UCL Review 2014-2015

Potton fell just short despite winning their last four games, and Lutterworth joined the Royals on 82 points after completing their campaign with a last match win at already promoted Corinths.

Newly relegated Stewarts & Lloyds had a torrid season which saw them get through three managers and 103 players. The Foundrymen failed to claim a win all season, their only point arriving in match number 27, a 1-1 draw with Burton Park on 27 th January. Burton Park never really recovered from the pre-season departure of manager Joe Smyth. New boss Jimmy Simpson assembled a side almost from scratch but Burton found the going tough, accumulating just 22 points. It did prove enough to keep them out of the re-election zone though. A young St Neots Saints squad picked up 25 points on the pitch but lost eleven of them for rule breaches, forcing them to re-apply for re-election to the league.

RESERVE DIVISION: BADGERS WIN THRILLING RACE

Bugbrooke emerged triumphant from an exciting Reserve Division title race which saw them battle for supremacy with ON Chenecks, reigning champions Cogenhoe, Olney and Northampton Spencer.

The Badgers were early pacesetters with Olney, Chenecks and Cogenhoe in close attendance along with Bourne who briefly topped the chart in October as did Chenecks before Olney moved to the top in November.

Bugbrooke lost for the first time in their seventeenth match, 4-3 at Potton on the Saturday before Christmas. With the Badgers enjoying cup success they were trailing Olney by eight points with four matches in hand and Chenecks by four from three games less. Champions Cogenhoe moved into pole position on the back of a thirteen match unbeaten run which brought them ten victories, but they suffered a setback with a 3-2 derby reverse at Bugbrooke on 18 th February. The Badgers lost the following Saturday at home to ON Chenecks and at the end of the month Olney headed a top four separated by just four points. Olney imploded at the start of March, losing to Northampton Spencer who were making giant strides up the table after a poor start, and Whitworth. They stayed top until overhauled by the Badgers on the final Saturday of March, but with few games to play were already out of contention.

Chenecks hit top slot on Easter Saturday but four days later Bugbrooke took a big step towards the crown by beating fast finishing Northampton Spencer 4-2 – the Millers’ first dropped points in eight games.

Cogenhoe’s hopes of a third title in a row were dashed by a 5-1 thrashing at Eynesbury on April 11 th , and seven days later Bugbrooke were crowned champions, beating Potton 4-0 at Birds Close with Danny Duggan, Charlie Hynam, Ty Clark and Dan Powell sharing the goals for the Badgers.

Chenecks closed their season with a 3-0 win at Irchester which clinched second place ahead of Northampton Spencer with Cogenhoe fourth in the final table.

At the foot of the table Desborough’s young side spent the whole season in the basement. They kicked off the season with eight defeats in a row including a 10-2 drubbing by Bourne at the Waterworks Field. They didn’t win until their 22 nd match, an avenging 2-1 success at the Abbey Lawn on 7 th February, while their only home victory of the season was a derby defeat of Rothwell Corinthians in March.

Ar Tarn finished two points adrift of next to bottom Irchester, who picked up just one win during the campaign, a 4-1 success against Thrapston on 29 th November.

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