Ashfield F C - 2018/2019

[Ewaninblack]

McBookie.Com West Region Division 2

Annbank United 1 Ashfield 2 - Saturday 13/04/2019

Ashfield made the trip down to South Ayrshire knowing what they had to do today with the League beginning to sort itself out with other teams knowing how many points they needed. Compared to last Saturday, it was `tropical` conditions at New Pebble Park as the `field were forced into their all Red away kit following a clash of colours with the home team. It had been a long time since the `field played down here and have to go back to 2011 for the last Meeting.  Annbank were on a `rich vein` of form with two excellent victories in their last home games (9-2 & 5-2) and they started the game confidently playing against the strong wind and within 2 minutes almost took the lead when Amos was short with a passback and Farquhar in the Ashfield goal managed to dive on the ball at second attempt with the home side appealing for a penalty.  Ashfield looked lively going forward with young Dean Leverage making good progress down the left flank and a couple of cross balls almost found Maxwell and Hearton. The `field were trying to play their passing game with Giblin and McQuilken linking up well however the bumpy park coupled with the tenacious tackling of the home side found the visitors struggling to get any form of pressure on the home side and as the half wore on chances were at a premium. The home side however found a `bit of magic` with 7 minutes of the half remaining, when Cammy Ross broke clear from the halfway line with the Ashfield back four playing a high line. The Bankies defender still had a lot to do however as Cammy Farquhar advanced from his goal the defender drove the ball low and hard into the corner of the net to the delight of the home support. Annbank Utd 1 Ashfield 0. A real blow for Ashfield who set off from the restart trying to equalise before half time and despite pressure it was the home side that were hitting on the break. Just on the Half Time whistle the home side were awarded a free-kick which was collected well by the Ashfield Keeper however for some reason the Bankies No 3 Andy Orr followed through with his tackle taking the legs from Farquhar. The Referee had no hesitation in booking Orr, who unfortunately had been booked earlier and the home side were down to 10 men for the second half.

HT:- ANNBANK UTD 1 ASHFIELD 0

The half time Cup of Tea worked wonders for Ashfield as they came out a completely different team and immediately put the home side under constant pressure. Two minutes into the half and the `field got a corner on the far side which was well delivered into the front of the box by McQuilken. Ciaran Friel was first to react and he glanced a header into the six yard box where Graeme Hearton bulleted a header into the roof of the net to the delight of the small band of travelling supporters. Annbank Utd 1 Ashfield 1. Ashfield were linking up well and with Jordan Lynch coming on at half time the `field had more energy about them. Jordan himself managed to find space at the edge of the box however his effort went well over. Graeme Hearton was causing the Bankies back four some problems with his pace as Ashfield went in search of a winner. As the half wore on chances became difficult to find and the `field made a tactical switch by putting Dean Leverage to left wing and all of a sudden the cross balls were prevalent. The `field however were given a scare with 20 minutes to go when the Bankies Goalscorer Cammy Ross gathered the ball on the left flank before cutting in and curling a 22 yard shot off the post with the resultant shot being blocked. A real let-off for the `field however within a few minutes the visitors went ahead. Again Dean Leverage delivered a wicked ball into the box which found an onrushing Graeme Hearton who managed to guide the ball into the 6 yard box with Paul Maxwell touching it on its way into the corner of the net. Annbank Utd 1 Ashfield 2. The players reaction was there to see and they tried to force the game to Annbank in the remaining minutes however with the last touch of the ball the home side were awarded a free-kick which was wasted by the Bankies to the angst of the home support before Referee James Burns brought proceedings to a close. Football is a funny old game and the `field certainly played better last week without coming away with the three points however credit to the home side as this is a tricky venue to visit. We welcome Newmains United next week to Saracen Park knowing that 3 points is a must to keep the promotion challenge going.

FT:- ANNBANK UTD 1 ASHFIELD 2

Ashfield`s Team:-  Farquhar, C Leverage, D Leverage, Amos, Hadden, Friel, McQuilken, Giblin, Hearton, McManus and Maxwell. Subs:- Lynch, Passmore, Cullen and Cairns

[Mon the field]

Fair reflection of the game Ewan. Performance from the field wasn't good on the eye but at this stage it's results foremost. We still live in hope! 

[Ewaninblack]

McBookie West Region Division 2

Ashfield 5 Newmains United 0 - Saturday 20/04/2019

An earlier Kick-Off today due to scheduling times with the Glasgow Tigers Speedway and in this regard we thank Newmains United for being accommodating at moving the Kick-Off to 12 Noon. The bright lunchtime sunshine greeted both teams onto the park and it was great to see a `guard of honour` for Ashfield stalwart Gordon Passmore, who retires at the end of Season,  from both teams and also the Ashfield Academy Kids.

The park was in reasonable form for the last game of the Season however was extremely hard and bumpy and the pitch will welcome a `close season` also. The `field were sporting their new strips sponsored by `Allied Mobility`and started brightly almost going ahead on the 3rd Minute when a whipped in cross from Dean Leverage was headed goal wards by Billy Stevenson only to see his effort brilliantly saved by the Newmains Keeper. The home side were knocking the ball about confidently and went ahead in the 9th Minute after a long through ball from Ciaran Friel caught out the United Defence with Graeme Hearton being first to react. The Ashfield striker still had a lot to do and lofted the ball over the advancing Keeper and just under the crossbar to put the `field 1-0 up. Ashfield 1 Newmains Utd 0 . An excellent start from the home side who were playing with a high tempo. Next up was a great move down the right with Paul McQuilken playing a lovely ball to Colin Leverage and the Ashfield Full back raced fully 30 yards before delivering a cross to the front post which was met by the onrushing Hearton however on this occasion it was the Newmains Keeper that blocked his effort and the ball was scrambled to safety. The visitors were unable to build up a head of steam however were dangerous and you could see why they had scored 7 goals in their last 2 games. However it was the home side that got the all important second on the half hour mark following a short corner. The ball was played out to Paul McQuilken who evaded one tackle before delivering a curling cross right into the box where John Gaynor bulleted a header into the back of the net to the delight of the home support. Ashfield 2 Newmains Utd 0. This was a massive goal for the `field and they almost added a third shortly after however Graeme Hearton miscued his shot wide. Referee Craven brought proceedings to a close with the home side knowing that the next goal was vital.

HT:- ASHFIELD 2 NEWMAINS UNITED 0

The Ashfield support did not have to worry about an anxious second half as within a couple of minutes the game was effectively over following a corner on the far side. Again a wonderful delivery from Paul McQuilken was brillliantly headed into the corner of the net by Mark McManus who simply cannot stop scoring at the moment. That was his fourth goal in four games for the Ashfield midfielder. Ashfield 3 Newmains United 0. Ashfield made a couple of substitutions after this bringing on Gordon Passmore and Lee Cochrane however the tide was still flowing towards the Newmains goal and in the 69th Minute Billy Stevenson was played through and as he knocked the ball round the Keeper was brought down with Referee Craven having no hesitation in pointing to the spot. Billy dusted himself down and sent the Keeper the wrong way to put the `field 4-0 up. Ashfield 4 Newmains United 0. Shortly after the Newmains Keeper brought out an excellent save to deny Stevenson again however could do nothing with Ashfield`s fifth goal in the 79th minute. A cross from Alan Cairns to the back cross was met by Captain Ciaran Friel and as he headed across the goal, the ball was met by Graeme Hearton who headed into the empty net to complete the scoring. Ashfield 5 Newmains United 0. A very good performance from Ashfield and one which will give them confidence for a stern test next week at Vale of Clyde. It is still extremely tight between Vale of Leven, Vale of Clyde and Carluke Rovers with all to play for with the `field looking to secure the full three points next week.

FT:- ASHFIELD 5 NEWMAINS UNITED 0

Ashfield`s Team:- C Farquhar, C Leverage, D Leverage, A Amos, J Gaynor, C Friel, M McManus, P McQuilken, G Hearton, j Lynch, B Stevenson. Subs:- L Cochrane, G Passmore, A Cairns

[Ewaninblack]

McBookie.Com West Region Division 2

Vale of Clyde 2 Ashfield 0 - Saturday 27/04/2019

It was Ashfield`s last League game of the Season and it didn`t come any bigger than a tussle with promotion contenders Vale of Clyde who had earlier in the Season inflicted the `field`s heaviest defeat, so the North Glasgow outfit knew what they had to do today in order to keep the pressure on fellow contenders for 3rd Place in Vale of Leven, Carluke and Muirkirk.  As both teams entered the Fullarton Park pitch there was a great sense of determination from both teams with Ashfield reverting to their 2nd strip of all Red.

It was the visitors that started the more assured with Paul McQuilken pulling the strings in midfield. The Ex-Pollok man was going through a rich vein of form and ensured that Ashfield had width to their play. A number of corners were well dealt with by the Vale back four with the Centre half certainly in dominant mood. A snap shot from Jordan Lynch on the edge of the box sailed over the bar before a lovely move on the right saw Billy Stevenson cross to the far post only to see McQuilken`s downward shot pushed away by the Vale Keeper. A couple of minutes later, the `field almost gifted a goal to the home side following a long through ball. Passmore and Keeper Farquhar seemed to leave the ball to each other and the Vale forward nipped in between them before skewing his effort past the post to the relief of the visiting support. The home support however did not have long to wait to raise their voices again as following a corner, the Vale No 10 Fraser got ahead of his marker at the front post and guided his header into the net to put the Vale 1-0 up. Vale of Clyde 1 Ashfield 0. A real blow to the visitors who tried to step up a gear before half time however found the Vale defence in stubborn mood and the `field found themselves restricted to long range shots. As the Referee brought proceedings to a halt, the `field knew they would have to vary their attack in the 2nd half.

HT:- VALE OF CLYDE 1 ASHFIELD 0

It was all to play for in the second half and the home side started brightly playing in a number of crosses which were scrambled to safety by Ashfield. An injury forced McQuilken off and he was replaced by Michael Giblin. The `field began to grow into the half and started to `boss` possesion with the home side happy to hit on the break. A couple of long range efforts from Ashfield were blocked by the home side before Billy Stevenson almost got on the end of a Gordon Passmore cross. Next up was Dean Leverage with the young Ashfield back utilising his pace down the left only to see his shot go past the far post. With 15 minutes to go, Ashfield thought they had equalised following a lovely move down the right. The ball was played to the far post and this time Graeme Hearton managed to get away from the well marshalled defence as he headed past the Vale Keeper. Unfortunately for Ashfield, there was a defender on the line who managed to scoop the ball to safety with the visitors appealing for a goal. The game became slightly niggly after that with the home side content to play down time and Referee Anderson produced a number of yellow cards. The home side could see that the `field were running out of time and with a minute to go foraged up the field with the Vale forward hitting a blistering shot to Cammy Farquhar`s right hand side however the Ex-Islavale Keeper pulled off a great one handed save. The ball however broke to an onrushing forward who cut inside before being brought down with the Referee having no hesitation in pointing to the spot and dismissing Mark McManus in the process.  Sam Donald took the Penalty drilling his shot passed the arms of Cammy Farquhar to seal the victory for the `tin pail`. Vale of Clyde 2 Ashfield 0. As the Referee blew for full time, the home side knew they had made giant steps to possible promotion with the `field wondering if their points tally of 48 will be enough to see off Carluke, Vale of Clyde and Vale of Leven with Muirkirk dropping out of the picture following defeat at Annbank. It has been some season and the `field will point to one or two games that they dropped points in if they do not make it but despite that can be very pleased with their efforts and style of play this Season under the Management Team of Paul Maxwell, Ryan Cairley, Scott Mills & Ryan Dakhill.

FT:- VALE OF CLYDE 2 ASHFIELD 0

Ashfield`s Team:- C Farquhar, G Passmore, D Leverage, A Amos, J Gaynor, C Friel, J Lynch, P McQuiulken, G Hearton, B Stevenson, M McManus. Subs:- P Maxwell, P Cullen, K Hadden, A Cairns & M Giblin

[Ewaninblack]

Final thoughts of the Season:-

 

Ashfield Juniors Football Club & Youth Academy

The Gaffer signs the season off with his final comments and gratitude on what has been an eventful season at Ashfield Football Club:-

“To our friends, supporters, members, opponents, sponsors and partners..

Firstly I want to congratulate Lanark Utd for achieving promotion as champions of Division 2. To go until the last game of the season defeated only once, ironically from us, is an outstanding achievement. Aside from the excellent quality they have in abundance, their resilience was incredible with some excellent comeback wins. I also want to take the opportunity to congratulate both Lesmahagow and Carluke Rovers in achieving the other two promotion spots. The Gow were extremely unlucky not to achieve the title with them and Lanark battling it out whilst Carluke had an incredible turn-around midseason to take the final promotion spot on the final day. I wish all three clubs the very best for next season.

I think it is doubly important to give credit to all teams whom participated in the said ‘lowest division’ in the West Juniors for their incredible on and off the field efforts in continually improving our game. The impact that the likes of Newmains, Vale of Leven and St Anthony’s have made through their community and charity initiatives has been nothing short of terrific. Any club, from youth, junior to senior levels could use some of their initiatives as best practice to try and increase engagement at their respective levels.

I want to take the time to wish our friends at Ardeer Thistle all the very best in their recovery from the awful attack on their club house a couple months back. Ardeer are steeped in junior football history like many other proud Ayrshire sides and we at Ashfield offer any on-going support. A special mention to Johnstone Burgh whom held a fund raising game on behalf of Ardeer, an excellent gesture.

For us, at Ashfield, it was a season of what if’s and but’s. It is easy for me and the management team to point the finger at ourselves and our players to delve on that cliché ‘that we threw promotion away’ after our brilliant start to the season but that would take credit away from the likes of Carluke, Vale of Leven and Vale of Clyde whom continued to battle on throughout the season and deservedly put themselves in contention, with Carluke eventually succeeding to go up along with the two stand-out clubs in Lanark and Lesmahagow.

We have a terrific bunch of boys at Ashfield whom have made our first season in charge extremely enjoyable. I want to thank each and every one of them for their efforts. Congratulations to club captain Ciaran Friel in winning the inaugural club tradition prize for scoring 5 goals in one game, the Silver Dollar, after your feat against Annbank Utd earlier in the season. To our award winners from last weekend’s Player of the Year night, well deserved and well done:-

• Mark McManus – Club Player of the Year & Players Player of the Year
• Graeme Hearton – Website Player of the Year and Top Goal Scorer (shared)
• Ciaran Friel – Top Goal Scorer (shared)
• Michael Giblin – Special Recognition 
• Gordon Passmore – Special Recognition
• Ewan Murray – The Albert Murray Memorial award

Like any other club some players have moved on to pastures new. I want to wish the likes of John Mullen, Gary McGlenaghan, Ross Hamilton, Gavin Goodall, Paddy Cullen, Ryan McLaughlin & Billy Stevenson all the very best for the future. Thank you for your efforts here.

For my friend and outstanding team mate and player, Gordon Passmore – I wish you all the best in your retirement.

The past 12 months has been a terribly tragic one for our club. I want to pay our respects to long standing members whom have sadly passed away. Jim Ross (former treasurer), Michael McGuigan (former President), Stevie Chalmers (former Player) and most recently Joe Shevlin (ex-committee and long serving supporter).

I want to thank our small but dedicated committee & volunteers for their amazing efforts home and away this season, you are the back bone of our club. Particularly Ewan & Inga for their superb social media work.

It is important for me to also mention the work our coaches and members from our fantastic Academy set up from our mini-kickers level to our 2004’s. You are the foundations of our club and we are very proud to see the development of such wonderful talent within each teams. Keep up the great work. We cannot wait to see what the future holds for our boys. A special mention to Derek Linning & Alexander Tran and their 2005’s squad whom will be competing for a league decider against Oban Saints and Celtic FC over the next couple of weeks. We are all rooting for you and the boys to get over the finishing line and become champions.

A massive appreciation for our sponsors and partners in Young Start National Lottery Funding, Allied Vehicles, Highballs Low, Friends of Eastfield, our local Council & NG Homes for their continued support with not only the football aspect but our community development initiatives over the past 12 months. We honestly couldn’t continue the work we aspire to share with our local communities without your efforts. I want to especially wish our stadium partners Glasgow Tigers Speedway all the very best in their quest for glory this season. I am aware you have gotten off to a solid start to the campaign, only one loss I believe, therefore let’s hope the form continues. I have witnessed first-hand the efforts your supporters, volunteers and the owner Gerry puts in to become successful. It is mammoth.

A penultimate note, I want to thank my coaching team at Ashfield, Ryan Cairley (Assistant Manager), Scott Mills (First Team Coach), Ryan Dakhil (Goalkeeping Coach) and Robert Fairfield (Physio) and of course Nicky Hughes (Kit man). You have all been a dream to work with and I honestly couldn’t do this job without your friendship, expertise and most importantly your joint commitment and drive for our great club to succeed. Keep up the fantastic work. A mention to David Currie and Kevin Gilchrist also whom have supported our boys on and off the field.

It leaves me to say thank you to our small but loyal support. It didn’t quite happen this season but as the manager of this great and fantastic club I can promise you we will use our failures as motivation to succeed for the future. We hope this happens from next season.

Mon the ‘Field

Paul

[the candy]

Superb maxi! A great man and legend of the club and this is just the start of a very successful career as a manager, massive improvements both on and off the park for our club and only going to go from strength to strength with you at the helm. You will succeed with your drive and determination but most importantly you are an example to everyone at the club of how to conduct yourself both within and outwith our great club.

[auldgeezer]

Very impressive message, delivered with complete humility and giving recognition to a very wide range of people for their achievements and support. All the very best for next season and I'm sure you'll have an excellent career in management with that attitude.

[21stcenturyboy]

Great post Maxi and brilliant season in your first year

 

Very unlucky not to go up but you will have the foundations to kick on next year.

 

Could see the difference that your approach was brining very early in the season in the League Cup Section games. Great bunch of people round about you too.

 

Keep up the good work mate

[Tutankhamen]

Never been the same at Ashfield since the dugs left.