Warrington Rylands FC
Rylands Recreation Club
Gorsey Lane
Warrington
Cheshire
WA2 7RZ
01925 635700
Ground Number: 1255
Monday 1st January 2024
Warrington Rylands 2-3 Macclesfield
NPL Premier
WARRINGTON RYLANDS FC - A BRIEF HISTORY
The club was founded as Rylands FC in 1906 as a works team from a manufacturer of wire. The club started playing in the Liverpool County Football Combination, then the Warrington & District League. The 1950s saw the club become champions of the Warrington & District Premier Division six times in a row from 1954 onwards. In 1968, the club joined the joined the Mid-Cheshire League. This would be their home for the next 50 years and Rylands would win the title in 1981 & 1984. A brief merger with fellow Cheshire League side Crosfields between 2008 and 2010 occurred before they switched their name back to Rylands, In July 2016, football agent Paul Stretford stated he was aiming to get Rylands to the Football League after investing £100,000 on ground improvements and a couple of years later he became outright owner of the club. The following year, they changed their name to Warrington Rylands to reflect the geographic location. They were lofty ambitions given the club's standing at the time but that same year, they were admitted to the North West Counties Division 1 South despite only finishing 11th in the league. They won the title in their first season at the higher level before Covid interrupted things. Their performance over the two culled seasons was good enough for them to earn another promotion to the NPL Division 1 West which they won at the first attempt. Last season they made their debut in the NPL Premier, finishing a credible 10th.
MY VISIT
Ten days ago, this match was decided upon when I went with fellow hoppers Richard & Anwar to Dussindale & Hellesdon. A discussion was had about what games we had coming up. Richard mentioned that he'd be driving to Warrington Rylands v Macclesfield and I was very keen to bag a lift. It was one of three that I needed to complete the top seven levels of English Football, 252 teams. It would leave me with just Bamber Bridge and Morpeth Town to do which I would endeavour to do this season if the opportunity arose. I'd be missing the Wycombe Wanderers v Bristol Rovers game although that was a blessing with the dire football we have been playing. It would be a big match and crowd with Macclesfield travelling well and tickets were on sale in advance. I tried to find out how many were sold but the club were unresponsive. The goalkeeping coach and manager were very welcoming though and the latter was a name that I recognised, Michael Clegg had done a fantastic job at Atherton Collieries. He had taken the Colls from the North West Counties Division 1 to the NPL Premier. With his former side rock bottom of the league, they could certainly do with some more magic like that.
Macclesfield were a nice team to visit when they were a small fish in the Football League. Now though, the boot was on the other foot. They had taken the option of charging high prices and paying big wages, something I am not a fan of. That's why I am tired of games at Wycombe's level. I've always been a believer in charging a fair price for the product and then paying the players accordingly. Warrington Rylands I believe had had a bit of money pumped into them by a local businessman, but a tenner admission was still pretty reasonable and one of the cheaper at this level. It was New Year's Eve the night before but with me having had a couple of boozy days, it was a sober one. It was also a reasonably early night for me too with me not having had a decent night's sleep in a while. I was asleep just after 11 and up just before 7 but it was an interrupted night's sleep. It was nice to have a bath and finish preparing this blog before leaving at 9.15. I also continued my binge watch of the 90's Sitcom 'Goodnight Sweetheart'
I was in Aylesbury by 9.45, well ahead of the 10 am meet time. Richard was soon there and Anwar turned up just after. The roads were quiet so it was a decent journey for the most part. We were set to arrive in Warrington at 12.45 and Richard had kindly agreed to drop me at the Friar Penketh Wetherspoons. I'd done the other Spoons when visiting Warrington Town. Just to be safe, I purchased my ticket online. It was £1.68 extra but worth it to have a good pre-match and guaranteed entry. The Friar Penketh was a good Spoons, lots of rugby stuff on the walls. It was the only one in the town now, with the Looking Glass that I had been to now closed, sold in March 2022. I had a pint of Old Rosie to start for £3.51. I then ordered food, steak with chips, onion rings and a pint of Strongbow for £14.53. Considering there were two big games - Warrington Town v Chester City and Warrington Rylands v Macclesfield in the area, it was nice and easy to get a table. Finally, I had another pint of Old Rosie, a good job I'd not bothered making any New Year resolutions about eating or drinking healthier. The service was variable, taking longer than I'd hoped for drinks, but then that was the price of being lazy. After a 35-minute walk, I was at the ground twenty minutes before kickoff. It was mainly Macc fans but they were great and good to chat to about old times.
It was 2nd v 5th in the league and 3rd v 8th in the form table. Warrington Rylands were unbeaten in five with draws at Marine and home to Atherton Collieries and Basford United as well as wins at Radcliffe and against Stafford Rangers. Macclesfield had beaten Curzon Ashton in the FA Trophy and won at Gainsborough Trinity in the league. They'd lost 4-3 to Bradford Park Avenue and drawn against Hyde and Workington. The two sides had met twice at Macclesfield this season with Macc victorious in the FA Cup and the two sides sharing a draw in the league. Warrington Rylands dominated in a lively start but Macclesfield hit the post on a quick break. Macc did take the lead on 13 minutes, a deflected shot from John Rooney. Rooney converted a free kick on 22 minutes to make it 2-0. Rylands pulled one back through James Neild on 35 minutes to haul them back into the game. They got a deserved equaliser on 53 minutes, Adama Sidebeh latching on to a great through ball for the equaliser. Macclesfield had a good spell of pressure and they took the lead on 71 minutes, a close-range finish and a Rooney hat trick. There were no further goals despite the hosts probably deserving a share of the spoils.
The matchday experience was OK. It took ages to get my hotdog but it was nice and fresh and tasty. There was a good crowd of 1,148 there though. The game was a decent one and Wycombe won by the same scoreline at home to Bristol Rovers. It ended twelve games without a win but was a close-run thing in the end. Interesting news came when we captured prolific non-league striker Richard Kone who had been scoring hatfuls for Athletico Newham in the Essex Senior League. We made a quick retreat to the car, the weather very wet and seemingly not changed since last year.I was in a decent mood as I headed home as a passenger for once. The plan was to upload my blog, get home and have something to eat and maybe a couple of drinks. The New Year's resolutions can start tomorrow.
Second goal for John Rooney. Warrington Rylands 0-2 Macclesfield. Harsh on the hosts. pic.twitter.com/6m90VxPlqJ
— ⚽Russell Cox💙 (@RussWWFC) January 1, 2024
THE GROUND
GORSEY LANE or THE HIVE ARENA is a compact venue that has seen bits added to it as the side has progressed up the leagues. It only has a capacity of just under 1,400 and a lot of that is covered with seats and standing. One side has room fir expansion but the other three are hemmed in. Food and drink facilities seemed basic, though it was tricky to judge on such a busy day. There wasn't a huge car park at the ground but a reasonable amount of street parking. The town is around 30 minutes walk away.
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