Stepping stones
Manny Duku may be a Dutchman you are not too familiar with. He has recently leapt from one stone to another by leaving Maidstone United and joining Wealdstone, meaning he will be cheered on by Stones’ fans once again. Manny has previous coincidental moves, though. Early in his career, he moved from Chesham United to the posher pronunciation of ‘ham’ at Hemel Hempstead. Manny has played for more than 20 clubs. However, his three best goals-to-appearances
ratios have been at Hayes & Yeading United, Havant & Waterlooville and a second appearance at H&Y. No further comment.
Stone the Crows
Halesowen Town overcame Royston Town with a last-ditch winner to win 1-0. The goal came from Jak Hickman’s free-kick, which went in via the post. The free-kick resulted from a red-card challenge by Crows’ defender Ronnie Henry on Miracle Okafor. There were three red cards earlier when Halesowen Town’s Nathan Hayward received a red card for a rash challenge. Two Halesowen backroom staff followed Nathan down the tunnel due to their protests.
Making his mark
Mark Burke has stepped down as manager of Hitchin Town. He has been at the helm for 11 years, an unusually long period. However, even more unusually, Mark was also the Company Secretary and Head of Community. Mark resigned from his 11-year stay after a run of 11 defeats. Mark has been a popular character at the club in his 11-year tenure.
Macc the Knife
Macclesfield put themselves back on the footballing map after some bleak years, falling out of the Football League and having to re-form. 
Their FA Trophy Quarter-Final win against Coalville Town means they face Gateshead in the semi-finals, while Bromley and Solihull Moors contest the other semi.
A tale of two AFCs
On Saturday, AFC Sudbury faced AFC Telford United in the battle of two AFCs in the Southern League Premier Central Division. I have never been too keen on clubs, beginning with AFC, but the AFC in AFC Sudbury stands for Amalgamated Football Club, established when Sudbury Town and Sudbury Wanderers joined forces in 1999. AFC Telford started when supporters managed to restart the club after it went bust in 2004 with debts of over £4 million. The supporters chose a new unforgettable club motto, numquam obliviscere, but I can’t remember the translation from Latin. Oh, and the result was a 1-0 win for relegation-threatened Amalgamated Football Club Sudbury, with Dickens scoring the only goal.
Sleep deprivation
Cribbs have featured in these columns previously, notably when they faced Didcot Town in the FA Trophy. When I spotted Couch as Cribbs’ scorer against Mousehole last weekend, it looked like Cribbs’ recruitment policy was to get more sleep-related players. Sadly, it was a misprint, and the scorer was Ryan Crouch. This reminds me of an incident at a club I played for in my youth. A player called Crouch had missed several games due to an injury. At a meeting, the Chairman asked, “What is the Crouch position?” Simultaneously, four members of the committee showed him.
Played not played
Another misprint I found this week was a list of Southern League results. After giving the results from the Saturday games, at the bottom was an addition – Games Played Friday night. Underneath this heading was Biggleswade v Barton Rovers – Postponed.
SASAS
If you are over 40 years old, you will remember SAS, England’s
Sheringham and Shearer. Leek Town, the runaway leaders of the Northern Premier League West Division, can go one better. Th
eir three scorers in their 3-0 win at 1874 Northwich were Stevenson, Scully and Smith. Leek Town currently have a 15-point lead over second-placed Prescot Cables with eight games to play.
Saints alive
In the Southampton Football League, it was the battle of the Saints when St Francis faced Crofton Saints. The result was a thumping 7-1 win for Crofton Saints after leading 5-0 at half-time. With Dean and Crosswell in their side, it was no wonder that they defeated St Francis.
Next week
There will be no Non-League Review next week. We’re taking all the staff on a jolly at the seaside. We hope to see you again in two weeks! And, by the way, full disclosure—all the pictures on the website edition of the Non-League Review have been enhanced using AI. Who doesn’t?
