Details
| Date | Time | Competition | Season |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 24 January 2026 | 2:00 pm | Northern Football Alliance Premier Division | 2025-26 |
Results
| Club | Goals |
|---|---|
| North Shields Athletic | 2 |
| Heaton Stannington A | 3 |
Report
After scraping a 2-2 draw at home against them early in the season that we didn’t deserve, and then edging a five-goal thriller at their place in the Benevolent Bowl in November, we knew we were in a very tough game at North Shields, and especially with a few regulars missing. However, the lads saved one of their best performances of the season so far for the very cold and blowy conditions that presented themselves on the small 4G pitch at John Spence School.
A slow start saw us fall behind early as North Shields’ left winger reacted quickest to a second ball on a corner, but we gradually grew into the game as our midfield got on top and our front three started to cause them problems. It was therefore no surprise when Harry Poole tapped home a rebound in the 30th minute, after a slick five man move following a turnover in midfield culminated with Dean Cochrane’s thumping header coming back off the bar from a teasing Tom Robson’s cross. In what was an end to end game, we continued to create decent chances and we eventually got our noses in front in the 63rd minute when Harry Poole seized upon hesitation from the North Shields’ centre half, raced clear on goal and lobbed the ball coolly over the advancing North Shields’ keeper. With our tails up, we pressed home our advantage by quickly adding a third when Tom Robson planted the ball beyond the North Shields’ keeper from a Harry Poole through ball. Whilst North Shields continue to throw everything at us, their keeper’s day only got worse as he got sent off for a moment on madness when he raised his hands trying to recover a ball following an offside decision. Even then, we made things hard for ourselves by conceding a second goal from a set piece late in the game and there was still time for a dubious penalty call to go our way and Zamo to be called upon to make some more big saves. However, we held out for a huge win against the form team in the table who had climbed to second by the time that the game kicked off, and with every one of the lads outstanding and it not really being fair to single any one of them out.
Russell Ward