THE loudest cheer came long after the final whistle at Atherton LR when the match announcer confirmed that league leaders Nelson had slipped up in their local derby against Darwen with a partisan cry of: “Get in there!” At that point, manager Dave Jones and his players were seeking out every supporter still loitering around the pitch perimeter for high fives and thank-yous, such are the high spirits at the North West Counties League club right now. The LR go to Nelson this weekend knowing a win would see them climb above their nearest rivals with the luxury of a game in hand, and three more to play. Tense times indeed.
But this is the enjoyable kind of pressure, and a club which has skirted with extinction in recent years is now enjoying itself once again, expanding and broadening its horizons. Saturday was Non League Day, where the club threw open its doors for free to Bolton Wanderers season ticket holders and also offered half-price admission for anyone who donated to the Atherton and Leigh Foodbank. As usual, there was a mix of young and old, some wearing Wanderers shirts and chatting nervously about what is in store for Steven Schumacher’s side after the international break.
Elsewhere, the usual collection of groundhoppers and local fans, some with dogs, some with over-exuberant youngsters in tow. “Derek. Those kids over there are using the goalkeeper warm-up poles as javelins,” warned the announcer at half time, bringing a chuckle around the ground.
Far remove.
