MATCH: Daisy Hill v Ramsbottom United
VENUE: New Sirs, St James Street, Westhoughton, BL5 2EB
COMPETITION: Pre-season friendly
DATE: Saturday 17th July 2021
KICK-OFF: 3.00pm
DISTANCE FROM RAMMY: 21 miles, 28 minutes
TICKETS:
Pay on the gate at Daisy Hill FC. Adults £4, concessions £2, Under 18s £2, Under 12s FREE (with paying adult)
OVERVIEW:
It is the start of a busy week for the Rams with four pre-season friendlies in eight days, commencing with Saturday’s visit to old friends Daisy Hill for our third warm-up for the season. With the fixtures for the Northern Premier League West Division announced during the week, everything has become real that football is on its way back and, hopefully, things returning to something like normality as we edge just four weeks away from the first game away at City of Liverpool on August 14.
But first of all, it’s Daisy Hill on Saturday followed by Irlam on Tuesday night, Prestwich Heys on Thursday before the gates of the Harry Williams Riverside Stadium swing open for the first time as we welcome North West Counties League outfit Bury AFC – and they will be on the ‘Rammy Rattler’!!!!
HISTORY:
Daisy Hill are in the North West Counties League Division One North, a division they have occupied since 2018/19 having been in Division One from 2008/09 and the North West Counties going all the way back to 1982/83 – in which time they have remained competitive but never in the hunt for promotion.
The last time that we played ‘The Cutters’ in a competitive match was back in December 2010 when the Rams came away with a 4-1 home victory in the NWCFL League Cup Round 2 but the one before that is a game that many Rammy supporters will not forget … because it suffered ELEVEN postponements due to the weather! It was a LFA Trophy game in mid-December 2008 (eventually) where 25 hardy souls watched in horrendous conditions the Rams progress 2-0 with goals from Mark Westhead and Jon Stephenson.
We haven’t met in the league since 1997 and, in fact, have never lost to Daisy Hill in the nine competitive games to date, scoring 29 goals to the Daisy’s 5. And we met in pre-season in August 2017 as well – and returned from New Sirs with a 9-0 victory.
TEAM NEWS:
Once again, the trialists will be looking to impress the management, with them looking to build on the satisfactory 1-0 win over Silsden in midweek. It was encouraging to see some more familiar names named during that game with Jake Thompson scoring the goal that separated the side. Tom Kennedy, Richie Baker and Danny O’Brien were all in evidence as well for the game so the signs are looking very good ahead of the season commencing in four weeks time.
Kick-off is at 3pm once again and there will definitely be no issues with the weather like there was back in 2008!!!
