2021 was a summer of excitement but slight nervous anticipation for all Prestwich Heys fans as we envisaged us being in for a roller coaster season and that's exactly what it turned out to be.
The North West Counties decision to have a restructure propelled us from Division One into the Premier League for the very first time. It vas very much a time of change, the old classic away days at Nelson, Daisy Hill and Holker etc were gone and it was a sense of being the new kid in school as we ventured on a journey into the unknown but with Matt Barnes having previously managed at this level and knew the ropes I was confident we would be absolutely fine despite being on one of the lowest budgets in the league.
A look at the teams in the Premier League would see us come up against the likes of Northwich Victoria, Charnock Richard and most mouth watering of all former football league side and reformed Macclesfield Town.
Glossop away Simon, Lloyd, Conrad, Nick me and Dominic.
Pre-season on the whole went well and the away day regular fans were lapping up three trips to Silsden, Glossop North End and Penistone. Glossop a league above us was an impressive 2-0 win after which Dick Turpin appeared in one of the bars charging three of the lads £16.50 for three glasses of port at the end of the night much to hilarity of the rest of us and Penistone saw us gate crash a 40th being held in the beer garden at the back of the clubhouse but the host was more than happy to let us join in the celebrations although she had absolutely no idea who we actually were!.
Penistone away Lloyd, Pete, Mike, me and Gary
Mid July saw the fixtures released and the reality dawned on the task ahead as we were drawn against above mentioned Northwich and Charnock at home followed by away games at Barnoldswick Town and Macclesfield, the fixture computer had not been kind we would have to find our feet fast, and despite an encouraging opening day attendance of 287 we go down 4-0 against a well organised Vics side who know the ropes in this league and Charnock followed this up with another home defeat seeing us going down 5-3 despite a battling performance.
Respite in between these games was found in the FA Cup extra prelim round defeating fellow Premier League side Litherland 3-1 and this gave us encouragement although unfortunately we never made it on to the BBC red button live this time!.
Our first away day came in mid-August at Barnoldswick and already bottom of the league albeit after two games we feared we would be cast further adrift after a 3-1 defeat but to our amusement Ashton Athletic had sunk 9-1 away at Charnock Richard and so after three straight defeats and eleven goals conceded we actually moved off the bottom of the table on goal difference queuing a chant of 'we're not bottom anymore!' as we head back into the town for beers chuckling at what had just happened and proof that football yet again is a 'funny old game'.
The 'big one' came by the end of August in the form of Macclesfield away sadly on a Tuesday night but I decided to book a half day off work along with Simon and found ourselves drinking in Macclesfield by 3pm inviting people to join us via twitter prompting a concerned Heys keeper Russ Saunders to reply asking if we were aware the game wasn't kicking off until 745pm and was worried we wouldn't make the game!, oh the beauty of non-league football eh? a keeper concerned for his fans!.
He need not have worried as we make the game and for the first time, we see Heys play in front of over 3000 people. Its a poor turnout tonight from the Heys fans and the few that did attend were scattered in different parts of the ground making it impossible to cheer the boys on but we give a great account of ourselves at only 2-1 down and more than in the game until defender Anthony Potts handballed on the line conceded a penalty and was sent off, we lose 3-1 and it was brilliant to see us play in front of a crowd that large although you do have to ask the question where all these Macclesfield fans were when they were in the football league because they certainly were not at Moss Rose.
So four league games and four defeats but none of us were really concerned because of the strength of the opposition, we had battled hard and we knew it would come good soon and after bowing out of the FA Cup losing 3-0 at home to and excellent Warrington Rylands side it did come good winning three of the next four league games beating Winsford Avro and Lower Breck.
Avro away was a particular highlight on August Bank Holiday Monday, a derby game they were flying high in the league we weren't fancied and our chances were reduced even more when star striker Jack Coop was dropped to the bench having turned up for the game a little green after celebrating his baby's christening the day before!. We play well but with the score 0-0 Coop enters the fray late on after a few Lucozade and pro plus in the 82nd minute he slots the ball past the keeper and into the net sending one of the biggest away turn outs of the season wild, we win 1-0 we are buzzing especially after struggling on this ground in previous visits, it was one of the most memorable games of the season and on top of it all on this day I felt Prestwich Heys had finally arrived in the Premier League now was OUR time we CAN do this! and as for Jack Coop...LEGEND!.
The flags up and ready at Avro away
Into September now and a disappointing 4-1 defeat at Wythenshawe Town in a forgettable Tuesday night game we were on the road again at Ashton Athletic in a game that had everything 3-1 up at half time saw us pulled back to 3-3 with minutes to go and it was Coop again who snatched victory in the dying embers to give us the points in a game we could have ended up losing. Ashton was a strange place with a ground in the middle of a field surrounded by sheep and hardly any pubs but the committee who run the club are very friendly and made us so welcome after the game, even giving us a lift back to the pub after we'd had a few in the clubhouse. Ok it was the wrong pub he gave us a lift to! but hey its the thought that counts, eh?, a great away day ended in a pit stop in Wigan on the way back, something we did on a few occasions last season!.
Two more wins followed against Congleton in the league, meaning we were starting to get some serious points on the board and a 7-2 first round FA Vase home win against Brigg Town of the North East Counties Premier and I'll never forget the sight of the Brigg fans 'crew' walking down the opposite side of the pitch in Stone Island jackets but noticing the rather small size of them but soon realising as they got closer that the oldest one was about thirteen. It was a proper 'how far away are they?' moment very much like the scene with the Bolton fans in the TV show Phoenix nights.
Sadly, our next win would be a month later again in the Vase beating Penrith at home 4-2 in between which time we go on a slump in the league losing four and drawing one of the next five crashing to a 4-3 defeat at rock bottom Litherland who's first league win of the season had only come the week before, on a brighter note a new signing from AFC Bury Greg Daniels made his debut who was to prove a masterstroke of a signing by the manager.
That Penrith victory spurred us on as we go on to win three of the next four games which included a cracking away day in a 2-1 win at Burscough and probably went down as 'banter of the season' with the home fans as we all sat in the one small stand to shelter from the rain we mock the home fans for having no bar inside the ground singing 'where is your bar?' only to find them sat in the pub round the corner after the game singing 'you've found our bar' as we walked in. The fact they all came over and shook hands with us after the game having beaten them was class as well, another great away day that also see us finish in Wigan...naturally!.
Burscough away Dominic, Nick, Steve, Mike, Gary me and Conrad
Another league win at home to Runcorn Town was marred when full back Nathan Emery was carried off and had to go to hospital with a broken leg after a 'full bloodied' challenge from the Runcorn player, it was sickening and Nathan would not play again for the rest of the season, in fact he could barely walk for half of it.
Round two of the FA Vase and the third successive draw at home where this time we see off Winterton Rangers 3-1 and cementing our best run in the competition, were we starting to smell the hot dogs of Wembley?, well not quite but we were now in the last 64 of the competition where United Counties Premier League side Harborough Town would be heading to Adie Moran Park.
In between the Vase rounds league form was on the slide again as two poor displays at home to Padiham and particularly a 2-0 loss at Congleton on a cold wet Saturday in late November had me slightly concerned for the first time about our plight for the season confidence looks low and we were short of ideas.
This passed though as a 3-1 home win against Vauxhall Motors the following week raised spirits and our final game of 2021 was the above mentioned FA Vase game against Harborough Town which despite a bright start saw a 7-1 reversal and while the visitors were clearly a quality side it was a hard defeat to take after doing so well to get that far.
So the year came to a close with Heys in 17th place in the league which at the start of the season you would easily have taken and with Runcorn and Litherland cast adrift in the relegation zone we were looking ok, some good results but more consistency was needed if we were to climb the table in the second half of the season which would open up on 3rd of January against...you guessed it...Macclesfield.
A rare sight at Adie Moran Park a 'sold out' sign
It seemed like the build-up to this game had gone on for weeks almost to the point where by the time the game came around we just wanted it out of the way. Heys as a club had made a decision to make the game all ticket and limit the capacity to 420 because of our limited facilities and concerns for the safety of supporters, a decision that angered table topping Macc as it appears we were the only team in the league who decided to stand up to them and not roll over and have our tummies tickled.
Conversations were had between a Macclesfield representative and Heys chairman Neil Gilmore with Neil being asked to explain why they had only been allocated 200 tickets and that Neil was asked to call none other than Robbie Savage himself to explain this, as you can imagine a no was the reply and that if Mr Savage had an issue to call the club himself....he never did!.
So, with all this in mind some Macclesfield fans took to social media to share outrage at this decision of the 200 allocation and said some not to complimentary things about our little club with one tweet calling us the Dog and Duck!, which I found highly amusing and so when match day came we had a little bit of added spice to this one.
The kick off had been brought forward to 2pm and I remember getting to the ground about 115 and seeing the Macclesfield players warm up I could see some concerned looks at the state of the pitch, a far cry from the bowling green they play on at Moss Rose and suddenly I was thinking hang on, these look far from happy here, could this be our day?.
The game kicks off and with only six minutes gone Joe Rothwell's twelve-yard strike sent home fans wild as we go 1-0 up, it was clear our boys wanted this bad, so much so only 15 minutes later and still in broad daylight the above mentioned Robbie Savage demanded the floodlights be switched on!, yes seriously!.
1-0 at half time and as expected an onslaught from the visitors came in the second half, a disallowed offside goal had us panicking for a moment but we held firm and saw out the win, a magnificent achievement to inflict only Macclesfield's third defeat of the season Dog and Duck 1 Macclesfield 0 who went to win the league and get promoted, good riddance to them.
Macclesfield game after the final whistle (photo by Beth Lee)
Buoyed by that win we followed it up in the next game with our biggest away win of the season 4-1 at Irlam on a Tuesday night where yours truly missed the game because I test positive for covid and have to self-isolate even though I have nothing more than a minor sniffle, yes that's right, save the best for when muggins here can't go....bugger! but I heard it was a great night!.
January continued with a narrow 3-2 defeat to second placed Skelmersdale and a 1-1 draw with third placed Wythenshawe a valiant effort in both games and then away draws picked up at struggling Runcorn which had to go down as the bleakest away day of the season on a cold Tuesday night in a ground overlooking a chemical factory and Squires Gate which meant a trip to the seaside in Blackpool and a great day out for the nine of us who did the day trip on the train hitting several pubs before and after the game which ended up with us in the excellent Galleon retro bar watching live music with the Heys flag draped from the wall and everyone buzzing despite the game being a forgettable 0-0 draw and it was just one of those days where you remember why you do the whole none league football thing with an amazing bunch of people.
Squires Gate away in Blackpool Conrad, Gary, Lloyd,Mike me, Dominic, Nick and Steve
Into February and onwards results are starting to slide especially at home and a heavy 5-0 defeat away at a rain sodden Winsford in a game that should have been called off does not help us however the team rallies in a 1-0 win at top eight side Northwich Victoria in which we had an amusing clash with home fans who come over to us in the second half and it seems of these five lads the eldest is about....nine! who have one song and one song only 'zigger zagger, zigger zagger Northwich Vics!' which after singing back to them that 'you've only got one song!' we respond with 'wagamama wagamama Prestwich Heys' a truly bizarre but hilarious exchange which saw these baby ultras go quiet with twenty minutes to go when Scott Cullen smashed in the winner for a victory that we certainly did not see coming.
A 1-1 draw at home to Burscough in early March confirmed our Premier League status for the season with six games still to play in which we only manage to win one in another surprise away win at promotion chasing Charnock Richard where we all get clubhouse envy with the fantastic set up they have and the boys do us proud in a terrific battling performance in a 2-1 win only marred by star man Greg Daniels being carried off with a serious leg injury that will see him out until potentially October. We drink before and after the game in nearby Chorley which is not to shabby a place to go for an away day and one we will explore much more next season.
AFC Liverpool away last day of the season pre match drinks
The home campaign ends disappointingly losing 1-0 to relegation threatened Litherland in a lacklustre display the team look tired but the more frustrating thing was from a fan's perspective that some of the players were not playing at the levels expected and this continued into the final game of the season away at AFC Liverpool where we are 3-0 down at half time and the mood on the terraces of the away contingent is not a good one, a late consolation goal does not hide the disappointment and we head to the Edinburgh pub next door to the ground with the season done and objective of staying in the league complete but something just didn't feel right with the performances, especially in the last few home games where it seemed we were relying on striker and league top goal scorer Jack Coop a little to much and it was appearing we had no other outlet.
AFC Liverpool away Andy, James and freind
No respite was to follow in the Macron Cup the following the following week as we take a full-strength side apart from the long-term injuries to play rivals and newly crowned First Division champions AFC Bury at Radcliffe's Neuven ground . It was to be said Bury were very impressive and run out fully deserved 4-1 winners. It was a defeat we feared was coming, it did, it hurt and we couldn't wait to get out of the ground at the end of it but we will get our chance for revenge next season when they join us in the Premier League.
So that was it, the season was over and shortly after it was announced that manager Matt Barnes was to leave with the club wanting to go in a different direction. This was so sad as Matt had achieved his objective of keeping us up finishing 16th, got us to the last 64 of the FA Vase, further than we'd ever been and had beaten some of the league's best sides, but football is a tough business and with only two wins in the last sixteen games and eleven home defeats in the league the club made a bold and difficult decision to make a change for the 2022-23 season.
So new beginnings it is and in coming is former Heys player and Avro manager Lee O'Brien and his team. Avro were in fourth place in the Premier League when they left in January and after a break from football Lee is looking forward to getting stuck in to his new role with pre season starting late June and the Premier League will be underway 30 July.
As for us the fans we have some cracking new away days to look forward to with Kendal Town, West Didsbury and Chorlton and most notably the Isle of Man joining us and one senses a weekend away coming for that one, I have this vision of a large group of us having a photograph with the flag draping over Douglas promenade!.
We also have our brand new stand which is looking amazing, two new major sponsorship deals and a new kit and shirt sponsor and it feels like everything at the club is really starting to come together so rest up guys and gals in the summer and get ready to get back on that rollercoaster from 30th July as we go again in the North West Counties Premier League 2022-23 season.