Friday 26 June 2020

Retro - Northwich Manchester Villa 2 Litherland Remyca 1 (North West Counties League - First Division - 2015-16)


19th December 2015

Northwich Manchester Villa  2  Litherland Remyca  1  (North West Counties League – First Division)

The story of football in Northwich is both a complex and controversial one.

At one time it was relatively straightforward, Northwich Victoria were the main team and played at the Drill Field just South of the town centre, whereas Witton Albion were arguably the slightly lesser team, and they played right in the town centre at the Central Ground.

The Central Ground was sold to Sainsburys so Albion had a purpose built ground developed for them in Wincham, and with the surplus funds they created a side that were suddenly on a par with their deadly rivals. It didn’t last of course and over the last few years they have yo-yo’d between the upper and lower divisions of the Northern Premier League.

Northwich Victoria on the other hand is a very different tale. To cut a long story short, they also moved to a purpose built stadium in Wincham, but that has now been demolished. They had a spell of being owned by various unfit individuals, entered administration twice, played for a season in Stafford, one in Flixton, and now sit in the lower division of the Northern Premier League, with their neighbours the Albion.

While all this was going on, the supporters became disillusioned and set up a club called 1874 Northwich who play in nearby Winsford, and that is where the hardcore of the Vics support now remains. The current Victoria side in the NPL is poorly supported, ironically ground shares at Witton Albion, but is doing pretty well due to being bankrolled by Jim Rushe, a Manchester based individual who’s business practices and reputation has been questioned by some.

Rushe also set up a feeder club a couple of years ago called Northwich Flixton Villa, playing at the old Flixton FC ground in Urmston, they entered the North West Counties League and with no history, identity or support base, quite frankly no one cared. It is also worth noting that Woodley Sports, a Stockport based club were involved in the equation somewhere, they ended up being swallowed up in the mess.



But, at the start of this season something happened whereby the NFV club were taken over by a gentleman called Bill Prendergast, Bill ran a soccer academy in Manchester called Diamonds, and he wanted an outlet for his young players to perform on a semi professional stage.

He took out the ‘Flixton’ name, added the ‘Manchester’ name, and in a surprise move, obtained the use of the Manchester Regional Arena, which is effectively an athletics stadium smack bang next door to the Etihad Stadium.

It was met with both curiosity and scepticism, how was it going to work? Many of the fixtures were scheduled on dates when Manchester City had home games, and very quickly they started playing certain games elsewhere. No midweek home games were scheduled, and as we moved into the wet weather, games started to get postponed with alarming regularity. I for one, felt this was a move that wasn’t going to last.

I’d planned to go on several occasions in recent weeks, but postponements put paid to that, and in all fairness as I stepped out of bed on the morning of this game, I fully expected to be making plans to go elsewhere. However, I was both surprised and a touch concerned when they tweeted to say the game was definitely on. I didn’t have a Plan B in the area, and with the heavier rain forecast for around kick off, it was pretty much a case of keeping my fingers crossed.



The journey was simple enough, Buxton, Glossop, Hyde and then via Gorton into the Etihad Complex, which I have to say is a superb set up thanks to the oil money that has poured into the club. I was early, so had a little wander around, only to meet Bill, and it was then that stuff started to become a bit clearer.

Firstly he took me on the pitch, it was fine, but the problem was in two areas, if it rained heavily and consistently the water sat as opposed to drained. It tended to be a problem if the rain came in the run up to the game, but if it came during, he felt it wouldn’t be an issue.

The midweek game issue was also quickly explained, the stadium is hired out virtually every night of the week for athletics, as it’s now a community facility and has no connection to Manchester City, so quite simply they could not get access to the stadium in an evening.

Finally, the Northwich connection is completely gone, he had to keep the majority of the name as it had to be seen by the league and the FA as a continuation of the club that previously existed, as opposed to a completely new entity. But now he has control and ownership, he plans to change the name to Manchester Diamonds next season, therefore totally cutting all connections with Northwich.


The stadium is very good, it is an all seater arena, with the stands curving round the track in an oval shape, it was access all areas, but the crowd tended to gather in the main stand area that backed onto the Etihad Stadium car parks.

Safely in situ, I had a wander into the nearby Bradford Estate and found a pub, it did remind me a little of the Chatsworth Estate from Shameless, not least because it was set nearby, but despite its appearances, it was absolutely fine inside the ‘Townley’.

The forecast pre-match rain never materialised, and a very sparse crowd were treated to a pretty good encounter between Villa and Litherland Remyca. Villa took the lead just before half time, and then scored a second early in the second period. The visitors pulled a goal back later on in the game but it was the hosts that held on for the points.

I spent the second half chatting to an old groundhopping friend, Mike Latham, who I had not seen for a few years. He is now the Chairman of Cumberland County Cricket Club, a Director of Leigh Centurians Rugby League Club and also runs his own accountancy business, talk about a busy man, it’s no surprise our paths very rarely cross these days. He is a lovely bloke though, and a real mine of information, especially about non-league football in the North and also in Wales and Scotland. It was great to chat to him, and I was able to give him a few pointers on possible future trips he’s got in mind for the Midlands area.

Midway through the second half the rain started to pour down, the pitch, as Bill said, was absolutely fine, the journey home was a simple one, and with this ground now ticked off, my original list from the start of the season of places to visit had finally been completed, something of a satisfying achievement!

I did think about the future of the football club though, they have no identity as such in the community, they pay rent of three hundred and fifty quid a game, but have virtually no match day income, and the chances of staying at this level and developing a ground in Manchester is probably years away. So it begs the question as to why? Well Bill obviously see’s it as a way of enhancing his Soccer Academy in Manchester, but not only that, by talking to Bill it became clear he has a passion for the game and a passion to develop players.

Sadly, as another Northwich footballing name is set to disappear from the map, albeit a pretty inconsequential one, the same can’t be said for many of the individuals who were allowed custody of one of the biggest names in Non League football.

Northwich Victoria have been destroyed by egotistical and unfit business men, but that is just one story from an ever increasing list of examples. Maybe though, as an ex-girlfriends Dad one said to me, and they lived in Northwich, the town simply isn’t big enough for two football clubs to prosper, one, or indeed both, will inevitably suffer. He was quite prophetic at the time as both clubs were then in the Conference, a place neither are likely to return to….

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