30th April 2006 - Royals move a step closer to title

Royals moved one step closer to the league title this morning by turning on the style to beat Onny Plus 8-2. Goals by Carless-Turland (4), Lewis, Hearle, Smith and Groom made sure of the points and also Royals highest goal tally since December 2005.

A full match report will appear here.

29th April 2006 - Panthers win Division 2 title

Church Stretton Panthers have been confirmed as Division 2 champions for season 2005-06. They beat their nearest rivals Tenbury North by a single point in a climatic finish to their season.

29th April 2006 - Onny Plus match preview

Royals take on Onny Plus on Sunday in their last home game of the season. With just 3 league games left Royals need 7 points to make sure of the title, assuming Ludlow North win their last two games prior to meeting the Royals on 6th May.

Royals have a full squad available for the Onny game, whilst Onny are rumored to not be t full strength, with the absence of at least one player.

The match takes place at the school with a 10:30am kick off.

26th April 2006 - Royals in transfer talks - 4 possible new signings

Royals are currently talking to 4 players with a view to them joining the squad for next season. Three are said to be almost certain to join, and the fourth has expressed an interest.

This would be a major boost to the current squad of nine players, and leave the team looking for probably just one or two more signings before next season starts.

24th April 2006 - One more week could decide the League title.

With the end of the season now rapidly approaching, the title could be decided as early as next Tuesday. If Royals beat Onny Plus this weekend and Knighton next Tuesday, and Presteigne beat Ludlow North this weekend, then the title comes to Church Stretton for the first time ever since Church Stretton Magpies was formed.

The remaining fixtures are as follows:-

Stretton Royals
30-04-06 - Onny Plus (H)
02-05-06 - Knighton (A)
06-05-06 - Ludlow North (A)

Ludlow North
26-04-05 - Knighton (A)
28-04-06 - Presteigne (A)
06-05-06 - Stretton Royals (H)

Presteigne
28-04-06 - Ludlow North (H)
29-04-06 - Ludlow West (H)

Onny Plus
30-04-06 - Stretton Royals (A)

23rd April 2006 - Royals 7-2 Craven Arms

Royals put on a highly polished display against local rivals Craven Arms today to produce a 7-2 victory. Royals were 4-0 up after only 18 minutes and never really looked in any danger of slipping up against the team that had been the only team to defeat them this season.

In a game where the two goalkeepers featured, Holtz pulled off a spectacular save from a penalty kick, and Craven Arms keeper Miles scored from his own penalty area.

Goals from Lewis (5), Riley and Hearle sealed the win for the Royals.

22nd April 2006 - Ludlow North lose at home to Presteigne

Ludlow North lost at home today 0-1 against Presteigne. This now gives the Royals the slight edge with them now being two points clear of the Ludlow side, with both teams having played 10 games.

The top of the table now looks like this:-

Although Presteigne head the table, a win for the Royals will put them back on top, 2 points clear of Presteigne with a game in hand.

21st April 2006 - Craven Arms match preview

Royals will be aiming to seek revenge this weekend, for their 0-2 defeat 2 weeks ago against their local rivals Craven Arms. Managers Smith and Turland will have a full squad to select from with the exception of Robinson who is unavailable for selection.

The match takes place on Sunday 23rd April with a 10:00am kickoff.

21st April 2006 - Royals 7-1 Ludlow West

Royals strolled through this midweek game against bottom of the table Ludlow West with a 7-1 victory. Goals by Carless-Turland (4) and Lewis (2) and an own goal made sure of the result. Royals now top the table, although Ludlow North have a game in hand.

With 4 league games left to play, Royals will be looking for at least 9 points and also hoping that Ludlow North drop points in their remaining fixtures.

A full report will appear here.

13th April 2006 - No games over Easter weekend

Royals have a well deserved rest this weekend with no games scheduled to take place. They will train on Saturday, but their next game is not until next Wednesday, against Ludlow West. The rest will hopefully enable the squad to re-charge their batteries in preparation for the end of season run in.

13th April 2006 - Royals defeat Presteigne to reach another final

Royals booked their place in their second cup final last night, after defeating Presteigne 2-0 in the second leg of the semi final. This meant that they won 3-0 on aggregate. The match was one of the most exciting of the season so far, and the Royals put on an impressive display of football - a far cry from just a week ago at Craven Arms.

An own goal and a strike from Carless-Turland made sure of the victory, although Royals could have had 2 or 3 more had it not been for the superb goalkeeping by Keugler in the Presteigne goal.

A full match report will appear here.

10th April 2006 - Presteigne match preview

Royals travel to Presteigne on Wednesday for the long postponed 2nd leg of their cup semi-final. They take with them a slender 1-0 lead from the first leg, but will be anxious to avoid defeat, in order to book a place in their second cup final of the season.

A full squad is expected to travel with Joe Hearle and Rory Smith now fully fit.

The match takes place at Presteigne with a 6:30pm kick off.

9th April 2006 - Royals back on track to reach cup final

Royals overcame Ludlow West this morning by 7 goals to 1 to reach their 3rd League Cup final in as many years. They bounced back back in superb style after their loss against Craven Arms mid week.

Goals from Lewis (4), Hearle (2) and Smith made sure of the result.

Royals will now meet Presteigne in the final, who defeated Ludlow North 1-0 in yesterday's other semi final.

A full match report will appear here.

7th April 2006 - Presteigne 2nd leg confirmed for 12th April

Royals travel to Presteigne this Wednesday for the second leg of their Cup 1 semi-final. They take with them a 1-0 first leg lead, after Tom Lewis scored the only goal of a close game.

The game kicks off at 6:30pm.

7th April 2006 - Ludlow West match preview

Royals go into this weekend's cup semi-final in a position that they have not experienced before - after having faced defeat in a match for the first time this season. They will be anxious to make amends after the poor performance of last Wednesday evening, in order to book themselves into their 5th final in 3 years.

Royals have never lost to Ludlow West and beat them 2-1 in last year's semi-final. Several changes are thought to be made in the starting lineup.

The game takes place on Sunday at the school with a 11:00am kick off.

5th April 2006 - Craven Arms 2-0 Royals

Royals' 21 match unbeaten run came to an end today, with a 2-0 defeat at local rivals Craven Arms. Royals looked a jaded team this evening and their opponents fully deserved their victory. This result means that the advantage is back with Ludlow North, although they still have to play Presteigne twice.

A full match report will appear here.

4th April 2006 - Smith injury news

Rory Smith, who has been sidelined for 3 weeks with a groin strain, successfully came through 20 minutes of football playing for South Shropshire last night. He is expected to be named as a substitute for tomorrow's game against Craven Arms.

2nd April 2006 - Royals 1-1 Presteigne

Royals were held to a 1-1 draw this morning by a strong Presteigne team. The result means that Presteigne have now dropped 12 points, Ludlow North 6 points and Royals 4 points. Therefore Royals would have to lose 3 games to enable Presteigne to catch them.

Presteigne were gifted the opening goal after 18 minutes after Groom headed into his own net, but just 5 minutes later Royals were on level terms after Hearle scored from close range.

Lewis also came close early on after he hit the bar, whilst Carless-Turland came close in the dying minutes, having a shot well saved by the Presteigne keeper.

The only sour moment came when Carless-Turland was sent off for five minutes, for abusive language.

A full match report will appear here.

2nd April 2006 - Craven Arms game re-arranged for 5th April

Royals match against Craven Arms which was postponed due to a virus in the opponents team, has been re-scheduled for this Wednesday, with a 6:00pm kick off.