New Years Day preview

North Staffs Football kicks off the New Year with a full fixture list.

Stoke City look to bounce back from their 2-0 defeat to Fulham with another match at the Britannia against Everton.

Britannia Stadium

Tony Pulis has called for Jermaine Pennant to keep focused after signing a two-and-a-half-year deal from Spanish side Real Zaragoza.

David Moyes’s side are the visitors and boast just two wins away from Goodison Park, but the Toffees could prove hard to break down, having drawn six on their travels.

In League Two, Port Vale will have to put aside worries over Micky Adams departure as they travel to Yorkshire side Rotherham.

Rotherham would leapfrog Vale with a win, as Adams’s men look to bounce back from a second successive defeat to Gillingham on Boxing Day.

Burton Albion welcome play-off contenders Shrewsbury Town to the Pirelli Stadium. The Brewers have slipped down to 14^th and are in need of a win to boost their own play-off chances.

The Shrews are poor travellers for their league position and have notched just three wins.

In the Blue Square North, Stafford Rangers face a tough test at AFC Telford as Tim Flowers searches for his first league win at the helm.

Rangers sit 20^th and are desperate for a win to lift themselves out of the relegation spots, but having netted only twice on their travels so far this campaign the odds are certainly stacked against them.

In the Evo Stik Division One South, Kidsgrove Athletic and Leek Town battle out a North Staffordshire derby at the Seddon Stadium.

Grove will be hoping to push home advantage as they look to challenge for a top two finish this season, whilst Leek’s prerogative is merely survival. The Blues haven’t kicked a ball in anger since November 23.

Elsewhere, Newcastle Town travel to Market Drayton Town.

NSF predictions

Stoke City 1 Everton 1

Burton Albion 1 Shrewsbury 2

Rotherham 2 Port Vale 2

AFC Telford 3 Stafford Rangers 0

Kidsgrove Athletic 2 Leek Town 1

Market Drayton 1 Newcastle Town 3

Let North Staffs Football know your score predictions!

More postponements in big freeze

Burton Albion and Stafford Rangers have been forced to postpone today’s Boxing Day fixtures due to frozen pitches.

In the Evo Stik First Division South all fixtures have been called off for Leek Town, Newcastle Town and Kidsgrove Athletic, scheduled to be played tomorrow (December 27).

Harrison Park Pic: Hampton Productions

Only Stoke City‘s trip to Ewood Park to take on Blackburn Rovers will go ahead.

Weather permitting, Vale travel to Gillingham and Burton take on Stevenage at the Pirelli on December 28, Stafford Rangers have a home tie against Worcester and Stoke entertain Fulham at the Britannia Stadium.

Leek, Newcastle and Kidsgrove will have to wait until New Years Day before they next attempt to play.

Leek and Kidsgrove clash at the Seddon Stadium whilst Newcastle make the short trip to Market Drayton Town.

North Staffs Football brings you the news about games that have been called off as soon as we get it. Let us know your score predictions.

Festive period kicks off

With all of our side’s itching to play after postponements, the festive period kicks off with a Boxing Day feast.

Stoke City travel to managerless Blackburn Rovers in search of a win to leapfrog the Lancashire outfit.

In League Two, Port Vale have a home tie against strugglers Lincoln City and Burton Albion travel to an in-form Northampton side.

In the Blue Square North, Stafford Rangers have a home match against Telford AFC.

The Evo Stik First Division South will play their matches on December 27 where Leek Town host their match with Belper (34 days since they last kicked a ball) and Newcastle host a derby clash with Kidsgrove Athletic.

North Staffs Football will keep you informed of any postponements, but let us know your score predictions from our games.

Tonight’s fixtures OFF

Tonight’s Evo Stik First Division South matches have been postponed following further snow and ice.

Kidsgrove Athletic‘s Seddon Stadium, Newcastle Town’s Lyme Valley Stadium and Leek Town‘s Harrison Park has all failed to recover in time for their league fixtures.

Harrison Park Pic: Hampton Productions

Kidsgrove were due to play Romulus, Newcastle faced Glapwell and Leek hosted their match with Market Drayton Town.

The side’s will have to wait until Boxing Day for another chance of play and for Neil Cox’s Leek Town side, they will be itching at the thought having not kicked a ball in anger for over a month now.

A date for the re-arranged fixtures is yet to be decided.

Leek Town land Aussie signing

Blues boss Neil Cox has unveiled his latest signing in 18-year-old Australian midfielder Devon Gibson.

Devon Gibson

Cox has been trying to land the Socceroo for a number of weeks but the club have been waiting for international clearance from the FA.

However with the recent inclement weather putting paid to Leek’s last five games it means that Gibson’s debut has not been delayed.

Devon was born in the UK but has spent most of his life in Australia and is something of a celebrity ‘down under’ having made it through to the final three of the 2010 reality TV series ‘Football Superstar’.

He missed out the main prize of a professional contract with Aussie side Brisbane Roar and so has returned to the UK with the aim of furthering his football career.

For the last two seasons he has played in the Senior Mens State Premier League for Cockburn City and also captained the u19’s Western Australia Schoolboy Team.

Devon then captained the Australian u19’s schoolboy team touring China, Wales Ireland Scotland and England back in January.

Cox frustrated by weather woe

Leek Town boss Neil Cox says he is becoming frustrated by his team’s lack of action.

Neil Cox

Cox and his troops haven’t played since their 3-1 Staffordshire Cup defeat at home to Rushall Olympic on November 23.

Having fallen victim to the snow and ice last month, Leek’s match at Spalding fell foul to the elements in what was a fifth-successive postponement for the Blues.

Cos said: “We just want to get back out there, the players are itching to play.

“But the way things are going, we might not play again until after Christmas.

“We have been able to train – Dario Gradi let us use the Reaseheath complex at Crewe – but we just want to get back out there now.”

The Blues are due to face Market Drayton Town tomorrow (December 21) but this is a major doubt.

Leek’s next scheduled game after that is the Bank Holiday Monday clash on December 27th with Belper Town at Harrison Park. That game is 34 days since the Blues last kicked a ball in anger – the Staffordshire Senior Cup game against Rushall Olympic on November 23rd.

If the Belper game doesn’t go ahead, the winter weather lay-off could surpass last year’s break of 39 days between the 15th December and 23rd January.

With fixture backlogs inevitable, Town have at least played 17 league games – around average for the division.

Spare a thought for Sheffield FC who most be wondering how on earth they are going to fit in a further 31 league games having played only 11 so far!

As always, let North Staffs Football know your thoughts on matches being postponed and whether non-leagues should start their fixtures earlier?

This week’s games at a glance

The only action scheduled for this week is for our non-league side’s.

On Tuesday (December 21) Kidsgrove Athletic, Leek Town and Newcastle Town are all set to host matches but all are a major doubt with the second wave of the big freeze gripping the county.

Kidsgrove Athletic vs Romulus

Leek Town vs Market Drayton Town

Newcastle Town vs Glapwell

All matches are scheduled for a 7.45pm kick-off.

North Staffs Football will bring you the news over postponements as soon as we get it. Do football matches get called off too easily nowadays? Or not? Let North Staffs Football know.

To have a look at some of the pictures from the Emirates Stadium where Stoke City were due to play Arsenal click below.

All North Staffs matches called off

With an artic blast returning to our county, North Staffs Football has ground to a halt with none of our side’s playing any football this weekend.

Stoke City’s trip to the Emirates to clash with Arsenal is one of the shock postponements. Emirates staff has been unable to keep the walkways around the ground safe with heavy snow.

In League Two, Burton Albion’s match away to Accrington Stanley has been called off due to a frozen pitch following an earlier inspection. Port Vale’s home match to Barnet was also postponed after a 9am inspection. A date for the replayed fixtures has yet to be decided.

Cold snap puts a freeze on matches

Stafford Rangers’s trip to Guiseley in the Blue Square North has been postponed following a 3.00pm pitch inspection. The ground temperature was recorded at minus 3C with no chance of play. The re-scheduled fixture will be announced at a later date.

Kidsgrove Athletic boss Peter Ward has said their match against Stamford is highly unlikely to be on. The Seddon Stadium is currently frozen with no thaw due over the next 24 hours. A full inspection will be carried out on Saturday morning.

Leek Town and Newcastle Town have their matches called off as well.

Leek Town boss hopeful over Quorn game

Leek Town manager Neil Cox is keen to get the team back into the routine of playing games after bad weather led to a string of matches being cancelled, writes Danny Cuff.

They went without a game last weekend as their fixture against Loughborough Dynamo was called off.

Cox said: “After a couple of weeks without a game we need to play and get started again.”

Neil Cox

Although the results may not tell the same story, Leek Town have been impressing with their performances away from home and travel to Quorn tomorrow hoping to pick up points.

Cox added: “We have been playing our best football away from home and the pitch at Quorn is a great surface to play on.”

Leek currently sit 18th in the table and while Quorn sit 12th, Cox feels that the game is one they can still take points from.

“I have seen Quorn play a few times and I don’t feel there is too much between us,” he explained. “It should be a good game.”

Neil Cox praises under pressure Dan Cope

Leek boss Neil Cox has been impressed with the way striker Dan Cope has responded to the pressure for his place, reports The Sentinel.

Dan Cope

Cope was last season’s Leek discovery after scoring 16 goals, and the club was delighted when he postponed his planned four-year scholarship to America.

But the youngster has found this term harder going, and although he is again leading scorer with six, he can no longer command a regular starting place.

Cox is currently looking at Leon Ashman and newcomer Anthony Malbon, from Port Vale, as his front two, so Cope and Paul Rutter have to await their opportunity.

Cox said: “We have four centre-forwards and I told them I would play the best two.”