RAKESMOOR LANE 5TH SEPTEMBER 2026
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HONOURS • West Lancashire League Champions: 1986/87 • Lancashire FA Amateur Shield Winners: 1988/89, 1990/91
THE CLUB Chairman Maurice Watkin Vice-Chairman David Smith Treasurer Paul Muspratt Club Secretary John Squire Matchday Secretary Gary Fawcett Manager Kevin Watkin Manager Dave Round Safeguarding Officer Steve Thomas Head of Digital Glen Ritchie Groundskeepers Alan Wilson & Ian Littlehales Bar Manager Sam Trewin
THE DUGOUT
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THE OPPONENT P8
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The Dugout
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The Opponent
24 Squads
Holker History
MATCHDAY SPONSORS
MAIN MATCH
MATCH BALL
Holker Old Boys AFC Unincorporated (Community Amateur Sports Club) is an equal-opportunities club committed to upholding the principles of equality, diversity and human rights. Supporters are urged to report any incident immediately to the nearest member of staff. Doing so allows the club to immediately deal with the situation. Any incident dealt with by a member of staff will be logged and passed on to the league and/or authorities where required. Holker Old Boys AFC takes very seriously its responsibility to protect children in its care. If you have any questions regarding child safeguarding at Holker please contact us at info@hobafc.co.uk. The views in this programme are not necessarily the views of Holker Old Boys AFC. Material in this programme is copyrighted and may only be reproduced with the written permission of Holker Old Boys AFC. Holker Old Boys AFC has made every effort to trace the copyright holders of all photographs used. HOBAFC.CO.UK / 3
A WORD FROM THE DUGOUT KEV & DAVE
STEP UP AND STAKE A CLAIM Good afternoon and welcome Rakesmoor Lane for today’s North West Counties Football League fixture against Maine Road FC. Looking back at Tuesday night away at Fulwood Amateurs, I think everyone is still catching their breath. We started far too slowly and gave ourselves a mountain to climb, but the character and grit the lads showed to fight back and earn a point in a 4-4 draw was excellent. We obviously wanted all three points, but to come back the way we did showed plenty about this group. Today we’re significantly depleted through injuries and suspensions, which will test the depth of the squad. There are no excuses though. It’s a big opportunity for the lads coming into the side to stake their claim and show what they can do. We’ve made a really positive start to the season and we want to keep that going by working hard and putting another three points on the board. We also have an exciting FA Vase fixture to look forward to next week. It’s a competition we enjoy and want to do well in, but that can wait. All of our focus has to be on Maine Road and the 90 minutes in front of us today. Get behind the lads from the first whistle and make some noise. Enjoy the game.
KEVIN WATKIN 4 / HOBAFC.CO.UK
MAKE HOME ADVANTAGE COUNT Today we welcome Maine Road. They haven’t had the best start, but we know it’ll be another tough test with our squad very depleted again. Brandon, Woody and Buzzer remain out, Tyler Spence and Patrick Allington are away, while Nath and Tyler Wood are suspended. The lads stepping up from the reserves did us proud on Tuesday. Charley Thompson and Noah both came on up top and helped change the game as we fought back from 4-2 down to draw at Fulwood. We even had chances to nick it late on. The first half was well below our standards and we conceded some poor goals, so we need to be better today, make home advantage count and keep our unbeaten home run going.
DAVE ROUND HOBAFC.CO.UK / 5
THE OPPONENT DAISY HILL FC
Maine Road FC were founded in 1955 as City Supporters Rusholme and take their current name from the former Maine Road Social Club in Moss Side. Based at Brantingham Road since 1980, the Manchester club traditionally play in sky blue and are known for developing young players. They joined the North West Counties League in 1988, winning Division Two just two seasons later.
TOP TEN FACTS •
Founded in 1955 – Originally formed as City Supporters Rusholme and began life in Sunday league football.
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Maine Road Connection – Took their name from the Maine Road Social Club, formerly their headquarters.
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Saturday Football – Ronnie Meredith moved the club into the Manchester League, changing its direction significantly.
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Brantingham Road – Settled at their present home in 1980 after playing at several different grounds.
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Four Straight Titles – Won the Manchester League Premier Division four consecutive times from 1983-84.
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NWCFL Members Since 1988 – Joined the North West Counties League after progressing through Manchester football.
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Division Two Champions – Won the NWCFL Division Two title in 1989-90.
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FA Vase Run – Reached the Fourth Round of the competition in 1994-95.
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League Challenge Cup Winners – Lifted the NWCFL Challenge Cup in 2007-08.
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Youth Development – Their Under-19s won the Umbro International Tournament six times across 11 seasons.
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THE OPPONENT
THEIR STORY UNFILTERED The Club takes its name from Maine Road Social Club in Moss Side, Manchester, where it was formerly Headquartered and has become one of South Manchester’s most exciting Semi Professional Teams. Our philosophy has consistently promoted great youth development, attained a culture of outstanding club loyalty (with top 13 players making over 350 appearances ,of which the top 5 players have also gone on to run the first or reserve teams, and in our 67 year history we have had only 12 managers of which 8 have been ex-players) nurtured local talent (providing a platform for many players semi-professional careers or some professional careers such as Wayne Collins, Colin Little, James, Tarkowski) linked to success on the pitch. Highlights have been in the: North West Counties League (members since 1988, Division Two champions 1989–90 & Challenge Cup winners 2007–08); FA Vase reaching the Fourth round (1994–95) ; FA Cup reaching the Second qualifying round, (1989–90, 1990–91, 1992– 93, 1994–95, 1997–98 & 2001–02) ; and great success in Manchester Premier trophies (winning all five county Cups - the Manchester Premier Cup (3) in 1975–76, 1976–77, 1987–88 ( & been runners up (2) 1999-00 & 2003-04) , and Amateur Cup (5), Sunday Amateur Cup (1), Intermediate Cup (2), Challenge Cup (4) Originally a Sunday league side - The Club was formed in 1955 as by our past Chairman Frank Thompson and friends as ‘City Supporters Rusholme’ in the Rusholme Sunday League, moving in the late sixties to the Manchester Amateur Sunday League and to the newly built Maine Road Social Club. Ronnie Meredith was now running the club and he changed the whole future of the club by moving to Saturday football in the Manchester League. Success followed success on the field and after several years of moving grounds we settled on our present home at Brantingham Road in 1980. In Season 1983-84 when we won our first Manchester League Premier Division. In fact, we then won the league four years running.
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Derek Barber took over the managerial reins in 1986 and the clubs progress continued so much that, when the Manchester County FA’s new complex at Brantingham Road was built, achieved, entry to the Bass North West Counties League. The next 12 years saw the winning the Division Two to be promoted to the then 4th Step of the Non-League Pyramid, Winning the Premier Cup beating Irlam Town 1-0 at Maine Road (home of Manchester City), some of the best FA cup runs and the best run to date in the FA Vase. Graham Whittingham took over the reins and another FA cup run plus a further Manchester Premier Cup Final appearance followed. A short blip at the end of Season 2001-02, Maine Road were relegated to the 2nd division. but under the guidance of Chris Simms when our very young side finished 3rd and runners up, we returned to the top division, (2004) and the club has another appearance in the Premier Cup Final. The arrival of Ian Walker as manager (2006) saw Maine Roads improvement continue with 3 top 6 finishes in 4 seasons and the winning of the prestigious League Challenge Cup (2008).
In 2012-13 John Morrey/Chris Thomas took over the managerial reins and in 2 seasons continued the improvement with a magnificent runners up spot (2013), followed by a 4th position (2014). Chris Hirst took over in November 2014 & ran the club until Oct 2017 and took a very young inexperienced side and finished mid table. Matt Barnes took over until the end of the season when the club was relegated to the 1st Division South. At the start of the 2018-19 season Calum Sykes took over the reins but at Christmas he left the club. We then went back to our normal policy of promoting from within & promoted Ray Barnett from the Reserves along with Jeff Newman and from being down in the relegation zone ended up finishing in 14th position and winning the club of the month in January. 19/20 was quite an extraordinary season ended early by the COVID-19 pandemic which saw Maine Road finish a respectable 9th position and win the Fair Play award along with the best program award for the 1st Division South. Season 21/22 started with an early managerial change following the appointment of Rees Welsh and Guy Heffernan who steered the club to a respectable 6th position.
Maine Road has a long and proud reputation for attracting young players. This success in spotting and nurturing the best young talent has continued over the past decades with Maine Road’s domination of the Umbro International Tournament at Under 19 level. Over 11 seasons our Under 19’s have taken on and regularly outplayed talented youngsters from around the world. They have won the competition an amazing 6 times and been runners up 3 times. .
HOBAFC.CO.UK / 11
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HOLKER HISTORY
FOUNDING & EARLY YEARS Founded in 1936, Holker Old Boys AFC began as an under-16 side, formed by the former pupils of Holker Central Secondary School, originally located on Holker Street in Barrow-in-Furness. While the school has long been replaced by a bingo hall, the club’s legacy continues to thrive. Founded in 1936, Holker Old Boys AFC began
The formation of the Furness Premier
as an under-16 side, formed by the former
League in 1980 saw them enter two teams,
pupils of Holker Central Secondary School,
with the Reserves progressing into the
originally located on Holker Street in Barrow-
West Lancashire League Division 2. Success
in-Furness. While the school has long been
followed in the mid-80s, with a runner-up
replaced by a bingo hall, the club’s legacy
finish in 1985/86, before claiming the
continues to thrive.
West Lancs League Division 1 title in their Golden Jubilee season (1986/87). The late
By 1939-40, Holker joined the North Western
80s brought further glory, as Holker lifted
Open Age League, playing on local fields. Their
the Adidas Lancashire Junior Shield twice,
commitment to youth football remained strong,
triumphing over Walkden Town (1988/89)
with junior teams keeping their roots alive.
and Park United (1990/91).
The club expanded into the West Lancashire League in 1967, running teams in both leagues and later securing a permanent home at Rakesmoor Lane in 1971 - a site with a history as an isolation hospital and allotments.
Holker Street School (n.d.)
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HOLKER HISTORY
LEAGUE CLIMB & STRUGGLES
By 2002/03, Holker had regained stability, finishing fifth in Division Two. Off the pitch, significant investments followed, with £80,000 secured for stadium improvements, pitch drainage, and parking. Though the mid-2000s saw inconsistent league performances, there were standout moments: reaching the FA
With ambitions to compete at a higher level,
Cup’s Second Qualifying Round (2004/05)
Holker faced the challenge of upgrading their
and hosting FC United of Manchester in
Rakesmoor Lane ground. Through sheer
2005/06 before a record crowd of 2,303. These
determination and community effort, they
achievements provided vital funds for further
expanded facilities, built new changing rooms,
ground improvements, including floodlight
and enclosed the pitch. Their hard work paid
upgrades in 2006/07.
off in 1991 when they secured a place in the North West Counties Football League (NWCFL)
The club’s commitment to youth development
Division Two.
was also recognised with the FA Charter Standard Development Club Award. This
Holker adapted well to the higher level,
dedication bore fruit in 2006/07 when the
finishing third in 1993/94 and earning
U18s, featuring many future first-team players,
promotion to Division One. Their time in the
won the LFA Furness Building Society Youth
top flight was mixed, peaking at 11th place
Cup. By 2008/09, the senior team had climbed
in 1995/96 before a difficult spell led to
to ninth in the renamed Vodkat League First
relegation in 1998/99. This prompted a period
Division.
of rebuilding, both financially and structurally. The club expanded its setup to include three open-age sides and a thriving junior section, covering ages six to sixteen, plus a girls’ team.
Holker Club House (2023)
HOBAFC.CO.UK / 19
HOLKER HISTORY
RECENT SUCCESS
& THE FUTURE
Under Dave Smith and Maurice Watkin, Holker enjoyed a resurgence, finishing third in Division One in 2010/11. A managerial change in 2011/12 brought challenges, but Smith’s return helped steady the ship. The 2012/13 season was tough, with the club narrowly avoiding last place, though an FA Cup run provided a financial boost. The 2013/14 season marked a turning point, with Gary Fawcett and Stuart Roberts leading the team to a respectable sixth-place finish and a semi-final appearance in the NWCFL Challenge Cup. Further improvements followed between 2017 and 2019, including pitch enhancements, bar refurbishments, and an extended kitchen. Chairman Maurice Watkin ensured a warm, modern club atmosphere. Holker reached a milestone in 2018/19, playing their 1,000th NWCFL league game and receiving a commemorative trophy. Despite a challenging season, the team avoided relegation, with Kevin Watkin, Paul Southward, and Glyn Dixon taking the reins to guide the club to safety. Through decades of highs and lows, Holker Old Boys AFC remains a club built on passion, resilience, and a deep-rooted community spirit - one that continues to shape its future with ambition and pride.
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HOLKER OLD BOYS
JUNIOR STAGS
HOLKER OLD BOYS JUNIOR SPONSORS
Holker Old Boys AFC
Manager Kevin Watkin & Dave Round Patrick ALLINGTON Callum BAYNES Tyler CHESTER Brandon COLLINS Reece CRESSWELL Luke DAVEY Tom DAWSON Max DIXON Frankie ELLIS Ryan FAGAN Farryl FOSTER Jamie HODGSON Bradley HUBBOLD Finley MARTIN Jamie MELLEN Jordan MCGARRY Joe MCGLADDERY Charlie MCGLOWN Luke MITCHELL Nathan REID David ROUND Harrison ROUND Gareth SMITH Tyler SPENCE Sol STANWAY Kevin WATKIN Noah WILLIAMS Tyler WOOD Josh WOODEND
MATCH OFFICIALS Referee Spencer Doherty Assistants Daniel Myles & Gary While
Maine Road FC
Manager Leon Depasois-Mike & Stephen Sheil Abel AREDU Mason BEARD George BYRNE Adam CULLEN Cole DEWHURST Bernard EGBEJIMI Destiny ELIAS Haba FRANCK Calvin HARPER Jake HOLCOMBE Reece HORAN Oliver HOSKINS Siraj HUSSEIN Thomas INGHAM Blerti JACAJ Sam JONES Prindi KIMPUTU Liam KING Gloire LUGANGA Joel MAFOLO Tom MAUGHAN Lewis MCGILL Deus NORFORD Raymond OBAMWONYI Yaw OPOKU-BERCHIE Sidney OTOO Jack PARKER Zaid PATEL Jack PEARCE Jake POGSON Lewis ROYLE Ali SALIM Exauce SUKULA Mamudu TOURAY TOURAY
Next at Rakesmoor Lane
Seaton Carew
Saturday 12th September | Kick-Off 3:00pm | FA Vase