Premier Division title race set for thrilling end in the Hope Valley Amateur Football League

Hayfield Firsts started the day top of the table, with Dove Holes Firsts in second and closely followed by Chapel Town Firsts. Just 4 points separated 1st from 3rd, with all involved teams knowing that one slip up could cost them dearly going into the final fixtures.

We start at Western Lane as Buxworth Firsts hosted Chapel Town FC in a game that the Derbyshire Cup Finalists needed to win to keep up with the top 2. Chapel’s last two games saw them accumulate 0 points from 6 after a very rare bad run of form and a cup final looming over them. A win was needed for Chapel, and they got exactly that after a fantastic 5-2 victory over Buggy.

Nicky Wood provided both of Buxworth’s goals, but Lewis Speakman, Josh Edwards, Josh Wood and Lewis Coates ensured that Chapel left with all 3 points and remained in the title race. Chapel will now prepare for their night under the lights this coming Friday as they head to Silverlands to face Central Midlands Alliance Premier Division side Wirksworth Ivanhoe in the Derbyshire Divisional Cup Final.

Dove Holes Firsts welcomed the 19th Hole in our second game of the day, with the home side in electric form and showing no signs of slowing down. With Chapel winning their fixture, albeit unbeknown at the time to Dove, they would need to get another win to maintain the 3-point gap as Chapel still possess a game in hand and could draw level on points with them if they succeed in that fixture.

Dove made light work of the 19th Hole, winning the game 7-0 and moving into pole position of the Premier Division. Goals from Ben Bagshaw, Nick Bainbridge, Tom Forder, Aaron Hodgkinson, Joel Donnelly and a Dan Gilbride double secured the victory, with Gilly taking his total goals record for the season up to an impressive 16 in just 13 games.

Hayfield Firsts locked horns with Furness Vale in our final Premier Division fixture of the day, as they looked to maintain their lead at the top of the table. Furness Vale have been a little underwhelming as far as their standards go this season, but they entered the fixture off a two-match winning streak.

A familiar face was also identified on the Furness Vale team sheet, as the league saw the infamous hitman Jimmy Wood’s name again as he made his 3rd consecutive appearance for Vale. Wood’s reintegration to the Furness squad seems to have helped them pick up better results, as they took the title hopefuls all the way to the end and saw out a 0-0 draw. Hayfield now sit 2nd in the league following on from their hard-earned point, with Dove now sitting top and clear of Hayfield by 1 point. It really is all to play for in the Premier Division as the final league games creep over the horizon.

The Roden Cup is now in full swing, and the A Division sides involved played again this weekend with both groups forming a clearer picture. In Group A, Blazing Rag took on Buxworth Reserves with both teams wanting to move up the table to qualify for the final. Buxworth’s Kit Maddox and Benjamin Stanton each scored a brace, securing a 4-2 over Rag and leaving them in a good position to qualify, which is a possibility should they defeat Dove Holes Reserves in their final fixture and Calver slip up against Blazing Rag.

Calver played their second cup fixture this weekend against Dove Holes Reserves who are fresh off of a League and Cup double. Calver won their opening fixture against Buxworth Reserves, and they proved their worth yet again this weekend by defeating the champions 3-2 to move top of Group A. Two quick early goals from Jack Madin and Rob Littlewood gave Dove a shock, with Ryan Bradd’s first goal of the day just before half time halving Calvers lead going into the break. Bradd equalised in the 65th minute, but Littlewood’s second of the day gave Calver a fantastic victory as they held on to remain unbeaten in the Roden Cup so far.

Group B had just the one game pencilled in as Hayfield Reserves faced off against Chapel Town Reserves. Hayfield beat Hathersage in their opening fixture but couldn’t get the win against Chapel as a very close fixture saw the men in yellow and blue pick up their first win whilst moving joint top of the group. The game looked set to end with both sides taking a point home, until Oliver Ashton snatched the win in the 85th minute to see Chapel win 1-0. The top 2 of each group will be drawn into the semi-finals after the group phases commencement next weekend, which guarantees scintillating action prior to the final scheduled for later this season.