It was back to league action for the Stan as they hosted local rivals Ashington in a 12pm bank holiday kick off. The common theme from the last 3 cup games of not scoring from enough goal opportunities created & not finishing teams off nearly came back to haunt the Stan but a late 94th minute goal from Djalo gave the Stan all 3 points after Ashington had equalised. There were 3 changes from Saturday’s defeat to Wythenshawe with Shepherd, Walker & Errington replacing Hornsby, Storey & Djalo.

In front of a crowd of 512, the Stan were 1st to threaten in the 3rd minute when a Walker break & shot was caught by Alexander in the Ashington goal. Both teams were trying to attack but there was little threat at either end until a Stan free kick in the 16th minute was deflected just wide for a corner. From it, Kanda eventually shot wide. In 19 minutes, an Errington shot was easily collected. 3 minutes later from a Stan free kick into the Ashington box, Shepherd headed just wide. The ball came back in but Milburn’s shot from close range was blocked. In 24 minutes, Giraud was brought down in the visitors’ box, but nothing was given. Soon after, a ball across goal to Errington was cleared on the goal line & Walker tried to force it into the net but the ball was cleared. It was mainly pressure from the Stan now but with no end product. After 33 minutes there was some pressure from Ashington with Lister easily catching twice & a Giraud tackle stopped another Ashington attack. In 36 minutes, a Gascoigne shot was blocked followed by Errington shooting well over from distance. Both teams had another effort each before, in 41 minutes, a Gascoigne free kick went over the Ashington bar. In 44 minutes, Walker flicked on to the advancing Giraud who shot just wide. It was the closest either team had come so far. The half ended with both Gascoigne & Pearson being brought down but nothing was given on either occasion.

After a relatively poor 1st half, the action started almost immediately after the restart as the Stan took the lead in the 47th minute. From a Gascoigne corner, the ball went to Pearson who sent it back to Giraud on the edge of the box & he blasted it into the net. Alexander had dived the right way but couldn’t get to the ball as it went into the right-hand corner of the net. The Stan kept the pressure on & after a corner was cleared, a Giraud shot in the 50th minute was blocked followed by Pearson’s follow up shot being blasted high & wide. Soon after, Gascoigne did the same. The Stan pressure continued & in 55 minutes, from a Gascoigne free kick, Milburn headed the ball towards the net, but Alexander made a great stretching save to put it out for a corner from which the ball was headed wide. In 62 minutes, Giraud shot high & wide. Torrential rain started & in 65 minutes a Gascoigne shot was saved by Alexander. The Stan pressure continued & in 69 minutes a Giraud cross into the Ashington box was punched clear by Alexander just as sub Djalo was about to head the ball into the net. After a quieter 10 minutes, in 81 minutes, Giraud twisted & turned on the edge of the visitors’ box before shooting just wide. Against the run of play in 84 minutes Ashington were level. From a corner, the ball was initially cleared out to the edge of the box, but it went to Ryan Donaldson who blasted the ball through a busy box & it sneaked into the right hand corner of the net. In 85 minutes, from a 2nd corner, Giraud shot over the bar under pressure. 3 minutes later & Giraud advanced into the Ashington box & blasted the ball, but it was forced out for a corner by Alexander although there were calls for a penalty for hand ball. Into 4 minutes of added time, & it looked like the Stan were going to suffer for not converting more than one of the many chances created. In the 91st minute, a Gascoigne corner was cleared & Ashington countered & forced a corner. From it, Kanda headed clear. In 94 minutes, the ball was sent up to the advancing Djalo & although Alexander came out to clear it was Djalo who got to the ball 1st & slotted it into the net from a tight angle. A great goal & Djalo’s 1st league goal for the club. Soon after the final whistle went to the delight of the Stan Army.

So, the Stan left it very very late but got the win they deserved & an important 3 points. They are back in FA Cup action next Saturday when they host Knaresborough Town.

Stan Team: Lister; Evans; Fil; Kanda; Milburn; Shepherd; Walker (Hornsby 79); Gascoigne; Pearson; Giraud (Hopper 90); Errington (Djalo 63). Subs unused: Boothroyd; Storey. No cards. Attendance: 512. Man of the Match: Cyril Giraud.

Kevin Mochrie

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The Stan’s 2nd league game of the season came 3 days after their 1st & they were again hosts when newly promoted & former Northern League rivals Guisborough Town visited from Teesside. A hard fought came saw the visitors determined to not give the Stan any space but although they went behind, the Stan equalised & deserved at least the draw. This was Guisborough’s 1st league game at tier 4 as Saturday had seen them beaten in the FA Cup. There was 1 change from Saturday’s 2-0 win over Stocksbridge with Milburn replacing Capewell. Ex-Stan player Alex Payne started for Guisborough.

Both teams started positively & the action was initially fast & furious. In the 5th minute, Lister saved a shot which went straight towards him. Pearson then broke through at the other end but Catterick in the Guisborough goal got to the ball 1st. The 1st booking came for the visitors’ Willshaw in the 6th minute for a tackle on Shepherd. The resulting free kick by Pearson went straight to Catterick. The visitors countered, forcing a corner from which Lister easily caught. After a quieter period, Guisborough forced a corner in the 17th minute. From it, the ball went to the far side of the Stan goal & was headed back towards the goal to Ben Errington who slotted the ball into the Stan net. The Stan attacked through Djalo in the 21st minute but there were 2 blocks. In the 23rd minute, Giraud passed to Gascoigne on the right who volleyed the ball into the net for his 2nd goal in 2 games. Both teams continued to try & attack, but it was Guisborough who next threatened when in the 28th minute Lister got out to head clear. Soon after, a Guisborough player shot just wide. 2 minutes after that, Catterick also had to come out to catch from a Stan effort. In the 34th minute Lister was out again to catch as the match was back to being played at a high tempo. In 36 minutes, a Stan free kick from the half way line was punched clear by Catterick. 3 minutes later & a cross to a Guisborough player in the Stan box saw him head the ball over the Stan bar. In the 40th minute, Giraud advanced into the Guisborough box, but Catterick grabbed the ball. In 43 minutes, Djalo tried a speculative volley from just outside the centre circle but the ball went over the visitors’ bar. In 45 minutes, Guisborough headed over the Stan bar from a corner.

Although the 2nd half started with mainly pressure from the Stan, it was a relatively quiet period until the Stan had a free kick cleared in the 53rd minute twice. 5 minutes later & Guisborough had an attack cleared. In the 59th minute, a Chrisp ball into the Guisborough box was headed clear & was blocked when sent back in 3 times. In 60 minutes, Lister sent the ball up towards Djalo but a defender headed clear before he could get to it. There was more Stan pressure with both Giraud & Chrisp having efforts cleared. In 67 minutes, after 2 Stan attacks, Guisborough countered & hit the Stan side netting under pressure. Soon after, a speculative long range Guisborough effort went well over the Stan bar. 2 minutes later a Guisborough player broke forward but was dealt with by the Stan defence. In 71 minutes, a ball into Pearson in the visitors’ box saw his header blocked & put out for a corner from which the ball was cleared. Guisborough countered but Lister got out to clear. Most of the threat was now coming from the Stan although it was not coming to much. In 76 minutes, Guisborough tried a speculative shot from a free kick from half way as Lister was off his line but the ball went wide. In 81 minutes, a Guisborough free kick was easily caught by Lister. 3 minutes later & a Guisborough shot from just outside the Stan box went just wide. In 86 minutes, Lister got down to save from a Guisborough free kick. The match was now end to end with both teams knowing that probably one more goal would win the match for either of them. There were a few chances for the Stan just before 5 minutes of added time began. In 93 minutes, the Stan came close to scoring when they forced a corner from which the ball went through the crowded 6-yard box but was sent back in & headed off the line by a Guisborough defender. The match finished with a sustained Stan attack which itself ended with Walker shooting wide.

Although the Stan came close to scoring late on, a draw was an acceptable result against difficult opposition. Most of Guisborough’s chances though were from distance. So overall a good start to the season & the Stan are unbeaten & 2nd on goal difference even if there is still a long way to go. The Stan’s 1st away league fixture is next, on Saturday, when they travel to Lincoln United.

Stan Team: Lister; Fil; Chrisp (Boothroyd 89); Kanda (Y); Milburn (Y); Shepherd; Gascoigne (Hopper 86); Walker (Y); Pearson; Giraud; Djalo (Errington 66). Subs not used. Storey; Morris. Attendance: 459. Man of the Match: JJ Chrisp.

Kevin Mochrie

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After 7 pre-season friendlies, which saw the Stan remain undefeated, they kicked off the season with a comfortable 2-0 league win over Stocksbridge Park Steels who have rejoined the league after relegation following their 1-year absence in the Premier Division. The day though was also tinged with sadness due to the sudden loss of club legend Bill Colwill last Sunday. Nearly half a century of involvement with the Stan saw Bill take on almost every role at the club including player, manager, secretary, chair & most recently trustee. His family & friends attended the match & there was a minute of applause to remember & salute Bill. 

The match, which was played in bright sunshine, saw the competitive debut for 6 new signings Lister, Fil, Kanda, Gascoigne, Giraud & Djalo. There was also a debut from the bench for 2 further new signings Morris & former Stan A player Boothroyd. 

Both teams started positively, although after a counterattack by the visitors in the 4th minute, the next 3 attacks that were cleared were from the Stan. In the 16th minute, a joined-up Steels attack ended with Ward hitting the ball over the Stan bar. Soon after, Ward broke forward & Lister had to come out to make a great save. The visitors then broke again but the Stan countered & won a corner. Soon after a Stan deflected cross was caught by Townsend in the visitors’ goal. After 26 minutes, a speculative Steels long range effort saw Lister catch at the 2nd attempt. 2 minutes later & a Steels player headed out to give the Stan a corner. From it, the ball was headed clear but then was sent back in by Giraud to Capewell who slid in towards the right-hand post & sent the ball across the Steels goal line to Djalo but he couldn’t get his shot in. In 33 minutes, Lister had to get out to clear. Soon after, Gascoigne won the ball in the middle of the park & advanced & passed to Pearson who supplied the advancing Giraud who shot just wide from just outside the box. A Steels player then broke but Lister got out to confidently clear. The best move of the game so far came in the 40th minute when a Steels free kick into the Stan box was headed just wide. Another Steels attack was then deflected by Djalo for a corner. From it, there was a scramble in the 6 yard box with the ball eventually going wide. In the 43rd minute, a Stan attack went wide. There was a dramatic finish to a relatively quiet 1st half when Pearson advanced into the visitors’ box & was brought down by Townsend but only a corner was given when Pearson & most of the crowd expected a penalty. From it, Thompson got down to grab the ball from among a scramble.

The Stan started the 2nd half hungry to take the lead & in the 47th minute Pearson advanced & lobbed Thompson but the ball went just wide. A minute later & it was de ja vu when a longball to the advancing Pearson saw him try to chip Townsend, but the keeper managed to catch the ball. In 51 minutes, another Stan penalty claim was waved away. 2 minutes later & a Stan ball into the Steels box was headed clear. In the 55th minute the Stan were in the lead when a fantastic diagonal shot by Gascoigne went off the far post & into the Steels’ net. 2 minutes later & a Steels player headed out for a Stan corner. In the 60th minute, Lister easily caught from a Steels corner. Although at half time it felt like it might just take 1 goal to decide the match, the Stan were 2-0 up in the 61st minute when a 30-yard Giraud shot deflected off a Steels player & into the net. Nice one Cyril. Both teams were trying to attack & in 67 minutes Pearson was blocked but nothing was given although Walker managed to get the ball & advance into the visitors’ box, but his shot was deflected for a corner. The ball from the corner was deflected for a 2nd corner that came to nothing. In 72 minutes, Giraud advanced & passed to Djalo but he shot just wide. There was more pressure from the Stan before Lister had to get down in the 75th minute to catch the ball. After a quieter period, a Stan attack  was cleared in the 88th minute. The ball went back to Pearson who crossed to Morris, but he shot over the bar. The match ended with a Steels attack that came to nothing.

So, after a relatively quiet & even 1st half, 2 great goals from 2 of the players making their debuts saw the new look Stan start their promotion push with 3 points & they now sit 2nd in the league. The Stan are again at home on Tuesday night when they host newly promoted & fellow North East club Guisborough Town.

Stan Team: Lister; Fil; Chrisp; Kanda; Capewell (Milburn 57); Shepherd; Gascoigne (Boothroyd 87); Walker (Storey 87); Pearson; Giraud (Hopper 76); Djalo (Morris 83). All subs used. No cards. Attendance: 486. Man of the Match: Cyril Giraud.

Kevin Mochrie

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