31 Dec Another very heavy overnight frost and with the temperature not forecast to get much above freezing during the day and down to minus 3 tonight, I think we will be very lucky to get a game on tomorrow. We can only hope for a rise in the temperature bigger than that forecast. Looking ahead to Saturday, it doesn't seem much brighter although it does look as though the temp may increase a touch on Friday. As you can see from the pics below taken at midday the pitch is totally frost bound and rock hard and at the time we were taking these it was also a touch on the foggy side as well. Somebody on sgb has suggested we leave the inspection until midday. It won't make any difference. I was on the pitch at midday today and it was rock solid. I know 24 hours can make a big difference but not in this case unless the forecasters have it totally wrong

29 Dec Sincere apologies to all my regulars for the lack of updates. To say I have been frustrated over the last 6 days says nothing. The best time to have website problems is not over the Christmas period.

Looking at the state of our lawn at 3pm today, it will need a big increase in temperature to get a game on on New Years Day. It is rock hard in the places were the sun hasn't got to. Not sure when the sun gets to the pitch at Haig Ave, just hope it gets a bit warmer.

I understand queues are gathering at a bridge in Droylsden to watch Dave Pace jump off. Most of the people are from Conference and Conference North teams giving him due encouragement whilst the Droylsden fans are undecided whether to help or give him a push. I'm sure little Dave said he would do something similar if Droylsden were relegated from the Conference at the first attempt but failed to go through with it. Excitement in Droylsden previously unheard of. You have to admire the guys cheek though, why wouldn't Droylsden get expelled, they played an ineligible player, they get kicked out. You do feel sorry for the 250 diehard proper Droylsden fans and the poor secretary who made the error but for David it couldn't happen to a nicer man, those obscene gestures you are so keen on will no doubt be in evidence today.

26 Dec Away Burscough 3.00. Walkers depart Haig Ave at 10.00am. Please fill the collecting tins en route if you see any of the walkers.

Better late than never update from Boxing Day. BURSCOUGH 2 SOUTHPORT 3. It sounds closer than it was but we did make hard work of it didn't we. Goals from Steve Daly who was my MOTM, Ciaran Kilheeney and Matty McGinn. The walk went well, it took just over 3 hours including the stop off at Heaton's Bridge which is not bad going. It was a glorious day, you couldn't have bought better weather for a walk on Boxing Day. Hopefully next season we will be walking to Wrexham? Maybe not! A slightly sore calf was my only after affect and reminder how unfit I am these days but nothing major. The gate of 1133 was down 271 on the 1404 of last season and was 723 above Burscough's average. A good turn out and good to see some of the one away game of the season folk back on the terraces.

25 Dec Merry Christmas to all SFC Stats readers. Thank you to everyone who has sent cards and good wishes they are appreciated.

Most of the teccy problems are now sorted out after a lot of hassle. The whole of the index page went missing for a while hence the new design. I will gradually rebuild it and add the banners in etc.

24 Dec Technical problems abound. Delays in updates.

23 Dec Away Rossendale United LJC 7.45. ROSSENDALE 1 SOUTHPORT 3 AFTER EXTRA TIME. All three goals scored by the subs with Matty McGinn netting twice and Zac Aley on his debut getting the other. FULL SITE UPDATE WEDNESDAY EVENING. Zac Hibbert also makes his debut in goal.

21 Dec If anyone wants a copy of the Altrincham v Southport DVD I can do them to order for £5. e-mail or ring me on 077900-41514. No commentary but a great watch and some great shots of our supporters.

We only have a few NL History books left for sale at £12.95. There are some in the Club Shop which is open 10am to 4pm Monday and Tuesday or you can mail order via my e-mail or by telephone.

Still time to sponsor me on the walk to Burscough PLEASE! Online HERE or simply e-mail me or give me a call. Thank you. Remember that 50% of the proceeds go to Trust In Yellow with the remainder split between Clatterbridge and Help For Heroes.

20 Dec Home Gainsborough Trinity SOUTHPORT 5 GAINSBOROUGH 3. A great afternoon's entertainment. 3-0 up pegged back to 3-3 with only one side looking like they were going to win the game and it wasn't us. Substitution made and we make it 4-3 before the excellent Ashley Winn seals it with a splendid second goal. Gainsborough looked a good team, particularly in the midfield and up front and well deserved their three goals but it was a battling showing from us on a very heavy pitch and there were some tired legs on both sides at the end of the game. Our last 5-3 home win was against Stalybridge in the 95/96 season. Our last 5-3 away win was at Stalybridge in 04/05 on the monsoon day. Our only other 5-3 was the "own goals" game at Welling in 97/98 season.

17 Dec New date for Droylsden home game is Tuesday 17 Feb. Keeping up with all the fixture changes is taking some doing but they are all now updated HERE

16 Dec Rossendale v Southport Lancs Cup 7.45pm. Once again it will be worth keeping an eye on the weather. I won't be able to update the site during the day so check before travelling. MATCH OFF. Possibility of being played on Tuesday 23 December, not definite yet. I guess if it doesn't get played on 23rd it will go to the 6th Jan which will mean 7 away games on the run, surely a record?

15 Dec FA Trophy Draw. Away again. Durham City on 10 January on a plastic pitch. At least there shouldn't be any weather problems with the pitch but having said that I don't think Mossley would agree! They were 4-0 up when the game was abandoned due to a frozen pitch. Apparently they have a drainage problem so that when it freezes it can become dangerous. We also may have to fight through the snow to get there mind you! Durham are 6th in Unibond North having played 11 games, 9 fewer than the leaders and they are unbeaten with a record of Played 11 Won 8 Drawn 3 Goals For 22 Against 5. They beat Stalybridge 6-1 at Bower Fold in the FA Cup and knocked Harrogate out of the Trophy on Saturday. They were knocked out of the FA Cup at Histon in a replay. They also went from 23 September to 8 November without playing a league game. I somehow think this will not be an easy game. Durham were also of course the first team we ever played in the Football League.

The away draw does of course mean we go from 2 January to 30 January without a game at Haig Ave.

14 Dec There is an incredibly biased report of the game in the Non League paper today if you fancy a laugh. My sources down the side of the pitch (I was behind the goal) say that Daly was well on side for our first goal yesterday and timed his run perfectly.

13 Dec FA Trophy Away Altrincham. ALTRINCHAM 1 SOUTHPORT 4 Now that was another game of football! Two wins against Conference opposition in a week and some lovely football played today in a thoroughly deserved win. Goals from the in form Steve Daly with two, the outstanding Mark Duffy and Ciaran Kilheeney. MOTM was Ashley Winn who should be signed immediately, looks an outstanding player and just what is needed in the midfield. Michael Powell was captain and started at left back but moved into midfield and looked very good along side Moogan and Winn. Excellent all round team performance on a very wet day but the pitch held up well and great credit to the Alty groundstaff who worked hard to ensure the game went ahead. Who would have thought after the disappointment at Telford that we would win the last two matches. I would still trade them in for the three points at Telford but you have to enjoy these occasions so enjoy it I will. Let's hope that we continue to play football at home next Saturday, we look so much better playing the ball around and passing and moving as has been shown in these latest two games. Once again credit to Liam in making tactical changes at half time. Don't you just love cup games.

Graham Heathcote, Graham Barrow, Chris Lane and Lee Elam all sign the book with Graham Heathcote remembering with fondness his two appearances for Southport, he almost rattled off the whole team he played with. Graham Barrow was as nice as ever, he made it look like he remembered us from all those years ago.

If we get drawn away in the next round we could have just two home games in January and that will be on January 1st and January 31st but if we progress in the Trophy it could be Feb 7th before we are at home again!

No league games as both the scheduled ones were postponed.

Hull City nearly make it a perfect day. 2-0 up before the ref intervened and gifted Liverpool two goals!!

12 Dec I will be in the Club Shop from 2pm to 6pm. Books, shirts and any programmes ordered can all be picked up today.

10 Dec Marine LSC game arranged for 13 January. We will play our Setanta Shield Northern Semi-Final at Barrow or York on 20 January, they play on 13 January.

Thank you to everyone who has contacted me about the shirt sales, they are going really well and raising a few quid into the bargain. The list below is updated as they sell.

9 Dec Away Wrexham-Setanta Shield 7.45pm. WREXHAM 1 SOUTHPORT 2 AFTER EXTRA TIME Now that was a game of football! Wrexham had two sent off and we had the one all in separate incidents in an action packed second half. FULL UPDATE WEDNESDAY EVENING but a VERY enjoyable evening made better by Tamworth losing 2-1 at home to Alfreton. Alfreton have won two away games, Southport and Tamworth.

Back to our game it was an incident packed night particularly once the second half kicked off. At half time 1-0 down I thought we had no chance but inspired substitutions made a difference and it was all Southport from then on in. The second sending off looked harsh on Wrexham but he did wipe Duff out, I think most refs would have gone for a yellow. As for Moog's sending off, I couldn't see it from where I was sat but it was an elbow by all accounts which the club are looking at on video to see if it is appealable. Great support from the 117 travelling fans who entered through the away turnstile, I know a few went in the centre section as well so a great turn out and superb backing. It was one of those far too few nights you get to savour and enjoy at our level but it put the disappointment of the Telford loss to one side for an evening and was nice to celebrate a success. Great programme for just a £1 although I have to say that as I contributed a fair bit to it!

Tamworth away rearranged for March 3rd.

7 Dec The Club Shop will be open 10am to 4pm Monday to Thursday and 10am to 6pm on Friday. I am covering the 2-6 shift on Friday. The NL history book will be on sale all week. We have 32 books now available on general sale as a few people who said they wanted one but never paid a deposit have not collected it and these are now available. The following have paid a deposit but are yet to collect, Martin Thomas, Roger Nicholson, Tony McAleer, and Liam Monohan (fully paid for). If you know any of these people please let them know the book is awaiting the final payment and collection please. It may be that you have collected and your name hasn't been crossed off the list if so please let me know.

With Ashley Winn cup-tied, Michael Powell suspended, Tony McMillan obviously unfit on Saturday and Connolly possibly injured after he hobbled off we could be using some of the younger lads for the Wrexham game which will be good experience for them.

Above are the line ups from the two games against Telford played just 259 days apart, one we won 5-1 the other we lost 1-0. A big turnover with just two players starting yesterday that started in March.

PLAYER WORN SHIRTS AND SHORTS FOR SALE 

All available for £12.50 plus £2.50 First Class P&P to anywhere in UK. P&P abroad by arrangement. Orders can be placed by e-mail to shop@southportfc.net or by phone to 077900-41514. Shirts won’t be despatched until payment is made. Cheques should be made payable to Southport Football Club and sent to Rob Urwin, 19 Hillsview Road, Ainsdale, Southport, PR8 3PW. Items can also be collected by arrangement with no P&P charges. It will be first to pay first served so don’t delay in placing your order.

Note that they are player worn shirts so signs of wear are evident in some of them. In some cases the shirts were hardly used so they are as good as new! All have Nationwide logo on arms. 

Goalkeeper Shirts 2006/07

Green 16 No Name   Green 21 Harrison  Green 12 Bagnall  Grey12 Bagnall   

Player White Away Shirts 2006/07

14 Booth 25 Durnin 2 Lane 26 Dugdale 8 Blakeman 20 Clancy 22 Newby 29 Maamria 22 Ventre 16 Martin 15 Rowland 17 Smith 25 Tait

Yellow Home Shirts 2006/07

25 Tait 15 Rowland 26 Barlow 26 Dugdale

Player Worn Numbered White Shorts 2006/07, £5 plus £2.50 P&P Numbers 29, 8, 9, 33, 3, 16, 17, 6, 5, 18, 15, 10, 22, 21

6 Dec Away AFC Telford. TELFORD 1 SOUTHPORT 0. After an impressive showing in the first half we did nothing in the second period and ended up with what we deserved. What a gate, 3558! I need to check but that could be the best ever since Conference North began. A disappointing following from us today, there were 88 standing with 20 plus seated so probably less in total than went to Solihull which seems odd. I did hear a few say that people couldn't afford this and the Wrexham game which is understandable. Ashley Winn had a great first half but disappeared in the second. Down to second after Tamworth beat Solihull 1-0, Stalybridge draw and Harrogate lose with Hinckley moving in to the top five. My MOTM was James Connolly but he looked to have a bad knock at the end of the game and was replaced by Earl.

From the 253 at a soulless Solihull to 3558 and a cracking atmosphere at Telford, a week is a long time in football. The noise when they scored today was superb and wouldn't it be great to be playing in front of gates like that every week?

4 Dec Ashley Winn signs on loan from Barrow. Tony Gray could be heading to Droylsden. That's good news bad news to me. Ashley Winn was regarded as one of the best midfielders in CN last season and certainly impressed me every time I saw him last season. If Tony Gray goes that will be a blow, leading scorer last season and a very capable striker but having four decent quality strikers on the bench is difficult so I guess it was inevitable.

Looking forward to the next eight games, starting with the biggest game of the season so far on Saturday. Telford on a great run and unbeaten at home whilst we are unbeaten away, if you were a betting man you would fancy the draw.

3 Dec Somebody on the Conference North forum is doubting my counting of the Southport fans (cavjj just happened to mention it) at Solihull, how does he know who is and who isn't a Southport fan, we don't all wear colours and there were some there who unless you knew them would not stand out as SFC fans. I counted 126 which suggests to me there were more, sorry but that is the number. I know on occasions I do perhaps "make it up" but this one was a genuine count. My life will never be the same!!

2 Dec Lancs Cup Away at Rossendale United 7.45pm. MATCH OFF DUE TO SNOW-Provisional date set for 16 December.

1 Dec Forecast has been downgraded from heavy snow to snow showers but with -3 temps forecast it will still be worth a check before setting off.

30 Nov With heavy snow forecast (according to The Met Office) from Monday night through to Wednesday morning in the Rossendale area it will be worth checking before setting off on Tuesday.

29 Nov Away Solihull Moors. SOLIHULL 0 SOUTHPORT 2. Our first away league game since Gateshead on 18th October. Goals from the superb Ciaran Kilheeney and Steve Daly. A fairly comfortable victory from what I could see, the fog was threatening to get the game called off from the minute we arrived. "Killer" had his best game in a Southport shirt so far and I can now see what the Burscough fans saw in him last season. Seems to like being partnered by Dales. An excellent Southport following of over 126 (that's how many I counted) in Solihull's second highest gate of the season, bettered only by the visit of Stafford Rangers. I was really quite surprised how many we took considering the fog and the run of away games coming up, I thought this one would be the one people would choose to miss. Once again the best referee we have seen this season, Mr Stretton, he also officiated at Stafford, let the game flow and he had to keep on top of play all the time so he could see what was going on.

Harrogate lose 3-0 at home to Gainsborough so we go top.

COACH TO WREXHAM IS FULL

27 Nov TRUST IN YELLOW Members Meeting 7.30 Grandstand Bar.

Good to see that Wrexham have reduced their prices for the Setanta match to £8, £16 was a bit steep particularly in the lead up to Christmas and with money tight. There are only three places left on the coach to Wrexham so don't delay in booking, details above.

26 Nov FCUM go out of the Trophy to Boston United. Stalybridge progress.

25 Nov REPLAY v VAUXHALL MOTORS 7.45 PM KICK OFF SOUTHPORT 2 VAUXHALL MOTORS 1. Goals from Ciaran Kilheeney and Tony Gray after Karl Noon had given The Motormen the lead. That sets up the away tie at Altrincham on 13 December. The gate of 224 was our lowest for a "First Class" game at Haig Avenue since 7 April 1992. Not the best first half but I quite enjoyed the second however it was a bit edgy at the end when Vauxhall had a couple of good chances to equalise and send us into extra time.

We now embark on five successive away games. With games against Telford, Wrexham and Alty in the space of a week plus a new ground at Rossendale to look forward to it's a decent run of games coming up.

Harrogate beat Fleetwood 5-2 to go back to 2nd and put us down to 3rd.

24 Nov FA Trophy Draw. Games to be played 13 December. A trip to Altrincham, if we get through tomorrow, is quite appealing. Pick of the draw is a potential FCUM (if they overcome Boston) v AFC Telford and Histon v Cambridge United. Ling's Lynn to Workington 259 miles, 5 hours 4 minutes according to Route Planner and this is a regionalised draw? King's Lynn to Histon(Southern section) 45 miles. Surely that needs looking at. KL had an overnight stay when they played us so they'll need one for a game at Workington and the costs involved make you wonder if the structure is correct doesn't it?

23 Nov Ross Atkins has duly been added to the ONE GAME WONDER CLUB. He did play two matches but only one in the league.

I nearly missed the Gateshead v King's Lynn game that was played last Wednesday but the Prediction League, Conference Details and League Tables have now been updated. What a horrific midweek trip that one must have been, 420 mile, 8 hour round trip.

22 Nov FA Trophy 3rd Qual Round AWAY AT VAUXHALL MOTORS. VAUXHALL MOTORS 0 SOUTHPORT 0. If anyone wants a cure for insomnia, watch the DVD of this game. It was a shocker. Earl went up front in place of Ciaran Kilheeney for the last 15 minutes which when Barnes and Booth were on the bench and the game was crying out for someone to get in behind the defence seems an odd decision. Earl is not one to play up front is he? It was the one result most people didn't want, a replay on a freezing cold Tuesday night with Man U on TV and a programme to do which takes care of my Sunday. Attendance was 278 which is VM's best of the season to date.

21 Nov Club Shop open 7pm to 9pm.

20 Nov Only two bids so far on the Complete League History book on e-bay £31 as I type, a bargain waiting for someone.

18 Nov Marine v Prescot and Rossendale v Clitheroe will decide our opponents in the Liverpool Senior Cup and Lancs Junior Cup tonight.

Rossendale United beat Clitheroe 2-1. Marine beat Prescot Cables 3-1.

50% of the money raised on the sponsored walk to Burscough on Boxing Day will be donated to Help For Heroes and Clatterbridge Hospital. Please consider sponsoring any of the walkers. These two charities will also benefit from the head shaving of Stevie Roberts on the pitch at half time in the Droylsden game on January 10th. Full details will be in the next matchday programme.

MY ONLINE SPONSOR FORM FOR THE WALK TO BURSCOUGH IS HERE

16 Nov A few more items on e-bay including the Complete LEAGUE History of Southport FC recently donated to Trust In Yellow.

I have added an SFCSTATS Shop where items available from Trust In Yellow, Club items and some personal bits and pieces can be purchased. I will be adding items on a regular basis so please keep checking.

15 Nov Home Kings Lynn-this will be our 100th Conference North game. SOUTHPORT 2 KING'S LYNN 1. An excellent first half which saw us come back from a goal down to go in 2-1 up at the break. Goals from the impressive Steve Daly and Ciaran Kilheeney, his 9th of the season, were enough to give us the points. It wasn't the best second half but it was job done and three very welcome points. My MOTM was Mark Duffy (again) when he is on song as he was in the first half he really is great to watch. I'm sure any watching scouts would have been well impressed. I also thought Alan Moogan had another excellent performance and is certainly my pick of the new players this season. Killer's 9 goals have come without him ever fully impressing most supporters so goodness only knows what he will be like when he is on fire.

Craig Noone scores the winner for Plymouth at Coventry.

Tamworth win again to remain top whilst Harrogate lose so we move back into second place.

14 Nov We are away to Rossendale or Clitheroe in the Lancs Junior Cup. Either way, a new ground for me.

13 Nov Trust In Yellow Fans Forum. Open to all supporters. 7.30 Grandstand Bar.

11 Nov Harrogate beat Blyth Spartans 3-1 to move us down to third place.

10 Nov Southport will be away to Marine or Prescot Cables in the Liverpool Senior Cup.

8 Nov NO GAME Blyth are in the FA Cup. PREDICTION COMPETITION UPDATED

Tamworth draw at Stalybridge to move a point clear.

A few people have asked me if the Wrexham game is likely to be the Setanta TV game. I don't know but my opinion is that if it had been us at home I would have said definitely but as we are the away team I would be very surprised if it is.

I've decided I need a Southport FC Stats Logo. I did very briefly have one a while ago but never kept it going but this time it will be for keeps. Any budding designers out there fancy having a go? No prize, just the glory of having your logo on this site to be seen by the hundreds of people who visit the site every week. Mail to rob@southportfcstats.co.uk. To give you an idea I need to be able to use it on Letterheads, the site (obviously) and on compliment slips etc. Something simple is what I am after but I have don't have a design bone in my body so over to you. Thank you. I will put all the entries on here and sfcstats visitors can choose the best one.

6 Nov Setanta Shield Draw. WREXHAM v SOUTHPORT. Very nice indeed!

Blyth game away set for 10 Feb 2009, Tamworth away will need to be rearranged.

5 Nov I see Burscough fans are walking from Southport to Burscough on Boxing Day. I'm sure we could make the walk more interesting as TIY are doing the same. If anyone has a contact number for the organiser, Dave Aindow, please get in touch with me either by e-mail or on the mobile 077900-41514.

4 Nov Away Stafford Setanta Shield 3 7.45pm. STAFFORD RANGERS 1 SOUTHPORT 2. Enjoyable game, end to end with lots of chances created. Good to watch and much improved. We should play all our games on a Tuesday night and away from home. Goals from Steve Daly and Tony Gray. Dales goal coming around 50 seconds after Stafford had opened the scoring.

Odds on Barrow away in the Setanta Shield? If we should draw Wrexham at home it could be a contender for TV. Draw on 6 November.

3 Nov FA TROPHY DRAW. Unsurprisingly we are away to Vauxhall Motors. I'm sure the burning question on everyone's lips tonight will be have we ever played the same team five times in the same season. We have, South Liverpool. I am yet to find a six timer so we need a replay for that one to occur.........please no!

 2 Nov A few more photos added to the 2008/09 Photo Gallery

I'm hoping to do an article in the next programme about our falling attendances. If you are a Southport fan but haven't been to any of the recent games e-mail me to tell me why. I have had a lot of comments made in passing and by e-mail but I would be interested in knowing what is keeping you away. Please e-mail me with your thoughts. If you are going, why do you think people are staying away? The obvious one is the lack of pounds in peoples pockets, is that it or is there more? There's no agenda so let me have it! e-mail here.

1 Nov Home v Workington 3pm. SOUTHPORT 0 WORKINGTON 0. Attendance 765. Debut for Ross Atkins who becomes player number 590, could he be heading towards the one game wonder club? Not the most entertaining game I have ever watched.

I wonder how our supporters would react if in our home games our scores were 1-0, 1-0, 0-0, 0-0, 0-0, 0-1, 0-3 and 0-1. That is what Stafford Rangers scores are, the 0-3 being our win.

With no league game for 14 days and the next one being at home again we will have played 16 games, 10 at home and just 6 away on November 15th. We then embark on a possible 5 away games on the bounce if we are drawn away in the FA Trophy.

e-bay update. The Awen Douglas shirt is, as expected attracting the bids and is already up to £9 after less than 24 hours.

Thanks to Alan Jones for the new banner header.

I have decided to try and get one of the books signed by as many NL players as possible. There were 581 players who had played for us in league games listed with two having sadly passed away leaving 579 to go at. I know quite a few have moved abroad and one or two may be impossible to get but I'm giving it a go. If you are an ex NL player and read this or if you work with one or know of one please get in touch and we can make the arrangements. If you are attending a game when a former player is likely to be playing, again, please contact me. I'm sure I will get nowhere near the 579 but it's something to go at.

 31 Oct New items listed on e-bay:Goalkeeper shirts Ryan Robinson(his spare) and Francois Dubourdeau. Player shirts from Francis Barry away, Mark Jackson home and away, James Olsen away, Ciaran Donnelly away and the one and only Awen Douglas away. They are all in great condition as they were hardly worn. They all are starting at only £5. Awen's shirt for £5 is a bargain waiting to happen.

COACH TRAVEL UPDATE

Trust In Yellow will be running coaches to Solihull, Telford and Tamworth if the demand is there. We need 30 bookings on each of these coaches to enable them to run.

Solihull(29/11) will depart from The Arion at 10.40, The Crown at 10.50, The George at 10.55 and Haig Ave at 11am. The fare is £14 to TIY Members £18 Non Members.

Telford(6/12) will depart The Arion at 11.40, The Crown at 11.50, The George at 11.55 and Haig Ave at 12 noon. The fare is £12 to TIY Members £17 Non members.

Tamworth(9/12) will depart The Arion at 3.10, The Crown at 3.20, The George at 3.25 and Haig Ave at 3.30. The fare is £13 TIY Members, £18 Non Members.

A reminder of the special offer to TIY members travelling to Harrogate on January 3^rd. If you book and pay before 31 December you can travel for just £5. The Non Members pre-booked price is £10. On the day price will be £10 and £15.

Bookings can be made in the Trust Office on a matchday or by telephone to Alan Scarisbrick on 07980-911693.

31 Oct Club Shop will be open from 2pm to 5pm.

30 Oct Goalkeeper Ross Atkins is signed on loan from Derby County and will become player number 590 when he makes his debut.

PROGRAMME LIST UPDATED-These programmes are all available for 50pence each to TIY Members, 60pence Non members.

26 Oct We sold a large number of our early NL home programmes yesterday so the list has been updated again. Its hard keeping up at the moment as we receive and sell on a daily basis. Thank you to everyone once again for your support.

PREDICTION COMPETITION UPDATED HERE.

I have put another batch of SFC related items on e-bay today including some more shirts from 1999/2000, this time they are the subs shirts.  All the money raised from e-bay items goes either to Trust In Yellow or direct to the club depending on what the item is. My items are the CD's which not many people seem to want but given my taste in music maybe that isn't so surprising. I will be putting more on though as I did make a few quid on the last batch which helps fund the addiction of watching SFC, I may even get next seasons season ticket funded yet.

25 Oct Home v Redditch United-REARRANGED GAME FROM 17 JANUARY. Keep a look out for Blyth's FA Cup score as that will determine what we do on November 8th. Blyth win 3-1. The only possibility of a game on the 8th would be away at Harrogate. If Hinckley or Droylsden win their replays it would open up other possibilities.

SOUTHPORT 2 REDDITCH UNITED 3. I think the phrase a bad day at the office could describe this one. 2-0 up, in cruise control and then it all went horribly wrong. Goals scored by Michael Powell and Mark Duffy in front of a gate of 639. What happened next? Foot off the pedal, and some shocking football being played with the ball given away far too often. Killer even contrived to hit the post with a penalty. The gate of 639 was again disappointing particularly for a Saturday match, particularly on the back of a 5-2 midweek win, I dread to think what it will be next weekend. Once again the horrible weather can be partly blamed but we can't blame any counter attractions on TV this time around. We must sort out one or two positions very quickly!

24 Oct PROGRAMME LIST UPDATED HERE

21 Oct Home v Vauxhall Motors 7.45pm SOUTHPORT 5 VAUXHALL MOTORS 2-An enjoyable night considering the dreadful conditions. I wrote in my programme notes about the games we have played in atrocious weather this season well we can add another to the list. What a night. At 7.15 I honestly thought we wouldn't have a game. With the deluge at half time I thought we would be lucky to last 90 minutes but the pitch held up remarkably well and thankfully we saw it through. Goals from Ciaran Kilheeney, Robbo with 2, Tony Gray and Kevin Lee gave us a comfortable victory. I'm not sure that anyone who didn't venture down the popular side would have realised just how horrific the conditions were but I had trouble standing up at one point it was that bad. To put on a display like that was a credit to both teams. You have to hand it to Vauxhall, they do play some decent football. My MOTM was Robbo but it was a good all round display from all who played. The gate of 544 was our lowest home league attendance since 3 October 1992 when the same number saw Mossley play at Haig Ave. Hopefully a few more will venture out on Saturday. Interesting to note that every team that played tonight in BSN recorded their lowest attendance of the season.

20 Oct Spent a lot of time today sorting out the programmes that have recently been donated to TIY. There's not many NL games we don't now have. I managed to find several off lists people have let me have which is great and will help swell the TIY coffers. I will update the lists on here during the week. I am a bit busy at present thanks to having three programmes to produce in very quick succession.

18 Oct Away Gateshead. GATESHEAD 1 SOUTHPORT 1. After taking the lead on 31 minutes we rarely threatened the Gateshead goal again in another ineffective display. Tony McMillan was sent off and will miss the game against Workington so a sub keeper is now required quickly unless one of the Youth keepers is given a chance. Adam Flynn went in goal and proved he wasn't a goal-keeper! It's typical that our regular back up on the bench, Matty McGinn was injured for this game. It was backs to the wall for 10 minutes after the sending off but we hung on in there, dug deep and landed a valuable point. Down to second after Tamworth win again. New signing Michael Barnes wasn't in the squad which considering the desperate need for something down the left was odd. I was also baffled why the player who I think is most likely to open things up, Mark Duffy, was switched to the left. Surely Robbie Booth would have been better to have switched to the left to leave Duff in his normal position? Maybe that's why I'm not a manager...I know nothing! Excellent away following in a gate of 422, The Heed's second highest of the season.

WEBSITE will be fully updated Sunday pm.

16 Oct Further to the update on 12 October, I have just had another LARGE collection of Southport programmes delivered and donated to Trust In Yellow. Whilst Mrs Urwin is not impressed that our house is looking more like a programme shop until I get them all sorted, they are all greatly appreciated and will raise a lot of money for Trust In Yellow.

15 Oct Michael Barnes signs.

13 Oct Boston v Cambridge in FA Cup 4th Qual Round! Someone asked me on Saturday who I wanted "when" we won and I said Cambridge at home. Oh well, not to be then. It's turned out to be a very costly defeat.

If you take a look at our next few months fixtures. There is a possibility of just one away fixture between Saturday at Gateshead, and 29 November.

12 Oct

Trust In Yellow have acquired another LARGE collection of programmes and some Southport FC Supporters Travel Club Badges (pictured left) from the 80's. The programme lists will be updated in due course. There are just 19 of the badges available for £4 plus 50 pence P&P if required, all proceeds to TIY. E-mail me if you would like to buy one, first come first served. A continued thank you to everyone who is donating items to the Trust, your support is greatly appreciated. Just noticed that these badges are on e-bay for buy it now £20!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Just 38 Books Left.

PREDICTION LEAGUE UPDATED

11 Oct FA Cup 3rd Round Qualifier SOUTHPORT 0 BOSTON UNITED 2. Well that's the FA Cup out of the window for another season in a totally awful performance. Sorry, but team selection was wrong today. If Adam Flynn is a better player than Kevin Lee then I give up! Boston thoroughly deserved their win, they seemed to want it more which is a worry. I am struggling to name a MOTM at the moment.

7 Oct Setanta Shield Round 2 AWAY at Vauxhall Motors. On a dreadful night weatherwise we came away with a comfortable 3-0 win. How they managed to play anything like football in those conditions is beyond me. Goals from Matty McGinn, Tony Gray and Ciaran Kilheeney in front of a gate of 163 of which a good number were from Southport. I didn't think there were 163 in the ground and I counted 47 standing Southport fans and I was told there were 30 plus in the stand but there wasn't 90 VM fans in the ground!

It's back to work for me today after three weeks off which considering I was advised to allow six weeks is good going.

6 Oct We have a bye in the Lancs Cup. Burscough have sacked Joey Dunn and appointed Andy Mutch.

5 Oct A good Race Night last night raised around the £900 mark which was a fine effort from all concerned. The disappointment being that only one first team player could be bothered to turn up and we would like to thank James Connolly for his support and the fact that he stayed all evening and seemed to enjoy himself and win a few quid. Steve Morrison was also in attendance as was Mel Singleton for the first part of the night but the manager and none of the other players showed their faces. Haydn, Charlie and Sam were all in attendance. Disappointing that considering the work the Trust are putting in in support of the club the support from the manager and players on the night was not forthcoming.

PREDICTION LEAGUE UPDATED-Is there no stopping Andrew Kelly!

Somebody has just paid £20.99 plus £3.60 P&P on e-bay for the TIY book. I still have 48 left at £12.95 plus £2.50 P&P!!

4 October Home v Solihull Moors

SOUTHPORT 3 SOLIHULL MOORS 0. A VERY comfortable win. Goals from Ciaran Kilheeney, his sixth of the season, Alan Moogan and Steve Daly, his twenty eighth league goal for the club. Solihull failed to get one attempt at goal. Some good football played in the second half with great passing and movement. Dreadful conditions with another very strong wind to contend with. I am very impressed with Alan Moogan who once again was my MOTM.

1 Oct-Worth noting that if a replay is necessary in the Boston game, it will be on Wednesday October 15th. Let's hope to goodness that doesn't happen, Travelling to Boston, midweek is not my idea of fun.

Thank you to everyone for the enquiries re the programmes etc. I hope I have answered them all. If you haven't had a reply try again, I do still seem to be a bit hit and miss when replying to mails sent to me from a hotmail account for some reason.

30 Sep SALES LIST UPDATED with DVD's now added.

29 Sep FA CUP DRAW will be on here around lunchtime today. Southport home to Boston United. Boston are currently ninth in the Unibond Premier with 14 points from their 8 games. They are unbeaten in 4 away games scoring 6 and conceding 2 goals. If they win their games in hand they could be in third place. Looking at the draw it could be that our game at Tamworth scheduled for the 25th could well be in doubt as they also have a home draw, against East Thurrock United, the odds are that at least one of the sides will progress.

I am setting up a page on this site that will list various Southport FC related items that are for sale. Most are being sold on behalf of Trust In Yellow and a few are my own personal programmes etc. CHECK HERE for more details. I am also using e-bay to sell Trust, Club and my own SFC related items at present.

28 Sep FA YOUTH CUP CAMMELL LAIRD V SOUTHPORT KO 3PM. Southport go out on pens after a 2-2 draw.

27 Sep-FA Cup 2nd Round Qualifier Home v Vauxhall Motors 3pm-This game is exactly five years to the day since Vauxhall beat us 3-1 in the FA Cup in the 2nd Qualifying Round at Riveacre Park in what was to be Mike Walsh's last game in charge at the club.

SOUTHPORT 3 VAUXHALL MOTORS 2. Not the best of games but we are in the draw and a few quid in the bank. Robbo with two and James Connolly(£100 to Trust In Yellow-thank you!) get the goals. At 2-1 down it wasn't looking good but we managed to step up a gear and it turned out ok in the end. First time this season we have conceded two goals in a game. What's with the six subs....it throws my spreadsheets into disarray! The gate of 593 was our lowest FA Cup home gate for exactly 16 years when we played Chadderton at the same stage in front of 542.

26 Sep Website is four years old today.

25 Sep I have updated the list of Football League programmes that Trust in Yellow have for sale HERE. I can now take Pay Pal payments but appropriate fees will be added to any sales. Contact me for details. All of the programmes can be bought for £1 each with some reduced if in poor condition. Discounts can be arranged for bulk buys. We are receiving Non League programmes all the time and keeping the list up to date is taking a lot of time. If there are any specific NL programmes that anyone requires you may be best sending a list to me and I can check it out. We can get hold of the majority of NL programmes so do check. Once again all profits will go to Trust In Yellow. I have also put some of our rarer NL programmes on e-bay to see how they go along with a few other SFC items. Check them out. Having had plenty of time on my hands I thought I'd give e-bay a go to see if it is worthwhile using it, we shall see. I've put some personal items on as well and had my first ever bid on one of them, my first tentative steps towards becoming a millionaire have begun!! I would much prefer genuine fans to obtain items they want rather than go through e-bay but if items aren't selling e-bay does give us another outlet. It is easier (and cheaper) not using e-bay but if the FL progs listed here aren't sold they will go on.

It's quite amazing to see Stafford in 5th after last nights win at Gateshead, they looked a poor team on the day we played them and to be in 5th place takes some understanding.

MEDICAL BULLETIN-Still ok. Docs on Monday and hospital Thursday and could well be back at work on either the 7th or 8th October if there is no adverse reaction when the packing in my ear is removed next Thursday. Could well be at the game on Saturday but won't be in the shop before the game except for maybe a few minutes before and a few minutes after the match. Will also be sat down which could be interesting although with my restricted hearing it might not be too bad!!!

20 Sep Away Redditch United. REDDITCH 0 SOUTHPORT 2 Goals from Mark Duffy on 31 minutes and Ciaran Kilheeney on 56 minutes. First time in five games we have managed the win against Redditch. With Harrogate and Tamworth both recording resounding 4-0 wins it is hotting up at the top. Stalybridge also win.

19 Sep MEDICAL BULLETIN-Op went well, very sore and tired but so far so good. Having trouble hearing out of the ear that has been operated on which will continue until I return to the hospital on 2nd October. Not happy at missing game tomorrow but it has to be. There is a chance I may make the cup game next Saturday but it will be sitting down with a hat on!! It will all depend on seeing if there is any reaction, should know by mid-week. Thank you to everyone who has sent cards, texts etc wishing me well, they are greatly appreciated.

16 Sep D-Day as I go into hospital-website could suffer some delays for a few days, weeks....who knows!

15 Sep FA Cup Draw for 2nd Qual Round will be made around lunchtime. Southport v Vauxhall Motors. We will become quite well acquainted with Vauxhall as we play them three times in less than a month.

NORTHERN/MIDLANDS SECTION OF THE DRAW

31 Aug There was an error in my league table updated yesterday, now corrected. This impacted on the Prediction League table.

30 Aug Away Stafford Rangers 3pm. STAFFORD RANGERS 0 SOUTHPORT 3. Three goals in nine minutes Powell 6, Duffy 11 and Robinson 15 killed the game dead. I doubt we will get many easier afternoons this season. A very comfortable win. James Connolly was my MOTM, totally commanding at the back. A very good all round display with a number of decent performances.

25 Aug Home v Fleetwood, Bank Holiday Monday 3pm.

SOUTHPORT 1 FLEETWOOD 1. Mark Duffy goal on 28 minutes in a very disappointing game. I'm struggling to name a MOTM after this one so it's Duffy for his goal. A good gate of 1304 with 174 standing Fleetwood supporters. The other contenders also drop points in a day of the 1-1's.

New leader in the Prediction Competition is Andy Kelly.

24 Aug Seems to be some confusion about who our third sub was at Stalybridge. Despite what all the papers say I can confirm it was Adam Flynn who came on to make his debut. I suppose they do look a bit alike?

23 Aug Away at Stalybridge Celtic 3pm. STALYBRIDGE 0 SOUTHPORT 1. A Tony Gray goal after 17 minutes gave us another three points in the best performance of the season so far. It was a great strike that brought up Tony's 30th goal for the club and ensured we equal our club record of 8 successive league match wins. Four out of four wins can't be argued with and a win at one of our main rivals is as good as you can get. My MOTM was Earl Davis, a superb game from Big Earl. John Doolan also had a great game and was a close second. It's looking good. Let's hope the Southport public respond on Monday and turn out in decent numbers although having said that we do seem to do better in front of the smaller gates. Adam Flynn finally makes his 'Port debut to become player 587, it was Flynn, not Gray as announced.

Since the 4-1 debacle at Solihull which saw Dav leave the club, we have, in 9 games, conceded 3 goals, we have kept 6 clean sheets and scored 12 goals. Out of the 3 goals conceded 2 were set pieces and one a goalkeeping error.

PREDICTION COMPETITION UPDATED and the first league table is produced. The Urwin contingent are showing up well but Andy Davis leads the way.

2008/09 PHOTO GALLERY UPDATED

22 Aug The Club Shop will be open from 4pm until 6pm today. Book sales have gone incredibly well and demand is high so I will be opening up for a couple of hours to try and ease the pressure on Monday.

20 Aug Thank you to every single person who has contacted me about the book, your kind words are much appreciated but as I have pointed out to each person it was a team effort and Geoff Wilde, Alan Jones, Dan Hayes, Mike Hopkins and Mick Ratcliffe deserve a lot of the credit. It was one superb day yesterday. It was a long one, 8.45am until 10.30pm at the club but it flew by and the level of support TIY received restored my faith in a lot of things that we try to do.  The sales were exceptional, right through from the minute the doors opened at 10.00am until around 9pm when it eased off, there was a steady stream of people through the doors with a good few having a rummage through the old programmes and reminiscing about the thirty years.  I am 100% confident it will be a sell out now and that is a great achievement for everyone involved. If you haven't got a copy but would like one please e-mail me without delay. There will very definitely only be 500 printed, no reprints.

The main talking point of the day, and in some of the e-mails, was why is there a picture of Liverpool South Parkway Railway Station on the front cover?

I am delaying putting a league table for the Predictions Competition on site as I know some entries were received at the club last Saturday before the game and they have been locked away for safe keeping. As soon as I get them a table will be available. What I would say is that out of the entries I have had passed to me so far and after 3 games it's our Chief Exec who is in the lead! He doesn't know it yet though.

19 Aug The Non League History of Southport FC is launched today, exactly 30 years to the day since we played our first ever NL game. The book will be available from 10am in the Club Shop and then all day and into the evening. The book publisher is travelling up from London. The formal photos of the launch will take place at 8pm in the Grandstand Bar.

17 Aug-A late flurry of entries for the Predictions Comp were received yesterday. As soon as they are all entered in I will produce the first league table. Could whoever sent me an entry at 12.17 yesterday please let me know who you are as you didn't enter any name or details!

Not long to go now until the Book Launch on Tuesday. An article went in the NLP today giving it a plug and more orders have been forthcoming because of it. One order was from a John Stubbs who played for Shildon against us in the FA Trophy game in 1980. Another was from a Frickley fan who is writing a similar book himself and wants a few ideas! I am now certain we will sell out the 500 printed!

16 Aug Home v Harrogate Town 3pm. SOUTHPORT 1 HARROGATE TOWN 0. Ciaran Kilheeney scores the only goal to maintain our 100% record and ensures we stay top of the league. We have now won our last 7 league games. 8 is our Non League record. Once again another excellent referee, that's three on the run. Maybe the "Respect" campaign is having an effect but there certainly appears to be a greater understanding between players and officials this season.

PREDICTION COMPETITION CLOSES AT 3PM TODAY Thank you to everyone who has entered and for the donations received towards the competition which ensure

13 Aug Craig Noone joins the one game wonder club as he joins Plymouth Argyle in a deal said to be worth around the £100,000 mark.

12 Aug Home v Blyth Spartans 7.45pm. SOUTHPORT 2 BLYTH SPARTANS 1-Full site update on Wednesday evening. Kick off was delayed by thirty minutes due to late arrival of Blyth team. Goals from Kevin Lee who then went off injured and a late winner from Tony Gray gave us the points and puts us top of the table as the only team with two wins out of two. A few programme gremlins were a bit disappointing but hopefully all sorted out for Saturday. Two ugly wins so far but who cares, an ugly win is better than a pretty defeat.

10 Aug TIY Shoot Out At Waterside Lodge 12.30 charity event. You can guarantee the weather wont be the best when we get the shoot out in operation and once again the wind was at gale force down on the front. At least the rain stayed away this time.

Don't forget the closing date for the Prediction Competition is 16 August(3pm) get the entries in without delay. £50 Cash Prize and a trophy for the winner. The first table will appear after the games next Saturday.

9 Aug Away at GAINSBOROUGH TRINITY 3pm.

GAINSBOROUGH 0 SOUTHPORT 1. A goal by Michael Powell after 57 minutes settled what was a poor game to watch. A win is a win though and we have got off to a good start which is the main thing. It was a wet and miserable afternoon played in front of a surprisingly subdued travelling contingent of around 120. Best performance of the day came from a superb referee. One we've not had before as far as I can see but would be happy to have him again, well done Mr Madley.

8 Aug Programme List Updated as more and more donations are received. Thank you to everyone who has donated programmes, they are much appreciated by everyone at TIY and a BIG thank you for the messages of support over the last few days, they too are appreciated.-All proceeds from sales go to Trust In Yellow and in the two weeks since we started listing them over £200 has been raised. It is hard keeping track on what is coming in and what is going out at the moment so if you have particular wants send me an e-mail and I'll have a check through it.

6 Aug TIY Members Meeting 7.30pm Grandstand Bar.

2 Aug Friendly Home v Rochdale 3pm.

SOUTHPORT 1 ROCHDALE 2 Michael Powell with the goal in the 11th minute. Rochdale get the winner in the 89th minute to ensure we go through all the PSF's without a win. Looking at the the strength of the opposition we have played we have acquitted ourselves well. I'm sure everyone else will be guessing the first line up so based on the players who are currently at club I would go for:McMillan (if Drench has gone) 2-Lever 3-McGinn 4-Connolly 5-Flynn (if Lee is on his way) 6-Doolan 7-Duffy 8-Powell 9-Kilheeney 10-T.Gray 11-Noone Subs-AN Other(Keeper) Davis, Price, Daly, S.Gray with Robbie Booth being the player to miss out as Moogan is suspended. We shall see how close I am!

1 Aug Southport Vis report Robbo is leaving for Droylsden.

31 July A few days down in London took in a visit to the New Wembley and ground number 170 to see Kingstonian v AFC Wimbledon in a "friendly" It was a lively affair for a friendly mind you!

30 July Friendly Home v Wigan 7.45-A friendly at home to Wigan on my 50th birthday, some sadists out there!

SOUTHPORT 2 WIGAN 2-A comeback from 2-0 down with a late equaliser from Ciaran Kilneeney. Entertaining second half when the ball stayed on the floor and we played some great football. As for the first half.......

26 July Friendly Away at Trafford 3pm. TRAFFORD 2 SOUTHPORT 1. Nice to catch up with Ged Kielty who willingly signed his 1997/98 number 4 shirt which will appear in an auction on the official site in the next few weeks. Super guy who is doing a great job at Trafford. New ground for me bringing the total to 169. As for the game it was end to end and could have finished 10-9 there were that many chances. We had a perfectly good goal disallowed for a dreadful off side decision. I was bang in line and Robbo was a good three metres behind the ball when Duff played it back to him, the liner was not up with play and guessed. Pleasant day out at a lovely ground with a great pitch.

23 July I'm not a lover of friendlies, hence my disinterest on here and lack of comments about the games, they are meaningless but essential work outs for the players and that's about it.

22 July Friendly Home v Tranmere 7.30. SOUTHPORT 1 TRANMERE ROVERS 4. Steve Daly scores the Southport goal against a very strong Tranmere side.

19 July Extra friendly announced. Home v Man City X1. SOUTHPORT 1 MAN CITY 1. A goal after 3 mins by Tony Gray is cancelled out in the 90th minute by a City equaliser.

Robbie Booth signs.

16 July The coach to Gainsborough is almost full. Please make your payment early to secure your place. The first 49 to pay will get the seats!

15 July Friendly Home v Chester 7.45pm. SOUTHPORT 2 CHESTER CITY 2 Goals from Tony Gray and Michael Powell after being 2-0 down.

14 July Just having a look at the odds available around the bookies. The best you can now get on us is 8/1 with Corals. Stalybridge are 12/1 with Skybet with several companies offering AFC Telford at 7/1.

13 July Friendly Home v Liverpool X1 3pm. SOUTHPORT 1 LIVERPOOL 3. A Kilheeney pen after 81 mins is our consolation goal in a decent game.

7 July Meet The Manager at The Grandstand Club. New shirt launched and a limited number may be available on the night, orders can also be taken on the night at last season's price of £39.99 with credit card payment available.

A very well attended evening certainly the best attendance at a MTM that I have been involved with. As Haydn said, there were more people in the bar than used to attend our games in the early 80's. There were some strange questions being asked though!

New shirt is launched with excellent first night sales with a lot of people taking advantage of the Credit Card facility.

4 July Sorry to see Chris Holland leave to join up with Leigh, they look to be gathering together a decent squad. Also disappointed about Kevin Lee being placed on transfer list but the replacements sound promising! I hope Tony McMillan doesn't have a good memory. I have been inclined towards giving him a bit of stick in the games I have seen him play against us as he has always presented us with goals. I think I am safe. I called in to the club on Tuesday night and he was in the office but didn't say anything untoward to me!!

It's a good job we have faith in Liam. He is replacing players who finished in a higher position than those he is bringing in. Any other manager doing what is going on at present would surely by now have had the knives going in deep. Imagine Paul Cook doing this........

Blue Square Prices for the 2008/09 Season 

Blue Square Premier

Blue Square North

3 July Southport are drawn away at Stalybridge Celtic in the Setanta Shield to be played w/c 8 September.

2 July Fixtures out and we open up with a trip to Gainsborough Trinity.

1 July From the Voice Of Southport on Conf North Forum before Liam was appointed:-

"I say this very often on this forum: We are a laughing stock. No chance of automatic promotion now. By the time our shit heap of a board get another decent manager in, we will be sitting down for christmas dinner with flying cars passing over head. If we get into the playoffs next season, ill honestly be supprised. If we get a decent experienced manager in before pre-season starts i'll do back flips down the M6 south-bound."

Now this I must see and I know there will be a queue of people watching with me when you do the back flips. How about a humble apology or are you still planning on your boycott? Perhaps you could get your back flips sponsored and raise some money for the club or even the Trust? I'll give £20 to get you under way.