Monday August 28th \\\ NWCFL Premier Division \\\ Matchday 7
West Didsbury & Chorlton 1
Hampson 60
Chadderton 3
Knight 10
Hughes 25
Abbott 90+5
Attendance: 891
West Didsbury & Chorlton
1 Jones (15 Hellawell 82), 2 Cook (c), 3 Hanley, 4 Taylor (12 then 20 GK Delaney 71), 5 Hampson, 6 Smyth, 7 Gabidon (17 Billingsley 75), 8 McKnight (16 Eme 57), 9 Elliott, 10 Dickinson, 11 Matthews. Not used: 14 Foulds.
Chadderton
1 Oldham, 2 Flynn (16 Fletcher 71), 3 K. Dean, 4 Schofield (c), 5 Amoakwa, 6 Sinnott, 7 Knight (12 Sutcliffe 82), 8 Kgwakgwa, 9 Dale (15 H. Dean 82), 10 Hughes (14 Walker 90+7), 11 Jones (17 Abbott 82).
West slipped to defeat against a strong Chadderton side who maintained their impressive start to life back in the NWCFL Premier Division, in a game otherwise overshadowed by a serious injury to West's talismanic goalkeeper Andrew Jones.
Chris Rowley made four changes to the side that lined up at Squires Gate 48 hours earlier, with Matt Smyth, Laurence Taylor, Dontai Gabidon and Billy Matthews, all of whom were on the pitch at the end of Saturday's 5-1 win in Blackpool, coming into the team. Markell Foulds, Liam Delaney, Rhain Hellawell and Lewis Billingsley were swapped out and were amongst the substitutes alongside Zeke Eme.
The two sides came into the game with near identical records - 13 points from six games - and sat adjacent in the league table, straddling the playoff line with West in 5th and Chadderton 6th. Chaddy had scored more goals away from home than any other NWCFL Premier Division side, a statistic that remained true at full-time.
Though buoyed by big weekend wins, both sets of players started the game slowly and a certain lethargy can always be forgiven when facing a second fixture in three days.
That said, it's the same for both sides and Chadderton scored with the game's first meaningful opportunity as KNIGHT steered the ball neatly beyond AJ and inside the far post at the Shed End.
The next chance fell to the same player but this time AJ was equal to the effort and stood firm as Chadderton looked to extend their lead.
We were almost half an hour in when West mustered their first threat of note, though McKnight was still restricted to a pair of speculative efforts.
Within a minute of the second of those attempts, Chadderton had a second. HUGHES sweetly struck a shot from 20 yards and AJ couldn't get down in time.
West were in real need of spark, Gabidon and Matthews had been limited to little-to-no time in possession leaving Ben Elliott looked isolated and having to work hard to get near the ball.
The last five minutes of the half saw West invent a couple of sights of goal, firstly as the Matthews-Elliott combination bore fruit for the first time but Oldham punched the ball to relevant safety of a corner, which came to nothing.
And so Chadderton took a two-goal lead back to the dressing rooms, two clinical strikes the difference between the sides.
The second half proved to be barely more eventful than the first, but absolutely detrimental to West's ambitions both in this game and the season as a whole.
McKnight, usually the hub of West's creative enterprise, had been booked and replaced by the time Chadderton's goal was put under serious threat.
Knight earned himself a yellow card for a foul on Hanley and, from the free-kick, Dickinson's clipped cross was met by Hampson but a defender in green got the final touch as the ball looped out of play.
The same combination finally gave West something to cheer from the corner, Dickinson swinging it in deeper and HAMPSON stooping to redirect the ball home from close range. It was the centre-back's fifth goal in West colours, a very decent return from just over 50 appearances.
There was a palpable change in momentum but it was all too brief. Eme, on for McKnight, was the only West player to muster a serious attempt but his lob was always too high after Matthews had skilfully created the opening.
Chadderton were able to absorb any pressure West tried to build and, although the lead was a single goal, it felt comfortable.
The game's eclipsing moment came on 77 minutes as Chadderton's Jones pursued a long ball, seemingly a lost cause, and collided with his namesake in West's goal in attempting to reach it. The gloved Jones was immediately hurt upon landing and in clear distress.
West physio Alan Ainsley stabilised the West keeper as supporters of both sides looked on in great concern. Eventually AJ was helped off the pitch, obviously unable to continue.
With no recognised goalkeeper available in reserve, Liam Delaney - one of West's two de facto back-ups along with goalscorer Ben Hampson - honourably took the spare pink shirt to see West through to full-time. It was the first time since September 2020 that West's goal didn't contain AJ.
The remaining minutes of the game passed with two moments worthy of remark - a shoulder injury to Raheem Hanley putting him out of the next game at Bury, inflicted upon being fouled by Chadderton substitute Harry Dean.
Dickinson's free-kick was much too strong and from the goal-kick the ball was played through midfield, setting ABBOTT clear. Delaney rushed from goal as any outfield-thinking player might - though an exploit not unfamiliar to AJ - but the Chadderton forward sidestepped the challenge and rolled the ball into the empty net.
The third goal was ultimately a footnote; the game had been Chadderton's for a while and the afternoon had been punishing for West.
Chadderton had more chances than the three that they scored from but the clinical nature of the finishes was ruthless and even the novelty of a clean sheet for Liam Delaney was denied.
At full-time West's thoughts had already turned to their stricken goalkeeper, whose damage was later determined to be a double ankle break. Get well soon AJ!
Here's the post-match interview with Chris Rowley, sponsored by Steve Eckersley.
Browse the full match gallery, by Si Cook and Chris Michell, below.
Bank Holiday results
Monday 28th August 2023
NWCFL Premier Division
Barnoldswick Town 3-0 Wythenshawe
Charnock Richard 2-2 Bury
Cheadle Town 1-2 Colne
Irlam 4-2 Squires Gate
Kendal Town 2-0 Burscough
Padiham 3-1 Longridge Town
Pilkington 0-0 Litherland REMYCA
Skelmersdale United 2-0 FC Isle of Man
West Didsbury & Chorlton 1-3 Chadderton
Wythenshawe Town 3-0 Lower Breck
Tuesday 29th August 2023
AFC Liverpool 2-0 Prestwich Heys
Ramsbottom United 2-3 Glossop North End
Monday August 28th \\\ NWCFL Premier Division \\\ Matchday 7
Chris Rowley made four changes to the side that lined up at Squires Gate 48 hours earlier, with Matt Smyth, Laurence Taylor, Dontai Gabidon and Billy Matthews, all of whom were on the pitch at the end of Saturday's 5-1 win in Blackpool, coming into the team. Markell Foulds, Liam Delaney, Rhain Hellawell and Lewis Billingsley were swapped out and were amongst the substitutes alongside Zeke Eme.
The last five minutes of the half saw West invent a couple of sights of goal, firstly as the Matthews-Elliott combination bore fruit for the first time but Oldham punched the ball to relevant safety of a corner, which came to nothing.
The second half proved to be barely more eventful than the first, but absolutely detrimental to West's ambitions both in this game and the season as a whole.
The same combination finally gave West something to cheer from the corner, Dickinson swinging it in deeper and HAMPSON stooping to redirect the ball home from close range. It was the centre-back's fifth goal in West colours, a very decent return from just over 50 appearances.
The third goal was ultimately a footnote; the game had been Chadderton's for a while and the afternoon had been punishing for West.