Being Christmas I decided to stay local and went to Staveley Miners Welfare to see them play Selby.

What you get at Staveley is a warm feeling in the clubhouse that had a few decorations but most of all community.

The clubhouse is large, bright (painted in blue and white club colours), warm, 5 large TV screens, good bar, large food counter but most of all friendly. There were tables taken by Selby fans, a couple with tins of sweets on and a lot of noise that was the chatter of people catching up and anticipating the game.

This is a club that has taken league demotion in recent years to get the club rooted firmly in the community with many teams and a facility that they are proud of. The ground is spotless and tidy like your house when you are expecting visitors. They have also revealed plans for class rooms on the site for pupils to study at an Academy and announced that they have reduced their debt in two years from £240 000 to £160 000, everything is moving forward.

The program had a Christmas theme and an updated team sheet was available in the clubhouse.

Staveley Miners Welfare F.C’s. current incarnation was formed in 1962 as a Sunday team, known as the Nags Head playing in Barrow Hill and started playing on Saturdays in 1989. There have been previous clubs playing at the ground since 1919. They have since risen to  their current step 5 level and despite difficult times in 2007 a new Chairman in Terry Damms has with his team made it into a successful community club with feeder teams of all ages.

Selby Town have also been in existence since 1919 although a team of the same name and nickname has been dissolved nearly 10 years before. They were once in the Northern Counties East League Premier Division but have spent most of their time at their current level.

It was a dry, bright, windy day at 10 degrees making the synthetic pitch shine out and ready for action.

Staveley Miners Welfare v Selby Town

Saturday 24th December 2023,  Inkersall Road, Staveley Chesterfield Derbyshire S43 3JL

15.00 pm kick off;  Trojans v Robins; 11th v 15th; Northern Counties East League Division 1

Staveley, Royal Blue and white vertical striped shirts with royal blue shorts: Selby, All white strip with red short sleeves to the shirts.

The game started with each team getting used to the windy conditions when controlling the ball. Staveley were gaining the upper hand and went ahead after 18 minutes when a free kick was defended, the ball going back to the freekick taker who lobbed it back in the goal where Kian Tansley rose to glance head the ball over Alfie Burnett, Selby’s keeper, to nestle in the far corner of the net.

Selby reacted with more attacking but were again beaten by a freekick on 31 minutes when Kian Tansley bent the ball round the left of a small wall into a gaping opening. At two nil Selby must have been thinking that half time could not come soon enough, however their plight was worsened when just on half time Kyle Fish was dismissed for a reckless tackle on Jack Deakin’s shin whose cry could be heard everywhere in the ground. The resulting mele led to two Staveley players being booked although the referee could have booked even more of both teams players.

The second half gave no respite for Selby who went 3 nil down on 58 minutes when from a corner Dustyn Grierson was unmarked to send a bullet header into a bulging net. Just after half time Daniel Davison for Selby was sin binned for arguing with the referee, playing against 9 men Staveley used up all of their substitutes to rest player for the Boxing Day fixture.

Back to 10 players Selby did have a last hoorah and forced two good saves in the last five minutes by Zac Walker in the Staveley goal.

A very competent win for Staveley and a game for Selby to forget.

An amazing sunset at Staveley, 40 years ago the sky would have been this colour from the Chemical works and heavy industry.

Chips are always on the menu at Staveley and at £2.50 they were a good quantity, hot, great texture but unfortunately greasy, that didn’t stop me eating them though, a score of 64. At half time in the Christmas spirit I had a mince pie with my coffee from a cake stall that had been set up just inside the club house entrance, it was delicious.