MFL Weekend Round Up (Division One)

Birstall United 3-0 AFC Bridgnorth

Birstall United got off to a brilliant start under new manager Paul Pallett with a convincing 3-0 win against AFC Bridgnorth at Meadow Lane. An impressive crowd of 210 supporters turned up to see the hosts get their first win of the campaign.

They took the lead in the first half thanks to a strike by Sam Burton in the 32nd minute. Further goals from Ryan Seal and Owen Dewing in the second half made it 3-0 at full time.

It’s an impressive start for Birstall United and they have an upcoming mid-week fixture against Saffron Dynamo on Wednesday evening.   

It was a tough day at the office for AFC Bridgnorth on Saturday. They have a difficult start to the season in terms of fixtures and supporters will need to give the new management team a bit of time.

​Cradley Town 3-0 Kirby Muxloe

Cradley Town started the season well with a 3-0 win against MFL newcomers Kirby Muxloe at Beeches View Avenue on Saturday. An excellent crowd of 185 supporters turned up to watch the Hammers get their first win of the season.

A brace from Brad Ward and a solo effort by Traevay Wright was enough for their first three points of the campaign. Cradley are expected to challenge this season and have made some eye-catching signings over the summer.

Saturday’s result is encouraging and gives them some momentum going into Bilston on Wednesday.   

Leicester St Andrews 1-1 Bilston Town

Leicester St Andrews held Bilston Town to a 1-1 draw on Saturday to open the season in MFL Division One. It’s a battling point for the hosts who were down to ten men throughout the second half with Tom Hill getting sent off in the closing stages of the first half.

New signing Josh Crossley opened the scoring for Leicester St Andrews in the 18th minute. Bilston found an equaliser in the second half thanks to midfielder Jake Short who scored from a well-taken freekick.

It’s a good point for both teams and gives them something to build on for the weeks ahead.

Lutterworth Athletic 1-1 Chelmsley Town

Lutterworth Athletic and Chelmsley Town played out a score draw to start the season in MFL Division One.

The hosts took the lead in the middle of the first half when Rahul Odedra scored in the 20th minute. The visitors showed character and found an equaliser in the 32nd minute through James Brown to make it 1-1 at half time.

A cagey second half led to a stalemate at full time with both teams relatively happy to take home a point.

Nuneaton Griff 2-4 Ingles

Ingles got off to a brilliant start under new manager Adam Boulter with an away win against Nuneaton Griff at the Pingles Stadium. Ingles notably made the play offs last season and continued their momentum at the weekend with a second half comeback against Nuneaton Griff.

The hosts got into a surprise 2-0 lead at the end of the first half thanks to goals from Reece Williams and Owen Wassell. Ingles responded well in the second half with new signing George Teeney scoring a hat trick and an own goal leading to a 4-2 away win.

It’s been one of the trademarks of Ingles since joining the MFL with the Leicester side showing a lot of fight and character to get the result on Saturday.  

Nuneaton Town 6-1 Paget Rangers

Nuneaton Town got off to an excellent start under the new management team of Darren Acton and Russell Dodds with an impressive 6-1 win against Paget Rangers. An incredible crowd of 511 supporters turned up to the Oval to watch Nuneaton Town’s first competitive match at the weekend.

It’s a resounding win for the Warwickshire side who are being viewed as one of the favourites to challenge this season. A brace from James Spruce and further goals from Kyle Batchelor, Harry Jackson, Declan Somel and substitute Louis Baker gave Nuneaton Town their first win of the season.

Paget took a surprise lead in the first half before the hosts found some momentum in front of goal. It was always going to be a tough way to start to the season for the Bears and they will be looking to bounce back against Nuneaton Griff this evening.

It’s a new era at Paget under new manager Mike Pitt and the supporters will need a bit of patience.      

Saffron Dynamo 5-0 Wednesfield

Saffron Dynamo continued the momentum they had last season with a resounding 5-0 win against last season’s play off chasers Wednesfield. A good crowd of 89 supporters turned up for the season opener in Leicester and saw Saffron Dynamo get off to a good start.

The hosts raced into a 2-0 lead at half time thanks to goals from Jack Scott and Mackenzie Armstrong. They pressed on in the second half with further goals from Kyran Taylor, Jurelle Philip and Billy Harrison capping off a convincing win at Kings Park.

Wednesfield are going through a bit of a rebuild under new manager Sean Geddes and will need a bit of time with a lot of last season’s squad departing over the summer.

Smethwick Rangers 0-0 Coton Green

Smethwick Rangers and Coton Green played out a goalless draw at the Boldmere Community Stadium to start the season. A crowd of 45 supporters turned up to watch the stalemate.

The result continues Smethwick’s eye-catching home form where they have taken points off teams that are expected to be challenging. It’s credit to the job that Sam Heath is doing at Smethwick and to get a result against Coton Green is encouraging.

It’s a long season and Coton Green will be hoping it all clicks in the next few weeks so they can start to build some momentum. The Green Army have a talented squad and it’s just a case of getting into form and going on a run.   

Stapenhill 0-3 Coventry Copsewood

Coventry Copsewood got an impressive away win at Stapenhill to open the season in MFL Division One. The visitors have been building something over the last couple of seasons and look capable of competing for the top half this season. A good crowd of 96 supporters turned up to see the match at Edge Hill.

A goal in the first half from Sam Ellis gave the visitors a 1-0 lead at half time. Further goals in the second half from Harvey Wells and Sean Kavanagh gave them a convincing win over Stapenhill.

It’s a long season and Stapenhill will be looking to respond over the next few matches.

Sutton United 0-5 Heather St John’s

Heather got off to a brilliant start in beating Sutton United 5-0 at Coleshill Road to open the season. The Leicester side have gone a bit under the radar throughout the summer but are more than capable of challenging for the play offs.

They have got that continuity from last season and managed to keep hold of key players such as prolific striker Kyle Jardine. The Saints will be looking to challenge in MFL Division One this season and their result on Saturday was a statement of intent against a good Sutton United side.

An excellent crowd of 247 supporters turned up to watch the match at Coleshill Road.

The goals for the visitors came from a brace by Nathan McGarrity and further efforts by Jacob Carter, Max Dutton and George Ludlam to seal an eye-catching win against Sutton United.

It’s a long season ahead for Sutton United and they will be looking to bounce back over the next few weeks.

Round up feature written by Rhys Beardmore for the Midland Football League