Litherland REMYCA (A) \\\ Match Information

• Wednesday 6th March 2024 
• 7:45pm kickoff
• NWCFL Premier Division, Matchday 37
• Litherland Sports Park, Boundary Road, Litherland, Liverpool, L21 7LA
• Pay on the gate, cash or card:
  • £6 adults
  • £4 concessions
  • Under 16s free with adult

Live text commentary on Twitter @wd_cfc

Preview

West travel to Litherland REMYCA on Wednesday night following a disappointing result on the Isle of Man at the weekend.

It was a late Ravens goal on Saturday evening that did the damage and meant that West returned to the mainland both empty-handed and, for the first time this season, as a side who sit in the bottom-half of the table.

Manager Chris Rowley explained after the match that whilst he was disappointed by the result, he was still generally pleased by the performance he saw in Douglas. He was particularly impressed by the contributions of Connor Hancock and Matt Smyth, who both stepped in and staked their claim for a continued run in the team with two very assured performances at centre-back. It is unclear whether West’s regular starters in that position will be available for selection against the Remy on Wednesday night, but Hancock and Smyth will remain in contention for starting positions after their efforts on Saturday. Elsewhere, Rowley explained that Charlie Whiteoak will hopefully be in a position to play a part following a short-term injury, and that Hal McHugh is another that could potentially be fit to return to the fold.

Whichever players do feature on Wednesday night are likely to have a challenging task ahead of them against a side that have one of the strongest home records in the division. Only four teams have picked up more home wins than 9th placed Litherland and no visiting opponents outside the top four have taken maximum points away from the Litherland Sports Park since September. Litherland have picked up seven points from their last three home games, against promotion-chasers Padiham, Wythenshawe and Lower Breck. West, on the other hand, only have a better away record this season than Pilkington and bottom-side Skelmersdale United, and have lost a club record 11 of their last 13 away games in all competitions.

Football is not played on paper though, and one channel of optimism for West’s travelling contingent is that the Remy are extremely vulnerable at the back. Despite having won as many games as they have lost over the course of the campaign, they still have a goal difference of -16. To put that into further context, Litherland’s goal difference is 39 goals and 35 goals inferior to the two sides who sit directly below them in the league. It appears that when they do concede an early goal, they tend to have difficulty recovering and if West are on the front foot from the outset, an upset could certainly be on the cards.

Meet our opponents

Like West, Litherland REMYCA have ecclesiastical origins. They were founded in 1959 as St Thomas FC, shortly before changing their name to Bootle CLB (‘Bootle Church Lads Brigade’). They forged strong links with the Bootle YMCA community group and were boosted by the financial support of the REM Social Club who began funding the team in 1967. One year later, the club was renamed REMYCA United FC as a way of formally acknowledging the connection between the REM and the YMCA clubs. The word ‘Litherland’ was only added to the club’s name in 2013 as the club tried to grow itself within the local community, and they have been known as Litherland REMYCA ever since.

They joined the North West Counties Division One in 2014/15 and were promoted to the Premier Division after four seasons. They have remained there since, and, following a run of six straight wins at the end of last season, they achieved their highest ever finish of 10th place. A similar run at the end of this season should see the Remy comfortably eclipse this record, even if the 10-point gap between themselves and the playoffs is likely to be a hurdle too far.

They play at the Litherland Sports Park, which is an athletics stadium that is the home of several different sports clubs. They currently have the lowest average attendance in the Premier Division.

Form Guide

Litherland REMYCA
Position: 9th
Form position: 13th
Last six overall: DLWWWL
Last six home: WWDLDW

West Didsbury & Chorlton
Position: 14th
Form position: 10th
Last six overall: LDLWWW
Last six away: LLWLLL

Last Meeting

Tuesday 5th September 2023
NWCFL Premier Divison
West 3 Litherland REMYCA 0
West scorers: Elliott (pen), Davis, Schofield
Attendance: 510

Recent Meetings

It was a comfortable win for West when the sides met earlier in the season, on a balmy autumn evening. An early Ben Elliott penalty opened the scoring and West eased to a 3-0 victory thanks to a Rhain Davis header and a fine solo effort from Thomas Schofield - West's 1000th competitive goal since joining the NWCFL in 2012 - to build on an impressive start to the season.

The two sides had only ever met four times prior to that evening in September, and those matches all came in the North West Counties Premier Division during the respective 2017/18 and 2022/23 seasons. West came out on top on two of those four occasions, although Litherland’s single victory over West was the most recent of those as they strolled to a 4-1 win in the penultimate game of last season. Litherland’s current top scorer Elliot Taylor scored a hat-trick that night before Zeke Eme curled in an 87th minute consolation goal from long range.

Head to Head

Overall:
P5 W3 D1 L1 F12 A7

At Litherland Sports Park:
P2 W1 D0 L1 F5 A4

Quick Info

Travelling distance: 39 miles
West away 2023/24 round trip: 1,276 miles
Last season's position: 10th, NWCFL Premier
Last season's average attendance: 99
Pitch: Grass
Home colours: Red / black / black
Change colours: Light blue / navy / light blue

Other midweek fixtures
NWCFL Premier Division
Tuesday 5th March 2024
Barnoldswick Town (17th) 3-4 Irlam (12th)
Kendal Town (5th) 1-0 Prestwich Heys (7th)
Longridge Town (20th) 4-1 Pilkington (21th)
Ramsbottom United (16th) 1-2 Wythenshawe (3rd)
Wednesday 6th March 2024
Charnock Richard (11th) v Cheadle Town (18th)
Thursday 7th March 2024
Barnoldswick Town (17th) v Padiham (6th)
Lancashire Challenge Trophy Quarter Final
Tuesday 5th March 2024
Colne 3-1 FC St Helens

Pictures by Simon Cook & Chris Michell