Needing a local match I drove to Dronfield to see Sheffield F.C. play Clitheroe in an F.A.Cup replay after the two teams drew 2.2 on Saturday.
I have written before about Sheffield playing in Derbyshire and their history so no need to say it again.
The car park has been reduced since my last visit and the ground feels tired compared with other local teams like, Handsworth, Staveley, and Worksop. So although a win was needed the bigger battle is about to be played at a Sheffield planning meeting when the club will hear whether their plans for their new stadium at Meadowhead will be approved. There are at least 130 objections mainly around the traffic generated, especially around the nearby roundabout. The roundabout is manic at times being part of the southern ring road, meeting the Dronfield by pass from Chesterfield and serving a large area of chimney pots. It has been made worse by the opening of the very popular St James retail park. The retail park causes queues to get in and does not have enough parking spaces considering its popularity. A rethink of this problem is needed. Good luck to Sheffield F.C.
1877 saw the first Clitheroe football team and after many changes Clitheroe FC made their entrance in the Lancashire Combination in 1925. It wasn’t until 1982 that they progressed to the newly formed North West Counties League and successive seasons saw them rise to the top division. A decade later they had a purple patch reaching the FA Vase final in 1996 only to lose to Brigg Town. Moving forward they won promotion in 2004 to the Unibond league, the Northern Premier League, where they are today.
It was a breezy evening, a much colder feel than the 20 degrees registered on the car. Although the sky was blue there were some fast moving menacing clouds scuttling across. The dark clouds meant the floodlights were switched on from the start.
I sat in the only covered seated stand behind one goal to shelter from the wind and the torrential rain after 20 minutes of the game, which lasted for about 10 minutes. Others were under a covered standing area that runs down half of one side. The rest of the ground is open but sheltered by large trees at one end. A crowd of 243 was disappointing considering local rivals Hallam had 700 on Sunday for an FA Cup match but hopefully if their move back into Sheffield succeeds they have a chance to build a local community fan base to rival their world wide one in the same way Hallam have.
There was no program but a team sheet for the game was available.
Sheffield FC 3 Clitheroe 2
Emirates Preliminary Round Replay 19th August 2024. 19.45 kick off.
The Home of Football Stadium, Sheffield Rd, Dronfield, Derbyshire, S18 2G
Northern Premier Division 1 East v Northern Premier Division 1 West
Sheffield, shirts with red and black quartered fronts, red backs and black sleeves. Black shorts.
Clitheroe, Royal Blue and white vertical striped fronts with blue sleeves and Royal Blue shorts.
The game started competitively at speed and on 7 minutes a corner from the right was headed down by Louis Potts which the defence failed to clear and Louis Potts quickly reacted by slipping it into the bottom right hand corner to give Clitheroe the lead.
2 minutes later Sheffield eqalised when Ted Cribley met a free kick from the right with his head and planted the ball down into the goal to level. The all action continued when 3 minutes later Sheffield took the lead with another header, this time by Connor Cutts meeting the ball from a corner.
Sheffield now challenged for the ball harder and quicker but Clitheroe finished the half much stronger.
After a first minute point blank save by the Clitheroe goal keeper, Solomon Honor, they took control. With 12 minutes gone Connor High took the ball down on the left of the goal keepers area and curled it at hip high past the right hand of Sheffield’s keeper.
It was now anyone’s game but Sheffield seemed to gain a second wind and a minute after Solomon Honor had made another point blank save a Sheffield player was bundled over in the goalkeepers area and Luke Managhan competently despatched the ball past Solomon Honor’s left hand from the spot.
The last 15 minutes could have gone either way with the best chance being tipped over the cross bar by Miles Wright in the Sheffield goal.
Sheffield were pleased at the end to go through after a tough game, where they will play Pontefract Colliery at home in the next round. Perhaps their bigger match will be in the planning Meeting.
The Chips were hot, tasty, crispy outside, golden, and a good inside texture, getting a score of 67. They were also not greasy and left no aftertaste.
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