Strays enjoy another Club Day
Our support for Candlelighters continues on our 2nd anniversary
On a very cold but fortunately dry Sunday afternoon, Harrogate Strays held a Club Day to celebrate the second anniversary of the club's foundation. Five teams battled it out, knowing there could only be one winner. But the purpose of the day was to ensure that the biggest winner would be Candlelighters, our sponsored charity that does wonderful work treating children suffering from cancer and supporting their families
In the first round of matches, two teams laid out their stalls with victories. GREENS dominated YELLOWS but only won by virtue of one goal, while BLUES saw off REDS with a two goal margin. REDS then made amends with a convincing victory by 3-1 over YELLOWS, while ORANGES held GREENS at bay and nicked a 0-0 draw. ORANGES repeated the blank scoresheet against REDS, but BLUES notched their second straight win by overpowering YELLOWS by 2-0.
After three rounds it looked like three teams had a chance to win the tournament, but BLUES had the edge thanks to their two victories. So when, In a tight game, BLUES sneaked a 1-0 win over ORANGES, it meant GREENS had to beat REDS on the adjoining pitch to have any chance of catching the BLUES. In another even game, the two teams cancelled each other out in a scoreless draw. BLUES could not now be caught. In the final round ORANGES clinched their first win of the day by beating YELLOWS, while GREENS put paid to BLUES' hopes of a clean sweep with a resounding 4-1 scoreline. A good result but not enough to affect the top of the table.
Many thanks to all the players who turned out, to the referees for maintaining control, and to the other officials and spectators for braving the chilly weather. The quality of the football played was of a good standard, and most games were closely contested. The sporting endeavours were then followed by a buffet lunch at the Empress pub, where a raffle was conducted to boost the sums collected for Candlelighters. Thanks also to those who couldn't attend but nonetheless made donations. We are still receiving donations, and so a full financial summary will be issued shortly.
TABLE
W D L F A PTS
BLUES 3 0 1 6 4 9
GREENS 2 2 0 5 1 8
REDS 1 2 1 3 3 5
ORANGES 1 2 1 2 2 5
YELLOWS 0 0 4 2 8 0
Bernie
Match Reporter
Our latest Club Day - Sunday 27th April
The JW (Just Walking) Memorial Trophy
Having organised a testimonial tournament last year on behalf of a deceased former player, John Wilcock, we were delighted to contribute, at John's family's behest, £600 to St. Gemma's Hospice.
Even more so because that sum was doubled, thanks to a programme operated at the time by corporate sponsors! Since then our club has sadly witnessed the loss of another former member, as well as the enforced retirement of some players through serious illness and/or debilitating injury.
A decision was therefore taken to honour all members who can no longer participate in walking football, for whatever reason, by holding an annual charity tournament, henceforth to be known as the JW (Just Walking) Memorial Cup, with St. Gemma's to remain the chosen beneficiary of all proceeds.
This year's event took place at Rossett Sports Centre, and featured an enjoyable round robin tournament played out in glorious conditions. Players heeded the nature of the competition by playing in a suitable spirit of fair play, and the matches were well contested throughout. Eventually a winning team emerged to clinch the Roadrunner Trophy donated by and presented by John's son, Ted.
When the very generous donations made by club members were calculated, we were extremely pleased to discover that we had collected a magnificent £1,150, a total almost twice as much as last year (and almost matching the total achieved when doubled by the sponsor). A superb effort for a superb cause - well done all!
Bernie O'Brien
Chairman.
Club Day - 23rd February 2025
A great day's football and a buffet at the Empress to finish!
On a blustery day at Rossett, the rain that had been predicted never really arrived to dampen the spirits on Harrogate Strays' latest club day. A 5-team tournament unfolded with some lively walking football, proved to be very evenly contested and witnessed fluctuating fortunes.
In the first two rounds, the Yellows were anything but mellow, surging to two 1-0 victories to set the early pace at the top of the table and looking like the team to beat. That proved misleading, as the Yellows subsequently lost their next two matches to end up on 6 points. The Reds did the reverse, opening up with two narrow defeats before turning the tables with two wins in their final games to also complete their fixtures with 6 points. Would that same pattern repeat with the Blues, who, albeit courtesy of a couple of deflected goals, won their first two games only to fall foul of the resurgent Greys in game three? At the same time as the Greys were notching their second victory, on the adjoining pitch any suggestion of a collapse was put to bed as the Blues comfortably beat the Greens by three goals to top the table on 9 points.
In the final analysis the Blues had three wins out of four, while the Reds, Greys and Yellows all won two and lost two. Had the Greens beaten the Blues in that final game, all five teams would have ended with 6 points, but defeat left the Greens at the bottom of the pile on 3 points. But the most satisfying thing was that everyone enjoyed the football and played in the right spirit.
Thanks to Phil Solity for refereeing throughout on Pitch 1 and to the various referees who officiated on Pitch 2. And finally thanks to our media maestro Paul Rogers for attending and recording events. For more photos, click on the image above or go to our 2025 Gallery.
Bernie, Rod and Tom
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Strays latest social raises more money for our charity!
Club social on Sunday October 27th 2024
Another successful social event for the club followed our normal pattern, of an intra-club tournament at Rossett Sports Centre, followed by a buffet and drinks at our local, the Shepherds Dog, all in aid of our nominated charity, Leeds-based Candlelighters, who support families facing children's cancer in Yorkshire.
Five teams took part in the walking football games, and the Green team came out on top, taking ten points from their four games and pipping the Blues, who won two and drew two. The luckless Greys took the wooden spoon with no points and no goals, but a good time was had by all, and the games were played in a good spirit!
Players and members were asked to make a minimum £10 donation to our charity, and the total raised, including an anonymous donation of £590, totalled £1180. On top of this, members donated raffle prizes and the raffle raised a further £325, meaning that Candlelighters will benefit to the tune of £1,505; a fantastic amount and a great team effort from all at Strays! Since the club was founded (in October 2023), we have raised £1776 for this worthy charity.
Thanks to everyone who contributed towards the success of this event, whether by donating, providing raffle prizes; putting on a fabulous buffet (thanks to our friends at the Shepherds Dog) and to referees and persistent raffle ticket sellers!
Rod Clifton
Secretary
9th March 2024
Saturday 9th March saw our 60s side in their first encounter with Whixley, at Rossett Sports Centre. Whixley brought a mixed age squad, including two players in their 50s. The fixture was designed to give both teams the opportunity for a ‘run out’ before our respective league seasons start.
We played two hard fought matches. In the first, both sides had a number of shots, but unfortunately no goals, although Neil Waite did (rightly) have three goals disallowed! Whixley also had a goal disallowed, after pointing out their own infringement. The second game started in the same way as the first had finished, with both sides pressing for a goal. The first came shortly after kick-off for the Strays and was a result of a penetrating drive down the right wing by Derek Gibson, followed by a right foot shot into the corner of the net. We then defended well but were undone by a wicked deflection off a Whixley midfielder five minutes from the end, which sent Mike Norris the wrong way. We responded well and Tom Robinson hit the post with minutes to spare.
Special mentions to Mike Norris (The Cat), who made some outstanding saves and kept our side in the game throughout, and Debbie Naylor, making her Strays debut. At times Debbie found herself up against some fierce opposition, both in terms of their strength and size, but never conceded ground and gave as good as she got!
Thanks also to referee Richard Abbott. Rich’s pre-game brief emphasised the need for safety. He then allowed the games to flow freely, but applied the rules where necessary in a firm, fair and consistent manner. This was a hard fought yet enjoyable fixture which was played in the right spirit.
Tom Robinson
Treasurer
Harrogate Strays Walking Football Club
Club Day - Sunday January 14th 2024
Our Club Day was held at Rossett School, with drinks and a buffet at the Shepherd's Dog!
Results
GREY v ORANGE 1-1 GREEN v BLUE 1-0
BLUE v GREY 3-1 YELLOW v ORANGE 4-1
BLUE v YELLOW 1-0 GREEN v GREY 2-0
YELLOW v GREEN 2-2 ORANGE v BLUE 3-1
GREEN v ORANGE 0-0 GREY v YELLOW 2-4
Table
P W D L F A Pts
GREEN 4 2 2 0 5 2 8
YELLOW 4 2 1 1 10 6 7
BLUE 4 2 0 2 5 5 6
ORANGE 4 1 2 1 5 6 5
GREY 4 0 1 3 4 10 1
Congratulations to the Greens for an undefeated tournament built on the foundations of a defensive masterclass - three clean sheets in four games. As with the Yellows, the Greens prospered on Pitch 2, home of theCir two victories and the venue for higher scoring contests. By contrast, the Blues made the most of Pitch 1, where they were the only team to manage a win, but they faltered on their travels to the wilds of Pitch 2.
Thanks to everyone for playing in a good spirit. We hope everyone enjoyed the occasion, whether the exercise on the 3G or the socialising in the pub.
Thanks to all our referees, to Mike Norris for sorting the raffle, and to everyone who donated prizes.
We’re also pleased to report that the raffle achieved a marvellous total of £271 for the Candlelighters charity to round off a successful day’s work. This, added to the £550 that was collected on our JustGiving page, means that in the 3½ months our club has been running, we have raised and donated over £820 to Candlelighters. A fantastic achievement; thank you.
The event also saw the launch of our new home playing kit. Unfortunately, the delivery of our change kit did not arrive in time for Sunday’s event, but we’ll do another modelling assignment when it arrives! Thanks to Dean for all his work co-ordinating this with the supplier, and Paul Rogers for the pics!
Bernie, Rod & Tom