BRIGHOUSE TOWN’S chairman James Howard has stood aside until he has adressed the club’s committee at the AGM in early July.

Wolverhampton-born Howard has been chairman for the past three seasons since taking over from Elland businessman and long serving senior executive member and former player Charlie Tolley.

In breaking the news to Tolley and fellow executive members Chris Lister and Ray McLaughlin late last week, Howard cited ill-health and pressure of work with his company Yorkshire Payments Ltd, based on Bethel Street in Brighouse Town centre.

In fact, he went on Facebook on Monday afternoon to say he was awaiting news of a biopsy test and was making his followers aware of how important one’s health is.

“I thought I was invincible but this health problem I have has brought things home to roost,” said the 37-year-old.

Among his large sporting clients he has Huddersfield Town, Bradford City and Super League Rugby League club Wakefield Trinity.

Howard joined the club as a sponsor some six years ago and has been a generous supporter of the non-league club that is a member of the Pitching In Northern Premier League, plus other leagues with its junior boys and girls and also the senior women’s side who play in the third tier of Women’s football in England.

In the past 18 months he has overseen an extension and massive refurbishment of the clubhouse at the Yorkshire Payments Stadium and also assisted in many other ways by ensuring for two consecutive seasons the club has also entertained Bradford City in two pre-season friendlies.

Last August he also brought a national touring Fun Day to the club that was a huge success and saw well over 2,000 come through the doors.

He has also encouraged other companies to back the club and the good thing, Echo Sport is hearing, is that he will continue to `look out’ for the club and encourage investment in it.

In the meantime it is understood that Chris Lister and Charlie Tolley will continue to oversee day-to-day matters withg their secretary and treasurer and also continue their support work with manager Vill Powell.

It is further understood by Echo Sport that Mr Howard will continue with his sponsorship of the stadium and in areas with the men’s team but is standing down from backing the women’s team.

The women’s team director of football Colin Tomkins would like to go on record to thank Mr Howard for his contributions and support of his team.

In the meantime, former Shaw Lane, Barnsley, owner Craig Wood has been in toucvh with Charlie Tolley after speaking with the parents of their late player Dan Wilkinson, to see if an annual game in memory of Danny could be resurrected in this closed season. A possible date in July is being looked at.

The former Hull City academy player collapsed on the Town pitch some six years ago playing for now defunct Shaw Lane and was pronounced dead at Calderdale Hospital Halifax.

Work on extending and widening the bar area in the clubhouse is expected to be completed by early next week. It has been done to get extra pumps on the bar and room for more operatives working behind.

Charlie Tolley, Ray McLaughlin, Mark Booth and Darren Laycock attended the funeral on Monday in Leeds of the club’s former player and coach Mark Brady who died last month. The wake was held at Farsley Celtic’s clubhouse.

Town have signed Rossington Main’s former Doncaster Rovers and Bradford Park Avenue centre forward, Myron Gibbons.

The 21-year-old was watched towards the end of the past season by Town coach Leon Wainman and put pen to paper on Tuesday night with manager Powell.

The manager has also agreed another home pre-season friendly with Whitby Town on Saturday, August 6 (3.0).

Striker Ollie Fearon with strong links in the Halifax area and cousin of former Halifax and Sheffield Eagles player Danny Fearon has left promoted Liversedge and joined Town’s rivals Ossett United.

BRIGHOUSE TOWN manager Vill Powell returned home last night (Wed) from a family holiday in Greece, refreshed and ready to roll up his sleeves for a sixth season with the club.

He has set Monday, June 20 as the date for pre-season training to commence at the Yorkshire Payments Stadium, and in the meantime will assess any new additions for the squad and sift through requests for trials.

One local player invited to join the squad is 18-year-old Joe Holmes from the Clifton Rangers Youth Football Club who with age cannot progress any further with the club. Son of local businessman and club sponsor Ian Holmes, the promising midfielder has been working hard at the gymnasium in readiness for the first session.

Since starting out with Clifton from junior school days, Joe has won a lot of club awards and now wants to see if he can cut the mustard at open age level with Town.

Town are also holding trials for their U-16 squad on Saturday at Calderdale College, Halifax, between 2pm and 4pm and also on the following Saturday, June 18 at the same tiime.

In the meantime, Toiwn are also looking for a new academy manager after long serving club coach Simon Ward stood down last month owing to an increased workload at Lloyds Bank, Halifax, and family matters. He was praised by all at the club for his excellent and committed service over the years.

More dates for Town’s pre-season matches have been pencilled in on the calendar. Following on from last week’s notification of Huddersfield Town at home on July 2, Guiseley on July 22 and Garforth Town on July 9, Swallownest will visit on July 12, Town go to Eccleshuill United on July 16 and host Horbury Town on July 19.

Town officials have been notified that former England player and managment official Stuart Pearce has been made an ambassador by the Pitching In Northern Premier League to lead their Volunteer Hub to encourage more people to join non-league football clubs.

All the closed season work on Town’s main pitch and second pitch has now been completed by groundsman and general manager Darren Laycock. It has included tonnes of sand, top soil, verti-draining and re-seeding and, as he says, it is now upto Mother Nature to assist in any way she can for the first pre-season game for the men and women’s teams come July.

DESPITE looking at already arranged pre-season friendlies with Huddersfield Town and Guiseley and the possibility of games with Bradford City and FC Halifax Town, Brighouse Town’s manager Vill Powell is once more running a nine club competition which will end in a final at the Yorkshire Payments Stadium.

This year round Powell has two new managers to deal with at City and FC Halifax Town, with Mark Hughes having come in at Valley Parade and Chris Millington having taken over from Pete Wild at the Shay. The closed season is a short one this year with the EFL kicking off in the first week of August.

In the meantime, while talks go on there, Powell has arranged for NPL relegated Yorkshire Amateur to be one of the nine clubs under their new player-manager, Halifax-based Nathan Cartman. The others are Bradford clubs Albion Sports, Campion, Eccleshill United and Thackley, plus Garforth Town, Derbyshire club Swallownest and Wakefield area club Horbury Town.

Town will kick off their programme with a home game on Saturday, July 9 against Garforth Town.

The Pitching In Northern Premier League have made moves in the past week to get there fixtures done across all divisions but in Town’s East Division One there are two clubs appealing that they should not be in this League. Nottingham district club Carlton Town and Derbyshire club Long Eaton Utd have appealed which will slow things down.

Town have arranged with League approval to play Tadcaster Albion in their August Bank Holiday and New Year’s Day fixtures and Ossett United on Boxing Day and Easter Monday.

There are some long trips this coming season and these two clubs, along with Pontefract Collieries, are the nearest derby games.

Twelve coach trips before any possible FA Cup or FA Trophy away games are added will be necessary, all at a cost of around £650 each with the current price of diesel.

Town are for the first time taking part in the 1940s Jubilee weekend in Brighouse town centre. They will have a stall to promote the club outside their chairman James Howard’s Yorkshire Payments office front door on Bethel Street. Youth manager Mark Booth has been the driving force behind it along with the Women’s and boy’s junior sections and their coaches and parents. There will be club memorabelia, programmes, free tickets to a Brighouse Town home game for the 2022-23 season and information how you can sign for the junior clubs and seek trials throughout the many teams based at their Hove Edge ground on St Giles Road.

Town’s General Manager and groundsman Darren Laycock and Youth Team coach Mark Ellis will represent the club at the League’s AGM and dinner/cabaret evening on Saturday July 11 at the Birmingham Hilton with their partners.

BRIGHOUSE TOWN held their annual Presentation Evening at the Midland Hotel, Bradford, last Saturday evening and for the first time shared the occasion with the Brighouse Town Women’s team.

One hundred and ten players, management, committeemen, supporters and sponsors enjoyed the occasion which was in the more than capable hands of Pault Ramsden, the Huddersfield Town PA announcer and also the former Old Brodleians player and Lightcliffe CC captain, who is now also a sponsor of BrighouseTown with his company Tog 24.

He welcomed Town’s chairman and stadium sponsor James Howard, MD of Yorklshire Payments, and vice chairman and director of football Charlie Tolley before the speeches and presentations began by Mr Howard and then town manager Vill Powell and the Women’s successful team manager Rob Mitchell who brought along the West Riding County Cup his team won back in April when they beat Leeds United Women on penalties after the sides were locked at 1-1.

The Clubman of the Year award for the 2021-22 season went to Andy Eccles for his work throughout Covid 19 in safeguarding the club with colleague Ray McLaughlin and his extensive work since with an architect and Calderdale Council in ensuring the club has all its plans and licenses for various things in order.

He has also addressed the car parking issues that have been laid at the club’s door by some of the near neighbours of the club with West Yorkshire Police and the council and done a splendid job.

On the playing front, Laurence Sorhaindo came later from his auntie’s wedding to receive the Players’ Player of the Year’ and also the Golden Boot as leading goalscorer. Players’ Player for the Women’s team went to Shauna Legge and lthe leading goalscorer was Leah Embley.

Jack Boyle was the Supporters Player of the Year and Shauna Legge also took the Women’s Supporters award.

The Women’s Manager of the Year award went to Sophie John and for the men Harrison Beeden.

Most promising teenage full-back Sam Reed, son of assistant manager Stacy, picked up £50 from Mr Brian Marsden who, along with his colleagues on the match day fundraising team, was delighted with the Sheffield lad’s progress.

Long serving players Tom Haigh (captain) and James Hurtley, handed out gifts to the kitmen Darrell Hadala and Will Armitage and physio therapist Emily Harnden who is also now working for the Womens team.

Town have agreed another pre-season friendly, this time at home with Guiseley on Friday, July 22 at 7.30, to add to the Huddersfield Town game on July 2..

Details will be released next week of the competition that Town are also running in the pre-season like last July and early August.

Things at Brighouse Town don’t appear t be slowing down too despite the men’s and women’s first teams completing their seasons just over a week ago. Both teams finished a very respectable 7^th in their respective leagues and the Women’s team went one better than the men in retaining their County Cup crown. The two teams will celebrate their successes in a first ever joint presentation evening this Saturday when individuals will be rewarded for their outstanding efforts throughout the last season.

Since the end of the competitive games for the senior teams, we have hosted the Calderdale Schools Finals over a two-day period with teams from Rastrick High, Brooksbank, Hipperholme and Lightcliffe, Calder High School, Ryburn and Crossley Heath all taking park in some fantastic games illustrating the rich crop of talent that exists on our doorstep. The games were well supported by school mates and parents alike and Brighouse Town are proud that the Calderdale Schools organisation continue to choose us to host these events.

Junior teams are competing this weekend in cup finals and league play off deciders and will then be entering in a whole host of tournaments and competitions. We have stalls at the up-and-coming 1940’s Weekend in Brighouse to showcase what we are about and provide more exposure to this vibrant and progressive football club. We will also be hoisting another Family Fun Day on the 17^th July between 12 noon and 6.00pm – more details to follow nearer the time.

Behind the scenes work will be shortly starting on the pitches with verti-draining, weeding, reseeding, and sanding to ensure we are ready to host the first pre-season game of the 2022/23 campaign against a team who after last night have stepped closer to becoming a Premier League team once again – Huddersfield Town. This is scheduled to take place on Saturday the 2^{nd of} July – so as you can see the close season isn’t very long at Brighouse!! The Women’s team have already lined up a home pre-season fixture against Blackburn Rovers with a date to be confirmed shortly.

The men’s first team squad is already taking shape with much of the current squad who had such an impressive finish to the season committed to playing again next year. Vill and I are both very pleased with the commitments that have been made and feel that with a couple of other additions we will have a settled and exciting team ready to kick on and take the end of season form into the new campaign. Critical to the commitment of the players was the commitment of Vill himself to committing his future for the next 3 years to the club and illustrates what he believes can be achieved.       

The bar continues to be thriving arena with live football matches being enjoyed a plenty by an ever-increasing bunch of regulars. With play off finals, champions league finals along with other sporting events it is certainly a great environment to have a drink and enjoy some live sport.

Subject to ratification at the League AGM on the 11^th June the first league game for the men’s first team will take place on Saturday the 13^th August. Our league trips next season will take us as far north as North Shields, as far south as Grantham, as far east as Cleethorpes and as far west as Brighouse!