Issue #42 - v Ilkley Town AFC (12/04/2024)

SATURDAY 13 APRIL 2024

NWCFL First Division North

vs ILKLEY TOWN AFC

KO 3:00PM FREE ISSUE #42

STAG OFFICIAL MATCHDAY PROGRAMME

THE

4 6 8 12 16 18 20 KEVIN WATKIN PARTNER FOCUS EYES ON THE OPPONENT CLUB NEWSROOM PLAYER SPONSORS LEAGUE TABLE SQUADS Produced and Edited by GR.VISUALS Official Club Photography by Ian Allington and GR.VISUALS To advertisie in this programme please email commercial@hobafc.co.uk All editorial content within this programme is the copyright of Holker Old Boys AFC and can only be used with the club’s permission. The views in this programme don’t necessarily reflect those of Holker Old Boys AFC. 4 8 3

WHAT’S INSIDE?

“ALL WE CAN DO IS WIN OUR GAME”

4

THOUGHTS FROM THE DUGOUT

Good afternoon and welcome to Rakesmoor Lane for today’s North West Counties Football League fixture against Ilkley Town AFC.

I welcome you back for the last time this season, but let’s hope it’s not our last game.

Opening with honesty, we know that today, all we can do is win our game. We then keep our fingers crossed for the results of Euxton Villa and South Liverpool to go our way.

Whatever happens today, reflecting on the season, the group acknowledges the missed opportunities to get essential points that may have guaranteed our playoff place ahead of today.

Despite this, when we consider the challenges faced, we have possibly overachieved.

Astonishingly, we have named seven goalkeepers to start games. We have lost key players to season-long injuries in Reidy and Joely. We have missed vital players for lengthy periods through injury in Woody, Tommy, Brandon, and Jason not starting the season with us.

Despite that, how the squad has responded - young lads such as Tom Stephenson, Luke Ellis, and Luke Davey have stepped up very well and become integral parts of the squad - bodes well for the group and club moving forward.

Thank you for your support. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that at 5pm, we have another playoff game to look forward to.

KEV WATKIN

5

GOLD PARTNERS

6

SILVER PARTNERS

7

ON OPPONENT COLOURS Yellow & Navy NICKNAME Baht‘atters GROUND NAME MPM Stadium CAPACITY 500 RECORD ATTENDANCE 499 LEAGUE POSITION 4th FACTSHEET 8

EYES

ON THE OPPONENT

THEIR HISTORY

Open-age football in Ilkley has existed since the early 20th century, with Saturday and Sunday league teams playing at West Holmes and East Holmes fields alongside the River Wharfe. The post-war forerunners of the current Ilkley Town football club were Ilkley Rangers ( c.1947 ) and Ilkley British Legion ( c. 1955 ) before the Ilkley Town club was established in the 1960s, competing in the Wharfedale League. In the late 1980s, the club struggled to survive in a town where rugby, cricket, tennis, golf and hockey possessed greater social allegiance and better facilities.

After disbanding in the early 1990s, the club was reformed in 1995 as Ilkley AFC and joined the Harrogate & District Senior League gaining promotion to the Premier League in 1997. In 2000 Ilkley AFC underwent managerial and organisational change amalgamating with the highly successful Ilkley Youth & Juniors football club.

Having barely survived in the Harrogate & District Premier League and being financially stretched, the influx of new and younger local players rejuvenated Ilkley AFC. After two seasons of consolidation, the club began its climb up the FA Non-League pyramid in 2002-03 by winning the League and Cup double in the Harrogate Senior League. In 2003 the club received FA Chartered Standard status ( combined junior and senior sections ), and in 2004-05, the two senior teams were accepted into the West Yorkshire Association Football League.

Promotion to Division One at the first attempt was followed by a change of name to Ilkley Town in 2006, reflecting the football club’s substantial impact in the town. 2007 saw the club achieve the newly instigated FA Charter Standard (Senior Club), and it continued to work closely with the club’s Junior sections.

After decades of renting local authority and school pitches, Ilkley Town Football Club was accepted into the Ben Rhydding Sports Club in 2009, giving it access to one of the best playing surfaces in West Yorkshire. Promotion to the Premier League of the West Yorkshire AFL was won in 2016.

The club’s senior section benefits from high-quality coaching and support staff ( including FA/UEFA Level 3 & 4 coaches, a specialist Goalkeeping coach and an FA Treatment of Injury specialist ), and the senior teams have been the recipients of West Yorkshire League Fair Play Awards. The club’s success led to the formation of further senior teams, with U23 and u21 teams now serving as the bridge between youth and senior football.

9

MPM Stadium, Ilkley

With the move to a 4G pitch in 2017-18 and the strengthening of the link between junior and senior football, the club has gone from strength to strength, progressing to Step 6 and further raising the profile of football in the town. The club prides itself on being a club for the community with teams for boys, girls, men, women and veterans with over 650 playing members.

Our first season as a semi-professional club was in NWCFL Division 1 North in 2021/22. It was a roller coaster starting with a crowd of 499 against Bury AFC. We got off to a tricky start with five defeats but gradually found our feet. Simon Armstrong stepped aside as manager in November to replace his assistant Sam Dexter. The team picked up points steadily during the second half of the season, as did everyone else in a hugely competitive division. Another bumper crowd came from the Groundhop Weekend when we hosted Garstang. On the season’s final day, we had to beat AFC Blackpool to confirm our league status, finishing with 39 points from 36 games.

EYES ON OPPONENT

Ilkley Celebrate Manager, Sam Dexter

10

v Atherton LR (2022)

ON THE OPPONENT

11

v Holker Old Boys AFC (2022)

CLUB NEWSROOM

IT’S OKAY TO TALK.

ANDYSMANCLUB are a men’s suicide prevention charity, offering free-to-attend peer-to-peer support groups across the United Kingdom and online. We want to end the stigma surrounding men’s mental health and help men through the power of conversation. #ITSOKAYTOTALK

ANDYSMANCLUB takes its name from Andrew Roberts, a man who sadly took his own life aged 23 in early 2016. Andy was a lovely and doting father, son, brother, grandson, nephew, cousin and friend, and was just 23 years old when he was taken away by suicide, sadly and tragically without warning.

On average one man every two hours takes his life in the UK. It’s often said to be a factor is that men don’t talk. That’s why ANDYSMANCLUB was born. Established in 2016 by Luke Ambler, Andy’s brother-in-law, the aim of the club is to break down these stigmas, support men struggling, and lend a hand to suicide prevention.

That change starts with you.

12

13

2023/24 PLAYER SPONSORS

JOE AMISON JAY BARKER FRANKIE ELLIS CALLUM BAYNES CALLUM FAWCETT BRANDON COLLINS FARRYL FOSTER LUKE DAVEY JAMIE HODGSON TOM DAWSON SAM JOEL

16

DYLAN ELLIS