Free Fanzine with the Wigan Robins v AFC Liverpool programme this Saturday

Saturday's game against AFC Liverpool will see the launch of the Wigan Robin Park FC fanzine.

Entitled Fields of Flowers it will be free with the matchday programme.

The 16-page A6 pocket size fanzine features:

yer wot by mike duff
October Vodkat observations
Alfie Conn
Nickname
Are the Robins the roughest team in the world
DJ John Leech's October playlist
The Arsenal Stadium Mystery (remake)
Some of the things we miss at football
Ten years after
An A-Z of Wigan bands
Mild & Bitter were the Days
David Bowie and some other bits and bobs

It's a small supplement that I hope to produce for most home matches.

While it's a bit of fun and talks about all sorts of stuff happening at The Robins, in Wigan and elsewhere the idea is to help raise the profile of the club in the area and within non-league circles.

Also we have all worked very hard in producing an excellent programme this season and if by including a DIY-style fanzine supplement with it we can shift a few more copies - as well as entertain our fans further - then we'll be happy.

As we all know every penny counts at this level... So £1.50 for a great programme and fanzine sounds alright by me.

A bunch of Daisies

MATCH PREVIEW ONLINE TOMORROW (MAYBE)

Derby Day Beckons for Wigan Robins

SATURDAY 17 OCTOBER 2009

GETTING GIDDY

Dominoes tumble at the hands of Wigan Robins

The lost cup-tie


















Stone Dominoes 1 Wigan Robin Park 3

As always a top day out at Stone.

This time however we won and in the process made the Dominoes look very average.

The immaculate pitch - which cynics may say remains like that as the ball never touches the floor with the way Stone play - was The Robins best friend as Neafcy, Corcy and Small bossed the game in midfield.

Bit unfair to single anybody out, mind, as it was pretty much a complete performance with all the players putting in an excellent performance.

Playing all the football The Robins dominated the game from start to finish and eased into a 2-0 lead through two superb goals from Ryan Small in the sixty third and sixty seventh minutes. One a great looping header from the edge of the box - the other a fine shot drilled into the corner of the net

However ten minutes later Stone got back into game through a scrappy Dwayne Spence and moments later were awarded a ridiculous penalty. Scott Robinson clearly got the ball, the league's top scorer Dan Brown knew this and went down like a lead balloon. A bad decision from a referee that actually had a good game but... it could have changed the game.

Brown dusted himself down, stepped up but Robins keeper Jay Foulds pulled off a great save as justice was seen to be done.

The Robins simply picked the ball up, went straight up the field and after terrific work from Steve Williams and Andy Neafcy - Chris McNally powered in a drive from the edge of the area for his seventh goal of the season and sealed the win for The Robins.

Game over. The one team that tried to play football won it and that has got to be right.

I have to say I can't quite understand Stone manager Shaun Hollinshead's mindset. They could be a decent side and a team has to be able to stand up to them to have a chance. We put in our worst display in years when we lost in the league a few weeks ago but they only have the plan A. Dan Brown and the big lad Charlton are great players but all the team seem to do is boot the ball long and hard. Personally I just wouldn't like to watch it each week, whatever the success it appears to be bringing. But each to their own.

In the next round The Robins make the short trip to Ashton Town on Saturday 31 October in what should be a cracking and feisty cup encounter.

So in a nutshell
Buzzing
Stone players in the showers singing: "We're gonna win the league!" Well you're not going to win the cup and I would hazard a guess unless you can bully a few more teams you won't win the league
Oatcakes - marvellous
Neil Swift - great first full ninety for the lad. Tremendous full debut. That said Whitey on the other side at left back had a cracker. Even if he was knackered for the last twenty. We thought oxygen might be required at one point!
Millie Small getting back to his best. However I should have known my: "I'll get you a pint if you score" would inspire him. Two pints of lager in Park Lane (at those prices). Anyhow he needed it as he was going to his gay cousin's birthday party later on.
Thanks to our driver Kev we got there with a few minutes to spare which was quite good as we had no sat nav, directions or anything...
Just one programme left when we got there. How many did they do? -Five?
Chipper at centre forward ... and you know what he did terrific
Bring on the Ashton Bads

Meanwhile....

The Reserves began a new era under Dave Knowles' managership by coming back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Ashton Town Reserves.

Sounded a stormer as they were down to ten men on sixty minutes - with the sending-off of Big Pey Vermiglio but got back in it with an Ian Gough penalty before Meathead equalised with a powerful header (his words) in the dying seconds. Congrats to all involved in what has been a tough start to the season for the ressies.

Meathead is still talking everybody through his goal!

This Saturday it is back to league action at very-much-improved Daisy Hill. That's the team Daisy Hill not the place - that we guess will be it's normal self. A train job, a few beers and hopefully three points.

"Big Fat John's Barmy Army, Big Fat John's Barmy Army"

Preview later in the week...

Wigan Robins, Bob Dylan, Stone Roses and Snoop Dogg

Crank up the Jukebox Wigan Robins are going to Stone Doms



In the first of an occasional series (God knows how we'll get twenty songs with a Daisy reference for next week but...) we put together the ideal soundtrack for the journey to an away match.

This week Stone Dominoes and without further ado we give you:

1. Like a Rolling Stone - Bob Dylan

Recently voted by somebody somewhere as the greatest song ever. Not sure about that but it's bang up there and with lyrics like:

You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns
When they all come down and did tricks for you
You never understood that it aint no good
You shouldnt let other people get your kicks for you
You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
Who carried on his shoulder a siamese cat
Aint it hard when you discover that
He really wasnt where its at
After he took from you everything he could steal.

How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone?

What's not to like?

2. Roll away the Stone - Mott the Hoople

They've not played together for thirty years or so, hardly spoken but they've just gone a done a serious of concerts - you can read about it here - and it was absolutely magnificent

review

http://vaughanmedia.wordpress.com/2009/10/05/mott-the-hoople-the-tickets-for-the-fantasy-were-twelve-and-six-a-time/

"There's a rockabilly party on a Saturday night
Are you gonna be there?
Well I got my invite"

3. I'm stone in love with you - The Stylistics

A Smooth Radio favourite and a bit schmaltzy but sod it the lad can sing and it takes me back to the seventies. Russell Thompkins and The New Stylistics are at the Robin Park Arena tomorrow as part of the David Gest show - if you hurry

4. (I'm not your) Stepping Stone - The Monkees

Sex Pistols and others have done the song but this is the definitive version. Great song even better group

5. Anything by The Rolling Stones.
Yeah pretty much anything but if we must pick one She's a Rainbow

6. Anything by The Stone Roses.
Yeah pretty much anything but if we must pick one and for the sake of consistency Made of Stone

7. Turn to Stone - Electric Light Orchestra.
Bad school discos werenot brightened by this track but with hindsight, in the car speeding along it's not topo bad.

8. Tombstone Blues - sod it you're having another Bob Dylan song:
"Mama's in the fact'ry
She ain't got no shoes
Daddy's in the alley
He's lookin' for FOOD
I'm in the KITCHEN
With the tombstone blues"

9. Stone Cold Crazy - Queen
From Sheer Heart Attack - when Queen were good - Brian may's guitar on this is superb

10. I Wanna Thank You - Angie Stone
Angie Stone is wonderful - add Snoop Dogg into the mix and what more do you want

11. Super Duper Love - Joss Stone

I like Joss Stone - she's got soul whatever anybody says and this song is great next to Angie.

12. Danger Zone - Stone the Crows
And speaking of white girls with soul - well none have/had more than Maggie Bell the lead singer in Stone the Crows http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yE7NtFgfYsE

13. Family Affair - Sly and the Family Stone. First number one to use a drum machine/programmed rhythm track according to urban myth. Not sure myself but when you're twelve years of age in 1971 it doesn't get much funkier than this

14. Beatles and the Stones - The House of Love

Underrated late eighties band. Great song

15. Stone Cold Sober - Paloma Faith

She's a bit Amy-lite and again it's being done to death on Smooth Radio but she's quirky as owt, used to be a Burlesque dancer and it's a bit of a tune...

16. Stoned Love - The Supremes

Without Miss Ross but with Jean Terrell on lead vocals this is a great pop song. Er about the Vietnam War. Fantastic instrumentation bu the glorious Funk Brothers

17. And it stoned me - Van Morrison

At his lyrical, gypsy, ramblin best

18. Stepping Stone - Duffy

Joyous "fuck off out of my life" song from the Welsh wondergirl.

19. Sticks N' Stones - Jamie T

Great song from one of the the best album's of the year - Kings & Queens. Not sure if it's this generation's London Calling as was reported somewhere but it's alright.

20. Broken Stones - Paul Weller

Weller gets his mojo back on the Stanley Road. Great album, great sleeve and great song

Miss Wigan Robin Park October 2009 Robyn Bewersdorf

Miss Robyn Bewersdorf (or more better known as Tiffany Teen*)

* more better known if you watch a certain sort of film

we like her anyway...

Wigan Robins back on that windy track...

Wigan Robin Park 3 Chadderton 0

After the defeat to Skem United (Sorry Atherton Colls) and Holker Old Boys in the Lancashire Shield it was good to see the Mighty Robins get back to winning ways with a great 3-0 victory over Chadderton at a windswept Robin Park Arena.

So windswept that the duggouts were threatening to take off. This led to the Arena manager declaring that they couldn't be used that led to the Chaddy management team having a right moan. Not quite sure what could be done. Play the game one tales off and blows across the pitch and injures (or worse) a player, official or spectator!?!?

Makes me laugh sometimes when officials have a go about a variety of things at the Arena. We know it's not perfect that's why everybody at the club is trying their hardest to make the place a proper home.

And I'll give you:

Great view
Great pies, coffee and everything else
Half-time and full-time hospitality second to none
A bloody good programme
Teamsheet if required
Along with Stone - the best pitch in the league
Excellent training rooms
Beer
A 1200-capacity-stand with decent seats all away from the elements
An argument with the locals...

I could go on but to moan about the duggouts in a gale-force wind seems a bit petty. Not as though they play at the Emirates themselves is it.

Anyroad... Goals from Ryan Small and Chris McNally either side of half-time put The Robins in control before Steve Williams wrapped up the points in the 85th-minute with a quality goal.

Williams' goal rounded off a great day for The Robins and for his own father Bill who saw his three sons Steve, Chris and Danny line up together for Robin Park for the first time. Bill celebrated by having a row with a Chadderton fan!!

Dead pleased for Danny as he pulled off a string of fine saves with the game at nil-nil. Giving that he'd conceded (through no fault of his own) 103 goals in the last couple of reserve games he must have been a bit nervous but played superbly.

In fact at nil-nilyou could see the game going either way but a much more spirited performance from the lads saw good goals from Millie Small and Macca - well Macca's was a tap-in but - and a stunning individual goal from Steve Williams. This - along with his overall performance also netted him the MOM.

Other highlights: Well Chris McNally's 40-yarder that came back from the underside bar was a marvellous sight. Macca claimed the ball was two yards over the line while the liner was adamant after the game that it didn't cross the line. It looked closed (not two yards over, mind) from where I was sat. As for the rest of the game it was just good to see us win after three losses on the bounce and win in some style in terrible conditions. Also good to see Paul McVeigh get almost ninety minutes in as he led the line well, giving Small, Steve Williams and McNally the freedom to roam a bit.

The beer tasted better than recently after the game and you can't say more than that.

Next up is Stone Dominoes in the Vodkat Challenge Cup. Can't wait and hopefully we can avenge the recent league defeat. get those oatcakes ready