RADCLIFFE Boro travelled to Accrington Stanley in the Lancashire ATS Trophy Second Round on Wednesday and came away with a highly creditable 1-1 extra time draw.

Club secretary David Murgatroyd says: "The actual 90 minutes of normal time was amazing in that almost nothing happened at either end. It was totally uneventful.

"We went into extra time and after 115 minutes of play, Andy Kilner produced a goal of absolute class. He spotted the keeper just ever so slightly too far out off his line and lobbed him from fully 35 yards. "If that has been seen in the Premiership, they would have been replaying it for years to come, never mind months!

"It looked as though we had done it, but with just two minutes remaining, they broke forward. Andy Johnston, in goal, for us pulled off an incredible double-save but couldn't hold onto the ball and Paul Beck tapped in. Now we have to do it all over again!"

The replay has been provisionally set for Tuesday at Stainton Road. This will depend on this afternoon's top FA Umbro Trophy first round proper home tie with Matlock Town.

Should that game not be decided at the first time of asking, the Trophy replay will take precedence and be staged at Matlock on Tuesday. Defender Simon Whittle is suspended for this afternoon's top game in the club's history after a recent sending off - but the punishment could have been a lot worse.

He was red-carded for a second bookable offence and, as he has already served one suspension period this season, it was expected he would be hit with a three game ban.

This fortunately, has not transpired and he has just the one game to sit out - even if it is the big one! Losing such a key defender is a real blow to team boss kevin Glendon.

The back four department has already been hit by hamstring injuries to Dave Channon and Loz Greenhalgh. Fortunately the Boro first team squad has currently enough strength in depth to cope!

That will be tested to the full over the coming four months as Boro, as well as gunning on no less than four cup fronts (Trophy, ATS, League Cup and Manchester Premier Cup), moved up into fifth place after last Saturdays 2-0 win over Farsley Celtic. ATHERTON LR crashed out of the Lancashire ATS Trophy in a 2-1 home defeat by Premier Division Chorley but the visitor's manager Dave Sutton will have left Crilly Park knowing full well just how fortunate his side is to be still in the competition. Rovers had by far the better of the encounter with the club that has been setting non-league football alight with its spending power, if not its results on the field, and only a controversial goal three minutes from time settled the result.

Bitterly disappointed LR secretary Steve Hartle said:"We bombed them and we certainly were not overawed. Tony Pemberton scored an absolute cracker for us on 35 minutes when he was set up by Gavin McDonald. He hit it first time from 30 yards and it hit the underside of the bar and flew in, which made it look even better.

"At half time we led but they got a fortunate equaliser and then that winner two minutes from time. The referee blew and everyone thought it was for a foul on our Mattie Brookes but he gave the free kick to Chorley.

"We couldn't believe it! Even so we could have cleared in the scramble that followed, but we didn't and that was that. It was even more disappointing because we had played so well. "Our skipper Jimmy Evans has had a hamstring problem this season that has hampered him but he now seems well over it and the other night was the best I have seen him play in all the time I have been coming down to LR and that's saying something because he's so consistent! He was absolutely magnificent!"

It's now the league for Rovers to concentrate on and that's no bad thing. Last weekend's 2-1 win over rivals Whitley Bay saw LR creeping up just behind Radcliffe into seventh place. NOW just below halfway in the Division One table, Steve Waywell's Leigh RMI are beginning to look a match for all-comers.

They gave Vauxhall Conference Morecambe more than a scare or two on their own turf on Tuesday before finally succumbing in a 2-0 Lancs Cup defeat.

A home win this afternoon against Netherfield could push the Hilton Park outfit into that top half before next weekend's biggest league test yet...leaders Lancaster City at home. This clash between the two form teams of the division, currently four straight victories in eight game unbeaten runs, will also be a fine sampler of the potential soccer support in Leigh. More than likely, there will not be a more attractive fixture this season and the attendance figure will make interesting reading.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.