Stoneclough FC

Ground 46

Match 47

West Lancs Premier

Ground Fox Park

Founded 1986

Stoneclough 4-2 Poulton Town

Admission Free

Attendance 30-40 est

Distance travelled 24 miles



Stoneclough is a suburban area of Kearsley, in the Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester . It is located 3.7 miles South-East of Bolton,4 Miles South-West of Bury,and 7.9 Miles North-West of Manchester.It is located on the banks of the River Irwell to the southeast of Bolton.
Fox Park is situated off Stoneclough Road near the Railway Bridge or next to the Hare and Hounds Public House . There's a track at the back of the houses but this may get blocked so its best to use the small club car park if you can .

Pano View of Fox Park



Far goal side View



Not much between the teams in the first half although Town were looking the more likely to break the deadlock . Felt like a 0-0 banker until Town opened the scoring , capitalising on a defensive catastrophe , bundling the ball over the line after a 50 yard ball lobbed over the top wasn't dealt with . Stoneclough hadn't created much but found the back of the net with a neat volley on the stroke of half-time to send the teams in level .



Changing Room cabin



The restart was only a few minutes old when a Stoneclough player was injured and the paramedics were called . A 20-25 minute delay ensued for treatment .







Didn't appear to be anyone else involved and i'm sure everyone wishes the player a speedy recovery .



Looked like the game might be abandoned but play resumed with Stoneclough soon pouncing to take a 2-lead .





Poulton were all over the place and fell further behind when Stoneclough scored two more , one from the penalty spot . One local said this was a coupon buster , Stoneclough are near the bottom of the league whilst Poulton are pushing towards the top . Town did manage to pull one back but were lucky not to concede more . The second half was almost completely dominated by Stoneclough .
After a dour first half an hour it ended a great game with plenty of chances and goals .

Railway Embankment in the background Trains frequently pass - Station nearby .





Stoneclough 31 Mar 12 photos 2012">

Burnley United

Ground 45

Match 46

West Lancs Premier

Ground Barden Sports Ground

Burnley United 0-1 Euxton Villa

Distance Travelled 26 miles

Attendance 15-25 est

Admission Free

Programme Not Issued

Pano view from behind the goal near the main entrance and changing rooms to the right

Stepped terrace to the left



Burnley United play in the West Lancs Premier Division at the Baden Sports College Athletics Ground . There's concrete terraced steps alomg the far track touchline , the sports college is situated a short distance behind one of the goals and a car park beyond the main entrance gates off Barden Lane .The pitch looks immaculate and the stadium is adequately lit by a number of floodlights .

View from the College End .



The Concrete Banked Terraced Steps





Burnley United are in the bottom half of the league having played less games due to postponements but have made steady progress after promotion last year . Today's opponents Euxton Villa , based between Leyland and Chorley , are looking to push on up the league having started the season with a batch of wins followed by a run of defeats followed by improved performances lately . Their eratic form is a mystery as they certainly have the players and talent to win this division . At this level i suppose injuries , tranfers and work commitments play their part through a long season .

View from behind the Hammer Throw Enclosure towards the College



The teams seem evenly matched as the first half gets into gear . Both sides are grafting , looks like a poor mistake or quality finish will decide this match . After 17 minutes Villa take the lead when Johnstone nearly breaks the back of the net with an exquisite , thunderbolt finish . Villa managed to hold on 'till half-time as United struggled to create chances .



Two's Company Three's A Crowd



Coffee/tea 50p , snacks reasonably priced .



The second half was a war of attrtion with both keepers keeping the score unchanged , commanding in the air , alert when needed . United 's forrays forward were more frequent in the last quarter of an hour with the danger of Villa breaking swiftly on the counter attack . Villa's impressive keeper couldn't be shaken and the defence was solid .



Villa held on for a well earned victory , a textbook away performance , full of endeavour , a work-like ethic with a touch of class to find the decisive goal . It's evident on this display there are quality players in this league deserving of playing at a higher level .



Both sides put in the effort and it's ashame there wasn't more support from the locals .

Quick getaway

Burnley Utd Photos March 28, 2012">

Egypt Pyramids Luxor Abu Simbel Valley Of The Kings 2006

Lost all my photos on my first trip to the Pyramids so i went back from Sharm El Sheikh via a seven hour coach journey over the suez canal and into Cairo .
The Pyramids appear like a mirage , not in the middle of a desert as you may assume but from the dirt ridden Cairo rivers and City walls . I managed to find a guide who sorted me out with a horse and off we galloped into Giza on horseback at 7 am in the morning , not a tourist in sight .



Tutankhamun

Valley Of The Kings

The 1922 discovery by Howard Carter and George Herbert, 5th Earl of Carnarvon of Tutankhamun's nearly intact tomb received worldwide press coverage .

The tomb is quite small compared to others .For many years, rumours of a "Curse of the Pharaohs" (probably fueled by newspapers seeking sales at the time of the discovery) persisted, emphasizing the early death of some of those who had first entered the tomb. However, a recent study of journals and death records indicates no statistical difference between the age of death of those who entered the tomb and those on the expedition who did not.

Tomb Of King Tut

Hatshepsut Temple

Hatshepsut ; meaning Foremost of Noble Ladies;[4] 1508–1458 BC) was the fifth pharaoh of the eighteenth dynasty of Ancient Egypt. She is generally regarded by Egyptologists as one of the most successful pharaohs, reigning longer than any other woman of an indigenous Egyptian dynasty.





Abu Simbel temples




The Abu Simbel temples are two massive rock temples in Abu Simbel in Nubia, southern Egypt. They are situated on the western bank of Lake Nasser, about 230 km southwest of Aswan (about 300 km by road). The complex is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site known as the "Nubian Monuments," which run from Abu Simbel downriver to Philae (near Aswan).

Nice 1 Ronnie



You stole my Thunder !!!!! Ronnie !!!!! You picture taking isn't as good either !



The twin temples were originally carved out of the mountainside during the reign of Pharaoh Ramesses II in the 13th century BC, as a lasting monument to himself and his queen Nefertari, to commemorate his alleged victory at the Battle of Kadesh, and to intimidate his Nubian neighbors. However, the complex was relocated in its entirety in 1968, on an artificial hill made from a domed structure, high above the Aswan High Dam reservoir.

Hot Air Balloon

Scottie Ronnie had a great idea to go over the Valley of The Kings and The Nile in a hot air balloon . Yeh !



Great idea Ron - i'm scared of heights though !!!
'Get in that basket and stop moaning !'


Put your money away - Don't tip 'em ! What you doing to that camel ?

Chorley F C

Ground 44

Match 45

Ground Victory Park

Ground Capacity 4,100

Founded 1883

Nickname The Magpies

Evo-Stik Premier

Chorley 5-1 Hednesford Town

Attendance 945

Programme £2 Obtained

Admission £9

Distance Travelled 8 miles



My last visits to Chorley's Victory Park were in the late 70's and the character of this ground is still alive and kicking . There are three covered stands , one behind each goal the main stand along the touchline which is all seated and extremely charming .



Todays opponents are Hednesford Town from Staffordshire - nickname The Pitmen .
There's a few of them chanting remarks about West Brom while the Magpies are more concerned singing about Chester .



Chorley are fast off the blocks and score after 2 minutes when a one on one with the keeper is neatly tucked away by Foster . The score stays at 1-0 for a while and you begin to wonder if The Magpies haven't finished Town off while they're on top . Not to worry , just as the Pitmen seem to be finding their feet , three more goals follow before half-time and Chorley are beaming like the mid-afternoon sun . The Pitmen have performed like their kit ; washed out , dull and all over the place . They haven't been able to deal with corners from Chorley , not just the big men , even Chorley's smaller players have got in front of defenders and caused problems . To be fair Town position two men on the goal-line and the six yard box is packed so some credit has to go to Chorley's rapid movement and lethal finishing .

Time for a pint, Carlsberg £2.40 - the bar ran out of proper glasses so i got mine in one of those plastic flexible efforts that overspill as soon as you pick it up . I gave the ice cream and pies a miss although they looked tempting . A special soup of the day was advertised too .

After the restart Town pull one back and almost fire in a second soon after . Had that gone in there might have been a few nail-biting moments . Chorley continued to create chances only finding the net once more to finish the job 5-1 .
Chorley are in a third position in the league and looking a good bet for promotion . They looked strong from the beginning of the match , well drilled with the added advantage of a few tall defenders .
Their finishing in the first half was top drawer against a side just below them and no mugs themselves . Good to see plenty of families taking advantage of the sunshine , attending in numbers to help the club through its difficult financial period .

Covered stand near the Social Club and entrance



Chorley's on fire players celebrate amother goal







Hednesfords left back Shaw , number 3 , seemed to get a few decisions in his favour much to the amusement of The Magpies , even the player saw the funny side which wound the Chorley fans up even more !





Chorley fan - behind , to the left , is the grass embankment , i remember watching the Wimbledon game from here in 1977 with Steve Galliers in the Chorley team and Dave Bassett and Dickie Guy playing for Wimbledon . - Galliers ended up playing for The Dons for a number of years . This area is boarded off to comply with health and safety .



Some of The Pitmen contingent - a dour , uninspiring performance from their team particularly in the last fifteen minutes of the first half .

Great day out - love Victory Park .



Main entrance via a small alleyway leading to a car park for players and officials .



1977 Chorley v Wimbledon



1977 Chorley v Dagenham & Chorley v Wimbledon @ Walsall Wanted

Chorley FC photos March 24, 2012">