Express & Star Monday Example

LORRYLOADS OF RUBBISH DUMPED

Councilsays ‘nationwide organisedcrime racket’leaves taxpayersfooting £150kbill

ISABELLE PARKIN

isabelle.parkin@mnamedia.co.uk

Trailers filled with rubbish have been dumped on streets in an “organised crimeracket” which hascostover£150,000 to cleanup.

Dudley Councilsaysithas seen threeincidents of lorryloads of wastebeing ditchedin theborough in thepast five months and11since 2019.The localauthorityhas spent an averageof£16,000 each time to properly disposeofthe rubbish and remove thevehicles.

In thelatestincident,two lorry loadsofbuildingmaterials and householdwaste were dumped in AttwoodStreetand Stourvale Road in Lye. Thevehicleshavesince been takenawayand reported to theEnvironmentAgencyand thepolice. Thecouncil hasurged thepublic to report incidentstothe police as it attempts to clampdownwhatitdescribesasa“nationwide organised crimeracket”

Nicholas McGurk,directorof environment, said:“We have had to remove anumberofdumped trailers,soitisresidents of theborough whofootthe bill.Thislatest incident in Lyeisexpected to cost a minimumof£25,000 to deal with.”

Growingacommunity at newallotmentssite

Green-fingered growersgathered forthe grandopening partyofa newallotmentssite–and it wasa blooming success.

MayorofDudleyAndreaGoddard cutthe ribbon with garden shears to declareRoots Allotments in SugarLoafFields, Stourbridge,

Overhaul on theway after£9m carpark demolitionbacked

Atowncentre isheading foramajor overhaulaftercouncillorsbacked the£9million demolition of acar park

CannockChase Council is also settoacquireunits in Cannock Shopping Centre to enable improvementstotakeplace

Cabinet membersgavethe multi-storeycar park demolition thegoaheadafter beinggivenanupdate on theprogressofthe regeneration project, whichreceived£20mfrom theGovernment’sLevelling Up Fund in 2021.The decision means that building workcan beginlater this year.Plans includeredevelopment of theformermulti-storeycar park andindoormarkethallsiteto make wayfor anew cultural hub. Anortherngatewayincluding anew café is settoconnect the town centre to thebus stationand Beecroft Road carparkand thecar park itself will be refurbished.

Speaking beforethe meeting, council leader Tony Johnsonsaid: “I am pleasedthatweare nowclose to beingabletospend nearly half of the£20mfunding andwill geton andcreatethe improvedtowncentre in Cannockeveryonedeserves.”

officiallyopenonSaturday. The site,one of four theRoots team have developedacrossthe country, actually gotoff thegroundinSeptemberwhenmanyofthe 150existing plots were snappedupbyavariety of experiencedand novice gardeners. Andaroundanother 100plots

arenow beingaddedtothe former potato fieldin SugarLoafLaneso more people canget involved.

Themayorsaid: “It’sbeenwonderfulmeeting people whohave formed an amazing newcommunity of growers. If Ihad more time I thinkIwould getstuck in myself.”

TheLord-Lieutenant of theWest Midlands andthe MayorofWalsall have attended theunveiling of abench commemoratingthe Falkland Islandsconflict.

Membersofthe 1,400-strong ShortHeath Lest We Forget bought twobenches afterraising £7,500 in afundraising walk betweenwar memorialsin thearea. Yesterday onebenchwas placed at theLane Head memorial andthe otherone will be sited8,000 milesawayin LibertyLodge,FalklandIslands

Site managerDaveCox andDudleyMayorCouncillor Andrea Goddard at theopening partyofRoots Allotments

Arrestsasgun cartridgesfound

Twoteenagers were arrested and firearms cartridges recovered following an eveningofviolenceona town’s High Street.

West Midlands Police hasconfirmed that twoteenagers were arrested in connection with the disorder,which happened on Castle Vale High StreetinBirminghamon Friday

Officers were called to High Street around 5.10pm afterreceivingreports of an armedgangchasingaman into ashopand,following inquiries, arrested an 18-year-old manand 16-year-oldboy on suspicion of violentdisorder

The18-year-old manwas also arrested on suspicionofanunrelated affray incidentand both arecurrently in custodyfor questioning, whilethe forcereported that no one wasinjured in theincident

Witnesses areasked to contact police viaLiveChatorbycalling 101, quoting20/380920/24.

Motorist is held overbreathtest

Adriver wasarrested afterfailingaroadsidebreathtestwhen police were called outtoacrash in Brierley Hill.

Officers from Brierley HillPolice were called to reportsofa two-vehicle collision on theside of theroadinthe town

Police said thecrash involved aRange Rover andaSeatIbiza

Oneofthe occupantsofone of thevehicleswas breathalysed at thesideofthe road andfound to be twicethe legallimit.

Police said that person was arrested andthe vehicle seized Aspokesman forBrierleyHill

Police said:“Officers have attended reportsofaroadtraffic collision

“One occupant failed aroadside breath test,being twicethe legallimit andwas subsequently arrested on suspicion,”he added.

Bikes areseized followingpursuit

Twopeoplehavebeenarrested afterpolicerecovered stolen bikesin Staffordshire.

StaffordshirePoliceroads policing unit said officers hadabusy nightpursuingoffendersinStafford

Officers then recovered stolen bikeswhich hadbeenabandoned in Stoke.

Theunitposted on X, formerly Twitter:“Abusynight recovering stolen bikesafterbeing abandoned in Stoke.

“A lengthypursuit with @cmpg in @PoliceStafford @SStaffsPolice with twoarrests madeafterthe vehiclewas stung.

“Great assistance from @staffsresponse as always.”

Police have vowedtoclamp down on theftand anti-socialbehaviour andurged anyone with information to getintouch.Peoplecan also report crimes in confidence to Crimestopperson0800555111

Good vibesand glow sticksas rave fans go Back to theRoots

Ravers descendedona city armedwithglow sticks,goodvibes and theirdancing shoes.

TheBack to theRoots 12-hour festival at TheHangarWarehouse in Wolverhamptonwas arevival of housemusic’s halcyondaysfrom the‘second summer of love’in1994 untilthe mid-1990s, knowntofans as Old Skool.

Morethana 1,000 raverstravelledfromall four cornersofthe UK to seealine-up of DJsnot seen in decades. Fabioand Grooverider headlinedthe festival andwere preceded by Shades of Rhythm, RatPack, Altern 8, 2Bad Mice and therewas alivePAbyBabyD Clint, from Cardiff, said:“Back in theearly 1990sIusedbea stage dancer at theraves so when Isaw allthese DJsonthe same line-up, I knew Ihad to come up andenjoy it

“The vibe is greathere, everyone is so friendly.Wolverhamptonwas always agreat nightout.”

Wolverhamptonwas aMecca for raversand clubbers in late 1980s and1990s thanks to clubslike Quest, apurpose-builtmegaclub convertedfroma storewarehouse

Unlikeinthe ravers’ first flush of youth, when they enterednightclubsinthe dark andleftblearyeyed in thelightafterthe suncame up,Backtothe Rootsstarted at 2pmand finished at 2am.

Theperformersalso seemed to

‘Noescape’

prefer earlierset timesaswell, the days of burningthe midnightoil having been tradinginfor adecent night’skip DocScott said:“Wolverhampton, youhavebeena blast, we love these dayfestivals becausewecan get back home andinfront of theTVin time forMatch of theDay

Karl Royal, entertainmentmanager at theHangar, said:“Back to theRoots hasbeenfantastic.We sold over1,200 ticketswhich was incredible,and more on thedoor.

“These dayraves aregreat forso many reasons, we getnoneofthe

trouble whichcan happen in the earlyhours

“Instead everyone wasreallyup foritfromthe start.”

Originallythere wasmeant to be tworooms to accommodatethe 30 plus acts.However,due to problems with acousticsinthe smallerroom, thedecision wasmadea fewweeks agotoonlyuse themainhall.

That meantstarDJs were forced to have shortersetssotheycould all give theirfansaglimpse what they hadbeenmissing forthe last three decades.

Karl said:“We’vebeentoldthere

hasnot been aline-up likethatfor a rave in theMidlandsfor morethan 20 years.

“Soall dayhas hadthe feelingof arealevent.Wegot newlightingfor thestage whichlookedfantastic

“The Hangar hasgot more revivaleventsthisyear, theformula works great,whether itsrave, garage,jungleordrumand base,will canput it on during theday and thecustomers aremorematurebut want to have fun.”

Follow TheHangarWarehouse, Wolverhampton, on socialmedia to find outabout future events

Aresidentatsupported living accommodationinWalsall whichhas been withouta workingliftfor six weekssaysshe feelslikethere is “noescape”

TheliftatOld Vicarage Close in Pelsallhas been outoforder since February 22,leaving some unable to leavetheir homesinweeks

Thesite, whichisformedof59 flats, houses olderpeople, with some visitedbycarerswhilst otherslive independently.

NoleeanDykehas livedthere for16monthsand usesawalking frametoget around

However,taskedwithfour flights of stairs to leavethe frontdoor, the

73-year-oldhas been unableto independentlyleave herhome, or walk herone-year-old Chihuahua, Cuddles, forsix weeks.

Theformercareworkerhas been forced to cleanher clothesin thesinkdue to thesharedwashingfacilities beinglocated on the ground floorand hasfourbags of dirtyclothestowash.

Noleeantoldthe Express&Star that several residents on her floor arewheelchairusers andsohave no choicebut to stay inside until the lift is fixed.

Shesaid: “Itisstill thesame, we can’tget out, it is hopeless.Before IcamehereIwas in aresidential

care home fortwo andahalfyears Ihad to fighttoget here andit feelslikeyou arein prison.

“Okay,you canmakeyourown food anddrink,but at thesame time you canonlywalkdownthe corridor andbacktoyourroom–thereisnoescape.”

Aspokesman forGreenSquareAccord, whichrunsOld Vicarage Close,saida senior technicianhad been on site andconcluded the liftneededtobereplaced,which it hopes to achievewithineight weeks. He added: “Following arecent inspection theliftcannot be repaired because thepartweneed is no longer beingmanufactured.”

Noleean with herdog Cuddles

Hackingvictims left over £21k outofpocketinyear

LISA O’BRIEN lisa.obrien@mnamedia.co.uk

Hackingvictims in theWest Midlands have been left more than £21,000out of pocket over thepastyear.

Data from Action Fraud, thenational fraudand cybercrime reportingservice, showsthere were 1,012reports of email andsocialmedia accounts beinghackedin theregionwith£21,700 in losses reported over thelast12months.

Nationally,22,530peoplereported that theironline accounts hadbeenhackedin 2023, with victimslosing atotal of £1.3 million

West Midlands Police has nowbackeda newcampaignfromActionFraud to help people stay safe online andprevent their accounts from beinghacked.

Thecampaignaimstoraise awareness about thedangers of emailand socialmediahacking,which canhaveserious consequences

Hackerscan stealpersonalinformation, financialdetails, andevenuse compromisedaccounts to target others.

KhatijaNichols, fraudand cyberprotect coordinatorfor West Midlands Police,said: “Intoday’s digitalworld,anyonewithan emailorsocialmedia accountisapotential target forfraudstersand cyberattacks

“Astechnologyadvancesand fraudsters become moresophisticated,it’simportant to take action andsecureyouronline accounts.Thismeans usingstrong,unique passwords foreachaccount andenabling two-step verification foran additional layer of protection.”

Windowshave been boardedupatthe OldOak pubinWillenhallafter a fire brokeout

Blazeatpub beingtreated as arson

A fire at aWillenhall pub whichsaw aman rescuedbya passer-byisbeing treated as arson, police have confirmed Fire crewsrushedtothe blazeatthe Old OakPub on WalsallRoadataround4.25am on Friday.Aman wasrescuedfrominside thepropertybyamember of thepublic.

Fire investigatorswerecalledtothe

scenealong with apoliceforensicinvestigator. West Midlands Police hasnow confirmed theblaze is being treated as arson.

Aspokesman forthe forcesaid: “Damage wascausedtothe property andaman sufferedfromsmoke inhalation.Thisisbeing treated as arsonand we arecarryingout CCTV andother inquiriesinthe area.”

Father andhis twosonsjailedfor killing maninshop

Afatherand histwo sons have been jailed afterkilling aman in broaddaylightona Birmingham street

Darren Smithhad visitedaphone shop on HeathWay,Shard End, on March 15 last year to buyaphonecasewhenhewas ambushed by themen whorepeatedly kicked andpunched him.

The51-year-old wasalso hit“multiple times” with awrench.

TwoRolex watcheswerealsostolen from Mr Smith’swrist andstaff at the shop were “threatened”beforethe men made offin theircars. Mr Smithwalked unsteadily outofthe shop before collapsingnearby.

Despite effortsbymembersofthe publicwho gave him firstaid untilemergency services arrived, he sadlydiedatthe scene.

LeeO’Brien andhis twosons, Luke and Lewis, were arrested thefollowing day having fled to Torquay. They hadborrowedacar from afriend so they couldevade police whosuccessfully traced it.

LeeO’Brien,aged51, Luke O’Brien, 36, andLewis O’Brien, 31,appearedbefore Birmingham CrownCourt on September 19 last year wheretheyall pleadedguilty tomanslaughter.

On Friday,Lewis andLukeO’Brien were jailed for12-and-a-half-yearswhilst LeeO’Brien wassentenced to 11 yearsand eightmonthsinprison.

DetInspMichelleThurgood, from the

West Midlands Police HomicideTeam, said:“We know that Lee, Luke andLewis allknewMrSmith.Theyrobbedhim but claimedthattheydid notintendtokill him.

“Mythought’s remain with Mr Smith’s family at this distressingtime, Ihopethat these sentencesbring them some sense of justice.” Mr Smith’sfamilypreviouslyreleased atouchingtribute wheretheydescribedhim as a“caring man” Thetribute read:“We as afamilyare devastated at thelossofour sonDarren. He waslovedby allwho knew him. He was tragicallytaken from us andthishas left a huge void in ourlives.”

Gold Jewellery

hallmarks

• Scrap gold • Sovereigns

• Krugerands and other foreign gold coins

• Gold watches and pocket watches

• Asian and Foreign gold

• Pre1947 Silvercoins

• Diamonds • Platinum

• Palladium • Silver

Left to rightclockwise,Lewis O’Brien, Luke O’Brienand LeeO’Brien have been jailed

NATIONAL BRIEFING444

Brit finishes epic runacrossAfrica

ABritishman hasbecome the firstpersontorun thefull lengthofAfricaafterhecrossed the finishinglinein Tunisia.

Russ Cook,fromWorthing, spent352 days taking on the mammothchallenge which hasseenhim covermorethan 16,000km,takeover 19 million stepsand pass through16countrieswhile raisingmoneyfor charity.

Mr Cook,nicknamed Hardest Geezer,arrived in RasAngela, Tunisia’smostnortherly point, at about 4.40pmyesterday and wasgreeted with shouts and cheers from thosewho had flownout to meet him.

Speaking at the finish line, the27-year-old said:“I’mprettytired.” Mr Cook setoff from SouthAfrica’smostsoutherly pointonApril 22 2023, and faced visa complications, health scares andan armedrobbery during hischallenge

Labour to digitise babies’ redbook

Labour will digitisethe NHS redbookparents use fortheir children’s medicalrecords as part of aseriesofreforms

Parentsand theNHS would be able to seeifchildrenare behind on jabs or check-ups throughanew digitalrecord, with automaticnotificationsto prompt them to book appointmentsunder theparty’s plans.

Thered book hasbeenhanded outtonew parentsfor the past 30 years.

Previous health secretaries have hopedtodigitiseitduring theirtenure, includingJeremy Hunt andMattHancock,but so farthe planshavenot borneout

Labour hopes itsplans will help to boostMMR vaccination rates, whichhavefalleninrecent years.

Measlesoutbreaks have at the same time become morecommon

WEATHER

Today

14°C (57°F)

Sunset: 7.53pm

Todaywill become cloudy with spells of rain,these tending to ease later. Strengthening winds.

Tomorrow

12°C (54°F)

Sunrise: 6.27am

Remaining windyand gustyonTuesday, with cloudand occasional rain foratime butgradually clearing later in theday

On trackfor asmarter

DAVIDSTUBBINGS

david.stubbings@mnamedia.co.uk

Two-and-a-ha lf-hour journeytimes andqualitymeals areamong the pledges madeby those behindanew train firm hopingtolinkShropshirewithLondon.

Five trainsaday,Mondayto Saturday,are plannedbythe new WrexhamShropshire& Midlands Railway (WSMR),which submittedits applicationtostart running trains to regulators at theOffice of Rail andRoad(ORR) in early March

Runningbetween thenewly-recognisedWelsh city andLondonEuston,the companyhas earmarked stopsatGobowen,Shrewsburyand TelfordCentral, as well as calling at Wolverhampton, Walsall, Coleshill Parkway, Nuneaton andMilton Keynes

MPshavebackedthe scheme, particularly with theexistingAvanti West Coastservice from Shrewsbury to London ending in early June

Theroute meanstrainswill avoidBirmingham.Speakingto theExpress &Star, Darren Horley, mobilisation director forWSMR, explainedthatthe routewill be quickerwithtrainsjoining the West CoastMainLineatNuneaton, wheretheywill then able to travel at up to 125mph.

Congested

“Why notserve Birmingham?It’s congested andbusy,”explainsMr Horley.“It’s alreadyservedheavily by Avanti andChiltern.Wewantto be working with them,” rather than taking customersaway.

Adraft timetableshows trains taking alittleover two-and-a-half hourstotravelbetween Shrewsbury andEuston, with Telford20 minutes closer andGobowen 20 minutes further. Thejourney time betweenWolverhamptonand Londonisalittleunder twohours Threemorning departures,an afternoonservice andeveningtrain areproposed, with return journeys pencilled intoleave London twice in themorning (one early, onelate), mid-afternoon, earlyevening and late evening.

Thenew servicewon’t be the first runningfromthe area to London; thesimilarly namedWrexham & ShropshireRailway (WSR)operated five trainsaday from 2008-2011, whileVirginWestCoast,latterly Avanti, hasrun atwo-train service, whichwas reduced to oneduring thepandemic Director IanWalters, whoworked on thepreviousWSR operation, said thoseservicesoftengot “snarled up”going throughBirmingham andtookpeopletoMarylebone, a stationthatisnot as well-connected as Euston To give an idea as to how the journeytimes compare, theWSR servicetookthree-and-a-halfhours to travelbetween Shrewsbury and London,while Avanti’s service takesmorethantwo-and-three-

quarters.Journey timesbetween Wolverhamptonand Euston areset to be about on parwiththe current offering –evenslightlyquicker at times.

Mr Horleysaidthe research showsthe demand will be there, with marketschangingsince Covid as leisuretravelgrows

Onesuchareaistakingfootball fans to Wrexham, as theclub’s worldwidefanbase growsthanks to itsHollywood owners

Mr Horleysaidthatwhile that’s happeningatthe club has“notdriven”them, it’s an “opportunityat theend of theroute”, so it’s unsurprisingtrainsare plannedthatwill allow supporters to gettoand from atypical Saturday 3pmkick-off.

Thenew companysaysit’snot just about goingtoand from London. Mr Walterssaysthatwhilethe newservice will give stations Londonlinks they’venever hadbefore, it will also connectstationswhich have never haddirectservicesbetweenone another.

OneexampleisWolverhampton andWalsall with ajourney time of 15-20minutes.The currentWest Midlands Railwayservice goes via Birmingham NewStreet, andtakes

Thenew rail link will connect stations whichhavenever had directservicesbetween them

an hour.“Thepost-Covidpassenger wantstoget on atrain –theydon’t want to connectsomuch,”hesaid, explaining whythese stations have been picked.

Andwhile leisuretravelislikely to make up alarge shareofpassengers,a market whichMrHorley says hasbounced back “quicker and stronger”since Covid, thereremainsapromise that “peoplewill be able to workonthe train comfortably”.

Mr Horleypromised“competitive fares” whichwillalsoreflect theservice customers get, saying: “Thepassenger experience starts from thesecondtheythink about travelling to when they reachtheir destination.Wewill make sure the passengergetsthe best deal,that’s what theprevious firm wasabout.” Theold WSRwas praisedfor its

customerservice,withcustomers likingthe bigwindows andextra legroom, alongwithfreshly-cooked food on board. It wasoften at the topofpassenger satisfaction surveys as commentators revelledin theopportunitytolinkthe service to thoseenjoyedinabygoneage Thenew firm wantstoreach thosestandards too, andispromisinglocally-sourced producefor its services,somethingwhich it also says will reduce itscarbonfootprint.

This includes amealofferingto FirstClass passengers on alljourneys over 55 minutes andabuffet forStandardClass passengerusing “high-qualityproductsthatare locallysourced from businesses along theroute”, with onboardstaff helpingpassengersalighting andboardingtoensure prompt turnaround

standard of traintravel

timesatstationsand help those with luggageoraccessibility needs. Technology such as theability to reserve aseatwithinminutes of boarding isalso in thepipeline.

“Wewantpeopletochoosethe railway,”addedMrWalters.“We want to createacustomersatisfaction experience thepreviouscompany had.”

WSMR is an open access operator, meaningitreceivesnogovernment subsidy, unlikeotherssuchAvanti West CoastorWestMidlandsRailway, whichholdcontractswiththe Department forTransport

Ticket

In thepast, passengers using open access operatorshavebeen unable to geta ‘through ticket’ if theirjourney continuesbeyond thelengthofthe routecovered by that firm’s service. WSMR says this won’tbethe case with theiroperation.

ApartfromWrexhamtoWolverhamptonand WalsalltoNuneaton, most of thejourney will be under electric wires. Before theAvanti service wasaxed, theoperator wasplanningtointroduce bi-mode trainsonthe Shrewsbury to Lon-

donroute,which uld runonelect betweenthe ca Wolverhampto using diesel en of thejourney Avanti isn’ta operatorslookt amount of tra ingondieselp travelling long underelectricw bidtoreducet footprint.

Similar trainsgofro dontothe Hi Scotland andt wheretheyspl tweenusing dieselpropuls So farthe of train tha will be used WSMR hasn been decide with bossesi cussions with ers. However definitely be di to startwith–a ationgetsupa Thereasonbei yearstoord andtestnew andismoree pensive, whic would delay thestart of theservice

Butthere areplanstopower them using hydrotreated vegetableoil,adiesel-likefuelthatcan be produced withoutusing fossil resources

Furtherdownthe track,WSMR hassaiditwill review optionsfor batterypower in abid to reduce emissionsand consumelessfossil fuel,whileanintelligent engine start/stop technology–the same principleaswhenacar engine switches offwhen thedriver stops at aset of trafficlights, only more advanced –tosavefueland cut emissionsevenfurther

When WSMR’s planswere first announced,there wasan outcry in Wellington when it became apparent thetownwas not included That’s stillthe case,asa stop was notincludedinthe submission to theORR;somethingthatcan’t be changed

“It’snot theonlystation we have been askedtolookatcalling at,” said Mr Horley.“We have to be pragmaticabout journeytimes,” suggesting that adding more stops wouldhavemadeittoo long.

“Wewill workwithNetwork Rail to allowfor otherstation callsthat don’timpactthe length of journey time.”

Buthe addedthatWellingtonhad notbeenforgotten even though it’s notpartofofthe plansatthisstage, andmeetingswithlocal stakeholdersare planned.

Once completed,Darlaston will be addedtothe list of stations served by WSMR

Thecompany hasalso suggested it will back schemesfor newstations if there’samarket fora service.

Research includes lookingatmodelling passengergrowth, road con-

gestion andhousing developments

Oneexample is apotential Shrewsbury Parkwayonthe easternsideof Shropshire’scountytown.

Thecompany’s bidtolaunchthe serviceiscurrently with theORR Bosses arehopingthey’ll geta verdictinlateOctober or earlyNovember. If it’s agreen light, WSMR will have to ‘bid’for train pathsso it canrun itstrainstothe schedule it wants. Traintimetableschange

twiceayear, at thestart of Decemberand June,which is when operators make alterationstoservicesor introduce newones.

Even if WSMR is notinaposition to startrunningaservice on the dayanew timetablecomesin, it can have thepaths reserved forwhenit is in aposition to startafew weeks later.

Allbeing well,the aimistostart services in June or July 2025

Strong support forraillinkplan as leader urges rapidprogress

Industry expertsfromthe private,public, educationand voluntarysectors have thrown theirweightbehindplans fora newdirectrailservice to London.

Theleader of Shropshire Councilhas writtentoMark Harper,the SecretaryofState forTransport,onbehalfofthe ShropshireEconomicPartnership,toexpress supportfor the plannednew direct rail service betweenWrexham,Shrewsbury andLondon.

TheShropshireEconomic Partnership(SEP) –comprising of industry expertsfromthe private,public, educationand voluntary sectors– wasformedin 2023 to driveeconomicgrowth in Shropshire

It is usingits collective voice to supportthe applicationfrom Wrexham, Shropshire andMidlandsRailService.CountyMPs have also recently given their supporttothe proposal.

In herlettertoMarkHarper MP,Councillor Lezley Picton says:“Youwill be awarethat Avanti hasrecentlycancelled Shropshire’sonlydirecttrain to London andthisdecision was metwithgreat disappointment by businesses andresidents acrossShropshire.

“However,weweredelighted that theWrexham, Shropshire andMidlandsRailway (WSMR) putforward planslastyearto introduce anew dailytrain service betweenWrexham andEuston –and Shropshirewillbenefitenormouslyfromthisnew ‘openaccess’train operator if it is successfulinits application to theOffice of Railand Road (ORR).

“Thisservice will link ShropshiretoLondon, butinaddition will also provideaservice to the east of Birmingham,an area whichisdifficult to reachwithoutseveral changes

“ShropshireCouncil is also in discussionswiththe operatorregarding thepossibility of aparkway stationfor Shrewsbury.Thishas been along-held ambition notonlyfor ShropshireCouncilbut also forthe West Midlands Combined Authority.

“These proposals, which have now been submitted to the ORR, will bringfasterand more direct journeyopportunitiesto ourregion. This is amustfor Shropshireand oursurroundingareas as to fullyexploit our growth potentialweneed far better transport links.”

In herletter, Lezley Picton asks that theSecretaryofState works with theOffice of Rail andRoad, andwithinthe Department forTransport,toensure theapplication is processed as quicklyaspossible“so that Shropshire’scommunities can benefitfromthese servicesand widerbenefits as soonaspossible”

Darren Horley,TobyRackliff of West Midlands RailExecutive, PeterBroadley of Alstom andIan WaltersofSLC Rail

Robberysuspect held in custody

Aman arrested on suspicionof robbingateenagerinWalsall was amongalmost80suspectsinthe West Midlands Police custody blocks on Saturday morning.

Theforce haddozensofpeople in itsdetention block on Saturdayin connection with arange of crimes,fromburglarytocriminal damage andassault.Amongthem wasa20-year-old manwho has been arrested in relation to arobbery in Walsall. Between4pm and 4.40pmonFebruary22, police saya 16-year-oldboy wasthreatenedon Littleton Street West before having hismobilephonetaken

Also in thecustody blocks wasa 32-year-oldman arrested on suspicion of robberyfollowing areport that acar had been stolen

He waspickedupbypoliceinBirmingham,onSaturdaymorning

West Midlands Police has pledged to tackle robbery, whichitdescribed as a“forcepriority”

Manarrested afterfootchase

Aman hasbeenarrested after police pursueda stolen carin Wolverhampton.

TheMiniCountrymanwas seen by West Midlands Police officers who, afterchecks, found thecar hadbeenstoleninaburglary, hadbeenclonedand was beingusedbya manwantedby police.Officers said thedriver abandonedthe carin ahousing estate near Bilstonfollowing a pursuit, andthenattempted to escapeonfoot.

However,hewas subsequently caught andarrested following afootchase on theentranceto theKhalsa Academy.

Aspokesman forWestMidlandsPolicesaid: “RoadCrime Team officers sawaclonedMini Countryman in Wolverhampton whichhad beenstoleninaburglaryand wasbeing used by a wanted male.”

Faultwithtrain quickly resolved

Therewas disruption betweentwo town railwaystationsafterafault on thetrain

Thebranchlinebetween Stourbridge Junction andStourbridge Town wasunabletorun fora short time duetothe fault.

West Midlands Railway confirmed around 10.25amyesterday that arailreplacement servicehad been putin place.

Aspokesman forWestMidlands Railway said:“Duetoa faultonthe trainbetween Stourbridge Junction andStourbridge Town platform, thelineisblocked

“Railreplacementhas been orderedtoreplace theservice until endofday.”

Butitwas confirmed at 11.39am that theissue hadbeenresolved andthe servicewas back up and running.

Aspokesman forWestMidlands Railway said:“We were pleasedto be able to quicklyreopenthe line.”

Demolitionofbus stationwellunderway

Anew picture showshow work to demolish Dudley BusStation is progressing to make wayfor anew £24 million transport interchange. Thebus stationclosedinJanuary, markingthe startofa18-month projectset forcompletionin2025.

Work to demolish thesitehas sincebeenunder way, with atransport hubtostand in itsplace featuringanew metro stop.

It formspartofthe Wednesbury to Brierley Hill Metro extension which, upon theannouncement of theproject,Transport forWest Midlands (TfWM) said aims to

ISABELLE PARKIN isabelle.parkin@mnamedia.co.uk

“betterconnect”the people of Dudleytojob andleisure opportunities acrossthe region

Newaerialphotosshowhow work to overhaulthe busstation is progressing

Several largediggers couldbe seen at thesitelastFridayalong with largepiles of rubble Theblueterminals at thebus stationare however still standing amongan otherwise vacant site

Theproject is beingled by TfWM whichispartofthe West Midlands Combined Authority(WMCA), in partnershipwithDudleyCouncil Fundingfor theinterchange was awardedtothe WMCA by theDepartment forTransport via theCity Region SustainableTransport Settlement.

Theworkisbeing carriedout alongsidethe developmentofphase oneofthe Wednesbury to Brierley HillMetro extensionwhich is beingdelivered forTfWMbyMidland Metro Alliance

Woman’sshock aftershe claims shefound adead maggotinmeat

A“mortified”mum hasclaimed she foundadeadmaggotinapacket of chickenbreasts boughtfroman Aldi storeinWestBromwich.

Dawn Bennett’spartner andher 20-year-oldson,Daniel, visitedthe storeonTildasley Streetataround 12.30pm last Thursday to do their weekly shop

Thefamilywas packingtheir itemsawaywhenDanielasked his mumifshe couldcooksome chicken he hadjustpurchased

However,Dawnwas left shocked when sheopenedthe packet to discover adeadmaggotinside.

Thepacketoflarge chicken breastshad abestbeforedateof April9and theshopper claims the plasticsealhad notbeendamaged

The56-year-old,who is from the Hill TopareaofWestBromwich, said:“My firstreactionwas it was aleafand then Ilookedcloserand I just sort of screamed out‘thereisa dead maggot on thechicken’. Ihave never in my 56 yearshad amaggot on anymeatthatIhavepurchased in my life –Iwas in abit of astate.”

Thedisgruntled customerwas quicktoringthe shop andspeakto customerservices, whoshe claims initiallyoffered herarefundand a £5 goodwill gesture

Thesupermarket gianthas since been back in touchwithher to offerafull refund anda£30 voucher, whichshe hasaccepted

Aspokesman forAldisaid: “Although very rare,incidents likethis canoccasionally occurifpackagingisdamaged before the product is consumed. We apologise forany inconvenience caused andhaveofferedthe customerafullrefund.”

Councilshamedbywatchdog over complaints on housing

Acouncil hasbeencriticised by ahousing watchdog overits failure to handle complaints properly.

Sandwell Councilisamongseveral localauthoritiesnamed and shamed by theHousing Ombudsmanfor itspoorhandlingofcomplaints from socialhousing tenants.

Theorder issued by theHousing Ombudsman–which investigates socialhousing complaints –said Sandwell Councilhad notcomplied afterfailing to deal with acomplaintproperlyand on time

Theauthoritywas amongnine socialhousing landlords,which included several London councils, to be highlightedfor itspoorperformance.

Theordersare given to social housing landlords whodonot complywiththe ombudsman’scode. Orders mightalso be given outto landlords that have “systemicis-

CHRISTIAN BARNETT LocalDemocracy Reporter

sues”withhandlingcomplaints.A spokesperson forSandwell Council said:“We have learnedfromthis particular case andwehavealready made anumberofchanges to the waywehandlecomplaintsfromresidents.Wehaveapologisedtoour tenant forthe delayand inconveniencecaused.

“Asdeterminedbythe Housing Ombudsman, we recognise our failingsinthe waywehandled complaintsinthiscaseand theongoing distress caused.

“Weare working with ourtenant andtheir family to make ongoing repairstothe property andtorectify anyoutstanding issues.Wewill complete afullreviewofour actions in this case to understand what went wrongand continue to make improvements to ourservices.

“Wehavecreated anew HousingResolutions team,which will

workwithresidents andadvocate forthemwhentheyare dissatisfied with theservice they have received.

“Thisteamisimproving theway complaints areinvestigated,managed andresponded to,toprevent otherresidents from experiencing unreasonable delays in having their concerns resolved.Thisissowecan improve ourresponse to residents when these issues arise in thefuture.”

Housingombudsman Richard Blakeway said theorderswereonly issued in “exceptional circumstances”and only came afterseveral attempts to contactsocialhousing landlords hadbeenmade.

“Mostofthese ordersare made whilethe complaintislive the landlord’sprocedure,revealing issues that occurred in thelastthree months,”hesaid. “Weonlyissue a handfulcomparedtothe thousands of cases we handle andaftermuch intervention with thelandlord. Theseordershelplandlords to iden-

tify whereactionisnecessary,and with most landlords this appearsto be successful. Ultimately,thishelps complaints to be resolved earlier by thelandlorditself,which is essentialgiven thecontinued rise in complaints

“Itisvital landlordsassesstheir complaints procedureasthe code becomesstatutory.Thisalso means ensuring itscomplaintsteamhas theresourcesand leveragewithin thelandlordtodo itsjob andtoensure thereisfairnessfor residents when making acomplaint.”

Thecriticism by theombudsman comesasthe body’s complaints code is settobecome lawfromApril –as well as asteeprise in complaints in thelast12months.

Sandwell Councilwas criticised by localgovernmentsecretary MichaelGovelastyearfor failing to properly respondtoananti-social behaviourcomplaintfromaresident with complexmentalhealth needs

An aerialviewofthe demolition of Dudley BusStation to accommodate anew £24m transport interchange

Floodlit pitchfor parkisapproved despiteconcerns

Anew floodlit sportspitch will be builtina park despitecomplaintsfrom neighbours.

Sandwell Council’splanningcommittee approvedthe new floodlitmulti-use sports pitchatVictoriaParkin Tipton afterhearing concerns from elderlyresidents living next to thehistoricgreen space

Thevulnerableresidents living next to theparkaccused thecouncil of turningthe greenspace into a“sports academy” andsaidtheywerealready sufferingfromnoise andanti-social behaviour, as well as an influx of cars during football matches.

However,some councillorsargued theplanned fencingand floodlights wouldimprove security andhelpdrive away anti-socialbehaviour

Sandwell Councilplans to replace theexisting“dilapidated”sportspitch next to thepark’sskatepark with a newmacadam surface, football goals, basketball nets, athree-metre high fence, newbenches andsix-metre-high LED floodlights

AlisonJones,who spokeonbehalf of theresidents in theBoscobelEstate Tenant ManagementOrganisation (TMO), told theplanningmeetingon March 27:“We have afeeling that you aretryingtoturnthe park into a sports academy. Moreofa sports facil-

CHRISTIAN BARNETT LocalDemocracy Reporter

itythanaresidential park.Since the existing facilities were installed, residents living nearby have experienced extra noise from theskatepark

“Whatever happensonthe park does have an impact on ourelderly residents,”MsJones added. “Parking is an issue.

“ParkLaneWestisared route, our estate is small, BreweryStreetisa smallcul-de-sac.Wehaven’t gotthe space forour ownresidents.”

Councillor Liam Preece askedthe residents whethertheyfeltmorelightingwould make theparksafer –and potentiallyreduceantisocialbehaviour

“Ifyou give them extra light, you give them extra lighttoget up to no good.It’sgoing to make things worse.”

Councillor EllenFentonalso defended theplanned revamp,sayingit wouldimprove security and, despite theconcernsfromresidents, thework wouldbea“blessingindisguise.”

“Young people need aplace to play andtheyneed asafeone,” shesaid.

“A lotofthe issues that you areworried abouthavealready been taken into account.”

The floodlights couldnot be usedbetween10pmand 8am.

Tree topples as windssweep region

Part of abusyroadwas closed as aresult of afallentreeasthe region was hitbystrong winds.

Alarge treewas broughtdownon Tettenhall Road, Wolverhampton, at itsjunctionwithNewhamptonRoad West,onSaturdayafternoon.

Fire crewswerecalledand tasked with making theroute safe again.

As aresult, motoristswerewarned of disruption to theirjourneys, with slow-moving trafficseenalong TettenhallRoadontoWergs Road

Thepartialroadclosure also had

Pensioner hitbycar leftseriouslyinjured

Apensioner wasleftseriously injuredafterbeing hitbya car.

West Midlands Police has launched an appeal afterthe incidentonWalsall Road in Perry Barr on Saturday evening.

Theincident, whichhappened around 8.20pmonthe junction of BeechesRoad, sawablack Ford Focustravelling towards Birmingham city centre hita manin his80s,who wassubsequentlytaken to hospital in a seriouscondition

Thedriver of theFordFocus remainedat thescene to help po-

lice officers with theirinquiries andWestMidlandsPolicehas askedfor anyone whosaw what happened or hasdashcam footagetoget in touch.

Aspokesman forWestMidlandsPolicesaid: “We’re appealingfor informationand dashcam footageafterapensioner sufferedserious injuries

“A blackFordFocus travelling in thedirection of Birmingham city centre wasinvolvedina collision with aman in his80s.The manremains in hospital in a seriouscondition.The driver re-

an impact on busroutes, with the Service1 diverting itsbuses in both directions viaCompton Road, Henwood Road andThe Rock

It came as a flurry of high winds andraincontinued to sweepthe region this weekendasStorm Kathleen took hold.

Gustsweresaidtoreach up to 44 miles perhourinWolverhamptonon Saturday evening.

Thesituation wasslightlycalmer yesterdaywhenwinds were expected to reduce to 38 miles perhour.

mained at thescene andishelpingwithour inquiries.

“Our SeriousCollision InvestigationUnitare keen to hear from anyone whowitnessed the collision,orwas in theareaat thetimeand hasnot already spoken to officers

“We’re reviewingCCTVbut areinterested in anydashcam footage. Youcan contactusvia 101, or Live Chat on ourwebsite, quoting4088of6 April. Youcan also contactthe SeriousCollision InvestigationUnitatsciu@ westmidlands.police.uk.”

Planners approvedthe new floodlitmulti-use sports pitchatVictoria Park

Broadband firm says poles will go up despite protestinstreet

Furiousresidents whoseestateis about to getabove ground street furniturefor the firsttimehave been told thenew polesbeing erected will deliver brilliantbroadband

TheChartersfieldestate, Kingswinford,isone of thefew residential areasinthe UK without telegraphpoles,cable boxesand overhead wires.

When theestatewas builtengineersensuredall theclutter which is normallyabove ground should be outofsightand outofmindbelow ground

However,BRSKbroadband, whichhas been given thecontract to deliver full fibreinternetcables, hasdeemedthe subterranean wiringassubstandard

Thecompany claimtheir best boffins have been on thecasebut cannot find asuitablealternative to erecting polesonstreet corners.

ABRSKspokesman said:“Currently,full fibrebroadband is only availabletoaround60per cent of homesinthe country, with residents having been historically misledintobelieving that theoption they alreadyhaveisthe mostadvanced –but notall optionsadvertisedas fibreare full fibre.

“These upgrades aretherefore importanttoserve currentand future generations, future-proofing theservicesfor all. Thenationwide switchingoff of allcopper-based phonelines in thenearfuturewill affect allhomes, andanalternative optionneedstobein place.”

Thecompany outlined thepublic dialogue they have hadwithlocal residents.

Thespokesman said:“We pride ourselves on having open andongoingcommunication throughout thebuildprocess.Letters were first sent to residents in December 2023 to notify them of ourplans to work in thearea. Ourteams have since been working diligently to speak to residentsand workwiththemto tryand find suitable alternativelocationsfor polesasfar as possible, andasa resultwehavemademajor changestoour original plans.

“Inadditiontoresidentengagement,wealsoensurecommunication with therelevantlocal authoritytakes placebeforeany workstarts. BRSK representatives metwithCouncillor Ed Lawrence on-sitetodiscussand shareour networkplans. Communicationbetweenthe council andBRSKhas been positive andremains ongoing.

“Our networkisbuiltwithinand on theexistingtelecommunications infrastructure underCodePowers issued by OFCOM, usingthe OpenreachPIA (PhysicalInfrastructure Access)Product.However,sometimesthe existing infrastructure is insufficientfor us to servesome premises, andonthese occasions, we need to upgradethe infrastructure to provideservicestoall residents.” Thecompany hasalso contactedDudleySouth MP Mike Wood, whojoinedresidents to protest againstthe plansonThursday.

Though residents do notwant theirstreet sceneblotted by poles theinternetproviderstill believes they arethe best option

Baggiesfan Dave shortlisted forEFL best supporteraward

PAUL JENKINS paul.jenkins@mnamedia.co.uk

West Bromwich Albion super-fanand charity fundraiser ‘Blind Dave’ Heeley hasbeenshortlisted by theEnglish Football League (EFL) forits supporterofthe season award.

The66-year-old fatherofthree andOBE is an avid Albion fanof over 50 yearshavinggrown up and livedinWestBromwichhis entire life andfollowing themsince he was aboy

Dave hascompletedmanycharitychallenges includingbeing the firstblind persontocompletethe seven-marathonchallenge in 2008 whichsaw himtraveltoSydney, Dubai, LosAngeles andthe Falkland Islandsamongstthe destinations, finishingoff in London.

Lastmonth he announced plans forhis latest adventure–a1,000k cycleridearoundEurope.

Hischallenges have seen him raise over £3mfor theWestBromwich Albion foundation,the charitablearm of theclubwhich he representsas an ambassador. He was awardedthe OBEinthe Queens HonoursListin2020for hisservices to charitable fundraising.

Aspokesman forthe EFLsaid: “WhenDavewas in hisyouth, there wasalackofsupport and opportunitiesfor disabled people within sport, buthis supportofthe foundation allows thecharitableorganisation to continue anddevelop their disability sportdeliveryinthe present, somethingheisveryproud to support.

“Dave’sfundraising effortshave helped thefoundationtoexpand what they offertothe community,withavastdisability sport programmenow in place, including: Powerchair Football,Blind Football,CerebralPalsy Football, PANDisability Football,SEND multi-sportholiday campsand sessions.”

He will take hisplaceinLondon

on Sunday, April14whenthe winners of theawardsare announced –WestBromwichAlbionhavealso beennominated forcommunity club of theseason.

Andtoday Dave will setoff for Rotherhamwitharound20other riders forthe foundation’s annual BaggiesCycle Challengewhich is now in its10thyear.

It will seethe teamride160 miles from Rotherhamstartingthisafternoonbacktothe Hawthornsin time forthe Wednesday night fixture betweenthe twoteams when they will be presented to fans before thegame–the ride is expected to raise around £30,000

Dave said:“Ialwayssay when we do this ride themostimportant thingisthe threepointsand it will be againstRotherham “Butithas become an annual eventthatweenjoy participating in andthe recognitionofthe fans always make thehardmiles worth-

while. Thenominationfor fanofthe year came as anicesurprise –readingit, Ithink it came about because of that fundraisingworkand the generalsupport of theclubbothon andoff thepitch “A lotofpeopledoalot ofwork

behind thescenesthoughI sometimesget theheadlines anditis also greattosee Albion nominated forcommunity club because it is verymuchthat–a community who supporteachother as well as the team.”

Newcoffeeshopset to replaceloss-making cafe

Anew coffee shop will replacea loss-makingcafeata leisurecentre

Dudley Councilwill recruit threenew workers at Halesowen Leisure Centre afterfailing to attract aprivate companytorun the cafe

Theauthority will appointthe staff, equivalent to one-and-ahalf full time employees,toserve drinks andpre-wrapped food

Thecafeatthe centre is expected to have lost £102,000 in the last financialyearand thecouncil confirmed itsclosure as part of the budgetapprovedinMarch.

Thecouncil hasdistributed pub-

licinformation notices asking for otheroperators to take over the cafe butreceivedno interest From May1,the cafe will become acoffeeshopstaffed by atrio of adventure play assistants who will also supervise children in the adventure play area andcarry out otherdutiesincluding cleaning

Thenew coffee shop is expected to cost atotal of £75,500tooperate butgenerateanincomeof£81,000, returningaprofitof£5,500.

Thecafeatthe centre,onGreat Cornbow, hadbeensubsidisedby thecouncil but, likethe Duncan EdwardsLeisure Centre cafe,had sufferedsignificant losses since

openingtwo yearsago.The closure will be ablow afteroptimism that thecafecould survive following theclosure of thecafeatthe CrystalCentre in Stourbridgelastyear.

In February last year,wepublished thecontentsofanemail from acouncil spokesperson which said:“Thecafés at Duncan EdwardsLeisure Centre andHalesowenLeisure Centre also ‘lose’ moneyhowever,theyare considered to be in theright location (ground floor) andhaveonlybeen open approximately12months. “Inshort, they haven’t hadthe opportunitytotry newmethods to make thecafés profitable.”

Dave Heeley with AlbionheadcoachCarlosCorberan beforesetting offfromthe Hawthorns on acharity bike ride

Dave in 2022 when he wasabaton bearer for theCommonwealth Games

Collegeisthe leader forapprenticeships

JAMESVUKMIROVIC newsroom@mnamedia.co.uk

AStaffordshire college hasbeenacknowledgedas thehighest performing in thecountyfor apprenticeships.

Recently published data from the Educationand SkillsFunding Agency (ESFA) hasshown Newcastleand Stafford Colleges Group(NSCG)has maintained itspositionasthe highest performing collegeinStaffordshire andone of thetop performing further educationcollegesinEnglandfor apprenticeships.

Theresults were highlightedin thelatestNationalApprenticeship AchievementRateTables, released by theDepartmentfor Education(DfE) on March21, andare basedonthe 2022-2023academicyear.

Achievementrates area measure of how many students completedand passed theapprenticeshiptheystudied.

NSCG’s overallachievementrate forapprenticeships during thelastacademic year was68per cent against anationalaverageof54.3 percent, placingthe groupinthe topspotinthe West Midlands region andinthe top 10 percentofcollegesnationally.

In addition,retention ratesscore higher than alllocal competitors, re-

NSCG hasbeen acknowledged

flective of thegroup’s reputation for providingoutstanding academic and pastoral supportthroughoutthe apprenticeship journey.

Just afew months earlier, theDfE announced Newcastleand Stafford Colleges Groupasthe West Midlands’ only ‘ExpertApprenticeshipProvider’, oneofonly five furthereducation collegesnationallytoachieve this status

Expert status wasawarded after thecollege demonstratedexcellence acrossa strict rangeofcriteriaincludinglearner achievementdata, financialhealthand exceptionalemployer feedback To find outmoregotonscg.ac.uk/ course-type/apprenticeships

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COMMENT

Newrailservicesfor ourregion areastepinthe right direction.

Theregionneedsbetterservicesand increasedinvestment so that motoristscan getoff thecrumbling roadsthatare so congestedat peakhours, using cheaperand greenerrailservices Transportisahugeissue for theWestMidlandsand while many aregratefulfor some improvements, includinga better junction on theM6atWalsall, andthe provisionofHS2 from London to Birmingham,there areother,hugegapsinservices.

Thelackofanorthernleg of HS2has caused consternation, notleast in theoffice of West Midlands MayorAndyStreet, whilethere arenumerousroad andrailprojectsawaitingthe greenlightacrossthe region

It is goodnews, therefore, that progress is beingmadein respectofnew rail services for Shropshireand theWestMidlands. They areanimportant strategicboostfor theregion, especially in lightofanother serviceendinginafew months

Thetruth is that ourroadand rail infrastructure is underpowered andsuffers from alackof investment. We need more cash forroadand rail improvements whilethe railways system needs better carriages, a timetable that suitscustomers better and canpersuadepeopletoget off theroads

Railwaysshouldbeatthe heartofaninter-connected West Midlands,withbetter rolling stockcarryinga higher number of passengers across ourregion. It makeseconomic sense to invest andthe newservicesthatwill ferrycommuters andday-trippersisastepinthe rightdirection

It should be just thestart,as policy-makerscontinuetoinvest in theregion.

There’sacrisisinapartofour NHSthatremains underthe radar.

It’s fordentalservices, which areincreasinglyexpensive and increasinglydifficult forpeople to access

Wherewewereonceableto access care withoutcharge, the costsofa filling,coupled with a naturaldisinclinationtovisit thedentist,meanit’sbecome a Cinderella service.

It is poorlyfundedand now people areturning to other partsofthe NHSfor treatment, citing emergencyconditions.

We areaware of thescale of problems in theNHS, with waitinglists toolong, andwith many notonlystrugglingtoget GP appointmentbut also findingdifficultieswithNHS dental care

When theGeneral Election takesplace, both partieswill need to provideclarity on their plansfor differentbranchesof ourhealthservice

Keeping your grocery budgetundercontrol

We allknowthatthe priceofgroceries is goingupand up,sohere’s some tips on howyou cankeepthe controlofyourgrocery budget.

LOYALTYAPPS

Forsome people,thiswill seem like an obvious one, buteverytimeI go to theshops Isee peoplepaying withoutloyalty apps.Not only do most of thesupermarketsoffer “loyalty prices”these days,but loyalty points builduptobefreemoney.It’s safe to saythatthe “loyalty prices” areaway to make us allhavethe loyaltycards,asthe “original” prices areoverinflated,but,ifyou’re notpayingwithaloyalty card, you’repayinga really high premium forthat.

Many of thesupermarketsoffer bonusvouchersand rewardson theirpointstoo,for example, Tesco club card points canbedoubled up to use at places such as Pizza ExpressorWestMidlandsSafari Park,and many more place. Asda have also been offering doubleup offers foryourpointstouse on clothing or home wear,and Asda also have theirChristmas cashpots open meaningyou canstart putting yourbonus moneyawayfor thebig Christmas food shop

Lidl andMorrisons offerextra discountsand extra rewardswhen scanning theirloyalty apps, and Sainsbury’salso do similar,and usuallydoadoubleup eventnearer to Christmastoo whereyou can doubleyournectarpoints, although this oftenisn’t well advertised.

CASHBACK

Oneofmy favourite money savingtips, cash back!Use theJam Doughnut or AirtimeRewardsapps to gain cash back on youreveryday spending at thesupermarkets. It’s very quickand easy to grab acash back gift card,and you scan it at the till,justlikeyou would useother paymentmethods.You’llstill gain yourloyalty points even when using acashbackgiftcard.

Youcan also use TopCashbackto take advantageof“firsttimeshop” offers, such as £7.35cashbackon your firsthome deliveryorder of £48ormore. Or £1.05backifyou’re an existing customerhavingadelivery.

Thesupermarketsalso oftenoffertheir own firsttimedelivery discountstoo,which tend to be big, so checkbothoptions to make sure you’regetting thebestdeal.

Ocadonow offera“pricepromise”voucher,theycompare your shop to Tescoand if yourshopwith them wasmoreexpensive,they’ll send you avoucher with thedifference,ready to spendonyournext Ocadoorder

GETTINGTHE MOSTFOR YOUR MONEY

Ihavelearned twobrilliantmoney saving tips from afellowmoneysavingInstagram account@thrifty clair. Firstly, payattention to the priceper kg,ratherthanthe price of theitem, this hastaughtmethat

MoneysavingexpertAmy Grayland sharesshopping secretstoget good value

buying in bulk is oftenmuchcheaper in thelongrun andI nowbulk buymanyitems such as rice and pasta. Theinitial outlay is more, butthe productlasts much longer. Anotherthrifty trickistoweigh packaged items, such as chillies,as thepacketmay stateanestimated weight, butthe contents inside couldactuallyvaryin weight, so make sure you’regetting themost foryourmoney

STICKTOA LIST ANDLEARN PRICES

Stickingtoalistreallydoestake some self controlbut it is themost efficientway to stay in controlof yourbudget, making thelistbefore you leavewhenyou cancheck your cupboardswill stop you ending up with five tubs of gravy, or sixbottles of ketchup.

Learning yourpricesisanother handytip,Itry to keep in mind the prices of allofour basics,soIknow when they’vegone up,and Ican learnwhich supermarket offers the best valueand stockupatthatone If you’re findingthatyou struggle to sticktoalist, you couldconsider online shopping,manyofthe supermarketsoffer lowpriced delivery slots. Andalsoconsiderwhich supermarket you shop in,iffor example, youcan’t resist themiddle aisle in Lidl or Aldi,itmay be wiserto sticktothe othersupermarkets, but equallyifyou getdrawn in by the

Scotland hasalwaysstruckme as ajolly placewhere people rub alongprettywell. Yetwithin hoursofits newhatelaw being launched,nofewer than 4,000 hate complaintshad beenlodged with police.Thisisbizarre.How canany countryberiddled with so much latent hatred? Y’know, thesoonertheystart lockingup each other forhatred, thesooner this hatredcan be stamped out. Or possiblynot

However,weshouldbeaware of thefactthatsomepeople, some politics andsome practicesare so hatefulthatany reasonable, rational person wouldinstinctively hate them.Somehow,I can’tsee this ending well

Still in Scotland,somemoanerscomplainthatthe newly-launchedsummer toursof Balmoral at £100 ahead(afternoon tea £50extra)are fartoo expensive. YetBalmoral’s bookingwebsite crashedunder the demand andmanytours arealreadysoldout.Which suggests the price, if anything,ispitched abit low

Greg Doran, former artistic director at theRoyal Shakespeare Companyand one of ourleading theatrical figures, is againstsocalled “trigger alerts,”which warn theatregoersthatthey might find some part of aproductionoffensive or scary.

clothing in Tescoand Sainsbury’s, then youmay want to consider choosingthe alternative supermarketstoshopin.

CHECKFOR DELIVERYAPP DISCOUNTS

This is atip that you do have to really make sure you’reactuallygetting goodvalue,but sometimesthe deliveryapps, such as Uber Eats andDeliveroo,offer discountson groceries, andsometimesthese can actually save youmoney.But these apps canchargemuchmorethanin storeprices, so just ensure youare gettingagood deal with thediscount, Ihavemanaged to save myself around £5/£6towhatI would have spentinstore by utilising these dealsafew timesbefore.

OLIO APP

TheOlioapp is afantastic appthat couldsupplementyourfood shops with free food.Kindvolunteers collect surplusfood from supermarketsand list it on theOlioapp for people to collect, plus there’soften people having cupboard clearouts listingtheir unwanted items, all forfree. It’s worth bearinginmind that alot of thefood collected has ause by date of that daysoneeds collecting andusing fairly quickly.

l Ihopethese tips arehelpful Moneysavingamy

Hisadvice, to dramastudents, is simple:“Don’tcome if you areworried.Ifyou areanxious –stayaway.”Wise words. However,part of thefun of theatre is that you never know quite what’sgoing to happen on the night. Ihaveafriendwhose experience of Shaksepeare’sgory tale of murder,mayhemand cannibalism, TitusAndronicus, included an overwroughtmemberofthe audience suddenly vomiting in theaisle.Anight to remember

Andwho canforgetthatpress nightofKingLearatStratford afew years agowhenGloucester’seyesweregouged outand theeyeball (“Out, vile jelly!”) squirted into theshocked audience?Ishouldhavetrigger-warned you about that bit, right?

Meanwhile, an “Inclusive LanguageGuide”issuedbyan Edinburgh-basedcharity,describes“mother”and “father” as “problematic phrases,”and suggests replacingthemwith “parent” or “guardian.” It declares:“Only by talkingabout andreflecting on language can we hope to make it anti-oppressive.” Or,for that matter,uncle-oppressive?

NHSno

longer aservice we canbe proudof

What hashappenedtothe health service? Once aservice to be proudof, butnolonger I’mafraid.

Late afternoononFebruary27Iwas takenill with my breathing. IsufferfromCOPD –my ownfault throughsmoking–Iacceptall blameand now have more sense

Paramedics were called and Iwas transported to Sandwell hospital arriving at 5.30pm andleftin A&E.

Iwas takenand putonthe heartmachine threetimes during my stay whichterminatedatapproximately 1.30am thenextday.Ihad been told my heartwas giving an unusualbeatand needed observation,also Icould have asthma Ihavenocomplaints aboutmy stay,considering the workload they areunder

Finallyataround12.30amI wastoldIwould be discharged andmyGPcontacted.Well, as of March21no report etchas been received,accordingtomy surgery.

Ireceiveda repeat attack on March 19,a call forparamedics wasmadeatapprox.5.45pm. I wasspokentobyvarious medical andlogisticalemployees andwas told eventually aparamedic would attend.Nosuch vehiclecame.

My niece contacted my surgery with arequest foran appointmentordoctor’svisit and was firmly told that therewere no face-to-face appointments forthree weeks. How funny, 111 came up with twoappointments, yetthe employeeat thesurgery stated no appointments!

So at 11.30amonthe dayI am poised forphonecall– no such luck.Inquiriesstate it couldbeany time upto8pm Eventually theGPdoesring around 6pmbut Imiss thecall andthe GP leavesa message andstatesmyphone didnot ring –itdoes!

So,90years of age, worked hard allofmylifefor peanuts, thisisthe wayyou gettreated IknowI’m not alone, thousandsare worseoff MalcolmSaxon,Tipton

PICTURE FROMTHE ARCHIVE

Real earfulover oldphotographs

We’reall proudofour roots, whetheryou be ascouser,a Glaswegian or hail from rural Sussex.

We escapedthe rush andbustle of that thereLondonback in theage of redphone boxes, andploddressed in black, and planted rootsuphereonthe northernedgeofthe Black Country. We also broughtup many of thequestionabletraits associated with ourformerlife in East London,which didn’t go down toowellwithlocal folk

As youwellknow, deep down in thedepthsofour subconscious, thereliesthe remnants of aformerexistence,inour case,the oldEastEnd,and it only needsanudge foritto surfaceand explodewithout warning. Such an outburst emanated from my beloved. Iwill explain.

Purely by chance Ifound an old35mmcamerastuffed into aplastic containerunder

apileofforgotten tat. We both reckon that itsbeenthere for 25-plusyears. As today’selectronicphotography cannow be downloaded on to acomputer andprinted offin minutes,and we don’thavea scooby what’s on the film,isitworth getting it processed? That’s if you still can, andsoI wasall forbinning the film andthe camera

Ihad quiteforgotten how my belovedhas over theyears documented thechildren’s and grandchildren’s progress from year to year,and so shehas 45 years’ worth of photographs from birthuptothe present day, andthiscamerarepresents an unknownchapter of their lives. Igot an earful of East End vitriolicvocabularythe like of whichIhavenot heardsincewe escaped ourformerlife. Iwas quiteshocked that thelightof my lifeshouldknowsuchwords Irelented,and in afew weeks from now,hopefullywewill both see20-pluspostcardsize colour photographs of ourbrood thathavelaiddormant forover 25 years.

Tony Levy,Wednesfield

Back thewalkto school initiative

Fewerthanhalfofprimary school aged children walk to school in England,adropfrom 70 percenta generation ago. Iurgeall politicalparties to ensurethe walk to school is at theheart of theirtransport policy.The impact of this will also help tackle theclimate, economicand health crises

Maggie

Can someone pleaseexplain?

Having read aboutamother accusedofallowingher son, whosubsequentlydied, ‘unnecessarysuffering’, andcome acrossthe term many times in reports, cananyoneexplain what ‘necessary suffering’ is?

WIHuxley, Reabrook

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Lettersmustinclude thewriter’sname, address and telephonenumber.Letters will only be published anonymously in exceptionalcircumstances.The editor reserves theright to condense or amendletters

Tarrant, Trefonen

The‘flying saucer’MEB showroom in Kingswinfordwas blazing atrail for modernistarchitecture long beforethe Millennium Domehad even been thoughtof. This picture,showing themodern shopping parade around Townsend Place, is undated,but would appear to be from the1960s.

Police appeal for help as concern growsfor safety of missingteen

Police saytheyare becoming “increasinglyconcerned”over the whereaboutsofa boywho hasgone missingfromhis Burntwood home Leon,aged14, waslastseenin theChasetown area on Thursday wearing abluecoatand blackbottoms.Heisdescribedasbeing 5ft 3ins tall andofaslimbuild StaffordshirePolicesay he has connectionsinthe Cannockarea.

Theforce hasissuedapicture of missingLeontohelpinthe appeal whichcan be seen at expressandstar.com.Anyonewho sees himorthose with informationon hiswhereaboutshas been askedto contactStaffordshire Police by calling101 andquoting incident 513of April4.Alternatively,peoplecan call Crimestopperson0800555 111.

Police arealso lookingfor help in locating amissing manfromStaffordshire. Kenneth, 32,fromWolverhampton,isaround5ft 7intall, of slim buildwithshort, dark brown hair.Heisbelievedtobeinthe area of Marquis Drive, Cannock.

Anyone whohas seen himis askedtocallStaffordshire Police on 101, quoting452 of March22.

Modellers’ show hosted by NEC

Anew show forminiature modellers is beingheldatBirmingham’s National ExhibitionCentre.Model WorldLiveisrunning on April27 and28. It hasbeencreated by the organisers of theGreat Electric TrainShow. Twofull-sizerestore military vehicles will also be featuredatthe event.

Therewill also bemorethan70 tradestandsand modelmaking demonstrations goingonover the weekend. On theday admissionis £19for adults and£10 forchildren

Cassyettedeliversabold,brilliantperformance

Cassyettebrought heruniquetake on thenu-metal soundtoWolverhampton’sKK’sSteel Mill in aground-breakingperformance, writes Daniel Walton

Cassyettecatapultedtofameafterreleasing herdebut singleJean in 2019, nearly instantlygarnering agiganticfan followingthathas amassedover1.2 million TikTok

followersand counting.The singer wasdubbednu-metal’s ‘pop provocateur’byClash Magazine,and we have to say, Cassyetteisdefinitely onetowatch outfor SupportedbyFilthyPig andHarpy,the show at Wolverhampton’s KK’s went offwithablast.Itwas an amazing show anddefinitely one to remember.The crowdmassed

andthe energy in KK’s waselectric, with thesupport doinga fantastic jobathypingup thecrowd

Cassyette’sset was ahigh-octane mixofelectro,nu-metal,techno, andall-out rock.For athree-piece band that is stillrelativelynew to thescene,itcould be seen that they hadperfectly foundtheir voice. The show wasamazing

Farmland ‘withpotential’on themarketfor around £850k

MATTHEWPANTER

matthew.panter@mnamedia.co.uk

AformerWestMidlandspoultry farm with potentialfor residential development or as an equestrian centre is inviting offers in theregion of £850,000.

BroadLanePoultry Farm,Broad Lane,Bloxwich, comprises alarge, five bedroomfarmhouse with aspaciousgarden,grazing land anda rangeoffarmbuildings.The property extendstonearlytwo acres.

Thecurrent owners have received positive pre-applicationfeedback from WalsallCouncil forthree more detached houses to be builton theproperty, subjecttoplanning consent

Thefarmisonthe property market with Hallsand,whilethe rendered brickhouse hasbeenimproved, wouldbenefitfromfurther internal modernisation.

Theground floorhas amodern farmhouse stylekitchen with an AGA, utilityroom, bootroom, office or snug,livingroom, dining room andsitting room

Upstairs thereare five,well-proportionedbedroomsand amain bathroom.All therooms benefit from awealthofnatural lightfrom doubleglazedwindows.Arange of

10 steeland timber framed agriculturalbuildings,set around alevel, mostly concrete yard,provide more than 9,700squarefeetofuseful space.Grassland adjoinsthe private driveand extendsbeyondthe house

Thesaleisbeing handledby CharlotteHurleyatHalls’Kidderminsteroffice,who canbecontacted

on 01562820880.She said:“This property hasgreat potentialand will be of interest to awiderange of prospectivebuyers, includingproperty developers andthose lookingto establishing an equestrian centre “The farm enjoysa private, screened location,yet is closeto residential areaswithconvenient access to theM6.”

Businesses face labour cost surgeasconfidenceslumps

Business confidence amongBlack Country firmsfellinthe first threemonthsofthe year.

Thelatesteconomicsurveyby theregion’schamber of commerce foundthat59per cent of Black Countrybusinessesbelieve turnoverwillimprove over thenext12 months, down from 71 percentin thelastquarter of 2023

Thenew data,based on surveys completedbychamber member businesses, also showed 53 percent believeprofitability will improve overthe next 12 monthscompared to 58 per cent threemonthsearlier

TheBlack CountryChamber of

Commerce QuarterlyEconomic

Survey givesanup-to-datepicture of theperformance of theregional business community.

Theresults were announced at a reveal eventatthe BlackCountry andMarches InstituteofTechnology in Dudley

They also showed that rising labour costsand rising utilityprices arethe biggest pressure points for businesses

Also 27 percentof firmsreported an increaseindomestic sales, while

41 percentreported no change and 27 percentreported adecrease.

Theincreaseinoverseas sales reported by 12 percentof firms compared to sixper cent in OctobertoDecember,while 18 percent reported no change and11 percent reported adecrease

Sixtyfourper cent attempted to recruitoverthe past quarter, up from 57 percentand 54 percentexperienced recruitmentdifficulties, down from 62 percent.

GemmaEdwards,chamber policy,impactand publicaffairs officer, said:“Whilebusinessconfidence hasfallenand thereisaslight downward trend in domestic sales andordersfromthe last quarterof

NHStrust stands down itsthird critical incident

Thethird critical incidenttobedeclared so farthisyearbythe NHS Trustrunning twoStaffordshire hospitalshas been stood down University HospitalsofNorth Midlands (UHNM),which runs RoyalStoke University Hospital andCountyHospitalin Stafford, announcedithad takenthe measurelastThursday Bosses at thetrust said an “extremely high demand”had been presentat thehospitals sincethe Easter holidayperiod.

Ann-MarieRiley,UHNMChief Nurse, addedthatpressurewas at itsgreatestinthe emergency departmentswhere patients were “unabletobeadmitted to beds promptly”.

Theincidentwas however stood down at 5.30pm on Friday after “improvements”had been made.A statementissuedby UHNM read: “The trust’sposition hasimproved sinceyesterday andour emergency care pathwayisnolongercompromised.

“Wethank stafffor thehugeeffortsmadethroughoutthisperiod.

“The publiccan continue to help us manage these periodsofdemand by ensuring they areseeking help from themostappropriate health services,and only attendingA&E forserious accidents andemergencies.Ifyou areunwell, visitNHS 111 online.”

It is thethird time thetrust has declared acriticalsofar this year

No

suspects so farafter shots firedinstreet

Asuspect is yettobearrested more than twoweeks aftershots were firedin aWalsall street as police pledge to patrolin“problemhotspots”

Shotswere firedataproperty from acar on TrudaStreet, Palfrey, shortlybefore3am on March 20.Noone wasinjured West Midlands Police said it is regularlycarryingout “targeted patrols”inWalsall,including in theareas of Caldmore and Palfrey, as part of Operation Guardian Western.

2023, it wasencouraging to seethat more businesses looked to recruitin the firstquarter of this year.Fewer BlackCountry firmsreported difficultieshiringstaff,althoughrecruitmentstruggles continue”

Chamberchief executiveSarah Moorhousesaid: “The latest surveyshowsthatrisinglabour costs, utility prices andinflationcontinue to be significant concerns forbusinesses.

“Butitispositive to seethat, overall, firmsexpectpricestoremain constant over thenextthree months.”

Thesurveyeventalsoincludeda presentationonthe themeofbusiness successionplanning.

Theoperation sees officers presentin“problem hotspots” foryouth violence andknife crime. SgtChris Turner,neighbourhood policing supervisor basedinthe town,said: “The Caldmoreand Palfreyarea formspartofour regulartargeted patrols as part of Operation Guardian.Thiscomplements ourteamofneighbourhood officers whocarry outregular patrols in thoseareas

Anyone with information aboutthe shooting hasbeen urged to contact West Midlands Police viaLiveChatonits website or by calling 101, quoting crimenumber20/335424/24 or call Crimestoppersanonymously on 0800 555111

Theformer poultryfarmlandcould be used foranequestriancentre

Town streetstohost2024 versionofThe PassionPlay

Theroute hasbeenannouncedfor TheDudley PassionPlay2024, seeing dozens of actors take to the streetstotellthe storyofJesus Christ

Followingthe success of this processional piece of theatrethrough thestreets of Birmingham,Norwich andStafford, theSaltmine Theatre CompanyisbringingThe PassionPlaytoDudleylater this month

Theplayroute hasnow been released,withthe play starting at Duncan Edwards Memorialbeforevisiting anumberofnotable areas around thetown.

Starting at theDuncan EdwardsMemorial, the openingscene showsJe-

sus arriving in thetownon ‘PalmSunday’.Thenwith what will feel likeacarnival procession,the action will move throughthe marketplacetothe fountain TheLastSupperisenacted before Jesus’reflections andthe dark moment of his arrest takesplace under thetrees.The Trailwill be staged in frontofThe Old GlassHouse Cafe

Climax

Jesus will then carryhis crossontoCoronationGardens wherethe dramaofthe Crucifixion will be enacted The finalclimaxofthe Passion Play,the Resurrection, will be performedinsideof

Dudley College’sEvolve Theatre

KevinO’Keefe,chief executiveofDudleyCouncil, said: “The dedicatedstaff from Saltmine Theatre Company andour borough churches have putagreat deal of work into staginga distinctive and modern telling of theEaster story, held on thestreetsof Dudley town centre “I hope residents will enjoythese unique live performances.”

ThePassion Play will be performedonFridayApril 19 andSaturdayApril 20,with theprocession taking place between12.30pm and2pm

Moreinformation canbe foundonthe PassionPlay website.

DigitalretailshowishostedbyNEC

Online selling expertsfrom Ecommerce Intelligence will be at theUK’sleading digitalretailshow to provide insightonhow businesses canboost sales.

AteamfromEcommerce IntelligencewillbeatIRX &eDX (InternetRetail Expo &eDeliveryExpo) at theNEC in Birmingham on

22-23May.Aswellashostingastand at theevent, founderChris Turton will be taking part in around tablediscussion with expertsfromtop brands Ecommerce Intelligence recently launched acampaignhighlighting therisk to smallbusinessesofnot having an adequate pres-

City centre pubgoesupfor sale at more than £365,000

AWolverhamptonpub in a primecitycentre location whichboaststhree floors and an outdoorterrace hasbeen putonthe market formore than £365,000 TheDog andDoublet on NorthStreethas been put up forsalebyestateagents Savills.

Themid terraced building is located justastone’s throw away from QueenSquare andthe Mander Centre,a

popularspotfor shoppers in thecity.

It features asmall decked area at thebacksuitablefor 15 customers and first and second floorstaff accommodation

In thepropertylisting, Savillssaysbusinessatthe pub will be “unaffected”by thesale.

It addedthatthe site is let on a20-year leasetoBanus Blue Ltdwhich commenced

in November2022, with thecurrent rental priceat £28,000 peryear.

Freehold offers forthe pub areinvited in excess of £365,000

Thelisting states:“Our enquiriesofthe localauthorityhaverevealedthatthe property is notlisted andis within aconservationarea.”

Formoreinformation,visit search.savills.com/property-detail/gb0458s24313

ence on Amazon,attracting headlinesacrossthe UK.

Thetwo dayexpowill see retailers, brands,industry expertsand retail vendors from across theUKgather to hear from thought-leadersand discover newtechnology that canhelpsupport theirbusinessintothe future

TheDog andDoubletonNorth Street, Wolverhampton,has a£365,000 price guide

Regularsraise glasstothe county’s ‘poshest village’

Shenstoneisstill baskinginthe glow of being namedthe “poshestvillage in Staffordshire”

TheTelegraph list of topnotch villages did notinclude anyother Staffordshirevillage andShenstone villagersare raisingaglass to theunexpected accolade

Some villages arestrugglingtomaintain onelocal pub, however,Shenstone hasthree within thecentre of thevillage, acouple on theoutskirts

ThePloughatShenstone,The Railwayand TheFox areall staggering distance from one anotherand areall doinga brisk trade

AndstaggerfromThe Plough you might because it is oneofthe fewpubswhich sells CornishRattler ciderontap,priced £4.95for 6.1per cent strength cider.

Thepub hasareputationfor good food and Saturday nightservice is usually reservationsonly.

ManagerConnor Robertslovesworking at thepub andinthe villageofShenstone

He said:“Iwould not call ourcustomers posh,but then again, they arenever rude,and aredowntoearth andnice. We seethe same regulars overand over again, so we must be doingsomethingright.Wehavetooffer good food, arelaxed atmosphere,somewheretogo in thesun,and privatediningexperiences.”

Thevillage’s proximitytoraillinks to Birmingham andLondonwerelaudedbyThe Telegraphand Connor agreed patronsofthe pub caninclude London city types

He said:“People come from allover, butwe certainlysee ourfairshare of peopleonthe wayorcomingbackfromLondon.

“Wetry andmakeeveryone welcome,but I wouldnot want to workinany othervillage than Shenstone.”

Nearby,the decorinThe Plough, is mod-

ern. BruceSmith, 78,who livesinShenstone andenjoysvisitingthe pubwithhis wife,said: “The pub is likethe village, people arefriendly,there is no nastiness, andat my pointin lifethatiswhatyou want.”

Whereasthe foodies flocktoThe Plough, locals whojustwantapintand achatheadto TheFox andHounds.

A92-year-old regularof“TheFox”said: “I canwalkthere most days,and during theday time thereisalwayssomeone to chat too.

“Itisaniceand oldfashioned placetorelax andcatch up with people.”

Gardenstoget amakeover

Thegardensatthe Trentham Estate in Staffordshire aretoget arefresh

This year marksthe 20th anniversary of thereopening of thegardensfollowing huge regeneration by Birmingham-basedStModwen.

TheGardensRevisited Projectwill focusonthe Italiangarden androseborder developments with athreeyear phased programme, working with renowned garden designer TomStuart-Smithand world-famous rosegrowers DavidAustin Roses of Albrighton Aprogramme of events andactivitieswill also mark the20thanniversary

Anew Trentham visitor guideisbeing launched and therewill be an anniversary exhibition

TheGardens RevisitedProject will have an Italiantheme

Wettestwinterseesfestivalcancelled

Apopular GreenMan festivalhas been cancelledafter ‘thewettest winter fora verylongtime’.

Organisers of Clun Green Manfestivalhaveannounced that the2024event will not be goingahead following aparticularwet

winter.The festival wasset to take placeonMay Day Bank Holidayweekend,but organisers have said that thefestivalsitewould not recoverintime. Theevent, whichdraws hundreds to thetown, usuallymarks theend of winter in extrav-

agantstyle,withmorris dancing, folk musicand street theatre.Announcing thenewstheir website said: “The Clun valley is notoriousfor badwinters, and what we’vejustendured mightbethe wettestwe’ve hadfor averylongtime.”

ConnorRobertsloves working in thelocal

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Voluntarygroups preparingfor big

dayout to receive theirKing’s Awards

JAMESVUKMIROVIC

It will be aday to celebrate thebestofthe best volunteers across theregion andgive them their much-deservedawards.

Therewillbe10voluntary organisationsfromthe BlackCountry which will each gettheir moment in thespotlightonSundayatthe King’s Award forVoluntary Service(KAVS)award ceremony

Theaward ceremony will take place at Birmingham Hippodrome andsees the10organisations from Dudley, Sandwell,Walsall andWolverhamptonjoinother organisationsfromBirmingham andCoventryinreceiving theirawardsand certificates.

TheLord-Lieutenantfor theWest Midlands,Sir JohnCrabtreeOBE, alongwithlocal mayors anddignitariesfromthe West Midlands,will be theretopresent theaward andcertificatetoeachgroup andhighlightthe supporttheyprovide to communities acrossthe region

Parent &Carer SupportGroup,WolverhamptonAlz Café,WolverhamptonSamaritansand Wolverhampton WrestlingClubfromWolverhampton will be in attendance,aswillCresswell Wanderersand MidlandFreewheelers –Blood BikesfromWalsall, Cape CommunityCareDay Centre, NewBeginningsCommunity andStudentVoice from Sandwelland ChampionsCommunity TrustfromDudley.

TheLord-Lieutenantfor theWest Midlands,Sir JohnCrabtreeOBE, said he wasdelightedwiththe wide rangeofsupport andthatsomany people volunteering in groups were beingrecognisedwitha KAVS

He said:“It is terrifictodiscover

how many groups in this region go beyond what’s expected to provideso much help to others

“The organisationsthisyearhave excelled in offering servicestoothers that simply wouldnot existifitweren’t forthe volunteers whoare passionateabout making adifferenceto so many lives.

“There isatremendousamountof kindness andcaringfor vulnerable people,whether it be forthose with mental health issues,manydealing with grieforinneedincrisissituationsorjustsimplywanting to be with people to connectover acoffee.

“Quite anumberofthe volunteers have benefited from help in thepast andnow want to help others in the same waytheywerehelped, whichis wonderful.

“I look forwardtomeetingeachone when we holdour celebrationeventat theHippodrome.”

Midland Freewheelersmakesurebloodgetsdelivered to those whoneed it

Wolverhampton Wrestling Club has trainedhundreds of people

Vehicleban forpavingwork

Drivers not making business deliveries will be banned from entering a Wolverhamptoncitycentrestreettomakeway forapavingimprovement scheme.

Themove hassofar notimpressedshoppersaspavingstones in Dudley Street arecurrently beingreplaced at acostof£850,000

As theproject progresses in the shoppingzonevehiclesare prohibited from “travelling alongDudley Street betweenits junction with QueenStreetand BilstonStreet” with immediate effect untilJune 28

Thepedestrianisedroadwhich leadstothe Mander andWulfrun centreswas last re-paved 16-yearsagoaspartofa£4million scheme to regenerate thecitycentre.A further £900,000 wasspent tidyingthe slabs in 2017

Anew WolverhamptonCouncil noticestated: “The ordermay operatefor amaximum period of 18 months, butitisanticipated that theworks will be undertaken from April3until June 28

“The order is required to facil-

itatemaintenance carriageway re-paving.”

WolverhamptonCouncil said the latest improvements were essential to improve thepublicspace forbusinesses, residents andvisitors.The latest diggingworkstarted last month. Numerous Express&Star readershavegiventheir responses to theproject so far.

Smgposted:“Totalwaste of moneyand an inconveniencewhen you’reshopping. Councils aregood at wastingmoney,likethe fountain in Dudley Street, it serves no purpose andthere’s alovely fountain acrossthe road in St Peter’sGarden.”

Joe2027posted:“People don’tgo to cityand town centrestolookat thepaving. If Wolverhamptonor anycityortowncentre hasavery good choice of shops, then people will flockin. Thecouncil almost finished offall thebusinesses along Victoria Streetand Worcester Streetwiththeir pedestrianisation, nowit’sthe turn of thebusinesses in Dudley Street.”

IN BRIEF444

Motorists in Halesowenare facing trafficdiversionsfor gas pipe replacementworks with thetemporary closureofaroad near thetowncentre

Asection of BloomfieldStreet Northtothe junction of AttwoodStreetwill be shut from todayuntil approximatelyApril 15 duetosafetyoperationsrelating to thegas installation

Fordetails call 01384815453.

Developers of aretirementvillage beingbuilt in Aldridge have lodgedplans to addbalconies.

ApplicantChurchill Retirement is alreadybuilding dozens of flatsonlandoff thegreen and wantstovarythe plans by removing secondarywindows.

To comment,write to head of planning andbuildingcontrol, CivicCentre,DarwallStreet, Walsall, before April18.

DriversinCannock will have to use diversion routes as roadworks continue on theRingway

Thereisnoaccess from Beecroft Road andParkRoadto Ringwayfromtoday forabout threeweeks formaintenance andresurfacing.Staffordshire County Councilsaiditshould be completed by April24. Works also startinChurchLane, in Hatherton, on Thursday

50 MILES

Paving work is underway in Dudley Street with vehicleaccess banned

217: Romanemperor Caracalla (Marcus AureliusAntoninus) was assassinated

1838: Brunel’s 236ftsteamship GreatWesternleftBristol forNew York on hermaiden voyage

1904: Britain andFrancesigneda mutual recognition of each other’s colonial interests.

1908: Liberal HerbertHenry AsquithbecamePrime Minister

1925: TheAustraliangovernment andthe BritishColonial Office offered low-interest loanstoenable Britonstoemigrate to Australia.

1950: Russiandancer Vaslav Nijinskydied in London.

1967: Bare-footSandieShawwon theEurovision Song Contestfor the UK with Puppet On AString

1973: Death of Pablo Picasso, Spanish painterand sculptor who pioneeredCubism,aged 91

1986: ClintEastwood waselected MayorofCarmelinCalifornia.

2005: Morethanfourmillion people attendedthe funeral of Pope John Paul II

2013: Former Prime Minister Baroness Margaret Thatcher died at theage of 87 following astroke.

ON THIS DAYLASTYEAR: A grandfather whothought he was thevictimofa scamafter being toldhewas receiving aBritish Empire Medal (BEM)saidhefelt “privileged” afterbeing invitedto theKing’s coronation

BIRTHDAYS: SteveHowe, rock guitarist,77; JoeRoyle,football manager,75(Pictured);Julian Lennon,musician, 61;Alec Stewart, former cricketer, 61; Mark Blundell,formerracing driver turned commentator, 58;Robin WrightPenn,actress,58; Patricia Arquette, actress,56.

Cushty creationofDel Boy’sPeckham flat

AjoinerfromNorthumberlandhas recreated aminiversion of DelBoy Trotter’s flat from Only Foolsand Horses,completewithhis “weird” bedand thedrinks barwhich is synonymous with theshow KevinJones,38, wholivesin

Cramlington, Northumberland, took roughlya month to make his take on DelBoy’s Peckham flat at NelsonMandela House, wherehe livedwithhis partnerRaquelTurner andtheir sonDamienTrotter, hisbrother Rodney Trotter, their grandfatherand uncleAlbert.

In January, he went viralfor “re-

living”all 64 episodes of theshow through hisuniquetakeonPeckham–where thesitcomwas situated –completewiththe Nag’sHead pub,Sotheby’s andDel Boy’sthreewheeledReliant Regal.

Hislatestproject also includes a referencetoevery episodeand featuresshownodshewas unableto fit in to his firstminimasterpiece

This includes blow-updolls to pay homagetoascene in OnlyFools and

Horses episodeDangerUXD,where inflatable blow-updolls explode, andJolly Boyposters, whichreferences hisfavourite episode– The Jolly Boys’Outing.

Otheritems whichmakeanappearance in thesuperfan’smodel include“theweird bedwithcar stereos on thebedsidetable”and the barwhich hasdrinks on it in the sittingroom.

“The greenkitchen unit is also in it andI’vetried to getthatasclose as Ican to what you seeonscreen,” he said.Heevenmadesuretotry andget theexact red, floral carpet

Rentscouldrise by 13 percentin threeyears and outpace earnings

Rentsacrossthe UK couldcontinue to rise strongly andoutpace earninggrowthover theyears ahead, accordingtoa thinktank.

Averagerents couldrise by 13 per cent over thenextthree years, the Resolution Foundation predicts

Thetypical cost of new tenancies hasalready grownby18per cent sinceJanuary 2022,withprivate rentingno longer beingthe preserveofpeopleaged intheir 20s, accordingtothe Foundation,which is focusedonimproving the living standardsfor thoseonlow to middleincomes. It said abounce-back from thecoronavirus pandemic, during whichevictions andrepossessions were halted,and recent wage growth have helped rental prices to surge.

Some of therecentsurge in rental prices is apost-pandemic “correction”, theFoundationargued.

This post-pandemic catch-up hasbeencompoundedbyearnings growth, with averageearningsrisingby13per cent sincethe start of 2022.Whilethe catch-up is now complete andpay growth is cooling, it couldtakeyears forthe burstof growth alreadyseentomakeits waythrough thewhole privaterental sector,the Foundation cautioned.

It said:“Newrenters will pay these newhigherrents, whileexisting tenantsreachingthe end of atenancy or forced to accept within-tenancy pricerises will in future face largerenthikes.” If it is assumedaveragerents paid will return to pre-pandemic levels comparedtoearningsin threeyears’ time, rentswould typically seemore than 13 percentprice growth

Five million call111 helpline foremergency dental care

Almost five million people have called the NHS’s111 helpline with dental problemsoverthe last five years, ministers have revealed.

Acrossthe UK,peopleare strugglingtoaccess NHSdentalcare, either having to turntoprivate dentists or,inrarecases,carry out theirown treatment

Data acquired from theGovernment by theLabourPartyhas revealed about965,050 people were referred fortreatment as aresult of calling theNHS non-emergency line in thelastyearalone

Pandemic

The figuresappeartoshow that demand fordentalcarevia 111increasedduringthe pandemic,and hasstill notreturnedtonormallevelsinthe yearssince

Nearly 740,000 people were tri-

DAVIDLYNCH PoliticalCorrespondent

aged in theyear2019-20,risingto 1,096,041inthe followingyearat theheightofthe pandemic

Atotal of 4,780,044peoplehave been referred fordentaltreatment aftercalling thelinetocomplainof dental problems since2019.

TheNHS recommends thosein need of urgent or emergencydental treatment,who arenot registered with adentist,orwho have been unabletodoso, should call 111 for help

WesStreeting,the shadow health secretary, said:“Thesky-rocketing number of 111 callsshowsthe Tories’destruction on NHSdentistry is putting therestofthe NHSunder greaterpressure.

“After14years of Tory neglect, patients aredesperately queuing around theblock to seeadentist, literallypulling theirown teeth out, andtooth decayisthe number one

reason young children areadmitted to hospital.It’stimefor achange.

“Labourhas aplantorescue NHSdentistry,and reform it forthe long run.

“Wewill fund 700,000 extra urgent appointments ayear; deliver atargetedrecruitment scheme for dentistsinleft-behind areas; and we will getstraight to workonreformingthe outdatedNHS dental contract.”

Urgent

Health minister Dame Andrea Leadsominsisted that theGovernment’s planstoreformdentalcare wouldhelpmorepeopleaccess NHS dentalcare.

Shewas answeringaseparate question from Labour,which asked foran estimate of how many urgent andemergency dental appointmentswill be delivered as aresult of theGovernment’sdentistry recovery plan

Dame Andrea said:“Ourdentist-

ry recoveryplan, backed by £200 million of funding, will make dental services faster,simpler,and fairer forNationalHealthService dental patients

“Itwill fund approximately2.5 million additional appointments, or more than1.5 million additional courses of dental treatment.”

However,the minister admitted “noestimates arecurrently available of thenumberofurgentand emergencydentalappointments that will be delivered through the plan”.

l TheNHS infomation website says you can find adentalsurgery that’s convenient foryou,whether it’s near yourhome or work, and phonethemtosee if thereare any NHSappointmentsavailable

Dental surgerieswill notalways have thecapacitytotakeonnew NHSpatients.

in aminiversionofDel BoyTrotter’s flat from Only Foolsand Horses

DANIELLE DESOUZA PressAssociation

UK wouldnot supply arms to Israel in eventoflaw breach

TheUKwould stop arms salestoIsraelifitwas foundtobeinbreachof internationallaw,Oliver Dowdenhas suggested.

TheDeputyPrime Minister said theUKwould not “supplythose arms”ifitwas unable to legallydo so.Itcomesamidmountingpressure on ministerstorevealwhat legaladvicetheyhavereceivedon continuing arms exportstoIsrael.

Theissue hasgainedtractionin recent days amid thepolitical falloutfollowing thekillingsofthree Britishaid workers by theIsrael DefenceForces(IDF),anattackit admitted wasa“gravemistake”.

Theredoeshowever appear to be adividewithinGovernmentover thestrengthofapproachtowards

Israel

ForeignSecretaryLordCameron haswarnedthatBritain’s support forIsrael is not unconditional, amid continuing concerns over itsGaza

JORDAN REYNOLDS PressAssociation

campaign.But Mr Dowdensuggested Israel is held to ahigher standardthanother countries, andsome of itscritics relish pushingacase againstthe Middle Easternnation.

TheDeputyPrime Minister was askedbythe BBC’sSundayWith LauraKuenssbergifthe Government wouldstoparmssales if it received legaladvicethatIsraelwas in breach of internationalhumanitarian law.

He replied: “Ifitisthe case that we can’tlawfully, in accordance with theAct do so,ofcoursewe won’tsupplythose arms, butthatis precisely theposition, forexample, even in respectofthe United States or anyother countryaroundthe world

“Werightly hold ourselves to ahighstandard, andweholdthe countriestowhom we export arms to ahigh standard,and Ithink that

is what you wouldexpect. Andit contrastssostrongly,our adherence to very high values,withthe appalling atrocities that have been committed by terroristorganisationsagainst Israel.”

Mr Dowdenwould not reveal detailsofwhatlegal counselLord Cameronhas received on thematter, butsaidthe Government receives periodic advice updates.

Business SecretaryKemiBadenochmakes the finaldecision on arms export licences,based on advice from theForeign Secretary.

Mr Dowdeninsisted theUKhas not given theIDF “carte blanche” andhas held robust conversations with Israel’sleaders followingthe killingsofBritish aidworkers John Chapman, 57,James “Jim”Henderson, 33, andJames Kirby,47on April1

On whetherthe UK should continuetosupplyarms, theCabinetministertoldSky News:“The manner in whichsome people are

seizingonthisissue andtryingto holdIsrael to incrediblyhighstandards of course it is rightthatwe holdIsrael to high standards, but Ijustthink thereisabit of relish from some people aboutthe wayin whichtheyare pushingthiscase againstIsrael.”

Mr Dowdensaidhewould not go so farastosuggest this is codedanti-semitism, butsaidpeopleneedto remember the“trauma”Israelisare suffering

This stands in contrast with Lord Cameron, whosaidthere is“no doubt wherethe blamelies” forthe attacks, adding in aSundayTimes article: “Thismustnever happen again.”

Shadow foreignsecretaryDavid LammytoldSky News he has“seriousconcernsabout abreachin internationalhumanitarianlaw” by Israel

TheTottenham Labour MP urged Lord Camerontorevealwhat legaladvicehehas received

MammaMia!Waterloo winwas five decadesago

LAURAHARDING

Entertainment Correspondent

Abba star BjornUlvaeus reflected on theband’sEurovisionwin 50 yearsago as thestage show Mamma Miacelebrated25years in the West End.

TheSwedish band triumphed with theirsongWaterlooin Brighton on April61974and themusical show featuringtheir best loved songspremiered in London on the same dayin1999.

Taking to thestage afteracelebratoryperformance of theshow at theNovello Theatre,where much of theoriginalcastwas in theaudience,Ulvaeus said:“Aboutthis time in theevening,exactly 50 yearsago Iwas standing on another stageherein theUK.

“Itwas thesecondtimeIentered that stagethatnight becauseme andmy threebandmates hadbeen called back to performour song a second time becausethe juries of theEurovision finalhad delivered theirverdicts–nil points from the UK. Butdespite that,wewon and by andthe thinnestmargininthe historyofEurovision. Ithink that record (would)still stand.

“Soona nightlikethis, it’s strangetothink that if we hadn’t won–whathappenstothose who come number four,numberthree at Eurovision –they’renever heardof afterthat. If we hadn’t won, Imost probably wouldn’t be standing here today.

“And this wonderfuladventure, whichwecallMamma Mia, would nothavehappenedand Iwouldn’t have metwithall these wonderfulpeoplethatI’veworkedwith through theyears andthatwould have been so sad.SoI’vegot alot to thankWaterloofor.” He wasmet by laughter andapplause as he added:

“Buthereinthisroom, Ican admit that when Irelax at home andput on some music, it’s notWaterloo.”

He continued: “Somehow Abba hasmanaged to touchsomany millions of livesaroundthe world, generation aftergeneration. And people askme‘how does it feel for you to know that?’ andthat’sa very that question andveryhard to answer.It’sa very, very elusive feeling. Andit’smoretodowith

gratitudeand with humility than apride.Because it humblesyou to know that so many peoplehavelistenedtosomethingyou’vecreated, andthatthey’ve been made happy by it or sad, andthatithas meant so much forthemintheir lives.

“And it’s very, very difficult to fullyemotionally graspthat, at leastfor me.” He also expressed “gratitude forthe sheerexistence of musicbecause of what kind of

Signal issueat EV charge points

Electric vehicledriverscould struggletouse around two-thirds of Britain’smostcommontypeofpublic chargepointbecause of patchy mobile signals, accordingtoa report

TheRAC Foundation warned the issuerisks“undermining” confidencein EV infrastructure

Thestudy foundthat66per cent of Type-2chargers–which have speedsofupto8kw –inBritain excludingLondonare in areaswhere at leastone mobile networkprovider does nothaveusable4Gcoverage.

ThevastmajorityofType-2publicchargersrequiredrivers to access them viamobilephoneapps, andthe chargers themselves need an adequate mobile connection to function.Unlessall four of Britain’s mobile networkproviders –EE, O2,Three andVodafone–provide adequate coverageatacharger’s location,there is ariskadriver will be unabletorechargetheir EV,the report warned

Designercards forGreenpeace

Playingcards designed by the late Dame Vivienne Westwood to raise awarenessabout environmentaland politicalissues aretogoupfor sale to raise fundsfor Greenpeace

Before herdeath in December 2022,the pioneering fashion designer andactivistconceived theideawhich takes10ofher digitalgraphicswhich highlight messages closetoher heartand sees them printed on large-scale autographedcards

Theselimited-edition playingcards will now go underthe hammer with theauction house Christie’s, whoannouncedthe posthumousproject on what wouldhavebeenDameVivienne’s 83rd birthday.The first portfolio, in alinen-covered, hand-embroidered box, will go to auctiononJune25withan estimate of £30,000 to £50,000

Sexual advances findings in NHS

NHSstaff includingambulance workers,porters, nurses andcleanershavebeenshownpornographic images,offered moneyfor sex, and assaultedat work, accordingtonew research

TheUnisonunion said it is shockedbythe findings of a wide-ranging survey whichrevealed widespread incidents of sexualharassment.

aworld we have withoutit”.Referringtothe band’s selloutshow Abba Voyage,heconcluded:“I mightnot be here forthe next big anniversary, butmyavatarwill.”

Themusical,which features the songswritten by performedbyUlvaeusand BennyAndersson and performedwithAgnetha Faltskog andAnni-Frid Lyngstad,isonly thethird in thehistory of theWest Endtocelebrate 25 years.

Thestudy of more than12,200 health workers, published on the firstday ofUnison’sannualhealth conference in Brighton, showed one in 10 reported unwanted incidents includingbeing touchedorkissed, demandsfor sexin return forfavours, andderogatorycomments. Sexual assaultwas reported by almost athirdofrespondents, while half said they have been leered at or been thetargetofsuggestive gestures. Oneinfoursaidtheyhave suffered unwelcome sexual advances or demands forsexualfavours

Bjorn Ulvaeus,centre,onstage at TheNovello TheatreinLondonfollowing aperformanceofMamma Mia

WOLVES FOUNDATION

Former Wolves promotion-winningcaptain Karl Henryhas passed on his experience andexpertise to agroup of students in theWolvesFoundation’s Football EducationCollege Academy.

Henry, oneofthe team of foundation ambassadors, made anothervisit to theCityofWolverhampton Collegecampus on WellingtonRoadtolead acoachingsession andchat abouthis career

In termsofthe football,Henry ledthe grouponthe philosophy he is followingatgrass rootslevel with Boldmere St Michaels –focusingonpossession-basedtactics,building out from thebackand progressing up thepitch.

“Itisalwaysapleasureto go alongand coachthe Wolves Foundation students,”said Henry. “Itisa really good groupwho arekeentolisten andkeentolearn.Asacoach, that is allyou canask for, and theplayers beingsofocused makesthe session awhole lot moreconstructive.”

Students on thefoundation’s

BTEC Sport programmerun in partnershipwiththe City of WolverhamptonCollege learn about anatomyand physiology,sportscoaching,sportsscience andperformance analysis, equippingthemwithrelevant andvital industry knowledge to help towardsafuturecareer.

They canstudy foreithera BTEC Level 2ExtendedCertificate or aLevel 3National Foundation Diploma.

Students arealsooffered regularenrichmentopportunities unique to thecourse includingvisitstoMolineuxand theCompton Park training ground,and thesortofcoachingexperiences enjoyed recently with Henry.

Indeed,onlyrecently, agroup of students joined forces with Wolves Academyscholarsfor amemorable trip to Spainas the finalpartofacollaborative projectfor theTuringScheme, whichfocuses on developinglife skillsand cultural awareness.

Formoredetails about theBTECProgramme,contact BradleyMoore@wolves. co.uk

Benign brockor TB-spreading countrypest?

Warofwords as Governmentsanctionsanincreased badger cull andconservationistswarnofanearpopulation wipe-out

Inaviolent, dangerous world, the news hasbecome amerefootnote formedia outlets swampedby terrible tales of human slaughter, starvation andbrewingconflict.

It is astory deemed tooinsignificant to make the10 o’clocknews. Yet, forthe West Midlands,itissignificant

Forloversofnature, it is considered ahammerblow.

This month, ourGovernment dramatically shifted itsstanceon culling badgers to combat bovine TB, adiseasethathas blighted Britishcattleherds

Despite a2021pledge to phase outthe slaughterand phaseinthe vaccination of badgers, oftenreferred to by theold Englishwordof brock, andcattle, thecull couldcontinue– andcontinuewithavigour notknown sincethe scheme was introduced 11 yearsago.The intro-

ductionoftargetculling,or, to use itsscientificname, “epidemiological culling”, in hotspots will seethe resident badgerpopulations near wipedout.Until now, the figure was capped at 70 percent.

Andthere’s no enddate. Culls will continue untilthe diseaseis considered undercontrol, then replaced by vaccinationprogrammes.

Farfromfalling silent,insome areasthe guns will ring outlouder than ever.The cull,onceconsidered yesterday’snews, isverymuchtoday’snews.

It is bador, if youare acattle farmer,good news forour region.A mapincludedinthe Department for Environment, Food andRural Affairs’ consultation document identifies theWestMidlands, Staffordshireand Shropshireashighrisk bovine TB areas.

Thecontroversial cull hasalreadytaken aheavy toll on brocks, though figuressince 2013 vary betweenpro andantilobbies.The

BadgerTrust say260,000 have been killed –halfthiscountry’s population.Shropshirehas been hit particularly hard,with4,000 shot everyyearfrom2020to2022.

Sincethe cull began, around 14,000 badgers have been wiped outinStaffordshire, calculates the StaffordshireWildlifeTrust

In all, thereare around 70 death zonesinthe West Midlands

My area –arural haven straddling theShropshireand South Staffordshireborder –has,inthe past,beentargeted.

It is governmentsanctionedwildlife eradicationona colossal scale, dubbed a“catastrophe” by Badger Trustexecutive director Peter Hambly

“The badgercull is themosttoxic wildlifemanagementstrategy in Britain’scontemporaryhistory,” said Mr Hambly.“The firstthing thisyear’snew badgercubswill see when they come outoftheir settis agun.”

Emotivewords,but is such aradical step needed to save England’s herdsfromthe agoniesofTB?

Moreimportantly,has it worked?

It appearsadefinitive answer remainselusive,despite badgercarcasses stillbeing piledhigh

Thoseopposed to thecullsay thereisnot ajot of scientificevidencetosupport it.Itis, they stress, ineffectivebecause bovineTBdoes what it says on thetin.Itis, primarily, transmitted by cattletoother cattle.

Badgersare merely bit part players, responsiblefor less than sixper cent of infections.

Andtheyhaveaccused Prime Minister RishiSunakofpampering farmersinabid to secure votes

Defraprovide statistics to support theirstance–and thosestatistics arecompelling.Inits March14consultationdocumentabout thelatest phase, thedepartmentstates: “The government’sstrategy to eradicate bovine TB in cattle by 2038 hasfollowedthe science to turnthe tide on this insidiousdisease.”

It is, Defradeclares, awar being won.

Thenumberofnew bovine TB cases during a12month period from September,2022, wasat a20 year low.The first52zones to feel thecull’sfullforce have seen a56

percentreduction in thedisease. Butthere is stillworktobedone, Defrastressed. In 2022 alone, 22,084 infected cattlehad to be put down

This month, EnvironmentSecretary SteveBarclay voiced hisloud supportfor thecontinued killing: “BovineTBhas takenaterrible toll on farmers, leadingtothe loss of highly prized animalsand,inthe worst cases,valuedherds

“There arenoeasyanswers in thebattleagainst TB, butbadger culling hasprovedhighlyeffective andneedstoremainakey part of ourapproach.”

Cullingistoo easy an answer, criticsmaintain. It’s notevenan answer anditcomeswithahefty financialburden.Inthe first10 years, theinitiative cost £58.8m. Thedisease, itself,costs thetaxpayer around £100 million perannum

Thegovernment’sU-turnonthis countryside hotpotatohas stunned conservationists. Thepolitical landscapehas evidentlychanged dramaticallyand,withaGeneral Election looming, some saythe move has been made to secure ruralvotes

Back in 2021,thenEnvironment SecretaryGeorgeEustice unveiled planstostopissuing newculllicences,telling theHouse of Commons:“Cullingbadgers indefinitely is notacceptable.” 2026 wasthe proposed date fortotal closure on thekillings.

Forwhatever reason,eradicatingbadgers appearsalittlemore

Protesters againstbadgerculling gatherata‘WelcometoShropshire’sign

Karl Henrycoachingstudents

PLAYER RATINGS

JOSE SA

Thegoalkeeper will have prepared for the threat of Ward-Prowse and, although it wasasomewhatfreakish goal,Sahas to do better andbe morecommanding in hisarea.

Weak 5

NELSONSEMEDO

Aside fromone sillymoment in the first half,Semedo had asolid enough game

Solid 6

SANTI BUENO

Thedefender hadsomegood timesin possession, butstill needs to do more work on hispositioning

Average. .6

MAXKILMAN

Thedefender wasonfor ahigherrating andshouldhavehad an equaliser, buthe is marked downslightlyfor giving away thepenalty.Hecannothave hisarm outstretched likethat.

Naive.....................................................5

TOTI GOMES

One of theplayers that makes Wolves tick,Totiwas involvedinseveralgood moments,and then playeda bad part in West Ham’spenalty

Mistake .6

MATT DOHERTY

Doherty had averygood firsthalfbut hislevel droppedinthe second half He playedanevenbigger part in West Ham’spenalty with asilly pass that caught Toti out.

Errors .5

MARIO LEMINA

Similartohis team-mates –agood first half andpoorer second.Leminawas absolutely shattered

Tired. .6

JOAO GOMES

Ahard-working performance, butGomes lost hisway when it becamehectic. He needed to getafootonthe ball andcalm it down

Erratic. 6

RAYANAIT-NOURI

It wasunfortunate he came offwitha knock, considering howwellhewas playing.The best playeron thepitch for the first45.

Star. 7

PABLOSARABIA

He mayhave scoreda good penalty, but Sarabia’s overall play wasquite poor.He wasnot involved very often.

Quiet 6

TOMMYDOYLE

Outonthe left flank, Doyledid really well in the firsthalfand he stayedconsistent Agood displayfromthe midfielder Impressive. 7

SUBSTITUTES

Matheus Cunha (forAit-Nouri,55) 5; Boubacar Traore (for M.Lemina,75) 5; Leon Chiwome (for Sarabia, 75) 5; Hugo Bueno (forDoherty, 87); Tawanda Chirewa (forDoyle,87) Subs notused: Bentley, Dawson,NLemina, Fraser

It’s clearand obvious– that decision wasbeyonda joke

WOLVES.......1 WEST HAM...2

When thefull-time whistleblewonSaturday, Molineux eruptedwitha chorus of loud boos.

Thefansweredirecting their angeratthe officials, with many supportersmakingtheir voices heard.

Some supporters were attemptingtoinfiltrate thepress boxtoask journalistsfor theiropinions, or to demand they question thepowers that be,whileothersweregatheringinthe standnearthe tunnel to expresstheir frustrationatreferee Tony Harrington andhis team.

It is, perhaps, themostangry Molineux hasbeenfor some time andthe hard-working fans that pay good money to watch Wolves have everyrighttobeupset.

In the99thminute, MaxKilman brokefreeinthe boxfromfouror five yardsand headed home Joao Gomes’scornertorescue apoint It wasasimple, buteffective goal that wouldhaveearnedWolvesa fair pointonthe balanceofthe 90 minutes

TheWestHam players, including LukaszFabianski,did notappeal thegoaland Molineux wasjubilant.

Momentslater,thatjoy turned into disbeliefwhenVAR began checking thegoaland thegamewas halted

Harrington wastheninstructed to view thepitch side monitor, with Wolves’bench furious, and thegoalwas disallowed foroffside as TawandaChirewawas allegedly impeding thegoalkeeper.

However,hewas notstoppingFabianskifrommovingand thegoalkeeper couldsee theball, meaning on thefaceofitthere is no logical reason forthe goal to be chalkedoff

To go from therightdecision beingmadeinrealtimetothe wrong decision beingmadeafterseveral minutes of discussion,isinexplicable.

Wolves have been on thewrong endofseveral bigVAR errors this season andwill feel aggrievedagain at anotherfarcicaldecision

Decisionslikethese come from peoplewho do not understand elite football.Theyare underminingthe integrityofthe game

Wolves’goalkeeping coachNeil Cutler tweeted afterthe game,saying: “Another horrificdecision!Not just thedecision butthe arrogance afteritisshocking!”

Thelatterpartofthatstatement is themostinteresting,as therelationship betweenfansand clubs with theofficials is at an all-time low.

It is certainlynot an easy joband occasionally they areunfairlytargeted,but momentslikethistarnish theirreputation.

Thesolutiontoimproving refer-

RayanAit-Nourishoots goesfor goalduringanimpressive first-half display

ees, in thelongterm, is to encouragepeopletotakeitup at agrassrootslevel

Butthe relationship with officials is nowsotoxic that it must be an unappealing jobtoanyone.

It hasreached this lowpoint due to so many high-profile errors anda lack of accountability.Inany other profession,big mistakes arepunished, yetrefereesare protected by asystemthatisnot puttingfootball first.

To putitsimply, VARiskilling football.Wolvesfansregularly chant‘boring’everytimeaVAR checktakes place, regardless of whetheritwill go in theirfavouror not Fans of otherclubs,who have also been harshlytreated by VAR, also hate it

Thegoverning bodieshaveto raise thestandards soon.

Putting referees to oneside, Wolves also have themselves to blamefor apoorsecond-half performance. With amakeshiftfront threeand theoddsagainst them,Wolveswere brilliantin theopening 45.

Asidefromone NelsonSemedo errorthatshouldhaveresulted in aHammers goal,Wolvescompletely dominatedthe game andlookedafterpossession really well

PabloSarabia dispatched apenalty andtheytookadeserved1-0 lead into thebreak

West Hammadesomeattacking changes forthe second half andas they uppedthe intensity, Wolves wilted They fell deeper into theirshape, satbackand invitedpressure.

Theerrorsleading up to theWest Hampenalty were laughableand thewinning goal from JamesWard-

Prowse wasfreakish, although Jose Sa couldalso have commanded his area better

Wolves had gone from three points to no points duetotwo very avoidablegoals that will frustrate theteam.

Theshining light, as he hasbeen thecaseinrecentweeks,was Rayan Ait-Nouri.

This time playingonthe right wing,heleftMolineuxisawe with hisquick feet andhewas aconstant threat

Wolves took aprecautionbytakinghim offwhentheydid,but if he is injured, it will be anotherbig blow in astringofunlucky injuries

With NottinghamForestnextup, Wolves areinmust-winterritory if they want to keep theirslimEuropean chancesalive They must now avoidletting the season fizzle out.

JoseSadeniesMohammedKudus

MaxKilman heads home what Wolves thoughtwas alateequaliser,onlyfor theefforttobecontroversially ruledout

Salahrescues point, butReds trailtop Guns

MAN UNITED..................... 2 LIVERPOOL....................... 2

Liverpoolmanager Jurgen Klopp sawManchesterUnitedthrow a spanner in theworks of theirbid to equaltheir arch-rivals’ record of 20 league titles,but he does notexpectErikten Hag’ssideto do them anyfavours when Arsenalcome calling

Kloppsaidhewas “absolutely fine”withtheir situationafter twodropped points in thetitleraceafterthe 2-2drawkept Arsenaltop of thetable on goal difference

TheGunnersare dueat Old Trafford on thepenultimate weekendofthe season,but the Liverpoolbossdoesnot hold out much hope of ahelping hand.

“Probablyifweare still around then it wouldbegreat butArsenal is agood football teamand if they (United) play liketheydid todayArsenalwill winthatgame, I’m100 percent sure,”saidKlopp,whose side took just twopointsoff United this season.

“I’m really sorrytosay it,but we should have wonbothgames anddidn’t. That’s ourfault.”

MohamedSalah rescueda pointwithan84th-minutepen-

alty afterthe visitors failed to capitalise on their first-half dominancewhich broughtonly Luis Diaz’s opener

Amistake by young centre-back Jarell Quansahallowed BrunoFernandes to equalise with alob over goalkeeper CaoimhinKelleherfromthe centre-circlebeforeKobbieMainoo putthe homesideahead

Laterin theevening, Tottenham movedbackintothe top four with a3-1 victoryover NottinghamForest

Forest defender Murillodiverted Timo Werner’s crossintohis ownnet,but ChrisWood levelled 12 minutes later. ButMicky van de Venand PedroPorro sealed thepointsfor Spurs.

OliMcBurniegrabbedastoppage-timeequaliserasstruggling SheffieldUnited twice came from behind to snatch a pointina2-2 draw with Chelsea.ThiagoSilva’s opener was cancelledout by JaydenBogle’s equaliser, butitlookedlikethe Blueswould come away with maximumpointswhenNoniMaduekeput them 2-1up, only for McBurnie to levelatthe death.

Matt Doherty’s progress is halted by achallenge from EdsonAlvarez Matheus Cunha battles for theballwith West Ham’s JamesWard-Prowse

Mo Salah levels for Liverpool

Pablo Sarabia fireshomefromthe penaltyspottogiveWolvesathe lead

Wolves’man-of-the-momentRayan Ait-NouriisfouledbyEmerson Palmieri, which resultedinapenalty that wasconverted by Pablo Sarabia

ALEX PALMER

Madesomekey saves. He twicedenied thehome side in the firsthalfbefore keepingout the spot-kick, buthehad no chance with therebound

Bigsaves 8

DARNELLFURLONG

Good andconsistent formfromthe full-back. In the firsthalfdid getcaught outof position andleaving spacebut withoutbeing punished

Mr Consistent 7

CONOR TOWNSEND

Waspoor in the firstand gifted Stokea massivechance. Better in thesecond half,but didn’tget forward as much as he usuallylikes to

Improved 6

CEDRIC KIPRE

Back in andlookeda bitrusty,but showed good signs. Playedafew handy ballsforward that almost caught Stoke out.

Grew intoit. .6

KYLE BARTLEY

Did OK,steadyenough. Couldhave maybebeenmorecommanding in the lead up to thepenalty,whenM’Vilahad a rush of blood andtookout Campbell

Solid 6

OKAY YOKUSLU

TheTurkisusuallydominant, butagain he looked leggyand ineffective. He did winafew duelsinthe middle, butit wasn’t near what we expect fromhim

Belowpar .6

ALEX MOWATT

Neat andtidy, theusualfromMowatt. Helped to mopthingsupinsomesticky situations forAlbion

Solid 7

MIKEY JOHNSTON

Looked sharpbeforehis goal.Linkedup well with Diangana andtookhis strike well

Fine strike 7

GRADYDIANGANA

Deservedhis recall afterMondayand took hischance. Themostcreative Albion man– strong,alwayslooking to play andhad ahandinbothgoals Impressive. 8

JED WALLACE

Better fromWallace,whose formhas been questioned in recent weeks. Showedgood instincttoget in theright place for thesecond Backonsong .7

BRANDONTHOMAS-ASANTE

Hadtwo firsthalf-chancesand could have done better with thesecond one Playeda big hand in thesecond goal Mixedbag .6

SUBSTITUTES

Yann M’Vila(forYokuslu,70) 4; Adam Reach (for Johnston, 70) 5; Matt Phillips (for, Wallace 80); TomFellows (forThomas-Asante, 87); Andi Weimann (forMowatt, 87). Subs notused: Griffiths, Chalobah, Ajayi, Swift.

Baggiesare stuttering but in controloftheir destiny

It is hard to claimthata team that hassuffered just onedefeatintheir last 13 gamesissufferingabit of astutter.

In fact,CarlosCorberan’s side stretchedtheir unbeaten runto nine gameswiththeir 2-2drawat StokeCity.

Butthe fact that they blew atwogoal lead at theBet365 Stadiumand thefactitisthe thirddrawineight days,and theirthirdunder-par display,showsAlbionare sufferinga bitofastutter

In thePotteries,itwas on the cardstobeabit of asmash-andgrab daywhentheywenttwo up When Stokegot back into it you couldalmostadmitthattheydeserved it –and they diddeserve a leveller

Butthe manner of that goal and thefactthe game,which looked in Albion’s grip,had slipped away from them,leftsomewhatofasour taste.

Thoseoverallstatisticsmentioned above dosoftenthings,but this last week hasshown that Albion arestalling slightly,but it is only natural.

What they need to do is make sure they wintheir home gamesin theirrun to theplay-offs

Thegap to thesides belowthem hasbeencut with Norwichand Coventrybothwinning on Saturday

Butaslongas it remainsinAlbion’s hands, they need to turn up However,one thingpointed out

by Corberan afterthe game is the fact that even though hissideare struggling to getoverthe line for threepoints, they are findingaway to stillget something.

They foundaway downat The Den, they founda wayagainst Watford to come back from 2-0down.

Andalthoughtheywerepoorin thegoals they conceded in thesecond half againstStoke,theyhad foundaway to somehow getthemselves twotothe good It mightbeacollectiveeffortto ‘grind it out’ butthere hasbeenone catalyst in thelasteight days, and he goesbythe name of GradyDiangana

He wonthe penaltyat Millwall, he came offthe benchtoset up two goalslastMonday, andheplayeda hand in both goalsatStoke

Andtobehonest, up untilthe opener he hadlookedlikethe only Albion whocould create

It wasall Stoke, who, likeMillwall,wereplaying up to theway Corberan haddescribedthem, as asidewho shouldn’tbeinthe position they areinifyou judgedthem by theirsquad on paper.

Alex Palmer hadtomaketwo smartsaves to keepthe Pottersout, whilesomewayward finishingcost them as Albion scored againstthe

runofplay. MikeyJohnstonhad gone offthe ball somewhat in the last twogames,but he sparked back into life.

Therearen’tmanywingers who canscare defenderslikehe does when he picks theballuponthe left-hand side andcutsin field.

He didthatat Stokeand found Diangana,who hadthe qualityto hold theball, wait forJohnstonto drift throughthe Stokebackline andthen find him.

TheCelticloanee finished with aplomb anditwas aquiet relief to repelany worries hisspell forAlbion maybeover

Then it went back to what it was before,Stoke on topand lookingthe morelikely.

Thesecondhalfbegan in basketball fashionwithbothsides getting into goodareas

Palmer againmadeasave, but then just as Stokebuilt up aheadof steam, Albion struck Diangana chested theballinto thepathofJohnston, whofound JedWallace.Hefed Brandon Thomas-Asante, whoarguably showed what hismainquality is He hashad to play as amain strikerfor much of histimeatthe club,but he showcased hiswing qualitiesinanareaofthe pitchthat he playedinbeforehis time at Albion He drove past thefull-back and delivereda cross, andwithDan Iversenunabletogather, theball fell to Wallace, whowas in prime position to stab home.Itwas agoal

that kind if optimisedwhatAlbion haven’t done this season

Youcould have been forgiven forlosing countofthe timesthat Albion hadput ballsintoprime goalscoringareas,onlyto fluffitor not have someone gambling

Wallaceshowedastriker’s instinct to getinthere

Butratherthantakingthe game to thehome side,Albionsat off again.

Stokewhipped thecrowd up,got back on thefront foot andgot the goal theirdisplay deserved.

Million Manhoefpickedupthe ball in theareaand with Albion static he hadspace to pickhis spot

Albion continuedtobeforced back,and abizarre incident ledto theequaliser.

Yann M’Vila hasimpressed so far forthe club in hiscameo displays, butwhenheput ahighbootinto TyreseCampbell’supper back in thearea, everyone from an Albion persuasion were left bemused.

AndreVidigal sawhis spot-kick savedbyPalmerbut hammered in therebound –and Stokewere smelling blood.

However,Albiondid stem thetide of attacksand couldhavesnatched it at thedeath

TomFellows crossedfor Andi Weimann, butheslashed at thecross andhis effort went well wide

Apoint wasfairbut from theposition Albion were in,itwas hard to stomachand verymucha missed opportunity

Carlos Corberanapplauds thefans

Albion’s MikeyJohnston finds thenet to give hissidea first-half leadagainst Stokeatthe Bet365 Stadium

Albion’s GradyDiangana on theball

DefiantRowett backingBlues in survival fight

LEICESTERCITY............... 2 BIRMINGHAM CITY .......... 1

InterimbossGaryRowettis backingBirmingham City to wintheir battlefor Championship survival

Blues slippedintothe relegation zone followingSaturday’s last-gaspdefeatawaytotabletoppersLeicester City

Stephy Mavididi’s 87thminuteheadersealedthe winfor theFoxes afterJay Stansfield hadearlier cancelledout KiernanDewsbury-Hall’s opener Rowett,overseeing Bluesfor thethird time sincebeing placed in interimcharge, cutafrustrated butdefiant figure afterwards “Itwas toughtotake, especiallywhenyou gettothattime,” he said.“ButLeicester areanincredible side andtheymakethe pitchsowide.

“There wassome last-ditch defendingand,yes,there were timeswhenwewerethinking we’d done well to keep them at bay. Butwejustcould not hold on andthatisdisappointing.

“There were periodswhenwe didput them underpressure. That waswhenthe stadiumfelt likeadifferent place. Butwhen you pressthem, they find those

spacesand canplaythrough you That’s what really good sidesdo, they find ways andsolutions.”

Despite theirperilouspredicament, Rowett is stillbacking Blues to haul themselves outof trouble

“Our season is notgoing to be definedbytakingpointsat Leicesteraway,”headded. “Itis goingtobedefinedbyour home games. It’s up to us andIthink we’vegot enough quality.

“Whatyou have to do, at this stageofthe season,isperform underpressure. Formethat pressure isaprivilege.”

ButBlues were thearchitects of theirown downfall forthe firstgoal, failing to clearAbdul Fatawu’s crossintothe area before PatsonDakatouched the ball into Dewsbury-Hall’spath andhe provided aclinical finish LeicestergoalkeeperMads HermansengiftedBlues aroute back into thegame, taking an agetoclear hislines andseeing hiskickcharged down by Stansfieldand flyintothe net.

Butthe unmarkedMavididi wonitlateonwhenhepastJohn Ruddy.

Baggies full-backConorTownsendthreadsapass down theline

Jumping for joy–Jed Wallacecelebrates afternetting againstStoke

Blues’ JayStansfieldcelebrates

Matt Phillipsgoesonthe attack as theBaggiesgolooking for goals

JedWallace is in therightplace at therighttime to putthe Baggiestwo up andseeminglyonthe waytovictory,but Stokehit backtograb apoint

EMI MARTINEZ

Youcouldn’t faulthim for anyof the goals, butathrow outwhich went straight outof play midway through thesecond half summed up Villa’s sloppiness

Beaten. 6

EZRI KONSA

Experienced comfortablyhis worstnine minutesofthe seasonwithall threeof Brentford’sgoals coming fromhis side of thepitch

Lost. 5

DIEGOCARLOS

Madeacouple of excellent first-half interventions, butthe second period showed hislack of consistency.

Mixed. 5

PAUTORRES

Only he will know what he wasdoing forBrentford’s second andthirdgoals Seemed to switch offand stop defending likethe rest of theteam.

Missing. .5

LUCASDIGNE

Almost scored directfroma corner in the firsthalf. Failedtostop thecross for Brentford’s firstgoal.

Okay 6

LEON BAILEY

Createdthe equaliserwitha crosswhich took adeflection,but lackedhis usual precision at others. Sometimestrying to do toomuch.

Underwhelming 6

DOUGLASLUIZ

Wasseconds away fromavoiding suspension,onlytopickupa foolish booking.Neededtomovethe ball quicker.

Ban 6

YOURITIELEMANS

Pickedout therun of Rogersfor Villa’s secondgoaland movedthe ball neatly. Moreofa factor in thematch than Luiz

Assist 6

MORGAN ROGERS

Showedanexcellentwork-rate andscoredthe goal his attacking performancedeserved. Switched offfor Brentford’s first.

Goal .7

JOHN MCGINN

Givenverylittletimeorspace by the visitors, butstill managed to setupthe opener for Watkins. Some really nice moments

Frustrated 6

OLLIEWATKINS

Salvaged apoint for histeam, though it should neverhavecome to that.Another reminderofwhy he is so indispensable.

Saviour 7

SUBSTITUTES

NicoloZaniolo (forRogers, 69) 5; Moussa Diaby (for Bailey, 90+1); Jhon Duran (forTielemans 90+1); Alex Moreno (forDigne,90+1)

Subs notused: Chambers, Lenglet, Kesler-Hayden,Iroegbunam, Olsen.

Villathrilleractsasablast from thepastfor thefans

ForVilla supporters who recall thelasttimetheir club seriouslycompeted forChampions League football,Saturdaywill have sent ashiverdown thespine.

Just threedaysafterUnaiEmery took acalculatedriskinnaminga much-changed teamatManchester City,his strongestavailable line-up inexplicably letslipa two-goal lead againstBrentford to only draw a matchinwhich victoryhad looked assured.

Echoes of 2009,whenVillaconcededtwice in theclosing minutes of an infamous 2-2drawwith Stoke, in the firstmatch afterMartinO’Neill hadsacrificed theclub’s Europa League ambitions against CSKA Moscow,wereimpossibleto escape.

Yetjustascircumstances in ManchesterlastWednesday were very differenttoRussia, so Saturday’s comparisonisfar from perfect, not leastbecause on this occasion it was actually Villahavingthe finalsay, OllieWatkins’equaliser ensuring Emery’smen didnot suffer acomplete meltdown afterBrentford had struck threetimes in nine minutes of second-halfmadness Eerilysimilar though the final result was, it came more than a monthlater in theseasonthan15 yearsago,withVillaina stronger position.Emery’s team probably need to winjusttwo of their final

sixleague fixtures to secure the top-five finish whichwill, in all probability,beenoughfor aplacein Europe’s premiercompetition next season.Further progressionin the Europa Conference League,thereby boosting the PremierLeague’s co-efficientranking,will help their owncause

Such factswon’t have been enough on Saturday eveningtoease thenervesofafanbase with an inbuiltfatalism, theresultofgenerationsraisedonthe belief thegood timescan’t last

ThebestVillateamtheyhave watchedin decades, so mentally strong throughthree-quartersof an injury-riddled season,suddenly look alarmingly fragile. Arun of just one winin five league matches representstheir worst sequence of thecampaign.

Aminuteintothe second half,the daylookedlikebeing acruise.MorganRogershad just putVilla2-0 up with a firstPremier League goal Brentford, winless in theirlastseven matches, were starting to appear resignedtotheir fate

Butthen, in what felt likethe blinkofaneye,everything changed ThreeSergioReguilon crosses from theleft flank, threegoals in nine minutes forZanka, BryanMbuemo

andYoane Wissa hadthe visitors in frontand it wasthendowntoWatkins, whohad earlieropenedthe scoring, to salvagewhathecould from theafternoon.

Emerylater struggled to explain what hadhappenedtohis team, though,intruth, theanswermay be straightforward

Villa, quitesimply, arenot very gooddefensively andtheir challengefor atop-four finish hasbeen maintained in spiteofconceding toomanyeasygoals.Itisan issue whichhas become noticeablymore acutesincethe Januarywinter break, with theirdefenceshaving been breached 22 timesin11league matches.

Saturday wasthe fourth time they have conceded threeormore in that spelland thelossofBoubacarKamara, theclub’smostproficientplayerin controlling tempo, to aseason-ending knee injury has certainlynot helped matters. Neither,onthatnote, will theabsence of DouglasLuizfor thenexttwo gamesafter themidfielderpicked up his10thbooking of theseason.

Of particular concernisVilla’s propensity to concede in clusters Saturday mighthavebeenanextreme example, yetthe warning signswerethere in wins over Fulham, NottinghamForestand Luton when they were guilty on eachoccasion of letting opponentsbackinto thecontest.Lastmonth’s 4-0 defeat to Tottenhamsaw them concede twiceinthe spaceofthree minutes, twice, whilethere were sevenmin-

utes betweenPhil Foden’s second andthird goalsinlastweek’sloss at City

Thecurrent absence of Matty Cash to ahamstring injury has forced Emery’shandsomewhat, with Ezri Konsa required to fill in at right-back.ThatleavesDiego Carlosand PauTorresatcentre-back andwhilebothare solid defenders, neitherisattheir best when faced with theinevitableaerialbarrage fromatrailingopponent.

An increasingly leakydefence places more pressure on Villa’sattack butby andlarge Watkinsand theresthaveansweredthe call.The striker’sreturntoactionhere, just aweekafterleaving the2-0 win over Wolves with ahamstring injury,surelyunderlineshis status as Villa’smostdurable player in years. Afterrescuingapoint,Watkins then delivered oneofthe keypostmatchinterviewsofthe campaign, when he claimedVillalackeda “big team mentality”

It felt less of acriticismthana simply honest –and maybeaccurate –assessmentofa unit lackingthe finalingredientneeded to seriously challengethe PremierLeague’s biggest guns.The comfortfor Villa is theirrivalsinthe race forfourth placeare also flawed andthere is still time to alterthe narrative Collapsing againstStoke in 2009 wasa blow from whichO’Neill’s team never recovered.The task for Emeryand hisplayers is to ensure Brentford2024does notcome to be spoken aboutinthe same breath

Morgan Rogers scores for Villa

OllieWatkinsclimbshigh to head home alateequaliser,his second goalofthe game,torescuea point forVilla

NicoloZaniolo andBryan Mbeumo

Saddlers in themix after asecond-half supershow

Walsallremain firmly in thehuntfor theLeague Twoplay-offs aftercomingfrombehindtoregistera firstawaywin since late-Februaryagainst Tranmere Rovers at PrentonPark.

That result sawWalsall climb into ninthplace afterMorecambe andGillingham lost againstBradford City andDoncaster Rovers respectively

AFCWimbledon beat SalfordCity 1-0toremainabove Walsallongoal difference,while Crawleythrashed MansfieldTown4-1 to maintain the three-pointcushion betweenthemselves andthe trailing pack

Away form hasthreatenedto underminethe Saddlers’play-off push,but MatSadler’smen overturned an earlydeficittoend arun of threematches withouta winon theroad.

Walsallhavecome from behind in five of theirsix away victoriesthis term.OnlyCrawley Town (22) and CreweAlexandra (21) have amassed morepointsfromlosing positions in League TwothanWalsall (21), whilethe Saddlers have registered thejoint-mostwinsingames where they’vefallenbehind(six)

Walsallmadeafairlybrightstart andthere were chances at both ends as ReganHendryand Isaac Hutchinsonbothpassedupgolden opportunities.

Hendry strokedanunerring finishintothe farbottomcornerto give Tranmere a24th-minutelead, as thehosts laid siegeonWalsall’s goal with aseriesofchances

JacksonSmith, whowas superb once againbetween thesticks,producedthe firstoftwo fine saves to denyRob Apter, before Reece McAlearcrashed afree-kick against thecrossbar

Walsallrefusedtobuckleand usedapause in proceedings while Smithreceivedtreatment to regroup.

They finished the firsthalf strongly andreapedthe reward in thesecondof five minutesofadded time when Jamille Matt cushioned JoeFoulkes’perfectly floatedcross into thefar bottom corner

Matt overcamea“neural issue” to featurefromthe startand proved once againwhy he is goingtobekey forWalsall during theLeagueTwo run-in

The34-year-old,who hasthree EFLpromotionsonhis CV,scored in successivegames,and wasreplaced just past thehourasSadler continuestomanagehis minutes carefully.

Thetiming of thegoal, as Sadler

notedinhis post-match interview, wasalso crucialinproviding Walsall with aplatformtobuild from in thesecondhalf.

Andtheypickedupfromwhere they left offwithastellar performanceafter thebreak BrandonComleywas alerttoany sign of danger as he ranthe midfield andTranmerestruggled to contain thestream of Saddlers attacks.

Taylor Allencappedanother top displaywithhis thirdgoalofthe campaign.The Cannock-born utilityman hasbeenone of thestories of theseason.

Allenwentfourmonthswithout aleaguestart betweenOctober andFebruary, butmadehis 11th consecutive startinLeagueTwo at PrentonPark–his longest runin thestartingline-up sincearriving in thesummer of 2022.His cata-

pulted free-kickfrommidway inside Tranmere’s half evadedeveryone, includingJosh Gordon’s attempted flickedheader, andnestled nicely into thefar corner

Thevolumefromthe 700-plus away fans, whichwas strong throughout, crankedupanextra notch as Walsallseized themomentum Comley then gotinonthe act himselfwitha rocket from distance whichexplodedintothe topcorner, 22 minutes from time

It wasonlyhis second Walsall goal,and his firstsince theopening dayoflastseason.

He also became Walsall’s23rd differentgoalscorerinLeague Two. That showsthere aregoals throughoutthissquad,which has perhaps been amajor factor behind theircontinued improvementde-

JACKSONSMITH

Wasinthe wars,but produced two excellent fingertipstops to deny Rob Apterand ReganHendry.

EMMANUEL ADEGBOYEGA

Involved in anumber of attacks, butwas almost caught outtwice with asliced clearanceinthe firsthalfand atame headed backpassinthe closingstages. Mixed.

DAVIDOKAGBUE

Anotherrelativelysolid performance fromthe youngsterinthe heartof defence

TAYLOR ALLEN

Hisrisehas beenone of thestories of theseason. Anothertop displaycapped with hissecond goal in his lastthree away outings.

JOE FOULKES

Hisinfluenceonthe game grew,as he delivered an inch-perfect crossfor Matt’s equalisertoclaim his firstleague assistfor theclub. Also claimeda second assist forComley’sthird.

RYAN STIRK

Tidy in possession andefficientin thepress on his secondstart in three games.

BRANDONCOMLEY

Sweptupevery sign of danger and bossed themidfield.Scoredararegoal with arocketfromdistance.

ISAACHUTCHINSON

Squandered agoldenopportunity earlyonand set-up agood chance for Adegboyega beforethe break. Guilty of giving theball away afew toomany timesbut did well overall

LIAM GORDON

Linked effectively with hisnamesake Josh on ahandful of occasionsand almost capped astrong performance with agoallateon.

JOSH GORDON

spitelosing FreddieDraperback in January.

Tranmere hitthe woodwork twiceinthe closing stages,with Smithmakingasensational stop to divertHendry’scurling strike on to thepost.

ButWalsall endedthe afternoon with back-to-back wins aheadofanothercrucialroadtriptoDoncaster on Tuesday.

Anotherwin will create theultimate platform forthe trio of home gamesinseven days againstNotts County,Swindon Town andBradford City respectively

The5-0 mauling at MK Dons couldhavebeenthe pointwhere everything crumbled,but this team’s biggest strength is they always getbackup, whichwill hopefullyserve them well as we enter the final five games.

Atireless force once again. Setupa golden chance for Hutchinson with a tenaciousrun down theright at 0-0

.................................................7

JAMILLE MATT

Hisphysicalpresenceand backtogoal play alwaysoffered Walsallanattacking outlet.His second goal in as many gamestoequalise underlines just how important he canbeinthe League Two run-in.

SUBSTITUTES

Mo Faal (forMatt, 66) 6; Douglas James-Taylor (forJ Gordon,77) 6 Subs notused: Evans,Daniels, Farquharson, Tierney, Johnson

Ryan Stirk challengingfor theball

DouglasJames-Taylor in thethick of theactionfor Saddlers at PrentonPark

Jumping forjoy –Taylor Allentakes offashecelebratesscoring Saddlers’second goalPictures: Owen Russell

‘The badger cull is themosttoxic wildlife managementstrategyin Britain’scontemporary history’

acceptable than it didthree years ago. Defrahas softened itslatest announcement by pledging: “The strategy builds on ourinvestment in widerscale badgervaccination, whichisnow much more of areality, with more farmsinvolvedin vaccination programmes than ever before.”

It’s done littletoappease anti-cull campaigners.

“Sunakwants allthe badgers dead,”saidecologicalconsultant TomLangton

“Itisapolitical figfor aBritish farmingindustrythatrefuses to addressthe underlying cause of bovine TB in cattle herds,”said former BadgerTrust CEODominic Dyer

“Lessthanone percentofbadgerskilledhavebeentested forbovine TB andofthissmall number only around five percentshoweda levelofinfection that couldleadto thediseasespreading to otherbadgersand possibly cattle.”

He added: “Ifthe government is seriousabout reducingbovine TB in cattleinaway that benefits farmers, taxpayersand wildlifeit

needs to stop playingthe badger blamegameand push thefarming industry to take itsdiseasecontrol responsibilities more seriously.”

It wasn’t until1971thatbadgers were discovered to carrybovineTB –and they arenot theonlyanimals to spread thedisease. Dogs,cats, sheepand deer arealso carriers

Tainted slurry d on fields hasalsob akey contamina it is claimed.

TB amongcattleherds was not arealissueuntil the aftermathof amajor 2001 foot andmouth outbreak. Widespread movement of livestock to replenishfarms sawinfection numb surge.

find it hasmadenodifferencewhatsoever,”hesaid.

“Wehavehad 11 yearsofbadger cullsand it hasmadenodifference at all.”

Reportsofareduction in the number of infected cattleare missingone vitalnuggetofinformation, Nigelpointed out. Thenumberof cattleinthiscountry hasreduced by 10 percentinadecade. Of course thereare goingtobefewer cases

“There arevarying degreesof bovine TB in badgers,” he said.“It is only in the finalstages that it is really possible to pass bovine TB to cattle.

“Itisfully blownafter five or six years, then it canbepassedonby excreta. Less than 10 percentof badgers test positive forbovineTB andtheywill notpassitontocattle untilitisfully blown.”

Thelifeexpectancyofa badgerin thewildisfouryears.Nigel calculatesofthe 10 percentthattestpositive, only 0.5per cent will survive to pose athreattoherds

Nigeldeclinedtocallthe government’s latest move aU-turnoreven akickinthe teeth. “Itisthe continuation of afailedpolicy”

“I know afarmerwho is very supportiveand hasanumberofsetts on hisland,”headded. “Hetells me hasnever hadacaseofbovineTB andthe reason is he’s never imported cattle.”

Notsurprisingly, theNational FarmersUnion seethingsvery differently. Thecullhas protected livelihoods

NFUpresidentTom Bradshaw said:“Bovine TB continuestohave ahugeimpactonthousands of farmingfamilies across thecountry, includingShropshireand Staffordshireand theemotional,mental and financialstrain this devastatingdiseasecausesisenormous

First glimpse of housingscheme at former power stationlocation

Residentshavebeengetting their firstglimpse of developers’ homes plansfor aformerpower station site

Taylor Wimpey held adrop-in session at CoalbrookdaleCommunity Centre forpeople to find outabout itsplanstobuild202 newhomeson part of theformerIronbridge Power Station.

Thesiteisset to be redeveloped as what will effectively be anew communitycalledBenthallGrange –witharound1,000 homeseventually plannedfor thearea.

TheTaylorWimpeyproposals, whichformjustone phaseofthe development, wouldbecalled‘Tower Woods’ andwillinclude five per cent ‘affordablehousing’.

Thepower station, whichprovided electricityfrom1969, ceasedoperationinNovember 2015

Itsfourlandmarkcooling towers were demolished in December 2019.

Anumberofresidents attended themeetingtoget aglimpse at the proposals, andvoice theirthoughts about thesite.

VivMoore,fromIronbridgeand CoalbrookdaleCivic Society, said people were worried aboutthe impact of thedevelopmentonIronbridge –particularlythe increasein trafficgenerated by cars from 1,000 newhomes.

Shesaid: “Even though they say they will direct trafficout towards Buildwas it will stillundoubtedly come into Ironbridge.”

Sheadded: “Wejustdon’t have theinfrastructure to do it.”

confirmsthe conclusion of scientists whooversaw extensivegovernment research conducted between1998 and2005, that badgerculling can make no meaningful contribution to thefuturecontrolofcattleTBin Britain. Thereisno justification for killing anymorebadgers.”

Thegovernmentissueda“they wouldsay that,wouldn’tthey?” response.The findings fita“campaignagenda”,saida spokesperson It can’tbeasolution, says StaffordshireWildlifeTrust.“It is an ineffectivetoolinthe fightagainst bovine tuberculosis,”aspokespersonsaid. “Wewanttosee badgers andcattlevaccinated.”

Thecull justhasn’tworked, a studybyscientistsopposed to it and publishedinthe Veterinary Record Journalconcluded.Study co-author Dr Mark Jones said:“Ouranalysis

“The newproposals to kill er cent of badger pulationsinsome easofthe UK is unethicaland unscientific,”says St af ford sh ir e BadgerGroup “Relying on epidem iologica l culling does a massivedisservice to farmers andlocal wildlife.”

Underthe revised osals, badgerexclusion zoneswill be created around farmswithintense TB problems, warned NigelTolley, chairman of theWestMidlands Badger Trust. Allbrocksin thelocation wouldbekilled. “Theywill

“Morethan19,500cattlewere slaughteredinEnglandinthe 12 months to September 2023 because of bovine TB

“The currentgovernmentstrategy to controland eradicateit, which givesfarmers access to multiple measures to tackle thedisease, includingbadgerculling,has been hugely successful.

“New data provides furtherevidence of this, demonstrating the herd incidencerateofTBreduced by 56 percentinareas that have hadfourormoreyears of culling. It’s greattosee theSecretaryof Stateacknowledge this andthe importance of maintainingmomentum.

“Weare pleasedthatthisconsultationwillconsiderhow local partnerships in Targeted Badger Controlareas,which will seeacombination of culling,badgervaccination andon-farm biosecurity, are best deployed. TheNFU will continuetoworkwithits membersand governmenttoensureasuccessful strategy to eradicatebovineTB continuestobebased on soundscience andevidence.”

Thestakesare high.Ifthe governmentand farmingcommunityhas chosen theright course,an importantindustryhas been saved from decimation.

If wrong, thousandsuponthousandsofbadgers have been killed fornogood reason.And they will continue to be killed

MrsMoore repeated asuggestion from Ironbridge Gorge’sTelford & Wrekin Councillor,Carolyn Healy, that thenew development does not includethe word‘Ironbridge’inany part of itsname–toavoid confusion andlimit thepotential fortraffic impact.Councillor Healysaid: “We have ensuredthrough theplanning processthatthe main trafficroute from thesitewillcome from the Ironbridge bypass ansMuchWenlock Road andtherefore having an addressthatindicates it is outside Ironbridge stopstrafficcoming throughthe narrow streetsofIronbridge to getthere.”

Anumberofresidents have also raisedconcernsoverthe issues of flooding–withparts of Ironbridge Gorgealready sufferingrepeatedly with serious flooding.

LocalresidentNicholasBellizia said he wasdisappointed that the plansfor thesitehad notincluded alarge attenuationlaketolimitthe loss of surfacedrainagefromthe development.

He said:“Ireallydothink we couldhavedonea lot better forthe communityfor Ironbridge,aswe know global warmingis causinga problemnow,river levels aregoing to keeponrising, we hadanopportunitythere to buildanattenuation lake just to temporarilystore water whilewater levels subside or we balance them.Whatare we doing? We areputting ahousing estate whichI personally donot thinkisneeded.”

He addedthatthe focusshouldbe on returningsome of thesiteback to nature,adding: “Let’s sort our floodingproblemsout.”

Badgers–awonder of nature or adangertocattle?

TomBradshaw of theNFU

THE CUCKOO

Channel 5, 9.00pm

Another week, another gripping four-part drama heads our way courtesy of Channel 5.

Alongside amyriad of documentaries about air fryers (who knew there was so much to say about them?), such programmes have become amainstay of the broadcaster’s schedule in recent months. They’ve been backed by the station’s parent company, Paramount, andthe latest looks very promising indeed.

“We’re thrilled to be teaming up again with (production company) Clapperboard to bring this tense and twisty series to our viewers,” says Sebastian Cardwell,Deputy Chief Content Officer, UK at Paramount. “Equipped with agripping script and household names Jill Halfpenny,Lee Ingleby, Claire Goose and Marjorie Yates as our lead cast, The Cuckoo is another brilliant addition to our expanding drama slate.”

Suzi McIntosh, Senior Executive Producerat Clapperboard, agrees: “I could notbemore excited to be gathering such afantastic and dynamic cast and crew to make thisthriller that will keep us on the edge of our seats throughout. Watch this space, we are all in for atreat.”

Having already appeared in Channel 5’s The Drowning and The Holiday,Halfpenny should feel right at home here. She’s certainly afan of the genre.

“That’s the fun of watching athriller,” she claims, after being asked why we can’t get enoughofthem. “Nobodywants to be with the person who’s like, ‘I know exactly what happens’. The fun of it is, ‘It’s them. Oh, it’s her’. Ithink that’s why,asanation, we’ve really –certainly in the last 10 years– become obsessed with thrillers.”

The star,who first came to the nation’s attention as ateenager in Byker Grove before appearing in EastEndersand Coronation Street and winning the second series of Strictly Come Dancing, loves acting in them too, althoughshe admits they have their drawbacks.

“It’s always nice to play something that is abit more psychologically dark. But while thrillers are fun, they’re also quite exhausting because the characters that you’re playing are usually consistently tense. You come home and you’re like, ‘Why are my shoulders by my ears?’

“You’re always holding something in energetically, trying to keep alid on things, and that’s really,really fun to play –but it’s quite exhausting to havethat lid on for 11 hours aday!”

Here, Halfpenny plays Sian, who lodges with afamily struggling to makeends meet after they relocate to the countryside. Sheseems to be the perfect housemate, but it soon becomes clear she has adarkside.

It’s just one projectinabusy year for the thespian. Her memoir,ALifeReimagined, willbepublished in June; it looks backonher life and details howshe’s dealing with the grief of losing her partner in 2017. Until next Saturday she can also be seen starring in arevival of Shelagh Delaney’s ATaste of Honey at Manchester’s Royal Exchange.

As she recently told The Stage: “Every actor wants variety.” It seems, then, that she’s living the dream.

ON DEMAND

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In 2019, shortly after the death of shamed financier Jeffrey Epstein, Prince Andrew was interviewed forthe BBC’s Newsnight programme by Emily Maitlis.The subsequent conversation turned into something quite remarkable, in which he denied allegations of impropriety via aseries of bizarre revelations, including an inabilitytosweat and atrip to Woking’s Pizza Express. The event hasnow been turned into one of the most eagerlyawaited dramas of the year so far,which reveals how the interview wasset up thankstohigh stakes negotiations between producer Sam McAlister and BuckinghamPalace. Gillian Andersonand Rufus Sewell play Maitlis and the prince respectively; Billie Piper,Keeley Hawes and Romola Garai co-star

6.30 Money ForNothing (R) (S). 7.15Bridge Of Lies (R) (S).

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6.00 APlace In The Sun Laura Hamilton helps a couple search Paphos, Cyprus (S).

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Custody DCI Adam Gallop believes aman declared missing has been murdered (R) (S).

11.05 Night Coppers On the beat with the police officers who patrol the city of Brighton after dark (R) (S).

6.00 The Cotswolds With PamAyres (R) (S).

6.55 5News Update (S).

7.00 Traffic Cops A70-yearold biker crashes down an embankment (R) (S).

7.55 5News Update (S).

8.00 Motorway Cops: Catching Britain’s Speeders PC Martain Anderson stops acar thought to be linked to organised crime (S).

9.00 The Cuckoo New series. Thriller,starring Jill Halfpenny (S).

10.00 The Intruder: He’s Watching Youfrom Within The storyofthe police manhunt for The Fox(S).

11.45 Traffic Cops Atip-off leads to amajor drugs bust in North Yorkshire (R) (S). 12.45 Sign Zone: Countryfile (R) (S). 1.40 Sign Zone: MasterChef (R) (S) 2.40

THE MARTIAN

(BBC One, 11.20pm)

The six-strongcrewofthe Ares 3, ledbyCommander Melissa Lewis (Jessica Chastain),are gatheringsamples on Mars when sensors pick up an approachingstorm.Lewis gives the order to evacuate and during the trek back to the ship, botanist Mark Watney (MattDamon) is hitbyflyingdebris. Believing him to be dead, therestofthe crew blasts off withouthim.Little do they realisethatback on Mars,Watneyisalive. Meanwhile on Earth, the Nasa topbrass cutcorners to letMarkknow thecavalryis coming, but can he last until they arrive?

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR V NOTTINGHAM FOREST

Sky Main Event, 6.30pm

Coverage of the Premier League match from Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (Kick-off 8.00pm).

7.00 Fred Dibnah’s Industrial Age The development of Britain’s railways (S). 7.30 Britain’s Lost Masterpieces (S).

THE TWO FACES OF JANUARY

(BBC Two, 11.15pm)

Aconman masquerades as atour guide in Greece, and selects awealthy American tourist and his younger wife as likely targets. However,when amurder is committed at the couple’s hotel, all three are incriminated, and adangerous alliance develops. Thriller based on Patricia Highsmith’s novel, starring Viggo Mortensen, Kirsten Dunst, Oscar Isaac, Daisy Bevan, David Warshofsky,Yigit Ozsener,Omiros Poulakis and Ozan Tas.

12.00 Supergirl (R) (S). 1.00 MacGyver (R) (S).

MacGyver (R) (S). 3.00 Hawaii Five-0 (R) (S). 4.00 S.W.A.T (R) (S).

9.30 The Sky At Night Exploring the universe (S).

10.00 Caligula With Mary Beard The life of the Roman emperor (S).

11.00 Roman Britain: A Timewatch Guide How the public’s view of Roman Britain has changed. Last in the series (S).

6.00 The Office (US) Michael encourages his colleagues to invest in Ryan’s new company (R) (S).

6.30 The Office (US) (R) (S).

7.00 The Simpsons Homer faces the wrath of apop star’s vengeful fans (R) (S).

7.30 The Simpsons (R) (S).

8.00 David Attenborough’s Wild City The veteran broadcaster examines the wildlife of Singapore (R) (S).

9.00 The Regime Political satire, starring Kate Winslet (S).

10.05 JFK: Destiny Betrayed Oliver Stone’s documentary exploring the Kennedy assassination (R) (S).

11.10 RobBeckett’s SmartTV (R) (S).

11.55 Last Week Tonight With John Oliver (R).

6.00 Celebrity Catchphrase With Larry Lamb, Sam Quek and Scarlett Moffatt (S).

7.00 Family Fortunes The Shares of Worcester go up against the Alveranga family of Luton (S).

8.00 Superstore Cloud 9 employees experience unforeseen problems with the new Zephra app (S).

8.30 Superstore (S).

9.00 TikTok: Murder Gone Viral: The Mother And Daughter Killers Documentarylooking at a shocking murder (S).

10.00 Family Guy Lois is sent to prison (S).

10.30 Family Guy Peter tries to convertChris to Judaism (S).

11.00 Family Guy Peter and Lois go on asecond honeymoon (S).

11.30 American Dad! (S).

12.00 Fred Dibnah’s Industrial Age (S). 12.30 Welsh Greats: HarrySecombe (S). 1.00 Caligula With MaryBeard (S). 2.00 Roman Britain: ATimewatch Guide (S). 3.00 Britain In Focus: APhotographic History (S). 4.00 Close 12.00 American Dad! (S). 12.30 Superstore (S). 12.55 Superstore (S). 1.25 The Emily Atack Show (S). 2.10 Celebrity Karaoke Club (S). 3.00 Unwind With ITV (S). 5.30

Patrol (R)

Patrol (R) (S).

6.55 Heartbeat Part one of two. Vernon makes a startling discovery(S).

6.55 Car S.O.S Fuzz Townshend and Tim Shaw secretly restore a valuable AC Aceca (S).

7.55 Grand Designs A bricklayer in Bolton begins work on an ambitious state-of-the-art wooden home (S).

8.00 Vera The detective investigates adeath in a coastal community (S).

9.00 Car S.O.S Tim and Fuzz take on carpenter Mike’s 1980 Ford Escort RS2000 (S).

10.00 Blue Murder A childminder is murdered (S).

11.30 Wild At Heart Leopard’s Den is inspected by the conservation authority (S).

10.00 Raising The MaryRose: TheLost Tapes Alook back at the raising of HenryVIII’s flagship from the Solent in 1982 (S).

11.00 24 Hours In A&E A nine-year-old boy has a dangerously high heart rate (S).

8.30 Britain In Focus: A Photographic History The response to historic events in the first half of the 20th century(S).

Children’s service is celebratingits firstanniversary

Apalliativeand bereavement supportcharity hasbeencelebrating the firstanniversaryofaservice helpingchildren and youngpeople.

Wolverhampton-basedCompton Care hasbeenrunning itsChildren andYoung People’s (CYP)Service sincebeing awarded£79,810 funding by BBC Children in Need to support young membersofits patients’families

Thefunding enabledthe charity to welcome anew Children and YoungPeople’sSupport Worker,Lusia Coombes.

Workshops

Over thelastyear, Ms Coombes, supportedbyateamofvolunteers,has helped more than100 children and young people,as well as theirfamilies

It hasalso delivered 42 one-to-one sessionsofemotional supportwith children andyoung people both in school andonsiteatCompton Hall

Theservice provides monthly workshopsdesignedtosupport emotional wellbeing, reduce feelings of isolation andencourage children andyoung people to buildpositive,supportive peer relationshipswithinacaringand nurturingenvironment at averydiffi-

cult time in theirlives. Theworkshops have included visits from theAnimal Man, memorymakingactivitiesand wellbeingsessionshosted by Compton’sComplementary Therapy team, whilethe teamhavealsoarranged familypicnics,daysout andvisitsto thetheatre

Impact officeratBBC Children in Need,Helen Wilson, whowas keen to seethe positive difference thefunding hasmadeinthe community, attended an Easter EggHuntevent organised by Compton.

Shesaid: “Itwas greattosee firsthand therealdifferenceLusia andthe CYPService aremaking, notonlyto thechildrenbut in thesupport that they offerthe wholefamilyat such a difficult time.”

Oneparentshared: “The projectat ComptonCareprovidesaninvaluable servicefor children experiencingthe loss of aloved one,enablingthemto grieve andalso celebratethose lives in asafeand secure,fun andfriendly environment.”

To find outmoreabout thesupport ComptonCareoffersfor children and young people,contact itsAdviceand Referral Line on 01902774570orgo to comptoncare.org.uk.

Home city galleryshowfor musician

An experimental musicianfromWolverhamptonisgivingaperformance in hishome city

NeOnethe Wonderer will open the Friday Late series of performances at WolverhamptonArt GalleryinLichfieldStreetonApril 26

He will be performing musicinspired by ‘blaxploitation’ movies of the1970s from 6pmto8pm NeOneisdedicated to self-exploration throughanelectricfusion of musicalgenres. He aims to challenge perceptionsofnormality,traversing

throughdreams, nightmares,myth, andreality,using captivatingrhythmicstorylinesand experimental beats.

Free ticketscan be booked at wolverhamptonart.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173646236

Friday Lateswill take placeonthe last Friday of each monthfor live performances, music, workshops, and curators talks throughout thegallery spaces.

TheGlaze Cafe will also be opening late

ISLE OF WIGHT

DOWNTON ABBEY

BEHIND THE SCENES EXCLUSIVE

Departing Fri 5Jul ‘24

Revisit the familiar halls of Downton Abbeywith an exclusivevisit to the magnificent grounds of HighclereCastle.Onthis break we peek behind the scenes at whereall the moments from the beloved programme happened and discoverHighclere’s historic treasures.

Your breakincludes

 Return coach travel from Wolverhampton, Dudley, Walsall, Cannock & Stafford

 Overnight stay at aselected hotel (JG3 or JG4 rating) with dinner &breakfast



Lusia Coombeswas appointed childrenand youngperson’s supportworker

Award-winning, site-brewed ales fuel this traditionalpub

Remote

village gets ‘lightning fast’broadband

A‘remote’village hastaken agreat leap into thefutureas residents andbusinesses there areconnected to lightning-fast Gigabitbroadband

Thetitle of ‘pub of the year’isacoveted onein thelicensedtrade.

Forthe Beacon HotelinSedgley, it’s become somethingofatradition,havingwon theDudleyand SouthStaffordshire branch of the Campaign forRealAle’s (CAMRA) annual pub of theyearaward for thetenth time

It’s an awardbyCAMRA which carriesgreat weightasitmeans it’s seen as validation forthe hard workbythe owners andstaff to keep thebeer flowingand thepub as aplace of welcome

The19thcentury inn is alandmark in thevillage. It wasbuiltin the1850s andhas been aplacefor agood pint sincethen, several of whichare brewed in theadjacent SarahHughesBrewery andsoldin greatvolumebehindthe bar.

Beacon HotelLimited director SimonMasseysaysthe twowork together,withthe beer brewed onsitebeing sold in thepub,something whichhas been happeningfor more than 100years He explains:“Thebreweryhas been setupsince 1921 when the

Hughes family firsttookoverthe pub, with SarahHughesbuying thepub andthe brewerycoming with it

“Thisbrewery hadactually closeddownin1955, butthenJohn Hughes reinstated it in 1987 andis still theowner of thepub andthe brewery.

“It’sstill classedasa micro-breweryaswe’re only an eight-barrel breweryata time,but it’s enough forustobring beerintothe pub.”

On entering the Beacon,aneatly painted building on BilstonStreet, you’reinstantly caught by the smellofporkscratchings andthe instantwarmthofthe pubinthe main walkway, with soundsofconversationscomingfromeachofthe threerooms surroundingthe bar

andthe larger back room near the beer garden

The two rooms at the front contain wooden andleather padded seatingand tables,as well as a fire placeand picturesonthe way, givingpeoplea placetosit in peace with theirpint, whilethe Smoke Room is abigger, more elaborate area with more tables andseats

Thebar itself lookslikeitwas fitted in around thebuildingworkof thesmokeroomand adjacent front room,withhatches allowing people to orderfromthose rooms into the bar, whilethe main hatch is in the hallway.

In there, you’ll find thethree SarahHughesbeers that go by the gallon each month, thefourper cent Amber, sixper cent Ruby and

five percentSurprise,aswellas guest beers from Bristol Beer Factory andBlueMonkey.

Thebeerchoices reflectthe independentspiritofthe pub, with theonlylager on sale beingfrom SamSmith’s Brewery, whilethere arealso theessential barsnacksof crunchyporkscratchings,peanuts andcobs.

TheRuby is the headline beer, having won numerous award, and acting barmanager Kirsti Massey said thepub will sell multiplecasks of Ruby aweek, whichequates to 144beers in acask.

Mr Massey says thethree beersonthe barare standards forthe pub, whilebeerslikethe award-winningSnowflakeare seasonalfavourites. He also speaks about thephilosophyofthe beers.

Traditional

“The philosophy of thebeers is that we brew them in theold traditional wayand is also down to the qualityofthe beersaseverything is recorded andfollowedthrough

“The qualityspeaks foritselfas we’vewon lots of awards forour beers, with Ruby beingthe main awardwinner andthe one we seem to winwithatmostbeerfestivals.

“The Ruby is greatbecause of thevariety of flavours within the beer andit’squite amoreish beer as once you tasteit, you’llwant more

“The Beacon Hotelitself is specialbecause we’vegot generations of families whichhavegrown up with theBeaconand they come back,withsometimesmorethan four generationssitting around the tablein thepub.”

Back to the1940s with fashion, food andmusic

Thefashion,music andfood of the 1940s will play outatthe nation’s placeofpeace across theMay Bank Holidayweekend

TheNationalMemorialArboretum in AlrewasinStaffordshire will transport visitors back in time to 1944 with thelaunchofacommemorative programmemarking the80thanniversaries of many landmark momentsofthe Second WorldWar on May4and 5.

Lots of 1940s vintagefashion andmusic aficionados, living history enthusiasts andfamilies lookingfor auniqueday outwill be able to enjoyafreeweekend of live music, pop up performances,dance workshops andchildren’s vintage themed crafts andgames

From theD-Day landings on 6 June whichheraldedthe beginning of theliberationofwestern Europe to theBattles of Kohima andImphalinIndia that helped turn thetide againstthe Japanese

forces,1944was ayearofseismic change

Therewerealsosignificant developments on thehome front, with continuedfood rationingand more thanamillion children evacuated from cities duetothe threat posed by V1and V2 missileattacks

As thenation’syear-roundplace to remember,the National Memorial Arboretum is offering acomprehensive programmeofevents andactivitiesthroughoutthe year, includinga new‘1944 -What’s Your Connection?’ exhibition, guided walks,talks andremembrance services

Rachel Smith, head of learning andparticipationatthe National Memorial Arboretum,said: “At thearboretum this year we will be taking visitors on ajourney back to 1944 through real storiesfrom people on both thefrontline and thehome front.

“We’ll be kickingitall offwith

aweekend packed full of free 1944-themedactivities, music, danceand performances to remember andcelebrate life in Britainduringthatlandmarkyear.”

Theevent will kick offseveral monthsofeventscommemorating 80 yearssinceD-Day,which will featurearemembranceservice at theArboretum on June 6commemoratingthe Normandy campaign;a majorturning pointinthe Second WorldWar that ledtothe eventual liberation of WesternEurope.

This year also marksthe 80th anniversaries of many othercriticalmomentsofthe Second World Warand visitors areinvited to join an actofremembranceat11am in theArboretum’s Millennium Chapel on May18, followed by a wreath laying at therelevantmemorial

Formoreinformation aboutthe events andstories from 1944,goto thenma.org.uk/1944

ThevillageofDittonPriors cannow get‘unprecedented’ internet speeds afteracompany, thecouncil andthe government combined to roll outascheme usingthe GigabitBroadband VoucherScheme

JulieBushell,Kloud9’scommunity engagement manager, said:“Gigabit broadband has become anecessity rather than aluxury

“Rural villages like Ditton Priorsare in real danger of beingleftinthe broadband dark ages.Itwas apleasuretowork so closely with thecommunity.”

Kloud9 began theproject in August 2023 to ensurethe community’sinclusion in terms of advanced broadbandinfrastructure. It is theresultofa collaborative effort between Kloud9,the UK Government, andShropshireCouncil’s ConnectingShropshireprogramme

Theproject wasmadepossible in part thanks to thegovernment’s voucherscheme, which aims to connect businesses and residents in some of thehardest-to-reach places in theUKto gigabit-capablebroadband

Solicitorsmake

move to new city centre offi

ce

Law firm mfgSolicitorshas increasedits presenceinBirmingham with amovetoanew city centre office

Thelegal firm hasmovedfrom itsJewellery QuarterofficesinSt Paul’s Square to thethird floorof Waterloo HouseonWaterlooStreet

The2,500 sq ft of officesoverlook Victoria Square andinclude avarietyofprivate meetingrooms forclients, breakout areasand open plan desk space.

Iain Morrison, chairman of mfg Solicitors said:“It’s been sixyears sincewemoved into theBirminghammarketand sincethenwe have significantly grownour offeringand presence,helpedbyadding furtherexpertise to ourteam. That hasultimatelyallowed us to take on additional clients, especially on the corporate, commercialpropertyand employment sides.

“The newoffice is rightinthe middle of thecitybut more importantly,it’sreallyaccessible and hasthe capacity to copewithour furthergrowthinthe monthsand yearsahead.The feedback from clientshas alreadybeenextremely positive.”

The firm,which also hasoffices in Kidderminster,Ludlow andTelford,movedintothe Birmingham market in 2018 followingthe acquisition of law firm PearsonRowe.

The firm officiallyopenedthe new office at an eventattendedby more than 100people.

Thelandmark Beacon HotelinSedgley brewsits ownselection of beers

GNARLSBARKLEY

Crazy

NE-YO

So Sick

MORRISSEY

YouHave Killed Me

EMBRACE

Nature’sLaw

ORSON No Tomorrow

KOOKS

Naive

BLACKEYEDPEAS

Pump It

STREETS

When YouWasn’tFamous

PUSSYCAT DOLLS

Beep

PINK Stupid Girls

Advertising executivePeter Bayless wonthe finalofMasterChefGoes

Large. Alongwithfellow finalists digger driver DeanEdwards andfull-time mum Daksha Pravin,hecompetedina week long series of challenges. They included cooking amealatthe Ritz for some of thecountry’s most distinguished chefs, andpreparing breakfastfor 1,000 guests aboard the QE2.

Morethan4,000 amateurchefs appliedtobeonthe programme.

FLASHBACKTO

Anew surgery, aschoolset to closeand ramblersstepout

HEATHER LARGE Senior featuresWriter

Hundreds of residents took theopportunity to have alookround a village’snew £2million health centre during a special open evening.

TheGnosall practice,withmore than 7,000patientsonits books, outgrewits Wharfe Road surgery andhad to find newpremises.

It movedintothe newpurpose builtpremises on thecornerof Brookhouse Road andKnightley Road

Andtocelebrate,the team threw thedoors open forall to seethe new services available, with medical staffonhandtoanswerany questions.

SurgeryGPDrMickMulligan said he wasoverwhelmed at the number of people whotookaninterest

“Itwas fantastic,”hesaid. “Hundredsofpeople turned up andwe were busy from openingat6pm to closingat8.30pm

“And we hadsome very goodcomments, everybodywas pleasedand supportive andalot expressedsurprise at thesizeofthe newsurgery.”

Dr Mulliganadded: “I wassurprisedatthe number of people who turned up andverypleased with theircomments.”

Thedevelopmenthad been taking shapefor thepastyearand wasdue to be officiallyopenedthe following month.

Medicalservicesweretransferred from theold surgery, thepharmacy wasinplace anddentalservices were to be addedatalater stage.

In 2006,the average housecost £117,144 –atleast £172,202in2024. Theaverage salary was£18,525, whichis£27,232intoday’smoney. A litre of fuel cost81p while theaverage carwas £13,250, which wouldset youback £19,478now Theaverage priceofaloafofbread was84p,a1.5kg sack of flour was 61p, andabag of sugarwas 69pand a400g block of cheese was£2.19

COST OF LIVING IN THENEWS

PrinceHarry marchedinfront of the Queen at hispassingout ceremonyat Sandhurst.Ashecommissioned as an officerinthe Army,the 21-year-old thirdinlinetothronetookpartinthe military college’s Sovereign’s Parade He waswatched by Prince Charles, Camillaand Prince William.Nearly 450cadets took part,including around 220who were passingout and receiving their commissions.

Residentsand councillorswere pressing transportbossestoprovide extra services to help elderly residents gettothe practice,which is on thenorthernoutskirts of the village.

Parish councilclerk Cynthia Spencersaidaproblem wasthat thevillageislongand linear,sono matter wherethe newmedical centre wassited therewould be some peoplewho wouldhavetotravelfurther than they didbefore.

County councilchiefswerebeing askedtoconsiderextending therurallinkbus routeinGnosall to includethe surgery.

ThemajorityofGnosall residents hadsupported theplanbut people living near thesitehad complained it wastoo bigand criticisedthe design

Some residents also fear thecar park will increase trafficcongestion andencourage youngsterstocongregate.

Meanwhile, hundreds of campaigning parentslosttheir fightto convincecouncillorstogive their failingprimary school another

chance.Beechdale PrimarySchool, in Walsall, wasput into special measures earlyin2006afterOfsted inspectors foundthatsome children were leaving withoutbeing ableto read or writeproperly.

Followingasix-weekconsultation period, whereparents pleaded forthe school to be givenachance to turn itself around,councillors decidedtoclose it down when the cabinetmet Children wouldbesenttoother boroughprimaries from September.Councillor EddieHughes said:“This is aterriblyemotional issuebut we have hadalongtime to thinkabout it.You only getone chance with achild’s educationand we need to make surewemakethe most of it.”

Parentsspokeswoman Sally-AnneVurlan, aged 25,toldthe cabinetmeeting:“We canmake Beechdaleafantastic school once

againifitisgiven afresh startfrom September

“Children whoare there nowdo enjoylearning– we really want it to workand believeitcan.”

Meanwhile, aSandwellgroup of walkersare showingyou’renever toooverthe hill to take up thehobby of rambling

Sandwell Ramblersboastsawide agerange,fromeight to theoldest member whowas still walkingthe hillsand valleysofthe countryat 82

Thegroup organisedregular walksacrossthe countryside,and memberssaidpeople of anyage couldjoin.

Thewinterprogramme featured walksofuptoeight miles on Sundays, Tuesdays andWednesdays, whilethe summer season saw memberstakingonlonger, 12-mile walks. Therewas also alongdistancegroup whichlastyearclocked

up 100miles in 43 hoursand it was also planning asummer trip to Peru

JohnCraxford, chairman of the groupsaidhe lovedthe walks

The77-year-old added: “Wehave averyvariedmix of people.There is agreater awarenessofkeeping fit these days andpeoplewanttoget outand about.”

“Weget around 50 people who regularlycome on thewalks and they have agreat time.”

Thegroup wasformedin1993 andhad gone from strength to strength over the13years.It was affiliated to thenationalRamblers Association

Therewas also arange of coach andboattrips throughout theyear, as well as anumberofsocialevents in theevening

Leaderswerekeentosee more people on therambles andare invitingwould-bewalkers to take part

Ellie-MayHems,aged five, joins theprotestagainstBeechdale Primary SchoolclosureoutsideWalsallTownHall

Doctors andpatientsgatheroutsidethe newGnosallMedical CentreSandwellRamblersmembers

Funeral Service has been arranged to takeplace on

Arrangefromaslittle as £1,050 and ourexperienced, caring,and localteamwill supportyou every step of the way Emailhellowearedirectcremations.co.uk orcall03331882810 to request afreeInformation Pack www.wearedirectcremations.co.uk

Restoredmanor site is listed in DomesdayBook

AJacobeanmanor housethatwas restored to itsformergloryinthe 1980s is nowonthe market with a guideprice of around £1.5million.

Thepicturespublished by property agents KnightFrank andRightmove show thebuildinginits beautifulcountryside setting andallow viewerstogoonatourofthe colourfulpropertyinthe hamlet of Eudon George,nearBridgnorth.

Anditissteepedin history, with theDomesdayBookrecording that therehad been adwelling on thesite sincethe Norman Conquest in the 11th century.

Theagentssay that thebuilding wascompleted in 1618 butfellinto disrepairbeforethe 1980s

Butitwas “restoredtoits formerglory using skilful, traditional building techniquesand materials. Improvements andcareful custodianship have continuedsince,preservingone of the finest examples of this period of property.”

There’salso abarnconversion on thesitewhich wascompleted by thecurrent owners in 2018 and hasaccommodationacrosstwo floors.There is also planning permissioninplace forfurther further development anduptothree bedroomsifrequired.The garden and groundsare offalong, sweeping gravel drivethat“windsbetween theeastern paddocks, openinginto alarge parkingareatothe side of

themanor,adjacenttothe barns” Formal groundslie to thesouth, includingalarge,terraced area and poolsurroundedbywellstocked and carefullyplanted beds.Beyondthe gardenstothe southand east is a woodland area anddingleoffering apeacefulwildlifewalk, alongwith aproductive orchardand kitchen garden.Fourfencedand gatedpaddocksofpermanent grazingprovide an environmentfor horses andlivestock, with amanègetothe north Formoredetails visitwww.rightmove.co.uk

MP:‘It should notbetoo much to ask to be able to seeGPwhen youneedto’

Thenumberoffour-week waitsfor a GP appointmentroseby62per cent in Shropshire last year,new research hasrevealed.

LiberalDemocrats say they examined NHSdatameasuring thetime betweenwhenaGPappointment was booked andwhenittookplace, broken down by localNHS areasacrossEngland

andthat’swhy Iwanttosee thelaw changed to give patients more rights

Callusforadviceandsupport

Prepaidfuneralplansavailable

Everysinglelocal area inthe countrysaw arise in four-weekGPwaits in 2023 compared to theprevious year –withShropshire, Telfordand Wrekin seeing theeighth largestrise in four-weekwaits thecountry,out of the112 NHStrusts.

In 2022 therewere79,437patients whowaitedfourweeks foranappointment,withthannumberrisingto 128,596in2023.

NorthShropshireMPHelen Morganhas claimedthatthe Government has‘failed to geta grip on theGPcrisis’ andisleaving patientsinlimbo LiberalDemocratMPs arecalling forpatientstobegivena legalright to seetheir GP within seven days –or 24-hours if in urgent need

This comesasasurveybythe King’s Fund foundonlya thirdofpeopleare satisfied with GP services,the lowest sincerecords beganin1983. Since2019, satisfactionwithGPserviceshas fallen by 34 percent.

MrsMorgansaid: “The Government hasfailedtoget agriponthe GP crisis andpatientsacrossShropshire arewaitingfar toolongfor appointmentsasa result

“Itshouldnot be toomuchtoask to be able to seeaGPwhenyou need to

“Patientsnow face apostcode lottery when it comestoappointments, with hugely differentresults even betweennearbyvillages.It is no wonder we have such problems with ambulancewaits andfull A&Es at Shrewsbury andTelford when thebasicsof care aresosorelylacking.Weneed an urgent packageofsupport forlocal services,and legalrightsfor patients to getanappointment within seven days or 24-hours if in urgent need.”

Nicola Williams, Associate Director of PrimaryCareatNHS Shropshire, Telfordand Wrekin,saidthe figures are“notwhatwewishtosee”but added that therehad been arise in the number of appointments how offered.

Sheaddedthatalocal improvement plan is in placeinrecognition of the increase in waitingtimes

Shesaid: “General Practice (GP) access remainsatop priority, both locally andnationally, andwecontinueto workhardtowards ourimprovement targetsfor thecounty.

“The latest data does representan increase in waitingtimes forGPappointments,howeveralocal system improvementplanisinplace.Thisis working towardsenhancing appointment capacity,buildingconfidencein newwaysofaccessingprimary care services,and ensuring people areseen by therighthealthcareprofessional at therighttime. This includes an enhanced offeravailable at community pharmacies,accesstoextended healthcare teams within General Practice,and theNHS Approllout.”

Picture: KnightFrank/ Rightmove

Majestic hascompleted arescuedealtobuy wine barchain Vagabond from administration TheUK’slargestspecialist wine retailer confirmed talks over apotential move last month afterVagabond Wineswentinto insolvency.

On Friday,Majesticconfirmed it hascompleted theacquisition, whichwill secure the future of nine Vagabond venues and171 workers

Theholding companybehind Thames Waterhas told creditors it hasdefaulted on some of itsdebts

It comesafter Kemble Water FinanceLimited failed to meet adeadlinetopay interest paymentsdue on the firm’s debt Thames Water’s financial struggles worsenedwhenitsaid itsinvestors hadpulled a£500 millionfunding lifelinetobe paid at theend of April.

Gooch& Housego, thespecialistmanufacturerofphotonic components andsystems, says revenue forthe sixmonthsto theend of March is expected to be around £67.5million

Thegroup hasseensome customers in industrial andmedical lasermarkets normalise theirinventory holdingsresultinginlowerlevelsofdemandfor products.Revenue wasdown from £71.3m ayearearlier

Tescoisset forprofitriseas salescontinuetosee growth

Shareholderswill be hopefulassupermarket giantupdates themarketonWednesday

Tescoisexpectedtoreveal higher profits as saleshavecontinued to grow despiteaslowdown in food priceinflation.

Investorshavebeeninpositive spiritsin recent months, particularlyafter Tescoupgradedits profit targetsina post-Christmas trading update

Itssharesstrucktheir highest levelfor almost twoyears as aresult,withthe retail giant’sinvestment in pricinghelping to maintain growth despitecompetition from fast-growing discount rivals

Shareholders in thebusinesswill be hopefulthatthiscan translate to anotherpositive tradingoutlook when it updatesthe market on Wednesday.

Tesco’sfull-yearresults areexpected to show adjusted operating profits of about£2.9billion forthe year to February,according to a consensus of analysts

That is compared with profits of £2.63billion forthe previous year

Meanwhile, grouprevenues, excludingVAT,are expected to rise to £68.8billion forthe year,from£65.7

STOCKS &SHARES

Thosestill holdingout hope that London’s topindex canpushto all-time highs soon were dealt anotherblow onFridayasthe FTSE 100closedthe week with afairlysteepdrop.

TheFTSE100 fell 64.73 points,or0.81%,toend theday at 7,911.1

Retailersespeciallyseemedto lead thedownwards push, with Ocado, JD Sports, B&Qowner Kingfisher,Sainsbury’s and Primarkowner AB Foodsall dropping towardsthe bottom of theindex

ChrisBeauchamp,chief market analystatonline trading platform IG,saidthatthe fall in theFTSEand otherEuropeanmarketscamelargely in response to dropsinNew York on Thursday evening. Frankfurt’s Daxindex fell 1.30%,while the Cac40inParis hadcloseddown 1.11%. Wall Street itself was playingcatch up with theS&P 500up1.08% andthe DowJones up 0.79%shortly afterEuropean marketsclosed.

Mr Beauchampsaid: “After Thursday’s yielddrivengains in London,Fridayhas seen thereverse,thoughthe FTSE 100still looksin agoodplace to make furthergains thanks to arosier earnings outlook.”

On currency marketsthe poundhad fallen 0.08% against thedollarat1.2633

billion.Overthe past twoyears, revenue growth hasbeensupported by soaringfood anddrink price inflation.

However,thishas slowed significantlymorerecently as commodity andenergycostreductionsfeed through supply chains,withthe BritishRetailConsortiumrevealinggrocery priceinflationdropped to 1.3% last month.But analysts have suggestedthiscould provide afurther opportunityfor Tesco to grow itsvolumes andshare of thegrocery market by continuing itsambitious, price-cutting programme

Sophie Lund-Yates,leadequity analystatHargreavesLansdown, said:“Investorswill be lookingfor furtherproof of volumeuplifts as pricecutscontinueasinflationtempers.Withthatin mind,itwillbe theoutlook statementthatholds themostweightwhere sentimentis concerned.”

Jefferiesanalyst JamesGrzinic said thesupermarket giant“should confirm anotherimpressiveyear”

Shellgas tradingtofall

Shellhas revealed tradinginits gasdivisioninrecent monthsis settodropafteran“exceptional” endtothe year

Thecompany sawits annual profits fall in 2023 comparedwith thepreviousyearwhensoaring oilpricesdrove profits to an alltime high Butits performancepickedup in the finalquarter with under-

lyingearnings, includingtaxes, boostedby17% compared with thepreviousthree monthsto more than 7billion US dollars (£5.6billion). In thelatestupdate to shareholders, Shellsaiditexpectstrading in itsintegrated gasdivision betweenJanuary and March to be “strong butsignificantly lowerthanan exceptional” finalquarter

TOP 10 MOVEMENTS

PUZZLES

PUT YOUR BRAIN POWER TO THE TEST WITH THESE CONUNDRUMS

QUIZ CHALLENGE

1. In which English county is Ilfracombe?

2. Which day in the Christian calendar is also known as Mardi Gras?

3. In which film did Dustin Hoffman play acharacter called Benjamin Braddock?

4. What is the literal translation of the Latin phrase ‘bona fide’?

5. Which Brazilian city is overlooked by agiant figureofChrist?

ABCD EFGHIJ KLMNOPQ RST UVWXYZ

Each number in the codeword grid represents adifferent letter of the alphabet.You havetwo letters in the control grid to start you off. Enter them in theappropriatesquares in the maingrid, then use your knowledge of words to workout which letters should go in the missing squares.

As you getthe letters, fill in other squares with thesame number in the main grid and control grid. Check offthe alphabetical listof letters as you identify them.

NINER

The numbers from 1to9represent different letters. Solve the clues and insert the letters in the appropriate squares to find the answer

347889 gives afruit; 921 gives avegetable; 652356 gives avitamin.

SUDOKU

Each row, column and 3x3 box must contain numbers 1to9

LAST FRIDAY’S SOLUTIONS

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD

6. Which former trade union (now part of Unite) wasknown by the initials TGWU?

7. What is the Tsar Kolokol III, the largest known existing example of its type in the world?

8. By what name is 6June 1944 better known?

9. Which British novelist wrote Dombey and Son?

10. Which football team played at Highbury until 2006?

WORDWISE JUST SO

SPIRAL

The wordmay sound familiar,but do you know what it means?

CLEPSYDRA

A Jingle in two short couplets

B Critical period

C Water clock

Young cow

Which well-known saying or expression can be found below?

(3,2,3,5)

WORDSEARCH

Pool of money

Nobleman

Therefore

Eject

Long, shallow basket

Young female

Cooking fat

Extinct bird

the ear

burrow

Keywordclue: Avegetable

ACROSS DOWN

6. 100 girls in student groups (7)

7. Start with ahalf of beer and spirit (5)

9. Study atrick (3)

10. Giving out that Iam getting aseparation (9)

12. Give attention to having to provide apercentage on loan (3,8)

15. Advice to hitchhiker wanting to get up? (4,3,4)

17. They give judgments about cake in tests (9)

19. Old priest of 15, the Spanish one (3)

21. Give tuition in vehicle (5)

22. It settles the issue when half the side have adrink (7)

1. Not getting involved with an idiot standing on his head (5)

2. or another in his pyjamas stroking an animal (3)

3. Paper seen about in the morning (4)

4. The gambler gets away, becoming wealthier (6,3)

5. It’snews for the person testifying (7)

8. Lament round the fireplace? (6)

11. Document returned without hardcover (9)

13. Wherethe cards not yet used are(2,4)

14. Country lover unfortunately apt to brawl (7)

16. Worked and told stories at Peterhead (5)

18. It’scooked the Welsh emblem (4)

20. Acover for the eye (3)

WORDSQUARE QUICK CROSSWORD

How many words of four letters or morecan you make from this Word Square? Each wordmust use the central letter,and each letter may be used only once. At least one wordusing all nine letters can be found. Proper nouns and plurals arenot allowed, however verb forms ending in ‘s’ arepermitted.

Guidelines

9Good; 12 Very Good; 15 Excellent.

AADIGITALAERIALS

CLOUDY2 CLEAR WINDOWS

TADPLUMBING &HEATING

RRS ROOFING

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Youwon’tbeimpressedwhenacolleagueadmitstohavinglanded an assignment or contract through underhanded means. This may causethem some amusement,but not so you. Youare quiteclear about your principles and youwill not be persuaded intoagreeing thattheirmethodsareokay.

MAY22-JUNE 21

Be prepared to giveother people time to explain their views and voicetheiropinions.Newbusinessopportunitieswillcomethrough existingbusinessandsocialcontacts.Someoneyouhavenotalways gotonwellwithwillputanexcitingofferyourway.

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OCTOBER 24 -NOVEMBER 22

Toomuchresponsibilitycandrainyourenergy.Pushingyourselfhard isallwellandgoodbutyouhavebeenneglectingyourhealth.Adding afairamountofexerciseintoyourdailyroutineandeatingnutritious foodwillbeagoodwaytobreakdestructivehabits.

NOVEMBER 23 -DECEMBER 21

Asfarasyouareconcerned,developingyourcreativeskillsisnota wasteoftime,assomeonemayimply.Anythingthatstimulatesyour imaginationwilltakefirstplacetoworkandstudyinterests.Creative pastimesbringthemostpleasureandsatisfaction.

DECEMBER 22 -JANUARY20

Afreshsetofcircumstanceswillblowlikeawelcomebreezethrough your home and family life. Aloved one who has been awkwardin attitudewillwanttomakeupfortheirrecentbehaviour.Ifyou’vebeen lookingforanewplacetoliveandyoufindthehouseofyourdreams, don’thesitatetoshowyourinterest

JANUARY21-FEBRUARY 19

Showcaseyour strengths if youare going on an interview. Smile look confident and keep reminding yourself that youhavetosell yourselftogetahead.Negativethinkingwilldriveopportunityfrom yourdoor.Afriendorlovedone’sencouragementwillhelpbolster yourconfidence

FEBRUARY 20 -MARCH 20

Ifyou’relookingatfinancesitwillbemainlywithaviewtohowyou mightimprovethese.Thismaymeanplanningandmakingchanges which in the long-term should bring some benefitevenifitdoes requireyoutoputyourselfonastrictbudget

BMW 135i CABRIOLET

2011, 26,027 miles, blue, ABS, electric windows, air bag, air con, full service history, alarm, MOT, automatic, metallic paint, central locking, cruise control, PAS, alloys, stereo, CD player, navigation system, leather interior.

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BMW 320D, 2018, 190, silver, 5dr, full heated leather interior, heated steering wheel, 46,900 miles, 12 months MoT, full BMW service history, four run flat tyres, worth £450 plus, alloys, excellent condition, drives like new.

£12,799.

Telephone 07787 410300.

MAZDA MX5

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£4,000.

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RENAULT CLIO 1.2 3dr, red, 2010, 40K, one previous owner, e/w, PAS, C/L, ABS,

£1,795 o.n.o.

Telephone 07779 455916

SMART CAR CONVERTIBLE 2008, 999cc, 66,000 miles, long MOT, drives well, bodywork and interior very, very good all round, drives well, reliable. £1,550.

VOLKSWAGEN MOVE UP 2012 reg, 999cc, Zero tax, MoT’d December, black, 3dr hatchback, 71,000 miles, group 2insurance.

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Telephone 07908 248630.

CAR TRAILER

VAUXHALL ZAFIRA 1.6 LIFE 55 plate, seven seater, black, 51,000 miles, black out windows, very good condition, excellent drive, very reliable, one previous owner, two keys. £1,099

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TOYOTA LANDCRUISER INVINCIBLE DIESEL AUTO 2008, 8Seater, all usual extras, sunroof, 89,000 miles with history, full MOT, very clean vehicle.

£10,750

Call 07836 204450.

Department forTransport

TOWN AND COUNTRYPLANNING ACT1990

The Secretary of State givesnoticeofthe proposal to makean Orderunder section 247 of the aboveAct to authorise the stopping up of an irregular shaped area of highway vergetothe north of Hazel Lane at GreatWyrley in South Staffordshire. If made,the Order would authorise the stopping up onlytoenable developmentaspermitted by South StaffordshireCouncil, under references 13/00498/OUT and 16/01023/REM.

Copies of the draft Order and relevant plan will be availablefor inspection during normal opening hours at South Staffordshire Council, WolverhamptonRoad, Codsall, WV8 1PX in the 28 days commencing on 08 April 2024, and maybeobtained, free of charge,fromthe addresses stated belowquoting NATTRAN/WM/S247/5555.

Anypersonmay object to the making of the proposed order by statingtheir reasons in writing to the Secretary of State at nationalcasework@dft.gov.uk or National Transport Casework Team, Tyneside House,Skinnerburn Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE4 7AR, quoting the abovereference.Objections should be receivedbymidnight on 06 May2024.You areadvised that your personal data and correspondence will be passed to the applicant/ agenttoenableyour objection to be considered. If youdonot wish your personal data to be forwarded, please state your reasons when submitting your objection.

SZamenzadeh, Casework Manager

DUDLEYMETROPOLITANBOROUGHCOUNCIL

ROADTRAFFICREGULATIONACT1984SECTION14(1)

DUDLEYMETROPOLITANBOROUGHCOUNCIL

(TEMPORARYCLOSUREOFHOWLEYGRANGEROAD, HALESOWEN)ORDER2024

NOTICEISHEREBYGIVENthatDudleyMetropolitanBoroughCouncil intendsto�a�eanOrder,thee�ectso��hich�ill�ethete�poraryclosure o�Ho�leyGrangeRoad,Haleso�en,�ro�the�unction�ithCarters�aneto outsideno1��Ho�leyGrangeRoad

Thepurposeo�therestrictionsisto sa�ely�acilitategas�ainsreplace�ent�or�sonornearthea�ectedroad TheOrder�illco�einto�orceonMonday��nd�pril����andthe�or�s areanticipatedto�eco�pletedon�ednesday1stMay�����TheOrder �ayre�ainin�orce�oraperiodo�upto1��onths,oruntilthe�or�sare co�pleted,�hiche�eristheearlier

Di�ersions �or all �ehicular tra�cshall �e �ia� Carters �ane, Bourne ��enue,�ydateRoad,Ho�leyGrangeRoad,and�ice�ersa �ccessto�rontagesand�ore�ergencyser�ices�ill�e�aintained�here sa�etodoso

�ny�ueriesonthete�poraryrestrictionsi�posed,should�e�adeon ��1�����1�����

Tore�uestthisdocu�entinlargeprinteasyread�or�ats,oranalternati�e language,call�������������

TheCouncilHouse,PrioryRoad,Dudley,DY11HF D�TEOFISS�E���pril����

GOODSVEHICLE OPERATOR’SLICENCE

ACollins of Trailer Freight Int LtdofUnit A4 &A5Regal Drive,WalsallEnterprisePark Walsall,WS29HQisapplying fora licencetouse Unit 14 Union Park,Navigation Way, West Bromwich, B70 9DF as an operating centre for8goods vehicles and 4trailers.

Ownersoroccupiersofland (including buildings) near the operating centre(s) who believe that their useor enjoymentofthatlandwould be a�ected, should make written representations to the Tra�cCommissioner at HillcrestHouse,386Harehills Lane,Leeds LS96NF stating their reasons, within 21 days of this notice. Representor mustatthesametimesend copyoftheirrepresentations to theapplicant at the address given at the to of this notice. AGuide to Making Representations is available from the Tra�c Commissioner�sO�ce Dated:April8,2024

Aldridge &District Dog Training Club

Annual General Meeting

Thursday 25th April 2024 at 7-30 pm

Aldridge Community Centre Middlemore Lane, Aldridge. WS9 8AN

10 PERSONAL

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Maxalready hastitle in thebag –Toto

Mercedes bossTotoWolff insistsMax Verstappen’s fourth consecutive title is alreadyaforegoneconclusion afterthe RedBulldriver cruisedtovictory at theJapanese Grand Prix.

Verstappen returned to winningwaysindominant fashionasthe reigning drivers’ championtriumphed at Suzuka

Having retiredlasttime outinAustralia,itwas normalservice resumedfor theDutchmanashe led

home aRed Bull one-two with Sergio Perez finishing second

In what is FormulaOne’s longest-ever season there arestill 20 racesremaining, butWolff wasinno doubtthathefeels Verstappenwillonceagain be untouchable.

“No-oneisgoing to catch Maxthisyear,”hesaid. “His drivingand thecar arejust spectacular.

“You cansee theway he manages thetyres andbasi-

callythisseasonnow is best of therest. If Iwas to look from apuresportingpoint of view it is P1 what matters, not P2,P3orP4but this is thereality that we arefacing at themoment

“We’re trying to do the best outofthisnew reality andthatistobeatour competitors whileacknowledgingthatsomebody is just doingabetterjob andsetting the benchmarkthatweeventually need to setourselves again.”

ThePoundland BescotStadium hosted EnglandUnder-18Schoolboysovercoming their counterpartsfromthe Republic of Ireland 4-0inthe SAFIBCentenary Shield on Friday night Picture: GarryGriffiths/ThreeFiveThreePhotography

Ton-up Alicashes in on Bears again

Kashif Alifollowedhis impressive firstinnings maidencentury with an even better knock as Worcestershiredominated thethirdday of theirVitality County ChampionshipDivision Onederby with Warwickshire at Edgbaston.

Kashif’s 110 firsttimeround wasstylish work, butthe SouthAsian CricketAcademy graduate surpasseditwitha gorgeous 133 (128 balls) as Worcestershire amassed237 fortwo to lead by 264going into the finalday

ThePears arescentingtheir firstchampionshipwin at Edgbaston since1993after outplaying thehome side with batand ball on daythree

Warwickshirelosttheir last five wicketsfor 27 to fold to 333 allout (NathanSmith three for49, Adam Finchthree for56).Thatgave thevisitorsaleadof27which they enhanced in highly entertaining fashionas Kashif struck 16 foursand five sixes, supported by Jake Libby(75 notout,137 balls)

Kashif’s brilliance had seta platform for hissidetopress home theiradvantage in the eveningsession,but they were deniedthe opportunitybyrainwhich closed in to lopoff thelast28overs.

With furtherrainaroundtoday,Brett D’Oliviera’s side maybedeniedtimetopush forvictory,but they have returned to Division Onein fine style.

Libbysaid: “Itwas anothergoodday forus. We finished theirinnings offreallywellthis morning.

“Nathanreallyshowedhis classand experience with theKookaburraball. To bowl at theeconomy rate he didand getthe ball off straight, whichhad been abattle, showed his quality.

“ThenKashifbatted brilliantly. Thereare only so many superlatives to describe hisbatting this weekend. Ithink he madebatting on that pitchlookalot easier than it is

“Itwas ajoy to watch from theother end. He mademy jobeasy–Ijustgot singles and watched himdestroythem. Idon’t think Warwickshireknewwhattodoattimes

“Itwas ashame to lose thelastsession to

rain.Thathas condensedthe game so we’ll have athink tonightabout how to trytoput pressure on them.”

Warwickshire’snew era,under thecaptaincy of Alex Davies,meanwhile,has madea less than golden start.

Davies said:“It wasa toughday.Wehad plansthismorning abouthow we couldget past theirtotal andthengoonand trytowin thegamebut it wasadisappointingsession to lose those five wicketssoquickly

“CredittoKashif.Hehas playedtwo wonderfulknocksinthismatch. He attacked us really well andtimes andthenabsorbedthe pressure when we bowled ourbetterspellsat him.

“You cansee from thescoresaroundthe countrythatthere arealot less wicketsfallingand,ofcourse,the Kookaburra ball is a factor,but we have gottoadapt andwehaven’t quitenailedour skillswiththe newball in this game

“Kashif hasshownthatrunscan be scored quicklyonthispitch andwewill fancyour chancesofchasing anytarget. We’llsee how aggressive they arewiththeir declaration.”

Making cutwould be awin forWoods PERRY BARR Tomorrow

TigerWoodswill inevitably sayheisthere to winthe Masterswhenhe giveshis pre-tournament pressconferencetomorrow.

Woodshas always insisted he only enters events if he thinks he can“getthe W”,no matter thestateofhis game or hisbody, and writingoff the15-time majorwinner hasalways been adangerous game

Yetthere is no escapingthe fact that the 48-year-oldhas played fewerthan five-and-ahalf competitive roundssince undergoing anklesurgery in Aprillastyearafterwithdrawingfromthe Mastersduringthe thirdround

Having madearecord-equalling 23rd consecutive cutat AugustaNationallastyear, Woods’ most realistictargetappears to be separatinghimself from Fred Couplesand Gary Playerin therecord booksbyextending thatstreak to 24

Two-time US Open winner andESPNanalyst Andy Northsaid: “I thinkplaying on the weekendwould be awin.

“He’sgoing to tell youthathe’sthere be-

causehethinkshecan winthe tournament buttoberealistic,whathe’sgonethrough you wouldn’t wish on yourworst enemy.

“Whathehas to do to getready to go out andtry to play golf everysingleday is very, verydifficult.Justtoget himthere andget around forthe week andplaysome good golf andhit some nice shots, Ithink that would be awesome

“Wesaw himinLA(at theGenesis Invitational)and Ithought he lookedalot better walkingaroundfromthatstandpoint.Then hisbackwentout on him. We haven’t seen himsince

“There’s talk he’s been playingsome golf, he’s been practising.He’sbeendoing what he needstodo, but we really don’t know.Ishis back okay?

“We’ve talked so much sincethe (car)accidentabout hisleg andhow hard it is to walk andall these other things,but we really don’t know.To me,it’salwaysinteresting to see what we seeout of him.”

Worcestershire’sKashifAli Pic: StuLeggett

Pitmen claim an impressive draw

PRESCOTCABLES ................ 1 HEDNESFORD TOWN 1

Hednesford baggeda valuable point in theirbid forNorthernOne West survival

ThePitmenstarted well against theirsecond-placed Merseyside hostsand were rewarded on 12 minutes when Jake Jervis’s neat finish from LewisFarmer’scrossgave them thelead.

Hednesford then resisted Prescot’sattemptstolevel before finally beingundoneon27minutes when along-rangeeffortfromFrancis SmithbeatkeeperRhysWilliams.

Thehome side dominatedthe openingexchanges of thesecond half in termsofpossession, butthe best chance fell to Hednesford’s JaiVerma,who forced agreat save from Mitchell Allen.

Kyle Sambor hadagreat chance to give Cables the lead, but made amessofthe opportunityand was then deniedbykeeper Williamsas thePitmenwithstood some late pressure to earn arewardfor their efforts.

Harriers’ hopes dealtabig blow

KIDDERMINSTER HRS. 0

HALIFAX TOWN 2

Kidderminster Harriers areon brinkoflosingtheir National League survival battleafter crashing to a2-0 defeat against play-off chasingFCHalifax Town at Aggborough

Bitterly disappointed Harriers, whohavestruggled in the relegation area formostofthe campaign,werebeatenbytwo second-halfgoals from birthday boyMax Wright

ManagerPhil Brown’stroops arestill apoint away from safety with only twomatches left to play Halifaxstruckon66minutes when alongkickout of defence foundWright, whocalmlylifted theballoverChristian Dibble andintothe back of thenet Wright made it 2-0whenhe ranfromthe halfway line before scoringwitha deflected shot past Dibble in the89thminute.

Scholars triumphasthe goals flow

Chasetowncameout on topofa Northern OneWestthriller

Thehosts were fast outofthe blocks and, inside the firstminute, skipperJackLangstonforceda lowsavefromkeeperCalvinHare.

Hare then savedfromCarter Lycett before Chasetowntookthe lead when Luke Yates’ shot was deflected past thekeeper.

Liverpoollevelledinthe 11th minutewhenhome keeper James Wren conceded apenalty andKenny Stricklandconverted

TheScholarsregainedthe lead in the27thminutewhenLycett’s

free-kickwas poweredhome by the head of JoeDunne.

In aquick spelljustafter the half-hour, Chasetownwent4-1 ahead. Firstly, Yatesscoredfrom atight angleand then RyanShaw provided alow finish from Oli Hayward’spass.

It wasjustafter thebreak when Lycett chippedtothe farpostand Hayward headed in City of Liverpool twicealmost

Boss hits outat his‘beach’ boys

reduced thearrears with efforts that came back offthe post and then thecrossbar Thevisitorspulledone back with agreat curlingfree-kick from Josh Quarless andthenStrickland steppedupagain in the83rdminutetoconvert hissecondpenalty

Incredibly, City grabbedanother in injury time with skipperDanny Mitchell netted fromlongrange Liverpoolthrew everything at trying to getanequaliser, butwere caught at thebackand Campbell netted abreakaway goal to seal thepoints.

Cooke’s boys turn up theheatontheir rivals

Stafford Rangersmanager Dave Cooke was ‘delighted’after Kaiman Anderson’ssologoalprovidedhis side with victory againstWhitbyTown to keep theirsurvival chancesalive.

Top-scorer Andersonnetted his 14th goal of theseason– firing powerfullyacrossgoaland into the back of thenet in the13thminute. Rangers’ resilientdefending saw them hold on fortheir thirdhome wininarow andtheir thirdclean sheetfromfourNorthernPremier League matches.

Cooke’ssidemoved back to three points adrift of safety,and theboss heaped praise on hisside.

“I’m delighted.The resultshave gone forussoit’sbacktothree points.There’s apotential banana skin game next week againstAthertonbecause they canscore goals forfun.That’sgoing to be areally difficult game “Looking at ourperformance,especially in thesecondhalf, wewere diggingin. Idon’t thinkweactually workedtheir keeperbut it’s notgoingtobeprettyatthistimeinthe

season.It’sacaseofwegot ourtails in frontand dugin.

“We’ve defendedverywellagain andit’sthree cleansheetsout of four so we aredefending as agroup We’llsee whereitwill take us.”

Despite thewin,there were injury concerns surroundingTyreece Onyekaafterhewas substituted af-

ter20minutes.Cooke hopes Onyeka will be back soonand praised man-of-the-match JimmyO’Neill whocontinues to play whileawaitinganoperation on aserious knee injury

“Jimmy hasbeenchompingat thebit to getback. He’s done really well,” addedCooke

RyleyshinesasStour hitform Picspickupa bigwin at Blyth

Stourbridge belied theirlowly position to stun Southern Central Premierpromotion hopefuls Mickleover.

Impressive Solihull MoorsloaneeKianRyley provedaconstant threat throughout andset up Stourbridge’s openinggoalwhenpicking outBrendon Danielswithaprecise crosstonet with aglancingheader with Mickleover goalkeeperYusuf Mersin rootedtothe spot Mickleover should have levelled five minutes laterwhenEthan Fitzhugh putstriker Tyrell Waite in theclear,but theMickleover marksman smashedthe ball hopelessly wide with only goalkeeper CharliePrice to beat.Stourbridge

stretchedtheir lead furtherjust beforethe half-hourwhenRyley pickedout AaronForde,who then exchanged passes with Jack Fletcher before slotting home

Mickleover managedtoclawa goal back before half-timewhen OllieGreaves slammedhome an angled shot

It wasStourbridge whoset the pace afterhalf-time andtheir persistence paid offon75minutes when Ryleycollected apassfrom Danielsand squaredacrossgoalfor Joel Shambrooktoturnhome

RonanMaher’s goal before halftime helped RushallOlympic secure ahugethree National League Northpoints.

MaheraddedRushall’ssecondafterOwenOseni opened thescoring in theopening half hour Aquick breakfromAlexFletcher foundJaden Charlesout wide who deliveredadangerous crossintoOseni, whomanaged to poke theball into thebackofthe netat thesecondattempt Maherthendoubled thePicsadvantagesoonafter. Fletcher was againinvolvedas he played agreat ball over to Oseni, andhis shot wasparried to thefeetofthe Walsall loanee to taphome.Blyth then

LyeTownbossGrant Joshua has blamed hissidefor being‘on the beach’ as they fell to a1-0 Northern OneMidlandsdefeatagainst relegation-threatenedGresley Rovers. Asecond-half Jack Ekins-Tyson penaltygaveGresley threevital points to move them outofthe bottomthree

“Itwas pretty much what Iexpected,our lads areonthe beach,” said Joshua.“We struggledtoget going, we look heavy,welookleggy andthatwe’ve hadalongand tough season,which we have

“Wecreated some good chances earlyonbut didn’t capitalise on them andthengaveawayareally poorpenalty in thesecondhalf. “Wedidn’thavethe energy,workrate or applicationtoget back into thegame.”

Wood reaction delights Long

WalsallWoodmanager IanLong waspleased with hisside’sreaction as they baggedthe NorthernOne Midlands spoils Wood have struggledto find thetargetoflate, but first-half goalsfromKevin Monteiro and CoreyCooper, either side of an effort from Sphinx’s Cameron Moore, sealed thewin Long said:“It’s thereaction we’vebeenneeding.Everyone knowswehaven’t been good enough.Ifeltthatwehad the better of thegame.”

Thehome side hadkeeper Keelan Fallowssentoff just after thehalfhourafter he brought CharlieManners down in the box, butstand-inkeeperCallum Woodward savedthe penalty.

Off-keyKhalsa beaten at home

equalisedinthe second half.Luke Jamesmanaged to find apocket of space 25 yardsout anddrilled the ball into thefar corner past Jake Weaver

Soon afterthough, thehosts were reducedto10as Will McGowanwas shownasecond yellowcard.

Maherthennearlydoubled his tallyas he struck theoutside of the post afteraquick counter.

Blyth dominated the finalstages,but thePicsdefence held strong to pickupahugethree points up north

Sporting Khalsa were unableto buildontheir bank holidaydefeat of neighbours WalsallWood as title-chasersHarboroughTown securedanarrowvictory to keep them firmly in theNorthernOne Midlands promotionpicture Khalsa never gotgoing in acontest whichwas ultimately decided by Luis Rose’s third-minute strike, theTownforward smashing across SamArnoldinthe home goal havingbeenteedupbyJordanCrawford Rose’s goal gave Town afaststart andwhile they couldn’t quitecapitalise on that from ascoreboard perspective, thescoreline flattered Khalsa with acombination of profligate finishing, anda fine display from Arnold,ensuringthe hosts weren’tcompletelyoverwhelmed.

Rangers’KaimanAnderson celebrates afterscoring Pic: Pete Wideman

Watkinsbacking Villatotaketheir placeattop

Togetherness is thekey to success, insistsSadler

table

OllieWatkins is confidentVilla canstill qualifyfor theChampions League despitethe frustration of Saturday’s 3-3drawwithBrentford

Theclub’stop scorer claimedUnai Emery’smen lacked a“bigteam mentality” afterblowinga two-goal lead andmissingthe chance to put pressure on rivals Tottenhamin theracefor atop-four finish

Butwithsix league matchesto go,Watkins believes allisstill to play forwithVillaalso stillchasinggloryinthe Europa Conference League.

The28-year-old bagged abrace againstthe Bees,takinghis goal tallytothe season to 24 in allcompetitionsahead of Thursday’s quarter-finalagainst Lille

He said:“IfeltthisseasonIhad a lot to prove to people andI still do, so I’mjusttryingtofocus on bringingthe best Ican to theteam. Provingpeoplewrong,scoring goalsand trying to breaksome records.

“But, aboveall,tryingtohelp theteamget into theChampions League,which will be massivefor us, from wherewe’ve come and when Ijoinedthe club,Ididn’texpecttohopefully be playingChampionsLeaguefootball. ButI’m very

confidentinthe managerand the squad that we candothat. I’mreally lookingforward to thenextsix gameswe’ve gotinthe league and Europa Conference League.”

GoalsfromWatkins andMorgan Rogers, thelatternetting forthe firsttimesince hisJanuary arrival from Middlesbrough, appeared to have Villaoncourse foracomfortable win.

ButBrentford then struck three timesin nine second half minutes to turn thematch on itsheadbefore Watkinsgot hissecond, with 10 minutes to go,toatleast earn a shareofthe spoils

“Asa team,we’ve come so far from when themanager joined–17th in theleagueto fighting for ChampionsLeaguefootball. Which is unbelievable,”saidWatkins.“But we’vegot here fora reason and that’s beingstrong,seeinggames outand we didn’t do that

“It’shappenedtousafew times over theseasonnow,Man Utdaway on Boxing Day, 2-0upcruising, came outsecondhalflackadaisical –all overthe pitch, I’mnot saying anyone specifically, me myself

“We’ve justgot to be more consistentand be that horribleteamto play againstwhenwe’re ahead2-0.”

MatSadlerbelieveshis Walsall team cancontinueto“bringeveryone together”aftertheycamefrom behind to beat Tranmere Rovers 3-1atPrenton Park

Walsallmadeitback-to-back victoriesin League Twotoclimb twoplaces into ninthand maintain thethree-point gapbetween themselves andthe play-off places

AndSadlerisconfidentthatthe localconnectionat theclubwill continue to serveasaroottotheir success

“Partofmyjob when Icamein wastobring that together.Ithink we’redoing that. Iknowit’sgoing to take time because naturally we’vebeenwhere we’vebeenas a football club forsome time,” the Walsallbosssaid.

“It’s theway forwardfor ourclub andthat’sour roottosuccess.We just have to keep going. It’s great

to seepeoplelikeTaylor(Allen) andJamille (Matt) with alocal connectionbut they’regood playersaswell.

“Wehavetokeepdoing that When thesupporters, theplayers andthe football club aretogether, it’s abig motivational boosttotry andoverpower.

“We’ve shownagain,assupportersand players,thatit’sverymuch everyone together.”

LocalladsJamilleMattand Taylor Allenbothgot on thescoresheet either side of half-timetooverturn ReganHendry’s24th-minute opener Sadler felt thetimingofthe equaliserprovidedWalsall with aplatformtothrivein thesecond half,asBrandon Comley extended theiradvantage with arocket from distance JacksonSmith wasinthe wars

during the firsthalfbut deniedRob Apterwithasuperb fingertipsave, before upstaginghimself with anothertop stop to divertHendry’s effort onto thepostinthe closing stages

“Itwas huge (the timing of Matt’s equaliser),” he continued. “I wasreallyfocused that if we could go in agoaldownorat1-1,I knew we’d have abig response kicking towardsour supporters andthe wind would’ve helped us in thesecondhalftoo

“That firstgoalsappedthe life outofTranmere. It wasareally pivotal part of thegame. Important that we defended when we hadthat10-minute spellafter they scored as well

“There were loadsofpivotal momentsinthe game butJamma’s goal pavedthe wayfor thesecond half.”

Corberan pleased to pinch pointdespite blowinglead

Carlos Corberan was able to find apositiveafterhis Albionsideblew a2-0 lead on theroadat Stoke City –one that his side have alreadyshowcasedintheirrecent run.

Buthedid highlightthathis charges failed to hittheir required levels on both acollective andan individual level in thePotteries Albion were on thebackfootfor long periodsofthe game –with Stokehavingthe best chances.

Thehome side couldhavebeen twoupbeforeMikey Johnstonand GradyDianganacombined forthe former to fire Albion ahead.

Aneatmovethenended with Jed Wallacedoublingthe lead afterthe break –beforeStoke fought back

FirstMillion Manhoefpulledone back before AndreVidigal firedina reboundafter Alex Palmer haddenied himfromthe spot

Corberan waseager to express that Stokewerebetterthanhis side in anumberofareas butamong a fewnegativeshewas able to find a positive

Anditissomethinghis side have been able to do anumberoftimes in theirrecentrun,which hasseen them lose just once in 13 games.

He said:“If you seethe result you canfrustrate,but if you analyse thegamethennobecause it is true Stokeinmanymomentswerebetter than us

“Butitistruewe find away,we have theoptionnot to concedein allthe chancestheycreated andwe showed accuracy to scoreinthe few chancesthatwecreate.

“Itput it at 0-2and that probably

wasn’t thefairresultifyou analyse thegame, butwehavethe possibility. However you need to manage it better to achievesomething else morethanone point.

“Ingeneral we suffered in the windyconditions, didnot manage well andsuffereddefending theleft side wheretheyattackedand overlapped momentsand we couldn’t find away to stop theirattacks

“I thinkingeneral we didn’t perform in thelevel collectively andindividually to achieveour best level andachieve theresultwewanted.” Albion hadbeenunder pressure at 2-1whensubstituteYannM’Vila made abizarre decision to go fora

ball in thebox with Tyrese Campbell.The midfielderlungedinwith ahighbootand caught thestriker on hisbackwithhis studs–giving thereferee no choice buttoaward a spot-kick.

Corberan added: “I thinkM’Vila wasdoing well to manage thegame, especially in attack

“Thisaction, lets just say, it wasa littlebit excessiveinhis intensityto tryand help theteam.

“I’m notsureifitwas enough for apenalty becauseIdidn’treview, butitwas astrangeactionbecause therewas no chance.”

Albion,likeatMillwall andsimilar to periodsintheir draw with

Watford, couldhavebeenaccused of giving away possession cheaply.

On ahandful of occasionsAlbion’s lackofquality on theballalmost cost them with Stokespurning. ButCorberanfeltthere wasn’t agreat difference betweenthe sides in termsofballretention

He added: “I thinkifyou analyse thequality with theball, to have thequality with theballthere was balancewithbothteams

“You can’tsay oneteamhad an advantagein handling theball.

“Ifyou analyseStoke no-one can understand why they areinthe position they areinthe tableatthe moment.”

MikeyJohnstoncelebratesgiving Albionthe lead at StokeCityinSaturday afternoon’s clashatthe Bet365 Stadium

Saddlers bossMat Sadler

OllieWatkinsheads in theequaliser

Lemina is left frustrated with Wolves’secondhalf

MarioLeminainsists

Wolves’ second-halfperformance in the2-1 loss to West Hamwas ‘not acceptable’.

Theteamlet a1-0 lead slip to lose 2-1atMolineuxonSaturday, followingan impressive first-half display.

Thebiggest storylinefromthe game wasthe latest VARcontroversy,but when askedabout it,Lemina insteadwanted to focusonthe poor performance.

“Tobehonest, Idon’t really care aboutthe referee’sdecision,” the midfieldertoldthe Express&Star. “I’m really disappointed with our second half.Wewerefantastic in the firsthalfand theway wedidn’t controlthe second half,weare really disappointed with it “Wecould be better.Weshowedit in the firsthalf.

“Of course, I would have been happywiththe disallowed goal because adrawwithWestHam would be good forustocontinueto fight forwhatweaim for.

“Weneedtowork, continue to show characterand personality and controlthe second half better.We areathome andwedidn’tcontrolit, whichIdidn’tlike.

“Weneedtobehonestwithourselves.It’snot possible to play like that in the firsthalf, maybeeven thebest firsthalfwe’ve played, and thesecondhalfisnot acceptable for us as agroup.”

When askedwhere it went wrong in thesecondhalf, Lemina said: “The gaffer told us theywould be aggressive,but if we show charac-

terwewould trytoplayand find the space behind them

“Withthe clever players we have likeSarabia andCunha,wedidn’t do anything likethat. We didn’t play in therightway.”

He added: “Ifwewanttostay whereweare andplayfor somethingbetterfor thefans, to show them we competeatthe topofthe league

“Wecannot play a firsthalflike that againsta really topteamand show areallybad second half.”

With sevengames remaining, Wolves’chances of gettingintoEurope arenow much slimmerasWest Hamand Newcastlehavecreated a biggergap to Wolves andthe surroundingteams

However,theydohavegames coming up againstNottingham Forest,Bournemouth andLuton as they look to avoidthe season from fizzling outintoamid-table

finish

“Itcannot fade out,”Leminasaid. “Weneed to be honest andunderstandwhatwe’ve been missingin thesecondhalfand trytoworkon it even harder

“Wewanttodobetterand show a better side.”

When askedifhis team-mates sharehis frustration, Lemina added:“Idon’t know if they shareit, Ican only give my view butItold them andtheyknow.

“They’re reallygoodguyswho workreallyhard, butweneed to be better andworkharder.”

Doyleiskeen to move on quickly from latest call

TommyDoyle insistsWolves must move on quicklyfromtheir latest VARfrustration

Acontroversial late disallowed MaxKilmangoalrobbedWolves of apoint againstWestHam and seriouslydentedtheir European hopes

ButwithNottinghamForest next up andseven gamestogo, Doylesaysthe teammustswitch theirfocus quickly.

He said:“Obviously it’s wrong, butwhatcan we do?

“It’sbeenthe same fora while.

“It’sfrustrating,but unfortunately theref’s decision is final so we have to getonwithit.

“Mesayingstuff nowisn’t goingtochangeitorhelpthe cause

“Itiswhatitis, we move on I’mhappy with theway I’ve been playingbut Iwanttowin games.

“Ifyou play well andlose, it’s not agood feeling.

“Wehavetomove on,goagain againstForestand seewhathappens.”

When askedifEuropeanqualification wasstill theaim,Doyle added: “Ofcourse, we’realways goingtopush.

“We’re notsolelythinking about that,but we want to push We’llsee what happens.”

Thecentralmidfielderwas given astart on theleftwing againstWestHam and playeda bigpart in asuccessful firsthalf forWolves.

“I enjoyed it,I liked that position,” Doylesaid. “Itwas goodto be up thereand helping.

“There’s things we canimprove on andthingswedid well, butthe result is frustrating. It happensinfootball. We’llrest andgo againagainst Forest.”

unable to controlemotion afteranother ‘terrible decision’

Gary O’Neil hasblasted theofficials fortheir ‘terribledecision’in disallowingWolves’ late equaliser againstWestHam

Aftersquandering aleadtogo 2-1downatMolineux, MaxKilman rosehighestinthe 99thminuteto rescue apoint

ButVAR instructed refereeTony Harrington to checkthe pitchside monitorand thegoalwas disallowedfor offsideonTawanda Chirewa, whowas stoodclose to goalkeeper LukaszFabianski

“Unfortunately,Iwasn’tableto controlmyemotion andmyfeeling well enough to receive an explanation (fromthe referee),” O’Neil said.“Iwas in with thereferee but it didn’t go toowell. Ihaven’t had an explanation, butthe explanation is irrelevant anyway because everybodythatI’vespokento, includingDavid Moyesand Fabianski, allcan’t believeit’sbeengiven foroffside

“I thinkit’saterribledecision andweshouldnever reachthat conclusion,but unfortunately we did. It’s somethingwehavetodeal with

“Ifyourknowledge andunder-

standing of thegameisreallypoor, you couldreach theconclusionthat it’s offside.

“Ifyou’reaPremier League officialworking at thehighest level, I wouldbereallydisappointed that you felt that wasoffside

“Ifitiscorrect by theletterofthe lawthenthe letter of thelaw needs changing

“The only wayTawanda could be having an impact in play is if he stopsFabianski’s ability to move andsavethe ball or if he impacts his vision

“Ifyou watch thesideonview, you canclearly seeFabianski can clearlysee theballabove Tawanda’s head.He’snot impactinghis vision or hisability to move,soit’s aterribledecision

“Some people maythink I’m wrongand biasbecause it’s my team,but my honest view is that it should never be offside. DavidMoyes andFabianskiagreed “Onlythe refereeand VARthink it couldpossiblybeoffside.” When askedabout hismeeting with thereferee afterthe game, O’Neil added: “I wasina fairly bad mood at the finalwhistle.I went in

to seehim andIasked himsome questions. He didn’t likehow they were asked, so he thoughtitwas best we didn’t discussit.”

Wolves putinanexcellent firsthalf performancetogo1-0 up through PabloSarabia’s penalty, butstruggled to imposethemselves in thesecond 45

O’Neil wasdelightedwithwhat histeamproduced in the firsthalf, butcriticised‘crazy’ momentsthat sawthe Hammersscore twice.

He said:“We were excellentin the firsthalf. Exceptional.

“Toproducethatlevel of performance,withwhatwehave availableagainst what West Ham have available, is an unbelievable achievement. It wasanincredible performance.

“Wewerecompletelydominant andWestHam didn’t geta kick

“Athalf-time they went alittle bit more aggressive and figured outwedidn’thaveany threat in behind

“Westruggled to getout abit,but having said that,Idon’t remember Sa having to do toomuchat all. We protected himreallywell. We made acrazy decision in thebuild-up to

thepenalty,which we have to look at.Wepassedthe ball betweenourselves fornoreason, no purpose, anditendsupletting West Ham back into agamethattheydidn’t look like gettingbackinto.

“Thenthere wasafreak goal that goes straight in from acorner. The wind wasblowing in that direction, butI’d need to seeitinmoredetail to seeifSacan do better

“The thirdincident is theVAR disallowed goal.To leavewith nothingis toughfor us to take.”

RayanAit-Nouri wastaken off earlyin thesecondhalfaftergoingdownwitha knock, to addto Wolves’injuryconcerns.

Butthe head coachhopes taking himoff hasprevented an injury for thestarman

“Hehad atightcalfand was feelingita little bitearlier in the game,” O’Neil said.“He felt it alittlebit more in thesecondhalfand Iknewthe impact of taking himoff wouldjeopardise theresult.

“Butthe impact of leavinghim on wouldpotentially jeopardise thenextfouror five results. It was atough call.We’re hopefulit’snot toobad,but it needs to be checked.”

Frustration:WolvesmidfielderMarioLeminainactiononSaturday

Kashif doubles up forPears –SeePage44

CHAIRMAN CALLS FOR VARREVIEW

WolveschairmanJeff Shihas called on the PremierLeaguetourgently review itsuse of VARafter Saturday’s controversial2-1 defeat to West Ham.

MaxKilmansaw astoppage-time equaliserruled outfollowing avideo review with head coachGary O’Neil describing thedecisionas oneofthe worst he’d ever seen It hasprompted Shitoissue a publicstatement,pleadingwith theleagueand itsrefereeingbody, PGMOL, to addressthe concerns of clubsand supporters over theuse of videotechnology.

Wolves have been on thewrong endofnumerouscontentiousVAR callsthisseasonand Shisaid: “Whenagoalisscoredand notone person inside thestadium questions thevalidityofthatgoal,including bothsetsofplayers,coaches, fans andeven thematch officials themselves,it’stimetoquestionwhether someone remote disallowingthat goal is really what football wantsor needs?

“Itisour sincerehopethatthe PremierLeagueand PGMOLrecognise theimportanceofaddressing these concerns to uphold theintegrity of thecompetition anddemonstrate whythe PremierLeagueis regarded as thebestin theworld.”

Kilman thoughthehad earned Wolves apoint when he headed home from a99th-minute corner, butreferee Tony Harrington was called across to themonitor and

eventually decidedTawenda Chirewa hadimpeded theviewofHammers goalkeeper Lukas Fabianksi from an offsideposition.

Thedecision waswidelycriticised, notonlybyO’Neil, whosaw anumberofhis coaching team booked during angryscenesatthe finalwhistle

Goalkeeper coachNeilCutlerlater describedthe decision as “horrific”onsocialmedia.

Defeat damagedWolves’ hopes of qualifying forEurope, though Shiheapedpraiseonthe workdone

by O’Neil andhis team.The head coach, whohas seen hisforward line largelywiped outbyinjuryin thepastmonth, last week expressed frustrationatthe club’s failureto strengthen during theJanuary transferwindow.

Shisaid: “Gary, ourcoaching team andall theplayers have done afantastic jobthisseasonthatwe areall rightlyveryproud of, especiallyunder thecircumstances, with many controversial decisions from matchofficials affectingthe outcome of ourgames.Despite a

summer of change andfourdaysof preparationfor Gary andhis staff, we surpassedlastseason’spoints with eightgames to go

“Ifitwasn’tfor anumberofincorrectorcontentiousdecisionswe wouldbeeven furtherupthe table.

“For theother challenges,such as injuries to keyattacking playersand squad depth, theclubcan always keep learning andprogressing everyseason, butfor the standard andconsistency of refereeing, it’s somethingout of our control.”

Gradylooking like Albion’sperfect 10

GradyDianganapickedup another assist in Albion’s winoverStoke City andhis manager hashighlightedwhy he is enjoying afruitful spellasthe side’s newnumber10.

JohnSwift hasbeenAlbion’s main number 10 formostofthe season, with JedWallace also occupyingthe position behind thestriker In recent weeksitishas been Diangana whohas been shifted into thecentre andithas been aposition that he hasthrived in He hasnow equalled hisassist tallyfromhis firstseasonatthe club,where he played ahandin a

free-flowingsidethatwon promotion underSlaven Bilic.

He setupMikey Johnstonfor the firstgoalatStoke andkickedoff the move forthe second goal

AndbossCarlosCorberanexplainedwhy Diangana is enjoying more successcomparedtoout wide “I thinkthere is one player(Diangana)who canplayinany of the threeattacking positions,”saidthe Albion chief.

“Fromthe right, from theleftor down themiddle andifyou tell me whichone giveshim more freedom, it is down themiddle.Onthe side

Non-league action –See

Page 45

Emeryset for avideo nasty

VillabossUnaiEmery plansto watch Saturday’s second-half meltdown againstBrentford back multiple timesasheurges calm aheadofanotherbig week

TheChampionsLeaguechasersconcededthree timesinnine minutes to blow atwo-goallead againstthe Bees with OllieWatkins bagginghis second of the game to salvagea point.

Villanow host Lille in the firstleg of aEuropaConference League quarter-finalonThursdaybeforevisitingEmery’s formerclubArsenalonSunday.

Thebosssaid: “Everybodyis upset. ButIwill workwiththe players andwill tell them how we cancontinueinour way, beingsuccessful.

“Thisisthe analysisIwant to do, watchingthe game and watchingitone time,second time,third time,fourthtime. Trying to sharewiththe players my analysis. We made some not normalmistakes.”

Sadler salutes ‘soldier’ Comley

MatSadlerhas praisedthe instrumental role that BrandonComley hasplayedfor Walsallthisterm, anddescribedthe midfielderasa “soldier”.

Comley,who hasbeenanever-present sincereturning from an ankleinjuryinOctober,scoredhis firstgoalin20monthsduringWalsall’s 3-1win at Tranmere Rovers. Sadler said:“Someone told me once you’vegot artistsand soldiers Brandonisasoldier forsure. Iam glad he painted abit of colour on the game today(on Saturday).

“That’swhathedoesand every successfulteamneedsaBrandon Comley

“The experiencedguysare really showingup. They’rereallyputting themselves outthere becausewe’re ayoung team.

“We’ve gotyouth running throughoutusand that’s theway I want it.Withinall that,you’vegot to have thoseexperienced soldiers andBrandon hasbeenthat.”

it canrestrictyou andthe options to attack

“I sawhim making adifferencein things he didand he wasone of the best players on thepitch.”

Despite Diangana beingsharp, Albion struggledtocreatemany noteworthychances at theBet365 Stadium.

AndCorberanadded: “I thinkin generalwedid notattackenough.

“Weforcedittoattacktoo much

“Inthe momentswewerecalm, we achievethe optionstoscore

“Whenyou scoreasecond, you need to insist andmanagethe ball.”

Grady Diangana impressed

MATT MAHER matt.maher@mnamedia.co.uk

Tawanda Chirewaand MatheusCunhaprotest to refereeTonyHarringtonafter MaxKilman’s header is ruledout