner, expertly prepared in-house by our resident Chef, Tony Start.

Tables of 10 are available at £600 with individual tickets also available at £65.

Space in the Broadhall Suite is limited so please book early, either by emailing Clive Abrey at clivea@stevenagefc.com or by calling him on 01438 223223.

www.stevenagefc.com | 31

STEVENAGE

Macclesfield

MANAGER: DINO MAAMRIA

Red and white shirts, red shorts, white socks

1 Paul Farman 2 Luther James-Wildin 3 Christopher Stokes 4 Paul Digby 5 Scott Cuthbert 6 Thomas Soares 7 Charlie Carter 8 Joel Byrom 9 Jason Cowley 10 Ben Kennedy 11 Emmanuel Sonupe 12 Noor Husin 13 Sacha Bastien 14 Jamie Fielding 15 Terence Vancooten 16 Arthur Iontton

17 Joel Rollinson 18 Dean Parrett 19 Daniel Newton 20 Kelland watts 22 Alex Reid 23 Jack Smith 24 Andronicos Georgiou 25 Paul Taylor 26 Joseph White 28 Kurtis Guthrie 29 Liam Smyth 30 Luis Fernandez 31 Ben Nugent 33 Tyler Denton

MANAGER: Daryl McMahon

BLACK shirts, BLACK shorts, YELLOW socks

Owen Evans 1 James Pearson 2 Eddie Clarke 3 Jak McCourt 4 Fiacre Kelleher 5 Theo Vassell 6 Jay Harris 8 Joe Ironside 9 Ben Stephens 10 Theo Archibald 11 Miles Welch-Hayes 12 Reice Charles-Cook 13 Connor Kirby 14 Corey O’Keefe 16 Adam Dawson 17 Jacob Blyth 18 Virgil Gomis 19 Emmanuel Osadebe 20 Brice Ntambwe 22 David Fitzpatrick 23 Michael Rose 24 Nathan Cameron 25 Peter Vincenti 26

OFFICIALS REFEREE: Scott Oldham ASSISTANT: Dan Bonneywell ASSISTANT: Joe Clark FOURTH OFFICIAL: Leigh Crowhurst

www.stevenagefc.com

UP NEXT AT HOME MK Dons 03/09/19 | KO: 7.45PM Leasing.com Trophy

proud sponsor

NOW AVAILABLE AT *

*In selected stores only

Red Bull Original® 11g sugar per 100ml vs. 4.5g in Carabao® Original, Green Apple and Mandarin Orange per 100ml.

FOR THE WINNING RESULT...

Choose Screwfix, trusted by the trade for 40 years.

CALL 03330 112 112

CLICK SCREWFIX.COM

VISIT 630 STORES

the official streaming service of the EFL

Live Streaming - Match Commentary Behind the Scenes Exclusive Content

At least 70% of all net revenue goes to your club

theEFL

EFL

@EFL

www.efl.com/ifollow

18+ only. Begambleaware.org.

QUALITY OFFICE FURNITURE

01279 882505

To t a l Wo r k s p a c e Solutions

WE SUPPLY A COMPLETE RANGE OF OFFICE FURNITURE

OFFICE FURNITURE

BESPOKE FURNITURE

OFFICE PLANNING

> Standard Desk ing

> Steel Storage

> System Desk ing

> Standard Seating

> Bench/Beam Desk ing

> Designer Seating

> Executive Desk ing

> Posture Seating

> Reception Furniture

> Screens

USED FURNITURE

FROM DESIGN TO THE FINISHED PROJEC T

Based in Harlow in Essex we source the majority of our office furniture in the UK. Our location gives us easy access to service clients in Essex, Her tfordshire, London and across the UK as a whole.

Call us now on 01279 882505 w w w. d i a m o n d - o f f i c e . c o . u k