July 2010 Archives

DAVE CHALLINOR had mixed feelings after watching the Seagulls lose 1-0 at Chorley today (July 31).
The Bay lost to a 72nd minute goal after being denied the lead by home keeper Aaron Grundy who made one outstanding save to tip a Tim Brandreth header round the post from a corner, after earlier diving to his right to make a splendid one-handed stop from Bay's trialist centre forward after he had linked up well with Jon Newby.
Grundy also got down well to make a sharp save from Newby in the first half and later made brave saves at the feet of Joe O'Sullivan and Newby to make himself a strong nomination for man of the match.
Colwyn Bay didn't pass the ball around as well as they have in previous games, but Dave Challinor, who gave himself a rest for this game so he could observe from the sidelines, tried to get his side to play a slightly different way and felt some players adapted better than others.
"We tried a different way of playing because going through a season you have to be able to adapt when conditions and circumstances demand it," he explained.
"Some players did OK but others didn't do themselves any favours today.
"The problem for them is that they are running out of chances. We have to make a decision on the squad over the next week or so and if players can't do what we ask them to do, then we will have to look for other players that can.
"We had plenty of opportunities today to get in behind their fullbacks and cause problems and we just didn't do that enough.
"But there were also positives to take from the game and we'll take what we've learnt into the game at Flint on Wednesday and see where we are after that - but we are not far away."
Damien Allen, who was ill and unable to play at Chorley, should be back for that game, while Ian Sheridan is due back from America in the next few days and the management team will then be able to get down to some real work with the forwards to improve play in the final third which has been the one area of concern up to now.
The club are also hoping to sign at least one more forward before next weekend.
Again they started quite well at Chorley with Danny Grannon having an early chance from a corner, but he headed straight at the keeper, who then made a smart save low to his right from Jon Newby after some good Bay build-up play.
The Bay were playing more long balls than in previous games to try and get players into space behind the Chorley defence, but too often promising situations were wasted by players losing the ball or being caught offside.
As the half progressed ominous gaps started to appear in midfield which allowed Chorley to get on top and twice they might have scored with close range efforts from Russell and Houghton that went narrowly wide.
The Bay were a bit tighter in the second half and would have gone in front themselves but for those two outstanding saves by Grundy.
Titchiner, O'Sullivan, Cadwallader and Barnett were all introduced from the bench, but Colwyn Bay went behind on 72 minutes when they were caught out by a long ball down the left which put Tom Ince through on goal and he drew substitute keeper Paul Davies off his line before setting up a simple tap in for Steve Burke.
That sparked another strong spell for a useful-looking Chorley side in which they missed one golden chance to increase their lead when Burke headed over from two yards out.
Colwyn Bay also had Newby and Denson booked for fouls in that period, but rallied well towards the end of the game, forcing several corners, and Grundy had to make another fine save at the feet of Joe O'Sullivan after the ex-Crewe player had neatly skipped past two defenders and into the area.
Newby and the trialists centre forward linked up quite well at times, Mick McGraa worked hard in central midfield and I thought Tim Brandreth did well at the back after getting a rare start, but the Bay couldn't get Alex Titchiner into the game when he came on and he wasn't able to make the same impact that he did at Witton.
Colwyn Bay: Sanna (Davies 45mins), Denson, Thompson (Barnett 73mins), Brandreth, Grannon, Kelly (O'Sullivan 63mins), Trialist (Cadwallader 63mins), McGraa, Trailist, Newby, Davey (Titchiner 63mins).

ALEX TITCHINER made his long-awaited first appearance as a second half substitute in Colwyn Bay's pre-season friendly at Witton Albion (July 29) - and helped his side gain a 1-1 draw.
The Seagulls had three trialists in attack and struggled to create much in the way of goal chances in the first half, despite having a lot of the ball.
They made a bright start, putting the home side under early pressure, but a mistake by Danny Grannon cost them the lead after eight minutes when he lost possesssion on the left and Peter Heler crossed for the unmarked Andrew Kinsey to head past Chris Sanna.
Sanna then had to make a good save to beat away a shot from Heler after Colwyn Bay had again given the ball away in their own half, but the keeper was not tested again in the first half as the Bay had plenty of the ball and moved it around quite well in midfield but again lacked penetration in the final third.
Jon Newby and Jimmy Kelly were introduced at half-time, but it was when Titchiner came on after 63 minutes that the Bay really started to pose a threat up front and it was his clever pass that played in Jon Newby to score the equaliser on 77 minutes.
Newby again linked up well with Luke Denson down the right and that partnership is starting to look good, but the Bay still lack a big forward who can hold the ball and compete physically with strong central defenders.
Witton's big centre back Ben Harrison was outstanding before he was substituted in the second half, and Bay's small attackers struggled to get the better of him.
The Bay were more of an attacking threat with Titchiner and Newby in the second half. They moved forward with pace and some purpose and finished the game strongly as Witton made wholesale second half changes, but they couldn't force a winner although Newby, O'Sullivan, Denson and McGill all had efforts at goal.
Titchiner said later that his ankle stood up well, but admits that at the moment he is still short of match fitness.
One injury worry was Martin Beattie, who had to come off after taking a hefty kick on the foot and he may now miss Saturday's game at Chorley when David Thompson, who impressed against Llangefni last Saturday but was unavailable to play at Witton due to work commitments, is likely to play at left-back.
Dave Challinor hopes to be able to try out a couple more new faces, but any possibility of signing former Lincoln City and Bosted United striker Ollie Ryan have been dashed as the player has decided to join Chester after playing for them on Tuesday night.
The Seagulls, however, have put in seven days for another forward who is currently with a Conference North club and are hopeful a deal can be completed next week.
Meanwhile Challinor has confirmed that Lee Hammond has been released after being offered regular first team football elsewhere.
Colwyn Bay: Sanna, Denson, Beattie (Titchiner 63mins), Grannon, Challinor, McGraa (Kelly 45mins), Trialist (Newby 45mins), Allen, Trialist, O'Sulivan, Trialist (McGill 82mins). Subs not used: Davies and Davey.

COLWYN BAY have completed the signing of the former Stockport, Royal Antwerp and Bury midfielder Damien Allen and he is set to play in two tough away games in three days at Witton Albion (Thursday, July 29) and Chorley (Saturday, July 31).
Damien was with Manchester United as a boy and made 57 appearances for Stockport before going on loan to Royal Antwerp. He has also had spells at Morecambe and FC Halifax Town prior to signing for Bury.
Chester have been trying to sign him, but the 23-year-old has now committed himself to the Bay and trained with the squad on Tuesday.
Dave Challinor is also hoping to have a couple more players on board following Thursday's game at Witton.
Saturday's match at Chorley is a late replacement following the decision earlier this week by The New Saints to pull out out of their scheduled visit to Llanelian Road due to their Champions League trip to Anderlecht next Tuesday.
Chorley are now managed by former Manchester City player Gary Flitcroft , who has brought many of last season's Leigh Genesis side with him, and they are expected to be strong contenders for the play-offs in the Evo-Stik Division One North next season.
Challinor sees the games against Witton and Chorley as being a key test for his emerging squad ahead of the opening Evo-Stik Premier League game at North Ferriby United on August 21.
Incidentally, I notice Lee Woodyatt (formerly from Rhos-on-Sea) is now playing at Chorley.

COLWYN BAY gained their third pre-season victory by beating Cymru Alliance champions Llangefni Town 2-0 with goals from Ben Jones and Joey O'Sullivan.
The Seagulls dominated much of the possession and played the ball around quite nicely, but tended to lack penetration until Lee Davey started to attack the full-back down the left wing and put over some good crosses late in the game.
The main concern for player-boss Dave Challinor from the game were injuries to Ben Jones (recurring thigh injury which forced his withdrawal early in the second half), Luke Denson (hip injury suffered during the pre-match warm up and which forced his late withdrawal from the game) and Mark Cadwallader (knee).
Challinor, however, reported later that none of the injuries are thought to be serious.
Steve Aspinall is also suffering with a hip injury, but was able to play the full 90 minutes.
"We did OK, but I wasn't that happy overall with how we played," said Challinor. "We weren't sharp enough with our passing at times and it was frustrating for me watching from the back to see us have so much of the ball but fail to create a great deal in the final third.
"But we haven't been able to do much attacking work in training yet with some key players away or unavailable and I expect us to improve that side of our game once we have got everybody fit and available."
He plans to have a look at a centre forward who has played Conference football in the next game away to Witton Albion on Thursday night (July 29) and is also in talks with another forward.
"I hope to have the squad pretty much in place once we have played the TNS game (July 31), but there are still a few places up for the grabs and we are continuing to look at players we think could do a job for us," added the player-boss.
One new face on show against Llangenfi was David Thompson who did well in midfield. He was at Bury with Challinor and Colin Woodthorpe and is likely to be given another run out at Witton, possibly in his more favoured position of left back.
Colwyn Bay dominated much of the first half with Danny Grannon, who again had a stand out game at the back, hitting a post from a corner, while Llangenfi keeper Paul Pritchard saved from Grannon and Cadwallader.
Ex-Crewe apprentice O'Sullivan, who again impressed, was narrowly off target with a shot before he played in Ben Jones for a coolly taken opening goal past the advancing Pritchard on 29 minutes.
Llangefni rarely threatened, although Ywain Gwynedd clipped the top of the crossbar from long range early on after a poor clearance by Chris Sanna, and the Bay keeper did well to save at the feet of Graham Austin in the Anglesey side's best opening.
Tom McGill replaced the injured Ben Jones after 47 minutes and just failed to get his head on O'Sullivan's free kick when he looked certain to score, while Lee Davey fired another good chance over the bar.
Llangefni, who were well organised at the back and worked hard, threatened on a couple of occasions with Ywain Gwynedd very unlucky not to score with an overhead kick which thudded against the crossbar, while Sanna beat away a shot from Lee Craven and made a flying save to keep out a Craven header.
But Colwyn Bay secured the victory with a second goal six minutes from the end when Davey pulled a great ball back from the by-line for O'Sullivan to rifle a first-time shot into the net.
Colwyn Bay: Sanna, Aspinall, Beattie, Challinor, Grannon, Thompson, Davey, Cadwallader (Barnett 84mins), Jones (McGill 47mins), Newby, O'Sullivan. Subs not used: Davies and Hammond.
Attendance: 227

COLWYN BAY will again be missing a number of players due to holdiays for Saturday's home match against Cymru Alliance champions Llangefni Town (July 24, 3pm), but will have Martin Beattie and striker Ben Jones available again.
Jones, who did well in the win against Chester, has recovered from a slight thigh strain and is expected to play up front.
Jimmy Kelly, Mick McGraa, Kev Fields, Andy Leech and Ian Sheridan are all away, while Alex Titchiner is probably another 10 to 14 days away from being ready for match action.
The ex-Crewe forward, however, is making good progress and looked sharp in training on Thursday night, but player-boss Dave Challinor does not want to take any risks with his fitness and is looking at possibly the Witton Albion game (July 29) or more likely the TNS game (July 31) for him to play his first game.
Challinor also has a former Football League striker, who scored 25 goals during a season at Boston a couple of years ago, lined up to play at Witton next Tuesday.
"He is currently looking for a club after having a rough time of it last season," reports Challinor. "But he is the type of player we are looking for so we are keen to have a look at him."
The player-boss has also put in seven days for another striker. "He would be a big signing for us if we could get him, but much depends on how is current club feel about releasing him," added Challinor.
Meanwhile, I understand the Bay could lose England Futsal international Ryan Williams, who is having trials with Conference side Stalybridge Celtic, while Chester are believed to be chasing Damien Allen, who played well against them in Bay's 2-0 win two weeks ago.

DAVE CHALLINOR won't have gained too much from Colwyn Bay's 4-3 home defeat to Prestatyn Town on Tuesday night (July 20) in which the Seagulls played a team made up mostly of trialists.
None of them were able to make much of an impression on a foul night of increasiningly heavy rain, but although this defeat ruined the new manager's previous unbeaten pre-season record, you can't blame him for using the game to have a look at players keen enough to have asked for a trial - just in case there was a hidden gem among them.
Sadly a couple of them looked out of their depth with the right back giving away a penalty and a free kick from which Prestatyn scored their first half goals through Mike Parker and Ian Griffiths to lead 2-1 at half-time.
Tim Brandreth, Steve Aspinall and Mike McGraa were the only instantly recognisable starters for the Bay, and it was McGraa who volleyed their goal on 25 minutes from a right wing cross.
The Bay looked better in the second half with the introduction of Luke Denson, Jon Newby, Lee Davey and Lee Hammond from the bench and I thought Newby in particular looked good, setting up two more goals for the Bay (an own goal under pressure from Lee Davey and close range finish by Mike Burke). The former Liverpool and Bury forward put in some good runs and linked up very promisingly with Luke Denson down the right .
Prestatyn made wholesale changes in the second half, but capitalised on a defence missing the likes of Danny Grannon, Dave Challinor, Martin Beattie and Chris Sanna, to beat loaned keeper Paul Davies twice more through Steve Rogers and Jon Fisher Cook (to lead 3-1 and 4-2) and secure their win.
Lee Davey (twice) and Steve Aspinall both went close with long range efforts and Joe O'Sullivan, who also worked hard, had a couple of shots blocked by defenders as the Bay had the chances to rescue a draw.
I expect the Bay to return to a more recognisable line-up for Saturday's game against Llangefni, although two or three players are still away on holiday.

ON a day when Colwyn Bay completed the signing of Alex Titchiner on contract, they were only denied a third win in three pre-season games by an injury-time penalty in a 1-1 draw with a youthful Tranmere Rovers side (July 17).
The Seagulls were the better side in the first half and led 1-0 at half-time after a good passing move set up Lee Davey for a neat finish past keeper Joe Collister and inside the far post to give his side a 25th minute lead.
Danny Grannon had a header tipped over the bar by the keeper and both Davey and Dave Challinor missed good chances, while Chris Sanna did not have a single shot to save in the first half.
Collister made a fine double save to block efforts from Tom McGill and then Davey in the second half, but Tranmere, who included a couple of first team regulars, gradually upped their game as the half progressed and their extra fitness from full-time training began to tell in the closing stages.
Even so Colwyn Bay looked like holding onto their lead, with Sanna not really extended and making only a couple of fairly comfortable saves from free kicks. But right at the death Tranmere were awarded a penalty in the second minute of added time when Dale Jennings was tripped in the box.
Terry Gornell scored from the spot, although Sanna was unlucky not to save it as the ball ricocheted into the roof of the net off his body as he dived to his right to try and block it.
Player-boss Dave Challinor admitted he was disappointed to concede such a late equaliser, but overall was happy with the workout.
"It was the first full 90 minutes for many of our players and fitness told a bit in the second half when we tired and lost our shape a little bit. But I'm pleased with the way things are progressing, especially as we've still got the likes of Titch and Ian Sheridan to come back in to bolster our options up front and Ben Jones wasn't risked today because of a slight thigh strain."
Titchiner, released by Crewe at the end of last season, signed a contract to join the Seagulls after the match, but he only started training last Wednesday after his troublesome ankle injury and is probably two or three weeks away from being ready for his first game.
"He has had a rough time with his ankle, but the exercise programme he is on will get that right and he should be fine for the start of the season. I am delighted we have got him," commented Challinor.
He is also pleased to have secured the signature of former Liverpool and Bury forward Jon Newby, who put in a couple of great crosses in the Tranmere game, and who the player-boss says will help bring on young players like Lee Davey and Tom McGill.
"John puts in some great forward runs and he can teach Lee and Tom a lot in that respect. He is an excellent forward coach and he will be working with the other forwards over the next few weeks," added Challinor.
Although I am told the Bay played better than this against Bangor and Chester, I was impressed with their play in the first half - and it was nice to see very little of the long ball up the middle which was a frustrating feature of several games last season.
Colin Woodthorpe commented: "We got a bit lazy and conceded too many free kicks in the closing stages, and eventually you pay if you do that. But we've plenty of time to put things like that right."
The Bay will now be losing some of the players due to holidays over the next two or three weeks, and plan to use Tuesday's home game against Prestatyn Town (July 20) to have a look at a number of trialists.

COLWN BAY could welcome back Chris Sanna in goal for Saturday's pre-season friendly against Tranmere Rovers at Llanelian Road (July 17, 3pm kick off).
He returned from America this week and could come in for Andy Leach, who is away on holiday - although player-boss Dave Challinor has got another keeper on standby just in case.
Martin Beattie has been given the weekend off after his wife had a baby this week and Lee Hammond will be given a chance at left back.
Tranmere will be making a late decision on which first team players travel to Llanelian Road - but I understand Ash Taylor could be a doubt due to injury.
Apparently he wasn't able to play in Tuesday night's games at Cammell Laird and Heswall and a final decision on his fitness may be delayed until Saturday morning before the club send two different squads to play games at Marine and Colwyn Bay on the same afternoon.
It will be a disappointment if Taylor is ruled out as a lot of Bay fans have followed his progress into Tranmere's first team with interest after his successful loan spell at the Bay earlier last year, but the League One club will still be sending a strong team (made up of first team professionals, youth team players and some trialists) which will provide Dave Challinor's side with their biggest test so far.
Chally says he is delighted with the two wins out of two his players have achieved so far and is happy with the squad he and assistant Colin Woodthorpe have put together for the pre-season games.
"We haven't been able to do much functional or tactical work in training so far, so to have won both our opening games is very pleasing and I am happy with the squad," he told me.
He hopes to tie up the signatures of at least three of the players this weekend after putting offers to them, and his final squad for the start of the new season is beginning to take shape.
He says he is still looking for an experienced striker and that is his main target at the moment, with attempts to secure a player who was at Woodley Sports last season proving more difficult than anticipated.
Meanwhile he plans to use next Tuesday's newly arranged friendly against Prestatyn Town to play a team of mainly trialists - including four lads from New Zealand who have come over from an Academy in Auckland hoping to find clubs in Britain.

COLWYN BAY beat Bangor City 2-1 in their opening pre-season friendly. The next game is against Chester on Saturday July 10th. More information available on the club website (www.colwynbayfc.co.uk).
I will be back from holiday after the Chester game and am currently sweltering in 105% heat in New York.