Division One League Table - 2008/2009 Last update 4 January 2009

Division One Report by Mr. M Schneider - Publications Secretary

The race for the to spot in division one could be one of the best for many seasons if the teams who are in the top five remain there until the end of the season. White Hart Combe hold a slender one point lead over a clutch of sides who are headed by Bradford News and if Trevor Rawlings Combe side can maintain the high standard that they have set to date then they will prove a hard team to beat but Foresters Arms proved that they were beatable as they defeated them 4-1 so Combe can’t take anything for granted otherwise they could falter in the title run in which could se them miss out to a number of very good sides who are vying with then for a top two finish.

Mark Hurkett’s Bradford News side suffered relegation at the end of last season and although they weren’t among the sides tipped for promotion to the top flight they could prove the pundits wrong if they can continue to maintain the form that had seen them drop just three points from a possible 18 on their rise to second spot. The newsmen have done really well considering they have been plagued by injuries with the biggest blow seeing them lose Tom Downes who was just starting to come good after a previous lay off to injury. Downes is likely to miss the remainder of the season but it will be like having a new player on board if he makes it back in time for the 2009/10 season.

Melksham based Foresters Arms last match of 2008 ended in disaster with a 3-2 defeat against local rivals Cooper Avon, but if that is the only defeat Pat Johnson’s side suffer until the end of the season it would result in them clinching promotion to the top flight. Foresters are currently in third place and with things being extremely tight between the leading sides none of them can afford to drop silly points from now until the end of the season. Johnson has put together a very good side at the Foresters and if the likes of Leigh Rowles-Hitchcock and Sean Fordham who has recently returned to the club can strike up a partnership then their goals may well fire them to glory.

Kevin Whitebread’s Rowde side had the worse possible start but since losing 7-0 to White Hart Combe on the opening day of the season the villagers have been in fantastic form and have put together a seven match unbeaten run which has helped moved them up to fourth place in the standings. Rowde were disappointed that they were unable to face Cooper Avon at the weekend as Club Secretary, John Dalley believes that the side they had available was the best they could have fielded and he will be hoping that the same 14 players are fit to face Corsham Centre A in the knockout cup this weekend when they hope to cause a cup upset.

Gary Newman will be first to admit that his Cooper Avon side have been far from their best this term, but having beaten fierce rivals Foresters Arms in their final game of 2009, Newman will be hoping that his team have come through what was a nervy period and had seen them drop down the rankings until the withdrawal of Carpenters Arms saw them benefit by moving up the table. Cooper have now lost just one game and are one of five serious contenders for an automatic promotion spot and if they can get their act together they could come from nowhere to snatch a third successive promotion.

Bremhill View Social Club are mid table at the moment and that is probably the best position they can expect to achieve this season. Martin Belcher’s side have won five and lost five of their 10 games to date but when they are on form they are a good match for any team in the division but when they are bad they are likely to suffer defeat at the hands of the so called lesser sides. Bremhill can get better as the season progresses but they are unlikely to be a threat to those teams vying for a top two finish but should get points from those side who are expected to struggle.

North Bradley who were on the verge of calling it a day earlier in the season, are a Jekyll and Hyde side who have the players at their disposal who when their minds are on the game are more than capable of competing with the top sides in the division but if they don’t want too know which is more often than not then they are just roll over and die. Bradley know that they are capable of doing a lot better than they have been doing but manager Tim Richards also knows that it’s up to him to get his team moving in the right direction which is easier said than done.

Atworth United have had a disappointing first half to the season but like many other teams in the division are more than capable of turning things around, United will be hoping for a lot more consistency when they get the second part of their season underway in the near future and if manager Glenn Young can get the best out of strikers Ross Menghini and Luke Tallentire and a few other members of his squad then United may have it in them to finish in the top half of the table.

AFC Calne will have to be on their guard about complacency otherwise they may find themselves getting dragged into a relegation dogfight which they should be safe from at the moment. However a few more defeats in the opening month of the new year may well drop them into the danger zone and once their they may struggle to climb out of it.

Following the withdrawal of Carpenters Arms only one side look likely to suffer relegation to division two and at the moment the team that seems most likley for the drop is North Star A who have only won on of their 13 matches to date and are four points away from a position of safety and it is really hard to see where Gary Elliott’s side are going to get their next victory from. The other sides who will possibly face a relegation battle are Biddestone Arms and Chippenham Sports & Social Club, of the two sides Biddestone have got games in hand on their rivals but points are proving hard to come by for the villagers while the Sports have managed two win in five games and unlike last term when they started their revival at the death Jason Bull’s side are coming good a lot earlier so perhaps they have decided not to hang around before making their push for safety.



 
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