Consett increased their lead at the top of the Northern League table to seven points on this day in 2008, with a comfortable win over Ashington in a midweek match at Belle Vue Park.
Continue reading “On this day: 26 November 2008 – Emmo’s hot streak continues as Consett beat Ashington”
Strikers Marc Walton and Michael Mackay may have grabbed the glory with a brace of goals apiece as Consett beat Ramsbottom United 4-2 in the FA Vase 2nd Round on this day in 2011.
Continue reading “On this day: 19 November 2011 – Consett show in Vase victory that while goals win games, so do crunching tackles”
A Craig Robson thunderbolt and a Gavin Ross double kept Consett on top of the Northern League 1st Division with a 3-2 victory over Bishop Auckland, in the first competitive game held at their excellent new Heritage Park ground, on this day in 2010.
After a couple of days of heavy rain, the game only took place after the efforts of a couple of dozen supporters and club officials, who worked to drain the newly-laid field of some wet patches.
Consett made just one change from the side which had come from two goals down to beat Jarrow Roofing 3-2 seven days earlier. Gareth Powell made his debut – and what turn out to be his only appearance for the club – in goal in place of the injured Barry Poskett.
The home side – who had pulled a bumper 1,400 crowd for the official opening of the ground in midweek, for a friendly against Middlesbrough played in monsoon conditions – included three former Consett players. Graham Irving, who swapped Belle Vue for Bishops the previous month, was at centre-half, while Dan Olusoga, who had a spell as a Steelman the previous season, made his debut up front after signing from Hebburn Town. Adam Emson, who was returning from injury, was named on the bench after a late fitness test.
Three other players who would go on to play for Consett were also in the Bishops line-up: goalkeeper Peter Jeffries, midfielder Chris Bell, and a young striker called Daniel Hawkins.
The game started slowly, with neither side making any serious threat to the scoreboard, although it was Consett who enjoyed more of the possession. However, they had to wait until the 32nd minute to register a serious attempt on goal, and it was from a familiar combination, with Danny Craggs sending a perfect cross onto the head of Gavin Barton, but Jeffries superbly denied the No 10 against his old club.
The game was starting to come to life at this point and on 36 minutes the home side almost broke the deadlock, but Powell saved well from Hawkins after he had been played through by an excellent pass from the lively Chris Bell.
Bishops were starting to look dangerous, but it was the visitors who broke the deadlock on 40 minutes through an unlikely source. Midfielder Craig Robson hit a 25-yard rocket into the corner – his first goal since returning to the club, and only his fifth in more than 120 games – following good work from Gavin Ross.
The goal led to a sustained spell of pressure by Consett, and although they couldn’t add another before half-time, they were good value for their lead.
Half-time: Bishop Auckland 0 Consett 1
Bishops made a change at half-time, with Emson replacing Arran Wearmouth, and the change certainly had a positive effect, with the home team starting to cause problems down Consett’s right-hand side.
Despite this it was Consett who came closest to another goal on 59 minutes as a long clearance from Carl Piecha somehow found Ross clean through on goal, but the young striker shot straight at Jeffries.
A second goal at that point would surely have clinched the game, but the let-off proved costly as Bishops piled on the pressure, and on 62 minutes the inevitable happened when Darren Atkinson made a determined run down the left and his low pinpoint cross was deftly flicked into the bottom-right corner from no more than six yards by Hawkins.
The home team were now having their best spell of the game, and pinned Consett almost in their own 18-yard box. On 78 minutes the pressure told when Bishops went ahead, with Hawkins again finishing from close range following good work from Olusoga and Emson.
There seemed to be no way back for Consett, but the gamed turned completely out of the blue on 80 minutes when the Bishops defence and goalkeeper made an awful mess of a long ball forward and Gavin Ross was left to tap into an open goal to make it 2-2.
Consett would surely have settled for a hard-earned away point, but three minutes later Ross again finished from close range following a cross from the right wing to make it 3-2.
There was controversy surrounding the goal, however, with the home team all literally stopping and watching Ross score, believing the ball had gone out for a throw-in before it was swung over.
The protest continued for a good few minutes, with the Two Blues’ management team led by future Consett boss Colin Myers – sprinting the length of the pitch to have their say to the linesman concerned, but regardless of whether the ball was in or out, the whistle had not gone, and Consett rightly continued to play.
The Steelmen held out fairly comfortably in the last few minutes, gaining revenge for an early-season FA Cup replay defeat by the same scoreline by the Two Blues.
Full-time: Bishop Auckland 2 Consett 3
Bishop Auckland: 1 Peter Jeffries. 2 Chris Lawson, 3 Darren Atkinson, 4 Wayne Clarke, 5 Graham Irving, 6 Steven Turnbull (sub Simon Ord), 7 Chris Bell, 8 Stephen Salvin, 9 Dan Olusoga, 10 Dan Hawkins, 11 Aaron Wearmouth (sub Adam Emson). Subs not used. Ryan Graham, Kieron Day, Mark Henson
Consett: 1 Gareth Powell, 2 Kieran Megran (sub Ryan Bell), 3 Jamie Poole (sub Anthony Lund), 4 David Scorer, 5 Carl Piecha, 6 Danny Craggs, 7 Dale Burrell, 8 Craig Robson, 9 Gavin Barton (sub Scott Martindale), 10 Gavin Ross, 11 Mark Eccles. Subs not used: Barry Poskett, Michael Coulthard.
Consett took their fans on a roller-coaster ride in an entertaining Wednesday night game at Morpeth Town on this day seven years ago.
The Northern League Division One game at Craik Park saw them rack up their 50th goal of the season, but concede their 48th – in just their 19th game!
Manager Kenny Lindoe made two changes to the side which had beated Jarrow Roofing eight days earlier, with fit-again defenders Carl Piecha and Ryan Bell coming in for Matty Slocombe and Mark Eccles, with the latter a late withdrawal after pulling up in the warm-up.
The Steelmen pushed forward from the start, and should have gone in front within two minutes, when a good move down the right gave Chris Bell a chance, but he badly miscued his shot across the face of goal.
But on four minutes Consett were ahead, with Bell making amends by sending Michael Mackay clear with a measured pass which beat the offside trap, and left the former Hartlepool man the simple task of slotting home past advancing keeper Steven Mundy.
After their early setback, the home side regrouped to enjoy their best spell of the game, with Sean Taylor and Jordan Fry both going close, before a right-wing cross brought the equaliser on 19 minutes. A ball in from the wing fell to the back post, where Taylor fired home. However, the referee had already blown the whistle for a push on Michael Chilton by Michael Pearson, and awarded a penalty. Chilton stepped up and thumped his spot-kick into the top-left corner.
Consett thought they had re-taken the lead on the half-hour mark. David Brown took a quick free-kick to Anthony Lund on the left, and his cross found Mackay, who hooked the ball home. But the away bench had returned a stray ball onto the pitch, and even though it was not interfering with play, the referee ruled out the ‘goal’.
The incident seemed to make Consett lose their focus for a while, and on 40 minutes they went behind, after a flowing Morpeth move down the right. Defender Daniel Patterson started it with a pass out to Fry on the right, and he reached the by-line before crossing into the six-yard box, where Chilton netted with a cheeky backheel.
With the final kick of the half, Consett made it 2-2. Piecha set Lund away down the left with a long ball out from the back, and when Morpeth keeper Mundy came racing out of his area into no-man’s land, the wide-man rolled it past him from 30 yards.
Half time: Morpeth Town 2-2 Consett
Consett made a change at half-time, bringing on Aris Guerin-Lokonga for Brown, with Lund dropping to left-back. And it paid dividends when they retook the lead on the hour. Mackay fed the ball out to Chris Bell on the right, and he drove the ball into the middle, where Sullivan finished from a few yards out, for his 20th goal of the season.
Pearson almost joined him on the scoresheet a couple of minutes later when his speculative effort from the right was pawed from under the crossbar by Mundy, and then Mackay put a header straight at the keeper from another Chris Bell cross.
But in what was fast becoming the story of the season, the Steelmen were made to pay for not taking their chances, as Morpeth equalised on 72 minutes. Right-back Shaun Henderson crossed towards Chilton, and the striker looked to have been pushed in the back by Piecha, who headed the ball up in the air. As the rest of the defence stood watching, Taylor reacted first to rifle the dropping ball into the top-right corner.
As the game entered its last quarter of an hour it looked like ‘next goal wins’, and Consett had what they thought was a good penalty appeal turned down when Guerin-Lokonga was sent sprawling by centre-back Chris Jewels as they chased a ball into the box.
The referee awarded only a corner, but the decision worked in Consett’s favour, as from the setpiece they went 4-3 ahead. Bell’s corner was half-cleared, and Calvin Smith lashed home the goal of the game from 25 yards with a superb strike which went in off the bar.
Consett brought on Craig Robson for Andrew Cuthbertson in a bid to shore things up, but they needn’t have worried, as, with five minutes to go, they scored again to wrap the game up. Pearson’s pass sent Guerin-Lokonga clear, and he made the keeper commit himself before unselfishly squaring the ball for Sullivan to roll his second goal of the night and 21st of the season into the unguarded net.
Full time: Morpeth 3-5 Consett
The teams lined up:
Morpeth Town : Steven Mundy, Shaun Henderson Michael Robinson, Andrew Keenan (Scott Swanston 75), David Hiftle, Chris Jewels (capt), Stephen Forster (Shaun Bell 75), Jordan Fry, Daniel Patterson (Steven Anderson 68), Michael Chilton, Sean Taylor. Subs not used: Michael Hall, Marc Walmsley
Consett: Jack Norton, Michael Pearson, David Brown (Aris Guerin-Lokonga 46), Calvin Smith, Carl Piecha (capt), Ryan Bell, Chris Bell, Andrew Cuthbertson (Craig Robson 80), Luke Sullivan, Michael Mackay, Anthony Lund. Subs not used: Matty Slocombe, Daniel Hall
This was the season Consett played their first 18 league games away from home, while they waited for their new Belle View Stadium to be completed. This was the 15th of those games. Such an unbalanced schedule obviously took its toll on the Steelmen, and they finished the season 11th.
Morpeth, who had only been promoted from the 2nd Division the season before, finished 17th in their first season back in the top flight. But their fortunes over the next few seasons would show how quickly things can change in football.
They were 8th the next season, then 4th – in the same season where they lifted the FA Vase – before two runners-up finishes prepared the way for promotion.
Remember the UK-wide lockdown back in the spring, when the Northern League season was suspended and then declared null and void? Of course you do.
In the absence of football during that time, we enjoyed a regular look back at matches from Consett’s history in our On This Day feature. We trawled our archives and unearthed lots of previously unseen pictures as we celebrated our past.
With no football fix until at least 3 December after the Government announced Lockdown Mk II to try to combat the spread of coronavirus, we thought we’d do it again!
We’ll be looking back at games from our recent past – and not-so-recent in a couple of particularly notable occasions – starting with a 5th November cracker at our old Belle Vue Park ground back in 2011.
Our opponents in the Division one encounter were South Shields, who we’ve enjoyed a friendly rivalry with for many years, and there were certainly fireworks as we won an incident-packed game 4-3!
A Michael Mackay first-half double and second-half strikes from Dale Burrell and Marc Walton were enough for victory, and although Consett were never behind, the points never looked safe until the very closing stages.
Kenny Lindoe’s side started slightly the brighter and were first to threaten when Dale Burrell burst through from midfield on seven minutes, however instead of squaring for the wide open Michael Mackay he chose to shoot and his effort was blocked.
Mackay wasn’t to be denied, however, and a minute later he latched onto a long ball by Harrison Davies. Although his shot was well blocked by Jamie Scope, the ball continued its path towards goal and the combined efforts of the hapless defender and keeper Jake Cunningham could only help it over the line for an own goal.
The lead was short lived as Shields equalised with their first attack of note on 11 minutes. Full-back Barrie Smith’s searching cross found the head of Stephen Ramsey, and although Consett keeper Barry Poskett made a good save, future Steelman David Colvin was on hand to finish the rebound from no more than five yards.
With both sides looking shaky at the back, a high-scoring game looked on the cards, and sure enough on 17 minutes Davies again played Michael Mackay clean through, and the in-form striker buried his shot in the bottom right-hand corner, pictured top.
Consett began to dominate, with Davies particularly influential. Floating between the left wing and behind the strikers, the Shields defenders couldn’t pick him up, and he sent a 25-yard effort just wide on 33 minutes before setting up Marc Walton on 35 minutes, though the No 9 put his 12-yard header narrowly wide.
South Shields did come back into the game, and five minutes before the break Stephen Ramsey twice headed just wide in the space of 60 seconds but Consett went into the break 2-1 up.
Half time: Consett 2-1 South Shields
The second half started flatly but burst into life on 53 minutes with the goal of the game from Dale Burrell to make it 3-1. The assist again came from Davies, who squared to him 30 yards out, and the midfielder smashed the ball into the top-right corner.
It was almost 4-1 on 57 minutes but Walton was unlucky to see his effort from 12 yards hit the bar, with Davies again the provider.
Consett seemed content to sit on their lead at this point, which let Shields began to dominate possession and noticeably grow in confidence.
The Steelmen started to look nervous in defence, and the inevitable happened on 72 minutes when, after numerous failed attempts to clear their lines, Jonathan Wightman sent in a cross from the right and David Colvin doubled his tally for the afternoon with a neat volleyed finish.
Just as it looked as though the home side could be in for a torrid final period, Craig Robson hit a lovely diagonal pass to Chris Hutchinson, and just as the wideman looked as though he was about to shoot, he cleverly cut the ball back to Marc Walton, who, with the help of a post, made no mistake to make it 4-2 on 75 minutes.
Consett finally looked as though they would see the game out in comfort, and although South Shields got a third in the third minute of stoppage time through a looping Lee Bell header, there was barely time to kick off again.
Full-time: Consett 4 South Shields 3
The teams lined up:
Consett: 1. Barry Poskett, 2. David Scorer, 3. David Brown, 4. Dale Burrell, 5. Anthony Lund, 6. Carl Piecha, 7. Chris Hutchinson (sub Michael Pearson), 8. Craig Robson, 9. Marc Walton, 10. Michael Mackay, 11. Harrison Davies (sub Jamie Poole). Subs not used: Damien Maw, Peter Jameson, Gavin Ross.
South Shields: 1. Jake Cunningham, 2. Barrie Smith, 3. Paul Talbot, 4. Jamie Scope, 5. Lee Bell, 6. Gilberto Chapim, 7. Jonathan Wightman, 8 Andrew Barclay (sub Anthony Burnell), 9. Stephen Ramsey (sub Denver Morris), 10. Simon Fitzpatrick (sub Sebastien Anzevui), 11. David Colvin. Subs not used: Dan Kirkup, Michael Rodenby.
