Thursday 29th AprilVodkat League Premier DivisionSt Helens Town 1-0 Silsden1-0; Iain Dyson (Penalty) 58 Minutes. Town finished off their home fixtures with a victory and in doing so completed the double over their Yorkshire visitors. The afternoon rain ensured that the Knowsley Road surface was slick and wet and this added another element to the contest with the footing not being as sure as for Tuesday’s game here against Flixton. An early opening for the hosts saw Rob Hanley do well on the left and he found Mark Evans on the edge of the penalty area he in turn sent a cross towards Marc Stephens on the edge of the six yard box but the Daniel Thorpe did well to turn his effort behind for a corner. Moments later Iain Dyson created a chance for himself with a probing run but when he got into the box he scooped his effort over the bar. Dyson was again in the action on 7 minutes when Stephens found him with a good through ball which he chested down with his resultant shot going wide of the right hand upright. After this glut of early action the teams then did not create another effort at goal of note until a quarter of the way into the contest. A short corner was worked between Evans and Peter Birch on the left with the latter’s cross being met by Mike Fargher and a Silsden defender having to clear the ball off the line. Silsden threatened for the first time after 33 minutes when Chris Simpson latched onto a loose ball after an attack down the left and he looked certain to score but for an excellent challenge by Luke Faulkner. Five minutes later Simpson found Dan Riley who had beaten the offside trap and was through on goal, the Silsden striker however was too concerned with seeing if he was going to be flagged offside and Graeme McCall advanced well to claim the ball and avert the danger. With the half drawing to a close Riley crossed towards Simpson on the edge of the box with the Silsden skipper’s looping header behind claimed by McCall. The final chance of the half fell to the hosts when Stephens sent a right wing corner into the box which he collected after it being half cleared, he beat a defender before his shot was blocked and from the loose ball Stephens’ cross came to nothing. After the interval the hosts dominated possession in the opening 15 minutes of the second half but it was not until the later stages of this period that this was turned into goalmouth action. On 56 minutes Evans sent a left wing cross into the danger zone which Thorpe punched clear it dropped on the edge of the area to Hanley and his shot was almost turned home by strike partner Dyson on the far post. A minute later Stephens linked with Dyson and he threaded a ball through to Hanley who beat Rob Barraclough for pace and got to the byline, the defender appeared to give him a nudge and Hanley went down, Mr Johnson had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and Dyson stepped up to send Thorpe the wrong way and fire the penalty home. There was then a lull in play for about 10 minutes during which time the sides cancelled each other out. On 72 minutes Dyson released substitute Phil Mitchell on the left of the area but his resultant shot went wide of the opposite upright. Silsden made a triple substitution and then experienced a purple patch during which time Matt Kershaw wasted a golden chance under pressure from McCall. Soon afterwards Simpson collected a poor goal kick and tried his luck from 30 yards but this effort went over the bar. With ten minutes remaining McCall showed good hands to hold onto a powerful low free kick from Damien Whiteoak and at the other end Hanley sent the ball towards Kevin Picton in the box but he could not get a shot off under pressure from a defender. In added on time at the end of the contest Stephens played a one-two with Fargher and sent the ball into the box Picton was loitering with intent on the far post but could not apply a sufficient touch to divert the ball goalwards. It took a late save from McCall to ensure Town claimed all three points as he had to be alert to tip Kershaw’s shot over the bar. So St Helens Town finished their quota of home games for the 2009/10 season on a high with the victory and will now how to finish the by continuing this form into the final two matches. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias, Birch, Pitts(C), Faulkner, Kay, Stephens, Fargher, Hanley, Dyson(Picton 72), Evans(P.Mitchell 59). Subs Not Used; Frazer, Hatton, Thomas. Silsden; Thorpe, Khalif(Kershaw 72), McNulty, Barraclough, Hanson, Hird, J.Barker(Jalil 72), Simpson(C), Riley, Blacklock(Whiteoak 72), L.Barker. Subs Not Used; None.
Tuesday 27th AprilVodkat League Premier DivisionSt Helens Town 1-2 Flixton0-1; Chris Smith 35 Minutes, 1-1; Iain Dyson 88 Minutes, 1-2; Craig Brennan 90+1 Minutes. The awful end of season form continued as Town fell to another defeat this time at the hands of Flixton. An early chance saw Mike Fargher collect the ball on the edge of the box as it was cleared and his effort went just wide of the right hand post with a well executed strike. At the other end after a quarter of an hour Flixton attacked down the left wing Adam Pegg sent the ball into the box and Luke Faulkner had to get a vital touch to avert the danger. On 25 minutes Town’s Mike Scully and Ben Kay both looked to run onto a through ball with the former being offside he should have left it to Kay but when he became active the assistant rose his flag. On the half hour mark Flixton fired a warning across the bows of Town’s goal when Nick Challinor lobbed a through ball over the backline and Chris Smith collected it before hitting the crossbar with his effort, the loose ball being cleared. Five minutes late an almost identical move saw Challinor again link with Smith the striker making no mistake this time opening the scoring. As the interval approached Rob Hanley almost levelled when he did well to turn on the edge of the box beating his marker before drawing the goalkeeper and lofting a shot over him goalwards, it was only for a clearance off the line by Lee Hendley that the striker did not level the scores the loose ball broke to Iain Dyson on the edge of the box but his effort was blocked. Town started the second half in the ascendancy with Mark Evans sending a free kick from the right into the box it was headed back from the far post and broke to Hanley but his effort went just the wrong side of the post. Further pressure saw Fargher and Dyson link with the latter sending a ball down the line which released Kay he in turn fed Scully who crossed to the far post and with Hanley in attendance Dan McDonnell had to head behind. With an hour on the clock Fargher had a snap shot from the edge of the box which went wide of the left hand upright and moments later he linked with John Elias who cut inside from the right wing beating two defenders before unleashing a shot that beat the visiting stopper but struck the right post and rebounded to safety. The best chance so far fell to Rob Hanley on 67 minutes Brian Hatton sent a right wing corner into the box which the keeper misjudged and it got to the far post Hanley looked to be heading home into the unguarded net but he did not get a significant touch on the cross and the ball was smuggled to safety. With time looking to be running out Hanley was stopped by foul means just outside the box and a well worked free kick saw Marc Stephens find Dyson on the left of the area and he set himself well before finding the right hand side netting with his curling effort. Town looked to have earned a share of the spoils but Flixton had other ideas. A long ball from Ian Whitehead was collected on the left wing by Pegg he sent a cross towards Smith on the front post and the striker failed to get a touch the ball ran kindly for Craig Brennan and he sent the loose ball home into the net to send the visitors’ home victorious. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias, Evans, Pitts(C), Faulkner, Kay, Fargher(Clarke 82), Dyson Hanley, Scully(Stephens 82), Hatton(G.Mitchell 68). Subs Not Used; Frazer, Riley Flixton; Jowsey(C), McDonnell, Hendley, McGrath, Whitehead, Williams(Edward 75), Challinor(Keogh 70), Brennan, Smith, Ellis, Pegg. Subs Not Used; Edward, Keogh, G.Smith, Willis.
Saturday 24th AprilVodkat League Premier DivisionBacup Borough 2-1 St Helens Town1-0; Josh Greenhalgh 42 Minutes, 2-0; Lance Ogunyode 83 Minutes, 2-1; Mike Scully 90+2 Minutes. Town’s poor end to the season continued with another performance in which they dominated the vast majority of the game but failed to turn this domination into goals. The visitors controlled the ball well but when they got into the attacking third of the park the wrong options were taken. The first chance was created when Phil Mitchell released brother Graeme with a quick throw and he advanced before sending the ball to the far post and the cross just evaded John Elias on the slide. Next Mike Scully found Phil Mitchell on the edge of the box with a free kick but the latter’s shot was deflected back to Paul Horridge in the home goal. Further pressure saw Scully latch onto a poor back header by Aaron Bellamy and looked to be one on one with the home stopper but Phil Prescott got back and intercepted well. The next chance fell to Graeme Mitchell but he could not steer his overhead kick on target after a knock down by Mike Fargher. The hosts mustered a ball into the Town box just before the half hour mark when Bellamy sent a free kick into the danger area Graeme McCall looked to claim the ball but it broke loose under pressure but this resultant loose ball was cleared from danger. Normal service was resumed when Graeme Mitchell was found on the right and he beat three defenders before shooting over the bar. There was a moment of controversy on 34 minutes when Graeme Mitchell latched onto a through ball and got into the area he looked to beat his defender but the ball struck the hand of the Bacup man and to the astonishment of most the foul was given against the Town man. Bacup almost took an undeserved on 36 minutes when a corner from the right was swung into the box and had to be cleared off the line there was a swift counter which saw Elias find Phil Mitchell but his effort was blocked. The sucker punch came on 42 minutes when another corner from the Bacup right was not cleared and the ball broke to Josh Greenhalgh on the edge of the area he struck an effort on the half volley that arrowed into the top left hand corner of the net to give the hosts and undeserved interval lead. After the break Town again took the game to their hosts and an early chance fell to Luke Faulkner but he could not steer his header on target. Faulkner was involved again when a Phil Mitchell cross along the 6 yard box evaded all in the area and the defender just failed to connect with the ball. Another Bacup counter saw Chris Ogunyode collect a punch from the goalkeeper and advance he got to the edge of the box where he mishit his shot and this almost beat McCall who did just enough to keep out the effort. Substitute Rob Hanley was quick to get in the action he collected the ball on the left of the box and centred the ball along the six yard box but no one was in a position to poke the ball home. Moments later Phil Mitchell fed Hanley who drew the keeper who did just enough to turn his effort behind for a corner. Bacup looked to have secured all three points on a rare venture forward on 83 minutes Lance Ogunyode summing up the nature of the hosts performance latched onto a long ball and his initial effort was more of a sand wedge shot than a football shoot the luck was with the hosts as the ball broke kindly for him to poke the ball home past the prostrate McCall. Town managed to pull one back in added on time when Marc Stephens sent the ball in from the right and Mike Scully sent his back header into the bottom left hand corner of the net to give the visitors scant consolation from a match they could and should have done better in had the end product have been better. Bacup Borough; Horridge, Prescott, Greenhalgh, Bellamy, Massey(C)(Stockdale 68), Beswick, Cosgrave(Spencer 75), C.Ogunyode(Abreu 71), Laurenzo, Oldham, L.Ogunyode. Sub Not Used; Dryden. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias, Faulkner, Pitts(C), Kay, Frazer(Hanley 58), Stephens, Fargher, G.Mitchell(Riley 85), Scully, P.Mitchell(Hatton 78). Subs Not Used; Bickerstaffe, Owens.
Tuesday 20th AprilVodkat League Premier DivisionSt Helens Town 2-2 Maine Road0-1; Own Goal 59 Minutes, 1-1; Iain Dyson 60 Minutes, 2-1; Graeme Mitchell 67 Minutes, 2-2; Richard Gresty 78 Minutes. Town ventured onto home turf for the first time in almost a month as they took on Maine Road at Knowsley Road this evening and with the sides coming into the contest in 8th & 7th positions respectively before kick off the game was always liable to be a close contest. Town dominated the early exchanges and had a couple of good chances in the opening quarter of an hour. First Graeme Mitchell latched onto a poor defensive header before finding Iain Dyson at the far post he did not connect well with the cross shinning the ball goalwards and this unusual effort drew an excellent save from Andy Jones in the Maine Road goal. Further good work saw Phil Mitchell cut inside from the left hand edge of the area after being found by Marc Stephens, he then beat a couple of defenders with a marauding run before shooting centrally, an effort which Jones held. As the half wore on further chances fell to Graeme Mitchell and Iain Dyson but neither forward troubled the visiting stopper before a well worked move saw Mike Fargher and Stephens link with the latter’s shot being held by Jones. In the dying stages of the first period Phil Mitchell linked with Stephens who was fouled on the edge of the area and Graeme Mitchell sent the resultant free kick over the bar. The second half started with the visitors in the ascendancy and a corner ten minutes after the restart saw the ball break to Richard Gresty on the edge of the box his effort however did not trouble Graeme McCall in the Town goal as it went wide of the left hand post. A counter attack saw the visitors look certain to score as with the numerical advantage the ball was worked to James Rothel he decided to shoot from all of 30 yards and failed to hit the target when he could have taken the ball on further towards the Town goal. The deadlock was broken on 59 minutes when a right wing corner was swung into the six yard box Town stopper McCall came and punched the ball but luck was not on his side as the ball broke off a Town defender and into the net. The game had now exploded into life and less than 60 seconds later parity was restored. Good work by Fargher on the right of the area saw him pick out Dyson on the far post and the skipper made no mistake heading home to level the scores. The end to end action continued as Phil Mitchell advanced before having his shot pushed over the bar by Jones and a Road counter attack saw McCall pull off a fine save from Rothel’s powerful shot with the loose ball being cleared to safety. The hosts took the lead on 67 minutes when Stephens and Fargher linked on the right of the box with the latter sending a cross into the six yard box which Graeme Mitchell latched onto and volleyed home. The visitors took the game to the hosts and looked to level matters. Daniel Clare got into the box and McCall did well to hold his effort from close range. A long throw from the left wing into the area was collected by Rothel but his effort was kept out by McCall. Scores were again level on 78 minutes when a free kick into the Town box was only half cleared and broke to centre back Gresty who looked more like a striker as he executed and excellent half volley from the right hand edge of the area into the bottom left hand corner of the net. This was to be the last meaningful action of the game, a draw on reflection was probably a fair result but both sides will probably have left Knowsley Road thinking they could have won the contest. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias, Hatton(Riley 88), Evans, Kay, Frazer, Stephens, Fargher, G.Mitchell, Dyson(C)(J.Foster 83), P.Mitchell. Subs Not Used; Pitts, Bickerstaffe, Hanley. Maine Road; Jones, Hulme(Struminskyj 80), Jay(C), Mason, Gresty, Sumner(Ford 68), Cheetham, Brocklehurst, Clare, Hibbert, Rothel. Sub Not Used; Bradley.
Thursday 15th AprilVodkat League, Premier DivisionBootle 3-0 St Helens Town1-0; Anthony Hickey 35 Minutes, 2-0; Mark Kilroy (Penalty) 56 Minutes, 3-0; Kevin Black 83 Minutes. Three matches in six days took its toll on Town’s squad with injuries and player unavailability causing manager Gary Bickerstaffe a massive headache. With the pack shuffled the visitors started well and had an early chance as Iain Dyson found Kevin Picton with a through ball but Mark McGowan in the home goal got there a moment before him and collected the ball. Further Town pressure saw John Elias find Graeme Mitchell and he got into the box when he was about to shoot Sean Coulton made a well timed challenge to avert the danger. Marc Stephens collected the ball centrally on 14 minutes his initial effort was blocked and broke to Mitchell his effort was also blocked breaking to Stephens and this final effort was held by the home stopper. The final chance of the opening quarter of an hour fell to Town when Mitchell won the ball in the area and fed Picton but his effort went just wide of the left hand post. Anthony Hickey collected a loose ball on the edge of the box after 17 minutes and got into the box before going down theatrically under the merest of challenges from Elias with the embarssed shouts for a penalty being waved away. On 36 minutes much against the run of play Bootle took the lead, a short corner was worked on the left with Mark Kilroy delivering the ball into the box the ball was half cleared and sent back into the box towards Coulton who had his arms outstretched above his head, the ball appeared to hit his hand and broke to Hickey who poked the ball home. A couple of minutes later at the opposite end Mitchell’s inswinging corner looked dangerous but Neil McQueen headed the ball behind and from the second corner McCowan claimed the cross. The second half started off badly for Town as 11 minutes after the restart the referee awarded a bizarre penalty to the hosts. A long ball into the box saw Liam Loughlin jump into McCall causing him to spill the ball with everyone awaiting the whistle and the composite free kick the ball broke loose and McCall pulled the striker back before Mr McDonald befuddled all by pointing to the spot. Kilroy stepped up took his run up and McCall dived to his left but the referee in a giving mood stopped play after giving Kilroy a clue which way McCall would dive and the former Town man sent the ball to the opposite corner to double the lead. Interesting decision number three came in the build up to Bootle goal number three, a quick counter attack down the Bootle right saw Kilroy clear to Kevin Black in the Town half he controlled the ball with his hand in full view of the referee and assistant on the far side but play was allowed to continue and he linked with Stephen Mahoney collecting the ball back off him in the box and slotting the ball home, a fantastic move but with another flagrant offensive missed in the build up. Town heads dropped after the third goal went in and the hosts dominated the remainder of proceedings and were unlucky not to add to their lead with the woodwork coming to Town’s aid on a couple of occasions before the final whistle put an end to the game and spare he visitors anymore pain. Bootle; McCowan, Kilroy, Martin, McQueen(C), Coulton, Black(Robinson 63), Mahoney, O’Connor(Sinnott 58), Loughlin(Obasi 61), Hickey. Subs Not Used; Mawdsley, O’Brien. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias(C.Foster 72), Evans, Pitts(C), Kay, Dyson(Frazer 46), Stephens, Fargher, , Picton, G.Mitchell, Hatton(J.Foster 64). Subs Not Used; Riley, Bickerstaffe.
Tuesday 13th AprilVodkat League, Premier DivisionAlsager Town 1-3 St Helens Town0-1; Marc Stephens 16 Minutes, 0-2; Iain Dyson 26 Minutes, 1-2; Scott Taylor 83 Minutes, 1-3; Iain Dyson (Penalty) 88 Minutes. Town bounced back from their weekend disappointment with a comfortable victory over Alsager Town this evening, rising up to 7th in the table in the process. The visitors started off the game in control and after an early interchange between Marc Stephens and Mike Scully saw a one two and Stephens found in the box but the ball bobbled just as he struck it and went wide. The deadlock was broken on 16 minutes when a quick throw on the left wing was collected by Phil Mitchell and he centred towards Stephens who thundered the ball home into the roof of the net on the bounce. Alsager spurned a good chance to level on 22 minutes when Steven Warburton centred from the right wing but Dean Williams could only steer his free header over the bar. Town made it 2-0 on 26 minutes when Dyson found Scully on the left wing with an excellent ball and then ran on into the box Scully found him on the far post with his cross and Dyson rose highest to head it home. The previously inactive Graeme McCall in the Town goal was called into action, Scott Taylor did well down the left and cut inside into the box and his effort was held by McCall at the second attempt. With the half drawing to a close the action continued Mike Fargher linked with Dougie Pitts and he sent a cross into the box from the right which Graeme Mitchell headed over the bar. At the other end Taylor went on a mazy run which culminated in him beating a couple of defenders before shooting into the side netting. Town rounded the half off with two chances first Stephens won the ball and played in Scully on the right of the box his cross looked dangerous and Danny Gleave had to be alert to head it behind. The final chance saw Scully find Stephens with a left wing cross which he struck goalwards only for his effort to be deflected behind for a corner. The first twenty minutes of the second period was all St Helens. Stephens ran onto a through ball from behind his marker and showed a good touch and finish only to somehow be flagged offside. Further pressure saw a good move end with Fargher feeding Scully in the area but he shot over when well placed. Scully also found himself one on one with Mike Langley in home goal moments later but shot over under pressure. Phil Mitchell’s left wing free kick on 66 minutes found Fargher but he could not get his effort on target. Phil Mitchell was again in the action a couple of minutes later as he was released by Dyson and got into the box he went down under an Alsager defenders challenge but the referee did not deem this a foul. Puzzlingly for the visitors less than 60 seconds later a soft penalty had been awarded at the other end by the inconsistent match officials. An Alsager ball was delivered into the box and McCall came and punched it away as you see plenty of times during a match the referee decided that this an offence and pointed to the spot. McCall saw that justice was done as he dived to his right and kept out Taylor’s penalty. The hosts were buoyed and came at St Helens, McCall was called into action again on 78 minutes the ball was sent into the visitors box from the right wing free kick and Williams rose heading the ball downwards but the St Helens stopper extended himself well to keep the effort out. Substitute Kevin Picton made an impact on his debut finding Stephens who was fouled but the referee played a good advantage allowing the ball to break to Fargher his shot thundered past Langley and off the crossbar sparing the home teams blushes. Alsager pulled one back on 83 minutes when Taylor found the bottom left hand corner of the net with his free kick from the edge of the box setting up a possible nervy finish. Picton was involved again on 86 minutes when he collected a through ball and was pulled down by Langley just outside the box as he looked to round him, the keeper was booked and a free kick given which came to nothing. A few moments later Dyson latched onto John Elias’s through ball and beat his defender before a tackle downed him the referee pointed to the spot for the second time in the game and Dyson dusted himself down to convert the spot kick. In added on time Picton almost put a cherry on top of his debut cameo as he tried to steer a cross come shot from Scully on the left of the area goalwards but his effort struck the post and went behind. Alsager Town; Langley, Griffiths, Strode(Roberts 80), Chambers(C), Gleave, Warburton, Gill, Basford(Hall 73), Williams, Wilson, Taylor. Sub Not Used; Swann. St Helens Town; McCall, Elias, Hatton, Pitts(C), Kay, Dyson, Stephens, Fargher(Frazer 90), G.Mitchell(J.Foster 75), Scully, P.Mitchell(Picton 75). Subs Not Used; C.Foster, Riley.
Saturday 10th AprilVodkat League, League Challenge Cup, Semi FinalWinsford United 1-0 St Helens Town1-0; Ben Purdue 4 Minutes. Town exited the League Cup with a whimper this afternoon at the Barton Stadium dominating possession for most of the game but failing to give the home goalkeeper anything to worry him. The visitors got off to the worst possible start when what looked like a routine gather for Town keeper Kevin Woods from an innocuous Chris Melia shot the effort skipped up off the corrugated surface and Woods spilt the ball. Ben Purdue reacted first to the loose ball and poked it home. Town were rocked and Winsford did well in retaining the ball. Liam Prince’s effort from a free kick wide of the right hand post and at the other end Rob Hanley linked with Mike Scully who got into the box he looked to have beat his defender but the Winsford man recovered and turned the ball behind. As the first quarter of the contest drew to a close Winsford had a couple of chances when Purdue shot over the bar and Josh Hancock took advantage of a headed clearance by Woods but his effort from 25 yards was wide of the left hand upright. Town recovered from their shell-shock to dominate the remainder of the half. A quick throw from Marc Stephens found John Elias he sent a cross towards the far post found Scully but he could only head wide of the target. Moments later Scully latched onto a through ball and was pulled back by his marker the ball broke to Graeme Mitchell his shot broke off the goalkeeper and behind for a corner. The resultant set piece broke to Hanley on the edge of the box and he showed a great first touch to create space and his effort was just wide of the right hand post. Further chances fell to Scully whose cross beat the goalkeeper and was turned behind for a corner and Scully fed Stephens who shot was parried by Jason Astbury in the home goal and claimed at the second attempt. As the half ended Marc Stephens was involved on three occasions having a shot deflected behind for a corner before shooting wide of the right hand upright and shooting over the bar. The second half started with a change of goalkeeper for Town with the injured Woods being replaced by Graeme McCall. The first chance of the period fell to Graeme Mitchell who got into the box from the left wing and his effort was diverted behind by Astbury. On 55 minutes Mitchell advanced down the left and found Hanley who played a one-two with Stephens before his effort was deflected and claimed by the keeper. A Winsford free kick on the right was well worked as Lee Duckworth found Melia who turned it goalwards but McCall showed good hands to claim the effort. Another Town attack saw Hanley control the ball well before finding Mitchell on the left he sent a dangerous ball across the six yard box which evaded everyone before being cleared. Further pressure saw Mitchell link with Hanley and he found Scully on the edge of the area and he shot wide of the target. The hosts almost doubled their lead on 69 minutes when a defensive mix up saw Mike Brandon look certain to score but Dougie Pitts cleared his goalbound effort. A Town free kick on the right was headed back into the danger area by Iain Dyson and Hanley was unmarked 6 yards out but somehow managed to shot over when he should have scored. With time running out on the cup run Scully struck a well executed volley which Astbury did well to hold and he also did well to send a cross come shot across the face of goal which only needed a touch to turn it home but no one was in position to do so and the dream of a final in May was over for another year. Winsford United; Astbury, McKay, Duckworth, Bayley(C), Jardine, Prince(Stevens 84), Hancock, Capper, Purdue(Bryning 61), Melia(Tice 90). Subs Not Used; McNichol, Pearce. St Helens Town; Woods(McCall 46), Elias, Birch(Hatton 81), Pitts(C), Kay, Stephens, Fargher, Dyson, Hanley, Scully, G.Mitchell(P.Mitchell 71). Subs Not Used; J.Foster, Frazer.
Tuesday 6th April; Vodkat League, League Challenge Cup, Quarter Final; St Helens Town 4-2 Wigan Robin Park (Played at Wigan); 1-0; Rob Hanley 30 Minutes, 2-0; Mike Scully 42 Minutes, 3-0; Graeme Mitchell 59 Minutes, 3-1; Darren Mullen (Penalty) 65 Minutes, 4-1; Rob Hanley 85 Minutes, 4-2; Ryan Small 90+2 Minutes. St Helens Town advanced to the Semi Finals of the League Cup for the first time since 2002 with a comfortable victory over local rivals Wigan Robin Park this evening. The opening stages looked ominous for Robin Park as with only 38 seconds on the clock Mike Scully linked with Rob Hanley and the latter shot just wide of the right hand upright from the left of the six yard box with the Wigan custodian beaten. Mere seconds later Adam Gilchrist released Hanley who advanced towards goal he rounded the keeper on the edge of the area but his shot was hacked away by a retreating defender. The first threat from Wigan came after a quarter of an hour when Ryan Small sent in a right wing cross that Dean Midgeley got up well to meet but could only head over the bar when unmarked. After about 25 minutes of the first half the torrential rain was beginning to take it’s toll on the playing surface which had become slick on top and was making life difficult for defenders. Town conceded a free kick in a dangerous position on the left hand edge of the box Small’s initial effort broke off the wall and eventually found its way to Oliver Sumner and his resultant effort went the wrong side of the right hand post. At the other end the difficult conditions almost resulted in Town taking the lead when what looked to be a routine take for Williams from a Scully shot was spilt and only just reclaimed by him before reaching the line. The deadlock was broken after half an hour when Scully beta the offside trap and got into the box his effort was saved and the rebound broke back to him he squared into the danger area and the ball was cleared to Gilchrist at the edge of the box he picked out Hanley in space and he showed composure to chest the ball down before lofting a delicate shot over the advancing keeper. With the interval fast approaching the lead was doubled after Mike Fargher profited from a deflection to deliver the ball towards Scully in the area he controlled the ball with his back to goal before turning and find the left hand corner of the net with an excellent finish. The last incident of the half saw the “hosts” appealing for a penalty kick when Midgeley got into the box and went down under the challenge of Iain Dyson the cries were in vain as Mr Cropp deemed the challenge fair and waved play on. The second half started with the rain worsening and with less than 5 minutes of the half gone Wigan had a chance to half their deficit, Mark Evans sliced clearance was deemed to be a back pass and in indirect free kick was awarded some 7 yards from goal. As is the way in these situations the Town personnel lined up on the goal line and when the ball was touched to Small, they charged and blocked the effort before the loose ball was cleared. Town were pressing trying to get a thirs goal to put the tie beyond their opponents and created a couple of chances for Marc Stephens. The first saw his shot from the edge of the box catch of defender and made it an easy take for the keeper. For his second effort he was found on the edge of the box by Gilchrist and his well struck effort looked to be goal bound before a brave block diverted it off target. The third goal came for St Helens on 59 Minutes, Fargher sought out Scully with a through ball which the striker controlled well before finding Graeme Mitchell in space on the left of the box, he applied a left foot finish to find the bottom right hand corner of the net and looked to have sealed Town’s passage into the next round. All bets were off on 64 minutes when Dean Callaway chased a through ball to put pressure on Dyson, the Town skipper slipped as he attempted to clear the ball and this left the Wigan man 1 on 1 with Kevin Woods in the Town goal the keeper’s attempts to claim the ball saw Callaway felled and Mr Cropp dished out retribution in the form of a spot kick and a red card for Woods. Graeme McCall came off the bench replacing Scully to take over in goal and his first contribution was to pick Darren Mullen’s penalty out of the back of his net. Robin Park must have fancied their chances now with a man advantage and 25 minutes remaining. Town however had other ideas and soaked up the pressure looking dangerous on the counter attack. On 78 minutes Hanley raced away from the Wigan backline on one such counter and was only thwarted by an excellent save from Williams. With 6 minutes of normal time remaining Hanley linked with Phil Mitchell with the latter drawing another save from Williams. From the resultant corner kick the ball was worked short to Phil Mitchell and he sent the ball towards Hanley on the far post he found time in a crowded penalty area to turn and shot home from close range to put the result beyond doubt. Wigan were to have the last laugh in the scoring stakes as Callaway worked down the right before sending an excellent cross into the box which Small rose above McCall to thunder home but the damage was already done and this was mere consolation. Town will now visit Winsford United in the Semi-Final this coming Saturday looking to book a place in the final on 6th May. St Helens Town; Woods, Elias, Birch, Dyson(C), Evans, Gilchrist, Fargher, Stephens, Hanley(J.Foster 85), Scully(McCall 65), G.Mitchell(P.Mitchell 76). Subs Not Used; Ventre, Riley. Wigan Robin Park; D.Williams, Whittle, Mullen(C), Sharratt, C.Williams. Moss(Rimmer 75), Callaway(Duffy 90), Neafcy, Sumner(Jones 70), Small, Midgeley. Subs Not Used; Wood, Robinson.
Saturday 3rd AprilVodkat League Premier DivisionRamsbottom United 3-1 St Helens Town1-0; Jon Robinson (Penalty) 29 Minutes, 1-1; Iain Dyson 36 Minutes, 2-1; Iain Dyson 39 Minutes, 3-1; Michael Morrison 72 Minutes. St Helens Town started off this contest in the ascendancy but were made to pay for their wastefulness in front of goal by the hosts this afternoon at The Riverside. The early stages saw Graeme Mitchell link with Iain Dyson on the edge of the box and the latter’s effort drew a fine save from Damien Rooney in the home goal. Soon afterwards Phil Mitchell sent a dangerous ball into the box from the left of the box and it deflected across the face of goal off George Bowyer eventually being cleared out the box. At the other end a Ramsbottom counter attack saw a ball delivered into the box and this deflected off a defender past goalkeeper Kevin Woods who managed to claim the loose ball before it crossed the line. On 10 minutes Marc Stephens released Rob Hanley with an excellent diagonal ball the striker then beat his defender before unleashing a shot which Rooney pushed wide of the target. The hosts created a couple of openings on the counter which resulted in Phil Dean shooting over the bar and then wide of the right hand post. With twenty minute mark approaching Hanley almost got to a through ball before home stopper Rooney and then the same striker did well on the right of the area to cut inside beating two defenders before his shot was pushed out by Rooney, the loose ball just evaded Graeme Mitchell and was cleared to safety. Town were hit with a classic sucker punch on 29 minutes when Mark Sharples broke into the box on the left hand side and was brought down by Woods in an innocuous position was the resultant penalty being dispatched by Jon Robinson, the hosts first shot on target in the match. Woods made some amends of this misjudgement when he did well to push a powerful drive from Robinson over the bar before Town were to level on 36 minutes. Dougie Pitts sent a free kick from the right towards Dyson and the striker made no mistake looping a header over the stranded home stopper. They say that you are at your most vulnerable when you have just scored and it was to prove the case as parity did not last long as Dean profited from an excellent Ramsbottom move to put the hosts back in the lead. Before the interval Mike Fargher found Hanley in plenty of space in the Ramsbottom area but he could only steer his effort over the crossbar when he should have at least hit the target. The second half was one of end to end action with the visitors pushing on trying to level and the hosts happy to absorb the pressure and counter attack. The first real action of note saw John Elias find Hanley with a through ball and the striker was driven wide by a defender with his resultant shot being saved by Rooney. The game was over as a contest on 72 minutes when a counter attack saw Morrison beat the offside trap and advance though on goal before executing a deft chipped effort over Woods. In the final stages of the contest Robinson spurned an excellent chance to add to the hosts tally when he shot over the bar from the edge of the box. Town had a couple of efforts of note to round the game off, first Brain Hatton sent in a cross from the left which evaded everyone in the box and was collected by Mike Scully on the right he passed to Elias who sent in a cross which beat Rooney and struck the crossbar the rebound fell to Hatton who had his shot blocked and then fell to Fargher who could not beat Rooney. The final chance saw Dyson get into the box and he unleashed a shot that Rooney had to be alert to tip around the post. So St Helens Town’s unbeaten streak was broken after four matches and they will know that improvement is required if they are to advance to the League Cup Semi Final by recording a victory over Wigan Robin Park on Tuesday evening. Ramsbottom United; Rooney, Bowyer, Dean, Morley(Cooke 80), Dawson, Flint, O’Neill, Pilkington(Callaghan 89), Robinson(C), Morrison(Sensale 81), Sharples. Sub Not Used; Nuttall. St Helens Town; Woods, Pitts(C), Evans, Kay, Faulkner(Elias 39), Stephens, Fargher, Dyson, Hanley(Scully 68), G.Mitchell, P.Mitchell(Hatton 75). Subs Not Used; Riley, Owens.
