The Road to The Riverside - My Link With Hednesford Town

Micky (Turka) Taylor - author and non-League football pundit.

A long-time supporter recalled the day out at Middlesbrough with his partners’ son, the ending was a loss for the semi-professional outfit but was acknowledged by the BBC and a majority of Boro fans as a close-run thing.

Where did it start? It was the 1996/97 FA Cup First Qualifying Round and certainly not that day in the north east but a sunny balmy day in September on the outskirts of Wolverhampton and the area I grew up in and went to school in, Wednesfield.

The ground just opposite St Georges Playing Fields (The Park) is now known as the Cottage Ground. Now the home of Wednesfield Town FC but still known locally to us older statesmen as The Cottage Homes, it was the place that you were threatened with if you were naughty!

When I was a kid, I used to watch Wednesfield Social play on the Park with their star Johnny Hayward, who was well known to me as he, his wife and child had moved into our house when we moved out of the area.

He realised that I had an interest in football as I was playing for the school team which was a successful side in our area.

Hayward at this time was playing for Bilston Town at Queen Street and for about a season he regularly took me to games in his car to watch them.

I believed he had played for Queen of the South in the Scottish League before moving south and I remember the Bilston manager Alan Wakeman saying that “he could put the ball on a sixpence with either foot but was a stroller”.

Unfortunately, Hayward passed away quite suddenly at an early age.

Anyway, enough of the memories and get back to Pitmen`s run.

We had a successful first season in the Conference and the team consisted of a few well-known faces.

Goalkeeper Scott Cooksey had come from Peterborough United and went on to play again in the Football League for Shrewsbury Town but unfortunately, a wrist injury curtailed his career.

A backline consisted of ex-Aston Villa man Andy Comyn and Steve Essex, who was a man mountain.

An FA Trophy winner with Burton Albion, for whom he made 176 appearances, Steve sadly passed away 2019 from bile and pancreatic cancer.

Kevin Collins, who had been with Kidderminster Harriers amongst others and also won trophy medal, while Wayne Simpson, a cool and classy player who had represented England at semi-professional level, and add to those Gary Fitzpatrick and Paul Carty, who were in midfield or overlapping full backs.

In midfield we had Bernard McNally, a former West Brom and Irish international who later had two spells as manager at Hednesford, Steve Devine, another ex-Irish international and one of the best left-footed strikers of a ball I have seen, now I believe working as a physio within the Football League, Colin Lambert – a man you wouldn’t choose to have an argument with who later had a brief period as manager.

Up front there was legendary striker Joe O’Connor, Tyrone Streete and Steve Taylor, formerly with Crystal Palace.

The game started and a crowd of over 400 enjoyed a bright opening with Wednesfield`s winger called Macbeth giving the Hednesford defence a torrid time down the left-hand side.

For Wednesfield, ex-Hednesford striker Terry Knight had an early chance and then a tremendous tip over from Cooksey denied Knight.

A mistake by Stuart Lloyd (whose brother I played with in a successful Sunday league side) at the back for Wednesfield let in O’Connor but he shot wide.

A Steve Devine free-kick was touched over by the Wednesfield keeper and O`Connor headed over from a corner then Mark Bellingham (father of Borussia Dortmund and England`s young star Jude) shot wide.

Wednesfield pressed and Wayne Simpson made a goalline clearance.

The second half saw Gary Fitzpatrick head over following a bad bounce when he was in front of goal. The game continued and Steve Taylor shoot across the goal, but it remained 0-0.

With about 10 minutes to go, Fitzpatrick broke away and played the ball to Taylor who crosses but O’Connor could not connect.

A few minutes remain and again Fitzpatrick again plays a ball forward which O’Connor gets behind the defender but shoots wide.

The cheers from the Wednesfield supporters at the end if the game included having a go at O`Connor about his missed chances! Something they will regret in the replay.

The replay took place at Keys Park and in the second part, I`ll cover the game and the following rounds to the game itself at the Riverside in the Fourth Round of the FA Cup.

(Micky Taylor`s excellent book `Non-League Football - A Roller Coaster Ride to Beat Any` is available to buy from Amazon priced £12.99 (Kindle version £3.99. All proceeds to Cancer Research)

Hednesford Town Web Site