Brighouse Town’s trip to the foothills of the Derbyshire Peak District last Saturday was called off after a 10am pitch inspection and despite the hard work of the groundsman who had been dragging chains across the pitch to let air in and aid the thaw process.

Town’s manager Vill Powell quickly agreed to a re-arranged game for the Tuesday night in the hope that went ahead to clear the last match of a three-match suspension on re-signed centre-back Jorge Sikora.

Following this game Town have two home games on the trot, at home to Ossett United on Saturday (3pm) and then Stocksbridge Park Steels the following Saturday (3pm).

Town drew their game 1-1 at Ingfield back in November but had Lady Luck been on their side it would have been a victory.

The match is being sponsored by Vanessa Lee the Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for the Calder Valley who is hoping to take over from long serving MP and Town sponsor Craig Whittaker MP who is standing down at the next General Election. Vanessa, brought up near Hull, but now living in Mytholmroyd, is a Hull City season ticket holder.

Goalkeeper Harry Garman who started the season as number one custodian, before losing his jersey to last season’s keeper Jamie Hassall when he came back to the club in October from Knaresborough Town, has signed for Stocksbridge Park Steels. Garman, 23, who was previously with Manchester Met, Whaley Bridge, Yorkshire Amateur and Alwoodley, had been given a dual registration to play with Northern Counties East League club Maltby Main, but wanted to stay around the squad in the hope of breaking back into the side.

“Now the opportunity has come to play at the same level with Stocksbridge I have taken the opportunity,” said Garman, as he headed for south Yorkshire.

It has emerged that Town have an international on their books in defender Jamie Allsop. The 26-year-old, who has had limited appearances for Town, plays for the Great Britain Police team and is utilised anywhere across the back four and even in midfield. He has played primarily as a centre-back by Town when called upon. He is not a policeman on the beat but is involved with the media department of the West Yorkshire Police and before coming to Town had played for Garforth Town and Nostell MW where his father Kevin is chairman.

Following the two successive home games Town are then on the road north, first to Hebburn Town and then Newton Aycliffe the following week.

Wide player Jack Wilson, now back in full training after being out injured since September will be able to challenge for a place from this weekend, and striker Myron Gibbons, who was attracting a lot of attention when he tore a hamstring ligament in the West Riding County FA Senior Cup tie with Campion on December 19, is now back in light training and could be available for those away games.

Town are looking to make more midweek on top of weekend use of their clubhouse with hosting private functions and wakes with catering following local funerals.

Brighouse Town’s home game last Saturday with the form team of the Northern Premier League East Division, Grimsby Borough, ended in a 0-0 draw.

However, with much more clinical finishing, Town should have taken all three points from a scoreline that could have read 5-0!

They had three great chances in the first half and two more in the second period but failed to bury all five chances in the back of the net.

Assistant manager Louis Axcell commented after the game that the finishing was woeful and Town could have been out of sight at half-time.

The performance, although not exactly full of quality football, was far better than the previous week at Grantham, and against a strong side and with a more than decent midfield and back four.

Jack Crook replaced skipper Josh Grant from the Grantham game and he was prominent with Sam Drake and Cameron Bedford in driving forward to get strikers Mo Qasim, Kieron Ceesay and Jack Normanton going in to the heart of the Borough defence.

Leading up to half-time Normanton, who covered some ground, had two good chances of burying the ball in the net, but failed and Qasim had a blistering short saved by keeper Liam Higton. Ceesay, who shows great promise, also had two opportunities but was a little slow in reacting with the ball arriving at his feet and his shots were blocked.

Town keeper Jamie Hassall throughout the game had a quiet afternoon in his goal and you could count the saves he made on one hand.

Brandon Webster was again a lively wing-back as chances were created from the left and later from the right, but Qasim and substitute Ashley Butterworth just could not find the back of the net. Butterworth had a great chance to seal the game with eight minutes left as he came one-on-one with Higton but he fired straight at the keeper.

A valuable point as they head on Saturday to Derbyshire to take on third in the table Belper Town and try and avenge a 2-0 defeat back in October at the Heffernan Utilities Stadium.

A coach leaves the Dusty Miller at 11am.

While Town had a crowd of 286 for the visit of Grimsby, Belper won 2-1 over North Ferriby in front of 726, so there is bound to be plenty of atmosphere to cut through on Saturday.

In the meantime, Town have re-signed centre-back Jorge Sikora on a free transfer after he was made available following the demise of Premier Division Marske United two weeks ago and locally-based and former Town winger Eddie Church has joined Liversedge from Markse.

Sikora was on loan at Town earlier in the season before he was recalled to Markse following Town’s FA Trophy game at Ashton United.

He is ruled out of the Belper game as he still has a match to serve on the a three-game ban.

Former FC Halifax Town, Bradford PA and Brighouse Town wide player Will Callighan has left Town’s squad for FC United of Manchester after not playing a game since November.

Midfielder Jordan Helliwell, who joined Town from Knaresborough Town back in October, has gone on dual registration to Wakefield AFC and joins centre-back Seb Normanton and ex-Town and Bradford PA wideman Alex King at Belle Vue.

Talented ex-Bradford City winger Jack Wilson is, according to Axcell, closing in on a return to the Town line up after being out since September with a leg injury.

Pictured are part of the fantastic group who walked from Ossett to the Heffernan Utilities Stadium to remember Town legend Pete Gill and raise money for the British Heart Foundation. They are pictured with Pete’s son and daughter Joe and Emily centre stage enjoying a well earned drink in “Jimmy’s Bar” in the Clubhouse.

The Brighouse Town performance at Grantham last Saturday was certainly a case of: `After the Lord Mayor’s Show’.

Forced into one change from the side that beat Liversedge 3-2 on New Year’s Day, manager Vill Powell also altered his back four, dropping Jamie Allsop completely out of the squad and bringing in the re-signed centre-back Josh Dacre who arrived 48 hours before the game back from Winterton Rangers via Goole.

Midfielder Jack Crook, who had played well alongside Cameron Bedford and Sam Drake against Liversedge, was placed on the bench as he was late coming back from a short holiday in Paris. Skipper Josh Grant, who was subject of interest from former club Ossett United during the week after being ill for the Liversedge game, replaced Crook. Ever present squad member Ash Butterworth, who had cried in sick in the morning, was replaced in the sixteen by Seb Bolton who has just signed a dual registration agreement with Wakefield.

Defences were on top early on but the Gingerbreadmen went ahead on 25 minutes when Town’s vice-captain Curtis Peters was alleged to have brought down a home payer in the penalty box. Bradley Munns made no mistake in firing past Jamie Hassell.

Matty Doyle then went close for Grantham, to be denied by Hassell, while Kieron Ceesay could have opened Town’s account.

Rodrigro Goncalves added a second for the home side in the 34th minute as the Town defence stood off him and then allowed a shot to easily beat Hassell.

Town did come out for the second half looking a little livelier and Mo Qasim just headed over when well placed. Town did have chances through Jack Normanton, Drake and Crook who had home custodian Curtis Hall beaten but after the partially saved shot the ball run up a post and over for a corner.

In the 86th minute Peters was again alleged to have fouled in the box and Munns stepped up again to drive home the spot kick.

To Town’s credit they did not give up and were awarded a penalty three minutes into added on time, which Normanton converted.

In the two training sessions this week, the players will no doubt have come under the pump as Powell was very disappointed with the showing against the bottom placed club and apologised to travelling supporters.

Grimsby Borough, who are one place and one point behind 14th-placed Town after their 2-0 home win over Newton Aycliffe last Saturday, are the visitors on Saturday to the Heffernan Utilities Stadium (3pm).

They were bottom ahead of the festive break and their secretary-director Nigel Fanthorpe said the board called the manager Daniel Barrett into the boardroom and asked for a major improvement. It appears to have worked!

Brighouse Town Women were knocked out of the League Cup at the second round stage to a strong and experienced Eccleshill side.
Hannah Burgess scored Town’s only goal in the 4-1 defeat after putting pressure on the visiting defence and goalkeeper. Town had three debutants from the U17’s in Lacey Dunne, Millie Hewson-Crossland and Olivia Loraine. Stand-out performances were from Lucy Webb and Courtney Simpson as the centre-back duo, and new signing Lilly Barclay-Andrews.
On Sunday Town are away to Wakefield in the league, hoping to win after losing to them in their first game of the season.

Brighouse Town rounded off the festive period with a 3-2 home win over Liversedge to complete a double over their near neighbours from just four miles down the road.

Town won 1-0 at Clayborn on August Bank Holiday Monday but this was a more assured performance once they had gone down to another early goal-Liam Hardy scoring with just two minutes on the clock. Town had also seen themselves a goal down at Winterton Rangers on Boxing Day and need to switch on a little earlier!

In fact in this New Year’s Day derby game before a 387 crowd, Town went on to play some lovely football, possibly the best of the season and on a tacky pitch, and to be realistic with much tidier finishing they could have hit Liversedge for six and possibly more!

Town grew into the game after the earlier setback and began to trouble recognised central defenders Kurt Harris and Kevin Tarangadzo and their full backs Kwame Boatang and Jack Hardacre.

Town’s back four of Curtis Peters, Brandon Webster, Matty Hubard and Jamie Allsop played with assurity after the early lapse.

Sam Drake was denied by former Town keeper Jordan Porter who fumbled his shot on to a post before grabbing it before it went over the line. The Town faithful were confident a goal was coming after a header was also saved and they got their reward in the 44th minute when striker Kieron Ceesay came into the box and beat several defenders before steering his shot past Porter.

Into the second half and once Town had settled, striker Jack Normanton, who covered some ground the whole game, Ceesay, Mohammed Qasim and man of the match Cameron Bedford just took the game to Liversedge.

Chances to take the lead came and went for Cameron Bedord, Jack Crook, Normanton and Qasim but the score in the 74th minute still remained 1-1.

A minute later, however, the home crowd went wild with delight as a Normanton free kick 30 yards out on the left was blasted home by Bedford. The same player struck again eleven minutes later to put Town 3-1 up and with fresh legs on from Alex Phillipson, Ash Butterworth and Jordan Helliwell, Town continued their assault on the Liversedge goal.

Liversedge did pull a goal back in the 90th minute from a Jack Stockdill header as the board went up for five minutes added-on time. However, Town more than held out and once more finished the game on the front foot.

The seven points from the three games across the festive period have taken Town to 12th place in the table ahead of their away game on Saturday to bottom club Grantham Town (3pm).

There will be a coach leaving the Dusty Miller at 11am.

In the meantime Stocksbridge Park Steels have made an approach for Town’s No2 keeper Harry Garman who is currently on a dual registration with Maltby Main.