Northern League: Horden CW 'can do better' despite impressive results

Horden CW manager Jonny Payne has admitted his side have come a long way during their first season as a Division One club.

The Marras earned a historic promotion into step five when they were crowned as Northern League Division Two champions last season and they have made a more than solid start to life at a higher level. A Boxing Day win against East Durham rivals Easington Colliery sparked a run of three consecutive wins over the last month and that has left Horden sitting just three points adrift of the play-off places with quarter of the season remaining.

With a Durham Challenge Cup semi-final against Northern Premier League Premier Division club Stockton Town still on the agenda, Payne and his players still have a lot to play for throughout the remainder of the campaign. The Marras boss stressed his side ‘could be better’ but is realistic about where they are at as they prepare to visit Penrith on Saturday afternoon.

He told The Echo: “We’ve changed it up a bit, changed the formation a bit and it seems to be working - and it’s nice to know we can change a few different ways. We are doing ok, it could be better, I’m a bit of a perfectionist so it haunts me when we concede or lose games - but I am fully aware of how far we have come in a pretty short space of time.

“We are looking forward to Saturday. It’s what it’s about and we are a big, friendly group and we’ll enjoy the trip over there as we always do. It’s a tough place to go but they’re a good club with a good setup. They are really accommodating and we obviously want to get a win so we will look forward to what will be a good trip.”

Northern League Division One fixtures

Boro Rangers v Kendal Town, Easington Colliery v West Auckland Town, Newcastle Benfield v Marske United, Northallerton Town v Birtley Town, Penrith v Horden CW, Shildon v North Shields, Whickham v Crook Town

Boldon boss frustrated by postponements

Boldon CA joint-manager Chris Spence has been left frustrated by his side’s recent period of inactivity and revealed how they have coped with playing just one game during the first month of the new year.

Boldon are currently preparing for their first home game since a Boxing Day defeat against local rivals Jarrow with Alnwick Town set to visit The Villa on Saturday afternoon - although both sides will be keeping an eye on the weather forecast with more heavy rain set to his the North East before the weekend fixtures.

Since that South Tyneside derby defeat, Spence’s side have only played one fixture and that came when Max Cowburn and Robbie Gateshill found the net in a 2-0 win at struggling Esh Winning two weeks ago.

That win kept Boldon nine points clear of the relegation zone as they look to make the most of what has been a transitional season on and off the pitch - and Spence has stressed improving on last season’s eighteenth placed finish could be considered as success for his side.

He told The Echo: “It’s frustrating to be honest but everyone is in the same boat. There aren’t many teams that have had a consistent run of games during the winter break because of the weather.

“We’ve kept together through training and tried to use the time to improve our fitness levels and getting three points away at Esh Winning was important. We were hoping to get more games played and i’s always nice going into the next match off the back of a win.

"The aim for the rest of the season is to finish as high as possible in the league. For me personally, if we improve our position from last season, that’s an improvement, bearing in mind the full transition the club has gone through mid-season.”

Northern League Division Two fixtures

Billingham Town v AFC Newbiggin, Boldon CA v Alnwick Town, Chester-le-Street Town v FC Hartlepool, Darlington Town v Sunderland West End, Esh Winning v Park View AFC, Jarrow v Grangetown Boys Club, Seaham Red Star v Newcastle University

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