TOURNAMENTS
Over 60's Cup Semi-Final and Final Reports
The Senior Spireites qualified for the Semi Finals of the Nottingham Power League by beating Rutland Ospreys on penalties and now faced Matlock Arc in mid-March. If they won, they would play in the Final on the same day.
Chesterfield and Matlock Arc were equally matched in the early exchanges of the match however the more clear cut chances fell to Chesterfield. Dave Walker scored the opening goal on 10 mins with a sharp reaction right foot finish.
In the second half Matlock properly went for the equalizer but Chesterfield defended well and in the final minute Manu scored with a shot that went in off the crossbar.
Final Score: Chesterfield Senior Spireites 2 Matlock Arc 0
The Final of the Cup competition was between the Senior Spireites and Bramcote Reds.
In the Final, Bramcote Reds were always in control of the game and scored two early, well taken goals leaving John Warner, in the Chesterfield goal, no chance of being able to save either of them.
In the second half Bramcote Reds played out the game well, keeping possession and limiting Chesterfield to only minor chances.
Bramcote added a third goal when Chesterfield were attacking and ran out well deserved winners.
Final Score: Chesterfield Senior Spireites 0 Bramcote Reds 3
Congratulations to Bramcote Reds and also to the Senior Spireites squad who have competed at a high level all season and to be runners up in the Cup competition is no mean achievement - the Club is very proud of you boys!
Match Day Squad:
(back row) John Quinn, Rob Church, John Warner, Paul Guest, Shane Starkey,
(front row) Manohar Raju, Terry Ashley (Manager), Dave Walker, Carl Gibbins
Over 70's Cup tournament
On Thursday 19th February the Spireites played their cup draw against Nottingham Reds which was to be the best of 3 x 15-minute matches.
Unfortunately, for the Spireites they lost the first two games 2-0 and 2-1. Whilst the team played their usual quick passing game it wasn’t to be. Neither of the two top scorers Terry and Neil were available on the day and the Spireites' inability on the day to put the ball in the back of the net leaves them out of the cup for this year.
The next round of league matches will be on the 19th March,
Nottingham Power League Play offs Vs Rutland Ospreys
Following the withdrawal of Leicester from the competition, the Group A Play Off was a straight shootout played over 48 minutes (4 x 12min quarters) between Chesterfield Senior Spireites and Division 2, Champions Rutland Ospreys
Quarter1
Chesterfield took an early lead with a close range finish from Paul Sloane fed with a great throughball by Dave Simpson. Shortly after Rutland drew level with a great low shot into the bottom corner. Dave Simpson then scored a lovely goal after a good jinky run.
2-1
Quarter 2
Rutland scored against the run of play with a very well taken goal following a clinical great move .Chesterfield had a good period of possession but found it was easier to hit the goal frame rather than the net. The Rutland keeper was also having a terrific game between the sticks.
Half Time 2-2
Quarter 3
Chesterfield were on top but again could not score and on 34 mins Rutland scored direct from a free kick with a great strike into the top corner. The Rutland keeper was having a great game with many great saves particularly from Dave Simpson.
2-3
Quarter 4
Chesterfield had all the chances but again were unable to score it looked like it was all over, however the Rutland keeper made a great save to his right but with the last kick of the game John Quinn, from an acute angle, fired in the equiliser to level the scores
Full Time 3-3 to be settled by penalties
Penalties
Chesterfield won the toss and chose to go first
Chesterfield won 2-0 on penalties scored by R Church and the winning penalty by J Quinn following 2 penalty saves by J Warner - Chesterfield progress to Finals day on 17th March with a match against Matlock Arc in the Semi-Final.
Quote from manager T Ashley "Today we got that bit of luck that had deserted our side all season . The side kept going to the end and got the draw they deserved they never gave up. John Quinn will not forget today his last two touches of this game . The first scoring with the last kick before the final whistle and then minutes later scoring the winning penalty."
Match Day Squad:
(back row) David Simpson, Rob Church, Shane Starkey, Paul Slone, John Quinn
(front row) Dave Walker, John Warner, Terry Ashley (Manager),Manohar Raju,
Over 50's Derbyshire Cup Quarter Final Report
The Spireites over-50s team played their Derbyshire Cup Quarter-Final on Weds 11th February. The slightly strange format led to us playing a best-of-3 matches one after the other against Etwall.
In the first game, disciplined defence kept Etwall to very few chances, with some great goalkeeping from stand-in goalie Nigel Strong, while neat interplay led to some good chances for the Spireites that we were unable to take, resulting in a 0-0 draw.
In the second game, a defence retaliation gave Etwall a first minute penalty which they scored; unfortunately, there was no sanction for the initial elbow contact from the Etwall forward. As the Spireites pressed forward looking for an equaliser, Etwall scored two more on the break to lead 3-0 at half time. A spirited comeback from the Spireites fell short as only a neat finish from Darryl Davies found the net, resulting in a 3-1 loss.
The goal scored was important though as a win with a clean sheet in the final game would result in progression for the Spireites. Despite throwing everything at Etwall in the game, we were unable to find the breakthrough and another 0-0 draw meant elimination for the Spireites. The team should be congratulated for their efforts as, once again, we were only let down by our finishing despite dominating matches.
Eighth round of matches in Over 50's League Report
The Spireites over-50s played their latest round of league matches on Wednesday 25th February. The squad welcomed debutant Chris Tann to the fold for his first league game of the season.
In the first game, The Spireites took on Kilburn, one of the best in the league. A back and forth open match ensued, unlike most matches in this league! After Kilburn took the lead the Spireites equalised when Nigel Strong produced a beautifully placed finish, and then went in front thanks to a nice goal from Yashin Umerji. Kilburn's centre-forward was proving difficult to slow down and he scored twice to put Kilburn back in front, only for Steve Kehoe to equalise a few minutes from the end. An exhilarating 3-3 draw!
The next game was against Sandiacre and a comfortable 2-0 win for the boys in blue was secured thanks to excellent finishes from Darryl Davies and Yashin Umerji.
In the third game it was against Old Kilburn. In a hard-fought game, the Spireites took the lead through another nice finish from Nigel Strong. A strong defensive performance from Shawn Ward, Steve Kehoe, Chris Tann and goalkeeper Darren Townsend meant another clean sheet and a 1-0 win.
The final game was played against Kilburn again. Injuries to a few players and a couple of super strikes from the Kilburn centre-forward led to a 3-0 Kilburn half time lead. There was a threatened comeback when Darryl Davies scored a nice solo goal, but the team got caught on the break a couple of times to lose 5-1 in the end.
This was another encouraging performance from a slightly short-handed Spireites squad and who have now won 6 and drawn 1 of the last 8 games - an excellent performance.
Final Round of matches in Over 60's League Report
The fifth and final round of matches for the Over 60's took place in mid-January against Brancote Reds and Nottingham Loughborough.
The first match was a good game played in the right spirit. Chesterfield took the lead with a half chance that fell to David Walker who hit the ball true and low to score. Bramcote Reds equilised with a great strike shortly after, leaving John Warner no chance to save. However, Paul Sloane restored the lead with a snap shot from close range. Unfortunately, on the stroke of half time a deflected free kick beat John again and that was virtually the last kick of the half.
In the Second half both sides had chances but could not score with defences on top.
Final Score 2-2
The second game saw Chesterfield play the side that beat them on penalties in the Cup Final last season, Loughborough.
Chesterfield started brightly and were 2 goals up by Half time with crisp finishes from free kicks by Church and Quinn . Both goals assisted by Dave Simpson playing a quarterback roll all game at free kicks
In the second half Dave Simpson scored within 20 seconds of the start and added a 4th shortly afterwards. Loughborough pulled a goal back to make it 4-1 but Chesterfield were controlling the game well before this and then Carl Gibbins added a 5th with a shot giving the keeper no chance at all. Final Score 5-1
Chesterfield played 10 matches in the league and only lost 2 games both by a single goal. Unfortunatley, they drew too many matches from winning positions which, in the end, which was the team's achilles heel. On a positive note in the 10 games there were 9 different scorers over the season which is an excellent achievement..
Manger Terry Ashley comments on team's performance this season was "I could not have been more proud of you lot, you have given everything every game. With a bit of luck things might have gone better for us. Lets come back and win the Cup this year!"
Match Day Squad: (back row) Rob Church, John Warner, David Simpson, John Quinn, Paul Slone. (front row) Pete Jacques (supporter), Terry Ashley (Manager),Manohar Raju,
Dave Walker,Carl Gibbins,
Over 70's Sixth round of league matches
The Over 70's played at Derby in mid-March with a real mixed bag of results. The team won 2, drew 3 and lost 2, scoring 4 goals and conceding 7. The Over 70's remain in 3rd with an outside chance of catching Heanor in second at the last round of fixtures in April.
The Senior Spireites continue to go for wins and get caught on the break. Matlock runaway leaders in the league won 6 of the 7 victories in the latest round of matches 1-0 and did not concede a goal on the day, there is a lesson to be learned! Matlock like the Spireites have played 42 matches and only conceded 4 goals!! The league table is available below
It is highly likely that the Spireites will finish their first season 3rd out of 8 which is a great achievement. The first season in the league has been a massive learning curve for the Club which gives them hope that they will be even stronger next season.
Latest Mel Pullen Cup won by the "Spares"!
The 5th Round of the Mel Pullen Cup took place at the 4G pitches at Cavendish Playing Field Matlock in early July.
Unfortunately, Mansfield Reds pulled out at the last minute leaving 3 teams, the holders of the Trophy MATLOCK , CHESTERFIELD Senior Spireites and MANSFIELD Town FC . To keep the 4 team format it was decided that subs from Mansfield and Chesterfield would form a forth team called the "SPARES" made up of substitutes.
The "SPARES" did really well and in fact ended up winning the trophy with 7 points (2 wins and a draw) without conceding a goal in all 3 games.
The Chesterfield part of the "SPARES " Richard BRADLEY, Steve DALISON and Mel PULLEN all of who play in sessions at Mansfield and Chesterfield. They were ably assisted by Chesterfield players Derek LOWE and Peter JACQUES.
The "SPARES" will defend the title in the next round to be held later this year .
The "SPARES" played in Mansfield town yellow shirts and A White Bib over this . Pete Jaques however refused to have the Mansfield Shirt next to his skin!
A good day was had by all and a special thanks to Dave Walker for organising the event.
Almelo 2025 Tournament details - click on photo to go to the Blog page
