Sunday, 28 October 2012

This week's fixtures

Friday 2nd November - on the telly

DanvDave


Saturday 3rd November

ChrisvJan
AnnavSue
JanevColin
PaulavShirley
JimvLyn
AndyvKelly
AmyvBarnsley
MickvMillwall
TedvPeterborough
ScottvPete


Match of the Day - also on the telly but chosen as match of the day as Keith is top and this will be Marg's first match under the new manager and she is keen to get some points and head up the table and save some money.

MargsvKeith

Match Reports & Updates

A seventh successive home win for Keith's Cardiff, 4-0 over Anna's Burnley kept Keith at the top and on a freebie but the visit of Paula's managerless Palace ended Pete's 100% home record with a 2-1 win and Pete is now stumping up the cash (be it not hardly anything). Margs had taken a first half lead at Colin's Middlesborough but two second half goals gave Colin the points, (score 2-1).  Shirley's £8million buy for Blackburn scored an injury time winner over Scott's Watford 1-0 and Scott slips down the table.

There were away wins for Mick's Forest at Barnsley, 1-4 (3 in ten minutes after being 1-0 down), Chris' Brimingham who broke the deadlock in a dull game at Dave's Leeds (1-0) and Amy's Hull away at Kelly's Bristol City 1-2 although the second Hull goal was a own goal by the home team.

There were 1-1 draws for Lyn's Blackpool hosting Dan's Brighton and Sue's Wolves hosting Jane's Charlton despite both home team's starting off more impressively.  Andy's Huddersfield were 'hammered' 4-0 away at Millwall and Jim's Derby's lost 3-0 away at Peterborough and that is with Jim saving a penalty.

In the Match of the Day, the bottom of the table clash of Jan's Ipswich hosting Ted's Sheff Wed, the away team scored after just two minutes and then twice in the second half to earn their first away win in the Championship since January 2010 and reduced his bill slightly.
TeamPtsWhoPence in the pound
1Cardiff28Keith0p
2Leicester25Pete0.2p
3Middlesbrough25Colin0.2p
4Crystal Palace24Paula0.5p
5Blackburn23Shirley0.8p
6Wolves21Sue1.6p
7Nottm Forest21Mick1.6p
8Huddersfield20Andy2.2p
9Hull19Amy2.8p
10Leeds United19Dave2.8p
11Brighton19Dan2.8p
12Blackpool18Lyn3.7p
13Burnley17Anna4.7p
14Derby17Jim4.7p
15Watford16Scott5.9p
16Birmingham16Chris5.9p
17Bolton15Margs7.2p
18Charlton14Jane8.5p
19Sheff Wed12Ted11.5p
20Bristol City11Kelly13p
21Ipswich7Jan19.2p

Thursday, 25 October 2012

CC Team of the Week / Place of the Week - Bolton

In honour of the lovely MC Martin (Club Oasis) this week’s team of the week has to be Bolton – the place he is returning to.  So less on the team and more on the Town. And what a town it is with 260,000 people it is the largest one in Britain.  The locals have tried to city status in 1992 for the 40th anniversary of the Queen’s accession; in 2000 to mark the Millennium;and in 2002 for the Diamond Jubilee all without success.
Part of Lancashire, the name Bolton derives from the Old English bothel and tun, meaning a "settlement with a special building". The first record of the town dates from 1185 and there were five different spellings before Bolton was used from 1307. The town's motto of Supera Moras means "overcome difficulties" (or "delays"). A charter to hold a market was given in 1251 by King Henry III and the market was held near Ye Olde Man and Scythe until 18th Century. 

In the English Civil War the town supported Parliament but it was a Royalist region and so Bolton was stormed by 3,000 Royalist troops led by Prince Rupert of the Rhine and Lord Derby in 1644. In what became known as the Bolton Massacre, 1,600 residents were killed and 700 were taken prisoner. At the end of the Civil War Lord Derby was tried as a traitor at Chester and condemned to death. When his appeal for pardon to parliament was rejected he attempted to escape but was recaptured and executed outside Ye Olde Man & Scythe Inn at Bolton on 15 October 1651.  As one of the  oldest pubs in Britain it is alledgely haunted.
  120+ pubs in Bolton area according to the web! 
Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish weavers settled in the area during the 15th century, developing a wool and cotton weaving tradition and Bolton developed with the introduction of textile manufacture during the Industrial Revolution. Local inventors Richard Arkwright’s water frame and Samuel Crompton’s spinning mule revolutionised cotton spinning. It was a boomtown of the 19th century employeeing up to 36,000 and at its peak in 1929, its 216 cotton mills and 26 bleaching and dying works made it one of the largest and most productive centres of cotton spinning in the world. The earliest mills were situated by the streams and river as seen today at Barrow Bridge, but steam power led to the construction of the large multi-storey mills and chimneys that came to dominate Bolton's skyline.  But the British cotton industry declined sharply after the First World War, and by the 1980s cotton manufacture had virtually ceased in Bolton.
As well as the spinning and weaving, bleach works were key in the area and the development of the entire textile industry was helped by local availability of coal and transport links including the Manchester Bolton and Bury Canal and the Bolton and Leigh Railway (the oldest in Lancashire). The latter opened to goods traffic in 1828 and connected to the Leeds and Liverpool Canal a route for receiving raw cotton from America. By 1900s Bolton was the third largest engineering centre with companies building textiles machinery and components for motor industry. 
Bolton Central Library was one of the earliest public libraries established after the Public Libraries Act 1850, opening in October 1853 in the Exchange Building on the old market square . In 1880 the municipal transport system started with horse drawn trams amd then in 1899 the electric tram service started. By 1820 there was 60 miles of tramway.  During the first World War during the night of 26 September 1916, Bolton was the target for one of the first aerial offensives in history. L21, a Zeppelin commanded by Oberleutnant Kurt Frankenburg of the Imperial German Navy, dropped 21 bombs on the town, 5 of them on the working class area of Kirk Street, killing 13 and destroying 6 houses.
Currently the Reebok brand's European headquarters are located at the Reebok Stadium and the town is also the home of the family bakery, Warburtons established in 1876 on Blackburn Road.  In 2008, Watson Steel Structure of Lostock, Bolton was awarded the contract to build the steel structure for the 2012 Olympic arena. The mascots for the 2012 games are based on two drops of steel from the firm.
Bolton has had notable success in sport; former Premier League football club Bolton Wanderers play home games at the Reebok Stadium and The WBA World light-welterweight champion Amir Khan was born in the town. Bolton also has several notable cultural aspects, including The Octagon Theatre and the Bolton Museum and Art Gallery, as well as one of the earliest public libraries established after the Public Libraries Act 1850.
According to a survey of the British Association for the Advancement of Science Boltonians are the friendliest people in Britain. Famous locals include Peter Kay (comedian), Vernon Kay (tv & Radio), Fred Didnah (tv historian) and Sarah Cox (no place can be perfect!)
As for the football team – with their new manager Dougie Freedman, nicked from Paula – they were formed in 1874, founder members of the football league and played at Burnden Park for their first 102 years before moving to the Reebok Stadium in 1997.  It spent 73 seasons in the top division of the English league – more than any club never to have been league champions.



On 28 April 1923, Bolton won the cup at their third attempt to win their first major trophy, beating West Ham United 2–0 in the first ever Wembley final (sorry M,J,A&T). The match, famously known as The White Horse Final was played in front of over 127,000 supporters. Bolton's centre-forward, David Jack scored the first ever goal at Wembley Stadium. They became the most successful cup side of the twenties, also winning in 1926 and 1929, beating Manchester City and Portsmouth respectively (hmm).

The years of the Second World War saw most of the Wanderers' playing staff see action on the front as 15 Bolton professionals, led by their captain Harry Goslin, volunteered for active service in 1939, and were enlisted in the 53rd Bolton Artillery regiment.  53rd Bolton Artillery took part in the battle of Dunkirk and also served in the campaigns of Egypt, Iraq and Italy. Remarkably, a number of these soldiers managed to carry on playing the game on these theatres of war, taking on as 'British XI' vario They managed to keep playing during this time competing in scratch teams against teams assembled by King Faruk of Egypt in Cairo and Polish forces in Baghdad. In 1953 Bolton played in one of the most famous FA Cup finals of all time – The Stanley Matthews Final of 1953. Bolton lost the game to Blackpool 4–3 after gaining a 3–1 lead. Blackpool were victorious thanks to the skills of Matthews and the goals of Stan Mortensen.




Saturday 27th fixtures

Sat 27 matches

Barnsley             


v


Mick
ShirleyvScott
LynvDan
KeithvAnna
DavevChris
PetevPaula
ColinvMargs
MillwallvAndy
PeterboroughvJon
SuevJane
KellyvAmy


Match of the Day - out bottom of the table clash -

Jan V Ted - someone has to pick up some points they can't BOTH lose this one :-)

Match reports & Update

Pete continued his lead at the top with his sixth successive home win, a 1-0 victory against Dan who missed a second-half penalty.  Not to be out done and to also claim a free curry, Keith maintained his 100% home record and matched Pete on points with a 2-1 home win over Scott after scoring a second half penalty and an injury time winner. Scott’s team were down to nine men after players were sent off in the 63rd and 71st minute. In the Match of the Day Colin’s Middlesborough scored two second half goals to claim a 2-0 victory over Amy.

It was a night for sharing the points as 5 of the matches ended in draws. Barnsley scored a late equaliser (1-1) to deny Paula all the points, Dave’s goal keeper kept denied Jane’s Bradley Wright-Phillips twice late on to also have a 1-1 score line.   Margs’ Bolton’s visit to Sue’s Wolves saw Margs take the lead Sue equalise and then gain the lead all in the first half but a last minute equaliser by Davies against his old club saw Margs take home a point from the 2-2 draw.  There was a similar pattern between Lyn and Mick with Mick having taking the lead, Lyn equalising and taking the lead in the second half and Mick gaining a share of the points with an injury time winner.  Chris’s away trip to Millwall had Marlon King to thank for a hat-trick in a stunning fight back to take away a point in their 3-3 draw.

Elsewhere Jan’s Ipswich would have loved a draw but having taken the lead visitor Jim’s Derby had drawn level by half time and another 90th minute goal for the evening saw him take all three points away with him and Andy’s Huddersfield travelled to Peterborough and their consolation goal didn’t help their points tally as they lost 3-1.  Perhaps the most exciting match of the evening was the visit of Anna’s Burnley to Kelly’s Bristol City.  Anna took the lead and within 10 minutes Kelly had equalised. After half-time Anna regained the lead with a penalty and a minute late scored another goal slotted into the bottom corner. Seventeen minutes later and Kelly had scored a penalty and on 90 minutes scored the equaliser – job done. However, 6minutes of stoppage time and McCann’s  header takes the points back up north, 3-4.

In Wednesday's match Shirley won 1-0 with an early goal against struggling Ted, the first win for her caretaker manager in five attempts although the away team had more of the possession and nearly as many shots.
TeamPtsWhoPence in the pound
1Cardiff25Keith0p
2Leicester25Pete0p
3Middlesbrough22Colin0.5p
4Crystal Palace21Paula0.8p
5Blackburn20Shirley1.2p
6Huddersfield20Andy1.2p
7Wolves20Sue1.2p
8Hull19Amy1.8p
9Leeds United19Dave1.8p
10Brighton18Dan2.6p
11Nottm Forest18Mick2.6p
12Blackpool17Lyn3.6p
13Burnley17Anna3.6p
14Derby17Jim3.6p
15Watford16Scott4.8p
16Bolton15Margs6.1p
17Birmingham13Chris9p
18Charlton13Jane9p
19Bristol City11Kelly12.2p
20Sheff Wed9Ted15.6p
21Ipswich7Jan19p

Managers - Another one gone and another one bites the dust!

So Paula has 'lost' her manager as Margs has nicked him and Jan's has left by mutual concent after 11 games without a win. 34 names are on the not-so-short list for the job!

Sunday, 21 October 2012

Midweek fixtures

Here's the midweek fixtures
Tuesday 23rd

BarnsleyvPaula
KellyvAnna
KeithvScott
JanvJon
DavevJane
PetevDan
MillwallvChris
PeterboroughvAndy
SuevMargs
LynvMick


Match of the day:

Colin V Amy - level on points and both won their last two matches - they are fighting to get a point behind the leaders.

Wednesday 24th

ShirleyvTed