Northern Alliance Round-Up 25/02/12

Heaton Stannington and Harraby CC were left cursing their luck as they both paid the penalty for missing spot-kicks.

Lee Johnson had already fired in from 12 yards for top-of-the-table Heaton just seven minutes before stepping up to take a second right on half time.

Whether he was psyched out by the Shankhouse keeper, only Johnson can tell you, while Dan Balmer was handed a late chance to keep the Cumbrian’s Kicks Leisure Challenge Cup hopes alive at Whitley Bay A and had his head in his hands as the keeper guessed right and parried away his placed shot.

Shankhouse had Dean Deagle and Dean Porter on target in the second half to take the points and although Harraby had hit the underside of the bar at Hillheads, they went behind to a Mark Davison near post header.

Balmer levelled with a fine solo goal soon after but the Seahorses booked a spot in the final, where they will take on Heaton Stannington, as Sean Jobson fired in a low 25-yard drive deep into extra time.

Prolific Hebburn Reyrolle hit-man Sean Sweeney netted a double in a 3-1 win at Carlisle City and also smashed against the woodwork twice as he was looking for his third successive hat-trick.

Daniel Gray chested the opener into the roof of the net from a corner and City had Carl Murphy net direct from a flag kick as winds battered the fixtures.

Liam Callaghan doesn’t miss many from the spot for killingworth Sporting and he tucked one away to give them the lead at Blyth Town.

David Stevenson extended the lead before David Atkinson made no mistake with a penalty to pull one back. Callaghan sealed the points with his second in the 70^th minute.

Goals from Chris Morris – his first for the club- and a speculative Joe Hindmarch drive saw Gateshead Rutherford take the points against Percy Main and Ponteland United’s Dan Dunn let fly from the edge of the box for the only goal of the game at Walker Central.

The home side were left without a goalkeeper when their regular shot-stopper received a devastating personal phone call just before kick-off and played with ten men until a replacement could be found.

James Stoves, Eddie Brazier and Steve Foster were on target for Stocksfield in their 3-2 victory over Murton, who had Anthony Dobell net twice.

Iain Nickalls had a big pat on the back for Ashington Colliers team-mate David Brown as he netted a late winner at First Division Wallington to take them into the Kicks Leisure George Dobbins League Cup Final.

Brown grabbed the opener and Nickalls had fired in but also put into his own net as the Greens pushed them hard. Justin Millican got the other.

Amble United came from behind to take the points at Morpeth SC. Ben Lorking bent in a free kick to give Sporting the lead but two goals in two minutes straight after the break by Adam Shanks and Sean Taylor span the game on its head.

With the home side pressing for an equaliser, breakaway goals from Josh Hay in the 81^st and 87^th minutes sealed take United another step closer to the Championship.

Cramlington Town were 2-0 up at the break thanks to a Kev Long double, but Newcastle Chemfica Independent fought back with a Phil Bone brace levelling things up. Craig Robinson grabbed the winner with just four minutes left.

Dan Brown was on target for Forest Hall with Dean gate netting for Heddon in a 1-1 draw.

Dekka Graham netted twice for Wallsend Town as they went into the Pin Point Recruitment Bill Gardner Memorial Trophy final with a 3-1 success over ten-man Newcastle Uni.

Craig Burke got the other and Adam Ball netted for the Students.

They will face Bedlington Terriers Reserves, who grabbed a dramatic late extra time winner at Wideopen & District.

Wideopen rattled the woodwork in the first half but it ended goalless after 90 minutes. Will Nutmian fired them ahead three minutes into extra time, but Simon Brown levelled for Terriers in the 104^th minute.

With just three minutes to go Robbie Eastway’s angled shot squirmed from the diving keeper’s grasp and went into the corner of the net.

Division Two leaders Red House Farm had Zak Smith and Jack Bell on target but were held to a draw by Seaton Burn, whose scorers were Stuart Taylor and Chris Baker.

Hexham won a seven-goal thriller against Whickham Lang Jacks at the Wentworth, with Tom North, Mark Gibson (pen), Scott Robson and Tom Phillips firing home for the Tynedalers and Joe Bell, Chris Gill and John Dewhirst netting in reply.

Wallsend Boys Club also hit four, but they had to come from behind as Jack Curragh shot visitors Alston ahead.

Martin O’Dowd, Nicky Whitelaw, Andy Robertson and Paul Watson all crashed home while a solitary Johnny Wyres goal earned North Shields Athletic three points in a close game across the Tyne at Harton & Westoe.

There was also only one goal between Alnwick Town reserves and Northbank, with the Cumbrian’s Cameron Wilson netting it on the half hour and the Black and White’s having a couple of efforts hacked off the line in another finely balanced encounter.

Liam Taylor notched the only goal for Willington Quay Saints in another tight clash at Swalwell, while Cramlington United have just appointed a new manager and are looking to the future after crashing 8-1 at home to New Fordley.

Lewis Boddy hit a hat-trick and he was joined on the scoresheet by Ryan Carr (2), Andrew Waugh, Jason Pearson and Craig Dunn while Michael Jordan notched the consolation.

Northern Alliance Round-Up 18/02/12

There was double cause for celebration at leaders Heaton Stannington.

Not only did they win a tricky-looking Northumberland FA Senior Benevolent Bowl tie against Whitley Bay A to advance into the semi-finals of the competition, but their closest rivals couldn’t pick up the points to knock them off top spot.

Ben Telford hit the opener after 15 minutes and Lee Johnson added number two in the 38^th of a first half display that the Seahorses couldn’t deal with.

But the biggest cheer of the day came in the clubhouse afterwards when the news that second-placed Carlisle City had been held by Walker Central came through.

Steve Hurd shot Central ahead when he took advantage of a poor clearance, but the Sky Blues took just three minutes to hit back as Stuart Kilgour headed home a Tom Lucock free kick.

City were just the width of the woodwork from going into pole position though, as unlucky Luckock hit the crossbar on two separate occasions.

It had looked as if their Cumbrian neighbours Harraby CC were about to go top as they led 3-1 at half time at Seaton Delaval – but a rollicking from Mick Jeffels and Tom Wade did the trick as the Red Devils staged a storming second-half comeback.

Mike Read scored in the opening second when he latched onto a poor backpass and added the second for the Cumbrians on the half hour.

Danny McGuire tapped into an empty net to pull one back, but Darren Addison added a third straight from the restart.

Matthew Wade led the fightback with a free-kick, then Selsos Anjos tapped in a disputed leveller with the visitors defence stood arms raised claiming offside.

There was no disputing Reece Cairns’ winner, though, as he let fly with a bullet 30-yard strike into the top corner.

Ashington Colliers moved up to fourth as Jamie Patterson netted a last-gasp winner at Stocksfield. Chris Fairley had cancelled out David Brown’s opener, but the Griffins were undone in the dying seconds.

And deadly Sean Sweeney rattled in a hat-trick for Hebburn Reyrolle for the second week running in a 4-1 success at Gateshead Rutherford.

Channon North put Reyrolle ahead and Sweeney added the second soon after. It was a different story after the break as Graeme Trouten pulled one back to give them a scare, but Sweeney struck twice more on the break to seal it.

It finished goalless between Killingworth Sporting and Percy Main in a game battered by the wind and the bottom two both ended winless runs going back ten games to record hard-fought victories.

Andy Upperton and Anthony Besford scored first half goals for Murton in their 2-0 success over Blyth Town and Gavin Wood struck from the penalty spot to put Ponteland United ahead at Shankhouse.

Goals in quick succession from Matty Robinson and Billy Holden mid-way through the second half completed a fine result.

Lee Garwood rattled in a hat-trick as Wallsend Town kept up the pressure on Amble United at the top of Division One with a 4-0 success at Heddon. Chris Garwood got the other.

But it was Cullercoats who went goal crazy with a 9-1 demolition of Cramlington Town. Sean Smith and Graham Allen both grabbed doubles and Chris Anderson, Steven Hart, Gareth Armstrong, Dominic Gillespie and Jamie heaton completed the rout. Chris Johnson’s reply was scant consolation.

Matty Atkin was another hat-trick hero for Gosforth Bohemians in their 3-1 win at Forest Hall. Josh Gow replied for the basement side.

Hexham moved up into second spot in Division Two as goals from Thomas North and Mark Gibson gave them the three points at Willington Quay Saints, who had Gareth Pugh on target.

Dylan Williamson gave Bedlington Terriers reserves the lead against Harton & Westoe and Robbie Eastway added a second from the penalty spot to clinch it and Matty Donkin’s double helped North Shields Athletic to a 3-1 win at Swalwell.

Matty Farrage got the other and Joe Johnson fired in for the Swifts.

David Gabbidus also scored twice in Wideopen’s 3-1 victory at New Fordley. Leigh Shickle added another to his personal tally while Ryan Carr banged in at the other end.

Whickham Lang Jacks hit bottom club Cramlington United for six. Jack Moulden and John Dewhurst led the way with a couple each and strikes from Graham King and Steven Spoors rounded things off.

Jordan Nellis had his eye on the matchball after hitting a treble in a 4-1 over Seaton Burn that put Wallington into the Northumberland FA Minor Cup semi finals.

Ben Fenwick got the other and Mark Nixon was on target for the second Division side.

Newcastle Chemfica Independent joined them in the last four as they beat Alnwick Town Reserves 5-2 after extra time.

Steve McLaughlin (2), Dean Cattermole, Derek Murphy-Collins and Craig Robinson were the Chemfica scorers with Nat Price and Brad McClelland netting for the black and whites.

Northern Alliance Round-Up 11/02/12

Ashley Combe, Dan Anderton and Dean Armstrong hit the net for Harraby CC as they closed in on the top two.

In the only League game to beat the big freeze, the Cumbrians made a dream start against Ashington Colliers when Combe fired them ahead after just five minutes.

Matthew Read whipped in a low centre from a short corner and Combe made no mistake in lashing it in powerfully from six yards.

Anderton added the second when he played the ball out wide for Read and then got on the end of his cross and crashed a volley into the roof of the net.

The Colliers pulled one back just before the hour when David Brown was sent tumbling in the box and Shaun Gibson drilled in from the spot.

But Harraby secured the points with six minutes to go as Dan Balmer ghosted past two men down the right a fired over a low centre that Dean Armstrong tucked away.

Durham FA Trophy holders Hebburn Reyrolle booked a spot in the final as Sean Sweeney banged in a second-half hat-trick against Brandon British Legion.

The Legion, who Reyrolle beat to lift the silverware last season, went ahead from the penalty spot but Adam Bell levelled. However, they went behind again just before half time.

A storming second half performance on a 3G all-weather pitch saw Sweeney bang in his treble while Gary Taylor and Channon North grabbed the others.

Kilingworth Sporting sent Northern League Alnwick Town crashing out of the Northumberland FA Senior Benevolent Bowl.

Paul Baird fired in and an own goal proved the winner while Amble United also went through with a 4-2 success over Premier Division Blyth Town.

The Seasiders, who top Division One, were 3-0 up at the break through Sean Taylor, Adam Shanks and Brad Wake. Danny Beresford pulled one back, but Shanks added his second. Beresford added a second of his own late on for Town.

Stocksfield went out 3-0 at Prudhoe Town.

Willington Quay Saints pulled of another surprise in the NFA Minor Cup.

The Second Division outfit booked a spot in the semi finals with a 4-2 penalty victory over First Division Heddon.

Liam Taylor hit a double and Ryan Ferrier got the other as it ended 3-3 after extra time. Heddon’s hit-men were Kevin Urwin, Michael Welford and Perry Veitch.