Fundraising friendly: Stalybridge Celtic – Saturday 20th January

Following the announcement regarding the cancellation of our scheduled fixture against Marske United, we’re pleased to announce a friendly match against Stalybridge Celtic at Broadhurst Park on Saturday 20^th January. There are a few ways you can help to support your club…

Get yourself to that football ground
Kick-off will be at 3pm, and we’re offering a reduction on our usual admission prices for this match:

Adult: £10
Concessions: £7
Under 18s: £2

Entry will be pay on the gate, and due to the nature of this match as a fundraiser for the club, season tickets will not be valid for entry.

We’re planning pre-match and post-match entertainment for those who want to make a full day of things.

Match day dining and entry special
Make the most of a special offer to come along to the game and enjoy a delicious curry served with rice and naan bread in the main bar. The offer is priced at £25 and includes your ticket into the game, reserved seating for your meal and a car parking space. Book yours here.

Course You Can Malcolm
We have an action packed line-up at CYCM! First up, our first team manager Neil Reynolds will take to the Caring Stage to talk about his football vision, contract extension, and answer your questions. Write them on the back of your hand so you don’t forget.

Then we have Ilaria Passeri, who will be bringing her storytelling skills. She was the winner of the Greater Manchester Fringe Best Spoken Word Show award, and not to be missed!  

Then we have Precious Metals, Sheffield’s steeliest ‘string-heavy surf pop’ band. Timings as follows:

1.30pm: Neil Reynolds Q&A
1.50pm: Ilaria Passeri
2.15pm: Precious Metals

Virtual tickets and PFTG
For those supporters who are not able to attend the match but still want to support our fundraising efforts, virtual match tickets and Pound for the Ground tickets are available:

Virtual tickets

Pound for the Ground tickets

Note: there will be a separate PFTG draw on the day at the match, so for those who are attending, you can buy a virtual PFTG ticket, and a PFTG ticket on the day for two separate chances of winning.

Club donations
Anyone wishing to make an additional or separate donation to the club can do so via the virtual ticket.  You’ll also be able to make a donation via cash or card at the membership stall on the day.

Thank you for your support!
Matchday revenues are vital for clubs like us at this level and so losing a Saturday league match, after losing two matches to the weather in December, was a real blow for us. With us not scheduled to have another Saturday home league fixture until 3rd February, we immediately sought to arrange a friendly match to mitigate the revenue we will lose from the cancellation of the fixture against Marske United.

We’re very grateful to the Board and management of Stalybridge Celtic for quickly agreeing to bring a side to Broadhurst Park to face us. We’d also like to thank the Pitching In Northern Premier League for acting quickly to give their permission for this fixture.

We hope to see as many supporters as possible at the match. There will be both pre-match and post-match entertainment to allow supporters to enjoy a full day at Broadhurst Park and help boost the club’s coffers. Doesn’t that sound better than an afternoon at B&Q?

FC United and Stalybridge Celtic – a short(ish) version of a long history
Our history with Stalybridge Celtic goes all the way back to our very first pre-season campaign in 2005. We visited Bower Fold for our third-ever game, with Celtic winning the match 2-0 – but the match will be remembered by most FC supporters for Rory Patterson’s debut, and him going down in FC folklore as ‘Mr Mystery’ and ‘The Man With No Name’.

It was another four years before we faced each other again, this time in the Third Qualifying round of the 2009/10 FA Cup. After an exciting three-all draw at Gigg Lane on a Sunday afternoon, we went to Bower Fold for the replay just two days later. A superb strike from Jerome Wright in the first half, followed by some resolute defending, was enough to put us into the Fourth Qualifying Round for the first time in the club’s history.

Celtic then became regular pre-season opponents over the next few years. Bower Fold also served as our temporary home when fixture clashes meant that Gigg Lane was unavailable, before serving as our regular home ground for the first half of the 2014-15 season as we prepared for our move to Broadhurst Park.

Following our promotion to the National League North in 2015, we again met Celtic in competitive matches, with them completing the league double over us with a pair of one-nil victories and dumping us out of the Manchester Premier Cup in a seven-goal thriller here at Broadhurst Park. We fared better the following season, taking four points across the two league fixtures, and getting our revenge in the Premier Cup, with Celtic unfortunately ending the season in the relegation spots.

The sides met again following our relegation back to the Northern Premier League in 2019, with both sides having games to remember since then. The highlight for FC was our 3-2 victory at Bower Fold in October 2019, with a Charlie Ennis free kick in injury time sealing three points for us, whilst Celtic would look to their 5-2 victory in September 2021.

Following their relegation to the NPL Division One West last season, Celtic have bounced back strongly and currently sit in the playoff spots, as they look for an immediate return to the Premier Division.

This will be the 21st meeting (including friendlies) between the clubs. The overall record to date is 8 victories for FC, 6 for Celtic, and 6 draws, with an average of 3.2 goals per game (33 for FC, 31 for Celtic).

Whilst this is only a friendly, given our long history with one another and the competitive spirit of both managers, we’re sure we’ll be in for a good game on the 20th.