Cup Triumph for Resilient Reds

A Review of Alfreton Town's 2024/25 Season. 

Alfreton Town, Derbyshire Senior Cup Winners 2024/25

"It’s not where we wanted to be but it was still a good season".

That will probably be the thoughts of those of us associated with Alfreton Town upon the conclusion of the 2024/25 season.

After two consecutive seasons of over achieving and qualifying for the play-offs a final position of 14^th, an FA Cup 1^st Round appearance and winning the Derbyshire Senior Cup, will still be seen in Ofton as a decent season.

Taking into consideration long term injuries, 26 new players signed and 8 goalkeepers either used or signed on then it’s not a bad achievement. By the way, the eight keepers, can you name them? Answers at the end of the blog.

Here’s my review of Alfreton Town’s 2024/25 season.

Say Hello & Wave Goodbye.

Billy had signed up some players prior to the 2023/24 season ending, probably conscious of the rebuilding that he’d had to do the previous Summer. We had 12 players stay on for 2024/25 with 8 players leaving, two of those were loan signings returning to their club.

The players retained were;

·         Jake Askew      George Willis               Nathan Newall               Harry Perritt

·         George Cantrill  Lewis Salmon              Liam Waldock                Dwayne Wiley

·         Josh Clackstone Jake Day                     Billy Fewster                   Adam Lund

·        The Players departing were loan signings George Dickinson, who returned to Sheffield United following his only appearance, as a sub at Darlington and Gerry McDonagh going back to Kidderminster Harriers.

Captain Shaun Brisley became Nicky Law’s first signing at Matlock Town.

James Oliver’s loan at Belper Town ended and he returned to us. James was here for the start of pre-season but left in July and signed forms for the Nailers. Max Ram joined Rushall Olympic and Ryan Taylor is believed to have retired from football.

The biggest loss for us on the pitch though was Kennedy Digie who joined NL North champions Tamworth in the National League and Jordan Thewlis who signed for Guiseley.

 

Jordan Thewlis

Kennedy Digie

All the players leaving go with our best wishes and thanks for their efforts in a fabulous 2023/24 but Ken & Jordan were going to be the hardest to replace. That was the job for Billy & Mark and after a gruelling pre-season, where we managed to play 7 & half of the 10 planned friendlies (the game against Nottingham Forest U21’s being abandoned due to no paramedic on the ground after they had to escort a Forest player to hospital), the squad was added to.

In came Jed Abbey an attacking midfielder from South Shields. Billy bolstered the defence with two solid signings in Adam Anson from Southport and Max Hunt from Buxton. We got two players who were at Chorley the previous season, up front David Moyo was a late addition after spending pre-season with us and he was joined by the returning Billy Whitehouse. Another familiar face was Ahmed Salam who had spent the previous term in Gibraltor, playing for Manchester 1862. A surprise addition was the ever popular Danny Preston who we thought had retired through injury in May but he had been training with the club and feeling fit and signed on for 24/25. Tom Hinton & Jamie Watson joined on non-contract terms. Tom had been with Thorne Colliery previously and Jamie had moved into the area having previously played for Phoenix Sports and VCD Athletic in Kent.

 

Danny Preston, played in pre-season but not competitively.

August.

The season started with a trip to the seaside and the same result as opening day last year as we fell to a 1-3 defeat, this time on the west coast at Southport.  Six players made their debut in that game, Jed Abbey, Adam Anson, Max Hunt, David Moyo, Ahmed Salam & Billy Whitehouse, whose overhead kick goal on his second debut for us not being enough in a game when the defensive actions of George Willis, Josh Clackstone & Adam Anson were particularly note worthy. We’ve been here before as we have just 1 win in the last 14 opening day games. 

Following up the season opener was a visit from Kings Lynn Town and we don’t fare well against the Linnets. Billy made 4 changes to the starting eleven as Lund, Waldock, Whitehouse and Moyo all began the game with Moyo opening the scoring just 13 minutes into his full debut. Liam Waldock made it 2-0 on 56 minutes and Billy Fewster rounding off the scoring on 62 as we gained our first ever home victory against Kings Lynn. It felt like the team were back to the performance levels of the previous season when our constant pressing wore sides down and the goals flowed. That victory marked the start of our best run of the season as we went 14 games unbeaten.

 

Liam Waldock (on left) scores our 2nd v Kings Lynn Town

We followed up the Kings Lynn thrashing with a 2-2 draw at Leamington. We’d won the last 5 games against the Brakes so a draw, even away from home, could have left a slightly disappointing feeling but this was a game of intense commitment from both sides. David Moyo had scored the opening goal but on 86 minutes Leamington had turned it round and led 2-1 only for Jed Abbey to score a 95^th minute equaliser.

It was exactly the same result as we faced fancied Chester at the Impact. In a reverse of fortunes to the Leamington game we came from behind (from a fantastic goal by Kurt Willoughby which went into George’s top right hand corner) to lead, only for a 72^nd minute leveller from the visitors. Both sides had chances to score more, Jed Abbey hitting the bar late on, but this was a decent result against a class side. For the second game running Abbey & Moyo had got the goals in what looked like a promising partnership.

 

Kurt Willoughby's sensational strike for Chester.

David Moyo's goal v Chester.

The first 4 games had seen the same squad of players with just a few tweaks to who started and who was on the bench.

While the lads were drawing with Chester there was another important match on 24^th August 2024, just down the road at St Andrew’s Church in Swanwick as our goalkeeping coach, Solly, got married to Andrea and I’m sure this blog can speak for all Alfreton fans in wishing Mr & Mrs Sollitt a wonderful and happy life together.

 

Mr & Mrs Sollitt, with thanks to Andrea Sollitt for use of the photo

Bank Holiday Monday saw a first ever trip for the club to Needham Market, newcomers to this level. Alfreton supporters were impressed with the Suffolk club and its hospitality. 

Needham Market's Main Stand

Cover and press gantry at Needham Market

The Bar on the ground at Needham Market

Dwayne Wiley and Lewis Salmon made their first appearances of the season from the bench. A goalless first half was followed by a brace from Jed Abbey for our first away win with Needham having just 1 point from their opening 5 games.

 

Reds fans behind the goal celebrate Jed's 1st at Needham Market

Jed in what became his customary goal celebration at Needham Market.

The month ended with a visit from Farsley Celtic who had played all their games away from home due to issues with their pitch and owners. A dominant display by the Reds saw us frustrated as we struggled to get the breakthrough goal. Former Red, Tom Allan, did know the path to goal and opened the scoring. It took until the 76^th minute for Max Hunt to score his first goal for the club with an exquisite volley. Jed Abbey scored another 95^th minute goal, this time with a free kick from just outside the penalty area to give us the 3 points in a 2-1 win.

 

David Moyo celebrates Max Hunt's goal v Farsley Celtic.

A crowded penalty area v Farsley Celtic.

So, after a disappointing opening day defeat we ended August in 6^th place and a 5 game unbeaten run. A decent start considering some of the opposition we had faced.

September.

There were just 3 league games this month as we looked to consolidate in the play off positions and we started our FA Cup campaign in the 2^nd qualifying round.

Dwayne Wiley made his first start of the season in a goalless draw at Darlington. Dwayne had been the rock at the back last season but had struggled to win his place back, being restricted to just 2 sub appearances before the Darlo game. With just one effort of note for both sides telling its own story but a point at Darlington is always a good return.

A visit from Scarborough followed that and another point gained, though this felt like 2 lost. Billy Fewster opened the scoring in first half added time and a deflected shot on 79 minutes saw Boro gain a point, but we remained in the play-off positions.

 

Billy Fewster gives us the lead at home to Scarborough Athletic.

George Cantrill challenges for the ball v Scarborough.

The month ended with another 79^th minute goal but on this occasion it brought joy to the travelling Reds at full timers Kidderminster Harriers. A game where we had to defend well but gave a good account up front too saw Lewis Salmon, who had only just come on as a sub, cross the ball into the Harriers penalty area only for home defender, Alex Penny, to divert it into his own net. With added time it was almost 20 minutes of valiant defending before we saw the game out. This was a great victory at one of this levels top clubs and saw us end the month in 5^th place. Having a settled squad had helped as Billy used the same few players, alternating with some starting and then on the bench in other games.

The FA Cup.

Magic.

Anyone reading my stuff before will know I love the FA Cup. When Alfreton make the 1^st round proper, and beyond, it is a fantastic feeling. It’s not just the sense of achievement it’s the journey there and incidents along the way and this season was no different.

Spalding United

Spalding United's main stand.

Our FA Cup campaign started with a trip to Spalding United, who we faced previously in our Midland League and Northern Counties East days. Our last game against the Tulips though was in 2000/2001 when we won an FA Cup 1Q tie 3-2 thanks to a brace from Ryan France and one from Adam Fretwell. Adam is still playing, turning out now and again for Wickersley Old Village Veterans Over 35’s.

The managers, Billy Heath & Spaldings Jimmy Dean.

Of all our previous encounters against Spalding it’s doubtful any of them was so devoid of quality. If ever a 0-0 draw deserved that scoreline this one did, and got it. Managed by former Scunthorpe Utd & Peterborough Sports boss, Jimmy Dean, Spalding were well organised and belied their poor start to the season. Jake Day & Adam Anson returned to the starting 11 after having a couple of games on the bench. Though both sides failed to serve up an enthralling game the lads came off that pitch worn out as they had worked so hard to keep us in the competition.

 

Liam Waldock in possession at Spalding.

Doing the hokey-cokey at Spalding.

The replay 3-days later at the Impact wasn’t much better but it wasn’t devoid of controversy. The first incident came in the first half when Spalding’s Cartwright had his header saved by George Willis and the away team were convinced it was over the line, some of the Ofton contingent thought so too, thankfully the officials didn’t.

 

Spalding's keeper makes a great save.

Billy made his first change on 64 minutes bringing Billy Whitehouse on for Jed Abbey and we instantly saw some good work down the wing and balls into the box. One of these saw our attack repelled and it looked like a certain handball but our penalty claim was ignored by the ref.

 

Alfreton pressure the Spalding defence.

Into extra time we went and still no goals over 180 minutes. With 4 minutes of extra time remaining Spalding took the lead. 

Spalding take the lead.

To go out of the FA Cup after last season’s joyous run to the 2^nd round would have been upsetting, so thank goodness Billy Whitehouse hit a purler into the top corner on 121 minutes to force penalties.

Billy Whitehouse is about to send the game to penalties.

Whitehouse's equaliser.

You can view the contributions of Matty & Vaughan from the media team at the replay. Our equalising goal and penalty shoot out commentary starts at around 2 hours and 46 minutes into the Youtube video and is well worth a view.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7_3Cma7oJw

Vaughan, Matty & Quentin from the media team.

The aforementioned controversy continued into the penalty shoot-out as our equalising scorer, Whitehouse, saw his penalty saved, giving Spalding the advantage only for the ref to order a re-take as the keeper was deemed to have come off his line. Billy’s penalty, take 2, hit the back of the net. The following spot kick saw Spalding’s taker kick it over the bar. At 4-2 to the Reds, thanks to penalty goals by Clackstone, Whitehouse, Salmon & Fewster super George Willis in goal saved Hillyards shot to see us into the next round, phew.

 

George Willis and that match winning penalty save.

Willis takes the acclaim of the fans.

I’ve never wanted to go to Biggleswade as much as I did after we’d shaken off Spalding. They were our opponents in the 3^rd qualifying round and it would be a first ever meeting between the two sides. Unfortunately, Biggleswade Town, as there are 3 teams with Biggleswade in their title, play near the River Ivel and so the ground is liable to waterlogging. Our scheduled game on 28^th September was postponed fairly early and was rearranged for the following Tuesday, 1^st October.

Off we set on the Alfreton Town Supporters Association coach which was a surprise given the weather hadn’t improved since Saturday. We were 30 minutes away from the ground when the call came through that the game was postponed again. A stop at Newport Pagnall Services on the M1 and the inquest began with Biggleswade not faring very well at all. Alfreton players had got to the ground and there were reports that the pitch was obviously unplayable and that the club had even had a tractor on the pitch which had made matters worse. Games get postponed at short notice every season but when it was so obvious the game couldn’t take place earlier in the day then questions were raised and the Biggleswade club faced a lot of criticism.

The debacle saw the FA decide the tie should be played at Alfreton. Ahmed Salam came in for only his 2^nd appearance of the season from the bench. A Billy Fewster goal was all to show from the first half but he added a 2^nd and with a brace from Jake Day and one each from Jed Abbey & Liam Waldock in the 2^nd half we were through to the next round. It was such a pity it should have turned out how it had because I know people were looking forward to visiting new opponents. Unfortunately, for me, the date the game eventually got played was on a day I had booked in London on a tour of Wembley so I missed our emphatic 6-0 win.

 

For the 6-0 win over Biggleswade I was at Wembley.

Due to the delay in getting the Biggleswade game played there was a quick turnaround for the 3^rd qualifying round tie against Spennymoor Town,  just 4 days later. Regular opposition in National League North this was the first time we’d played the Moors in a cup tie, and what a tie it was.

Billy’s plans were slightly affected in the pre-match warm up when Max Hunt was injured and Adam Anson was a late replacement, George Cantrill & David Moyo were rested as Liam Waldock & Jake Day started. 

Adam Anson & Jake Day returned to the side for the Spennymoor FAC tie.

Two very good sides going for the win, feisty encounters throughout and yet again the opposition claimed a penalty, though it was more from hope than any expectation. Spennymoor also claimed a shot saved by George Willis went over the line, the officials disagreed and away supporters were further incensed when a goal was disallowed for offside. Alfreton weathered all that and gave as good back then Liam Waldock struck a shot from the edge of the box to put us in the FA Cup 1^st Round draw again.

 

Ofton supporters celebrate Waldock's goal as the Spennymoor keeper is beaten.

Lewis Salmon celebrates our winner in the Spennymoor tie.

Pile on.

Reaching the FA Cup 1st Round means so much - celebration photos below.

And what a draw we got, nearby Notts County away. County had got back into the Football League for this season and had previously allowed us use of their coach when we’d had long trips in the Conference (National League) Premier. There were low expectations for us to get anything from the game but we knew we had good players who would work hard all game for the club, anything is possible.

 

Pre-match at Meadow Lane.

The game was moved to Friday night, which wasn’t a popular move but was sweetened by being one of the TV choices, so more money for the club. I was working in Inverness that week and travelled back on the Friday. My train into Chesterfield was delayed by 30 minutes but luck was on my side as I managed to drive from Chesterfield to Alfreton and got my seat on the supporters coach with 5 minutes to spare.

A great following of over 1300 supporters from Alfreton saw Jake Day have a shot at goal in the first minute. It was Jake’s shot on 14 minutes that was deflected into the path of Liam Waldock who swept home to give us the lead and send our fans into raptures. Could it be that we would beat a football league team for the first time ever? The answer came barely 60 seconds later as Notts equalised immediately. It was very unfair as I was still celebrating in my head and all of a sudden the ball was in George’s net. I thought the ref had to make sure everyone was ready before re-starting but he never checked with me (giggle).

 

Liam Waldock sweeps home our goal at Notts.

Alfreton take the lead at Notts County.

Exhilaration

We’d, arguably, shaded the first half as we went in at 1-1. The second half was a different story as Notts took the lead early on and as we chased the game they picked us off to record a flattering 5-1 win.

 Action photos from the Notts County tie.

Liam Waldock

Jake Day shoots.

Josh Clackstone blocks this shot.

George Willis saves.

Billy Fewster gets forward.

Ofton fans at Meadow Lane.

It was still a memorable run, the late drama in the Spalding game, controversies over the Biggleswade tie, an entertaining game against Spennymoor setting up the most memorable of occasions for the club at Notts County. Great stuff, magic even.

 

October.

In between the FA Cup ties against Spalding and the defeat at Notts we managed to get in 4 league games, losing our unbeaten run in the process.

October commenced with a visit from Hereford, a game which saw defences on top and very few chances, though we were relieved to see a visitors goal disallowed for offside. The 0-0 draw saw our 3^rd consecutive shut-out over 90 minutes.

 

Hereford score at the Impact.........

......but it's disallowed for offside.

Billy Fewster's effort is saved by the Hereford keeper.

The next league game was just after the cup ties against Biggleswade & Spennymoor when Chorley visited the Impact. Chorley were in 2^nd place and have been consistently around the promotion and play off places since coming down from the National League. 

The match officials lead the teams out.

A frenetic start from the Reds saw the ball in the back of the Chorley net after just 5 minutes but it was chalked off for a foul in the build up, which was very annoying as I was pleased with my photo of it. 

Our disallowed goal v Chorley.

The Reds were on top form and pressuring the Chorley goal, though with the visitors you know they have the quality to nick a goal however much possession you have. Hard fought throughout there was joy for the Reds as Liam Waldock, as so often he does, popped up to slot past Chorley keeper Urwin with an 89^th minute winner. 

Liam Waldock scores in the 89th minute v Chorley.

Liam turns to celebrate his late winner.

Good arrow!

Jake Day shares a joke with the Chorley defender.

Ofton fans enjoy the win over Chorley.

89th minute winners are so enjoyable.

Ofton enjoy the win over Chorley.

Of course in these modern days added time isn’t just a couple of minutes anymore and we saw 8 extra added on for Chorley to push for the equaliser, but the defence, as it has done on many times, held firm. A fantastic result against a top side which saw us move into 4^th place.

We didn’t know it at the time but this was as good as it got. Just ten days after knocking Spennymoor out of the FA Cup they returned for a league game and this time they had a certain determination about them. This game was chosen for the Remembrance Day game as it was the closest to the actual date.

 

Chairman, Wayne Bradley, lays a wreath for Remembrance Day.

We started well again, Jake Day causing problems for the Moors throughout. Like the cup tie it was two good sides at this level giving their all for the points but it was a strange goal that decided it. Matty Dolan put a ball near the far post from a free kick which George punched away, but it went upwards and hit an Alfreton head on its way down and ended in the back of the net. Pressure we put on for the equaliser was soaked up by the Moors and we lost our unbeaten run of 14 games since the opening day defeat at Southport and our 23 game unbeaten home run which went back to November last year.

 

Jake Day goes close in the league game v Spennymoor.

Nathan Newall challenges for the ball.

Four days later we were able to make amends with a 3-1 win at Rushall Olympic. Jed Abbey had given us a 5^th minute lead only for Benbow to pull the struggling home side level just 8 minutes later. Liam Waldock hit the woodwork twice and it took a change of personnel from Billy that changed the game. Jake Day & Lewis Salmon came off the bench to score on 88 & 91 minutes respectively to get us back that winning feeling.

 

October ended with a win at Rushall Olympic.

We ended October in 6^th position just 3 points behind table toppers Chorley.

November.

Bonfire night saw a bit of a shock as this month got underway for us. We travelled to Peterborough Sports, hovering just above the relegation places, and we led 1-0 at half time only for Michael Gyasi to come on as a sub on 80 minutes and smash an hat-trick to make it feel more like Halloween.

That made it 3 defeats in our last 4 games so a 1-0 win at Warrington Town on the following Saturday, thanks to a 73^rd minute Liam Waldock deflected effort, was most welcome. Lewis Salmon making his first start for us against the Wires.

A week later we had a respite from league points when Needham Market made their first visit to this part of Derbyshire for an FA Trophy 2^nd round tie. Jake Askew made his first start for us since the penalty shoot out defeat to Heanor Town last December in the Derbyshire Senior Cup. Jake replaced George Willis who had a groin strain prior to kick off.

Jake Askew 10 + 1 appearances 2 clean sheets.

The talk before the game though was the offer from chairman Wayne Bradley. He promised to buy a drink for everyone in the Reds bar after the game should Liam Waldock score.

 

George Cantrill takes the ball past 2 Needham Market players.

The Reds went into a 2-0 lead by the 21^st minute with a rare goal from Josh Clackstone and a beautifully controlled pass and strike into the bottom corner from Lewis Salmon. Needham pulled a goal back but on 78 minutes the biggest cheer of the day, including from the Needham contingent, came because Liam Waldock scored to make it 3-1, free drinks all around. An injury time penalty converted by Luke Ingram wasn’t enough for the Suffolk side as the Reds made it to round 3.

 

Josh Clackstone 38 +5 appearances 2 goals.

Adam Lund setting up another attack.

Lewis Salmon scores our 2nd v Needham Market in the FA Trophy.

Lewis Salmon's shot hits the net.

Liam Waldock's goal means free drinks thanks to Mr Bradley.

Liam Waldock lets supporters know about the free drinks.

Chairman Wayne Bradley is happy to stand the free drinks.

A 2-1 victory at Oxford City, who needed to clear snow off the pitch before it was playable, made it 3 consecutive wins. Jake Askew kept his place ahead of the injured George Willis and made his first ever league start for us. Two goals in 2-minutes on 65 & 66 saw us respond to trailing 1-0 and gain a win in our first ever trip to City.

A week later and there was a real surprise as we conceded 4 goals at home as South Shields gave us a wake up call. Our last 4-goal home concession was in the FA Trophy tie against Macclesfield last season and it’s some time since a league side did that to us at the Impact.

 

Lewis Salmon scores v South Shields but we conceded 4 at home and lost.

George Willis returned to the side and had to dive low to turn a certain goal away early on. Lewis Salmon opened the scoring on 32 minutes but the tide turned in the 40^th minute when George’s time on the pitch ended as he was sent off for his 2^nd booking after fouling Blackett. Jake Askew got more game time as we had to try and get something from the game with ten men. That ask was too much as Shields scored 4 before we managed our 2^nd goal on 96 minutes through Jed Abbey.

November closed with a tough trip to the divisions biggest side, Scunthorpe United. Billy Fewster returned to the starting line up after missing the last three games. The gaffer also brought Dwayne Wiley back in after not appearing in the previous 2 fixtures. A game of few chances saw the Reds come away with an excellent point in another goalless draw and likewise for the performance.

 

A goalless draw at Glanford Park was a good result.

We were down to 10^th at the month end, still all to play for though.

December.

The Derbyshire Senior Cup was underway for the Reds at the start of December as we enter at the3rd round stage. It took a 92^nd minute goal from Jed Abbey to see off Staveley MW 1-0 that saw us into the 4^th round. As is usual at this stage of the competition Billy brought in fringe players and players on loan or dual registration forms from other clubs. Goalkeeper Jordan Douglas signed on for this game, which was his only appearance of the season. Jordan is a North Ferriby player and signed on temporarily to help us out. Ahmed Salam came in for his first start since the opening game of the season and this turned out to be his final game for us as he joined Bridlington Town on loan later this month.

 

Jordan Douglas 1 appearance 1 clean sheet. Thanks to Rob Knight for the photo.

Also making their only appearance for us in this game was Jamie Watson and Harvey Wigglesworth, who seems to make an annual Derbyshire SC appearance for us. Harvey was also registered with Shelley in the NCEL.

 

Harvey Wigglesworth 1 appearance.

Jamie Watson 1 appearance.

The cup football continued and, reminiscent of last season, we played the same team in the FA Cup and FA Trophy, with the same conclusion. Spennymoor followed up their revengeful 1-0 league win here to knock us out of the Trophy with another 1-0 win at the Impact. Jake Askew returned in goal and had one of his best games for us. Adam Lund was another to return and he had an eventful afternoon, getting a straight red on 56 minutes, this was appealed and later rescinded. The Moors broke the deadlock with a superb free kick from Matty Dolan to send us out of the Trophy on home soil again. Moors eventually reached the final at Wembley and despite the loss to Aldershot it is a magnificent achievement.

 

Matty Dolan's free kick goal for Spennymoor.

Brad James saves this Alfreton shot.

Jake Day 32 +19 appearances 7 goals.

Back to the league for the rest of December and a first meeting with Marine for 20 years. Cosmos Matwasa, a recent signing from Hereford, came on as a sub to make his debut. A first half of little action was followed by Alfreton taking the game to the visitors after the break. Liam Waldock smashed a shot against the bar and Jake Day was first to the rebound and scored the games only goal. All our previous games against Marine were in the Northern Premier League (NPL) and the Crosby side were one of the top sides at that level when we first made the NPL Premier in the late 1990’s. It’s good to see they have made it to the NLN and despite being in a relegation fight when they visited us they did eventually pull clear.

 

Jake Day scores the winner v Marine.

A goalless draw at Kings Lynn Town made it just 1 goal conceded in the last 5 games, back to the well organised defence that Billy has fostered. Indeed, this was described as a defensive masterclass in reports of the game with the home side being restricted to just 1 shot on target, unfortunately, Alfreton didn’t take their scoring chances when they came. This was a good point, though, against a side sitting in 2^nd place. Billy Fewster was subbed in the 94^th minute and was the first of a list of long term injuries we encountered this season. Billy didn’t play again until the final day of the season.

Our last game before Santa arrived saw another side we’ve not played for 20 years at the Impact, Radcliffe, who had the moniker Borough the last time we played them. They sat 3^rd bottom and their survival hopes weren’t helped by our 2-1 win. Jed Abbey gave us a great start after 2 minutes and we easily dealt with any opportunities Radcliffe did create. Another inspired substitution by Billy saw David Moyo extend our lead just a few moments after entering the game. A quick response from Radcliffe to halve the deficit failed to inspire any fight back as we saw the game out.

 

Jed Abbey's goal gives us a 2nd minute lead v Radcliffe.

Bernard & Johnno, as seen on TV.

George Willis 27 appearances 13 clean sheets.

Boxing Day saw the local derby at Buxton who had moved to a full time model this season as they look to achieve a place in the National League. In a hectic first half which saw 5 goals and a George Willis penalty save we couldn’t grab the equaliser our performance deserved and fell to defeat.

We saw some player movements this month, the first time Billy had recruited since pre-season. We’ve already seen that Jordan Douglas & Harvey Wigglesworth appeared purely for the senior cup and Ahmed Salam went to Bridlington on loan. Gerry McDonagh returned after being with Rushall Olympic, Gerry spent time with us the previous season on loan from Kidderminster. Cosmos Matwasa’s time with us was fleeting, after signing earlier in the month his last appearance for us was as a sub in the defeat at Buxton and he then went out on loan to Stamford. His tenure was disappointing as we never got to see him with the ball running down the wing, which was what his strengths were, instead he looked out of place at this level, but 4 part appearances are not going to give us time to judge him fairly.

 

Ahmed Salam 2 +7 appearances.

That defeat to the Bucks saw us drop out of the play-off places and end the year in 9^th place. We didn’t get any higher for the rest of the season.

Jed Abbey 35 +18 appearances & joint top scorer, 13 goals.

2025.

What do they say, a new year, new hope. We all had that as January peeped in to view. Handily placed in 9^th, 1-point away from the play-offs and 6-points off top spot. January crushed that hope as we were to win just 1 league game during the month.

Cosmos Matwasa 1 +3 appearances.

On New Years Day Curzon Ashton rocked up at the Impact. We’d won just 1 out of the last 4 against the Nash, who I have a lot of respect for. Like us, they’re pushing against the natural order of football hierarchy by competing in the NL North and at the top end at that, sitting in 2^nd place before the game.

 

David Moyo 13 +12 appearances, 4 goals.

Gerry McDonagh made his 2^nd debut for us in this opening game of 2025. Fifteen minutes in, George Willis was fouled and struggled for the rest of his time in the game. He was subbed at half time and one of his last actions was to pick the ball out of the net following a Curzon penalty, which was the only goal of the game. To the surprise of the Reds faithful Jake Day donned the keepers kit as the teams came out for the 2^nd half. Jake performed very well, keeping a clean sheet. Curzon deserved the win on what was a frustrating afternoon for those with an Alfreton allegiance.

 

Curzon Ashton take the points with this penalty.

Curzon fans at the Impact.

Jake Day in the nets v Curzon Ashton.

The injury to George on his 200^th appearance for the club ended his season. His replacement, David Moyo, never played for the club again after being released from his contract at his own request, for personal reasons. David was a likeable bloke, when he appeared in pre-season I thought he tended to “lose his balance” quite a bit and as Billy would say “be stronger, David”. He turned into a very good acquisition and I hope he is well wherever he is.

Billy moved quickly to recruit following the Curzon game. In came goalkeeper David Robson, who had last played for Rochdale and Kobe Hall came on loan from Kidderminster Harriers. One of the best signings this whole season was David Solademi from Alvechurch, we also signed another goalkeeper, this time Jack Thompson from Derby County, for just one game in the Derbyshire Senior Cup. The game Jack was due to play in was postponed so he never actually made an appearance for us.

 

Jack Thompson, signed on for the Ilkeston game, never played for us. Thanks to Rob Knight for use of the photo.

Postponements gave us a brief respite and time to prepare for Brackley Town coming to our home. Billy Heath gave a debut to keeper David Robson but it was opposite number Johnny Maxted who stood out and not for the right reasons. In a night of drama under the floodlights Maxted fumbled a Billy Whitehouse corner into his own net to give us a 10^th minute lead. Brackley, who would go on to lift the championship trophy and gain the promotion they had been threatening for some years, then went into a 3-1 lead as they just blew us away. It was difficult to see how we could get back into this against one of the best sides we’ve encountered this season but then Maxted intervened again, this time by taking out Liam Waldock just outside the area to earn his red card. With no sub keeper on the Brackley bench former Chesterfield player George Carline went in goal in time for Jed Abbey’s free kick to hit the back of the net in first half added time.

 

The ball comes off Maxted's head and in the net for an own goal.

Johnny Maxted is sent off.

Replacement keeper George Carline is beaten by Abbey's free kick.

 

Max Hunt 49+1 appearances 3 goals.

Adam Anson 27 +4 appearances 3 goals.

The door to turning this around was truly open and Max Hunt metaphorically ripped it off its hinges on 48 minutes as he headed home our equaliser, truly magnificent. You couldn’t see this turn of events with 11 v11 but Johnny Maxted knew how to influence a game. We smelt victory and went for it and in the dying embers of a game, where 2^nd half chances had fallen to Jake Day, Lewis Salmon & Jed Abbey, Brackley broke away and scored in added time to do what champions do best, win against the odds. It was exhausting, it could have been us with that exuberance that late winners give you, but the hat is tipped to Brackley on a job well done.

It was our second 4 goal home capitulation of the season and while we continued to concede uncharacteristic goals it was at the top end we weren’t performing as well, goals weren’t flowing.

Adam Lund, most starts, 51 +3 appearances.

It didn’t get any easier with a trip to Chester on the following Saturday. A first defeat in 7 games against the Seals extended our losing run to 4 games as we were beaten 0-2. David Solademi made his debut as a sub and we got a first glimpse of what he is about, we weren’t to be disappointed as the season progressed.

 

Dwayne Wiley, captain, 30 +8 apearances.

A difficult Derbyshire Senior Cup tie at Ilkeston followed and though we are the higher ranked side this wasn’t a game we would be classed as favourites. Jake Askew started in goal as Billy named a strong line up. Liam Waldock popped in a goal after 2 minutes and that was enough to see us through to the semi-final and a first clean sheet in 6 games was a welcome bonus.

 

Liam Waldock 38 +11 appearances, 13 goals - joint top scorer.

What followed next was a new low for this season as Needham Market, bottom of the league, came to the Impact and overturned a 2-0 deficit to take the points with a late winner to win 3-2. David Robson returned in goal and Kobe Hall, on loan from Kidderminster, came on at half time for his debut. It wasn’t an impressive appearance for the loan man as he was himself substituted after being on in the 2^nd half for 35 minutes. Kobe made 2 more sub appearances and returned to his parent club.

 

George Cantrill 47 +2 appearances 1 goal.

The defeat was our 5^th consecutive in the league as we were on our worst run for some time, it ended with just 2 wins in 17 league games. The first of those wins was in the next game a Friday night “away” trip to crisis club Farsley Celtic. This away game was at Buxton, Farsley had even used the Impact while their ground was out of action and wouldn’t appear at Throstle Nest all season. A 4-1 win for the Reds eased our worries but we knew this was against a club most teams would beat. Despite the win there was bad news as Harry Perritt was injured in this game and he too would miss the rest of the season.

 

Harry Perritt 14 +12 appearances.

The Farsley victory moved us up 1 place to finish January in 11^th place, still just 7 points from the play-offs but the hope of that was dwindling.

February.

Winter was well and truly set in and the bitter cold days and nights at football wasn’t warming us up as we won just 1 game during February out of the 6 played and just 4 goals to show for it.

The return against Southport was first and I recall thinking after we had lost 2-0 that these games last season were being won, defensively we were less efficient as a unit and up front we had created chances but just couldn’t finish.

 

Like all Alfreton fans, Jed is scratching is head over the lack of goals.

Southport rarely triumph here, in the last 15 visits they had just 1 win, but here they were taking the 3 points. As much as we pressed they were able to keep us at bay and the pace of Lunt & Hilton gave them a chance of a breakaway goal, which they took on 26 minutes. Disappointingly it was a set piece on 50 minutes which was headed home for Southport’s 2^nd.

Surprisingly, given our recent form, we went to Scarborough and beat them 2-0. David Robson, who had conceded 12 goals in his 5 games was dropped and Jake Askew returned. Lewis Salmon in the 2^nd minute gave us the lead and Adam Anson grabbed the 2^nd on 62 minutes. It was a relief for us all, we were just waiting for the season to return to our normal levels, we still had some time to wait for that to happen.

 

Lewis Salmon 27 +18 appearances, joint top scorer 13 goals.

After the win at Scarborough we went 10 league games without a victory. It was getting to the stage where every team we played seemed to be such difficult opponents whereas the last couple of seasons we’ve felt we could beat anyone.

It’s worth remembering that the calming influence in defence that George brought, the creativity of Billy Fewster allied to the flexibility and quality of Harry Perrit and the goals and assists of David Moyo were all missing.

 

Billy Fewster 18 +8 appearances 4 goals.

Billy recruited before the visit of Kidderminster. Three loan players joined, Mathew Carson from Grimsby Town, Owen German from Altrincham & Luke Mathewson from Bolton. We also signed Akeel Francis from Brighouse Town and a major coup was getting Sam Osborne from Boston United.

Osborne & German made their debuts in the 2-0 home defeat to Kidderminster. The almost year long unbeaten home run seemed an age ago now.

 

George Cantrill in action v Kidderminster Harriers.

Kidderminster take the lead at the Impact.

Three tough away journeys followed and all were lost. First up was Billy’s 300^th game in charge away at Spennymoor. We started brightly and were the better side for most of the first half yet trailed 2-0 at the break. Pushing forward in the 2^nd half a breakaway goal saw us 3-0 down and the 66^th minute goal from Lewis Salmon was just a consolation. 

Our gaffer, Billy Heath took charge of his 300th game in charge at Spennymoor.

Billy Whitehouse came on as a sub on 90 minutes at Spennymoor for what would be his final game in his 2^nd spell at the club. He was released from his contract by mutual consent a few weeks later and re-signed for another of his former clubs, Chorley the following day.

Billy Whitehouse 25 +9 appearances, 2 goals.

A visit to Hereford saw debut’s for Luke Matheson, Mathew Carson & Akeel Francis. All three debutants helped with an improved performance and we only fell behind in the 2^nd half to a deflected shot. Despite pushing for an equaliser The Bulls finished us off with a 2^nd eight minutes from time.

 

Kobe Hall, just 3 sub appearances for us during his loan spell.

The final of the trio of long trips saw us finish February at South Shields where we, again, played fairly well but missed chances which saw us pointless as the home side won 3-1.

For the first time this season we were looking at the points difference between ourselves and the relegation spots as we ended the month in 16^th position, the lowest we’d been this season.

March.

Warrington Town prepare to start the game.

Warrington visited for the first game in March with the Reds in poor form, having taken just 6 points out of the 36 on offer. It looked like all that was forgotten as we dominated the first half and deservedly led 1-0 at half time thanks to a Josh Clackstone penalty.

 

Josh Clackstone scores from the spot.

Cole Palmer Josh Clackstone & Akeel Francis celebrate v Warrington.

Sam Osborne got his first goal for the club on 62 minutes and we were coasting. Then out of nothing the Wires pulled a goal back with ten minutes remaining. Just 4 minutes later they had equalised, it was difficult to comprehend how we had lost a comfortable 2-goal lead with ten minutes remaining. Both keepers made excellent saves in the remaining time left to keep the scores level, but this would do confidence no good at all.

So close.

 

Sam Osborne gives us a 2-0 lead v Warrington.

Worse news was to follow after the game when we found out that keeper Jake Askew would be out for the rest of the season.

The following Tuesday we had a break from the league with a trip to The Don Amott Arena for the Derbyshire Senior Cup SF with Mickleover. David Robson returned to the side following the injury to Jake Askew and Liam Waldock & Max Hunt also came back after missing the last few games as Billy, again, put a strong side out for this competition.

 

Liam Waldock's goal seals the 2-0 win at Mickleover.

Loan players Matthew Carson, Luke Matheson & Owen German, who came on as a sub, impressed as the Reds dealt comfortably with any threat Mickleover posed despite not dominating proceedings ourselves. Carson scored on 36 minutes and Liam Waldock eased any worries we had with our 2^nd goal with 91 played. For the first time since 2019 we had a Senior Cup final to look forward too, the season may not have reaped what we had hoped for at the top end of the table but it was an achievement to make it to the final.

 

Matthew Carson 4 appearances 1 goal.

The Reds travelled to Brackley Town and, again, started the game well, Francis Akeel hitting the bar as we created the better chances in a goalless first half. Brackley though managed to get 2 second half goals to go top of National League North as we seemed to lack any cutting edge following the withdrawal of Jake Day. This was the last game for Matthew Carson as he returned to Grimsby once his month loan was up.

 

Akeel Francis 5 +6 appearances.

March is renowned for the amount of games as clubs catch up on earlier postponements and it was no difference as Scunthorpe United visited the Impact in midweek.

Will Evans gets above Jake Day.

Yet again we started brightly and tested Scunthorpe keeper Fitzsimons but he dealt with our efforts, sometimes spectacularly. Just before half-time the Iron took the lead and our lack of firepower, evident for a number of games now, was being punished by sides who were not having to be at their best going forward to take the points. A 2^nd goal sealed the win for Scunthorpe, despite a fantastic effort from Matheson coming back off the crossbar, and for the second consecutive game the victors go top of the table after beating us.

Luke Mattheson 8 +3 appearances.

Two home games brought 2 more points as we were calculating how many we would need in a worst case scenario at the bottom of the table. First up was Oxford City in which everyone respected the minutes silence for Alfreton Town supporter and coach driver, Trevor Bailey.

Oxford took a tenth minute lead in what was a very poor game of football. On 80 minutes City’s Jalen Jones was sent off for a 2^nd bookable offence with the visitors feeling it was harsh. 4 minutes after the melee that followed Jones’ dismissal George Cantrill stepped up and equalised with a rocket shot into the top corner to give us a share of the points. City’s ten men hung on, 3 points would have been welcomed, of course, but at least we got something from a game who’s only quality was Cantrill’s brilliant equaliser.

The Oxford City game saw the final appearance of David Robson who we had signed to replace George Willis. David came with a good reputation but seemed to lack confidence which appeared to rub off on the defence. In 9 games for us David was on the winning side just twice, the 4-1 win over Farsley Celtic and Senior Cup SF v Mickleover. 17 goals conceded in those 9 appearances were not impressive stats and while the disappointing league season is in no way down to his efforts for us it was no surprise when it was announced by the club that David had been released from his contract.

 

David Robson 9 appearances 1 clean sheet.

Incoming players during March included keeper George Sykes-Kenworthy on loan till the end of the season from York City. George had NL North experience with Bradford PA, Guiseley & Boston Utd in the past. There was also 2 intriguing signings from Canadian University football, Richard Laporte-Guevara & Jeremy Opong, who had both been playing for Seattle University. It appears the election, and aftermath, of Donald Trump in America inadvertently helped in the 2 players arriving as Canadian footballers were no longer as welcome as previously in the States.

Darlington made the long trek in midweek and another point was added with our 2^nd consecutive 1-1 draw. Again, there was disappointment as we led 1-0 thanks to Lewis Salmon’s 30^th minute goal only to concede with 3 minutes left. George Sykes-Kenworthy making his debut against Darlo and becoming the 6^th goalkeeper we have used this season.

George Sykes-Kenworthy 10 appearance 5 clean sheets.

The two 1-1 draws also dropped us into 18^th place, just 3 above the drop zone, there was serious concern now among supporters that our bad run could see us lose our place in the Northern section if it was to continue. It would also require teams in that relegation zone to put together a few wins but we were now just 9 points ahead of 4^th bottom. One thing to note about this bad run was the support from the fans when things weren’t going well. The encouragement to our players when supporters could see they were trying their best was great to see and should be acknowledged, so well done everyone.

 

Nathan Newall 49 +7 appearances.

It didn’t improve in the visit to Chorley as we fell behind after just 2 minutes and conceded another from a corner 18 minutes later. There were claims of handball by a Chorley player in the build up and frustration showed as Billy Heath was sent off.

 

Sam Osborne 14 +3 appearance, 1 goal..

There was some relief as we got a first league win in 11 games as mid-table Leamington succumbed to a Liam Waldock goal on 78 minutes. It was a nervy end but the lads hung on and the feeling was that this win would see us safe for this season, the cheers amongst the players and fans showed the relief.

 

Liam Waldock points Jake Day in the right direction.

Painful challenging at the Leamington game.

Lewis celebrates Liam Waldock's goal v Leamington, our first league win in 11.

We announced the signing of goalkeeper Myles Wright, presumably cover for Sykes-Kenworthy after David Robson left, from Matlock Town. Myles was on non-contract terms because he also had dual registration with Wirksworth Ivanhoe and wanted to take part in the Derbyshire FA Divisional North Cup Final, which Ivanhoe won.

Myles Wright, left at back, 0 appearances.

March ended with a first visit to Crosby in 20 years as we played Marine and a drab game ended 0-0. When you’re struggling, as we have been since Christmas, points are more important than performances but supporters need entertaining as well and recently that hadn’t been the case. The point gained took us to 17^th with 50 points, we still weren’t mathematically safe but it would require a terrible run by us and a fantastic run by a team in the bottom 4 for us to be relegated.

Alfreton defending at Marine

Sam Osborne challenges for the ball.

David Solademi & George Cantrill at Marine.

Going head to head.

April.

With a first league win since 8^th February coming towards the end of March we were extremely pleased to have an unbeaten April.

 

Owen German 9 +4 appearances.

Gerry McDonagh 9 +8 appearances, 1 goal.

It started with an unimpressive 1-1 draw at home to Rushall Olympic. We had the ball in the net in the first minute only for it to be disallowed for a foul in the build up. Rushall scored a 9^th minute penalty and led right up to the 87^th minute when that man, Liam Waldock, swivelled and shot through a group of players to seal a point and our safety. For Rushall, a win was a must and they were on the brink of relegation following this result.

 

Rushall take the lead with this penalty.

Liam Waldock (red, left) swivels and shoots.

Liam Waldock's equaliser v Rushall.

Peterborough Sports were next at the Impact and Reds fans would be conscious of the Michael Gyasi hat-trick in the last ten minutes of the away fixture. The lads though were getting back to the form we now expect from Billy’s teams and led thanks to Lewis Salmon after 3 minutes. Lewis got another with 15 minutes remaining as we kept a 3^rd clean sheet in 4 games.

 

Lewis Salmon scores the first goal v Peterborough Sports.

Celebrations after Lewis Salmon's first goal.

Lewis Salmon makes it 2-0.

David Solademi 21 +2 appearances.

The Senior Cup Final was played on the Tuesday, more about that below, and 3-days later, Good Friday, we were at Curzon Ashton. Of the three league games remaining two of those were against teams hoping for a play-off spot. Curzon, who were 1 place outside the play-offs and would remain there on goal difference at the season’s end, would have been disappointed with the single point from a 0-0 draw. Canadian Jeremy Opong came on as a sub in this game to make his debut for us.

 

Tom Hinton, an unused sub twice, but didn't make any appearances.

Just 6-days after the penalty win over Buxton in the senior cup we met again at the Impact on Easter Monday for league points. Jed Abbey & Gerry McDonagh gave us a 2-0 lead with goals on 16 & 18 minutes respectively in a first half in which we were the better side. Both goals were similar, Jeb shooting across the penalty area through a crowd and the ball going into the left side of the goal at the tin end. Gerry’s was further inside the penalty area but at the same angle with the same result.

 

Jed Abbey's shot hits the back of the net 1-0.

Gerry McDonagh makes it 2-0 against Buxton.

In the first minute of the 2^nd half Buxton got a goal back as a ball was put towards the left hand post and was tapped towards goal by Luke Brennan, it looked like George had saved it but the linesman said it crossed the line. It was 2-2 on 52 minutes as the ball was worked into our penalty area and Cian Coleman, almost from the penalty spot, saw his shot saved but put the rebound into the top corner. Buxton were well on top now and looked the likely winners but we dug in and defended well and gradually got back into the game.

On 72 minutes Jed Abbey’s free kick from just outside the penalty area was placed over the wall and inside the right hand post at the Bungalow end to give us the points and dent the play-off hopes of Buxton. In the end they got 7^th spot on goal difference from Curzon and qualified for their first NL North play off campaign.

Jed Abbey's free kick makes it 3-2 against Buxton.

The season ended with a first visit to Radcliffe in 20 years and a 1-1 draw saw us extend our unbeaten run to 8 games. Adam Anson grabbing our goal, and his 3^rd of the season, in a match between 2 sides who had navigated away from the relegation spots well before this game.

In the Radcliffe game Billy Fewster made his first appearance since mid-December. Jeremy Opong & Richard Lapointe Guevara made their full debut’s in this game too.

Jeremy Opong 1+1 appearance & Richard Lapointe Guevara 1 appearance

Derbyshire Senior Cup Final.

The Derbyshire Senior Cup.

We’d come into better form and improved performances just in time for the Derbyshire Senior Cup Final against fellow NL North members, Buxton. The Bucks had moved to a full time model and were playing some good football thanks to manager, and former Red, John McGrath.

The Alfreton mascots for the Derbyshire Senior Cup Final.

The final was due to be played earlier in the month at Derby but the Rams had a rearranged league game with Preston on that date so the Derbyshire FA managed to get the use of the impressive SMH Group stadium, home of Chesterfield.

Chesterfield's SMH Group Stadium, DSC Final venue.

It was a close affair between two very good sides who knew each others style of play but continued to impose their own way of playing on the game. Our first real chance was an Owen German free kick on the edge of the penalty area, Owen shooting through the wall only for Paul Cooper to comfortably collect.

The match officials with the team captains.

 

Nathan Newall shielding the ball.

Luke Matheson in aerial action.

Buxton’s efforts seemed to be from distance as they struggled to break us down. George Sykes-Kenworthy dealt with what Buxton were producing, either punching crosses away or easily claiming. We’d been well organised in the first half without really troubling Buxton and Billy told the lads to be braver and this showed in the 2^nd period as we took the game to the Bucks and created more.

 

Nathan Newall gets between the two Buxton defenders.

Lewis Salmon challenges the keeper.

Dwayne Wiley had a couple of chances, the first was snatched at on the edge of the Bucks penalty area and went over. The second saw him power a header towards the top corner and saw keeper Cooper scramble to keep out.

 

Bucks keeper Paul Cooper gets the ball.

Gerry McDonagh shoots.

A goalless 90 minutes saw the game go straight to penalties with Alfreton being first up. Liam Waldock & Sam Osborne scoring our first 2, Luke Brennan & Oli Ewing doing the same for Buxton. Jake Day scored our 3^rd but Keziah Martin saw his spot kick tipped round the post by George, advantage Reds.

 

Keziah Martin's penalty is tipped round the post by Sykes-Kenworthy.

That advantage was soon lost as Adam Lund’s penalty was saved by Coopers legs. Buxton’s Daniel Ogwuru stepped forward and made it 3-3 with 1 penalty each to go. Max Hunt made no mistake to score our 4^th leaving Johnny Johnston the final spot kick of the first ten to take it to “sudden death”. George went to his right and blocked with his arms to become the hero with 2 saves and the cup was ours.

 

George saves from Johnston to win the cup for Alfreton.

You can view the match highlights and penalty shoot out on the Derbyshire FA Youtube here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qa09GAEEZCY

It was lovely to see the happy faces of the players and supporters and while our gaffer is no miserable bugger, every time I take a photo of Billy he seemed to be scowling at me. Our photographer, Rob, gets some great photos of a happy Billy and I’m pleased to report that at long last I got a photo of Billy, thumbs up and smiling.

"Wheatcroft's pointing that camera at me again"

The real Billy Heath.

Looking back at the season it was one of ultimate triumph with the Derbyshire Senior Cup win. Though we hadn’t pushed on after Christmas towards the play-offs the terrible run we did endure was influenced by the injuries to George Willis, Jake Askew, Harry Perritt & Billy Fewster plus the loss through personal reason of David Moyo.

We reached the FA Cup 1^st round again, navigating past well organised defences, had wasted trips and beat a top side in Spennymoor so we could enjoy the trip to Meadow Lane.

One area of concern was the attendances. At a time when non-league football is seeing attendances improve, ours have fallen. 2023/24 saw an average league attendance of 569 while this season it was a worrying 489. Of course the league season wasn't as good this time, there was no play-off push to boost crowd expectations. The bad run we had after Christmas didn't encourage many to come down, particularly for midweek winter fixtures.

In the words of Billy Heath “it’s not been a bad season”  when you consider “what we’re up against with full time teams” and “every season we stay in this league is an achievement” to “maintain our status in a league that’s getting stronger”.

That is down to the work that Billy and his backroom staff put in, the work of the players, and there is no Alfreton supporter who could accuse the players of not putting the effort it. Not forgetting the board, led by Wayne Bradley who we now know has transferred ownership of the club to William Rush to start a new chapter in the clubs history, but that’s another story.

I'd like to thank Bill Draper, Quentin, Geoff, Liam, Matty & Vaughan from the media team and Secretary, Andrew, for making me so welcome and for sampling the cakes. Also, photographer Rob Knight for allowing me use of the photos of Jack Thompson & Douglas Jordan in this blog.

Now then, those goalkeepers, how many did you get.

·         1. George Willis – 27 appearances

·         2. Jake Askew – 10 + (1 sub)

·         3. Jordan Douglas – 1 (temporary signing from North Ferriby)

·         4. Jake Day – replaced George Willis at h/t in the Curzon Ashton game.

·     5. Jack Thompson – signed on loan from Derby for the Ilkeston DSC tie that was postponed so never played for us.

·    6. David Robson – 9

·    7. George Sykes-Kenworthy – 10 (signed on loan from York City)

·    8. Myles Wright – 0 Signed from Matlock Town on non-contract but didn’t play.

I'llf you got this far, well done, I'll leave you with some images from our Senior Cup win.