For once, there was no rain to greet us at HeyFlood but a cool 12 Celcius temperature and a medium speed wind. The Bury Relics over 70s squad were ready for action and out in force, with a grand total of 8 players in today’s squad. Following the leagues ritual of going through safety features, Pat had to remove his diamond encrusted ring, as even the bright yellow insulation tape that was encasing it was not deemed safe enough to play with. Minus the Bling, the games commenced.

Bury Relics vs. Blackpool FC SS
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 0-0 draw.
Goal: no goals in this game.
Result, Bury Relics 0 – 0 Blackpool FC SS

Bury Relics vs. Tameside Striders Blues
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 1-0 win to Bury Relics.
Goal: Bury’s goal was scored by John W, click-here.
Result, Bury Relics 1 – 0 Tameside Striders Blues

Bury Relics vs. Rochdale AFC Strollers
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 1-0 loss to Rochdale.
Goal: a penalty goal for Rochdale, click-here.
Result, Bury Relics 0 – 1 Rochdale AFC Strollers

In summary; a mixed bag of results and play. At times there were flowing passing moves, and the goal against Tameside was excellently worked. But at other times, the play was disjointed. The feeling around the lads, was that the penalty was very harsh, with even Rochdale players agreeing. However, the ref was adamant an infringement had taken place and it was a penalty. On reflection, two inches would have given Relics three further points today, as John W hit the cross bar against Blackpool, and Tony P nearly pulled off a dramatic equalizer by hitting the upright against Rochdale. One inch lower or to the left and results would have changed from a draw and a loss to a win and a draw. That’s football as they say.

On a very positive note, it was terrific to see Jerry S turn up for the after-game brews; great to see you, Jerry. And that Stewart W is back on the road to recovery, as he watched Relics play after a training session. The players and staff did a phenomenal job on the day, as per usual, with the squad consisting of: Steady Teddy Eddy (GK), Keiren, Tex, John W, Keith B, Tony P, Pat the Cat and Wayne D. Management/staff: Ken B and Keith S.
Report, pics and videos by Dr. John.

Photos

There was no need to check a weather App before this game; as I approached HeyFlood, it was raining. It was nice to see several Bury supporters had turned up in the rain, to follow and support their team. Following a safety announcement from the league officials, the games got underway. Bury Relics did not play and had some time to prepare and visualize their game plans, as the other 4 teams were playing each other. The first fixture up for the Relics was a tough one, against Corinthians.

Bury Relics vs. Manchester Corinthians
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 1-0 win to Bury Relics.
Goal: Bury’s goal was scored by Graham, click-here.
Result, Bury Relics 1 – 0 Manchester Corinthians

Bury Relics vs. Preston North End
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 0-0 draw.
Goal: no goals.
Result, Bury Relics 0 – 0 Preston North End

Bury Relics vs. Club Kingsmaid
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 2-1 loss to Kingsmaid.
Goal: Kingsmaid take the lead, click-here.
Goal: Bury equalize through John W, click-here.
Goal: Kingsmaids winning goal, click-here.
Result, Bury Relics 1 – 2 Club Kingsmaid

Bury Relics vs. Rochdale AFC Strollers
To watch extended highlights of this game, click-here.
The final result was a 3-0 win for Bury.
Goal: Graham scores for Bury, click-here.
Goal: Graham gets another for Bury, click-here.
Goal: It’s a hat trick for Graham, click-here.
Result, Bury Relics 3 – 0 Rochdale AFC Strollers

In summary; from my perspective, it was an excellent performance from the Bury over 65s side. The team looked balanced, and players complemented each other to produce several good goals and quality play throughout. The only slight downside was that both goals were conceded following freekicks. The staff and supporters did a sterling job organizing and encouraging the team in the rain, and thanks to Kodak Keith for his photos. Manager and staff: Ken B, Keith S and Keiren. Team players: Teddy Eddy (GK), Alan, Peter S, Jomo, John W and Graham. Top secret subs were Keith H and Pat the Cat, who were ready to go on if needed. Report and Videos by Dr. John.

For all the GMWFL fixtures, results and tables see the Match Centre page here …

Photos

The night before; there was a quick tap on the smart phone and a weather app checked; it predicted only a 7% chance of precipitation and potential 50KmH wind gusts at Heywood tomorrow. On the day and on arrival, there was no rain nor was there too much wind; it was good conditions for the over 60s whites to continue their bid for promotion back to the first division. Plenty of Bury Relics supporters had turned up to support the whites and it was nice to see some players who have been missing recently while recovering from injuries.

Bury Relics vs. Bolton
The first game was against Bolton, who looked to be sporting a new bright kit that probably can be seen all the way from Mars. The starting formation was as follows: Graham up-front, Gordon and Ian in the middle, Keith S (The Wall) and Wayne at the back, and Steady Eddy in goal. Duracell Alan as a sub. The no-nonsense Ref gets the first fixture of Bolton underway, and quickly there is an attack from Bolton down the left-hand side, which results in a shot across Eddy’s goal, but wide. Then it’s a good bit of skill by Keith S, on Bury’s left, to skip past his marker and play the ball inside to Graham. Good play but the pass was just too high, and a free-kick. Then, as time elapses, Bolton turn up the heat and start to pressure the Relics but without making any clear shooting chances. This was because the Relics were stout and resolute, not giving Bolton players any opportunity to shoot or space. This culminates in a good block from Wayne, and a head-high free-kick. Bolton play the ball forward to their #10, who for the first time, makes a good turn and gains half a yard; the shot is fortunately wide. Then the Relics have a spell of possession, and a trip on Graham brings a free-kick. The free-kick is played to Graham, who wastes no time in turning and shooting. The ball is heading towards goal, bouncing several times on the way, but it is just millimetres wide past the post. Their keeper was nowhere near covering that, it would have been a great goal. Then, good play again by the Relics, The Wall makes a good interception, and plays the ball to Ian, who then plays a one-two with Graham. However, the return pass to Ian is just too far out of his reach and the ball evades Ian and out for a kick-in. Bolton go back on the attack, and that produces some great defensive work by Wayne, who sticks to their #10 as if he is his shadow. He tries to get away from Wayne, by traversing across the area but Wayne sticks with him, and there is no chance of a shot because of Wayne’s determination. Then, SOLID by the Wall again, blocking a powerful Bolton shot. The ball is played back in to their #10, who Wayne is marshalling again, and #10 tries to back Wayne into the area. Luckily, the Ref is alert to it and gives Relics possession. Then it’s the Relics turn to attack, with passes from Ian to Gordon, then to Graham, and then a shot. On this occasion, the shot is deflected for a kick-in. From the kick-in, Ian receives the ball with his back to goal, on the left, and swivels at pace to quickly shoot. The keeper reacts quickly enough to make a save but it was quick thinking and a good effort by Ian. Bolton reply by getting the ball forward to their #10, who gets a shot away but Eddy is there to save it. Their #10 is a good outlet for Bolton, and he’s having a good battle with Wayne, who again makes a block on a #10 shot. The game concludes with a 0 – 0 draw. This was the first game, so both teams were fresh and cancelled each other out a bit. Both had some half chances but nobody had an absolute clear-cut chance to score. Bolton are a fit and skilled team, so this was a good result for the Relics, who played well themselves.
Result, Bury Relics 0 – 0 Bolton

Bury Relics vs. Preston
Just prior to the beginning of the game, there is a negotiation and discussion as to who should put Bibs on to counter the white colour clash between teams. It is suggested that Preston play in skins, but after brief consideration of this, Preston decided to put on green bibs. Early in the game, a free-kick is awarded to Bury and the ball is played to Ian, who hits a very hard toe-bunger, that was traveling fast, towards to the top right-hand corner but it’s just over. Preston then attack via a skilful midfielder who tries to turn this way and that, to fool the Relics defence. But Bury intercept and attack, to win a corner. From the corner, the ball is worked back to Graham, who is now just passed the halfway line. He, surprisingly, takes a speculative shot from distance, and it turns out a good effort, just whistling past a post. Preston’s keeper might have struggled to save that if it was on target; it was well struck. There is a substitution by Preston; their Talisman Ray appears to have pulled a muscle and is replaced. The next passage of play nearly produces a goal for Preston. They make a good multi-pass move that ends up with a shot that Eddy well saves. However, his distribution out from the save is promptly intercepted and Preston get another shot away. Luckily, the 2^nd shot by Preston is wide. Then, Preston’s silky midfielder gains possession and goes on a mazy run, passed 2 Relics players. It’s a great move, and he does well to take on the Relics defence. However, relief, as Eddy is quickly down to save the shot. On the subsequent Relics possession, a great ball from Ian is played to Graham, who is up-front. He takes a good shot and the keeper saves it, with the ball rebounding out of the area. In the Preston panic, a defender puts a toe into the area, which is spotted by the Ref; it’s a penalty to Bury. Our midfielder steps up and hits a low penalty, to the keepers right. On this occasion, the keeper is alert and gets down quickly to make the save. From the save, the ball is heading out of the area but the Relics player is too eager and encroaches into the area himself, trying to score the follow up. The game remained goalless. Then there is almost a delicious move by the Relics, starting with Graham playing a forward pass to Ian, who is advanced but marked. Ian holds the ball up well, delaying until he sees movement by Gordon, who had got into a shooting position. However, a Preston defender is alert enough to anticipate the pass, and intercepts. It was a nice build up by the Relics. Preston lose the ball again, and it’s another well-worked effort by the Relics. After several passes, the ball eventually arrives with Graham, who lays off to Wayne. He takes a good side-foot shot, on target, but the Preston keeper gets down to make the save. Preston responded by working the ball forward and creating a half chance for their striker to shoot; Eddy is behind it to make a comfortable save. Then comes a great goal by the Relics; Gordon receives a pass from Ian on the right side, but he has to use sublime control to skip past an opponent. He then spots Wayne free on the other side of the pitch. The pass is perfect and Wayne hits a magnificent first time shot, that arrows, low, across to the opposite side of the goal at speed. The keeper was nowhere near it, what a marvellous strike that was! The Bury supporters make a noise. Play continues and Alan makes a good move down the right-hand side and crosses the ball; good play but nobody there to make a shot. Preston go in search of an equalizer and on 3 different attacks, their possession ends up at Ray’s feet. On each occasion, he takes on a defender and tries to shoot. Luckily for the Relics, none were on target but Wayne was doing a good job of marking him, making the shots difficult. This game was more open than the previous and the Relics scored a blinding goal to win it.
Result, Bury Relics 1 – 0 Preston

Bury Relics vs. Carlisle
Carlisle kick-off and start brightly, with incisive passing giving their #2 a shooting opportunity on the left-hand side. He shoots hard and low across the goal, with Eddy scrawling to make the save. Eddy had it covered as the ball went out for a goal-kick but that was dangerous though. Duracell Alan is in the thick of the action immediately and decides to give an opponent a high-jump lesson. There was minimal contact but the Carlisle player went for an artistic dive. Everyone were laughing when someone suggested he should be called Tom Daly for his elegant dive. But it is a serious business and a free-kick to Carlisle. This comes to nothing, and Keith S plays a good ball to Gordon on the left. He changes up a gear and moves forward past a defender, to give himself space for a shot. However, the Ref is not happy at the speed of the move and it’s a running free-kick. Then great play by “The Wall” that is Keith S! Their #5 receives the ball, with Keith in close attendance, and tries to turn and shoot. Keith is stuck to him like glue, and makes a great crunching block, for the ball to go out for a corner. The acoustics of that crunch tells you the reason why Keith is called the Wall. Bury deal with the corner well, and the ball ends up at Ian’s feet in midfield. He controls the ball, and in his mind, he is thinking about keeping the ball away from his marker, whilst looking for forward passing options. He “Eagle” eyes Graham, in a bit of space up-front, and threads a magnificent ball through to him, with sublime precision. A great ball! Graham responds to that, with a sharp turn and shot. It’s close but the keeper is quickly down to make a save. Then, Carlisle attack and The Wall makes another important tackle to regain possession. This time the Relics get It forward to Ian, who shoots but it’s not accurate enough to score. Ian again is in the action, as Carlisle perform a good passing move, that leaves their #2 on the left in 3 yards of space. They get the ball to him, but Ian is alert to the danger and tries to close the shooting space down. This was probably enough to put the shooter in 2 minds, and the ball sails way over the bar. But Bury lose possession quickly and Carlisle play a good one-two, getting their #7 up-front in space, who turns on a sixpence and puts in a good shot that just misses wide. That was close and dangerous. A free-kick to Bury and the ball is played to Graham, who hits a tremendous shot, that their keeper just manages to save. On the subsequent Carlisle attack, they score but it’s a scruffy and horrible goal to concede from a Relics perspective. Initially, a needless foul is given away by the Relics in midfield, which incidentally put the Relics on 3 fouls. Then, from the freekick, it was ping-pong between the Relics defenders and the Carlisle players. Eventually, the ball reaches their #7, who rifles a shot from distance, through a crowd of players and past Eddy into the goal. Eddy did not have the time to respond, as there were lots of players obstructing his view. Their #7 hit it sweetly but the build-up was a scramble and the Relics should have cleared; 1-0 to Carlisle. Carlisle attack again after the restart, and it’s their #2 who is in acres of space on the Relics left. He’s shouting for the ball and he gets the pass, but the Wall gets close enough to him, to put him off his shot. Eddy passes out to Graham, who plays the ball off to Gordon on the left, with space in front of him. However, like earlier, the Ref adjudges Gordon to have run to reach the ball. On the line, there is now a bit of nervous panic, as we had counted 4 fouls, but alas, all was good as one of the earlier offence must not have been counted. A touch of fortune there, we got away with one. And the good fortune continues as in the next passage of play, one of the Carlisle players steps into the penalty area, by a good foot. Well spotted Ref, and Graham steps up to take the penalty. It’s an excellent penalty, low, to the keepers right. The keeper had gambled and gone the opposite way. And that concludes the action from that game. Carlisle had more shots than Bury that I would term dangerous but Bury kept on going and eventually that paid off.
Result, Bury 1 – 1 Carlisle

Bury Relics vs. Blackpool
From the kick-off, Bury are quickly on the attack and create a chance to shoot, but it’s ricochets out for a corner. “Oh, I Say! What a great goal!” Ian runs over to take the corner and quickly spots Graham in space on the edge of the area, unmarked. He then swiftly delivers an astute, low and hard corner across the area that is hit first time by Graham. It arrows into the net, past a hapless Blackpool goalkeeper, who had not yet set himself for the corner. Blackpool were completely unprepared for that corner, and Ian and Graham’s quick thinking and execution gave the Relics a 1-0 lead. Blackpool try to immediately reply that starts with an interception by their #7. This gives them an opportunity on the right-hand side and the shot is made, but Eddie’s gets down to save with his feet. It’s a good save, and it looks like he has super and sublime brain capacity as the ball is catapulted at pace, perfectly, to Graham’s feet, as if he had played that on purpose. In any case, it looked great. Then there is a good passage of play that includes passing between Ian, Graham and finally Duracell Alan, who has the space to shoot; he does so and it looks to be heading into the top corner, but it just goes too high and wide. Not a goal but a good effort nonetheless from the industrious Duracell. Head-height freekick and on Blackpool’s next attack, Graham manages to intercept but he is surrounded by Blackpool men, so he passes it back to Eddy but the pace on the pass takes it out for a corner. Bury now show their resilience by not giving a Blackpool 1 inch of room or clear path to goal. However, a Blackpool midfielder works a yard of space, just past the halfway line, and hits a low and powerful shot on the outside of his right foot. The ball whistles past the post at high velocity and it is questionable whether Eddy could have saved that if it was on target; that was a good effort from a long way out. As the Relics regain possession and attack, a shot is deflected and trickles through to their goalkeeper. However, the keeper is not careful enough with his subsequent distribution and only finds Graham with his throw-out. Graham is clean through, one on one with the keeper and tries one of his typical finishes. This involves bamboozling the keeper with a faint, which makes the keeper go to ground, and either dink the ball over the top, or side step the keeper to score into an empty net. On this occasion the dink finish was selected, but unfortunately it was just too close to the keeper. That was close and a good effort by Graham, who’s bright alertness gave him the chance to begin with. And the keeper plays another risky ball out for Blackpool, and Graham uses intricate skill to bring a difficult interception under control; he then passes to Gordon, who expertly lays the ball into the path of an onrushing Wayne, but his first-time shot is sliced out for a kick-in. The subsequent passage of play results in a sucker punch to the Relics. Their big #24 comes on as a sub, and from the kick-in, a ball is played to his feet up-front, with one Relics defender behind him. He’s a big strong lad and uses his strength and long reach to turn wide of his marker and gain half a yard, and to hit a low and powerful shot across Eddy and into the goal. The turn and shot happened in a split second of time and, to be fair, it was a terrific goal for Blackpool. Eddy had no chance. That evened the score at 1-1. Then striker #24 is at it again, but this time Wayne is fully plugged in and switched on, to make a vital block on the strikers shot. Great defending! Bury now pour forward, looking for a winner but it’s Blackpool who turn possession over, and are on the attack with 3 attackers vs. 2 Bury defenders. The Blackpool midfielder selects to play a square ball, to #24 striker in space, who hits a powerful effort, high over Eddy and makes the goal posts look like a tuning fork, from impact reverberation. The Refs gives head height but if a bit lower, it was 2-1 to Blackpool. We were now under the Cosh a bit as this time the #24 striker turns provider and lays it off to a midfielder, who hits a good shot that Eddy is equal to, and makes a good save. Bury lose possession again, and it’s their #24 again, who receives the ball and is faced by Ian. He does not give an inch of space, and blocks the strikers shot; more stern and good defending by the Relics. The final moments see the Relics on the attack, searching for an elusive winner. It begins with a shot from Graham, and Bury winning a head-height free-kick, which sets up a pattern of play. I can picture an alarm clock and Bill Murray waking up; Bury were awarded 4 free-kicks in succession, all for head-height, where the free-kick was laid off and someone would hit a shot, which would be blocked for another head high free-kick and so on. The Ground Hog day ends with a final free-kick that nearly produces a goal. The ball is played back to Graham, who rifles a shot that deflects off a defender again, but this time the direction is low to the keepers right. It’s going in but the Blackpool keeper redeems himself from earlier with an excellent save to his right, palming the ball wide of the post, following an agile dive. Bury were very close to scoring then but for a fantastic save. That was the last action of the day, a good game and probably a fair result of 1-1.
Result, Bury Relics 1 – 1 Blackpool

The team for the day was: Eddy in goal, Keith S (The Wall), Graham, Wayne, Ian, Gordon and Alan B. The management: Ken and Keiren. Thank you to Kodak Keith for the pictures. Report by Dr. John.

Photos

Due to other commitments, both intrepid Bury Relic news reporters were not present, so others kindly provided the information on what was a very good day for the Bury Relics over 70s team.

The results and scorers were as follows:

Bury Relics 2 – 0 Blackpool (Goal scorers were John W and John M).

Bury Relics 4 – 0 Tameside (Goal scorers were John W x2, John M and Keiren T).

Bury Relics 0 – 2 Rochdale

Dave M’s concise summary of the day’s events (Thank you, Dave);
Will add some dialect. Under grey skies and persistent drizzle, the Relics brought some sunshine to proceedings with a victory over Blackpool more emphatic than the score line of 2 – 0 suggests, thanks to goals from the midfield dynamos Jomo and Woggy. This good performance transferred to the second game against Tameside, with a complete performance throughout the team to register a 4 – 0 win. Woggy and Jomo were again amongst the scorers with Kieran also getting on the scoresheet.  With legs getting heavy in the third game against a good Rochdale side, a third win proved a step too far, resulting in a 2 -0 defeat. Overall, some good football was played, with all players making a contribution.

Team on the day was as follows: Eddy in goal, Keiren T, John W, Dave M, John M, Tex, Pete A and Tony P. Team management came from Ken and Keith S. Thank you to Kodak Keith for the great photos and video.  

Photos

Video of Bury play and Keiren T’s goal click-here

A new season for the Stripes awaited in Heywood. A scratch team was scrambled together, that included the super utility over 70s player in Goal, Bob Cat and the Parkinson’s England team centre forward, Keith B. When I arrived, they were warming up, by performing a “piggy in the middle” type approach, with Mark T running around like a crazy, drunken fly, trying to get the ball as it was passed around a ring of Bury team members. I have to assume the other players had a turn before I arrived.  For a change, today had good playing conditions, and after the usual obligatory league speech preceding all league fixtures, Bury Relics got their season underway against Wakefield. As the team marched onto the pitch, the management were giving encouragement and geeing the Bury troops up, with added instruction. One Relics player replied, “will give it a go”; a good sentiment, always try your best. So here we go…

Bury Relics vs. Wakefield
Keith H gets the game underway and Bury try to get into a passing rhythm. However, the move breaks down, for Wakefield to set free their #6, who weaves in and out between a couple of Bury players, only to shoot wide. Bob Cat was not needed this time but their Messi #6 is a danger. Bury again pass the ball around but by now, Wakefield are pressing hard. Despite the pressing, Keith H, receives the ball from a ricochet, who turns well and shoots just wide. That was a good chance. Then it’s Keith H again, profiting from a Wakefield mistake that gives him possession. He’s not one on one as a defender is between him and the goal, but he has the opportunity to shoot, but the defender just gets a toe to the shot to block it. This is good attacking play by Keith, shooting early when the chance arises. Wakefield now go on the attack, which produces some good defending by both Wayne and Pete, who stand firm against the Wakefield offence. This first involved Pete, doggedly tracking their Messi like #6, who is pushed back, but he hits a good pass to a player further forward, that Wayne tackles well. Then it’s a bit of delicious play by Bury.  John H is coming out of the Bury defence and he plays the ball up to Keith H, who has a marker behind him; Keith then spots the movement of Wayne, who has joined the attack, and lays a perfect ball into his path, for Wayne to strike hard. It’s on target, to the keepers left, and the keeper has to get down quickly to make a good save and prevent 1-0 to Bury. Great move, shot and save. It’s a corner to the Relics but Wakefield breakaway and get it to their Messi, #6. He tries to take on Pete S using his guile, speed and skill but Pete was equal to it, and makes a good tackle with one of his telescopic legs; excellent defending. Bury go down the other end and Mark T takes a powerful shot and wins a corner via a deflection. The corner comes to nothing and Wakefield attack and get a shot away. Bob stands firmly behind the ball to make the save. In the subsequent Bury attack, Mark T, or should I say Cantona, superbly sets up a chance for the Relics. The ball is played up to Mark, who facing away from goal. In the corner of his eye, he sees Keith H make a move to be free of his marker. Mark T reacts and plays a delicate ball right into Keith H’s path, a perfect pass to give Keith a clear shotting chance. His shot is just wide but the move was awesome. Well done Mark T and Keith, a great move, which had the Bury management and supporters purring. Then the phantom attacker takes Mark T out; he seemed happy jogging around, but suddenly, out of nowhere, he’s flies onto the floor. To be fair, I did not see exactly what happened, and maybe he was tripped off the ball. In any case, good news, he was OK to continue, and could rest as it was half time. One funny moment at half time, was the comment made one of the staff; he said that before his last holiday, one player was fit and like a highly tuned athlete, but on his return from vacation, now looked like Michelin man 😊. The second half gets underway and it becomes apparent that the game has become a bit scrappy, with neither team making shooting opportunities, well, not without running anyway. Eventually, a good attempt by the Relics. The ball is played forward, and the attacker sees Wayne advancing forward and lays off an inviting pass for Wayne to shoot. It’s a great effort, low and powerful, but unfortunately, it just speeds wide of the left-hand post. If on target, that’s a goal. Then Wakefield nearly score; a player advances quickly down the right-hand side, and toe bungs a low and direct shot to Bob’s left-hand side. It’s very close as the ball seems to trap against both post and against Bob’s hand. The result is a corner to Wakefield but that was close, and it’s close again from the corner, and again, it’s Bob who makes the save. Great resilience from Bob Cat the keeper. Keith B gets in on the act, as he receives the ball up front and lays off a perfect ball to Mark T, who shoots well but just wide. A good chance to snatch a victory for the Relics but the Ref blows the whistle for full time.
Bury Relics 0 – 0 Wakefield

Bury Relics vs. Bolton
Both teams have a blue kit, so Bury put on Orange Bibs, to visually differentiate the teams. I made the very funny joke that a Bib was very appropriate for Keith B 😊. Not to be outdone by the superb whit and humour, Nikon Nev then announced this should be called a “Lancashire Hot Pot” of a derby. OK, so it was. The Relics get the game underway, with a good number of passes, until Bolton tackle the ball out of play. Keith B plays a nice kick-in, finds Mark T and he plays in Wayne for a shot, who hits it low and hard, but the keeper makes the save. Then disaster strikes, as their #7 scores a quality goal, the finish that is. From a Relics perspective, it was poor as possession was lost in midfield and their #7 had enough space, about 5 yards outside the area, to be unchallenged in the shot. However, at this distance, only a quality hit would beat Bob, and it was a great strike, low and across the goal, just out of reach of Bob’s agile dive and into the far corner. A great goal for Bolton, who were now ahead 1-0. Then a chance for the Relics, Keith B moves into space by side-stepping his marker and takes a snap shot that just goes wide. A nice effort. Then it’s the Relics knocking on the door again; this time Keith B receives the ball from a smart Pete S pass, and he crosses to Keith H, who makes half a yard of space, to hit a shot that just goes wide of the left-hand post. Another good Relics effort. Now a trench warfare develops between both teams, and they both try and deny either team time and space, with quick closing down, with a couple of free-kicks won by ricochets that when overhead. Bolton were beginning to dominate this battle, and were making some long-range powerful shots. These were potentially dangerous shots, but luckily not on target. Relics players were putting their bodies on the line, by blocking Bolton shots. One excellent block was executed by Pete S, who swiftly closed down the striker, who was set up to shoot from a Bolton free-kick. Then there came the second disaster of the game. At first, I thought Bob had played superbly, by denying two shots on goal by Bolton. Bob bravely put his body in the way of a howitzer of a shot, that rebounded out for the striker to follow up. He did so, but all of a sudden, the Ref blew his whistle as he had spotted a Relics foot had strayed into the area; it was a penalty to Bolton. The #7 striker stepped up and hit the penalty pretty centrally, to see the ball ripple the net as Bob had gambled and dived to his right. There was good power on the penalty, so Bob had little chance and it was 2-0 to Bolton. From the centre, Relics win a kick-in, which Mark T takes to perfection, playing the ball over to Keith B, who takes a pace forward and hits it firs time. Unfortunately, the connection is not clean and the ball spins up and harmlessly away. On another day, that could have been a great goal, and the set up by Mark was quick and incisive, and Keith had moved and gained a bit of space to smartly finish. Unlucky, and concluded the first half. Bolton try and catch the Relics out, with a shot from the second half start, but it’s well blocked. Then from the resulting play, Bob makes a good save from their striker, who hits a hard shot that Bob gets behind. Then a good bit of play by Keith H, who gets the ball and cleverly bamboozles and turns away from the defender to get a shot away but it is saved and out for a corner. Keith B then does a good bit of play, by anticipating a Bolton pass out of defence and intercepting it. There appears a chance to shoot but he elects to pass and the opportunity fizzles out. However, it was an alert interception. Then it’s a hard shot from Bolton in midfield, that Bob nearly breaks his wrist on, and the save takes it out for a corner to Bolton. The attack breaks down when Mark T makes a tackle that normally is not allowed, by poking the ball from between an opponents legs. This gives Mark a chance to shoot, which he does and wins a corner off the keepers save. From then on, Bolton manage the game by passing around and by minimizing any Bury possession. The games finishes in a 2-0 loss.
Bury Relics 0 – 2 Bolton

Bury Relics vs. Ribble Valley
Bury kick off and manage a seven or eight pass move before Ribble intercept, they move forward and create a chance to shoot; Bob is alert and makes the save by getting his body behind it, a good save. Then, what is becoming a signature Relics move for the day, the ball is played up-front by John H, who finds Keith H. He bides his time and waits for Wayne to move forward into space. Keith plays the pass and Wayne whacks it first time, that the Ribble goalie has to save down to his left-hand post. Then comes an impressive goal by Ribble. From an interception by their #10, the ball is crossed to their #7 striker, who has his back to goal and is marked by a Relics defender. As the ball comes to him, he flicks the ball up, does 3 keepie uppies, and moves the ball wide of his defender, then to volley, low passed a diving Bob. What an exquisite goal that was! If that was in the premier league, it will be a contender for goal of the season. Mark T is in the wars again, as he’s pushed into the Relics area; there was no question of it being a penalty but fans were wondering if that was a foul count against the Ribble. Nice play by the Relics, keeping possession whilst being harassed by the Ribble players. This ends with a good shot from a long way out by Pete S, but it’s just too high. Then out of nothing, the ball is quickly played forward to the edge of the Relics area, with plenty of pace on it. It looks like their #7 can’t reach it, but he puts his afterburners on with big strides and manages to reach the ball. He toe-pokes a shot passed an on-rushing Bob into the net, to make it 2-0 to the Ribble. The second half gets underway as in the Bolton game, with the opposition trying to catch Bury asleep, by taking a shot straight from the kick-off. Bob makes the save but the shot was overhead in any case. Then, its superb battling by Mark T as the game resumes, he wins the ball in midfield and feeds Wayne for a shot, who shoots but it’s saved. Then it’s sensational play by the Relics; Mark T takes a precision corner, perfectly finding Keith B in a bit of space. He takes a step forwards, adjusts his sights and lets fly with a hard and low shot to the keepers right. The keeper gets a hand on it, but the shot is powerful and accurate enough to score; the Relics are back in it at 2-1. An awesome goal for Keith B and the Relics. Nikon Nev was so amazed, he had stopped taking photographs so that he could take in the small moment of history. However, back to reality as we were still tailing. More good Relics passing finds Mark T up front, and he decides to start to playing chess with the Ribble defence. He holds onto the ball for about thirty seconds but without moving more than a foot in any direction, waiting for a defender to commit.  Eventually, Mark T elects to turn and shoot, but it’s a hair’s breadth wide. That was close, and the best chance Relics had to score in the final moments of the game.
Bury Relics 1 – 2 Ribble Valley

From three games, the Relics earned a point but in my small opinion, that did not reflect the moments of good play the Relics produced. The Relics did have shots but aside from Keith B’s goal, many of them were either off target or not powerful enough to put the opponent’s keeper in trouble. All the games were pretty even, with the critical difference being the finishing by other teams. I have heard people say, it’s not easy to score in the Heywood league, and I agree with that. On another day, with better shots, Bury Relics could easily have gained more than a point. As a fan and spectator, I enjoyed the games, a positive and competitive spirit from the team and staff. Well done, Relics.

Thanks, and well done to all the players: Bob Cat (gk), Keith H, John H, Peter S, Mark T, Keith B and Wayne G. And to the manager and all the staff: Ken and Keith S. Thanks to Nikon Nev for his photos. Report by Dr. John.

Bury Relics over 60’s team come into the new season fresh from competing in the Martin Dawson Trophy competition at the weekend. There they reached the semi-finals of the Plate Trophy, and most of that team were the same players as in todays team. In a small quirk of fate, the team to knock out the Relics at the weekend, were the first opponents for today; could the Relics reap revenge? So not to disappoint anyone reading this report, I can say the weather for this set of fixtures was overcast, and it rained part way through the second game against Preston but it was not for long. The traffic was also clear, so getting to Heywood Sports Village was smooth. Can the Relics win promotion back into the first division? Here is the report of the first round of fixtures.

Bury vs. Bolton
Prior to KO, there was a discussion regarding the firmness of the match ball, and after some deliberation, Bury’s own match ball was used. From the kick-off, Bolton were keeping possession, passing around the team but all in their own half. They were passing cautiously and measured, before passing the ball forward, with the ball just evading the Bolton forward and through to Eddy. Bury then passed around themselves before Bolton managed to intercept it. A lightening pass, across the pitch, is intercepted by Keith S, but there is a gasp from the Bury players, as he makes a hefty slice contact and it goes out for a corner. He will say, “simmer down lads, I had it all under control”, but the power in the pass meant his clearance would have been difficult to save if on target. Bolton, from the resulting corner, play it across the box and the striker shoots and Eddy makes a smart save, low down to his left. Bury then string some passes together, involving Terry, Ian and Alan, with the latter taking a shot at the end of the move, but for the Bolton keeper to save. Then it’s the Relics again, as they attack and pass around the Bolton area, to force a corner. From the corner evolves a nice, multiple passing move that crescendos in a Terry shot from a long way out on the right. The keeper makes the save and the Relics have another corner. That was excellent football. Bolton try and reply, by taking the ball down the other end, and feeding their #9. He tries to bamboozle Ian, but he stands firm, refusing to commit or give up any space for a Bolton shot. In the end, #9 does get a shot away, but all the power is absorbed by both Terry and Ian, and the ball runs harmlessly away to Eddy in goal. Bury now attack, with Graham getting the ball from a long Eddy throw-out, who passes out left to Terry, who quickly returns the pass in a 1-2 move, and Graham takes a shot, but it’s just too high. Nice try though. Now, Bolton enjoy a spell of attacking pressure, and only good blocks by Alan, Keith S and Terry prevent clear shots from Bolton. Then comes the spectacular moment of the game, from a Bury point of view; more specifically, it was an awesome save by Eddy. Their striker takes on a Bury defender and finds enough space to hit a low and powerful shot across the goal, from right to left looking at the goal. It’s a certain goal, that is until a flash of Orange, like a Patriot missile intercepting a Skud, Eddy flies across the goal and with a strong hand, diverts the ball wide of the goal to give a corner. A great save at any level of football. From the corner, Bolton create another chance but this time it’s off target. Keith S then showcases his drag back skills, to get himself out of trouble, and play the ball to Alan, who feeds Ian, who is now one-on-one and just outside the area. The Bolton keeper had read the danger and had sped to the edge of the area, skidding on his side, just in front of Ian. Ian shoots against the keeper, and the ball goes wide and for a corner. That was a big chance for the Relics. Another Relics move finds Graham with his back to goal, and a smart turn gives him the opportunity to shoot, but it lacked the power to beat the keeper. Then the decisive moment. From a Bolton free-kick, the defense is not organized enough, and a Bolton player receives the ball, and pushes it passed the last Relics defender, he then chases the ball, and toe-bungs it passed a stranded Eddy, who made a good effort to save it. It all happened in a flash and it could be the defence was not properly ready from the free-kick. In any case, there was no revenge and the result was a 1 – 0 win to Bolton.
Result; Bury Relics 0 – 1 Bolton

Bury vs. Preston
The first action of the game is some smart skills by their #7, who zig-zags around a couple of Relics players in midfield, he shows good skill but then loses the ball. Graham retrieves possession but is then tackled from behind by the same #7 player. Preston regain possession after Bury’s free-kick and from the back, make a cracker of a shot. The ball is struck from just past the halfway line by Ray, who catches it nicely and the thunderbolt of a shot hits the top corner of cross-bar and post, making the goal shake (see pics below). That was very close to Relics conceding a goal. The Relics reply by playing the ball to Graham, who does his trademark turn and shot, but this time with not enough power to beat the keeper, but a decent effort nonetheless. Preston, like Bolton in the previous game, are playing measured and accurately out from the back, but without being too dangerous. Ian and Graham are interchanging passes, and Graham plays Ian in, but the pass is just a bit too hard, and that means Ian has to put on the turbos to reach the ball, and shoots wide. The ref decided it was running in any case. Their midfielder tries a Robina type pass after dispossessing Graham, and though it looks good to the eye, his bearings are wrong and it just goes straight out of play. From the kick-in, Relics win a free-kick but this comes to nothing. On the next Preston attack, Relics manage to intercept and play in Ian on a break-away move, but alas, Ian had been adjudged to have run. Bury then create a chance for Terry, who comes forward from the back and connects powerfully with Grahams set up pass, but the ball flies past the left-hand post. Nice effort and great power on the shot. Then the Relics produce another good attacking move, this time Graham showing great tenacity by winning the ball from a Preston defender, holding him off, and then passing the ball to Alan, who meets the ball first time and shoots; it’s a high and dipping shot, that just clears the bar. Their keeper probably would not have saved that, and it would have been on goal of the month if this was the premier league; a great effort by Alan. Preston then win a free-kick just passed the halfway line, which was played to Ray, who takes a sharp and low shot, just wide of the left-hand post; that was a close chance for Preston. Ian then comes out of defence on the left side and passes cross-field to Alan, but unfortunately, there is too much on the pass and it evades Alan. A couple more chances for the Relics, the ball comes to Ian, who dummies a defender and takes it wide of him, and shoots. The keeper saves but the rebound comes out to Graham, but it is just out of his reach, so he has to put some speed on to reach it. The ref is OK with it, and Graham takes a shot that whistles wide. The game ends all square at 0–0.
Result; Bury Relics 0 – 0 Preston

Bury vs. Carlisle
Carlisle win the toss and Kick-off, who immediately go on the attack and carve out a good chance. They manage to find a man free on the edge of the box, and the player tries to take a quick shot, trying to catch Eddy off guard but that quickness means he scuffs the effort weakly and the ball rolls to Eddy. The pass out from Eddy finds Graham up-front, who holds the ball momentarily until support arrives in the form of Ian, on the left. Graham makes the pass to Ian, who hits it first time, the keeper does make the save but in an unorthodox fashion, with his feet. Carlisle reply with an attack of their own, finding their #6 in an advanced position. He shoots and Eddy gets a touch on it, onto the post and away for a corner. The subsequent move from the corner is a good one by Carlisle, incisive. The ball is played quickly from the corner, out to the middle of the goal, and the striker moves quickly towards the ball, hitting it first time, but fortunately for the Relics, it goes way over the bar and clears the back fence. Although off target, that was a sharp corner that could have led to a Carlisle goal. Carlisle continue pressing and win a free-kick, which they play to their #3, who strikes it hard but again too high. Again, Carlisle win back possession and force Eddy into another save, going out for a corner. The corner by Carlisle is again good, quick and leads to a shot but this time wide, and his foot was in the box anyway. The Relics go on the attack down the right-hand side, and a smart pass from Terry finds Alan up ahead. Alan speculatively passes square without looking, hoping that Graham was taking that space, but the ball transversed the pitch and out of play. Alan’s involved again, taking a foul and winning a free-kick, which is laid back to Keith S, who smashes it goalwards but ricochets off a defender, and puts Carlisle back on the attack. This breakaway leads to a Carlisle shot but the dependable Eddy saves with his feet. Carlisle come close again, when the defence plays up to their #3 who sharply turns and hits a crisp shot, that is only millimeters wide. Then a moment of controversy when Graham uses his skill and guile to bamboozle the last defender and get a yard free of him. The defender is tall and starts to fall onto Graham, who sees this in the corner of his eye, and as a consequence, Graham deflects the defender with his palms. However, the final outcome is the chance for the Relics to score has passed and Relics players and supporters are crying “Penalty”. However, the Ref gives a foul against Graham for using his hands in an act of self-preservation. Then the Relics produce some fantastic football in the final moments, by first intercepting Carlisle and then making multiple passes around the team, finally arriving at Terry’s feet, who shoots just wide of the goal. A tough game and probably a fair result, a 0–0 draw.
Result; Bury Relics 0 – 0 Carlisle

Bury vs. Blackpool
Bury get the game underway and put together a 5 pass move that ends up with Ian getting a shot away but it was blocked. Then Blackpool make an all-out attack, with plenty of movement, and lay siege on the Relics goal for a couple of minutes, whilst leaving Graham in space 2 yards past the halfway line. Blackpool get intercepted by a good challenge, and Graham is set free, latching onto a long pass, taking long strides, so not to get caught running. He reaches the ball as it approaches the Blackpool penalty area; the goalie has moved out to the edge of it to confront Graham, making his frame as big as possible. The best place to put the ball is through his open legs, and Graham obliges by toe-poking the ball straight through the goal keepers legs and into the goal. Hooray and clapping are heard from the sidelines, the Relics have scored to make it 1-0, a good early lead in this game. Blackpool, from the kick-off, make good moves forward with nice passing interchanges between 2 players but ends up being intercepted by the Relics. Graham and Ian produce a one-two and move the Relics forward but a last-ditch tackle prevents a Relics shot. Blackpool play the ball forward and win a free-kick from a tackle from behind. Blackpool try to unravel the Relics defence with quick and incisive passing, but they did not count on “The Wall”! No, not the Pink Floyd record but the brick wall that is Keith S; he uses his quick reflexes and sublime anticipation to intercept a Blackpool pass, and then finds himself surrounded by 2 Blackpool attackers. He keeps his cool, like Clint Eastwood in a Spaghetti Western duel, and hammers the ball at full power against one of the Blackpool attackers. So not only does he cleverly intercept and stop dead in its tracks, the Blackpool attack, he also plays the ball out of play, off an opponent, so that the Relics keep possession. Superb play, nobody’s getting pass “The Wall”. Then after that heroic passage of play, disaster nearly strikes. A loose pass back from attack by the Relics is intercepted by their #7, who is quick to push the ball wide of his marking defender, and hit a shot across Eddy’s goal. Luckily for the Relics, it goes past the far post and out for a goal-kick. Then, wow, another let-off! The Relics contrive to loose the ball near the edge of their own area, probably due to fatigue, and Blackpool have a chance to equalize; the Relics ride their luck again as Blackpool end up messing up the chance. That was 2 let-offs in quick succession. Then Graham receives the ball, facing the opponents goal, with a defender in front of him, and decides to try a Messi type run, weaving left and right, trying to bamboozle the defender. He does so for the first few swerves but eventually, the defender toes the ball to another Blackpool player, who promptly plays it forward to an unmarked attacker, who moves forward and shoots wide. Extraordinary! That was now 3x lucky let-offs. Unperturbed, the Relics persist in their attacking, and Ian creates some space for himself on the left-hand side and crosses, trying to find Graham, but alas, it is not close enough to Graham to be dangerous. The game ends with Bury winning 1-0, a good result from a great game to watch. Blackpool will probably think they should have won it, as they had 3 or 4 good chances to score, and missed all of them, whereas the Relics had 1 really good chance, and they scored. A thoroughly entertaining game.
Result; Bury Relics 1 – 0 Blackpool

That was a good and steady start for the Relics team, they fought hard on the day. It is noteworthy that Bury are now competing in division 2 this season, but the difference between the quality of teams between divisions 1 and 2 is minimal. All the teams had good players and all produced good football during todays games. So well done Bury.

Thanks, and well done to all the players: Eddie (gk), Keith S, Alan, Ian, Graham, Terry and Tony G (sub). And to the manager and all the staff: Ken, Keith S and Keiren. Thanks to Kodak Keith for the photos. Report by Dr. John.

Photos