Season: 2024-25
Heaton Stannington vs Cleethorpes Town
On Burn’s Night, there are usually lots of toasts including to the lassies & the haggis. The Stan Army were also looking forward to toasting their team who looked likely to achieve at least a draw against high flying Cleethorpes but they undeservedly lost due to conceding a late goal. After a 24-day gap, there were 7 changes form the New Year’s Day draw at Consett with Evans, Groves, Capewell, Anderson, Errington & new loan signings Ben Milburn & Alex Payne, from Blyth Spartans & Darlington respectively, replacing Marriott, Stephenson, Turnbull, Slaughter, Walker, Spence, who had been recalled by Hebburn, & Thompson who has left the club.
The match kicked off in calm but cold post storm weather & although they were not really threatened, the 1st 8 minutes were mainly played in the Stan half. Cassap easily cleared after 6 minutes followed by a Cleethorpes corner being cleared. A minute later & Evans cleared a ball crossed into the Stan box. The ball was sent back in & bounced off Shepherd for a corner. From the corner, in 9 minutes the visitors were ahead when Capewell cleared in front of goal but the ball went back to Bateson on the edge of the 6 yard box who kicked it through a number of players & into the net. In the 12th minute the visiting keeper had to clear a Stan ball & 2 minutes later 2 more Stan attacks were cleared. With their 1st clear effort of the match, the Stan were back level in 18 minutes. Burn sent a ball forward to Errington who broke past defenders & shot & although his effort hit the right post, the ball went back across the goal line & into the net to give him his 1st goal for the Stan. Both teams continued to try to attack & in 22 minutes Cleethorpes had 2 shots blocked in a busy Stan box. 2 minutes later, Hopper advanced & shot just wide. After some Stan pressure, it was Cassap who had to get down to save in 29 minutes. 5 minutes later & Hopper was brought down in the box but nothing was given. Cleethorpes then had a few minutes of pressure but they were stopped by 4 Stan clearances. The Stan though deserved to go into half time on equal terms.
After a quiet start to the 2nd half, Milburn cleared from a corner in the 50th minute although the ball came back into the Stan box forcing Cassap to get down to save although the flag was up for a foul. Soon after, the Stan had to clear again as the visitors tried to pressurise. Both teams had corners cleared before, in 57 minutes, Capewell headed clear from another corner. Cleethorpes then had a long-range effort which Cassap saved. Groves then broke free & the ball was deflected for a Stan corner from which 2 Stan headers were both cleared. The Stan were getting back into the match & in 66 minutes Groves advanced crossing towards sub Hornsby in the box but the visiting keeper got up to save. Soon after Cassap had to punch clear. Both teams were still trying to win the match & the Stan introduced fresh legs to their efforts when Lamb replaced Errington. The Stan were also doing well dealing with Cleethorpes pressure. In 76 minutes, Cleethorpes head wide from a corner with the follow up effort going both high & wide. In 78 minutes, Lamb broke & beat the offside trap but a defender got a foot in to send the ball out for a corner. Cleethorpes soon after shot wide. In 81 minutes, after a Hopper advance was stopped, Cleethorpes counter attacked & Bateson slotted the ball past Cassap for his 2nd goal. It was a bad moment for the Stan when they were doing so well. They didn’t give up & sought an equaliser although time was running out. A Burn free kick in 88 minutes was headed twice by Hopper towards goal & cleared but a 3rd attempt was prevented because the referee surprisingly awarded a foul to Cleethorpes for an alleged hand ball. As the Stan continued to press, a Cleethorpes back pass saw no action from the referee. As a final Stan attack was cleared in 96 minutes, the final whistle went.
The narrow defeat for the Stan allowed the visitors to return to 1st place in the league although on the day both teams were evenly matched except for the late goal. The Stan, who remain 2nd bottom, are back in action on Wednesday when they travel to 3rd bottom Brighouse Town for a crucial 6 pointer clash.
Kevin Mochrie
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1 vs 2 
Consett vs Heaton Stannington
There was no Hogmanay hangover for the Stan as they saw in the New Year at Consett with a well-earned draw. Rather than a traditional first foot it was the first hand of penalty saver & man of the match Cassap & the first head of scorer Shepherd that played important parts in this New Year’s Day North East derby. It was the Stan’s 1st visit to Belle Vue since an FA Cup defeat there in 2017. There were 4 changes from the boxing day home defeat to Ashington with Marriott, Spence, Walker & Thompson replacing Evans, Groves, Lamb & Errington. There was a debut from the bench for striker Oscar Taylor who has joined on loan from Darlington.
The Stan Army arrived on mass at Consett & had to endure artic conditions including a heavy swirling snowfall for the entire 1st half. The 1st 5 minutes saw the ball mainly in the Consett half as the Stan showed that they meant business although there was no clear threat yet. The 1st Consett attack in 7 minutes saw Cassap getting up to punch clear. Soon after, the home keeper & Cassap both easily collected from balls sent in towards them. In 11 minutes, Burn shot wide as the Stan continued to press. Turnbull then blocked a home counterattack. Consett then won a corner from which they headed wide. The Stan then also shot wide followed by another attack by them being headed clear. Turnbull then partly cleared a Consett counterattack with the follow up shot seeing Callap getting down to punch the ball clear. There were 2 more Consett attacks before a sustained Stan attack in the 21st minute. 2 minutes later, & Walker sent a ball into the home box which the keeper got down to save. Both teams were still trying to attack & in 26 minutes, from a Consett corner, Callap got down to save but the ball was scooped out of his hands although the rebound shot was blocked by Spence allowing the Stan to counter attack. In 30 minutes, a long range Consett shot was put round the post by the diving Callap.. From the corner, Callap caught the ball & managed to resist the efforts of a home player trying to force him over the goal line. In 32 minutes, a Stan attack was cleared followed by a Marriott long ball forward being intercepted by the home keeper before Hopper could get to it. In 35 minutes, Consett sliced an effort over the Stan bar. 2 minutes later, & Turnbull got back to clear a Consett advance. From the resulting corner, Spence headed the ball clear. Both teams continued to try to get forward. In 42 minutes, Marriott stopped a Consett attack. The ball from the resulting free kick was put wide by Turnbull for a corner from which the ball was cleared on the goal line by 1 of 2 Stan players who were positioned there for that purpose. Despite 1966 style goal claims from the home side, the referee accurately awarded a corner & from it a Consett player headed the ball wide. After an even 1st half, the Stan survived a late scare to go into the 2nd half with both teams having all to play for.
The Stan started on the attack although in the 49th a Consett advance saw Turnbull intercept the ball but Consett’s Walker retrieved the ball followed by Callop sliding in towards him to stop him in the box. Holdsworth took the resulting penalty but Cassap dived the correct way to make a great save to make up for giving the penalty away. In 51 minutes thought, the Stan were a goal behind when a Consett attack was blocked but Walker with only Cassap to beat put the rebound effort into the Stan net. The Stan didn’t give up & Hopper sent a ball towards goal but the home keeper got to it before Walker could. In 58 minutes, a Consett player shot across the goal but there was no one to intercept his wide ball. The Stan stepped up a gear from the 61st minute when Taylor & Lamb joined the action. Almost immediately, a ball from the advancing Lamb into the box to Hopper was cleared & although it came back to Lamb his curving shot went wide. The home keeper then had to bunch clear another Lamb effort. In 66 minutes, the Stan were back on even terms when a Stephenson free kick into the home box was headed into the net powerfully by Shepherd. Almost immediately after, Stephenson sent a curving ball into the home box which the keeper got up for but didn’t hold although a defender then cleared it. Lamb kept pressing down the left wing & the home keeper had to catch in 74 minutes. Hopper then supplied Lamb whose curving ball went just wide at the far post. Consett then had a long-range effort which Cassap stretched to punch clear. In 80 minutes, a Stephenson free kick was headed clear by a home player. It was end to end, including through counter attacks, & in 83 minutes a Consett free kick was headed clear. A 2nd home free kick was cleared & the rebound long shot went high & wide. In 86 minutes, a Consett counterattack resulted in a corner from which Cassap put a headed effort over the bar to stop the ball going into the net. Consett then had another corner blocked & cleared. Both teams kept attacking in turn but the match ended 1-1.
It was a well-earned point as well as a positive performance from the Stan. This was helped by good 2nd half substitutions which reinforced the team’s ability to attack & threaten Consett. They unfortunately remain in the relegation zone but are now only 1 place & 1 point off safety. There is an important match on Saturday at Grounsell Park as the Stan host Pontefract Collieries who are only 3 points above them in the league.
Kevin Mochrie
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1 vs 1 Heaton Stannington vs Ashington
The younger residents of NE7 might have been getting excited about the visit of Santa on Xmas day but there was also much excitement about the boxing day derby and relegation clash between 5th bottom Heaton Stannington & 3rd bottom Ashington. On a sunny & mild boxing day morning, 497 fans turned up for this important mid- season match. Unfortunately for the Stan there was to be no late Xmas present as although they took an early lead & faced 10 men for the last 25 minutes, they eventually lost 3-1 to Ashington. There were 4 changes from Saturday’s defeat at Belper with Cassap, Stephenson, Slaughter & Errington replacing Brass, Marriott, Spence & Thompson. There was a debut for new keeper Matthew Cassap who has signed on loan from Gateshead. Ex-Stan Marc Ellison started for Ashington while Jay Errington’s brother Kyle came off the bench for them.
The Stan started on the attack & had an effort cleared in the 2nd minute. The 1st 15 minutes was end to end but with no end product. Burn miss hit a shot in 6 minutes. 2 minutes later & a Stephenson cross was deflected for a corner from which Turnbull headed over the Ashington bar. An Ashington corner was cleared in 11 minutes as the action continued. In 16 minutes, Hopper advanced & was brought down just outside the Ashington box. In the 17th minute Stephenson scored direct from the resulting free kick, for the 2nd game in a row, as his shot went over the wall & into the net. Soon after, an Ashington free kick from just outside the Stan box bounced off the wall & the ball was then headed wide by a visiting player. Cassap easily caught an Ashington effort after 25 minutes. Both teams were still trying to attack & in 29 minutes the Stan Army thought their team were 2-0 up when Hopper passed the ball on the left wing to the advancing Groves whose shot deflected off the Ashington keeper & into the net but the flag was up for offside. In 33 minutes, a ball from a Stan free kick was headed just over by Hopper as they continued to try to increase their lead. In 39 minutes, an Ashington attack saw the ball crossed in front of the Stan goal, but it was missed by 2 Ashington players under pressure from Turnbull. Ashington equalised in 41 minutes when, from a corner, Cassap couldn’t hold onto the ball on the ground & it was forced into the net by Kneeshaw. In 44 minutes, a speculative looping long range effort by Lamb went just over the bar in between 2 other Stan attacks being cleared. In 48 minutes, a curving Ashington free kick from the edge of the Stan box went just wide at the far post.
Half time saw Walker replace Groves. A minute into the 2nd half, & the Ashington keeper got to the ball before the advancing Hopper. Both teams were still trying to attack, although the Stan had more of the ball in the 1st 10 minutes of the 2nd half. In 50 minutes an Ashington attack was cleared followed by Lamb advancing with the ball into a busy Ashington box & he passed towards Stephenson but the ball was cleared. In 62 minutes, an Ashington shot was deflected for a corner. A minute later, from the corner, Ashington were 2-1 up when a scramble in the 6 yard box saw Almond put the ball into the Stan net. Cassap then punched clear from an Ashington free kick. In 68 minutes, Ashington were down to 10 men when Gilchrist was sent off after a quick 2nd yellow card. In 74 minutes, the Ashington keeper got to the ball before sub Thompson. 5 minutes later, Hopper got round 2 Ashington players but his subsequent shot went over the bar. In 81 minutes, the Stan were 2 goals behind when Sampson shot from the edge of the box but although Cassap got his palm to the ball as he went backwards, he couldn’t stop it going into the net. The Stan kept the pressure on although Cassop had to catch a long range effort in 84 minutes. The Stan were still pressing & in 88 minutes a long ball to Burn saw him head towards the net but unfortunately an Ashington player managed to get back to clear off the line. Slaughter’s rebound shot went well over the bar. In 89 minutes, another ball was sent into the Ashington box but Hopper couldnt get to it. The Stan pressure continued although the last move of the game saw Cassap getting out to stop an Ashington counter attack.
So, it was not be a Christmas Cracker for the Stan. The result & others meant that the Stan dropped back into the relegation zone & are 2 points from safety. They are on the road again on New Year’s Day but luckily only up the Durham hills to Consett.
Kevin Mochrie
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1 vs 3 
Belper Town vs Heaton Stannington
For the 2nd match in a row, the Stan took on a play-off placed team as they made the long journey to Derbyshire to face high flying Belper Town. Despite being competitive throughout the match, the Stan could not convert their chances & went home empty handed. There were 5 changes from Wednesday night’s draw with Stocksbridge with Marriott, Turnbull; Burn; Hopper & Thompson replacing Hornsby; Capewell; Slaughter; Errington & Stephenson.
The Stan were caught out early on when, in the 2nd minute, Brass saved a home effort but Rawson got to the rebound 1st & put the ball into the net. The Stan responded positively & in the 5th minute, a cross by Hopper was palmed away by the home keeper but Burn’s follow up effort saw him not being able to connect cleanly with the ball. In the 7th minute, a Belper free kick was confidently tipped over the bar by Brass for a fantastic save. In 14 minutes, Evans was fouled & the resulting free kick by Burn was tipped over the bar by the home keeper. In 21 minutes, Lamb put the keeper under pressure & stole the ball from him, but he could not direct the ball into the net. 2 minutes later & Thompson got in behind the home defence but his cross was intercepted by a defender before the ball could get to Lamb. In 26 minutes, Brass made another great save from a close range Belper effort. After a quieter period, the half ended with Brass making 3 saves in a row all from a close distance. The half ended with only the unfortunate early Belper goal separating the 2 teams after a competitive 1st half.
In the 2nd minute of the 2nd half, there were more heroics from the Stan keeper when a home defender broke forward & Brass tipped his effort wide. In 54 minutes, Belper were 2-0 up when, from a free kick, Draper knocked the ball into the net at the near post. 2 minutes later, Brass saved again when he pushed the ball round the post. In 61 minutes, the Stan were unlucky when a Burn free kick thundered against the post. 3 minutes later & Belper cleared a ball from a Stan throw in but the ball went to Groves who, from distance, shot just by the post. The Stan were showing that they were determined to get something from the match. In 67 minutes, a Burn 25-yard free kick went well over the bar. In 70 minutes, Grove curled a free kick towards the back post, but a defender managed to get a touch & put the ball out for a corner which was then cleared. In the 79th minute, Brass made another save but Shepherd then slid in to try & clear the rebound ball & unfortunately put it into his own net to give Belper a 3-0 lead. In the 90th minute, sub Errington scuffed an effort wide. In the 93rd minute, a Burn free kick was put round the post by the home keeper but the match ended with a 3-0 win for the home team.
Despite a hard-working performance, the Stan suffered a 3rd heavy away defeat in a row. The scoreline was harsh despite the fact that Brass had to make some fine saves & was awarded man of the match for his efforts. As Sherwood Colliery lost 1-2, after leading 1-0, the Stan remain one place outside the relegation zone. Its back to Grounsell Park on Boxing Day at 11am when the Stan host the only other team in the league from North of the Tyne, 3rd bottom Ashington.
Kevin Mochrie
3 vs 0 Heaton Stannington vs Stocksbridge Park Steels
There was a lot at stake for both teams as play-off placed Stocksbridge travelled to Grounsell Park for the 1st time to take on Heaton Stannington who were in the relegation zone. The Stan had only dropped into the 4th & last relegation spot the night before due to Ossett winning. After losing an early goal, the Stan battled all the way & were deservedly rewarded with a late equalising goal which took them immediately back out of the relegation zone. There were 5 changes from Saturday’s defeat at Sheffield with Brass, Shepherd, Slaughter, Lamb & Stephenson replacing De Jesus, Turnbull, Burn. Anderson & Thompson.
The match started badly for the Stan as they conceded a goal after only 3 minutes. An unexpected pass back to Brass saw him unable to hold the ball under pressure from the advancing Morris who pinched the ball & slotted it into the Stan net. There was a quieter period until the 29th minute when the Stan had their 1st clear opportunity to score. Errington sent a great cross into the Stocksbridge box, but lamb was unable to connect with it. The Stan though could have been 2-0 down in 34 minutes when Brass made a fantastic save from a Stocksbridge counterattack. In 37 minutes, a bending long range effort from Errington was caught by the Stocksbridge keeper. A minute later & somehow the visitors’ defence managed to prevent the Stan scoring when they cleared in the 6 yard box 3 times after the initial Stan shot had hit the near post. Stockbridge were reduced to 10 men in 42 minutes when Charlesworth was sent off for a bad tackle on Lamb.
Just as they had finished the 1st half, the Stan started the 2nd half positively. There was a great chance for Errington 3 minutes into the half when he controlled the ball from a pass & fired a shot which went just wide of the visitors’ post. In 50 minutes, the Stocksbridge keeper got down to save a Capewell effort. This was followed almost immediately by sub Hopper trying to bundle the ball into the corner of the net but his effort went just wide. The keeper then had to make another 2 saves as the Stan kept the pressure on. In 52 minutes, the visitor’s had a rare effort when they shot wide. After a quieter period, the Stan nearly equalised in 68 minutes when a scramble in the Stocksbridge 6-yard box saw their keeper punching the ball clear before clearing it again. In 74 minutes, a Stocksbridge free kick hit the Stan bar. 3 minutes later a Stan attack was cleared followed by a Stephenson volley from the edge of the box which was caught by the keeper. In 83 minutes, a Stan player was brought down in the visitors’ box but nothing was given. The Stan continued the attack, but a shot was blocked on the line followed by a Capewell header being tipped over the bar by the keeper for a corner. From the corner, Anderson headed over the bar. The Stan kept the pressure on & their efforts, which had included 5 goal line clearances from Stocksbridge, finally came off in the 92nd minute when they were awarded a free kick just outside the Stocksbridge box. Stephenson’s free kick ball hit the bar & went into the net off the back of the Stocksbridge keeper. What a way to equalise & Stephenson was also deservedly voted man of the match.
After 2 heavy defeats, the Stan showed determination to turn things around against promotion chasing opposition despite going behind after 3 minutes. A solid home performance, after 2 recent heavy away defeats, showed why teams do not like visiting Grounsell Park but why the Stan Army do. They created lots of chances to achieve a well-earned point as they seek to move back up the table. They now travel to Derbyshire on Saturday to face Belper Town & on boxing day there is a local derby when Ashington visit High Heaton.
Kevin Mochrie
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