Radcliffe Olympic Vets 1 v 3 Radcliffe Olympic XI
At 7.30am on Boxing Day morning, there appeared to be little possibility of the Radcliffe Olympic Charity Match going ahead. The cold spell had caused leaks in the water pipe joints, leaving the areas of the dressing rooms awash with water, and the pitch was still partially covered in frost and snow.
However with the temperature set to rise later in the morning and a pitch inspection by match referee Dave Petch, the decision was made to pull out all the stops to get the game on with a delayed 11.00am start. The local plumber was soon on site with his mate; they speedily located the leak and fixed it and the water was mopped up from the dressing rooms.
Volunteers and players were called and soon arrived in numbers; they were issued with forks and shovels to break up the ice on the pitch and clear a path through the hazardous icy surface.
By eleven o clock the conditions were far from ideal but they were good enough for the match to go ahead with 30 minutes to be played each half.
Once again it turned out to be a great success with the Select team eventually winning 3-1.
The Vets managed by Phil Coates included long serving stalwarts Malc Clark and Club Chairman John Bower in the starting line up. The Select Team managed by Chris Norris included a number of players who have been present since the trophy was introduced and were joined by a number new faces playing for the first time.
Considering the difficult playing surface both teams managed to play good football. The Vets suffered an early blow when front man Rick Bright limped off with a hamstring injury. The Vets defence with John Bower and Wayne Hallcro at the back showing all their experience looked solid until the Select Team opened the scoring when the lively James Spence burst through the middle to slot the ball past keeper Malc Clark to give them 1- 0 interval lead.
Half Time: 0-1
Minutes after the restart the Select Team doubled their lead when the Vets conceded possession on the edge of their penalty area allowing Spence to take the ball on before clipping it into the net. The Vets pulled a goal back when Jeff Scrivener met a cross from Marcus Baxter to squeeze the ball home. The Vets almost equalised following a goal mouth scramble with the ball bouncing off the post into the grateful arms of keeper Tony The Cat Cutler. As the Vets pushed forward they found themselves outnumbered at the back allowing Jonathan Bower to drive home past replacement keeper Simon Guy Clark.
The Vets continued to push forward earning a penalty when Lee Scrivener was adjudged to have handled the ball in the penalty area. Lee Soal stepped up to take the spot kick, up only for his firm shot to strike the post. Despite further chances at both ends there were to be no more goal with a final 3-1 victory for the Select team.
Full Time: 1-3
Report by John Watts
Squads:
Radcliffe Vets: Malc Clark, Paul Watts, Wayne Hallcro, John Bower, Lee Soal, John Parkes, Nigel Bailey, Mick Hodgson, Dean Rafferty, Marcus Baxter, Rick Bright, Simon Guy, Jeff Scrivener, Craig Clark.
Radcliffe Select: Tony Cutler, Lee Scrivener, Tom Garrett, Greg Williams, Paul Harrison, David Crewe, Andrew McCann, Steve Butterworth, Paul Durham, Richard Dunne, Jonathan Bower, James Spence, Jonathan Crewe, Josh Royce, Rob Norris, Matt Glass.
Referee: Dave Petch. Assistants: Danny Petch, Jack Wells.
After the match both teams and spectators continued the tradition as they returned to the Manvers Arms where Paul Harrison was presented with the Cup of behalf of the Select Team before everyone continued their Boxing Day celebrations. Thanks to the contributions made by the competing players, supporters and raffle proceeds, the event raised 1,012. The proceeds will be split between the two charities - Macmillan Cancer Support and Leukaemia Research.
The event rounds off another successful year of fund raising for Charity by members of the Club which includes:
In April Lee Potts raised 600 for the Donald Woods Foundation, a charity which supports the under privileged in South Africa.
In August Radcliffe Olympic FC Secretary Andrew Royce raised almost 2,000 for Leukaemia Research by cycling from Lands End to John O Groats in 10 Days.
In September Neil Brumfitt raised 673 of Cancer Research when he competed in the Great North Run.
The Radcliffe Olympic FC Junior Section Charity Day raised 1,500 for the Lincolnshire & Nottinghamshire Air Ambulance.
Vice Presidents Draw winner - Roger Towers.
Main Boxing Day prize winners of meal vouchers for Ashmores, Piano Cafe' and the Black Lion - James Spence, James Mountain and Doug Embling.
Other raffle prize winners of Chocolates and Wine - Hannah Shaw, Roy Crewe, Phillipa Norris, Gwynn.
