Rangers took the lead after nine minutes, when Jamie Heard’s long ball was knocked down by Neil Towler into the path of Barnwell, who rounded the ‘keeper and finished coolly. However, they were pegged back immediately, with Long Eaton midfielder Blaine Hancock skipping a few challenges and finishing well past James Fossdyke. The visitors took the lead on 35 minutes when Shaun Rickford turned home from close range, but Rangers were level by half-time when Steve Gawthorpe converted a penalty on 43 minutes after a United defender had handled in the box.

Long Eaton made it 3-2 on 72 minutes when Will Mellors-Blair superbly curled in from long range, leaving Fossdyke rooted. Thacker added, “There were a few people getting a chance in different areas because of unavailabilities, so I just said to go out with a bang, express yourselves, but don’t let it turn into an end-of-season debacle really. We didn’t play the conditions, we tried to play as if we were playing on a bowling green, which is wasn’t.”

The loss means Hall Road and Long Eaton switch places in the NCEL Premier Division, with Rangers now 16th, and they could move down to 17th if Nostell Miners Welfare win their final game of the season.

HALL ROAD: James Fossdyke, Jamie Heard, Steve Graham (Steve Chapman, 69), Steve Gawthorpe, Jamie Atkinson, Lee Parker, Joe Cooper (Ray Ford, 60), Martin Thacker (Darrel Thompson, 72), Neil Towler, Jamie Barnwell, Liam Cattermole. Subs not used: None.

Many thanks as always go to Alex for the report and interview. Alex is the Press Officer at Dene Park, and can be found on twitter. Hall Road Rangers are also on twitter, and you can click through to their official site here. For more information on the NCEL, click here.

Rangers made two changes to the side that lost 5-2 to Liversedge last weekend, with Jamie Heard replacing Darrel Thompson and Joe Cooper coming in for Danny Ricketts. Both departing players dropped to the bench. On a grim, overcast afternoon on the south bank of the Humber, it was Barton who started the better, and found themselves ahead with just four minutes on the clock. Former Hall Road defender Mike Gibson lashed in on the volley from close range. Ten minutes later, and moments after a powerful effort from Tom Lee had cannoned off the crossbar, Barton were two in front, with Scott Phillips smashing in from 20 yards. Having not really got their game flowing as yet, Rangers responded positively, and clawed one back with their first shot of the game. Adam Crane played in captain Steve Gawthorpe, who, after a swift turn inside the box, poked home for his 11th goal of the season. Half time: Barton Town Old Boys 2 Hall Road Rangers 1

Into the second half, and Hall Road looked a completely different team altogether. They were utilising their pacey widemen – Crane and Mark Griffin – to their full advantage, and capitalising on Barton’s often too high back line, with the likes of Martin Thacker and Gawthorpe planting delicious looping balls over the defensive line on a number of occasions. And on 54 minutes, Rangers’ endeavour paid off. A Barton attack was quelled and the ball cleared to the feet of Jamie Barnwell, who was in Hall Road’s half and with his back to goal. A neat first time lay-off by the Rangers joint boss to Liam Cattermole allowed the full back to set Crane free down the left. Crane left Barton skipper Ashley Dexter in his tracks, before taking the ball into the box and firing low and hard towards goal. Goalkeeper Liam Taylor took most of the sting off the shot, but couldn’t stop it from trickling under his body and over the line. With just over ten minutes left on the clock, and Rangers pressing, they got their just desserts. Crane fed through Griffin down the middle, and the winger delicately dinked the ball over the goalkeeper to put Hall Road deservedly 3-2 ahead – a scoreline that would stay the same until the final whistle.

It was fitting that the main instigators in Rangers’ turnaround were Crane and Griffin – both of whom had turned out for Barton in recent years – and Barnwell reserved special praise for the pair. “They’re two players with outstanding ability and bags of pace”, he said. “We’ve always said that if we can work on their final delivery, they’re better than the level they’re playing at. Today, they’ve proved that because we’ve had end results that we’ve always been asking for. Both of them wanted to have an impact on the game, not just because they were back at their old stomping ground, but because they’ve been wanting to show what they can do for a while.”

Rangers leapfrogged Nostell Miners Welfare with the victory to claim 15th spot in the NCEL Premier Division ahead of their final game of the season at home to Long Eaton United next weekend.

HALL ROAD: James Fossdyke, Jamie Heard, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe (Darrel Thompson, 81), Jamie Atkinson, Lee Parker, Mark Griffin, Martin Thacker, Jamie Barnwell (Ray Ford, 80), Joe Cooper (Danny Ricketts, 68), Adam Crane. Subs not used: None.

As always, huge thanks to Hall Road’s Press Officer, Alex Blackburne, for this report. You can follow Alex and the club on Twitter, and for more information on the club, visit their website. For more information on the Northern Counties East League, visit the league’s official website.

“I think it was a fair scoreline in terms of the way [Liversedge] played”, reflected Barnwell. “There was a bit of naivety on our part in terms of how we defended as a team. If we’d have taken our chances, the game takes a different complexion. Naive sums it up. That’s probably the word for the day.”

Rangers made five changes to the side that lost 1-0 to Brighouse on Easter Monday. Out went Ray Ford, Steve Chapman, Dane Mortimer, Jamie Heard and Joe Cooper; in came Barnwell, Darrel Thompson, Mark Griffin, Jamie Atkinson and Adam Crane. With Hall Road slow to really get going, Liversedge opened the scoring after eight minutes. Cartman was played through down the middle, and despite pressure from Atkinson, finished well into the corner of the net. Rangers’ first real chance came on 16 minutes, when a free kick on the half way line was lofted into Barnwell, who delicately chested into the path of Danny Ricketts, but Ricketts’ first time strike from inside the box was wide of the goal.

Straight up the other end, Liversedge doubled their lead, with Cartman again on target. The striker dispossessed Thompson on the edge of the box, and finished past a scrambling James Fossdyke to make it 2-0. On the stroke of half-time, Liversedge broke down the right and after a couple of neat touches, David Boardman received the ball and finished well to make it 3-0 at the break.

Rangers started the second half brightly, and their positivity paid off – albeit fortuitously – on 50 minutes, when Adam Crane’s cross-cum-shot evaded goalkeeper Daniel Knight’s outstretched arms – his first goal since September last year. Liversedge’s three-goal lead was restored on 66 minutes when Alex Hallam slotted past Fossdyke after a neat counter attack to make it 4-1. Rangers did grab another goal back on 87 minutes, though. Crane played through Cooper, who neatly rounded Knight in the Liversedge goal, to finish into an empty net for his third goal of the season. But Liversedge added a fifth in injury time, with Boardman grabbing his second by rounding Fossdyke.

“We didn’t get to grips with their shape”, lamented Barnwell. “Although they were playing exactly the same as us, their shape had more impact on us than ours did on them. We made some changes early second half because we thought there was still something in the game for us. I think it was a game in which they were better in the final third than us.”

Although Rangers aren’t mathematically safe yet, 19th place Lincoln Moorlands Railway have a significantly poorer goal difference, so it’s highly likely that Premier Division football will once again be gracing the Dene Park turf next year. Whilst Barnwell, as well as co-boss Thacker, is content with this fact, he concluded that the Liversedge result was a poor one. “It’s disappointing in terms of the decent standards since me and Martin have come back to the club”, Barnwell said. “We haven’t really hit that standard today, although it’s pleasing to have done what we set out to do which is keep the team in this division.”

Rangers face a trip to Barton Town Old Boys next weekend, before their season comes to a close the week after against Long Eaton United.

HALL ROAD: James Fossdyke, Martin Thacker, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe (Paul Wilson, 79), Jamie Atkinson, Lee Parker, Mark Griffin, Darrel Thompson (Jamie Heard, 51), Jamie Barnwell, Danny Ricketts (Joe Cooper, 54), Adam Crane. Subs not used: Dane Mortimer.

As always, big thanks to Alex Blackburne for this report and interview. Alex is the Press Officer at Dene Park. All the relevant links are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Website

Hall Road Rangers on Twitter

Alex Blackburne on Twitter

Northern Counties East League

Hall Road made four changes to the side that beat Nostell last weekend. James Fossdyke replaced the suspended Mike Burley in goal, whilst Steve Graham, Dane Mortimer and Joe Cooper came in for Jamie Heard, Michael Gregory and Martin Thacker. Lee Parker, who was impressive against Nostell, kept his place at centre half and produced another Beckenbauer-esque performance at the back.

It was evident almost immediately what 11th-placed Armthorpe’s primary tactic for the 90 minutes was going to be. With the 6’4 former league footballer Leo Fortune-West leading their attack, Welfare’s long ball game was cut out by Hall Road on numerous occasions. Rangers, in contrast, preferred a passing game, with goalkeeper Fossdyke only choosing to kick long on a handful of occasions throughout the game.

Within the first two minutes, Hall Road went close. Steve Graham advanced inside from his full back position and played a looping ball into the path of Danny Ricketts, who capitalised on a defensive lapse but couldn’t direct his lobbed effort goalwards. Adam Crane then combined well with Joe Cooper on the left to get the ball to the byline, only for his shot to be blocked away. Cooper’s resulting corner fizzed across goal without a touch. Graham produced another driving run inside the first ten minutes, and picked out Cooper’s well-timed run. The young midfielder tried to round the goalkeeper but the ball was snatched from under his feet.

The first time Armthorpe threatened – on 16 minutes – they should have been 1-0 up. A mix-up in the corner between Dane Mortimer and Graham led to Henry Sibenge nicking the ball and striding into the box. He rounded Fossdyke but saw his shot blocked on the line by Paul Wilson. The same player, who was the Welfare’s main threat, received the ball on the right a few minutes later, and cut inside onto his left foot before firing an effort inches over the crossbar. At the other end, Steve Gawthorpe played two inch-perfect balls in the space of a couple of minutes. The first one picked out Mark Griffin’s run, whose first time shot was blazed over the bar, and the second one found Crane, who lobbed wide.

The best move of the first half from Rangers came on 38 minutes. After some excellent build-up play involving almost every player, Wilson played the ball into the feet of Barnwell on the edge of the penalty box. The Hall Road joint boss flicked it into Ricketts, who in turn nodded wide to Griffin. The winger allowed the ball to go across his body before unleashing a shot that unfortunately went wide. Barnwell had a chance of his own four minutes later, when he headed the overlapping Wilson’s cross wide of the far post. Two late long range attempts from Armthorpe’s Beriran Kurde brought the half to an end without score.

Into the second half, and Griffin and Ricketts had early chances, scuffing a shot wide and volleying over respectively. A Wilson foul on the edge of the box then gave Armthorpe a free kick in a dangerous position, but Sibenge’s set piece could only find the wall. On 58 minutes, Rangers’ endeavour paid off. Some good work going forward by Gawthorpe allowed Ricketts to stride into the box and cross from the left, with the onrushing Barnwell on hand to poke in from inside the six yard box for his second goal in as many games. Armthorpe brought on Abdulla Sanalla as they searched for an equaliser, and he injected some much needed flair into the Welfare team, and looked dangerous. Similarly, Ray Ford replaced the goalscorer, Barnwell, on 65 minutes.

Armthorpe were denied a leveller by a fantastic save by Fossdyke, who spectacularly batted away Richard Smith’s header to maintain Rangers’ lead. Steve Chapman then replaced Graham, who had picked up a knock, with Griffin dropping to right back and Chapman slotting in on the right of midfield. Meanwhile, Darrel Thompson was brought on for Danny Ricketts, as Hall Road looked to see out the game. But with 15 minutes left on the clock, Armthorpe pulled level. Smith charged down Dane Mortimer’s attemped clearance in the corner, and crossed for the unmarked Sibenge, who headed past Fossdyke from close range. Rangers responded brilliantly, though. Almost immediately, they went up the other end and were nearly back ahead, but Crane’s prodded attempt was gathered by the goalkeeper.

Into the final five minutes, and the energetic Ford was played through down the middle. As he tried to skip past Jamie Green, the Welfare’s goalkeeper, his legs were taken from beneath him. The referee awarded Rangers a penalty, and Green earned a yellow card. Steve Gawthorpe converted the resulting penalty, though Green guessed the right way, to nudge Rangers ahead. Unbelievably, less than three minutes later, Rangers were awarded another spot kick. This time, Chapman broke down the right and squared to Cooper, who was in acres of space. Just as the midfielder was about to shoot, an Armthorpe played came in from behind and bundled him over. It was another sure-fire penalty, and Gawthorpe despatched this one in style, powering an unstoppable effort past Green for what was his tenth goal of the season. Leo Fortune-West was gifted with a free header in the final moments, but somehow nodded over the bar to end a grim afternoon for Armthorpe. Rangers, though, recorded their first back-to-back wins in the league since November, and take the momentum into Monday’s clash with Brighouse.

HALL ROAD: James Fossdyke, Steve Graham (Steve Chapman, 67), Paul Wilson, Steve Gawthorpe, Dane Mortimer, Lee Parker, Mark Griffin, Joe Cooper, Jamie Barnwell (Ray Ford, 65), Danny Ricketts (Darrel Thompson, 71), Adam Crane. Subs not used: None.

Big thanks as always to Hall Road’s Press Officer Alex Blackburne for this report. All the relevant links are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Website

Hall Road Rangers on Twitter

Alex Blackburne on Twitter

NCEL Official Website

“It was gritty”, reflected Barnwell after the game. “We were up against a team that was in and around us, so it was probably one of the biggest fixtures that we’re going to have. The pitch made it difficult but it was nice to see us grind out a result. We’ve played some really good football of late but that was a proper ground out Northern Counties East League result.”

After Saturday’s crushing 7-0 defeat against league leaders Retford, and coming up against top ten sides in each of their last seven games, facing Nostell – who began the game just two places above Hall Road – will have been a welcome relief. Paul Wilson, Lee Parker, Steve Gawthorpe and Michael Gregory replaced Luke Wheeldon, Neil Towler, Dave Ricardo and Phil Jackman in the starting 11, and despite an overall even first period, Rangers found themselves ahead at the break. Full back Jamie Heard did brilliantly on the right flank to jink past three Nostell players, before playing in a low cross to the feet of Gawthorpe, who himself skipped away from two defenders, before prodding a left footed shot into the top corner.

Nostell equalised in the 67th minute through substitute Russell Gill, but the teams weren’t on level terms for long. A Thacker corner from the right was beaten out back to the Hall Road joint boss, who whipped in another cross that was met with a fine glancing header from Barnwell, who wheeled away for his first Rangers goal since October 2010, and the match’s winner. The attribution of the goal wasn’t completely straightforward, though, with Nostell full back Scott Colquhoun looking like he might have got the final touch on the line.

“I can’t even believe it’s in question”, said Barnwell. “I couldn’t be part of the centre forwards club if I didn’t take goals like that.” After playing at centre back against Retford last weekend, the Hall Road joint boss added that it was a relief to be back in his favoured position up front. “It was nice to feel comfortable and not have to think too much about the game. I thought myself and Danny Ricketts linked up well since it was the first time we’ve done it, but overall, I think people made better decisions on the football pitch and it really told.”

Ahead of next weekend’s trip to Armthorpe, Barnwell simply called for momentum. “Winning breeds habit, and we know we’ve got a lot to fight for. Mine and Martin’s objectives when we came to the club was to stay up and we’ve still got to do that.” Rangers leapfrogged Long Eaton United with the three points, meaning they go into Easter in 16th.

HALL ROAD: Mike Burley, Jamie Heard, Paul Wilson, Steve Gawthorpe, Michael Gregory, Lee Parker, Mark Griffin, Martin Thacker (Steve Chapman, 78), Jamie Barnwell (Darrel Thompson, 76), Danny Ricketts, Adam Crane (Ray Ford, 66). Subs not used: Luke Wheeldon.

Thanks to Alex Blackburne for this report. Alex is the Press Officer at Hall Road Rangers. If you would like to feature your club’s news and reports on the site, then get in touch. All the relative links for Hall Road and the NCEL are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Website

Hall Road Rangers on Twitter

Alex Blackburne on Twitter

Northern Counties East League

Rangers made two changes for the match – the fifth time the two teams have met this season. Paul Wilson came in for Jamie Heard, meaning Mark Griffin dropped to right back, whilst Dave Ricardo, who left Hall Road back in December, started in central midfield after rejoining the club. Joint manager Jamie Barnwell was also included amongst the substitutes.

Ashley Worsfold got the hosts off to a good start with a goal inside the first ten minutes, before Nathan Forbes-Swindells, who got a hat-trick the last time the two teams met, doubled their lead on 23 minutes. Neil Towler was bundled over in the box on the half hour mark, and Paul Wilson converted the resulting penalty to make it 2-1. Parkgate’s two-goal advantage was restored just two minutes later, though, with defender Matt Needham on target, before Forbes-Swindells added his second on the stroke of half-time to give the Steelmen a 4-1 lead going into the break.

The home side made it 5-1 two minutes after the break, with Ashley Worsfold doubling his personal tally. Hall Road were awarded another penalty on 49 minutes, with skipper Steve Gawthorpe converting this one for his fifth of the season. Three minutes later, Wilson added his second to make it 5-3, before the returning Dave Ricardo headed in to remarkably pull Hall Road back in with a shout, with still over half an hour to play. However, Forbes-Swindells completed his hat-trick on 64 minutes – his sixth goal in three games against Rangers – to cement his side’s place in the Fourth Round of the NCEL League Cup.

Having scored nine goals in their last three games, but not come away with so much as a point, Rangers go into Saturday’s difficult game against second placed Retford United in bizarrely good form, despite what the form tables might suggest.

HALL ROAD: Mike Burley, Mark Griffin, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe, Jamie Atkinson (Jamie Barnwell), Luke Wheeldon, Paul Wilson, Martin Thacker, Neil Towler, Dave Ricardo, Danny Ricketts (Jordan Easter). Subs not used: Ricky Kemp.

Alex Blackburne, Press Officer for Hall Road Rangers, has provided with this report, for which we are extremely grateful as always. All the relative links are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Site

Hall Road Rangers On Twitter

Alex Blackburne On Twitter

NCEL Official Site

Hall Road joint boss Jamie Barnwell credited his players’ work rate after an entertainingly disappointing encounter with the Seadogs. “There were points to be delighted with in terms of how we played, but we’re obviously disappointed with the result”, he said. “I couldn’t really ask any more from the players in their endeavours. We’ve learnt from the games that we’ve played, in that we applied ourselves for two halves.”

Boro top scorer Ryan Blott opened the scoring on 13 minutes with a well-guided header past Mike Burley, and left back Paddy Miller had doubled the visitors’ lead by 20 minutes. But Rangers responded with a goal just two minutes later, when skipper Steve Gawthorpe lofted a neat ball over the Boro defence to Towler, whose flick rattled the post, bounced free, and was lashed in at the second attempt by the striker. Towler turned provider for Hall Road’s second, nipping the ball into the danger area for Boro old boy Mark Griffin to angle home.

Five minutes after the restart, Rangers found themselves ahead, and for Boro ‘keeper Kevin Martin, it was in truly horrible fashion. Griffin played a looping ball into the box, which Martin misjudged and allowed to bounce straight over his head, leaving Towler with the simple task of tapping into an empty net. Hall Road’s lead didn’t last long, though, with the Seadogs levelling just three minutes later, when a defensive error allowed Blott to power in from outside the box for his second of the afternoon. And, on 63 minutes, Scarborough were in front again, with another defensive error to blame. Centre half Jamie Atkinson was dispossessed on the edge of the box by Ryan Blott, who finished coolly past Burley for his 25th of the season, and to clinch his hat-trick.

After an already heated game, things erupted with just under 15 minutes to go, when Rangers ‘keeper Mike Burley and Boro skipper Tony Hackworth came to blows in the Hall Road box. Both players were shown red cards for violent conduct, with James Fossdyke coming on between the sticks. With minutes remaining on the clock, Rangers found themselves down to nine men when two-goal hero Neil Towler was shown a straight red card for an alleged elbow on Darryl Winters. An overall entertaining game therefore ended rather sourly, and ultimately disappointingly.

Rangers were undeniably brave and perhaps deserved more. Reflecting after the game, co-boss Barnwell reserved praise for the returning Towler, who scored 11 goals in 10 games at the beginning of the season, before leaving the club for Ossett Town five months ago. “He’s done a great job for us, and he’s probably the reason we’ve scored three goals today”, Barnwell said. “He gave us an outlet, he holds up the ball and he give us a platform to build on, so it’s great to have him back.” Speaking about the game, Barnwell added that his side might have lacked a bit of guile once they had got in front. “Two of our errors have given them two goals, but the way we play, that’s sometimes going to happen, so you can’t really have a go at the lads for that. I think when we were 3-2 up, we should have been a bit more experienced in terms of keeping the ball and doing things in the right areas.”

Rangers stay in 17th ahead of Tuesday night’s League Cup Third Round tie with Parkgate.

HALL ROAD: Mike Burley, Jamie Heard, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe, Luke Wheeldon, Jamie Atkinson, Mark Griffin, Martin Thacker, Neil Towler, Joe Cooper (Paul Wilson, 46), Danny Ricketts (James Fossdyke, 77). Subs not used: Michael Gregory, Steve Graham, Phil Jackman.

This report has been provided to us by Hall Road’s Press Officer Alex Blackburne. We are always looking for clubs to provide press releases and reports, so if you would like to do so, please get in touch. All the relevant links for Hall Road Rangers and The NCEL are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Website.

Hall Road Rangers On Twitter.

Alex Blackburne On Twitter.

Northern Counties East League Official Website.

Hall Road Rangers bosses Jamie Barnwell and Martin Thacker made a handful of changes for the clash. James Fossdyke replaced the injured Mike Burley in goal, Phil Jackman replaced Steve Graham up front, and 17-year-old Luke Wheeldon came in at centre half for Mike Gregory. Meanwhile, Paul Wilson deputised at left back in place of Liam Cattermole, Danny Ricketts made his first start for Hall Road at the expense of Adam Crane, and Thacker himself returned to the starting line-up in central midfield.

Hall Road began by playing some neat passing football, starting from the back and working their way up the pitch, but were rocked after just four minutes when Winterton broke through and Jake Stannard finished. This seemed to spur Hall Road on and they began to frustrate the visitors with some good possession of the ball. And the home team got their reward on 33 minutes when Danny Ricketts was brought down in Winterton’s box. Steve Gawthorpe scored the resulting penalty to take his tally to four for the season, and simultaneously making him the club’s top scorer out of the current crop of players.

Hall Road came out for the second half and continued to have good possession of the ball, with Joe Cooper and Mark Griffin causing the visitors problems with their pace. They couldn’t find a way through the Winterton defence, though. On 61 minutes, the visitors went 2-1 up from a corner that Hall Road failed to clear, with James O’Neill finishing well from 12 yards. Nine minutes later, Jake Stannard got his second and Wintertons third. Hall Road dug in and battled to grab a goal back on 75 minutes, when a scramble in the visitors box saw Danny Ricketts react quickest to poke the ball home for his first Rangers goal. This spurred Hall Road on, and they endeavoured to snatch an equaliser. However, Winterton stayed strong and made sure the game was well and truly won on 84 minutes, when James O’Neill grabbed his second of the night to seal a 4-2 win.

Winterton moved up to third with the win, whilst Hall Road stayed 17th ahead of Saturday’s home game with Scarborough Athletic.

HALL ROAD: Fossdyke, Heard (Graham, 70), Wilson, S. Gawthorpe, Wheeldon, Atkinson, Griffin (Mortimer, 82), Thacker, Jackman (Easter, 72), Cooper, Ricketts. Subs not used: none.

As always, we are very grateful to Alex Blackburne, the Press Officer at Hall Road Rangers, for this report. If you would like to provide us with press releases and reports from your club, get in touch. All the relevant links for Hall Road Rangers are below.

Hall Road Rangers Official Site

Hall Road Rangers On Twitter

Alex Blackburne On Twitter

Northern Counties East League Website

The Rangers team bus suffered a burst tyre on the drive down to Nottinghamshire, meaning the game didn’t kick off until just after 4pm. But within 25 minutes, Hall Road found themselves two to the good, with goals from Joe Cooper and Mark Griffin. Steve Graham received his marching orders in the first half after picking up two yellow cards, meaning Phil Jackman replaced goalscorer Cooper at half-time to add weight to the attack.

In the second half, ten-man Hall Road were doing the bulk of the defending, but their job was made even more difficult when Liam Cattermole received a straight red for tackle that would usually only see a yellow card. Against the nine men of Rangers, Arnold began playing direct football, and hit a post and bar as they continued to look for a way back into the match. They pulled one back on 80 mins when Luke Smithson fired in from the edge of the box, leaving ‘keeper Mike Burley with no chance. Arnold, with their tales now up, continued to apply pressure with long throw-ins and corners. And deep into injury time, it was a corner that saw the home side draw level, with substitute Chris Freestone tapping in from close range after a melee in the box.

Rangers remain 16th in the NCEL Premier Division ahead of Tuesday’s game against Brighouse Town.

HALL ROAD: Mike Burley, Jamie Heard, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe, Michael Gregory, Jamie Atkinson, Mark Griffin (Paul Wilson, 75), Martin Thacker, Steve Graham, Joe Cooper (Phil Jackman, 46), Adam Crane. Subs not used: Luke Wheeldon.

Many thanks to Alex Blackburne, the Press Officer at Dene Park, for this report. All the links to the club are below.

Alex Blackburne on twitter.

Hall Road Rangers on twitter.

Rangers’ Official Website.

NCEL Official Website.

Hall Road Rangers

v

Selby Town

Saturday, February 25th 2012

Hall Road Rangers recorded their first win in 11 games on Saturday, with a 3-1 victory over NCEL Premier Division bottom side Selby Town. Rangers went behind mid-way through the first half through Robins striker Roy Fogarty, but had pulled it back level just over five minutes later when Steve Gawthorpe tapped in. A goal just before half-time from Paul Wilson put Hall Road ahead, before Steve Graham added a third just after the break.

Joint manager Martin Thacker was naturally delighted at picking up the club’s first three points since mid-November. “In the last three games, we’ve done really well and have probably come out deserving more points”, he said. “Today, we’ve done really well again and we should have put five, six, or seven past them in the end. It was a massive win for Hall Road in the context of staying in the league.”

Rangers made just one change to the side that lost 4-2 to Bridlington Town, with Jamie Heard replacing Ricky Foster at right back. New signings Danny Ricketts and Phil Jackman were named amongst the substitutes. The home side started brightly, with Mark Griffin, Paul Wilson and Steve Graham going close early on. However, with their first effort on goal, Selby took the lead. Roy Fogarty received the ball at his feet with his back to goal just inside the area, spun around, and fired in low past Mike Burley. But just after the half hour mark, Rangers brought things back level. Adam Crane skipped past a defender on the left before firing across goal, with Steve Gawthorpe posed with the simple task of tapping in from a couple of yards out. Piling on the pressure towards the end of the first period, Hall Road snatched a second with moments left of the half. Liam Cattermole overlapped on the left wing before swinging a cross into the box for Wilson to steer home, and give Rangers a half time lead.

Continuing in the same vein as they finished the first half, Rangers added a third on 49 minutes after a great team move. Thacker played a ball over the top of the defence, Gawthorpe flicked on, Wilson mastered a neat volleyed touch to Graham near the penalty spot, and although the Selby goalkeeper took most of the sting off the ball, Graham’s shot had enough on it to trickle over the line. Selby rarely looked threatening in the latter stages, which granted Rangers their a vital three points.

“Credit to the lads, because we could have booted it and booted it and we wouldn’t have gone anywhere”, said Thacker after the game. “We didn’t have the players on the pitch to stick it long. So we tried to play football, and in the end, it told. “In patches, when we actually played football, we murdered them.”

Hall Road leapfrogged Long Eaton United to move up to 16th in the NCEL Premier Division ahead of next weekend’s trip to 12th-placed Arnold Town.

HALL ROAD: Mike Burley, Jamie Heard, Liam Cattermole, Steve Gawthorpe, Michael Gregory, Jamie Atkinson, Mark Griffin, Martin Thacker (Danny Ricketts, 79), Steve Graham (Phil Jackman, 78), Paul Wilson (Joe Cooper, 81), Adam Crane. Subs not used: Ricky Foster, Luke Wheeldon.

Thanks to Alex Blackburne for this report and interview. Alex is the Press Officer at Dene Park, and all the associated links are below. We are always looking for clubs to provide reports and press releases, so please get in touch!

Hall Road Rangers Official Site

NCEL Official Site

Hall Road Rangers on Twitter

Alex Blackburne on Twitter