30th March 2006 - Presteigne match preview

Royals will have their work cut out this weekend, with the visit of Presteigne to Church Stretton. They have always struggled to play their best football against Presteigne, but will surely be boosted by the fact that the results have gone their way in the past week.

Rory Smith is still doubtful with a groin strain, but the rest of the squad are all fit.

The match takes place on Sunday 2nd April with an 11:00am kick off.

29th March 2006 - Ludlow North 0-1 Onny Plus

Royals received a massive boost to their title challenge this evening when Ludlow North lost 1-0 at home to Onny Plus. This means that, although Ludlow still head the table, they have dropped 6 points, Presteigne have dropped 10 points and Royals have dropped just 2 points. Royals have 2 games in hand over both Ludlow North and Presteigne.

29th March 2006 - Royals draw Ludlow West in Semi Final

Royals have been drawn a home tie against Ludlow West in the Division 1 Cup semi final. This is a repeat of last year's semi final in which they beat Ludlow by 2 goals to 1.

In the other semi final Ludlow North have a home tie against Presteigne.

The matches takes place at the weekend of 8th/9th April 2006

26th March 2006 - Smith injury progress

Rory Smith who missed yesterday's Knighton game through injury, is making good progress in his recovery. It is hoped that he will resume light training this weekend and be fit for the Ludlow North game on 5th April 2006.

26th March 2006 - Presteigne lose to Onny Plus

Onny Plus defeated Presteigne today by one goal to nil. This means that Presteigne have now dropped 10 points and provided Royals maintain their form, effectively puts them out of the title race.

25th March 2006 - Royals 2-0 Knighton

A depleted Royals side managed to overcome a defensively strong Knighton team by two goals to nil, this morning. Royals could have scored more, but hit the post and bar on three occasions and also found the Knighton keeper on top form.

Groom scored the first goal after only 5 minutes, while Lewis made it 2-0 mid way through the second half.

Royals who were without Smith (groin strain) and Riley (virus) had to drag Robinson who was also ill, away from his sick bed to even be able to field a complete side.

A full report will appear here.

23rd March 2006 - Last weekend's results round up

Royals dropped down another place in the table to third position, to be replaced by Presteigne in second place, who are just behind Ludlow North at the top. This is because Royals' game was postponed and not because they have dropped any points.

Full results were as follows:-

Craven Arms 2-5 Presteigne
Knighton 3-1 Onny Tigers
Onny Plus 3-0 Ludlow West

Meanwhile in Division 2, Stretton Panthers were surprisingly held to a draw by bottom of the table Ludlow South. Panthers still head the table by four points, but have played a game more than Tenbury North.

21st March 2006 - Knighton Match Preview

Royals entertain Knighton this weekend in their first match for three weeks. The team will be desperate to back on track and regain their position at the top of the table.

A full squad is expected to be available, despite Hearle, Smith and Riley being selected to play for the school U11 side. All three players have chosen to play for the Royals.

The match takes place on Saturday 25th March, with a 10:30 kick off.

20th March 2006 - Busy week for Royals players

This is one of the busiest weeks of the season so far with school football team duties and also the South Shropshire trials that take place on Thursday.

On Wednesday Hearle, Smith and Riley are representing Church Stretton School in the Shrewsbury School's U11 tournament at Meole Brace.

On Thursday the same players are playing in an all day tournament at Ludlow football club.

Then on Thursday evening Ludlow Football club host the U10 Interleague trials in which several of the Royals players are involved.

15th March 2006 - Ludlow North fixture confirmed as postponed

This weekend's fixture against Ludlow North is definitely off. The annual Much Wenlock Arts Festival takes place on Saturday and means that Royals are unable to field a team. Ludlow North are unable to play on the Sunday.

It was hoped that one of the games in hand could be played instead, but all the opposing teams have prior commitments.

13th March 2006 - Ludlow West game called off

Yesterday's game against Ludlow West was called off, as up to 4 inches of snow fell in the Church Stretton area on Saturday night.

The list of postponed fixtures has grown to the following:-

Presteigne - Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg (away)
Knighton - League (away)
Craven Arms - League (home)
Ludlow West - League (home)

With this weekend's Ludlow North game already in doubt, Royals are in for a busy close season.

9th March 2006 - Midweek games every week?

It is becoming increasingly more likely that the Royals will have to play a fixture midweek for the remainder of the season, once British Summertime begins. Royals already have 2 league fixtures to fit in and 1 cup fixture. With the Ludlow North game unlikely to go ahead as planned, this would make it 4 games in total.

9th March 2006 - Ludlow North fixture in doubt

Royals are due to play Ludlow North at the weekend of 18th/19th March 2006. However this is the weekend of the Much Wenlock festival, in which several of the Royals players are involved.

This means that the game would have to be played on the Sunday if it is to go ahead. However Ludlow North have always refused to play games on Sundays.

9th March 2006 - Ludlow West Match Preview

Royals entertain Ludlow West this weekend at Church Stretton School. After a poor display against Onny Tigers last weekend they will be anxious to get back to something near their former selves.

Managers Smith and Turland have a full squad to choose from, with Smith expected to recover from a groin strain and Carless-Turland back from suspension.

The match takes place on Sunday with a 10:00am kick off.

7th March 2006 - Weekend results round up

Royals find themselves back on top of the Division 1 table after this weekends matches, as Ludlow North's game against Onny Plus was postponed. Presteigne unsurpisingly maintained their challenge for the title with a 6-0 win at Knighton.

Complete results were:-

Knighton 0-6 Presteigne
Onny Tigers 1-2 Church Stretton Royals
Ludlow West 0-4 Craven Arms
Ludlow North P-P Onny Plus

5th March 2006 - Onny Tigers 1-2 Royals

Royals narrowly overcame a much improved Onny Tigers this afternoon by two goals to one at the Burway Sports Ground. In a game which saw Royals struggle to find their form, goals by Riley and Groom made sure of the result. In a bizarre identical happening to the last game played at this venue, Royals scored a goal that was not given. Brayne netted from distance after 7 minutes, but the goal was not awarded for reasons only known to the referee.

Although Onny Tigers are certainly a much improved side, Royals will need to improve if they are maintain a tight grip on the top of the table.

A full report will appear here.

2nd March 2006 - Onny Tigers Match Preview

Royals visit the Burway Sports Ground this weekend, a venue where they tend to do well, to take on Onny Tigers. With the season now half completed, the fixtures are all being reversed, from the first part of the season.

Royals beat Tigers 7-0 at Stretton school at the beginning of January and will be keen to maintain their good form going into this match.

There are no injuries to report and only Carless-Turland will be absent, through suspension.

The match takes place on Sunday 5th March 2006 at 3:00pm.