Tonight’s game at home to Sunderland RCA has fallen foul of the weather with parts of the pitch unplayable due to still being frozen. News of the date of the re-arranged fixture will be broadcast as soon as it has been arranged.

Albion have to get their season back on track starting under the lights on Friday night when we welcome Sunderland RCA to NE40 after a gap of 14 years. The clubs did meet at Meadow Park earlier this season where RACA edged out the Wearsiders 3-2 with goals from Calvert, Skivington and Salim earning the three points. Following relegation last season RCA have had a disappointing season this time round too, sitting down in 20th place in the table. On the road they’ve just won once, beating FC Hartlepool 3-2 at Grayfields Enclosure in September & picked up a solitary draw at Boldon but losing their other games away from SR2. Like us they were thumped by Billingham Town on their last away trip, but earned a credible 0-0 draw at home to Billingham Synthonia on Saturday. Ryton have drawn a blank in front of goal in the last three games so hopefully a fixture against a side who struggle away from home can re-ignite our season before we lose touch with the leading sides. Kick off is at 7:30pm & hopefully the cold snap expected doesn’t put the game in any jeopardy. Hope to see you there, howay the RACA!

Billingham Town handed out another thumping to RACA cruising to a 6-0 win at Bedford Terrace in what is Albion’s highest margin of defeat this season. RACA have now lost five league & cup games on the spin now & drop down to 7th place in the table having being overtaken by Prudhoe YC.

Match Summary

Albion faced a last minute goalkeeping crisis before the trip to Teesside with regular keeper Brogan Colquhoun having to withdraw at the 11^th hour for family reasons, a the manager’s cousin Ryan Beckham hurriedly signed on the Friday.       

The opening quarter of an hour was quite even but the Billingham began to dominate although it was the home keeper Matthew Wilkinson who was called into serious action first, in the 22^nd minute when Albion’s Matty Harrison drilled in a powerful shot from distance which Wilkinson dived down low to push to safety. Town did open scoring on 35 minutes when a log ball wasn’t dealt with by the RACA defence, the ball falling to Dale Hopson who fired the ball across the box & Kieran Stares tapped the ball home  to open his account for Town this season. Four minutes later and it was 2-0, Stares the provider with an accurate up and under to John Stephenson who shrugged off the attentions of two defenders to slot past  Beckham.

HT Billingham Town 2 RACA 0

The second half was only four minutes old when the Blues made it 3-0, Stephenson turned his marker inside out & crossed the ball to Stares who rose the highest to nod home.  Albion did create a half chance in 53 minutes when Matty Todd brought another save out of Wilkinson pushing the ball out for a corner. But it was more calamitous defending from Ryton on the hour mark, Lucas Pilling drilled the ball across the box & no-one in a yellow shirt could get a decisive touch. Hopson saw his shot saved by Beckham but the ball fell to Stares who tapped home to complete his hattrick. Harry Close made it 5-0 on 70 minutes, once again taking advantage of weak defending to slide his shot home. More comedy defending led the sixth goal for Town, Close picking up a stray ball played across the box for another tap in. So Town score six in consecutive home games while RACA put in one of their worst performances in a few seasons.

FT BILLINGHAM TOWN 6 RACA 0 Attendance 262

RACA- Beckham, Groves-Forbes (Craggs 66), Ledger (Lawson 65), Burrell (Cairns 70), Lynch, Oldfield, Dart, Todd, Hayton, Skivington, Harrison (Wilson 50).

Saturday sees Albion heading down the A19 to face Billingham Town for the second time this season having beaten the Blues 2-1 at home in August. Bedford Terrace hasn’t been a happy hunting ground for Ryton over the years our last win there being in the 2016-17 season, & although Town have had a disappointing season so far currently in 16th place, they come into the game buoyed by a 6-1 win over Sunderland RCA at home last Saturday.

If you fancy the trip to Teesside the address for Bedford Terrace is- Bedford Terrace, Billingham, Cleveland, TS23 4AE. Howay the RACA!

Declan Bisset has left RACA and joined Chester-le-Street Town. He made 13 starts after joining us in the summer & came on 4 times as a substitute, scoring one goal for us, in the 2-0 County Cup win over Darlington Town. We wish Declan well at the Cestrians.

Albion’s unusually poor form against their Tyne Valley neighbours continued with a 0-2 defeat at home to Newcastle University. A 13th minute Ryan Redford penalty & a 33rd minute Jacob Milner goal was the difference in the sides as RACA went down to a fourth successive defeat.

Match Summary

 Newcastle University made the short trip to Albion hoping to extend their winning sequence over RACA to four games & in doing so inflict a fourth straight defeat in league and cup on Nathan Beckham’s out of form troops. They got a good chance to take the lead on 9 minutes when Jacob Milner was fouled on the edge of the RACA box but Ryan Redford’s free kick while going under the flimsy wall was an easy gather for keeper Brogan Colquhoun. Milner was again a key figure in the 13^th minute when what looked a good tackle in the box on the University number 11 by  Joe Groves-Forbes was deemed a foul by the referee Mr Tones & a penalty was awarded. Redford took the spot kick & while Colquhoun got a hand to the ball, the power took it into the back of the net. Albion’s first half chance came on 23 minutes when a mis-kicked clearance was seized upon by Matty Hayton but his weak effort from inside the box trundled wide. Albion had hopes for a penalty of their own on 28 minutes when there were strong claims that Scott Oldfield was pushed as he tried to latch on to a cross but after consulting with his linesman the referee declined to award anything. Hayton did test Uni keeper Leo Anderson a minute later with a powerful shot from the left flank that was palmed out for a corner which unfortunately for Albion came to nothing. Hayton was in the thick of things again on the half hour mark when Morgan Dart drilled the ball across the box from the left corner which landed at the feet of Hayton who looked sure to score with a tap-in but he got his legs in a tangle & by the time he sorted them out, there was a sea of red shirted defenders on hand to block his effort. Ryton were to rue that miss as they fell 0-2 down on 31 minutes when the Students broke quickly and a move involving Dominic Griffin, Joel Manning and Jacob Milnerhad the RACA defence back-pedalling & Milner had the simple task of slotting home past the exposed Colquhoun to give them a comfortable half time lead.

HT RACA 0 Newcastle University 2

If the first half was short of meaningful chances, the second was a positive desert with defences clearly on top. Ryton were having the bulk of the possession but it took until midway into the second half for a decent scoring opportunity, Glenn Caygill getting his head onto a corner, but he headed the ball down into the turf, losing its power & it ended up as an easy gather for Anderson. Colquhoun wasn’t called into action until the 83^rd minute when a move involving Theo Wong & Luca Cassidy saw the latter’s shot from an awkward angle blocked by the Albion custodian. In fairness there was little else to report so the game went the way of recent form between the two with another University victory.

FT RACA 0 NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY 2 Attendance 195

RACA- Colquhoun, Groves-Forbes, Ledger, Lynch, Caygill (Cairns 88), Oldfield, Dart (Lawson 75), Craggs (Harrison 55), Hayton (Adotey 85), McLeod (Armstrong 82), Todd

ENL Pos: 6th.

It will feel a bit like after the Lords Mayor’s Show on Wednesday night as we return to Northern League action against neighbours Newcastle University. It’s been a torrid November for RACA so far with that late defeat at Jarrow & being put out of both the Durham Challenge Cup & the FA Vase, and what we really don’t need just now is a fixture against a side who have a recent hoodoo over us. Since beating them in the E Armstrong Cup final in 2022, we’ve picked up just one point from a possible fifteen in games against them & already lost 1-3 to them this season at Essity Park in our first away game. The Students should be well rested by the time the game comes round as they won’t have played for 18 days since a 3-1 win over struggling Sunderland RCA on October 26th. Overall the Uni are having an in and out season, while in the bottom half of the table they can boast to defeating Blyth Spartans in the Northumberland Senior Cup last month. Let’s hope we can end this poor run against them & get the promotion push back on track. Kick off on Wednesday is at 7:30pm, hope you can make it. Howay RACA!!

With the league fixtures not experiencing a backlog due to waterlogged pitches so far, draws have been made for both the Brookes Mileson Memorial League Cup and the Ernest Armstrong Cup (which we are still holders of remember). Our ties are- (both at home- 14 home draws on the trot in the various cup competitions now!!)

League Cup- Home to Kendal Town in the 1st Round on Wednesday 4th December

E Armstrong Cup- Home to Billingham Town in the 1st Round on Wednesday 18th December

This month’s lucky winners are-

1st prize No 62 A Hudson who wins £100

2nd Prize No 61 N Renwick who wins £75

3rd Prize No 69 D Slee who wins £25

Well done to our three winners, if you’d like to take part in this monthly fundraiser from just £5 a month, please contact us via the usual channels on the foot of the homepage. Thank-you

Albion were eliminated from the second cup competition in four days when West Didsbury & Chorlton proved just too strong for RACA in their FA Vase 2nd Round tie. A Jack Bannister goal had the South Mancunians ahead at half time & following Glenn Caygill’s 90th minute dismissal, Albion were left stretched as they battled for an equaliser & Reuben Dass wrapped things up for West deep into stoppage time.

MATCH REPORT

Ryton And Crawcrook Albion v West Didsbury And Chorlton might have been one of the FA Vase’s biggest ties in number of letters but Albion were one win from club history in the FA Vase as a win would take them further than ever before in that competition. Standing in the way were aforementioned West Didsbury & Chorlton who by a twist of fate are managed by Paul Marshall who masterminded Cheadle Town’s victory at Kingsley Park in last season’s competition.

 In front of a noisy crowd with a vociferous & good natured away following, RACA’s higher ranked opponents should have opened the scoring in the first minute, Jack Banister sending a curling cross into the box that Jordan Lazenbury ran on to but managed to send his shot over the bar from a few yards out. Ryton’s first meaningful chance saw Louis Calvert get a shot on target after receiving the ball from Matty Hayton, but it was a relatively easy save for West keeper Oliver Martin who dived to smother the effort. On 13 minutes the RACA defence were tested when Fergus Lynch blocked a dangerous cross & Josh Skivington got his body in the way of the rebound that Banister struck goalwards. Ryton were back on the offensive in the 21^st minute following a sustained spell of West pressure, Rhys McLeod firing narrowly wide on that occasion. Hayton came closer to scoring for the hosts after dispossessing West defender Paul Riley in the box & his shot brought out a good save from Martin & from the corner the keeper again had to be alert to prevent Dale Burrell’s effort from sneaking past him. RACA were proving dangerous on the break & Morgan Dart was the latest to test Martin in the 27^th minute though his shot was straight at the stopper having the close attention of defender Max Sutton to contend with. The deadlock was broken at the other end however when in the 31^st minute a Lazenbury shot in a typically crowded Albion box, bounced off a defender into the path of Banister whose low drilled shot evaded everyone & ended up in the net. Lazenbury wasn’t too far off doubling West’s lead on 35 minutes when his free kick from 25 yards out curled round the wall but didn’t quite have enough bend on it & the ball went narrowly wide of Brogan Colquhoun’s post.

HT RACA 0 West Didsbury & Chorlton 1

The second half started competitively with plenty of meaty tackles from both sides, but the first chance of note fell to the visitors on 51 minutes when Jack McConnell fired over from close range following a knock down from a corner ball. Albion responded two minutes later with a powerful strike from substitute Matty Harrison, on for the injured Louis Calvert, that was only a yard wide of the West goal. In the 63^rd minute a great run from the visitors on the left wing saw Sutton beat the attention of Albion defenders somehow managing to keep his balance when gravity looked odds on to win & lay the ball to Victor Abadaki but his slightly scuffed shot was blocked by Colquhoun and Billy Matthews’ strike from the clearance was charged down by a Scott Oldfield sliding block. Chris Rowney the West captain was next to try his luck in the 67^th minute, having been set up by Matthews, his effort clipped the outside of the post & out for a goal kick. There was more drama in the RACA goalmouth on 70 minutes when Banister saw his shot crash against the post & back into the danger zone, only for Abadaki to fire the rebound over the bar. Ryton huffed and puffed to get the leveller without really threatening the West goal, that was until the 86^th minute when Rhys McLeod’s low shot in a crowded box brought out another fine save from Martin. With three minutes to go, there was real drama in the visitors’ box when a free kick was met by the head of Burrell who headed across the goal area to Caygill but he could only fire his shot wide. Caygill’s afternoon was to get worse on 90 minutes when he was sent off for holding back Abadaki when he was the last man so Ryton were faced with having to get a stoppage time equaliser a man light. Instead it was the South Mancunians who were to score, Reuben Dass ensuring West would be in the hat for the 3^rd round draw with a goal in the 93^rd minute, his initial shot being blocked by debutant Jack Wilson, his second hitting the back of the net.

A brave effort from Albion but just fell short on the day. Best wishes to WD&C in the rest of the competition

FT RACA 0 WEST DIDSBURY & CHORLTON 2 Attendance 329

RACA- Colquhoun, Skivington (Wilson 85), Oldfield, Burrell, Lynch, Caygill, Craggs (Todd 57), Dart, Calvert (Harrison 50), McLeod, Hayton.