LEPSFL - LEP Sunday Football League News

Lostock Hall beat Central Utd in the Challenge Cup

2010-09-05

Lostock Hall\'s Dave Barton (yellow) scores a spectacular header against Central Utd

Division 3 rivals Central Utd and Lostock Hall who have both won all their league games met in the first round of the Syndicate Trust Challenge Cup at Ribbleton Park and the honours went to Lostock Hall 5-0 thanks to a hat trick from Simon Taylor and a brace from Dave Barton.

Ribbleton (Div 3) raced to a 4-1 lead against division 1 AFC Ingol with James Mottley bagging all 4 but a hat trick from Scott Fitzgerald and goals from Sam Braithwaite and Dave Hull saw Ingol through. Penwortham Utd (Div 4) gave Theatre Boys (Div 1) a game before submitting 2-1 and AC Muldoons horror start to the season improved considerably with a magnificent 2-0 away win at last year�s beaten finalists Tarleton Corinthians.

New Meadow St LC who beat Unicorn 6-0 and Preston Town 4-3 winners over Greenlands maintained their 100% start and they join New Farington House on 12 points. In form Jon Greenwood netted twice for Preston Town. Normal service was resumed at AFC Lostock Hall who beat Ingol Rangers 6-1 with David Fisher netting a hat trick.

BAC Continental are up to second in division 1 after beating Wrea Green 5-2, Penwortham Hill Rovers beat Plungington Celtic 3-1 and AFC Ashwood and Station East End drew 2-2.

AFC Brigg maintained their excellent start in division 2 thanks to a 4-1 win over Ashton Villa but Fulwood Corinthians who won 5-3 at Coppull Utd and Euxton Corinthians who won 7-1 at Preston Guild are both just two points behind them.

Hats off to Wilbraham Wanderers who lead division 3 thanks to a hard fought 2-1 win over Waverley. This was the classic game of two halves with Wilbraham racing to a two goal lead thanks to Stuart Blakey and Stan Finch but the second half was all Waverley who couldn�t add to Tom Stevens goal.

Brownedge beat Deepdale Dynamos 6-2 to climb to second in division 4 and Albrighton are now third after their 5-1 win over BAE Warton. There were wins for Tardy Gate, Brigg and Springfields whilst New Longton Rovers and Leyland had to settle for a 2-2 draw.

The preliminary round of the Syndicate Trust Youth Cup was the first outing of the season for the bulk of the teams in the youth section. New Boys Chew Moor Brook held BAC/EE Preston 1-1 only to lose 6-5 on penalties. Fellow newcomers Caton and Fleetwood Town both recorded big wins. Preston City won 6-5 at Garstang with Evason netting five, and Penwortham St Teresa�s had a narrow 2-1 win at new club Fylde.

Round up and photos by Eamonn McNamara.

Preston City take control in division 1

2010-09-03

Paul Day bagged a hat trick for Theatre Boys

Newly promoted Preston City maintained their 100% start to the season with a 2-1 win over AFC Ashwood and they lead division 1 by two points. The team run by Dean Charles and Duncan Sumner entered the adult section of the league in 2007 and have been promoted each season since as champions.

The other promoted side Theatre Boys beat AC Muldoons 6-4 in a goal fest at the Sports Arena with goals from Paul Day (3), Dave Doherty, Anthony Chattell and an OG. Jordan Cartmel, Michael Collins, Leon Smithson and John Gregson replied.

There�s no stopping Preston Town in the premier division who made it three wins on the trot after beating Acregate Lane LC 7-3 with starring roles from their joint managers Stewart Clitheroe and Mark Thomas. New Farington House head the table with four wins after disposing of AFC Lostock Hall 3-1 and New Meadow St won again beating Penwortham Town 7-3.

AFC Brigg and Tarleton Corinthians both recorded big wins to head division 2 where Coppull Utd and Euxton Corinthians had to settle for a 1-1 draw.

Central Utd and Ribbleton are sitting pretty at the top of division 3, Central beat East Lancs Utd 7-1 whilst Ribbleton won 4-1 away at London Victoria. Wilbraham Wanderers beat Birchall PR 6-1 and remain unbeaten as do Lostock Hall who won 4-2 at Chorley Cygneture.

Penwortham Utd are showing the early form in division 4, their 7-0 win over St Theresas made it three wins on the bounce. Tanterton who beat Ashton on Ribble 3-2 and Leyland Town 3-0 winners against Brownedge are just two points behind them.

Round up and photos by Eamonn McNamara.

Revised dates for Cup Competitions

2010-09-01

It has been necessary to make a number of changes to the dates of the various cup competitions as printed in the League Handbook.

The revised dates are listed below together with the inevitable proviso that these may be subject to change due to ground/pitch availability and the weather.

Syndicate Trust Challenge Cup - holders AFC Lostock Hall

1st Round	Sun 5th September 2010
2nd Round	Sun 3rd October 2010	(last 32)
3rd Round	Sun 24th October 2010	(Last 16)
Q-finals	Sun 14th November 2010	( Last 8)

The dates for the semi-finals and final will be announced later.

Syndicate Trust Presidents Cup - holders AFC Brigg

Prelim Round	Sun 12th September 2010
1st Round	Sun 3rd October 2010	(last 32)
2nd Round	Sun 24th October 2010	(Last 16)
Q-finals	Sun 14th November 2010	( Last 8)

The dates for the semi-finals and final will be announced later.

Syndicate Trust Youth Cup - holders Burscough Dynamo

Prelim Round	Sun 12th September 2010
1st Round	Sun 3rd October 2010
2nd Round	Sun 24th October 2010
Q-finals	Sun 14th November 2010

The dates for the semi-finals and final will be announced later.

Details for the Syndicate Trust Youth Trophy (holders BAC/EE Preston) will be announced at a league meeting.

Eamonn McNamara.

AFC Lostock Hall look to kick start their season

2010-08-31

Eyebrows have been raised at the early form of treble champions AFC Lostock Hall which has seen them lose two of their three games played to date, more than in the whole of last season.

However AFC�s joint manager Russell Horsfield was relaxed about the situation although he was disappointed to lose games so early in the season. He said, �It just shows you how strong this premier league is, we had a few players missing but New Meadow St and Cadley deserved their wins.

Horsfield continued, �We have a strong squad and I expect the results to pick up fairly quickly�.

One bit of good news for the Lostock Hall outfit is the imminent return of Adam Tong from the winter break in Australia and he will be soon be available for selection.

Eamonn McNamara.

Preston Town win again

2010-08-29

Greenlands (yellow) v Ingol Rangers - premier division

Preston Town�s early season form continued with a 2-1 win over Penwortham Town to net six points from their first two games. Cadley recovered from Thursday�s loss to New Farington by beating AFC Lostock Hall 2-1, Ingol Rangers beat Greenlands 2-1 in a tight affair at the Sports Arena but New Farington House are the team to watch after their 9-1 win at Unicorn and they now lead the table by three points.

Three teams have maximum points in division 1, Preston City who won 2-1 at AFC Longridge, Plungington Celtic who beat Station East End 3-1 and Lea after their 3-1 result against AC Muldoons. BAC Continental won 4-0 at Penwortham Hill Rovers and Theatre Boys and Wrea Green drew 1-1.

Coppull Utd have hit the ground running in division 2 with their 7-2 win over Ashton Villa to bag six points from two games. Walton Athletic beat Preston Guild 5-0 at Moor Park, Vernon Sports beat Worden Rangers 4-2 and Eccleston & Heskin and Gregson Lane Wanderers couldn�t must a goal between them.

Ribbleton and Central Utd are showing the early form in division 3, both have maximum points after Ribbleton beat East Lancs Utd 4-1 and Central won 5-4 away at Waverley. There were big wins for London Victoria over Birchall PR and Lostock Hall at Gregson Lane, Wyresdale Rangers got off the mark with a 4-1 win over Fulwood PR and Wilbraham and South Ribble drew 1-1.

There is a feeling that division 4 will be a competitive division this term with some of the new clubs expected to make their mark. The table is lead by Penwortham Utd who beat BAE Warton 9-1 and they are joined on six points by Brownedge who beat Springfields 6-2. New Longton Rovers had a tasty 5-1 win at Brigg and Tanterton won 6-0 at Ribbleton Wanderers.

Tardy Gate beat new boys Leyland Sparta 3-2, Albrighton and St Theresas drew 4-4 and Leyland Town were rewarded for their visit to Weeton with a 1-1 win.

Round up and photos by Eamonn McNamara.

New Farington Lead Premier Division

2010-08-26

Ballet on the Park (Wilbraham v East Lancs)

New Farington House lead the premier division after beating Cadley 7-3 to record their second win in five days and they are joined on six points by New Meadow St LC who won 3-0 at champions AFC Lostock Hall. Greenlands v Acregate and Unicorn v Penwortham Town both ended 1-1.

The remainder of the adult section played their first league games tonight. Station East End beat AFC Longridge 6-1 in division 1 and newly promoted Preston City beat Penwortham Hill Rovers 5-1.

Of the new clubs making their league debuts in division 4, Tanterton and Albrighton drew 4-4, Leyland Town and Leyland Sparta drew 1-1, Weeton beat Ashton on Ribble 4-1, Springfields were beaten 4-3 by Deepdale Dynamos, Brownedge won 3-2 at New Longton Rovers, Penwortham Utd beat Brigg 2-0 and finally St Theresas triumphed 2-0 over Tardy Gate.

Round up and photos by Eamonn McNamara.

Bringing the Game into Disrepute

2010-08-24

The Lancashire Football Association

The Lancashire Football Association has asked the League to bring the following information to the attention of our clubs, referees and players;

Approximately 16.5 million UK households now have access to the internet equating to 65% of the current population.

These figures will include many individuals (participants) who are involved in football and the many aspects of the game either as a player, spectator, coach or referee.

All participants in football must abide by the Rules and Regulations of The Football Association which includes but is not limited to � Bringing the Game into Disrepute, which is a football offence.

An individual may be charged if written comments are made that are: Offensive, Insulting, Abusive, Threatening, Racist or Discriminatory or any other reference that may cause offence or harm to others.

Participants should not publicly express in newspapers, on any websites, web forums,message boards etc any material that may breach The FA Rules.

All participants are expected to adhere to The Football Association � Codes of Conduct and the obligations towards others involved in the game. The Codes clearly state;

�Always have regard to the best interests of the game, including where publicly expressing an opinion of the game and any particular aspect of it, including others involved in the game. Show due respect to the interests of players, coaches, supporters and other officials at your own club and others.�

The above information should now clarify any doubt you may have on releasing personal opinions and information into the Public Domain.

If anyone needs further information on this subject, please do not hesitate to contact the Lancashire Football Association Disciplinary Office on 01772 624000.

New Boys Leyland Sparta shock AFC Ashwood in the Challenge Cup

2010-08-22

Ricky Atkinson (8) equalises for Tardy Gate v Fulwood Park Rangers

New boys Leyland Sparta made a spectacular league debut by beating AFC Ashwood (Div 1) 2-1 in the Syndicate Trust Challenge Cup preliminary round at Samlesbury thanks to goals from Dan Cookson and Darren Marshall with Ashley Sleight replying for Ashwood and fellow newcomers Tanterton overcame Walton Athletic 4-3 with goals from Longshaw, Cookson, Coggins and Chilufya.

The remaining debutants all lost. Albrighton were beaten 3-0 at Theatre Boys (Div 1) and Springfields lost 4-2 to Euxton Corinthians (Div 3) whilst Brownedge and St Theresas were hammered by division 1 outfits Lea and Preston City respectively.

Fulwood Park Rangers beat Tardy gate 6-4 after extra time in and exciting match at Moor Park after the scores were level 4-4 at full time and in another game on the same park Wrea Green beat Preston 4-2 in a thoroughly enjoyable encounter. Weeton finally succumbed to Penwortham Utd 3-2 in a penalty shootout after the scores were tied 2-2 after extra time.

A couple of surprising results saw Plungington Celtic go down 3-1 to Central Utd and Station East End (Div 1) lost 1-0 at home to Ribbleton Wanderers (Div 4).

League Champions AFC Lostock Hall opened their campaign with an 8-0 win over Unicorn in the premier division, New Meadow St LC beat Cadley 5-0, Greenlands won 5-1 at Penwortham Town and Preston Town squeezed past Ingol Rangers 4-3. Newly promoted New Farington House produced the result of the day by winning 5-1 at Acregate Lane LC.

Round up and photos by Eamonn McNamara.

The Leagues 43rd season starts on Sunday

2010-08-20

The LEP Sunday League�s 43rd season kicks off on Sunday 22 August with the 52 teams contesting the preliminary round of the Syndicate Trust Challenge Cup. There are also five games in the premier division.

It has been League policy for some time to start the season with cup matches and try to get the cup rounds to the semi-finals stage played to before Christmas.

During the course of the season many of our teams will be playing in the LFA Sunday Trophy or the LFA Under-18s Youth Cup and these games take precedence to our domestic league and cup matches.

The losing teams in the preliminary or 1st round games of the Challenge Cup will be eligible to play in the Syndicate Trust Presidents Cup. Premier division teams enter the Challenge Cup in round 2 and they are not eligible to play in the Presidents Cup.

The youth section of the league starts on Sunday 5th September with the preliminary round of the Syndicate Trust Youth Cup.

All we need now is some decent weather. The importance of getting the cup matches played cannot be overstated as it allows us to concentrate on league fixtures as the season progresses.

Eamonn McNamara.

Jim Bryson\'s New Mobile Phone

2010-08-19

Jim\'s new mobile phone

Our hi-tech fixtures & referees secretary Jim Bryson has finally taken delivery of a mobile phone. He hopes to get a number for it in time for Preston Guild.

League aims for Charter Status

2010-08-17

The LEP Sunday Football League has set its stall out to achieve the coveted FA Charter Standard Status.

To get the Charter Mark at least 60% of the league�s member clubs must have Charter Standard Status and that figure stands at 43% at present.

League President Eamonn McNamara told a packed league meeting of 100 clubs that it is now league policy that from the start of season 2011-12 only clubs that have Charter Standard Status will be allowed to play in the league�s premier division.

The five clubs in the premier division and seven clubs from division one who need the Charter Mark have all agreed to apply for it during the course of this season.

From the start of season 2012-13 only clubs with the Charter Mark will be allowed to play in division one which will affect the clubs in division two.

McNamara explained that the league expects to reach the figure of 60% in the next 18 months and the league will then apply for League Charter Status.

Once that is achieved the remaining clubs in the league without the Charter Mark will have 12 months to achieve it or face the prospect of losing their place in the league.

The FA Charter Standard Mark requires clubs to have an elected committee whose meetings must be minuted. Clubs must have their own bank accounts, a qualified first aider, sign up to the Respect Programme and ensure that their players and officials behave in a responsible and disciplined manner.

Any club outside of the premier division or division one that is interested in applying for Charter Standard Status is asked to e-mail Eamonn McNamara for details.

Youth Cup Preliminary Round Games on 5th September

2010-08-14

Holders Burscough Dynamo begin the defence of the Youth Cup with an away tie at premier division side Poulton Town whilst beaten finalist Burscough make the journey to Charnock Richard.

League newcomers Chew Moor Brook will face premier division opposition in BAC/EE Preston and fellow new boys Caton will entertain Gillibrand Warriors. The full draw is;

BAC/EE Preston	v	Chew Moor Brook
Bolton County	v	Brinscall
Caton	v	Gillibrand Warriors
Charnock Richard	v	Burscough
Fleetwood Town	v	Charnock Richard AFC
Fylde	v	Penwortham St Teresa�s
Garstang	v	Preston City
Hesketh Bank	v	Eccleston & Heskin
Hoole United	v	Bolton County Lions
Leyland	v	Tarleton Corinthians
Longridge Town	v	Ribbleton
Lostock Hall	v	Penwortham
Lostock St Gerards	v	Newman
Norcross & Warbreck	v	Thornton Cleveleys
Poulton Town	v	Burscough Dynamo
Warton Typhoons	v	Penwortham Town

If a cup game is drawn after 90 minutes then extra time of 15 minutes each way must be played. If still a draw after extra time 5 penalties each will be taken - If still no result it becomes sudden death on an equal number of penalties taken.

Ties to be played on Sunday 5 September 2010

Eamonn McNamara

Player Jailed for Reckless Tackle

2010-08-12

A footballer has become the first in Britain to be sent to prison for a reckless tackle.

Mark Chapman, a 20-year-old Warwickshire Sunday league player has started a six-month jail term after a judge accused him of 'wanton violence'.

While footballers have been sent to prison for punching opponents, the Football Association said Chapman, who admitted causing grievous bodily harm, was the first to be locked up for a bad tackle.

The incident came seconds before the final whistle in a Rugby and District Sunday league match in Warwickshire in October, Warwick Crown Court heard.

Chapman - who had been disciplined a number of times for his behaviour on the pitch, although not for violent conduct - was sent off after the referee decided he had deliberately tried to injure his opponent.

Judge Robert Orme said, �This was a deliberate act, a premeditated act,' he said. 'A football match gives no one any excuse to carry out wanton violence.'

Thankfully there is little violence in this League but this is surely a salutary warning to everyone in football.

Eamonn McNamara

Frank Robinson\'s Funeral - Friday 13th August

2010-08-10

The funeral service for Frank Robinson will take place at St Mary Magdalene Church, Ribbleton Avenue, Preston on Friday 13th August at 1.45pm followed by committal at Preston Crematorium at 2.30pm.

Three Clubs yet to register a single player

2010-08-09

With the start of the season less than two weeks away, the following three clubs have yet to register a single player, Penwortham Town (Prem), Hoole Athletic (Div 2) and South Ribble (Div 3).

All other clubs in the adult section of the League complied with the Management Committee�s request to register the bulk of their squad before Sunday 8 August.

If any club has sent registrations via the post and are awaiting their receipts, they should contact the Fixtures Secretary Paul Malliband without delay.

Tuesday 10 August: Penwortham Town and South Ribble have now submitted their forms.

Eamonn McNamara