8th of May 2025 over 60’s Stripes playing at Heywood 

Manager  Ken ( don’t blame it on the sunshine, don’t blame it on the moonlight , don’t blame it on the good time , blame it on the) Buggie

Squad:

Mike Bartram  (C)
Keith Gillespie (GK)
Andy Richardson
Steve Hassall
Ken Bond
Iain Dawson
Nev Kitchen 
Will Scott
Mark Evans

Will Ken survive if his team don’t perform? Is the Board behind him ?
Will the fans kick off? Will he be walking tall at Friday’s session?

Pre-match thoughts from the totally unbiased match reporter…

“ it’ll be great you’re going to play fantastic football “

An overcast day neither too hot nor too cold , a slight breeze.
Perfect conditions for football.

First match up against Salcom

Substitutes: Nev, Mike, Ken

This started off pretty even with lots of back and forth and neither team seeming to dominate, looked to be settling into a cat and mouse game but then after about 5 minutes Andy collected the ball from Will who had managed to get it upfield tight to the left hand line, from what looked at first like an unpromising position Andy somehow managed to weave the ball slightly more central against a tight marking defender and unleashed a beautiful shot that gave the keeper no chance… one nil and you could feel a surge of positivity ripple through the adoring fans on the sideline.

Andy decided against a knee-slide celebration and just gave us all a big grin instead. 

Great goal.

It was almost two nil shortly after when Andy placed an inch perfect pass to Mark from the left hand side as Mark moved in on the right and Mark let loose a tremendous strike which thundered against the post.

Ste also had a good effort saved when he struck from distance with power and accuracy.

However the momentum of the game shifted considerably with Salcom dominating possession and what felt like a bit of panic seeping in to Bury’s players, poor marking leading to lots of shots having to be dealt with by Keith in nets, Mark made a great block towards the end on the edge of the area, it nearly all unravelled when a great save from Keith resulted in a rebound falling at the feet of a Salcom player who just needed to tap it in but he swung wildly at it and it spiralled off into the distance much to the relief of Bury players and staff alike.

At the other end of the pitch shortly after Will performed some beautiful footwork to create space for himself resulting in a good shot on goal well saved by their keeper.

Thankfully the referee blew the final whistle as that was as much excitement as we could cope with so early on plus I was running out of space to write it all down. 

A great start , good win 

Bury 1   Salcom 0

I told them to tone it down in the next game as I was running out of paper.

Both teams had seven attempts on goal.
Bury had 3 on target Salcom had 5 on target. Good match.

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Second match against Ribble Valley

Substitutes: Ste, Iain, Will

This was a tough game, the stats speak volumes …

Bury had 4 attempts 3 on target 
Ribble Valley had 11 attempts 6 on target .

Both Andy and Mark had good shots on target saved well by the opposition keeper, Mike and Nev played well in midfield and Ken was stalwart in defence but as the game progressed Ribble just kept piling the pressure on.

Keith made several great saves but Bury just couldn’t break past the press and eventually Ribble scored from a corner and could have had two but for the post. 

Right at the death Bury had a breakaway chance with Andy supplying Mike in a good position but he got closed down before he could convert and then the whistle went.

Very difficult game against strong opponents.

Bury 0   Ribble Valley  1

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Third match up against Bolton 
Substitutes: Mike, Mark, Andy

Even with one of their best players on the bench Bolton had a formidable team on the pitch and an ex Man City player as a manager, this was looking ominous.

To get a true sense of how this game went I’ll start with the stats.
Bolton had 12 attempts on goal 9 of which were on target.

Bury decided to give Bolton’s keeper a rest with 0 attempts on goal.

Bury were under pressure right from the off, unable to break through in any significant way. Bolton marked each man so closely you couldn’t get a fag paper between them and their opposite number .

Unfortunately Bury made it easier for Bolton by opting to play musical statues and since no music was playing nobody budged, (not entirely fair but an overall impression over the length of the game) , this of course made it very difficult to progress the ball upfield. 

Will and Iain did their best in midfield and Ste and Ken were very busy in defence and Neville did his best to keep up with a long legged opponent  but the entire game belonged to Keith Gillespie in nets.

The game could almost be described as a penalty shootout …from a goalkeeper’s dream… shot after shot after shot from all angles and if you can imagine a penalty shootout where the keeper saves 9 out of 12 with the other 3 wide or high… that’s what it felt like .

Unbelievable display ….but then…towards the end a deflected clearance rebounded back to the goal at pace….Ken Buggie averted his gaze ..heart in mouth…everything froze …but Keith dealt with it as if nothing had happened..so really it was 10 saves he made.

Meanwhile at the other end of the pitch Graham ( Bolton’s keeper) was reading “ 101 things to do to stop yourself getting bored in a football match. “

The referee was good and fairly lenient towards Bury as a couple of times people wandered into the area but he deemed it not to be affecting play based on the position of the ball at the time… a bit of a let off but to be fair those lines are barely visible in the heat of a game.

What can I say 
Man of the Match 
Keith Gillespie

( my words don’t do it justice.. magnificent display)

Bury 0   Bolton  0

With two difficult games one after the other  Ken Buggie is wondering at this point whether he should accept the offer from Barcelona.

(Board members were spotted looking at his current contract )
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Fourth match against Rochdale Strollers.

Substitutes: Nev, Will , Mike

Both teams wearing blue of a similar shade, there was some discussion about wearing bibs which was decided against 🤦‍♂️ perhaps influenced by a statement by a Rochdale player “ we never pass to each other anyway so it doesn’t matter “ .

This may go some way to explaining a bit of confusion early doors when a Rochdale player called Howard ,( who I had noticed in an earlier game was a bit handy with his feet if you see what I mean ) , blustered and bundled his way from the half way line straight down the middle splitting the defence and slotting a well placed shot past a potentially weary Keith still recovering from the previous game. 

One nil to Rochdale. Not a good start.

Rochdale had two other clear chances which they fluffed fortunately for Bury, but then… then… a little bit of magic was sprinkled on the sad …increasingly worn ..plastic pitch .

Andy received the ball on the right wing deep in his own half , he looked up briefly and without hesitation stroked the ball beautifully upfield… as it flew down the line past Ken ( Boogie Nights) Buggie , Ken was heard to say “ beautiful pass” and so it was… landing at the feet of Ken Bond on the edge of the box as if delivered by Royal Mail , without hesitation Ken caressed the ball past the keeper and into the opposite left hand corner… what a goal.

The crowd went wild and the momentum shifted to Bury but it wasn’t all going their way and Ste still had some serious defensive work to do at the back but inspired by the goal the movement up front started opening up spaces and Andy got ready to exploit the disarray settling into Rochdale’s play .

Andy received the ball on the right wing again but this time a little further upfield into Rochdale’s half  , a gap opened enabling him to thread the ball diagonally through to ….oh my days😮😱….it’s Thierry Henry … the unmistakable long legs ( albeit slightly paler than I remember) the characteristic shift of the body position …to enable a classic one touch finish ..pushing the ball across the front of the keeper from the left to bury it in the right corner… no wait …it’s that Ken Bond again… another classic goal even better than the first… grown men started weeping ..women fainted… what a turnaround.

Other stuff happened …but it was all irrelevant .

I could give you the shot stats… but who cares?

Bury won

Bury 2  Rochdale Strollers 1
( Board members are seen hastily scribbling a new contract for Ken Buggie on the back of fag papers salvaged from the Bolton game)
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Final match against Moston Brook

Substitutes: Andy, Mark, Ste

In an unexpected move Ken ( boogey woogie ) Buggie decides to put Thierry Henry in defence… sorry Ken Bond I mean.

Against a difficult team like Moston Thie….. (ahem ) Ken’s defensive skills were much needed, Nev went up front and marvelled later that “ there’s so much space up there “ .

Moston dominated possession but didn’t have it all their own way and Nev (spaceman ) Kitchen managed to lay off a couple of beautiful passes to Mike, one shot went wide and the other was well saved by their keeper.

Everyone was stalwart in defence but Ken ended up crashing to the ground entangled with the other teams biggest player , this player left the game shortly afterwards muttering “ how am I supposed to play against Thierry bloody Henry the man’s a machine “

Ken ended up on the floor again shortly afterwards when Keith decided to smash the ball into Ken’s face ( fair enough.. don’t want him getting too cocky) Ken’s female fans screamed “ no … not the face” but he was fine… dazed but unmarked.

The ball ended up at the other end of the field eventually Ken pushed up to half way then spotted perhaps a wayward or perhaps an intentional pass that fell into space in the middle of the pitch, he launched forward and shot a daisy cutter to the bottom right corner that somehow the keeper managed to save.

Ken Buggie was perhaps relieved that he’d missed , being conscious of the fact that there was only one defibrillator available to deal with fans collapsing with excitement if he’d scored.

Moston enjoying a lot of possession resulted in them having 7 shots 4 of which on target,  Keith dealing with them with relative ease.

Bury had 3 shots , 2 on target, Moston came close at the end of the match but were foiled by a timely block from Mike.

A good draw

Bury 0   Moston Brook  0

A hard fought for but deserved 8 points.

A roller coaster of a day, some classic moments to take away from some very difficult games.

Ken Buggie has a new contract, Ken Bond has a new fan club , Nev Kitchen has a new space to explore, Keith Gillespie has a new statue being built and the Stripes have a renewed sense of purpose and belief.

All is right with the world and with that I bid you goodnight and a safe journey home , and may your god go with you as Dave Allen used to say.

7th May 2025 Over 70’s at Heywood 
Manager Keith Swain 
Assistant manager Pat Fitzgerald 
Pre match thoughts ….

John Morris “ make sure you spell my name right “

Squad:
Joon Mooris ( C )
Eddy Ford ( GK )
John Wardle
Gerry Luczka
Terence O’ Rourke
Bob Daniels 
Graham Walton ( promoted from youth squad)

A fine beautiful sunny day with a promise of fine beautiful football from a squad boasting both experience and youth with the notable promotion of Graham from his Academy position in the 60’s and 65’s to the Senior division.

First game up was against Corinthians
Substitute Gerry

Bury started well with good passing and movement especially between John W  and Graham who linked up well but Corinthians came back into it and started pressing more as the game went on.

Corinthians had more opportunities on goal with 7 attempts in total 3 of them on target.

Bury had 5 attempts on goal but only one on target a good effort from Graham from a tight angle producing a good reaction save from their keeper.

This match saw quite a lot of shall we say “ fast walking “ or running as it used to be called . First match tends to be on the quick side but this was pushing the boundaries, at one point Ed rolled the ball out and a Corinthian flew through the air like a ballerina to intercept and take a shot on goal which Ed dealt with superbly.

(Predictive text keeps changing Ed to Edge so if I forget to alter it just remember it’s Ed not the guitarist from U2 who was playing)

No goals in this game, a creditable draw considering Bury didn’t really gel and Corinthians pressed well.
Ed on good form both in goals and guitar.

Bury 0   Corinthians 0
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Second game up against Tameside Striders Blues ( who wear a yellow strip🤦‍♂️)
Substitute John W

Looking at the stats Bury should’ve walked this game ( intentional pun)
Bury had 6 shots 5 of them on target whereas Tameside had 4 shots with only 1 on target.
But football ain’t that simple.
Bury eventually dominated with good shots from John M and Gerry on target but they started poorly with wayward passing and poor marking and just couldn’t seem to string a move together.

Tameside took advantage of a mixup at the back and forced Ed into a great save which rebounded back to the kicker , Ed tried his best to get to the ball before it left the area which left him out of position, the original kicker then passed it to an unmarked player on his left who had a simple tap in despite an heroic effort by Ed to get back to block it.

Suddenly the game was running away from Bury but they then decided ( telepathically) to turn it on its head….The spirit of Maradona descended and settled into their loins giving them a freedom to pass and move , caressing the ball round the pitch with precision, moving off the ball, talking to each other… this culminating after a seven pass move with a superb goal first touch shot from ( checks notes) Joon Mooris. No wait Jon Marris, Jane Morish… no… John Morris.

Great team goal and Bury really should’ve won… but they didn’t 

Bury 1   Tameside 1

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Third game against Rochdale Strollers
Substitute Tex

Maradona decided to sit this one out .

Strange game this… Bury seemed to dominate despite playing poorly, poor passing poor movement yet somehow they managed to stop Rochdale from even having a single shot, quite chaotic at times, nevertheless Bury had 5 shots two of which were on target but the game was decided by one of those weird footballing moments .. a relatively weak shot from Graham hits the keeper bobbles over him and with backspin trickles and I do mean trickles in slow motion into the far corner, unfortunate for the keeper who later made a great save.

Bury 1     Rochdale Strollers  0

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Fourth and final game against Winstanley Walkers.
Substitute Bob

Maradona came back off his break and possessed the entire team again for this final match.

Superb game 

Bury had 7 shots 4 of which on target compared to Winstanley who had 3 shots 2 of which on target.

Again superb passing and movement pretty much throughout the game, Bury dominated but Winstanley had a couple of chances one from dead centre close range that somehow that guitarist from U2 managed to save.

Great defending from Tex led to a breakaway with the ball ending up at Jane Morrisey’s feet who passed it superbly from far on the right over to Graham on the left who buried it first time .. great goal.

John W had a great effort saved later on .
But for a valiant display by Winstanley’s keeper this could have been 4 nil , Graham had a couple of great efforts saved early on too.

A very very good display to finish off the day

Bury 1   Winstanley Walkers  0

All in all a thoroughly deserved 8 points.

Special mention for Bob who was as consistent and reliable as ever, Bob does a lot of the unglamorous things that can easily go unnoticed but without which the team would fall apart, tracking players off the ball, closing down attacking players, blocking shots , passing under pressure. Well played Bob.

NB
A photo (above) has been brought to my attention of the last match against Winstanley which seems to show Gerry tackling John W on the edge of our box … I can only assume that  not only was the spirit of Maradona present but also the spirit of George Best when he decided to tackle Rodney Marsh despite them being teammates at the time.😂

Editors note

Apparently there are a few spelling mistakes specifically around the spelling of the name of John Morris .

I can’t imagine how this happened but do wholeheartedly apologise to Jane and it won’t happen again… this month.

Bury Relics Over 75’s went into their second set of fixtures of the Greater Manchester Division 1 Walking Football Spring 2025 league campaign with a squad of Eddy (GK), Dave, Bob, JoMo, plus the Salcom trio of Billy, Joe and Kev. Ian McKinnon was Manager with supporters Pat, Kieran, Ken, Frank, Kodak Keith and Ken Bond enjoying the Heywood sunshine.

First up were Invincibles with Dave on the bench. We started the game well and looked in control but weren’t getting the shots in that our possession warranted. The 5 minute half time break saw Dave replace Bob for the restart. The Invincibles management team made a couple of tactical changes and they were a completely different proposition in the second half. The game was evenly balanced but, unfortunately, our propensity for trying to force the play resulted in 4 fouls and a penalty which was clinically dispatched for an unlucky 1-0 loss.

Next up were Rochdale with Kev on the bench. They had a great 3 – 0 win in their first match and had a very strong squad on show so we definitely went into this as underdogs on our earlier second half showing. Both teams began strongly but the defining moment was a brilliant curling left footed shot JoMo hit from the right hand touchline which went in off the inside of the far post after 5 minutes. We relaxed and knocked the ball around well for the rest of the half. Kev came on for Joe at half time. This time we did not let our standard slip in the second half but instead we actually raised it with some wonderful stuff being played. Rochdale were trying hard to get a foothold but we just didn’t let up. JoMo’s second goal came from a defensive mix up which presented him with a loose ball 8 metres out, he hit it on the half turn into the top corner of the net with the goalie completely caught out by such quick thinking. We saw the game out with long passing moves with the ref eventually blowing for time at the end of a 15 pass move. A tremendous 2 – 0 victory.

Last up were Tameside with Kev again starting on the bench. We continued where we left off from the previous match stroking the ball around forcing their goalie into several excellent saves. Eventually, the culmination of one of these moves saw Billy hit a fierce strike from 15 yards out which dipped just before their keeper and squirmed under his diving body for a 1 – 0 lead. At half-time Kev came on for Billy. We were looking just as good playing the ball around at the start of the second half until we lost our bearings and entered our box to concede a penalty. This was expertly taken to leave Eddy no chance. After such a shock we could have caved in mentally but we resumed from the kick off in the same pass and move manner and with 2 minutes left it paid off when a great piece of interplay put Kev in space just outside the box. He lashed a rising shot and despite a valiant effort from the Striders custodian it nestled into the opposite top corner of the net (pictured above). An immediate tactical substitution was made to sacrifice Joe, our impressive centre forward, and bring on Billy to play 3 at the back and 2 in midfield, to hold onto a lead that we had worked so hard to get back. Fortunately, this worked out well as we saw out the last couple of minutes to win  2 – 1.

Overall, an unusual day in which we scored 4 left footed goals from open play in only 3 games whilst conceding 2 extremely soft penalties. The quality of our football deserved the six points gained and they took us to equal top of the table with Tameside on 10 points. It is extremely tight though with Invincibles on 8 and Rochdale on 6 so all 4 teams have everything to play for next month.

17th April 2025
Another day of sunshine football at Haywood as the Relics entered the second game day of the 2025 season. Relics were looking for a bigger points haul than the six from day 1.

Bolton
An even game which Bolton started and finished well. From the start Bolton were on top with their first shot hitting the Relics crossbar. Keith G in the Relics goal was tested again soon after but he was down quick to save with his feet. Relics had warmed up now and. matched Bolton for possession, although play was mainly around midfield. Ian McC and Alan B had a couple of half chances but didn’t really test the keeper. Ian McC had the Bolton keeper on the floor, but he managed to stretch and save Ian’s chip shot. Bolton scored late in the game with a strong shot from centre field just outside the area. The power of the shot and coming through a sea of legs gave Keith G no chance.
Final score Relics 0 Bolton 1

Preston
Although another mid field game the Relics turned possession into more shots and chances. A shot from Graham W. Was saved for a corner by the Preston keeper. Dave L had his shot parried out to Ian McC’s shot was parried out to GW whose shot was saved. GW had another shot saved. Dave L put the Relics ahead near the end of the game with a snatched shot after a great save from the Preston keeper.
Final score Relics 1 Preston 0

Rochdale
Another “midfield” type of game with an even number of shots from both teams but none really troubling the keepers. A good defensive display from Kev A and Pete Shev once again resulted in Keith G in the Relics net with nor much to deal with.
Final score Relics 0 Rochdale 0

Corinthians
A super dominant display by the Relics against Corinthians. Possession and shots all dominated by the Relics. My shot count was 13 for the Relics with just one for Corinthians. The Relics winner coming late on in the game, began with a cross field pass from Dave L to GW his superbly placed shot in the bottom left hand corner gave the keeper no chance and gave the Relics the win they so much deserved.
final score Relics 1 Corinthians 0.
A good way to end the day. Seven points from a possible 12 put the Relics into a tight placed second spot in the table on 13 points with Preston and Winstanley.

Well done to the players on the day. Some great individual performances from. Keith G (gk), Graham W, Kev A, Ian McC, Ian McK, Keith S, Dave L, Alan B, Pete Shev

Another beautiful day welcomed the Relics over 60’s (whites) to Heywood Sports Village for the second match day of the 2025 season. Four games today for the team made up of Ed (GK), Pete Shevlin, Kev Bates, Ian McC, Ian McK, Graeme W, Alan Blackely, Keith S.

A tough start today against Corinthians as always, but the Relics were ready for the task. The game was mainly each team keeping possession of the ball for as long as possible. Corinthians tested Ed with a couple of shots, but Ed kept them out. Relics responded with a shot from Graham W which was deflected out for a corner. Nothing much else between the teams. A solid performance from the Relics and a final score of 0 – 0

The next game against Bolton was another tough game. Bolton had the most of the pressure and chances. A scramble on the edge of the Relics are was cleared. Then a dribble to the edge of the Relics area, and a left foot shot gave Bolton the lead. Bolton 1 – Relics 0. Further good pressure from Bolton produced two good saves from Ed. Relics responded and had two good attempts one just over, and one just wide. Final score Bolton 1 – Relics 0.

Up next were the Panthers, with Relics having the majority of possession. Ian McK shot wide, Kev had a couple of efforts one saved, and a miss. Kick wide. The pressure on the Panthers was starting to ruffle the fur and resulted in a four-foul penalty for the Relics which Graham W put away. Relics 1 – Panthers 0. Relics continued to dominate but couldn’t add to the score. Kev said after the game that he missed two sitters but I missed them too so I didn’t mention them. After all it’s the three points that count. Relics 1 – Panthers 0

Relic’s got off to a great start against Burnley with both Ian’s McC and McK having great efforts. Both Ian’s combined well formthenRelics goal with McC to McK who’s shot was parried out to Graham W on the right hand side of the box from a. Very tight angle slotted the ball between the keeper and the post for a spectacular goal. Relics 1 – 0. Ian McC had a shot saved by the keeper’s foot after a nutmeg pass from Ian McK.
Final score Relics 1 Burnley 0.

Seven points on the day for the Relics and good performances along the way too. Well played to all the players.

Another beautiful day welcomed the Relics over 60’s (whites) to Heywood Sports Village for the second match day of the 2025 season. Four games today for the team made up of Ed (GK), Pete Shevlin, Kev Bates, Ian McC, Ian McK, Graeme W, Alan Blackely, Keith S.

A tough start today against Corinthians as always, but the Relics were ready for the task. The game was mainly each team keeping possession of the ball for as long as possible. Corinthians tested Ed with a couple of shots, but Ed kept them out. Relics responded with a shot from Graham W which was deflected out for a corner. Nothing much else between the teams. A solid performance from the Relics and a final score of 0 – 0

The next game against Bolton was another tough game. Bolton had the most of the pressure and chances. A scramble on the edge of the Relics are was cleared. Then a dribble to the edge of the Relics area, and a left foot shot gave Bolton the lead. Bolton 1 – Relics 0. Further good pressure from Bolton produced two good saves from Ed. Relics responded and had two good attempts one just over, and one just wide. Final score Bolton 1 – Relics 0.

Up next were the Panthers, with Relics having the majority of possession. Ian McK shot wide, Kev had a couple of efforts one saved, and a miss. Kick wide. The pressure on the Panthers was starting to ruffle the fur and resulted in a four-foul penalty for the Relics which Graham W put away. Relics 1 – Panthers 0. Relics continued to dominate but couldn’t add to the score. Kev said after the game that he missed two sitters but I missed them too so I didn’t mention them. After all it’s the three points that count. Relics 1 – Panthers 0

Relic’s got off to a great start against Burnley with both Ian’s McC and McK having great efforts. Both Ian’s combined well formthenRelics goal with McC to McK who’s shot was parried out to Graham W on the right hand side of the box from a. Very tight angle slotted the ball between the keeper and the post for a spectacular goal. Relics 1 – 0. Ian McC had a shot saved by the keeper’s foot after a nutmeg pass from Ian McK.
Final score Relics 1 Burnley 0.

Seven points on the day for the Relics and good performances along the way too. Well played to all the players.