Photos from the final

This is a photo of the Cowshed end at Prenton Park, taken during the warm up

More warming up in the Wirral sunshine, with the Johnny King stand in the background

Oyster Martyrs warm up in front of the impressive Kop stand, which proved to be a lucky omen for them, as they scored the game's only goal at that end of the ground

The FA dignitaries are introduced to both teams, staring with Paddock

Paddock defend an Oyster free kick on the edge of the 18 yard box. Oyster danger man Leighton McGivern is closely marked (he is the only blue shirted player in the D)

Paddock now on the attack with a free kick of their own in front of the Cowshed end

Paddock keep possession despite the close attention of the Oyster defence and midfield

Quarter Final Photos

The following ground and action photos were taken on the 20th of February at the 5th round game between Mariners and Duke of Yorkwhich was played at the Liverpool County FA ground at Walton Hall Park

As you can see, the LFA ground boasts an impressive stand and floodlights. They very kindly offered to stage the game for free, as a reward for three of their sides reaching the quarter finals. The LFA drew lots to decide which side would play there and Mariners name was drawn first - however, thats where their luck ended, as they lost 2-1 to Duke of York

There are two identical grounds at Walton Hall. The near side is used more frequently than the ground furthest away, which is used for Liverpool Schools FA games. Photos of the various Liverpool School sides adorn the club house and I managed to pick out a young Steven Gerrard and Steve McManaman amongst the many successful teams

Mariners of the Ormskirk and District league (wearing the Barcelona FC replica kit) depend a Duke of York corner.

This time it's Duke of York from the Northamptonshire Combination's turn to defend a Mariners corner, at the opposite end of the ground

This photo perfectly illustrates the flat, wide playing surface of this ground. The pitch is in very good condition, bearing in mind the awful winter weather we had that caused so many postponements.

FA Sunday Cup photos

I bought a digital camera at Christmas and decided to take some ground and action photos from the Sunday Cup games that I've been to this year.

Being somewhat of a technophobe and possessing only the most basic of photography 'skills', it's taken me until now to get around to uploading them from the camera, deciding which photos to use and updating the blog with the results!

Having found it to be a refreshingly easy and straightforward process, I will endeavour to take more photos next season and include some in the match report for that game.

The following photos are from the 3rd round game between Huddersfield Irish Centre and Oyster Martyrs, which was played on the 9th of January. Oyster won 5-3 and gained revenge over the Irish who beat them at the same stage in the previous season.

I'll add some more photos from other games (including the final) shortly.

This photo is of the main stand at Newton FC, on the Wirral, which is where the fixture was played, following two postponements in West Yorkshire.

Oyster dangerman Leighton McGivern (Green and White Hopes, No 10) ran the Irish backline ragged in the first half. In an extremely impressive display, he was simply unplayable and his performance is as good as any player I have seen in over 25 years of watching this competition.

Leighton McGivern (standing furthest on the left) lines up the direct free kick which will give Oyster the lead after just ten minutes of play. McGivern had recently signed for local Conference North outfit Vauxhall Motors and has scored 10 goals for The Motormen since January.

Taken a few seconds later, following McGivern's wonder strike which flew past Graham McLachlan in the Irish goal.

Oyster manager, Richie Rooney (stood on the touchline), is an interested specator, as Oyster soak up some late Irish pressure.

The Final Verdict

Oyster Martyrs deservedly won the Sunday Cup at Prenton Park with a close fought victory over their local rivals Paddock.

After a largely uninspired first half, where chances were restricted to long range free kicks, the game belatedly sprang to life in the 75th minute, when a throw in from the left was headed on at the near post and found prolific marksman Leighton McGivern, whose low shot nestled in to the bottom left hand corner of the goal. You have to feel sorry for Paddock keeper Robert O’Connor, whose view of McGivern’s shot was obscured by his own defenders, thus giving him no chance of making a save.

Oyster came close to doubling their lead two minutes later, when a vicious shot from Graham Rooney was turned over by O’Connor. A header from Oyster Captain Tony Rendell, from the resulting corner, was headed off the line, as Oyster went for the kill.

Paddock’s best effort came with only 5 minutes remaining, when after a short spell of pressure, a shot from the edge of the penalty box sailed just wide of the Oyster goal.

A crude attempt to win a penalty from Paddock’s semi final hero Jamie Henders in the dying minutes was deserving of a yellow card. However, referee Russell Booth resisted booking the big target man for his blatant dive!

For years now, I’ve wanted to travel to Merseyside to watch two Liverpool teams lock horns in this wonderful competition. Sadly, neither side was able to recapture the form that has between them, seen off the likes of Hetton Lyons, Huddersfield Irish Centre and Duke of York.

This was the first time I have watched Paddock and I feel they gave a poor showing of themselves today. I’m sure they are capable of better. As for Oyster, I have seen them 5 times over the past few years and I know they can play a lot better than I saw them yesterday.

Perhaps I’m being harsh on both sides, after all, the chance to play in such a final only falls to a small number of players and the occasion is bound to effect even the most experienced and skilful of players.

Man of the Match: Leighton McGivern

Attendance: 1,105

Oyster beat Paddock to lift Sunday Cup

A goal from Leighton McGivern late in the second half was enough to hand the FA Sunday Cup to Oyster Martyrs in a crowd of 1,105 at Tranmere Rovers this afternoon - full report to come later...

Ground breaking...

As the climax of this season’s competition approaches and as Prenton Park has been chosen as the final venue, I’ve decided to look back at previous games played there and at some of the other key grounds in the competition’s history.

Tranmere Rovers
Prenton Park became the first football league ground to stage the final back in 1981, when local side and reigning champions Fantail, beat Mackintosh of the Norwich and District league, by a goal to nil, to become the first team to successfully retain the Sunday Cup.

Four years later, there was another Merseyside and Norfolk final, as Avenue from the Birkenhead league met Hobbies United in a replay, following a 1-1 draw at Carrow Road. A 2-2 draw at Tranmere, took the final to an unprecedented third game at Nuneaton Borough, where Hobbies triumphed by 2 goals to 1.

Avenue were in action again at Tranmere the following season, when they beat Fantail Autex 3-1 in a semi final replay. This set up a final against Glenn Sports, with the Watford-based members of the South West Hertfordshire league travelling up to the Wirral for another Prenton Park final!

A crowd of 2,552 watched as a 47th minute Dave Thompson penalty was enough for the ‘home’ side to lift the trophy for their first and only victory.

After being selected to host four key games in six seasons, Tranmere had quickly become one of the most popular (and at the time, high profile) venues in the Sunday Cup’s history, so it’s somewhat surprising that they have had a 25 year wait to stage another important game. Lets hope this year’s final has been worth the wait!

Spennymoor United
First used as a final venue in 1973, when local side Wear Valley played 1967 champions Carlton United in front of a crowd estimated at 4,000, Spennymoor’s Brewery Field ground hosted 3 finals in just 5 seasons.

Whilst Wear Valley lost in extra time, both Brandon United in 1976 and Langley Park Rams Head in 1977 fared better, in what was County Durham’s finest hour in the competition, until recently.

Over 10 years had passed by the time Spennymoor was chosen as the venue for the semi final between Humbledon Plains Farm and Avenue in 1988.

Liverpool
Arguably the best and most high profile ground to stage the final (with apologies to Newcastle United and Aston Villa) Anfield certainly holds the record for the most final games, with 8 consecutive finals between 2003 to 2010.

You may think holding the final at Anfield would have inspired the local teams to have built on there already highly impressive Sunday Cup achievements but in that 8 year period, only 3 Liverpool sides reached the final and only one of them (Nicosia in 2004) was victorious.

In fact, this period in the competition’s history was dominated by teams from County Durham, who even had an all Durham final in 2008, when Hetton Lyons gained revenge over Coundon Cons for ending their chances of retaining the Sunday Cup the season before.

Whilst it was great for the Sunday Cup to have been played at such a ground for so many years, I feel it’s a shame that the 2008 final could not have been played at Sunderland or Newcastle, as it would have been great for that area to have had two local sides in the final (which is hopefully what will happen at Tranmere this season!).

Marine
Given that Anfield and Prenton Park are the two grounds to have staged the most finals and that Liverpool clubs have an unparalleled record in the Sunday Cup, it comes as no surprise to learn that the record for hosting the most semi final games is held by Marine.

Nine semi finals have been played at the Crosby based Northern Premier League team’s ground, the first being in 1984, when Eagle beat Lodge Cottrell 2-1.

In 1991, it held the local affair between Nicosia and Eagle Knowsley, with Nicosia winning 1-0.

Nicosia were back again in 2004 for another Merseyside match up, this time against A3 (Canada). The Nics obviously enjoyed playing at Marine, as they won by 3 goals to 2 and as in 1991, went on to win the final.

Tranmere Rovers to host the final

The FA has announced that Prenton Park, the home of Tranmere Rovers, will host the final,which will be played on Sunday 1st May, with a 2.00 kick off.

It won't be the first time that Prenton Park has been chosen to stage the final game (in fact, I believe it was the first football league ground to do so - I will check this out later, when I get home!!).

Congratulations to both sides for reaching the final. I'm looking forward to it already!

Semi final results

Paddock 4 Comets Sports Club 1
(J. Henders 3, S. Brown) (S. Wood - Comets)

Northampton Duke of York 0 Oyster Martyrs 3

History is made, as we have the first all Liverpool FA Sunday Cup final.

Due to a family commitment, I was unable to watch a game today but thankfully, I've been kept fully up to date by Ian Porter of Salisbury Athletic and Andy Gilman. Many thanks to them.

The Last Time...

As three of the four remaining teams have already experienced playing in a semi final, I thought it a good opportunity to stroll down memory lane and revisit the last time they made it to this stage.

As Comets Sports are the ‘odd one out’, I’ve decided to include the memorable details of the first Berkhamsted league team to reach the last four, namely Gossoms End.

Northampton Duke of York
Duke of York blazed their way to the 2002-03 semi finals, with some pretty impressive results, the first one being a 3-0 win at Celtic SC (Luton) in the first round.

Celtic SC were members of the North Home Counties league, whose teams regularly made it to the latter stages during the early 2000’s, so this made the result even more impressive.

2001 quarter finalists Biggleswade received a 5-1 footballing lesson on their own ground in round 2, whilst Essex based Lea Bridge Rangers were dispatched 3-0 in round 3.

Quested were humbled 6-1 in the last 16 and experienced Sunday Cup campaigners Reading Irish were beaten 3-0 in the quarter finals, to set up a mouth watering semi final against St Joseph’s from Luton.

However, this tie never materialised, as St Joseph’s were removed from the competition for fielding an ineligible player, so the team they had beaten 3-1 in the quarter finals, Travellers from Birmingham, were granted a reprieve and faced Duke of York in the semi final at Solihull Borough.

Despite the absence of Sunday Cup legends St Joseph’s, both teams served up a feast of football and with just 15 minutes remaining, it appeared that Travellers were on their way to Anfield, as they lead 2-0.

A brace from James Westley and a Russell Dunkley goal 3 minutes from time completely changed the game in favour of the Northampton side. The excitement was yet to end, however, as, amazingly, Travellers restored parity in the final minute to force extra time!

A further goal from Dunkley and a 114th minute strike from Steve Jelley was enough to finally overcome a spirited display from Travellers and send Duke of York to the final.

A crowd of 2,203 saw Duke of York clinch the title by beating local boys Allerton 3-1, courtesy of another Russell Dunkley brace and a goal from sub Paul Edgeworth.

Paddock
Paddock’s 2007/08 Sunday Cup got off to a flying start when they beat former finalists Albion Sports 3-1 in the first round.

Heywood Irish Centre were thrashed 6-1 in round 2 and the previous season’s semi finalists, Barrys, were put to the sword in round 3, as Paddock ran out 4-1 winners.

Silsden were Paddock’s third Yorkshire conquest in round 4, when they lost 2-1, in a tie that was played in Liverpool, following two postponements in West Yorkshire.

An emphatic 4-0 win over Club Lewsey at Skelmersdale in the quarter final, set up a semi final meeting against 2006 champions Hetton Lyons at Marine.

Two goals from Adam Johnston gave the Durham side a 2-0 half time lead and Paddock’s task became that much harder, when they were reduced to 10 men, for a second bookable offence.

The final that year was an all Durham affair, with Hetton Lyons gaining revenge for 2nd round defeat the previous season, by beating Coundon Con Club at Anfield.

Oyster Martyrs
A few weeks before Duke of York beat Celtic SC (Luton) in the first round in the 2002/03 season, a certain 16 year old boy watched the Croxteth derby between former winners Lobster and Oyster. A few weeks later, he would score the match-winning goal that would end Premiership champions Arsenal’s 30 match unbeaten run.

However, it was Lobster that Wayne Rooney had come to support, not Oyster, as this is where his family loyalties lay at the time.

By the 2008/09 season, the Rooney’s has swopped their allegiances to Oyster and it was their first round result that propelled them in to the limelight, as they recorded an impressive 7-4 victory over former winners Nicosia.

After disposing of local rivals Ford Motors in the 2nd round, Oyster were drawn at home against Coundon Con Club, who were bidding to reach a third successive final, in only their third season in the Sunday Cup!

Oyster ended Coundon’s bid with a 3-1 victory that earned the Scouse side a trip to Lincolnshire, to face Magnet Tavern. A hard fought 2-1 win set up another home tie against strong opposition in the form of Witton Park Rose and Crown, who were making their Sunday Cup debut that season.

Another close game saw Oyster edge past the Durham side and in to the semi final, where they would meet the exotically named Fforde Grene Brazil from Leeds!

The game was played in blustery conditions at Nethermoor Park, the home of Guiseley, which after the Yorkshire team’s successes in the FA Vase and FA Trophy in the 1990’s, achieved the rare feat of hosting a semi final in three different FA competitions.

I remember this game well and unfortunately, the strong winds that day put pay to any chances of watching a classic game

A brace from midfielder Ian Latham and a goal from Thomas Rooney proved to be enough to see off Leeds-based Fforde Grene.

Oyster took the lead just after the half-hour mark when Ian Latham’s 25 yard strike gave the home goalkeeper no chance. Fforde’s equalised on the stroke of half time when Craig Harding headed home a left wing cross.

The Martyrs were back in front 10 minutes after the restart. Fforde didn’t clear a free-kick properly and the ball fell nicely to Latham who calmly slotted home.
Ten minutes later it was 3-1 as Thomas Rooney finished clinically from close range.

Luis De Melo netted from the edge of the area late on but to set up a nervy finale but Fforde Grene couldn’t find an equaliser and Oyster went through to the final, where they played Nottingham side Scots Grey, who accounted for Hetton Lyons in the quarter final.

Scots Grey beat Oyster in a great advert for the high standard that teams who play in the Sunday Cup are capable of reaching.

Gossoms End
Berkhamsted league outfit were one of eleven sides to receive a bye in the first round of the 2004/05 season, which was the last season that the FA handed out multiples byes. The FA decided to restrict exemptions to the finalists from the previous season, from 2005/06.

Rainham Sports were swept aside in the 2nd round and this was followed up with an impressive 2-0 away win at St Joseph’s (Luton) in round 3.

A 2-1 win was enough to end 2002 quarter finalists Lebeq Tavern Courage’s hopes of progressing and another 2-1 home win, this time against Casino in round 5, set up a tough semi final against experienced Sunday Cup campaigners Canada Edinburgh Park from the Liverpool Business Houses league at Burscough.

Despite the late withdrawal of key defender Paul Aldridge, who played in the 2001 FA Vase final for Berkhamsted Town, Gossoms End began the game brightly but conceded two goals in a nightmare two minute spell at the end of the first half, as they struggled to contain Canada’s strike trio of Adam Williams, Tony Grey and man of the match Lee Spike, who between them, scored all of Canada’s four goals.

An Albion Sports victory in the other semi final at Marine, set up the prosect of a great final at Anfield. However, later that week, the FA confirmed that they had received a protest from Gossoms End regarding Canada’s Tony Grey, who was a non-contract player for Bangor City in the League of Wales.

In order to play for Canada, Grey would have needed International Clearance from the FA, which had not been obtained. The FA Sunday Cup Sub-Committee upheld the protest and Canada were removed from the competition for fielding an ineligible player!

The big question here is how did a team from Berkhamsted know that a player with a Liverpool Sunday team did not have International Clearance? Both teams admitted to knowing very little about each other, when interviewed before the semi final, so how did all this come about?

Well, the story at the time was that Burscough had attempted to sign the player before he signed for Bangor and being a local lad, they were only too aware of him and decided to tip Gossoms End off about him, so they could protest to the FA.

Lady luck smiled on the Hertfordshire side in the final, when a complete fluke of a goal won them the Sunday Cup.

The FA Sunday Cup - A Scouse Obsession?

The draw for the semi finals has kept the two remaining Liverpool teams apart and with both Paddock and Oyster Martyrs considered as favourites to reach the final, the anticipation of an all Merseyside final is starting to build.

Despite dominating the competition for many years in terms of the number of entrants and providing more champion teams than any other region (11 of the 46 former winners are from Liverpool) there has never been an all Liverpool final!

I think the chances of this happening this year are very good, as the two strong Liverpool & District leagues sides are definitely the teams to beat. However, I will preview the semi finals nearer the time, so I thought this a good opportunity to look back through the history books and explore Liverpool’s obsession with the Sunday Cup.

As mentioned above, there are more teams in the Sunday Cup from Liverpool than from any other area – 26 of this season’s 131 entrants are affiliated to the Liverpool FA (this increases to 31, when adding the 5 teams representing the Cheshire FA, all of whom play in Birkenhead or Wallasey based leagues)

So, one in five of all teams in this season’s competition hail from Liverpool and this is consistent when comparing the list of entrants from previous years. In fact, for pretty much every one of the last twenty seasons, 20% of all teams entered in the Sunday Cup are from Liverpool, which is an amazing record and a testament to the strength in depth of Sunday football in that part of the country.

It would appear that the catalyst for the huge levels of interest the Sunday Cup commands on Merseyside was a staggering period of success, in the five seasons between 1979 and 1983, when Lobster, Fantail, Dingle Rail and Eagle were all crowned the best Sunday team in England.

However, it wasn’t always like this, as up until 1979, the achievements of Liverpudlian teams were distinctly average, with Canada in 1970 being the area’s sole semi finalists in the in the Sunday Cup’s 15 year history.

This golden period of Merseyside success began when Lobster defeated Sunday Cup legends Carlton United, in the 1978/9 final at Southport. Carlton were making their third appearance in the final and fielded an experienced team that included ex pro’s and players who had appeared in the finals of the FA Vase and FA Amateur Cup. Undeterred, Lobster won 3-2 and brought the Cup back to Croxteth, the Liverpool suburb that would produce runners up Croxteth & Gilmoss RBL and Oyster Martyrs in later years.

No doubt inspired by the breakthrough success of Lobster, Liverpool sides made the Sunday Cup their own in the 1980’s, as nine of the decade’s ten finals, featured a Merseyside team!

This amazing run set a number of records:

· Fantail were the first team to retain the trophy
· Eagle and Lee Chapel North were the first back-to-back finalists
· Avenue were the first team to reach three successive finals

It was future winners, Sunderland Humbledon Plains Farm, who halted Avenue’s quest to reach their fourth consecutive final in 1988, when they triumphed 2-1 at Spennymoor. This was the year that a Liverpool side failed to reach the final.

The 1990’s proved to be a classic case of ‘After the Lord Mayor’s show’ as only three Liverpool teams reached the final in that decade. Instead, it was Sunday Cup legends Marston Sports from Wolverhampton and St Joseph’s (Luton) who dominated in the 1990’s, as between them, they appeared in seven finals.

Liverpool looked to have reclaimed it’s crown as the home of the nation’s best Sunday teams when Britannia, Allerton and Nicosia reached successive finals from 2002 to 2004, however, there has only been one finalist since, as the new Century has been dominated by the North East, with five victories.

I’ve seen countless Liverpool teams over the years, including some of the greats, such as Avenue, Nicosia, Almithak and A3 (who never made the final but consistently reached the latter stages). From what I have seen, all Liverpool teams are competitive and their very best sides are amongst the finest in the Country.

Paddock and Oyster Martyrs have battled their way to within just one game of the final. Are they the teams to end the 30 year wait for an all Liverpool final? We’ll soon find out!