T PRESIDENT’S ADDRESS

Neville Wigglesworth

THIS AFTERNOON WE WELCOME ‘THE OLDEST FOOTBALL CLUB IN THE WORLD’ - SHEFFIELD - FOR THIS NORTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE DIVISION ONE EAST FIXTURE. THIS WILL BE THE FIRST LEAGUE ENCOUNTER BETWEEN THE TWO CLUBS THIS SEASON THOUGH WE DID MEET AT SHEFFIELD IN THE FA TROPHY BACK IN SEPTEMBER WHEN OSSETT UNITED PROGRESSED BY WINNING 4 – 2 IN A PENALTY SHOOT-OUT AFTER THE SCORES WERE LEVEL 1 – 1 AT FULL TIME. LUKE ALDRICH WAS THE GOALSCORER FOR OSSETT THAT DAY BUT HE COULD BE IN THE SHEFFIELD LINE UP THIS AFTERNOON HAVING SWITCHED CLUBS A LITTLE WHILE AGO. BASILE ZOTTOS IS ANOTHER EX-OSSETT MAN WHO COULD LINE UP AGAINST US TODAY HAVING ALSO MADE THE SWITCH TO SHEFFIELD EARLIER IN THE SEASON.

AT THE TIME OF WRITING SHEFFIELD ARE NOT COMPLETELY CLEAR OF RELEGATION PROBLEMS WITH BOTH SHILDON AND GRANTHAM TOWN HAVING CLOSED THE POINTS GAP ON THEM IN RECENT WEEKS SO THEY WILL CERTAINLY NOT BE SHOWING ANY COMPLACENCY TODAY AS THEY STRIVE TO

MAINTAIN THEIR NORTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE STATUS FOR ANOTHER YEAR. THEIR SITUATION HELPED THOUGH BY CARLTON TOWN’S ALARMING SLUMP IN FORM OF LATE WHICH HAS SEEN THEM PLUMMET TO SECOND FROM BOTTOM IN THE TABLE.

TTENDING THIS AFTERNOON’S MATCH HERE INGFIELD IS MARK HARRIS. WHEN THE NORTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE WAS RECONSTITUTED AND EXPANDED TO THREE DIVISIONS AT STEP 4 LAST SEASON THE LEAGUE CHAIRMAN MARK HARRIS STATED HIS INTENT TO ATTEND A GAME AT ALL 82 CLUBS AS SOON AS HE POSSIBLY COULD. HOW MANY HE HAS VISITED TO DATE I DON’T KNOW BUT I KNOW IT WILL BE PLENTY AND HIS PRESENCE HERE AT OSSETT UNITED IS ALWAYS A PLEASURE. WE COULD, DEPENDING ON CIRCUMSTANCES, ALSO BE JOINED THIS AFTERNOON BY OUR LEAGUE SECRETARY ANGIE FIRTH WHO IS ALSO ALWAYS A WELCOME GUEST HERE AT INGFIELD. HOPEFULLY WE CAN PRODUCE THE KIND OF GAME AND MATCH ORGANISATION WHICH DOES CREDIT TO THE NORTHERN PREMIER LEAGUE IN GENERAL AND OUR CLUB IN PARTICULAR. WE ALSO TRUST THAT OUR SUPPORTERS ACT RESPONSIBLY IN THE PRESENCE OF THE LEAGUE’S HIERARCHY.

I RECENTLY HEARD A CONVERSATION ABOUT A