Usually, the over 70s squad is brimming with former players of the season, including John W, Tex, Jomo and Keiren T. However, none of those players and other regulars were available to assist the Relics in challenging for the division one title. The situation was similar in the last round of games but despite that, played well to give Relics an outside but genuine chance of the title. Relics were sat in 2nd place, 5 points adrift of top placed Corinthians. In contrast, the Relics were level with Rochdale, and could easily drop down to third. To project the context of a make-shift team, only the bare 6 players were available, with only Pat the Cat on emergency standby. The squad for the day consisted of Eddy (C), Gerry L, Ray, Bob, Keith B and Dave M, with emergency cover from Pat.

Bury Relics Over 70’s versus Tameside Striders Blues 70’s
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action that includes Gerry’s penalty, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 70’s 1 – 0 Tameside Striders Blues 70’s

Bury Relics Over 70’s versus Blackpool SS 70’s
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, the pinnacle being 81 yo Bob’s clinical finish, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 70’s 1 – 0 Blackpool SS 70’s

Bury Relics Over 70’s versus Manchester Corinthians 70’s
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 70’s 0 – 0 Manchester Corinthians 70’s

Bury Relics Over 70’s versus Rochdale AFC Strollers 70’s
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 70’s 0 – 0 Rochdale AFC Strollers 70’s

Bury played excellently, to attain 2x 1-0 wins and 2x goalless draws. The team on the day just gelled, and played some flowing pass and move football. With the exception of Corinthians, Relics created more chances to score in all games and the passing and understanding by everyone was outstanding. Even more so, considering it was a make-shift team. Bob’s goal was excellent, as Blackpool tried to take a quick free-kick to gain some space but it was a mistake, as Praying “BOB” Mantis read it precisely and pounced to flourish a fine finish into the roof of the net. Against Tameside, it was a 4-foul penalty, coolly dispatched by Gerry, to give Relics the other win. Eddy the Eagle was on form and kept shots out from Corinthians and Rochdale in particularly. All the players did brilliantly on the day and it was a good team performance. Well done Bury Relics over 70s!

The Greater Manchester Walking Football League is excellently organised and the presentation do that they put on after is enjoyable. The food was tremendous and it was a comedy moment when Bury players managed to win the first 3 Raffle prizes and 4 out of the 6 in total (Pat x2, Dave and Eddy all winning). Eddy was captain and had the privilege of picking up the runners up trophy (watch here). The management and staff, guided and gave the team lots of support: Ken Bug, Keiren T, Keith S and Pat. Report by Dr. John and photos by Kodak Keith.

Pictures

Bury Relics Over 70’s went into their third set of fixtures of the Greater Manchester Division 1 Walking Football Spring league campaign still struggling to fill the squad with Tex, Gerry, Tony and Woggy all unavailable. The fit members of the squad were Eddy (GK), Dave M, Keith B, Peter, Bob, JoMo, Ray (making his debut) with Pat on standby, if absolutely necessary, but who went unused, with Keith as Manager.

Another solid day resulted in a 1-0 win, 2 nil-nil draws and a 1-0 loss which leaves us 5 points behind Corinthians in equal second with Rochdale and 3 points in front of Tameside with Blackpool adrift a further 11 points behind them. The Runners-Up Trophy is definitely a possibility although it will be hard-fought on the final day with top spot now only a very outside chance.

First up were Tameside with Keith starting on the bench. Ray added a new dimension with his ability to hit a fierce left foot shot increasing our shot count from the get go. We played good football which resulted in 3 good shots from Ray, all on target and well saved by their keeper. Peter, who was having to play far more forward than normal, had a great turn and shot from a JoMo throughball which their goalie again saved. Tameside were contained by quality defending by Bob and Dave and we looked a lot more confident and comfortable than in Match week 2 when injuries crippled us. A good performance by us for a 0-0.

Next up were Blackpool with Peter starting on the bench. We dominated possession and our forward trio of Ray, JoMo and Keith worked well together. Ray had already had a good shot at the start of the match before JoMo found him with a nice pass, which he controlled well, before shimmying past the defender and firing low across the keeper into the bottom left hand corner. For once we then kept the ball expertly and pushed forward to see out a very good win with more shots from JoMo, Keith and Ray. The only downside in our 1-0 win was a late tumble for Ray which aggravated a pre existing rib injury.

Third up were league leaders’ Corinthians with Keith starting on the bench. Last time out they absolutely battered us but this time the game was completely even as both teams cancelled each other out. No chances were created and it was the tale of two penalties: they scored but we missed to see them emerge victorious 1-0.

Our final match v Rochdale, saw Peter on the bench. We started well, stroking the ball about for a 30 pass move but then the game became frantic as both team pushed for a goal. Again few chances were created and the best of them fell to the Strollers but Eddy made a great save, even better after a morning of mostly inaction for him, to keep the game scoreless. Three 0-0s in a row between these 2 teams who cannot be separated in the table even on goal difference. This sets up these 2 to play off in the final game of the season in what could well be a winner takes 2nd place game.

Report by Motherwell Ian and Photos by Kodak Keith H.

Photos

11th April 2024
Bury Relics Over 60 Stripes went into their second set of fixtures of the Greater Manchester Division 4 Walking Football Spring league campaign handily placed after a good first round in a very closely contested Division. The members of the squad were Eddy (GK), Mark T, Steve, Ken, Mike, Iain D, Nev and Andy. Ken was Manager, Keiran as Assistant Manager plus Kodak Keith & several supporters in attendance on a dry day. A strong defensive day resulted in a 1-0 win followed by 4 nil-nils which are the 2 most usual results in a 6 team league with 12 minute matches.

First up were Salcom with Ken & Nev starting on the bench. A very tight game with few shots but a great deal of running from both sides as they both wanted to get off to a fast start. Our best chance came after a great move between Andy and Iain set up Steve striding up from the back with a shooting chance from 10 yards which rattled the post after a fierce strike. Eventually, Salcom hit the 4 foul mark before us which gave us a penalty. Andy coolly put it away with aplomb to put us in the driving seat. We saw out the game sitting on 3 fouls which was a nerve racking watch for those on the sidelines but a 1-0 win was happily taken by all.

Next up were Wakefield with Andy and Steve as subs. We had the majority of the possession with Nev taking up Andy’s usual forward position and he was involved in our best 2 moves. Firstly, linking up well with Iain to put Mike in a good position but the keeper saved well and then slipping the ball into Ken’s path who agonisingly drove it across the face of the goal just sliding past the post. We did have the odd defensive lapses leaving their player free on the left but he kept shooting wide. We slightly shaded it but 0-0 was a fairish result.

Third up were Roach with Mike and Mark starting on the bench. We started like a house on fire, dominating possession and stroking the ball around. Nev had a good shot which was followed by Ken hitting the post after walking onto a great pass from Iain. Andy was taking up good position, controlling balls into feet and helping us get up the pitch but after 2 highly controversial 50/50 decisions going against him he had to be replaced by Mike. This adversely affected us and we never got back into the same flow plus we were scared of drawing more fouls. A 0-0 draw felt like 2 points dropped.

The penultimate game was against Ribble Valley with Ken and Nev as subs. As often happens our opponents dominated possession but Steve and Mark defended manfully and it turned into a poor, scrappy game. We only had one chance of note when Andy had a shot on the turn. Eddy dealt with all their shots comfortably and another 0-0 ensued.

Our final match saw us take on Bolton with Ken and Mark starting on the bench. Another tight game with Iain firing in 3 good shots and Mike having a good shot well saved after a typical mazy run. Bolton finished strongly with Eddy making a strong save with his foot and then they hit the inside of the post from a well worked corner move. A goalless draw again.

Overall, it was 7 well earned points which took the Stripes to equal top of the table with Ribble on 16 points but 3 goals worse off, at the halfway point of the season.

For a change there was no rain and wind at Heywood, and conditions were very promising for playing football. The Whites last time out, produced two points from draws and sat forth in the table of five teams at the beginning of play. The team sheet looked strong but had to account for the absence of Keith “The Wall” S, who was away negotiating a potential lucrative transfer to Tenerife Tornados. In his place was the man with the biggest pockets in the league, that of Pete Shev, who was chosen to fill in for The Wall. The full team was as follows: Gaz (GK), Graham (C), Motherwell Ian, Kevin A, Ian Mac, Paul W and Big Pockets Pete. Team manager was Ken Bug, and coaching staff of Keiren T and Sir Pat. A program of 4 matches began with Bolton and here’s what happened…

Bury Relics over 60’s versus Bolton Wanderers Blues
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the highlights, click-here.
Bury Relics Whites 0-0 Bolton Wanderers Blues

Bury Relics Whites versus Wakefield Wanderers
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the highlights, click-here.
Bury Relics Whites 0-0 Wakefield Wanderers

Bury Relics Whites versus Kingsmaid
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the highlights, click-here.
Bury Relics Whites 0-0 Kingsmaid

Bury Relics Whites versus Fleetwood Town Flyer
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the highlights, click-here.
Bury Relics Whites 0-0 Fleetwood Town Flyers

What a day of scintillating football action, particularly the games with Kingsmaid and Fleetwood. Against Kingsmaid, there was a spell where the Relics goal was under siege from a dogged and determined team, where they marked everyone up as Gaz was trying to distribute the ball. There were no easy pass-outs for him. Also in this game was a dubious penalty to Kingsmaid, that was given for denying a goal scoring chance, and a blue card. Even VAR may have overturned that one. The luck was with Bury however, as the striker hit a powerful penalty onto the post and wide, and Bury played very well with a man down for the next 10 minutes. Against Fleetwood, it was an amazing game, where both teams could have won it. Gaz played a pin-point pass to Motherwell Ian in acres of space down the right, and his shot was spilt by the keeper but to the wrong side of the post for Bury. Then Graham got past the last defender to have his shot superbly saved by the Fleetwood keeper. In between Bury’s chances, was a battle raging on between the tall Fleetwood Striker with Pete and Gaz in goal. A combination of determined defending by Pete, some good saves by Gaz and the post kept Bury in it and managed to survive the lethal fire power of the striker. Bury played well, and made a number of chances to score today but shots were either wide or saved, so they were not just hanging on in games, they played some good football. However, the quality of teams and play in this league is high and the videos show that. At the end of todays fixtures, Bury are bottom of the league on six points but only two behind Kingsmaid and 4 behind Fleetwood; could be a relegation battle brewing. Comedy moment was Kingsmaid pushing Kevin in the area. Bury Relics played well today. A good support of Ken Bo, Watford Mark and John W amongst others. Report by Dr. John.

Magnificent 7 passes (click-here)
Seven passes of the day that I liked:
1) Graham’s first time and one-touch pass, with the outside of his foot, to Ian Mac was excellent.
2) Kingsmaid’s #6 gets the ball on the wing and instantly plays it across to a striker in space.
3) Motherwell Ian’s nimble feet take out 2 Fleetwood defenders to get the ball to Ian Mac bearing down on goal.
4) My favourite. Ian Mac has Brazillian DNA! He plays a backheel-nutmeg pass up to Graham up-front.
5) Gaz threads the eye of a needle to find Motherwell Ian in acres of space on the right.
6) Fleetwood left back splits the Relics defence with a delicious ball; the striker hits first time.
7) A good example of how to play a one-two-three pass by Fleetwood.

April 2024 fixtures
Bury Relics Over 70’s went into their second set of fixtures of the Greater Manchester Division 1 Walking Football Spring league campaign unable to field 6 properly match fit players due to England duty (Tex), hospital duty (Gerry) and injury. The fit members of the squad were Eddy (GK), Dave M, Keith B and Peter. Those playing with fitness concerns were Woggy (knee), Bob (leg) and JoMo (leg) with Pat (ill) on standby, if absolutely necessary, but who went unused.

Ken was Manager, Keiran as Assistant Manager plus Kodak Keith & several supporters in attendance on a rain-soaked day. A battling day resulted in 4 nil-nils which everyone would have taken at the start of the day as it keeps us in the Title hunt.

First up were Tameside with Peter starting on the bench.  A very tight game with the Striders only having 1 shot and Relics having just two: a run (walk) and shot from JoMo and a Woggy shot after a clever 1-2 with JoMo. A deserved 0-0 for both teams.

Next up were Blackpool with Dave starting on the bench.  We dominated possession and had 8 good shots from Bob, Woggy, JoMo and Keith but their stand in keeper had an outstanding game keeping us at bay with the pick of his saves being a full length dive to tip a fiercely struck drive from Keith, heading into the top corner, over the apex of bar and post. Eddy didn’t touch the ball so the 0-0 finish felt like 2 points dropped.

Third up were Corinthians with Bob starting on the bench.  Virtually immediately JoMo pulled up and had to be replaced by Bob in midfield. We fought a rearguard action of the highest order as we survived 12 shots with Eddy keeping us in the game. We didn’t have a shot and only got into their half 3 times but produced a magnificent display of defensive football. All the players deserve credit but special mention must go to Woggy who took on the responsibility of holding the ball whilst we had possession and giving the rest of our players respite from the offensive pressure we were under. This 0-0 felt like a win but, more importantly, it deprived an excellent Corinthians team the full 3 points.

Our final match v Rochdale, saw Pat make the bench as JoMo unable to continue.

By this stage we were really struggling with our 2 midfielders , Bob and Woggy, hirpling with injury. The game plan was do not lose. Another very close match in which  we again had no shots but managed to restrict the Strollers to only 1 shot which Eddy dealt with comfortably. Another deserved 0-0 for both teams.

Overall, it was 4 hard earned points which set us up for the 2nd half of the season which hopefully will see better injury news as the top 4 teams in the league are all fighting for the Championship.

14 points Corinthians
12 points Bury Relics
11 points Rochdale AFC Strollers
10 points Tameside Striders Blues
2 points Blackpool SS

Photos

If global warming is true, then in the distant future Manchester will be a valuable city as it has plenty of water; Yes! It’s raining again. Although the Stripes just missed out on promotion in the Autumn by finishing runners up, a quirk of fate promoted Stripes to division 4 anyway because of a league re-structure. The new division 4 consists of 6 teams. However, on the day, another circumstance meant that 5 out of the 6 teams had a walk-over victory as Dynamo Roach were a no-show. The first game of the new season was against Salcom.

Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes versus Salcom
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action that includes Andy Van R’s penalty, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes 1 – 0 Salcom


Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes versus Wakefield Wanderers Whites
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes 0 – 0 Wakefield Wanderers Whites


Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes versus Ribble Valley WFC
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes 0 – 0 Ribble Valley WFC


Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes versus Bolton Arena
To watch the full game, click-here.

To see the best of the action, including Eddy’s last-minute penalty save, click-here.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes 0 – 0 Bolton Arena


Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes versus Roach Dynamos
A walkover 1 – 0 win to Bury.
Final Result; Bury Relics Over 60’s Stripes 1 – 0 Roach Dynamos

This was a very good start for the Stripes, who at the end of day 1, are joint top of the league, just behind Ribble on goal difference. In all of the games aside from Ribble, the Stripes were in control and the better team, with only goals from open play missing. The Stripes played good football throughout, making several chances to score and also marking opponents while defending. Andy Van R’s penalty against Salcom was perfectly placed high into the net, and Mark E hit the post on 2 occasions with clever strikes. Mark T and Steve H had strong games in defence, while Ken B, Iain and Mike, all produced good attacking play and had decent shots. The importance of a good keeper was evident on the day, with Salcom’s keeper saving a shot from Iain, and immediately after, saving Andy Van R’s follow up shot with his legs. Wakefield’s keeper saved a Stripes penalty and Eddy made several good saves against Ribble, and 2 notable saves against Bolton. The first was when their striker made space for himself and took a fierce shot. Eddy saved but the rebounded ball resulted in an area infringement. For the resulting penalty, Eddy made a magnificent save to preserve a clean sheet for the day. This was a strong start for the Relics Stripes, where all players made a good contribution. If they can keep this level of performance up, they have a good chance of promotion. Well-done Stripes.

Team and management: Eddy (GK and C), Andy Van R, Mark T, Mike B, Iain D, Fast Ken B, Mark E and Steve H. Manager Ken B, and staff of Keiren and Keith S. Supporters included Nev, Watford Mark and Motherwell Ian. Keith H took the team photos and report by Dr. John.

Photos