The quality of football is surprisingly good. I have seen a delightful mix of strategy and skill, thoughtful playmaking, intelligent passing, and precise shooting"
NWFC 60s Cheshire League - 11th June, 2025
Squad: S Anderton GK, A Benbow, C Rose, T Roberts (C), G Worgan, M Brown, G Saunders, S Norfield, Manager H Kandola
Northwich WFC 60s team had a very successful day in the final round of fixtures of the Cheshire League.
The first game saw us come away with a fine victory, against Bolton, winning 1-0 with a goal from Ged moving onto a pass from Tony and slotting confidently. I believe this is the first victory against Bolton for our club.
Our next game V Stockport (F) was a comfortable 2-0 win with goals from Marcus (pen) and Gary slotting from an acute angle for a finally taken goal. The next game resulted in a goalless draw V Chester, which was then followed by a disappointing 2-0 defeat by the eventual league winners Culcheth. The 5th game was against Neston in which Northwich took the lead from another finely taken penalty by Marcus, which resulted in Neston having a player sin binned for the foul on Colin. Northwich should have controlled the game for a well deserved win but a mix up contrived to give the 5 men a way back into the game to make it 1-1, the final result.
We regrouped and came out victorious against Altrincham, Marcus breaking free and finishing with aplomb.
The final game against league runners up Stockport (T) saw us snatch victory, with a well worked last minute free kick, Marcus firing into the top corner, after a fine layup from Gary.
This saw us finish runners up on the day and 4th overall in the League losing out to Bolton for 3rd on goal difference.
Final standings - Pld 28 W9 D12 L7 F13 A10 Pts 39
A great day for the whole squad but special mention to our 2 allowed 50s guests Marcus, who ended up our top goal scorer and Simon GK who played in the league for the 2nd time and ended up with 11 clean sheets only conceding 4 goals, in 14 games.
Special thanks to Harry for expertly managing the games!
Report by Tony Roberts
NWFC 50s Cheshire League - 8th June, 2025
Squad: Martin Thornton, Brian Wager, Rob Wilding, Chris Turner (C), Paul Henesy, Fran Perez, Chris Wadsworth, Jerry Weltman, Trevor Bebbington.
NWFC 50s played in the final round of games in the Cheshire League today.
In the first game against Nantwich, Northwich got off to a good start with Trevor Bebbington striking one in with his first touch. Northwich then let in two goals, the second an unstoppable screamer, but Northwich fought back and earned a deserved point when Bebbington struck again to make it 2-2.
In the second game against Macclesfield, Rob Wilding coolly converted a penalty. Northwich then conceded a penalty, but fought back yet again with Jerry Weltman scoring a rare right foot effort to make it a 2-1 win.
Northwich then faced Neston and despite playing well, eventually conceded and lost 2-0 to this year's league winners.
It was the same scoreline again in match four when Northwich lost 2-0 to Winsford.
However, in the final game Northwich dominated against Middlewich. Jerry Weltman opened the scoring with a shot the goalkeeper initially saved, but trickled in, before putting Chris Turner in for a well taken effort and a deserved 2-0 win, plus clean sheet for Brian Wager, taking over from Martin Thornton in goal (who, as usual, also made some fine saves all morning).
Thanks to Harrie for managing the team and Sarah for coming to support us.
We ended the season finishing in 4th place with 20 points : 5 wins, 5 draws and 10 losses. The winners of the league were Neston Nomads.
Report by Jerry Weltman
NWFC 50s v Maghull : WFA Cup - 21 May, 2025
Squad: Paul Henesy, Brian Wager, Chris Turner, Marcus Brown, Andy Benbow, Rob Wilding, Jerry Weltman and Fran Perez.
Northwich 50s played in the WFA Cup this evening and in a hard fought contest won 2-1 against Maghull.
NWFC took an early lead with a fine shot into the far corner by Marcus Brown and went into the break 1-0 up. There were shots from both sides in the second half, including a few fine saves from Andy Benbow, before Rob Wilding played a quick and direct through ball for Jerry Weltman to pursue and slot home just after he'd been taken out with a very painful tackle (yes tackle!). In a nervy ending, Maghull scored and NWFC had a man sent off for repeat offences, but managed the game well and are in the draw for the next round.
Thanks to Harrie Kandola for managing.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
NWFC 60s v Oakwood Glossop : National Cup - 19 May, 2025
Squad: A Riding, C Rose, S McCletchie, T Roberts, G Saunders, K Whittle. J Ellis.
Northwich WFC over 60s exited the WFA National Cup, with a very close 0-1 defeat to Oakwood Glossop today, at Moss Farm. Despite playing some good attacking football Northwich were unable to score, despite hitting the woodwork and having a goal disallowed.
Report by Tony Roberts
NWFC 50s : Cheshire League - 11 May, 2025
Squad: Rob Wilding, Brian Wager, Paul Henesy, Geoff Treasure, Chris Turner, Fran Perez, Martin Thompson and Jerry Weltman
The 50s were back in action at Moss Farm today with another round of Cheshire League games on a very warm day.
Unfortunately Northwich started slowly, losing three games in a row, to Middlewich, Winsford and also Neston despite playing better. In Game 4, against Macclesfield, Northwich were well on top but couldn't convert the many chances they created and drew 0-0. In the final game Northwich won 1-0 with a superbly taken goal by Fran Perez and a penalty save from Martin Thornton.
Big thanks too to Nick Regan and Rob's wife Elizabeth for their support.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
NWFC 50s Eurocopa Cup Portugal - 28/29 April, 2025
Squad: Back Row: Fran Perez, Simon Anderton (GK), Harrie Kandola, Terry Shanahan, Rob Wilding.
Front Row: Jerry Weltman, Andy Brady, Marcus Brown, Chris Turner
Monday 28 April - drawn in Group B.
Our first match was against one of the Portuguese teams Quarteirense WFC. We as usual, put 100% effort into this match but went behind early on to a long range effort and then went two down a few minutes into the second half, before Rob Wilding opened Northwich WF Club first goal of the tournament 2025, with a ‘Superb Shot’ assisted by Marcus Brown, from a Free Kick, some 20+ yards from goal. This was a goal scored on Rob’s Europa debut, who went on to play every single minute of every match in the Tournament. Unfortunately, we lost 2-1.
Our next match was a completely different story. We thrashed the Teign Drifters by three goals to nil. our first goal scored by Marcus Brown, again from a free kick 18 yards or so from goal, assisted by the ever reliable, Chris Turner. Our second goal soon followed with a Brilliant strike from the same reliable Chris, right into the top corner, assisted by the fabulous skills of Jerry Weltman. Our third goal, some may say had a little luck about it but not so if you ask Marcus, he played a delightful angled pass through to Andy Brady, who was in-marked, waiting for a simple tap-in from about 8 yards, with the goalie stranded however one of the Teign defenders, managed to get a foot in the way but simply deflected this into his own goal - Marcus did not wish to claim the goal but did claim the assist. Final score 3-0 to the Northwich.
Our next two matches ended 1-1 against El Canadon (an Argentinian Team who only dropped points to us on Day one) and SC Farense (another Portuguese Team). Both our goals in these two matches were from Free-Kicks, scored by Marcus and assisted by Chris. Terry enjoyed this match the most, saying it was a ‘proper tough/hard match’. Fran did a great job constantly breaking down the opposition attacks and Simon Anderton made some great saves to keep us in the game.
The next two matches were closely fought defeats to Bolton and Walking Lions. We held our own against Bolton, only conceding the second (lost 2-0) with pretty much their last kick of the game. The other match against the Lions ended in an unlikely 1-0 defeat.
The last match of Monday ended in a well deserved 1-0 victory. The scoreline should have been better against the Welsh but the victory was the main thing. Chris scored from another well struck Free-Kick, assisted by Marcus.
At the end of day 1, we’d finished a very respectable 5th in the table, meaning we would play for the Trophy on day 2.
Tuesday 29th April
There was a very strong wind and even though we were drawn as the ‘Home Side’ for this match, we had to kick the entire match against the wind. This played into SC Farense hands, resulting in our worst defeat of the tournament by 3-0. Enough said of this match so we’ll move on!!
The next match though we showed our ‘fighting spirit’ and bounced back with a dominating 1-0 win against Lincoln Utd however it needed a ‘Jerry Left Foot Screamer’ into the top right hand corner to seal the match, a goal assisted again by Chris.
We were on a high but then we played Santos Nottingham who had recruited two of Malagas top stars from the previous year to join them. We needed our team to step up and we did just that. We fell behind to a goal but then stepped up our tall centre forward, Terry Shanahan who luckily had remembered to change his designer rubber cloggs he’d worn all week, for a pair of Astro Trainers. Shanahan showed his class with a “nonchalant deft flick“, lifting the ball over the goalies outstretched hands, in doing so causing himself a nasty injury to his shoulder! The goal was assisted again by Chris. But then followed the drama as Santos went back in front to a very dubious goal scored by one of their Malaga recruits. The Ref allowed the goal, even though it was clear the Spanish guy had touched the ball 4 times. Andy Brady even asked the Ref to consult the camera man who had told Andy it was definately 4 touches, the crowd even sang “Four, Four, Four” but the Ref was too frightened to reverse his initial decision. We controversially lost this match by 2 goals to 1. Santos eventually went on to lose in the Final.
Our next match was against Ferreiras, another Portuguese side. We drew this 1-1. Chris Turner scoring his 3rd of the Tournament, assisted by Marcus again. Another well fought and close match and more good saves from Simon.
Our final match was a bit of a ‘dead rubber’ that ended 1-0 to the Manchester Old Boys (Formerly known as Kingsmaid).
We ended the tournament with 4 points from our 5 matches on the second day but both the Captain, Marcus Brown and our Player Manager Harrie Kandola, were very proud of the teams efforts and performance over the two days!
Harrie bought all the guys a well deserved Pint after our final match and we then drank and cheered on the over 60’s for their last match!
Joint Men of the Tournament:-
Chris Turner (3 goals and 4 Assists) - Amazing stats! and Rob Wilding (Debut goal) as a Defender and played every single minute of every game.
Report by Marcus Brown
NWFC 60s Eurocopa Cup Portugal - 28/29 April, 2025
The 60s team this year headed off to Portugal with a squad of 10 players captained by Tony Roberts and including Keith Whittle, SteveNorfield, Colin Rose, Andy Benbow, Reg Simpson, Paul Eccleston, Alan Riding,Dave Wilks and John Mitchell.
Monday 28th April
After a short practice session the previous day, which had been following a heavy night on Saturday, we all had some idea of the high temperatures we would be facing. Drawn in group "A " we faced 7 teams spread from across England, Scotland, Wales, Portugal and France. A great selection from Europe's walking football community.
First match was against Stade Ruffecois from France. Northwich quickly got on top in the game but as ever were finding goalscoring elusive, however John Mitchell pulled one from the bag, taking on the defender, switching inside and hitting a shot into the top right corner. With the pressure off Keith Whittle put in a second, that was only the start of his goal scoring exploits throughout the competition and the game was secured 2-0. The next game pitted us against Silver Coast Strollers of Portugal who proved to be tougher but Northwich were able to find a goal and another victory 1-0. Our third opponents were Cardiff City and we managed a 1-1 draw to keep us unbeaten. SC Farense were a local Portuguese team and therefore could pick a strong line up. A hard fought battle ended 0-0. Next were Clacton Knights, our first English opponents. Northwich struggled to contain their strong centre forward who put them in the lead, but strangely at a free kick Mitch was able to pass a simple ball to Reg unmarked on the edge of their area who calmly slotted the ball home. Their centre Forward was able to repeat his turn and shot and that meant Clacton ended 2-1 winners. Undaunted, Northwich went into the last 2 games of the day confident and managing the hot conditions. We were victorious in those matches against Teign Drifters of Dorset and Oriam of Scotland both 1-0 wins.
So after the 7 games Northwich ended the day as group "A" winners with 14 points and the best goal difference, a fantastic achievement. This meant we would be placed with the elite teams in the cup competition the next day.
Tuesday 29th April
Full of enthusiasm following our league win the previous day, we had quite a hard landing in our first match against Weston Super Mare, who fielded several England internationals. Alan played superb making some fantastic saves that had the opposition applauding, but the passing and movement was difficult for Northwich to contain and WSM came out worthy 2-0 winners. Up next were East Algarve and in another difficult match Northwich fell a little short losing out 2-1. So it had been a tough start and up next came Clacton Knights, the only team to beat us on day one. The Northwich defence were ready for their centre forward and kept him quiet all game but unfortunately we could not get a goal either and the match ended 0-0. Not aware at the time but our penultimate game was against the competition's eventual winners East Riding Rangers. A mix up within the first few seconds of the game saw an ERR player through on goal with a chance he couldn't miss and we were 1-0 down. The referee was very lenient throughout a fast and physical game. The very early goal was all that settled the game at the end. Our final game was against Pollock United, winners of group "C" on day 1 and champions of Scotland. For most of the game Northwich were under a lot of pressure with Alan again making some great saves, however, with little time remaining a long throw from Alan found Mitch who protected the ball and found Tony going through with a backheel pass. With our 50's team watching and cheering from the sidelines, our captain Tony cooly slotted the ball past the keeper and sealed a great victory and a fantastic way for us to leave the competition. Off to the the bar for a well earned pint or 2
Special mentions:
To the players who may not have got as much game time as they had hoped for! You were all an important part of our squad on & off the pitch.
Alan for showing again why we consider him to be the best keeper at the competition
Mitch for either scoring (3) or making the assist to all the other 7 goals we scored
Keith ending as our top scorer with 5 goals
Tony for the difficult task of selection and rotation and for that last goal.
Report by John Mitchell
NWFC 50s V Fleetwood Flyers - 13 April, 2025
Squad: Martin Thornton (GK), Rob Wilding, Chris Wadsworth, Paul Henesy, Geoff Treasure, Chris Turner (C), Joe Onoja.
The Northwich 50+ squad were on the road again yesterday, travelling to league leaders Fleetwood Flyers, playing in their indoor dome at Fleetwood Town’s superb training facilities.
Northwich started confidently using the open spaces well but conceded first, a deflection taking the ball past Martin Thornton. Fleetwood doubled their lead just before the first break when a foul on the edge of the area was deemed a goalscoring opportunity & a penalty was awarded & scored.
The second period started much the same as the first, but Northwich were caught on the break and conceded a third goal and then were penalised for four running offences. Martin superbly saved the penalty, sparking an intense period of play where Geoff Treasure continued his great run of form by placing a shot into the top corner, quickly followed by Rob Wilding expertly converting a penalty. As Northwich pushed forward again Fleetwood were able to take advantage and score a fourth, only for Joe Onoja, making his return from a four month injury layoff, to grab a clever third Northwich goal.
With the game in the balance, the final third was an open contest, Northwich hitting the woodwork numerous times & Martin making several vital saves to keep hopes of a result alive. In the end, Fleetwood hung on and claimed the win, but Northwich were able to make the long journey home with their pride intact after pushing them to the very last minute.
Report by Chris Turner
60s Cheshire League - 1 April, 2025
Squad: S Anderton GK, C Rose, P Ecclestone, T Roberts, K Bell, K Whittle, R Simpson, J Mitchell & T Bebbington
Northwich WFC 60s had a very successful day in the 2nd round of games in the Cheshire League. Coming out winners on the day with 14pts from 4 Wins, 2 draws and 1 defeat.
The first game versus Bolton Arena resulted in a very unlucky 1-0 defeat, conceding a very unfortunate Penalty for encroachment into the area. Despite hitting the post twice Northwich were unable to respond. Northwich found the perfect response in the second game V Stockport County F, winning 2-0 with goals from Trev Bebbington and Reg Simpson. The 3rd versus Chester resulted in a great 1-0 win with Keith Bell notching. The next game saw a 0-0 draw v Culcheth, Simon Anderton making a number of brilliant saves. Another close 1-0 win followed against Neston, Keith Bell grabbing the all important goal. The 6th game versus Altrincham was another 2-0 victory with a brilliant volleyed goal from Keith Whittle and a lovely cool finish from Colin Rose. The final game saw us secure a close 0-0 draw against the League leaders Stockport County T.
So overall a great day seeing Northwich climb 3 places in the League up to 3rd.
Report by Tony Roberts
50s Bolton Arena - 2 February, 2025
Squad: Rob Wilding, Geoff Treasure, Colin Lawson, Paul Henesy, Chris Wadsworth, Chris Turner, Jerry Weltman
NWFC 50s took part in a Round Robin multi touch, 6-a-side friendly event today at Bolton Arena. This was a great chance to practice against three teams ahead of the Cheshire Super Cup next weekend. It was well run and reffed, and it was our first time in the new kit.
After being denied a draw with an extremely lucky last-second goal, Northwich lost 2-1 to a Bolton side despite a Jerry Weltman goal.
Against another tricky Bolton team, it was the same result, 1-2, yet again despite a Jerry Weltman goal and some great chances.
In the 3rd game against Culcheth, Northwich played well. A superb strike by Paul Henesy rocketed into the top corner. Jerry Weltman and Chris Turner exchanged passes and CT scored a well deserved goal (as well as hitting another against the post), while Jerry Weltman bagged his third of the day.
There were also fine performances in the game from Colin Lawson (in goal), Geoff Treasure, putting in great blocks, and similarly solid performances from Chris Wadsworth, and Rob Wilding, who was unlucky with another blockbuster.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
NWFC 50s V Chadderton - 3 January, 2025
Squad: Kevin Warburton, Geoff Treasure, Rob Wilding, Chris Turner, Trevor Bebbington, Paul Henesy, Mike Clulow, Jerry Weltman
NWFC 50s were back on the road again today playing a league fixture following the winter break. This time it was a trip to Bolton Arena to play Chadderton in bitterly cold conditions.
The team began slowly, not quite clicking for the first 20 minutes and eventually went a goal down. Slowly Northwich got a grip on the game and managed to craft a well worked goal, perfectly slotted in by team captain Chris Turner from a tight angle.
After that Northwich controlled the game better, but unfortunately conceded late on. Paul Henesy had the ball in the net, but it was disallowed and Northwich were left ruing other chances in the game, including hitting the post.
When the ref blew at 1-2, he and the Chadderton players were very complimentary about our efforts. We go to Culcheth in February, aiming to get back on winning ways.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
60s Cheshire League - 12 December, 2024
Squad: A Benbow GK, T Roberts, C Rose, S McLetchie, M Brown, R Simpson, C Turner, T Bebbington, K Whittle
NWFC 60s played the last round of games in the Cheshire Winter League today. Resulting in 3 wins and 2 close defeats.
The first game saw us with a 1-0 win V Stockport County Blues, with Marcus Brown notching the winner. the 2nd game saw us come unstuck against League winners Neston, losing 2-0.
We played Altrincham in the 3rd game coming out 1-0 victors with another goal from Trevor. In the 4th game we found our shooting boots with a fine 4-1 victory over Stockport County Yellows, Goals from Trevor, Chris Turner, Colin Rose and Keith Whittle. That meant we just needed a result in the final game v Chester to pinch the runners up spot but a close encounter saw us come up just short in a 3-2 defeat, goals from Trevor and Keith, meant we finished the 20 game season in 3rd position.
Report by Tony Roberts
50s Cheshire Supercup - 1 December, 2024
Squad: Colin Lawson, Andy Benbow, Rob Wilding, Pete Butcher, Paul Henesy, Chris Turner, Jerry Weltman, Joe Onuja
NWFC 50s played in the 1st game round of the Cheshire Super Cup competition today, playing 5 different teams in 15 minute matches on a lovely sunny day at Moss Farm.
In the 1st game against Nantwich, NWFC played well and were unlucky to lose 1-0 late on with a well taken free kick.
The second game against Middlewich Town saw the goals fly in. Two from Joe Onuja and one from Jerry Weltman made it a well deserved 3-1 win.
Then there were three hard fought 0-0 games against Macclesfield, Neston Nomads and Winsford Town that followed, with Colin Lawson playing a blinder in goal to ensure another draw in the last game, ahead of the second round of games in January.
Squad: Big thanks also to Geoff for turning up for support and taking photos.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
60s Cheshire League - 5 November, 2024
Squad: A Benbow, T Roberts. C Rose, K Bell, R Simpson, M Broadbent, C Turner & T Bebbington
Northwich Walking Football Club played in 3rd round of Cheshire league games this morning. Resulting in 2 wins 2 draws and 1 defeat.
We started with two 0.0 draws Vs Chester and then Neston, playing some great football. Unfortunately the 3rd game ended in a 2.0 defeat Vs Stockport county blues. We rallied in the next game winning Vs Stockport county yellows, with a great 3.0 win goals from K Bell, M Broadbent and T Bebbington.
The final game saw us run out a very close 1.0 win Vs Altrincham. A lovely move finished in fine style by K Bell.
A great team display with everyone contributing, especially Andy Benbow in goal keeping 4 clean sheets.
Report by Tony Roberts
50s - Winstanley - Lancashire League - 3 November, 2024
Squad: Andy Benbow (GK), Brian Wager, Chris Turner (C), Chris Wadsworth, Rob Wilding, Paul Henesy, Trevor Bebbington, Jerry Weltman, Geoff Treasure.
In their 3rd league game of the season, NWFC 50s won 2-0 today at home against Winstanley, with goals from Paul Henesy and Jerry Weltman. The boys in blue played well again today, with a very disciplined display. There were several decent chances, tremendous link-up play and some fine defending too.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
Photo courtesy of Kevin Warburton.
50s - Preston - Lancashire League - 21 October, 2024
Squad: Mike Clulow, Paul Butcher, Trevor Bebbington, Andy Benbow, Geoff Treasure, Paul Henesy, Jeremy Weltman, Chris Turner, Rob Wilding
NWFC 50s played their 2nd Lancashire League game against Preston at Bolton Arena on another rain soaked pitch on Sunday. Unfortunately Northwich got off to a slow start and let in a few goals. However, the team dug in and played really well for 40 minutes and were very unlucky to lose 5-4, with goals from Trevor Bebbington, Rob Wilding (penalty), Chris Turner and Jerry Weltman.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
Culcheth Tournament - 21 September, 2024
Squad: Paul Henesy, Andy Benbow, Kevin Davenport, Rob Wilding, Jeremy Weltman, Colin Lawson
NWFC 50s took part in a 19-team competition at Culcheth in aid of Parkinsons research. In the group stage Northwich got off to a good start with a 2-0 win against one of the home teams, with goals from Colin Rose and Paul Henesy. The next game was against Altrincham and it ended 1-1, with Rob Wilding scoring a penalty. Northwich then had to step up to play Droylsden, a very good side, but played well again, with a creditable 0-0 draw, aided by goalkeeper Kevin Warburton and Andy Benbow playing their parts and despite being denied by the post.
In the quarter final, Northwich were up against Phoenix, a local Warrington side. Battling hard, and on top for much of the game, Northwich got the breakthrough when Jerry Weltman turned and poked it into the far corner, but they conceded almost immediately, and the game ended 1-1. Sadly, Northwich were beaten in the penalty shoot out after a few fine saves from the opposing goalkeeper, but left the tournament undefeated in 4 games looking forward to another away fixture next week.
The team were pleased to see Captain Chris Turner come along to watch some of the games,and very thankful to those who contributed to the charity.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
50s - Garstang - Lancashire League - 17 September, 2024
Squad: Rob Wilding, Andy Benbow, Geoff Treasures, Brian Wager, Paul Henesy, Jeremy Weltman
Northwich 50s played their first game in the Lancashire league away at Garstang at the weekend. Unfortunately with Captain Chris Turner out, and quite a few other regulars unavailable, NWFC only had 6 eligible to play a 7-a-side game (with Fran Perez in attendance but denied the opportunity).
Rather than forfeit the match, the team wanted to play, and dug-in and defended well for the first 20 minutes on a large rain-soaked pitch with the ball zipping around. With the game lasting an hour, eventually goals were conceded, but Northwich never gave up and were disciplined to the end with Paul Henesy bossing the midfield and acting captain Rob Wilding making his presence felt.
A big shout out too, to Brian Wager and Geoff Treasure, who both carried on despite obviously feeling injuries. With Geoff later having to go in goal it gave Andy Benbow a chance to play a part in a well-deserved consolation goal when Jerry Weltman banged one into the bottom corner and almost followed it up with another when Rob's defence-splitting pass put Jerry clean through only to hit the side netting from a tight angle. It was a 5-1 defeat, but the team tried their best in an uneven contest and headed home in atrocious conditions to contemplate the next league game in a month's time.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
60s - Joshua Tree Trophy 26 August, 2024
Squad: Alan Riding, Gary Worgan, Simon Cornes, Keith Whittle, Tony Roberts, John Mitchel, Steve Norfield, Dave Kinvig and Keith Bell
Northwich WFC 60plus team win the Joshua Tree Trophy and progress to the FA Northwest Regional Finals.
Three teams competed the Cheshire local qualifying round at Moss Farm.
Northwich winning 3 and drawing the other 3 games and not conceding a single goal.
Games:-
V Stockport County Yellow 1-0 Scorer Dave Kinvig
V Stockport County Blues 1-0 Scorer Dave Kinvig
V Stockport County Yellow 0-0
V Stockport County Blues 0-0
V Stockport County Yellow 1-0 Steve Norfield
V Stockport County Blue 0-0
Northwich W3 D3 L0 = 12Pts
Stockport B W1 D3 L2 = 6Pts
Stockport Y W1 D2 L3 = 5Pts
Report by Tony Roberts
50s - Joshua Tree Trophy 26 August, 2024
Squad: Andy Benbow, Steve Robinson, Rob Wilding, Colin Lawson, Andy Brady, Chris Turner, Jeremy Weltman, Harrie Kandola
Our 50s team played in the Cheshire Walking FA Cup today at Moss Farm. The tournament was round-robin format against Nantwich, Altrincham and Winsford teams with each team playing each other twice in 6v6, 12 minute multi-touch games.
We had a great tournament and played some good football. Our scores were:
NWFC 0 - Nantwich 1
NWFC 1 - Altrincham 1 (Goal: Rob Wilding - pen)
NWFC 1 - Winsford 0 (Goal: Harrie Kandola)
NWFC 0 - Nantwich 0
NWFC 1 - Altrincham 0 (Goal: Jeremy Weltman - pen)
NWFC 0 - Winsford 0
We ended up as Joint Winners with Nantwich with both teams on 9 points with the same goal difference, goals scored and goals conceded. Nantwich qualify for the next round though due to them beating us 1-0 in our first game.
Report by Harrie Kandola
50s - Bolton Arena - WFA CUP - 2 May, 2024
Squad: Colin Lawson, Gary Worgan, Alan Wilding, Paul Henesy, Rob Wilding, Jeremy Weltman, Chris Turner
Our 50s team battled hard against a very tough opposition tonight losing 5-1 to Bolton Arena away in the WFA Cup. At 2-0 down, Jerry Weltman pulled a goal back with a mid-range effort low into the corner. We were losing 4-1 at half time, but kept going to keep the score down, assisted by Alan Riding in goal. Despite several more shots on target we couldn't find another goal, but we all enjoyed playing and learned a lot from the experience.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
60s - Neston Tournament - 20th July, 2024
Squad (L to R): Ian Hume, Rob Wilding, Ged Saunders, Andy Benbow, Nick Regan, Steve McLetchie, Paul Henesy, John Ellis
Today our 60s team played in the Neston 60s Walking football tournament.
NWFC came top of our group by winning 2 games and drawing another. We then won our quarter final and our semi final games. In the final we lost 1-0 to Neston.
We had a great day and really played together as a team. Thank you lads for a great effort. It feels a bit like the England journey in the Euros. We'll done John
Report by John Ellis
'MIND' Tournament - 13th July, 2024
Squad: Chris Turner, Steve Robinson, Dave Mottershead, Andy Benbow, Trevor Bebbington, Steve McLetchie, Paul Henesy
On 13th July we entered a mixed age team into the inaugural Winsford Town Walking Football Tournament in the 50+ category.
We were drawn into a tough group & began with a cagey 0-0 draw with the hosts first team. We followed that with a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Alsager and a hugely unlucky 1-0 defeat to a strong Stockport County team.
This left us in the Championship side of the competition, and into a semi final with Nantwich Town. Another tight game, with Northwich playing the better football but unable to convert our chances, finished 0-0 and went to penalties. Northwich won the shootout 7-6, with Andy Benbow & Paul Henesy the heroes. In the final we faced our old foes from the first game, Winsford Town Blues. A familiar pattern emerged during the game as Northwich were unable to convert their chances & conceded a goal on the brake that gave Winsford the victory.
The tournament was a fundraiser for the Mid Cheshire Mind Mental Health Charity. It was well organised & although some of the refereeing was erratic to say the least, we had a good time & will be back next year.
Report by Chris Turner
Neston 50+ Tournament - 23rd June, 2024
Squad: Alan Riding, Tony Roberts, Andy Benbow, Rob Wilding, Paul Henesy, Jeremy Weltman, Andy Brady and Dave Kinvig.
Northwich WFC entered a mixed age team in the Neston 50+ tournament.
We got of to a great start in our first game v Everton, with Tony Roberts firing in our goal before Everton equalised 1-1.
Our second game saw us fall behind to a very good Neston A team and then when chasing the game we conceded a penalty goal and a further goal losing out 0-3.
Our third game was a 0-0 stalemate versus Mold with a us showing a much better team display.
That left us needing a win to qualify for the Quarter Finals but we found ourselves 2-0 down early on. We rallied with Dave Kinvig pulling one back to make it 2-1 but push as we did, we could not find an equaliser.
That meant we were entered into the ‘5th Place play off trophy final’ versus a mixed representative team.
We played much better in this game with Dave Kinvig scoring our winner.
It was a glorious day and a very well organised tournament. A special thank you to our squad who made the effort to represent our club today
Report by Tony Roberts
WFA National Cup 65s - Blackburn Rovers - 17th June, 2024
Squad: Alan Riding, Steve McLetchie, Frank Cassidy, Ian Hulme, Neil Kenwright, Keith Whittle, Pete Yoxall, Keith Bell, Dave Woods.
On Monday Evening our Over 65's played in the 3rd Round of the WFA National Cup away to Blackburn Rovers. Although the score was close we were beaten 2-0 by an accomplished side.
We showed great resilience in chasing the game right to the end, however where multi-touch is played it is difficult to get possession of the ball once you concede.
All the team played their part but it just wasn't to be.
Report by Alan Riding
WFA National Cup 65s - Winstanley Walkers - 28th April, 2024
Squad: Alan Riding, Dave Woods, Steve McCletchie, Frank Cassidy, Ian Hulme, Pete Yoxall, Keith Whittle
The Over 65's started the WFA National Cup 2024 campaign with an excellent win against last year's runners up Winstanley Walkers.
It was a tight competitive game played in great spirits by both teams. The first half was even with chances from both teams but neither capitalised and so it ended goalless. The second half was much more open with both keepers busier. Winstanley opened the scoring about half way through with their striker finding himself through on goal and easily finished with a strong shot.
Winstanley then started to try to control the game with some swift passing but came undone about 5 minutes from the end when Keith Whittle used his strength to force his way past the defence to finish with a strong shot past the excellent keeper.
The rest of the game was a tense affair and the game finished all square at 1-1. Penalties were then taken to decide the outcome.
Both teams shot wide with their first attempts. Alan then saved the next one with Keith Whittle scoring for NWFC. Winstanley then hit the bar to seal the win for NWFC.
It was probably an unexpected win for NWFC but teamwork certainly saw NWFC through this difficult First Round tie and into the hat for the Second Round.
Report by Alan Riding
WFA National Cup 60s - 9th April, 2024
Squad: A Riding GK, T Roberts, J Robison, G Saunders, R Simpson, J Ellis, K Whittle & P Yoxall.
Northwich WFC 60+ were very unfortunate to exit the WFA National Cup on Monday evening, away at Neston Nomads.
In a game that Northwich had many chances, they unluckily exited the Cup via the dreaded Penalty shoot out. Pete Yoxall put Northwich ahead, with a well taken goal and should have gone 2 up when awarded a penalty but it was just wide of the mark. Neston grew into the game and made it 1-1 before HT.
Northwich then played the better football and created numerous chances, hitting the woodwork 4 times, one from Pete hitting both uprights, John Robison hit a screamer that came back of a post and Keith Whittle had another pushed onto the bar before landing on the line and bouncing to safety. The game ended 1-1 and onto the dreaded penalties.
Alan brilliantly saved 2 spot kicks but we only scored one of our 4 taken, with John Robison hitting the target. Northwich losing out 2-1 on penalties.
Report by Tony Roberts
WFLA National Cup 60s - 19th March, 2024
Squad: Mark Broadbent, Ian Hulme, Tony Roberts, Steve Norfield, Frank Cassidy, John Mitchell, Keith Whittle, Steve McLetchie, John Ellis, Alan Riding
NWFC 60s 1 V Deeside 1
NWFC 60s 0 v Neston 1
WFLA National Cup 50s - 17th March, 2024
Squad: Keith Wilby, Rob Wilding, Paul Henesy, Joe Onojo, Dave Kinvig, Jeremy Weltman (Captain), Chris Turner, Andy Ward
NWFC over 50s 3 V Connahs Quay 5
Today our 50s side played in Round 1 of the National Cup, Cheshire & North Wales Region. Northwich found it tough going and after conceding a penalty and a badly deflected goal were 3 0 down at half time against well drilled opponents. Northwich rallied in the second half with an early goal from Dave Kinvig and a super piledriver by Joe Onoja. Unfortunately, Connahs Quay scored twice until Jeremy Weltman converted a corner with the last kick.
The game was played in good spirits and the Northwich team kept going until the end but just couldn't turn it around.
Report by Jeremy Weltman
Northwest League - 17th March, 2024 - Droylsden Blues
Squad: Alan Riding, Peter Yoxall, Ian Hulme, Steve Norfield, Steve McLetchie, Frank Cassidy, Howard Owen, John Ellis
Today we played our 1st game in the North West league against a team from Droylsden Blues. This league is open to any players over 50 whereas our team was an over 60s team due to the 50s playing in a cup competition at the same time. We had the ball in the net several times but the very strict ref pulled us up for running. In fact, several of our players were sin binned for up to 6 minutes at a time which meant we were 5 v 7 for several minutes. So in the last minute Pete Yoxall put through a pass to Steve McLetchie who scored a cracker into the roof of the net beating an excellent goalkeeper.
So we start a campaign with a 1-0 win with a great battling team performance. Well done Northwich 60s WFC
Report by John Ellis
Widnes WFC - 16th November, 2023
Squad: Alan Riding GK, Nick Regan, Dave Woods, Neil Kenwright, Gary Worgan, Paul Beadle, Keith Bell, Chris Turner, Mark Broadbent.
Northwich WFC hosted Widnes Walking football team at Moss Farm, with an emphatic 6-1 victory.
The game didn't start too well with Widnes taking an early lead but soon equalised with a lovely finish from Neil after some great team passing and movement. Chris then put Northwich in front before the 1st break. The 2nd period saw Northwich take control going 4-1 up, with a Penalty from Mark and a fine goal from Keith. The more experienced NWFC stretched the lead in the final period with 2 more goals another from Keith and the final one from Paul. There wasn't much between the players on both teams but the more experienced NWFC played really well as a team. Alan still had to be on his toes making his usual fine saves.
Report by Tony Roberts
Prescot Mini League - 5th November, 2023
Squad: Alan Riding GK Kevin Cawdron, Tony Roberts, Gary Worgan Nick Regan, Chris Turner, Jeremey Weltman, Keith Bell and Dave Kinvig
NWFC entered the Prescot Mini League and played the first round of games on Sun 5th Nov
The league consists of 6 teams playing 5 a side walking football, with each team playing 3 games each round.
Our first game was against Northwest Lions and we started really well with Jeremy putting us 1-0 in front and despite many chances, could not increase the score, with the Lions keeper having a great game. Lions scored 2 goals out of the blue resulting in a first game 2-1 defeat.
The second game versus Rosemount, despite many chances ended as a 0-0 draw.
This was a much improved display with every player contributing and playing well.
We got the measure of the surface and the small enclosed pitch in the final game against Widnes, running out 4-0 victors, with brilliant goals from Keith Bell and Chris Turner, scoring 2 each. Alan Riding had an inspired game in goal frustrating the Widnes players making some outstanding saves to ensure a clean sheet.
It took a little while to get used to the smaller enclosed pitches but we should do well in the forth coming monthly games and progress up the league.
Report by Tony Roberts
Mixed-Age Culcheth Tournament - 23rd September 2023
Squad: Paul Henesy, Tony Roberts. Keith Bell. Fran Perez. John Ellis. Alan Riding & Dave Kinvig
NWFC entered a mixed aged team in the Culcheth Cup, in aid of the British Heart Foundation.
16 Teams took part with 4 groups of 4 teams.
We came up against Maghull in the opening game and suffered a 1-2 defeat, with Dave Kinvig scoring from the penalty spot.
The second game saw us against Culcheth Walkers, resulting in a disappointing 0-2 defeat.
The third and our final game saw a much better display, going in at half time 1-0 to the good with a lovely team move involving neat passing from John Ellis and Dave Kinvig, being finished by Tony Roberts.
EF WAS Dynamos then responded in the second half going 2-1 up before Tony Roberts scored his second goal fired in from the edge of the box created from a pass from the corner from John Ellis to give us a respectable 2-2 draw.
We found the surface difficult and looking at the other games, we felt we were in a very hard "Group of Death' but it looks like the tournament raised a very good sum for the British Heart Foundation.
Report by Tony Roberts
60+ Cheshire Cup - 19th September 2023
Squad: Alan Riding, John Ellis, Kevin Cawdron, Keith Bell, Steve Norfield, John Mitchell, Simon Cornes, Dave Woods, Howard Owen, Keith Wilby, Nick Regan, Tony Roberts
The 60's entered the Cheshire Cup today at Moss Farm. Six teams entered with two groups of Three. NWFC came out comfortable 2-0 winners against Stockport County, with two thunder bolts From Howard and Keith Bell, well they were tricklers but they all count.
The next game was a very tight affair against the Lisgard Brazil, who had recruited well, with the Kingmaid and England goalie making some outstanding saves to keep the score level and then Alan Riding had to be on his toes late on making excellent saves to protect the game, which ended 0-0. Other results meant we progressed as group winners, into the Semi-finals. We were up against Altrincham, winning with a great team display 2-0 with a wind assisted goal from Tony Roberts and a lovely turn and finish into the bottom corner from Keith Bell. This took us to the final against Lisgard Brazil and despite a great effort from our side, we lost 2-0.
Special mention to Alan Riding who managed to give everyone in a big squad a run out and managed the team brilliantly on the day. Also, must mention Steve Norfield who was pulled up by the Ref for his "Monty Python" Walking.
Report by Tony Roberts
Lancashire and Cheshire interleague - 12th September 2023
Squad: (Top L-R) John Ellis, Dave Woods, Alan Riding, Keith Whittle (Captain), Reg Simpson, Tony Roberts (Bottom L-R) Steve Norfield, John Robison, Keith Bell, Kevin Cawdron
The Lancashire and Cheshire interleague tournament took place at Moss Farm on Tues 12th Sept, with the NWFC 60+ Walking team champions of the Cheshire League, runners up Altrincham, the Lancashire League winners Kingsmaid and runners up Wakefield (Yorkshire).
The opening game versus Wakefield, saw 1874 Northwich fall 2-0 behind early on, leaving them chasing the game. They got back into the game creating plenty of chances but to no avail. Wakefield added a 3rd. They then were reduced to 5 players due to injury, with Kieth Whittle guesting for Wakefield they completed the scoring, with a fantastic finish giving Alan no chance. Final score 0-4.
NWFC loaned Tony to Wakefield for a fee of 2 beers and a packet of crisps, which i don't believe we ever received?
The next game was against Altrincham and a fine performance saw NWFC run out comfortable 3-0 victors. Keith Whittle opened the scoring, with Steve Norfield adding a 2nd before half time. John Robison completed a great victory
The final game against a very strong Kingsmaid, NWFC gave a good display despite losing 0-2
The opposition was very strong, Wakefield have just competed in the WFLA finals and were competing in the WFA finals the following weekend. Kingsmead had at least 2 ex Pros in their team, one an ex England international and the other a current England senior international.
Report by Tony Roberts
Wythenshawe tournament - Saturday 26 August 2023
Squad: Keith Wilby GK, Steve Mcletchie, Tony Roberts, Keith Whittle, John Ellis, Jeremy Weltman & Fran Perez.
NWFC entered a mixed age team into the inaugural Wythenshawe tournament. The Tournament was made up of 4 teams, ourselves, Wythenshawe Yellows, Irlam/Altrincham and Wythenshawe Reds, playing a league of three x 20 minute games. All games were 6-a-side games on a tricky, small, walled, enclosed pitch.
Game 1 : NWFC - 4 v Irlam/Alty - 1 / Goalscorers: Fran Perez, Jeremy Veltman & John Ellis.
Game 2 : NWFC - 7 v Wythenshawe Yellows - 2 / Goalscorers : Fran Perez (2), Jeremy Veltman (4) & Keith Whittle.
Game 3 : NWFC - 3 v Wythenshawe Reds - 2
The final game was played between the 2 undefeated teams. NWFC needed to win as the Red's goal difference was better than NWFCs. NWFC took an early lead through Keith Whittle, only to be pegged back and go behind 2-1. After the interval, Jeremy scored the equaliser with a lovely finish to drag it back to 2-2 and put NWFC back in the game. Late into the game Fran Perez scored the winner for NWFC to win the match and lift the trophy!
Report by Tony Roberts
50+ NWFC v Manchester Cityzens - Sunday 20th August 2023
Squad: Colin Lawson, Gary Worgan, John Mitchell, Jeremy Weltman, Marcus Brown, Harrie Kandola, Joe Onojo, Paul Henesey
50+ NWFC played a strong Manchester Cityzens side at Moss Farm. Cityzens requested that the game should be 6-a-side and multi-touch. It was an impressive display from NWFC with goals from Gary Worgan and Marcus Brown giving NWFC a 2-0 win. 1874 were denied a higher score by the bar & the post and the Cityzens' goalkeeper making some impressive saves to keep the score to 2-0.
Referee was Bob Cadwalladar
NWFC v Lostock - Tuesday 1st August 2023
Squad: Malcolm Goodier, John Mitchell, John Ellis, Mark Broadbent, Simon Cornes, Keith Bell, Paul Mansell, Kevin Cawdren, Tony Roberts
Score : NWFC 3 - Lostock - 0
Lostock v NWFC - Tuesday 18th July 2023
Score : Lostock 1 - NWFC 4
Leeds Whites v NWFC - Tuesday 11th July 2023
Squad: Alan Riding / Dave Woods / Tony Roberts / Andy Benbow / Simon Cornes / Steve Norfield / Peter Butcher
It's a 9-1 victory tonight for a NWFC 50's and 60's team against a spirited Urmston team called Leeds Whites. It really was a one sided game with the opposition making their competitive bow into Walking Football. Overall it was a good natured and enjoyable game. NWFC goalscorers included Steve Norfield - 4 / Tony Roberts - 2 / Pete Butcher & Simon Cornes.
Neston Nomads v 60+ - Tuesday 20th June 2023
Squad: Alan Riding / John Mitchell / Keith Whittle / John Robison / Keith Bell / Peter Yoxall / Tony Roberts
It's a 3-0 win for 60+ NWFC against Neston Nomads away. Two goals from Keith Bell and a lovely individual turn and goal from Pete Yoxall. A controlled performance from the team and another clean sheet!
60+ Cheshire FA League - Tuesday 13th June 2023
Squad: Alan Riding / Dave Woods / Keith Whittle / Peter Yoxall / Kevin Cawdron / Keith Wilby / John Robison / Keith Bell / Neil Kenwright / Reg Simpson
Congratulations to the 60+ Team for winning the first Cheshire FA League Tournament held at Moss Farm.
In the sweltering heat of Moss Farm 10 elite athletes took to the pitch to represent NWFC Over 60’s in the third and last round of the Cheshire FA Walking Football League. The challenge was to overtake Altrincham FC at the top of the table. The current standings after two rounds left us 3 points behind but with a better goal difference. There were 3 games to play with a crunch game against Altrincham included.
A tight first game against Chester resulted in a 0-0 draw and although we had the better chances we just couldn’t score against an in form Chester keeper. Altrincham however lost their first game against Neston Nomads which reduced our deficit slightly but we still needed to beat Altrincham.
They were next up and within a minute we went 1-0 up with a crisp finish from our captain, Keith Whittle. This undoubtably gave us great confidence and we then cruised into a 3-0 lead with further goals from Keith who completed a hat-trick within the first half. The team talk at half time was probably the easiest we have ever encountered. Just keep it tight for the second half and the win would be ours. With a controlled second half performance the job was completed by keeping the ball as much as possible and we ran out comfortable 3-0 winners and even had the luxury of a dubious decision of the referee ruling out a penalty for us expertly put away by John Robison only to be chalked off for the one step rule.
Our last game was against Stockport County. We were on a roll! After another Keith Whittle goal in the first half two further goals by Pete Yoxall sealed another 3-0 victory and the title. An impressive 13 goals scored and just the 1 conceded in 11 games and no losses!
This concluded the first Cheshire Walking Football League with NWFC Over 60’s as champions. The next league will run from September until next May and be played monthly in various other locations in the county.
Final League Table
1. NWFC 60+ - Played: 11 / Lost: 0 / Draw: 5 / GF: 13 / GA: 1 / GD: 12 / Points: 23
2. Altrincham - Played: 11 / Points: 19
3. Stockport County - Played: 10 / Points: 17
4. Liscard Brazil - Played: 5 / Points: 10
5. Chester Northgate - Played: 9 / Points: 9
6. Neston Nomads - Played: 11 / Points: 8
7. Stockport CF - Played: 11 / Points: 7
8. Nantwich - Played: 0 / Points: 0
60+ Cheshire League - Tuesday 16 May 2023
Squad: Alan Riding / Tony Roberts / Dave Woods / John Ellis / Keith Whittle / Peter Yoxall / Steve Norfield / Mark Broadbent / Paul Green / Kevin Cawdron
NWFC 60+ team played in their second round of Cheshire FA League games. Out of their 4 games they won 1 game, drew 3 games. They are currently 2nd in the league with 16 points.
Results:
Liscard Brazil 0 v 0 NWFC
Stockport CF 0 v 0 NWFC
NWFC 3 v 1 Neston Nomads
Goal scorers: Keith Whittle / Peter Yoxall / Mark Broadbent
Stockport County 0 v 0 NWFC
League Table:
NWFC - Played: 8 / Won 4 / Lost 0 / Draws 4 / GF 7 / GA 1 GD 6 / Points: 16
Men's Cheshire League 50+
Sunday 14th May, 2023
The Men's 50+ team played their first games in the Cheshire League at Moss Farm on a sunny Sunday afternoon. With five teams entered in the league, two of the teams pulled out at late notice leaving just NWFC, Nantwich and Kingsmaid Vets which meant that each team played each other twice. The games were 24 minutes, 7 a-side and multi-touch.
The first three games were closely matched with no goals and an excellent penalty save by Malcolm. It didn't help matters that the pitch was smaller than usual for 7 a-side as it had been marked out for the women's games in the morning which meant there was very little space on the pitch due to lack of width. A whistle happy ref didn't help either!
In our final game against Nantwich, 2 goals from Dave Kinvig and 1 from Marcus meant we finished the day with a win and 6 points to go top of the league.
Results were
NWFC 0 v 0 Kingsmaid
NWFC 0 v 0 Nantwich
NWFC 0 v 0 Kingsmaid
NWFC 3 v 0 Nantwich.
Team Line up was
GK: Malcolm Goodier
DF: John Mitchell, Gary Worgan, Steve Harrison
MF: Marcus Brown, Andy Brady, Jeremy Weltman, Dave Edwards
FWD: Dave Kinvig, Harrie Kandola
60+ Eurocopa 2023
60+ SQUAD : Keith Whittle (Manager), Alan Ridings, Steve Norfield, Kevin Cawdron, Dave Woods, Simon Doogan, John Ellis, Howard Owen, Reg Simpson, Keith Bell, John Robison, Kevin Ball
Well after months of preparations and many training sessions the day finally arrived. Tactics all sorted suitable refreshments consumed in the days leading up and we were ready to go!
The opening day temperature which was approaching 30 degrees led to a mad scramble for the shade in the stand. Unfortunately, we were one of the last teams arriving so no chance of that. Our first game wasn’t until 10.40am therefore we sought shelter by our nominated pitch.
We started with a strong performance against the Ex Pats of Odiaxere from Portugal winning 2-1 and the lads were flying. Unfortunately a poor performance followed against our local rivals from Culcheth losing 1-0, who we really should have beaten but a little Irish referee was to be our undoing. We just couldn’t seem to accept his petty decisions and ended up with our lads being distracted and losing our momentum and the game. A better game against Brackley Saints gave us a 0-0 draw leading to the big game against the holders Sheffield FC. They certainly were the team to beat. Their quick passing and organisation set them apart from other teams. That said we matched them in every aspect except goals. We were so unlucky to lose 1-0 which was so frustrating having played so well.
Another tight game followed against a good Bolton Wanderers Nomads. This resulted in a 0-0 draw, with Bolton having a penalty saved by Alan. This meant that we had to win our last game against Malaga to have any chance of progressing to the main cup competition. A comfortable 2-0 scoreline took us into the 4th place in the group. We had to wait for the calculators to do their work to find out if we had made it. Unfortunately we had narrowly lost out on PPG. The table is shown opposite.
So the focus on the second day was to win the Trophy competition. We were all confident that we were not overawed by any of the teams so far and we should obtain a positive result from the competition.
An unbeaten second day group stage gave us top spot and a semi final place against the team we beat in our first game on the first day, Odiaxere. Our best performance yet saw us run out an excellent 2-0 winners with a controlled display. This then placed us in the Trophy final against West Hartlepool Strollers, a team we knew nothing about.
After waiting for around an hour and a half we were called to play our final with 5 mins notice! Not a great preparation for the most important game. Also, the petty Irish ref turned up!!
Well it was a whirlwind start by the opposition going 2-0 up within the first 5 mins with a dubious penalty and a stunner of a cross shot. We were reeling with their tactics. A big man up front and players backing him up for layoffs. It was difficult, but we had a great half time talk and went out more positive in the second half scoring quickly to bring it back to 2-1. We were certainly in the ascendancy and creating chances. A breakaway by them saw the same goalscorer from the first half hit another fantastic goal which put them 3-1 up with seconds left. A late goal from 1874 gave us hope but the final whistle beat us. It was a very disappointing result which felt like we had been rushed into without preparation time.
At the end of the day the squad of 12 gave everything in stifling heat and a runners-up trophy was the least we deserved. It was again a great tournament in which all the 1874 team were from our Moss Farm Wednesdays and Fridays sessions and everyone played their part.
As for the social side of the trip, all I would say is what happens on tour stays on tour!!!
Great lads and look forward to next year!!
Report by Alan “ The Cat” Riding
Men's 60+ 1 v 1 Oakwood Glossop
The men's 60+ team played a 6 a-side game against Oakwood Glossop in the WFA National Cup at Moss Farm. NWFC went 1-0 up with a great goal from Keith Bell in the first half.
The second half action was very close and Oakwood sneaked a goal back to make it 1-1 at full-time. The game was settled by a penalty shoot out in Oakwood Glossop's favour. Overall, this it has been a great experience for NWFC who were playing their second competitive games in 2 days this week.
60+ Cheshire League - Tuesday 25 April 2023
Squad: John Ellis / Kevin Cawdron / Steve Mcletchie / John Booth / David Woods / Keith Wilby / Peter Yoxall / Keith Bell / Keith Whittle
NWFC Men's 60+ team played in the first Cheshire FA League today. Out of their 4 games they won 3 games, drew 1 game scoring 5 goals and conceding 0 goals. They are currently top of the league with 10 points.
Results:
Altrincham 1 v 0 Chester Northgate
Stockport CF 0 v 0 Neston Nomads
NWFC 1 v 0 Stockport CF
Neston Nomads 0 v 1 Altrincham
Stockport CF 2 v 2 Chester Northgate
Altrincham 0 v 2 NWFC
Chester Northgate 1 v 0 Neston Nomads
NWFC 1 v 0 Neston Nomads
Stockport CF 1 v 2 Altrincham
Chester Northgate 0 v 0 NWFC
Goal scorers: Keith Bell - 2 / Keith Whittle - 1 / Peter Yoxall - 1
League Table:
NWFC - Played: 4 / Points: 10 / GD: 4
Altrincham - Played: 4 / Points: 9 / GD: 1
Chester Northgate - Played: 4 / Points: 5 / GD: 0
Stockport - Played: 4 / Points: 2 / GD: -2
Neston Nomads - Played: 4 / Points: 1 / GD: -3
Stockport CT - Played: 0 / Points: 0 / GD: 0
Liscard Brazil - Played: 0 / Points: 0 / GD: 0
Nantwich - Played: 0 / Points: 0 / GD: 0
50+ Eurocopa 2023
50+ SQUAD : John Mitchell (Manager), Steve Harrison, Tony Roberts, Bob Davey, Paul Williams, Marcus Brown, Simon Cornes, Paul Eccleston, Harrie Kandola, David Kinvig
50+ Team had an eventful 2 days. We played 10 sixteen minute games in 27 degree heat. The standard this year was extremely high, with most of our opponents playing regular competition football or being hand-picked sides from a range of clubs. We tried to play toe-to-toe against our opponents but the high intensity of play caused us problems which wasn't helped by injuries sustained by Simon, Marcus and John.
Overall, we put up a great challenge and the scores do not directly reflect the closeness of some the games we played.
Day 1:
NWFC 50+ 0 v 2 Kingsmaid
NWFC 50+ 0 v 3 Teign Drifters
NWFC 50+ 0 v 3 West Hartlepool
NWFC 50+ 4 v 2 Clacton Knights A
NWFC 50+ 0 v 4 Bolton Nomads
NWFC 50+ 1 v 5 Norwich City
Day 2:
NWFC 50+ 0 v 1 Luso Afica
NWFC 50+ 1 v 5 Gainsborough Trinity
NWFC 50+ 0 v 4 Clacton Knights B
NWFC 50+ 0 v 6 Silvercoast Strollers