Greenalls Padgate St Oswalds FC
Tetleys Sports Ground
Long Lane
Warrington
Cheshire
WA2 8PY
Ground Number: 1183
Monday 8th May 2023
GPSO 0-6 Styal
Cheshire Reserve League 2
GPSO 0-6 Styal
Cheshire Reserve League 2
GREENALLS PADGATE ST OSWALDS FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
Greenalls Padgate St Oswalds or GPSO to use their shortened name can trace their history all the way back to 1963. Greenalls were formerly the local Greenalls Brewery team. Greenalls played in the Warrington and District Football League for many years with the highlight winning the Guardian Cup, Depot Cup and the Division 2 title in 1987. Talks of a merger had been going around for a couple of years but in 2004, the club joined up with Padgate St Oswalds to form a new team. Padgate St Oswalds had been a yoyo team between the Mid Cheshire League Divisions 1 & 2 and at the time of the merger, they were Division 2 champions. In 2007, the league was renamed the Cheshire League and GPSO remained in Division 1. After winning the title in 2011, GPSO finished as runners-up to Knutsford in 2012. The Division was subsequently renamed the Premier Division in 2014 but the club remain there to this day, as they have done for the entirety of their history.
As for cup competitions, the club is considered not good enough to enter the FA Vase, more's the pity. Local cup wins include the Guardian Cup in 2005, 2009, 2011, 2014 & 2017 and the Presidents Cup in 2019. I was off to see the Reserves, they were champions of the Reserves League in 2013. Currently, they are towards the lower end of the second tier in the Cheshire Reserves League. Local rivals include Eagle Sports, Moore United and Vulcan in the Cheshire League. Warrington Rylands have enjoyed a considerable rise in recent years and are looking to usurp Warrington Town as the dominant side in the area.
MY VISIT
Surprisingly, I got a rare Bank Holiday off without even asking. Of course, I was going to go and see a game of football of some description. In fact, I spotted a treble or a double depending on what time I fancied setting off. Greenalls Padgate St Oswalds was always going to be the opener. It was a ground that I'd wanted to visit for pictures on the way to Wigan last season but a hideously behaved M6 put pay to that idea. It was always on my radar though, and I'd be going for an actual game this time. I offered it to MK-based Chris first but he was busy going with another hopper to Cadbury Athletic. Luckily Anwar was keen and Colin also agreed to come along making it more affordable for us all. This was all finalised on Saturday night after a good day at Bushey Rangers.
I had a rubbish night's sleep the night before the game and kept waking up. Even so, I felt OK when I woke at 7. I was ready and out of the door by 7.30, picking up Colin at 7.45 and Anwar at 8.10. I popped into Budgens as I'd not had any breakfast. My hunger gone following a hot dog, we set off. It was a good journey but the rain was torrential. I really thought we'd had a wasted journey but was glad to arrive to a busy car park. A walk around confirmed a good pitch and players warming up. A walk around and some photos killed time until kickoff.
The hosts were second bottom of the Reserve League 2. They had however been getting some reasonable results lately, beating Lostock Gralam 1-0 in their last game. They'd also beaten Moore United 3-0 and drawn 2-2 at St Michael's DH. However, they suffered a 15-1 thumping at the hands of Whalley Range and a 7-3 loss at Hartford. Styal were based in Wilmslow and had travelled just over 20 miles to today's game and were going well in 2nd. They'd won five of their last six league games, the exception being a 2-1 loss at Haydock. These wins included an 8-3 win at St Michaels DH and a 4-3 win against GPSO in the reverse fixture. GPSO started the brightest and had a couple of chances. However, it was Styal that took the lead on 27 minutes with a drive from the edge of the area. It was 2-0 on 35 minutes, another long-range goal that found the top right corner. It was harsh on the hosts who had been the better side. A well-worked move saw another lovely finish following a great control. The resulting shot found the bottom right-hand corner on 38 minutes. Just before halftime, GPSO had another couple of chances but the ball wouldn't go in. Only profligate finishing prevented them from getting a goal in the opening give minutes of the second half. It was 4-0 on 50 minutes, a good move down the centre and another finish from the edge of the area. As the rain started up once more, Styal made it 5-0 with a low shot that found the bottom right corner. The best goal was saved till 66 minutes, a 30-yarder clipping the bar on the way in. The game died down towards the end, the overly fussy referee who appeared to be writing a novel in his notebook. As a result, the game dragged out but there was no way that there was a six-goal difference between the two sides. However, Styal were far more proficient at finishing than the hosts.
THE GROUND
The Tetley's Club is a good venue for the level. There is a large terraced stand that should cater for most crowds at this level. The pitch also held up well in the rain. I'd assume the club outside does drink and maybe food. The car park is large and there is a bus stop nearby.
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