Now that's teamwork!

Mar 23 2008 by Steve Brown, Sunday Sun

AS if it wasn’t tricky enough to negotiate one senior team through a season of non-league football, Amble FC have three!

The Northumberland town – with a population of 6000 it would seem few DON’T play for one of the club’s trio of sides – boasts representatives in the Northern Alliance, the North Northumberland League and the Morpeth Sunday League.

And while it’s hard work to keep things afloat, manager Ryan Jobson considers it a worthy labour of love.

“It’s a tremendous challenge to field three competitive teams every weekend” he said.

“We have a very young squad plus a few experienced players who have played at a higher standard. Most of our players are developed through our own Trident Soccer Academy system and it’s very rewarding to bring these players through from the age of seven to senior level.

“Running three teams requires a great deal of time and effort as well as a lot of patience, especially when you aim to develop your own players. The logistics in fielding three teams of up to 45 players at a weekend, can at times be frustrating but the personal satisfaction is immense.

“Amble’s Alliance team have hit a good run of form and we aim to finish as high in Division Two as we can in order to provide a solid platform for next season.

“The ‘A’ team has done remarkably well considering we had to rebuild the squad at the start of the season and the team is now in a semi-final, and the Reserves were last season’s Morpeth Sunday League Division Three champions and are on course for a second consecutive promotion, although there’s still a long way to go despite having games in-hand on our opponents.”

And, for the purpose of keeping a check on those opponents, that’s where the North’s biggest and best non-league football website comes in.

“The For Love Not Money website is a superb tool for non-league football and we are all avid readers of the site,” added Ryan, whose club’s own website is www.amblefc.co.uk.

SHAUN JOBSON

Age: 27

Place of Birth: Alnwick

Position: Midfielder

Past Clubs: Gosforth Bohemians F.C Newcastle Blue Star F.C Swarland F.C

Profile: Captain and coach of the team. Scored his 50th consecutive penalty last year and he’s a specialist free-kick taker – better than Beckham and Ronaldo combined!

CHRIS CONNOR

Age: 20

Place of Birth: Ashington

Position: Midfielder

Past Clubs: Swarland F.C

Profile: Chris is known as “The Beast” or “He-man Crespo”. A highly- versatile player who can play in goal, defence, midfield or as an Argentinean-style star striker. Would score more goals if he had a haircut.

BEN DAVIDSON

Age: 28

Place of Birth: Ashington

Position: Forward

Past Clubs: Swarland F.C

Profile: Highly-dependable striker who works hard for the team. The chairman signed Ben after seeing him play during a night time game in heavy fog and Ben went on to become that season’s top scorer.

CRAIG JONES

Age: 25

Place of Birth: Newcastle Upon Tyne

Position: Forward

Past Clubs: Swarland F.C

Profile: A tremendous player with Northern League credentials who helps young players gain valuable experience. Craig can play in midfield or as a striker and also enjoyed a spell in the US.

MICHAEL STRAKER

Age: 20

Place of Birth: Ashington

Position: Defender

Past Clubs: Swarland F.C

Profile: A highly-dependable defender who has developed into a very accomplished player. Mick has an eye for goal and was our first-ever signing, having graduated through the Trident Soccer Academy system.

CHARLES TOWERS

Age: 20

Place of Birth: London

Position: Defender

Profile: A versatile team stalwart who is equally comfortable as a goalkeeper or outfield player. Charles is another graduate from the Academy system and played his first five seasons at senior level without a booking.