Brighouse Town travel to third in the table Stockton Town on Saturday (3pm) minus their influential suspended skipper Tom Haigh and fellow suspended centre-back Aiden Walker.

Both would have been available for last Saturday’s re-arranged away game at Shildon after being sent off on the Monday night had the game in Durham not been postponed on the Friday night with four inches of snow on the pitch. Haigh received a three-match ban for his dismissal against Sheffield FC and Walker one match for his red card.

At the time of going to print no added recruitment had been completed and Town will also be without right wing-back Mohammed Ibrahim (ankle ligaments). Northern Counties East club Frickley Athletic have been rebuffed after they made a move for Town’s early autumn recruit Josh Dacre and he looks likely to line up alongside Matty Nebard with the fullbacks being Josh Grant and Sam Reed who will continue to train fulltime with Sheffield Wednesday at their Middlewood Road training headquarters near to their Hillsborough Ground.

Reed, 19, son of the club’s assistant manager Stacy Reed, impressed in his two outings with the Owls U-23s against Peterborough United and Sheffield United but, as a contracted Town player, he will not play another game now as the deadline for signings is next Thursday, March 23 at 5pm. To play those two games he had to be de-registered and then re-registered and Town cannot afford to lose a player of his quality for the remaining eight games of the season.

Town are currently 15th in the table four places above second from bottom Carlton Town and seven points above them but they need all the points they can muster as they also don’t want to be dragged into the two places above and face a play-off game with a side from the NCEL.

Town and others in the Pitching-In Northern Premier League Division One East cannot rely on the relegation of mid-table North Shields through failing ground grading standards as was shown last season when Leeds-based Yorkshire Amateur were relegated through failing to upgrade their ground. North Shields are looking at a cost of around £50,000 to upgrade their cliff-top ground and their officials feel they will only serve one season in the division from the EBAC Northern League as the funds are just not coming in.

Town have a tough run in with runaway League leaders Worksop Town due at the Yorkshire Payments Stadium on Saturday week for a game sponsored by Heckmondwike-based national clothing company Tog 24 and Lightcliffe CC Juniors’ parents. The week after they travel to Cleethorpes, followed by the re-arranged game at Shildon on Tuesday, April 4, and then entertain the in-form Grimsby Borough. Points are going to be hard to come by and each one will be a bonus for Vill Powell and his charges.

Assistant manager Reed says they will take each game as it comes and in the division says anybody can beat anyone else higher up on their day.

“You only have to look at last midweek’s shock 2-0 away win for Carlton at Hebburn Town, who are second in the table and also on a night when they have just made the longest trip in the division, some 170 miles and a round trip of 340 miles, he added!

Striker Laurence Sorhaindo has been diagnosed with a damaged meniscus (cartilage) and a bruised bone in the right knee and will need specialist treatment, so, as revealed last week, he is out for the season.

Walker will be back from his suspension for the Worksop game, but Haigh will also miss the Worksop and Cleethorpes matches.

Almost a barren return from two very important home games in three days as Town lose to play-off hopefuls Dunston in added-on time and draw with Sheffield FC as three are sent off and three are cautioned in that game!

In the Dunston game Town took time to settled against a more experienced and physical side and survived one penalty appeal before Aiden Walker gave away a penalty in the 43rd minute which was converted by Dale Pearson.

Town substituted Cole Roberts with Javelle Clarke at half-time and he had his best game in weeks, and, along with Mo Qasim, they brought Town back into the game down the flanks. They also had to make another substitution in the 50th minute when consistent performer Mohammed Ibrahim was helped off the pitch with ankle ligament damage.

Town equalised in the 79th minute when substitute Reon Benjamin-Potts at the second attempt buried the ball in the back of the net. His first shot was parried out by by goalkeeper Dan Staples, but the striker picked his spot for the second strike.

In the 82nd minute Dunston had winger William Jenkins sent off and Town’s faithful got behind the team to go for the winner.

However, it was from a free kick three minutes into added on time that Dunston took the three points with a header flicked on that beat keeper Brett Souter and saw the home crowd leave disappointed once more after seeing a valuable point lost from the same situation and at the same time as in the previous game against Bridlington Town.

Town must learn game management, and quickly.

On the Monday, Town were off to a great start when referee Arran Williams showed a red card to Sheffield’s centre-half Joshua Burns after just five minutes for bringing down Jack Boyle in the box..

Reon Benjamin-Potts stepped up and beat former Town keeper Ed Hall with a strong shot to his right.

Fellow Sheffield central defender Reece Fielding left the pitch a minute later on crutches and was replaced by Rory Coleman.

In the 25th minute the normally reliable Boyle had a great chance to put Town two up with only Hall to beat but he screwed his attempt from 12 yards out wide of the target. Sheffield lifted their game despite being a man down but had a further setback in the 32nd minute when their skipper Adam Watson had also to leave the field aided by the physio.

Luke Aldrich replaced him and was on the scoresheet 10 minutes later to level matters a minute before the interval with a smart finish from an acute angle..

Town failed to get the ball wide to make their one man advantage count, the stand side of the pitch virtually ignored as they came down the dug-out side time and again.

Disaster then struck as Town had two players sent off in a minute. First Aiden Walker went after allegedly pulling a Sheffield shirt on the edge of the box and then skipper Tom Haigh was sent off for an alleged elbow in a tackle.

Town, who managed to hold out for a 1-1 draw, also had Corey Gregory, Javelle Clarke and Mo Qasim also cautioned.

Town’s manager Vill Powell was looking at footage of the game on Tuesday to see if there was any leeway on the dismissals for an appeal on them.

Town now need valuable points in their last eight games to pull away from the relegation area after a poor run of results since the turn of the

year. Weather permitting they make a return trip to Shildon on Saturday (3pm) after the original fixture in late January was called off after they had made the journey to Durham. A coach leaves the Dusty Miller at 11am.

Striker Laurence Sorhaindo (right knee) has revealed he is very unlikely to play again this season and has been out injured since the West Riding County FA third round tie with Campion.

With possible suspensions and injuries the manager is now looking to strengthen his squad before the 5pm deadline on Thursday, March 23 for all signings for this season.

Brighouse Town continued their disappointing form of late with their sixth defeat in the past eight Northern Premier League East Division games last Saturday when losing 3-2 at home to Bridlington Town.

They have only picked up two points in their past eight games and are now 15th of the 20 clubs in the division. While still nine points above 19th-placed Carlton Town, with bottom club being Tadcaster Albion.

On a positive front Town have another two home games now to to try and dig out some valuable points, with Newcastle club Dunston visiting on Saturday (3pm) and then Sheffield FC on Monday (7.45). Dunston are currently sixth and beat Town 4-0 on their ground back in October but they did lose 2-1 at Lincoln United last Saturday. Sheffield, who are level with Town on 32, points, had a good 3-0 away win at the weekend away to Ossett United, with all three goals coming from set pieces. Town lost 1-0 away to Sheffield back in early October.

Judging by the defeat to Bridlington, which saw the visitors complete a double, Town will have to cut out the defensive lapses which counted for two of the goals and also watch themselves near the box when giving away free kicks or penalties, as was the case with Bridlington’s second goal two minutes into added time on the first half.

Bridlington opened the scoring in the 17th minute in the five goal encounter, taking the lead three times in total before eking out the win.

Lewis Dennison scored first, before five minutes later, a squared ball from the boot of Mo Qasim out on the left was hit home by Bradford City loanee Cole Roberts. Dennison bagged his brace when converting the penalty which had been deemed a soft one just a yard into the box with the visiting forward not heading for goal at this stage. Town keeper Brett Souter got a hand to it but it just had enough power to creep into the corner of his net.

Just three minutes into the second half Souter punted a clearance well up field and it found Town’s leading goalscorer Jack Boyle who dribbled into the box from the right and then unleashed a good shot to beat Bridlington keeper James Hitchcock and level matters once more.

Town brought on two forwards in Javelle Clarke and Nathaniel Crofts to step up the pace for a another goal but after two free kicks awarded just outside the box, Bridlington took the lead once more. Souter saved the first free kick with an outstanding save, but the second free kick saw Town hesitate in defending their goal and Matt Broadley scored in the 64th minute to make it 3-2.

Town did rack up a few attacks but they failed to pull another goal back and register at least a point, with those now like goal dust at the Yorkshire Payments Stadium..

There were no injuries reported from the game and no news of any imminent signings to boost the squad. The deadline for signings for the season will be on Thursday, March 23 at 5pm.

Town officials were staggered to hear from the NPL Regional Meeting last Wednesday in Wakefield that the Women’s game is now funded to per annum to the tune of £45 million whereas Non-League Soccer is awarded just £400,000 to share between around 1,000 clubs.

Changes are afoot apparently but unlikely to come on stream until 2024. Clubs can now attain sponsorship for shirt sleeves onto of the League sponsors Pitching In being on there.