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Hesketh Bank AFC Match Reports Click here for the match report from the Western Area Cup Final 6th March 2010 - PC Round 2 - Millom 3-0 Hesketh Bank The 1 hour and 45 minute expedition to the isolated West Cumbrian market town of Millom proved at 5.00pm Saturday evening to have been fruitless. From early in the game fortune wasn't on our side as centre half Chris Burns was forced off with a knee injury. Millom's opener came as they beat the offiside trap and with the back four scrambling back towards their own goal the Millom striker slotted home to make it 1-0. The second 45 minutes began with hope and promise as a motivated first team re-entered play. The hope was soon vanquished as Millom added a second as a freak first time strike looped over the retreating Gavin Bates and into the net. A defensive collision handed Millom their third and turned out to be the nail in our cup hope's coffin. A dissapointing display saw us rightly defeated. Now we must focus on finishing as high up the table as possible and that begins next Saturday with a away trip to South Cumbrian side Milthorpe Corinthians. ___________________________________________________________ 20th February 2010 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 2-2 Burnley United At 2.30pm this afternoon the appointed referee decided he was unhappy with a heavy Station Road playing surface and called the game off. Step in local West Lancashire referee Graham Sutton. Graham had a look at the surface, which was admittedly heavy in places but definately playable, and decided to play the game. The only change from last weeks victorious eleven was in defence as Tony Sergeant stepped in for the working Sean Royle. The game started cautiously as both sides looked to gain early advantages. Both defences coped with the attacks thrown at them until Jordan Smethurst marked his 101st appearance with a sublime solo effort curling a low shot from 20 yards into an awaiting Burnley net. The second half began in a similar fashion to the 1st, both teams took a few minutes to clear the cob webs from the half time break. It was Burnley however who found the net first with a close range finish. Burnely soon took charge of the tie and went 2-1 up after a run from deep beat the offside trap and another close range effort gave the away side the lead. Burnley had chances to go even further ahead and it took several minutes for the 1st team to compose themselves and regain control of the game. Chance after chance seemed to be squandered until striker Richard (Clippinio) Burns slotted home a fine strike to even up the scores. With both teams having chances to win the game a draw seemed a fair result and gives us our first league points since October. Next week we meet near neighbours Croston Sports at Westhead Road with a 3.00pm kick off. ___________________________________________________________ 13th February 2010 - PCR1 - Norcross & Warbreck 1-2 Hesketh Bank After our recent run of defeats any slim hope of promotion has now surely evaporated and therefore the Presidents Cup now takes priority. The journey to Norcross (Cleveleys) was hampered by a 45 minute traffic jam that subsequently moved the kick off time back 30 minutes to 3.00pm. Thanks to the long journey and our lack of preperation time the team started slow. Norcross started sharper and their intent was proved when they took the lead with an early headed goal from Eden. At 1-0 Hesketh Bank soon settled into their game and for most of the first half the tide began to turn and we began to take control of the game. This theory was proved when Daniel Birkby pulled away from his marker at the back post and cooly finished a much deserved equaliser. The second half was owned by the away side. Ironically the long ball was pushing the Norcross defence further and further towards their own goal. With the giants of Norcross on the ropes Richard Burns hit the knockout blow with a second half winner. A late scare came when a Norcross striker was put through on goal but in a one on one confrontation with Gavin Bates the Hesketh Bank goalkeeper came out victorious. The final whistle blew and our place in the quarter finals against Millom was confirmed. A much improved performance against tough oppostion. If they produce more of the same then we should look forward to a successful second half of the season. ___________________________________________________________ 6th February 2010 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 2-3 Wyre Villa The first team lost their 4th game on the trot yesterday losing 3-2 at home to Wyre Villa. On a very heavy Station Road pitch they took the lead after 25 minutes when David Hogg tapped in from close range, but the lead lasted less than 2 minutes when sloppy defending allowed the visitors to equalise and go in all square at the interval. Despite controlling most of the play early in the second half it was the visitors who took the lead gifted by a mistake from Gavin Bates on the hour and they added a third soon after. David Hogg's looping header in the 86 th minute gave them hope and he could have snatched a last minute equaliser but a Villa defender got to the ball first in front of an empty net. Next week it's the first round of the Presidents Cup with a trip to Norcross & Warbreck whilst the reserves will be hoping to return to action having not played since the 7 th November as they entertain Norcross's reserves in the Houston Cup with both games kicking off at 2.30pm ___________________________________________________________ 23rd January 2010 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 1-4 Fleetwood Hesketh On a grey misty January day football finally returned to Station Road after a 12 week enforced break due to the weather. The pitch was soft in places but a credit to the groundstaff and in front of a large crowd who were glad at last to be able to watch a game, near neighbours and high flyers Fleetwood Hesketh were the visitors. The first half was mainly controlled by the first team and they should have been ahead when a couple of good chances were missed, however it was the visitors who went in at the interval in front courtesy of a mistake on the half hour. They went two ahead shortly after the interval but a fine solo effort by Jordan Smethurst brought the game back to life on the hour. The visitors were clearly rattled for a time but they showed why they are challenging for the title with two goals in the final 10 minutes to run out deserved 4-1 winners. The first team have now suffered 3 defeats on the trot albeit spread over those 12 weeks, they will now have to regroup with two more home matches to follow with Crooklands Casuals being the visitors next Saturday with a 2pm kick off. ___________________________________________________________ 2nd January 2010 - WLD1 - Thornton Cleveleys 3-1 Hesketh Bank The first team's opening game of 2010 was the only fixture from Division 1 to survive the hard overnight frost. At 10.00am a pitch inspection by the referee resulted in the game being called off, however the Thornton ground staff managed to persuade the referee to review the pitch for a second time at 12.00pm. While all credit goes to the hard work done by the Thornton groundsman the surface was hard and probably not suitable for play, however the game went ahead regardless. The long break without a game became an obvious achilles heel as the first team were slow out of the blocks and were punished after 5 minutes with a Thornton opener. The strong, powerful and well organised Thornton had much of the early play but apart from the goal the back four and stand in goalkeeper David Tomlinson managed to settle the nerves and keep the home side at bay. Slowly the first team battled their way back into the game with the most notable chance coming from Josh Norgate who's technically apparent volley was pushed away by the Thornton keeper. The second half began with plenty of optomism and the contest remained even until Thornton doubled their lead thanks to a missed defensive header. The introduction of striker David Hogg and a change of formation saw the territory of play shift towards the Thornton goal and midway through the half Hogg and Daniel Birkby both missed opportunities to pull back the score. However another denfensive error lead to Thornton's third and sealed the 3 points. A Richard Burns consolation did little to cure the dissapointment. Despite the result it was a battling performance with plenty of quality forward play. A well organised Thornton deserved the victory but the first team can take some confident displays into next weeks cup game away at Norcross & Warbreck. ___________________________________________________________ 29th November 2009 - WLD1 - Fleetwood Hesketh 6-2 Hesketh Bank The 1st team's first game in 3 weeks came against league leaders and bitter local rivals Fleetwood Hesketh. Whether it was nerves, lack of match sharpness or just quality of opposition our premier eleven found themselves 2-0 down after ten minutes. The frantic first half continued to entertain when David Hogg headed home from a James Clegg cross. Former Fleetwood player and Hesketh Bank 100 club member Daniel Birkby evened the scores on the 20 minute mark with a well earned goal. As the half time whistle loomed individual mistakes lead to a Fleetwood third and just before half time former Hesketh Bank player Adam 'Fruitbat' Thompson was left unmarked at the back post to make the score 4-2 at half time. The second half was a stark contrast to the fast flowing frantic mayhem of the first. Both teams were cautious and keen not to give the ball away. Unfortunately with the minutes ticking away Vaughn Birkby had no choice but to go for the goals. A change of tactics and the introduction of striker John Ascroft was not enough to prevent Fleetwood rounding off an impressive display with 2 more well taken goals. After a whirlwind darby the first team's unbeaten run came to a sudden stop and now they look to next week's rearanged 1st Rounds Presidents Cup game at Norcross & Warbreck to get themselves back on track. ___________________________________________________________ 7th November 2009 - WLRD2 - BAC/EE/Springfields Res 3-2 Hesketh Bank Res On the outskirts of our nearest city the 2nd team made the short journey to a soft and skiddy BAC ground. BAC tested both defence and goalkeeper with some close touch skill and determined wide play. Despite their efforts the team stood firm and going forward began to create half chances. It wasn't long before they broke through the BAC back line and Jay Wright produced a finish to take a 1-0 half time lead. Straight after half time the home side drew level and for the next half hour the game became scrappy and very even. It wasn't until 15 minutes from time did they game begin to take its final form. John Ascroft headed home a potential winner from a Tom Mamby cross. With ten minutes to go the game turned on its head. A free kick from the edge of the area saw the ball deflected and settle in the back of the Hesketh Bank goal. Just minutes later the ball was in the back of the Reserve's goal again. The whistle blew for 90 minutes and for the second game in succession the Reserves went down 3-2 away from home. ___________________________________________________________ 31st October 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 2-1 Mill Hill St Peters The first team cemented their position as 3rd in the table with their 2-1 win at home to Mill Hill St Peters from Blackburn . In a close first half neither goalkeeper was troubled until the half hour mark when Daniel Birkby reacted quickest to pounce after the visitors keeper was unable to hold on to a shot from David Hogg. Mill Hill hit back and Gavin Bates did well to get his finger tips to a lopping header, however from the resultant corner the visitors equalised to leave the sides all square at the interval. Five minutes into he second half Daniel Birkby shielded the ball in the box with his back to goal and laid it back for Steve Greenwood to drill the ball into the corner of the net from the edge of the area. Although the visitors tried hard to get the equaliser in truth Gavin Bates was rarely troubled even with several minutes being added on. This result now stretches the first team's unbeaten league run to eight games and the possibility of the dreaded team of the month for October with four wins and a draw! ___________________________________________________________ 24th October 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 5-0 Crosshills Match sponsored by
The first team easily overcame a very young Crosshills side who are rooted to the foot of the table. Playing with a strong wind behind their backs Jordan Smethurst opened the scoring after just 3 minutes when he was allowed a free run on goal. Josh Norgate slammed home a second on 10 minutes and Sean Royle headed home a third after 20 minutes from a corner. Crosshills then hit the outside of a post on one of their rare attacking moves and David Tomlinson's handling had to be good with a snap shot from close range. Daniel Birkby added a 4 th five minutes from the interval lobbing the ball over the advancing keeper. Despite playing into the wind, the second half was almost all played in the visitors half and a mixture of good goalkeeping and poor finishing didn't see another goal added until the 85 th minute when David Hogg coolly rounded the keeper to move his side to 3 rd in the table. 24th October 2009 = WLRD2 - Burnley United 3-2 Hesketh Bank Morgan Dodgson took charge of the Reserve team's trip to fellow high flyers Burnley United. In a tentative first quater hour the visitors took the lead thanks to a well struck left foot shot courtesey of Charlie Haynes. Poor marking let Burnley United back into the game and the teams went in at half time all square. Just moments after the second half whistle Burnley United took the lead when they beat the offside trap. It got worse for the reserves when a Jimmy Grimble own goal gave Burnley their 3rd. Morgan Dodgson brought himself into the game and the final 25 minutes of the match was a barage of attacks against the Burnley goal. With chance after chance being squandered it appeared it would be one of those days. However with just minutes remaing Morgan Dodgson won a back post header from a Ben Goodson cross, defender Tony Sergeant knocked it away from the keeper and John Ascroft slotted home. Desperate defending and desperate attacking filled the final moments of the game. Burnley managed to hold on to claim all 3 points and the Reserves lost their unbeaten run. ___________________________________________________________ 17th October 2009 - WLD1 - Hawcoat Park 1-1 Hesketh Bank The first team faced Hawcoat Park who they had beaten just two weeks ago 4-1 at Station Road with the knowledge that in recent years they had not gained a single point from their long journeys up to the Barrow side. Coupled with three home victories on the trot which surged them up the table to 4 th spot it was a case of can this barren run be brought to an end. In truth the first half saw the first team control the game but apart from Richard Burns hitting a post from close range neither keeper was troubled, although in a rare attack the home side should have opened the scoring when Gavin Bates was rounded only for the forward to miss the target. The second half began with the first team looking more potent and beginning to work the home keeper. However the home side also began to make the odd chance and eventually opened the scoring on the hour. The equaliser didn't appear to be coming and with time running out it looked like another fruitless journey, however with two minutes of injury time already played substitute David Hogg found himself clear with only the keeper to beat and he finished clinically to earn his side a precious point. 17th October 2009 - WLRD2 - Hesketh Bank Res 8-0 Todmerdon Borough Mid-week fears concerning the availability of players were soon put firmly to rest as the Reserves found themselves 2-0 ahead within the first five minutes. Josh Brierley would go on to take his 3rd to complete his hat-trick. The young Yorkshire side struggled to cope with the precise passing and menacing forward play put on show by the 2nd string. Mark Pinkard scored his second hat-trick of the season to take his goal tally to 10 and counting. Another huge plus point was the introduction of Under 18 forward Tom Mamby who added two goals to the constantly changing score sheet. In truth this was less than a test for the Reserves, however when a poor side is placed in front of you there are often two options. You can either cruise through and take the inevitable points, or you can win and win well. No one from Station Road was left in any doubt which of the two approaches the Reserves took yesterday. Next week the 2nd team travel to Burnley United in a hugely important tie. ___________________________________________________________ 10th October 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 3-1 Milnthorpe Corinthians Sponsored by
For a picture gallery from the game click here. May I take this opportunity on behalf of Ben McDonald (Hesketh Bank under 14s) and Lewis McDonald (Hesketh Bank under 11s) to thank Hesketh Bank football club for their efforts in making the day memorable for both the boys last Saturday as part of the match sponsorship we provided To have our two boys playing for Hesketh Bank juniors fills us as parents with pride as it is now the 3 rd generation of the McDonald family to play for the club after myself and their granddad, and we felt it would be great for the boys to experience match day at Station road Special mention first of all to Terry and Elaine McDonald (Ben and Lewis grandparents) for providing the the sponsorship to the club, it was a great gesture and helps support the funding of the club for the boys future To Vaughan Birkby who made the day special for the boys by arranging for them to meet the players, join in the warm up pre-match and have photos taken with the team and the opposition captain and referee, also for allowing them to present a shield to their choice of man of the match at the end of the game(Lewis had 5 choices with 5 minutes to go) To Danny Wilson for his encouragement to the boys to join in the training drills pre-match, thanks for making them feel special Finally to captain Gavin Bates and his players who remained professional during the warm ups, yet still involved the boys at every opportunity To have two boys that wanted to have their photographs taken with the players and to meet and shake hands with them individually was to us as parents maybe a surprise, it obviously meant a lot to the boys and the club should be proud of the first team squad for making the day a memorable event for them Darren and Dionne McDonald Goals from Daniel Birkby and returning striker Richard Burns earned the 1st team their 3rd victory in a row and now remain unbeaten in 4. ___________________________________________________________ 10th October 2009 - WLRD2 - Lytham Town Res 2-4 Hesketh Bank Res The 2nd team remain ubeaten despite a spirited home stand from mid table Lytham Town. Manager Richard Burns changed formation to 3-5-2 in an attempt to test his side which is a fine mix of young talent and old heads. In a first half where the 2nd eleven struggled to keep the ball it was left to sweeper Matthew Dawson to glance home a stunning header from a sublime David Marsh cross. Lytham Town clearly were up for the challenge of meeting the league leaders and later in the first half equalised from the penalty spot after a dubious decision from the referee. The second half saw the 2nd team provide a welcome reaction which earned the management's pride. A simple improvement in keeping possession laid the foundation while our menacing corners helped us regain the lead. John Ascroft headed home to continue the impressive early season goal tally. The game was effectively over when 42 year old veteran Andy Cope hit what can only be described as a 'wonderstrike' from 35 yards and triggered a Copey Cartwheel followed by a team pile on. The high spirits helped the reserves put a stamp on the points when substitue Mark Pinkard tapped home a real poachers finish. All credit to Lytham Town who never stopped battling and deserved a second consolation just minutes from time. Next week the 2nd team face Yorkshire outfit Todmerden Borough at Station Road with a 3.00pm kick off. ___________________________________________________________ 3rd October 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 4-1 Hawcoat Park A windy Station Road was the stage for our third league victory of the season. The visitors had made the long journey from Barrow and after their goalkeeper was sent off for a last man foul on striker David Hogg, home must have seemed a long way off. The result of the foul was Daniel Birkby striking home a supremely placed penalty into the bottom left hand corner to make it 1-0. In the second half the ten men of Barrow managed to use the wind to their advantage and equalised. The resurgence was short lived however when David Hogg added to his early season tally when another one of his efforts saw the net bulge. Hawcoat continued to test their luck with the long ball and on occasions gave goalkeeper Gavin Bates the odd scarey moment. It was ten minutes from time when Daniel Birkby added the 3rd and his 2nd of the game with a neat lob over the stand in Hawcoat Keeper. Substitute John Ascroft sealed victory with a nicely placed right foot finish subsequent to a pin point cross from fellow sub James Green. Two weeks and six points sees the first team slowly climb up the division one table to fifth.. ___________________________________________________________ 26th September 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 3-0 Millom The ever improving first team took another big leap forward with a well earned 3 points at home to early Cumbrian strugglers Millom. In a performance that saw our first clean sheet of the season the first 11 showed that they are slowly putting the campaign's early defeats behind them. Goals came from in-form strikers David Hogg and Richard Burns. Josh Norgate scored his first goal of the season as his recent run of excellent substitue appearances was rewarded with a starting place on the left side of midfield. A tough test faces the first team next week as they entertain the always dangerous Hawcoat Park at Station Road with a 3pm kick off. 26th September 2009 - WLRD2 - Wyre Villa 0-4 Hesketh Bank Ben Goodson lead the way in the Reserves 7th win out of 8 games. In a first half where Wyre Villa saw little of the ball and little of the Hesketh Bank half chances came and went. Eventually a drilled effort from Ben Goodson was spilled by the keeper into the path of a pouncing John Ascroft. The 2nd half saw the home side work themselves back into the game. However the gap in quality was proven when goals from Josh Brierly and two from Ben Goodson (including one penalty) sealed another enfatic victory for the league leading Reserve team. ___________________________________________________________ 19th September 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 2-2 Thornton Cleveleys With a less than convincing start to the new season the 1st team looked to get back on track with the visit of newly promoted and at kick off 3rd placed Thornton Cleveleys. Daniel Birkby made his 150th appearance for the club and along with centre half Sean Royle returned from short injury lay offs. Full back Kevin Cox was rested due to his assault on the Great North Run tomorrow. A lively game provided plenty of end to end action and it seemed a case of when rather than if there would be an opening goal. Richard Burns bagged the home sides first goal to take us into a 1-0 lead. A poor decision from the referee lead to Thornton's equaliser and the teams went in at half time level. The 2nd half quickened in pace straight from the whistle as both sides were cleary interested in 3 points and nothing less. David Hogg's hard work and determination paid off when in his words he 'rose like a salmon' to nod home a rare headed finish. Once again the away team refused to die and to their credit they capitolised on our mistakes and soon equalised a second time. While a point was more than deserved this performance can hopefully signal a turning point in the season and act as a building block for bigger and better things 19th September 2009 - WLRD2 - Whinney Hill 0-5 Hesketh Bank Another week and another rout for the unstoppable reserve team. Even without the presence of manager Andrew Burns the second string inflicted a heavy defeat upon Accrington based outfit Whinney Hill. Goals came from Ben Goodson (2x penalties), Josh Brierly also bagged 2 including a stunning strike from outside the area and Morgan Dodgson completed the scorers list. ___________________________________________________________12 September 2009 - LAS - Hesketh Bank 0-2 Longridge Town The first team played their first and last game in this years Lancashire Amateur Shield after a dissapointing 2-0 home defeat to the West Lancashire league's newest team. An even first half saw neither side take any real early advantage until a shot from just outside the 18 yard area was parryed away by stand in goalkeeper Dave Tomlinson. Despite his efforts the ball fell to a Longridge striker who slipped it into an empty net. At half time the home team went in 1 goal down. Early in the second half hopes of reaching the 2nd round were further dented when centre half Tony Sergeant was involved in a last man tustle with a Longridge striker, the subsequent stumble of both players lead to his red card and the first team went down to 10 men. The reaction was positive and despite being a man down the desire to steal a draw was always evident. Despite the resurgence the game ended 2-0 and the first team bow out of the LAS for another season. 12th September 2009 - WLRD2 - Todmorden Borough Res 1-3 Hesketh Bank Res The Reserve team remain top of the table after a solid away win at Yorkshire based Todmorden. Goals from John Ascroft, Oliver Sumner and Ben Goodson ensured 3 more points to the season's tally. ___________________________________________________________ 5th September 2009 - WLD1 - Mill Hill St Peters 1-1 Hesketh Bank A tough away day in Blackburn against promoted side Mill Hill St.Peters ended with a promising point. In what was a very even first half Adam Birkby headed home to give the 1st team a well deserved lead. Chances followed at both ends but at half time the score stayed 1-0 to the visitors. In the 2nd half Mill Hill began to slowly take control of the game and eventually broke through to equalise. After a nervy last fifteen minutes the final whistle blew, honours even and a point shared. 5th September 2009 - WLRD2 - Hesketh Bank Res. 0-0 Stoneclough Res. 1st and 2nd place in Reserve Division 2 battled out a goaless draw at a pacey Station Road. The reserve team's unbeaten run continues. ___________________________________________________________ 29th August 2009 - WLD1 - Hesketh Bank 1-5 Norcross & Warbreck Blackpool based outfit Norcross & Warbreck inflicted a consecuitve heavy defeat upon the 1st team. Some precise Norcross finishing saw them heading towards half time with a 2-0 lead, however Richard Burns had other ideas and shorlty before the 45 minute mark he struck a deflected shot past the stranded Norcross keeper. For the early part of the 2nd half Hesketh Bank were just the better side and looked the more likely to earn an equaliser. Hopes of a comeback were dashed after Norcross bagged their third. To make matters worst the flood gates appeared to swing open as the visitors added numbers four and five to the score sheet. A dissapointing way to begin the Station Road season. The first team look towards their trip to Mill Hill St Peters next Saturday with a 3.00pm kick off. 29th August 2009 - WLRD2 - Mill Hill St Peters Res 1-2 Hesketh Bank Res When it seemed that the reserve team would finally drop their first points of the season unlikely hero Adam Birkby netted a last gasp winner to make it 2-1 away at Mill Hill. Earlier in the game John Ascroft bagged his fifth goal in 3 three games. Next week the reserves host Stoneclough at Station Road. ___________________________________________________________ 22nd August 2009 - Slyne with Hest 6-1 Hesketh Bank The rural outskirts of Lancaster was where the first team came crashing down to earth with an almighty thud. In a first half were the visitors retained little possession and gave plenty to the opposition it was little surprise that they would go in at the break 3 goals in arrears. A determined side appeared for the 2nd half but a 4th Slyne goal after 50 minutes sealed the 1st team's fate. Another goal and a late penalty made it 6-0. Substitute David Hogg scored a well earned consolation after a mazy run through the defence saw him round the keeper to make the final score 6-1. A day the first team will wish to forget in a hurry. Next week they look forward to their first home game of the season against Norcross & Warbreck. 22nd August 2009 - Hesketh Bank 4-0 Lytham Town The seaside visitors faced a Reserve team in juggernaut form as they plough their way through the season's early opponents. John Ascroft and Mark Pinkard both bagged themselves a brace to add to their impressive early season goal tallys. Three games, fifteen scored, none conceded, a dream start. ___________________________________________________________ 15th August 2009 - Crosshills 1-3 Hesketh Bank The 1st team raised the curtain on their season with a comfortable 3-1 away win at potential strugglers Crosshills. A stunning early volley from Steven Greenwood opened the scoring. The 1st team managed to control most of the 1st half and only some late tackling from the home side slowed down the inevitable. Just before half time last season's top scorer Richard Burns opened his 2009/2010 account with a fine poachers finish. The second half saw a slight revival from the home side but an own goal effectively sealed the points for the 1st team. Midway through the half Crosshills scored to make the last 25 minutes more nervous than they should have been. Overall it was a day were the 1st team dominated possession and had an ambundance of chances. Although there is still much to improve on, 3 points away from home on the opening day of the season is an ideal start for Vaughn Birkby's men. 15th August 2009 - Hesketh Bank 5-0 Milnthorpe Corinthians The Reserves superb start to the season continued with a home game goal romp against Cumbrian side Milnthorpe. After an edgey first half Andrew Burn's side won at a canter with goals from Charlie Haynes, Josh Brierley, Zak Gibbs and two from John Ascroft. __________________________________________________________ 12th August 2009 - Hesketh Bank 4-2 The Herald Tough tackling Sunday League outfit The Herald provided the 1st team's final pre-season opposition. The physical away side went into the break with a 1-0 lead after a poor 1st half display from their hosts. In the 2nd half fitness and quality edged it for the 1st team. John Ascroft opened the home team's account. David Hogg continued his impressive pre-season form with a brace and centre half Sean Royle managed to get on the score sheet with a well finished header off a James Clegg corner. The Herald added a second consolation minutes from time when centre half Tony Sergeant volleyed into his own net. As a long pre-season comes to an end the 1st team finally open their league season away at Yorkshire outfit Crosshills this Saturday, kick off 3.00pm. The club wishes the 1st team every success in the coming season. __________________________________________________________ 8th August 2009 - Crosshills Res 0-6 Hesketh Bank Res The long away trip to Yorkshire has proved a journey worth taking. The Reserves are delighted to bring back with them not only 3 valuable points but 6 goals to sweeten the victory. After a difficult training session on Thursday Mark Pinkard fired home 4 in a opening day rout. Josh Norgate and Josh Brierly were the other scorers on the day. __________________________________________________________ 4th August 2009 - Hesketh Bank 1-1 Fulwood Amateurs Tonight's visitors were the West Lancs Premier League's Fulwood Amateurs. A solid first half an hour was spoiled by the injury to centre half Sean Nightingale who went to hospital with a suspected knee ligamament injury. Shortly after his exit Fulwood scroed the opener and at half time the 1st teanm went in 1-0 down. A further solid second half display saw the 1st team press back the Premier League side and had their efforts rewarded with a David Hogg goal. Stepehen Greenwood also had a shout for a goal after his effort hit the underside of the bar and appeared to bounce over the line. A draw was a good result against a well respected and quality opposition. The club wishes Sean Nightingale a speedy recovery. __________________________________________________________ 1st August 2009 - Hesketh Bank 4-4 Maghull The pre-season programme continued with the visit of West Cheshire League opponents Maghull FC. In a tightly contested first half a stunning Maghull free kick from 25 yards managed to seperate the teams at the half time whistle. Almost immediately after kick off the 1st team began to dominate. Well kept possession along with precise finishing saw Daniel Birkby complete a 2nd half hat-trick with David Hogg bagging the other Hesketh Bank goal. With 20 minutes remaining the 1st team were cruising to a comfortable victory. Mental tiredness, complacency and wholesale changes lead to a late collapse to give Maghull an overall well earned draw. ___________________________________________________________ 28th July 2009 - Hesketh Bank 0-5 Formby On a wet and windy July evening the 1st team played host to a near full strength Formby of the North West Counties League. A combination of injuries, poor form and a gap in class led to our downfall. It was a learning experience all round and not one the 1st team would like to learn again any time soon. ___________________________________________________________ 25th July 2009 - Hesketh Bank 1-1 Billinge FC On a warm July afternoon the 1st team managed a well earned draw against a physical Billinge FC of the Cheshire League. An early defensive mistake gave the visitors the lead. For most of the game the 1st team dominated possession and played some neat and tidy short football. Ironically however the equaliser came from a long ball flicked on by returning striker David Hogg and finished by midfielder Ben Goodson. __________________________________________________________
2008/2009
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