Workington's automatic promotion prospects being seriously tested

[Dick Large]

https://www.footballwebpages.co.uk/n...-west-division

Only the champions are automatically promoted.
Pontefract's 3 games in hand on Workington are all at home, where they have won 7 out of 8 games played thus far.

[sandpit]

Having been top of league for a long time it would be a shame for it not to happen after all this time,need a re boot or or even a boot up the jeer to get them going again.

[Psaw2]

This brings back memories of football league games against Workington in the early 70s. John Burridge was in goal, and Workington did well in those days before the plunge.

Workington were typically north, hard working and hard to beat. It was a sad day when they disappeared, are they on the way back?. They will be very welcome. Bill Shankly started there as manager. Rupert.

[sandpit]

I great career,nigh on thirty years of it for (Budgie) and a lot of clubs in that time,born in Workington and now coaching in India i think,some mileage with that fella both off and on the field.

[howoldboy]

In my early years at Brunton Park I always used to stand behind the goals in the Waterworks End.

John Burridge was the first (and last) goalkeeper I can remember having a continuous dialogue (mainly banter) with the crowd for the 45 minutes he was at that end. Top man.

It could have been against Workington but I have a feeling he was playing for Blackpool at the time.

[Dick Large]

Psaw,
You would like the BBCRC Workington reporter, John Walsh. He is such a veteran that in comparison to him Griff is a callow youth. JW is an expert on racing pigeons and has his own flock, squad or whatever the term is. I believe that he has occasionally sent them to France in some competitions, i.e. to fly back to Workington.

Last time that he reported on a Workington match at Farsley Celtic's ground (in the Leeds hinterland) called The Throstle's Nest, he took one of his pigeons with him and released it at the ground.

Can anyone be more northern than that?

[C_U_N_T]

When John's racing pigeons are released in France why the f­uck would they want to fly back to Workington?

[Psaw2]

I suppose Workington playing in the football league must seem like a dream. I also remember Jimmy Goodfellow, a cultured midfielder. We played them one Tuesday night. and a Workington player held the ball behind his back to waste time, no one knew where it was, unless you were behind him.

[Piglet_Phoenix]

Psow, Shankly first managed Carlisle United, then Grimsby Town before Workington.

[griff]

I used to watch Workington Reds as a t­eenager. When I was about 16 I was one of a bunch of Aspatria kids taken along to be the victims of a coaching course for some of the players, Afterwards, Burridge offered money to any of us who could put the ball past him from 18 yards. He still owes me a tanner.

Some of us used to go and watch the Reds when they played their home games on Friday evenings. Joe Wilson was one of my favourite players; he had a knack of putting cheeky wingers off the pitch, over the grass and onto the clinker. They lost heart after that.

The final whistle came after the last scheduled service bus had gone so we used to go down to the pit-head opposite where Asda is now and try and get on the miners’ bus. Most conductors used to let us sit on the stairs, but we had to walk the 10 miles home more than once.

Many balls were lost because the river at one end. I know from recent events that bodies floating away from that part of the Cumbrian coast end up at the Isle of Man. I have visions of the local urchins back then hanging around waiting for a ball so they could have a kick-about on the beach. They wouldn’t have to wait long; I saw dozens go in.

And you try telling kids nowadays that. They won’t believe you.