Retro: League Cup win caps a fine 1987/88 season for Worksop Town reserves

After the 1993/1994 season we have to go back to 1987-88 for the previous season that Worksop Town had run a reserve team, writes Steve Jarvis.
The 1987/88 season was a good one for Worksop Town reservesThe 1987/88 season was a good one for Worksop Town reserves
The 1987/88 season was a good one for Worksop Town reserves

Of those five blank seasons, three had been spent sharing the Northolme ground at Gainsborough after the loss of Central Avenue, and the other two were the last ill-fated year at the Avenue and the first at the brand new Sandy Lane ground.

Back then in the penultimate season at Central Avenue, the reserve team played in the Central Midlands League mostly on Saturday afternoons. In this particular season they represented the club in the mid-week Evans Halshaw Floodlit Cup as well.

One home pre-season game was played against County Senior club, Metalloy who won 2-1. The League season opened on Saturday 5th September with a trip to Derby Rolls Royce. The “Cubs” motored to a 1-1 draw.

The first home game a week later brought a handsome 5-0 score line against Mickleover RBL with Jenkinson 2, Whyte 2 and Booker on target.

By the time that the League Cup commenced with a 6-4 ( Jenkinson 4, Marrow 2) win at Oakham United, Worksop had won five, including a 7-2 thrashing of Rossington Main at Central Avenue, drawn four and lost only once.

The second round of the League Cup was not until Saturday 9th January, when a 5-1 win (Marrow 2, Coggan, Watson, Jenkinson) at Derby Carriage & Wagon put them in the semi-final and two more league victories and a 1-0 defeat at Sutton-in-Ashfield against Oakham United had been recorded.

A great run of four League wins, 3-2 at Arnold Kingswell, 2-1 at Lincoln United, 2-0 at home to Ilkeston Town and 3-0 at Derby C & W led up to the League Cup semi-final on Saturday 5th March.

This involved another visit to Lincoln United and was safely negotiated as Matt Walsh and Bryan Whyte found the net in a 2-0 victory.

With the final not due until May, Worksop’s second string had time for a shot at the league title.

Borrowash Victoria and Grimsby Ross being the front runners. The very next Saturday, however, they slipped to a 2-1 defeat at bottom club, Mickleover RBL.

But 5-0 and 4-1 wins v Arnold Kinswell and at Hinckley Town lifted the spirits and, although Oakham held out for a 1-1 draw at Central Avenue on April 5th, the lads then racked up another three four goal hauls, beating Derby Prims 4-3, Hinckley Town 4-0 and Arnold FC 4-3.

The final game on 30th April was at Grimsby Ross. Ross sat in second place on 55 points while Worksop were third on 54 so a win guaranteed the runners-up spot. In the event, the “Fishermen” won a tight game by 1-0, and Worksop finished third, four points behind both Borrowash and Grimsby.

The League Cup final against Champions Borrowash was held at Alfreton Town on 10th May.

The Worksop line up was Ian Hall, Shaun Pickersgill, Ian Kirk, Pete Milner, Mark Marrow, Rich Myles, Dennis Hobson, Andrew Shaw, Chris Booker, Neil Jenkinson and Terry Coggan.

After 120 minutes play the game was tied at 1-1, Chris Booker getting the goal. And so to Penalties, Vics scored 1-0, Coggan missed 1-0, Vics scored 2-0, Booker scored 2-1, Vics fired over the bar, 2-1, Hobson scored 2-2, Vics effort tipped on to the bar, 2-2, Myles scored 2-3, Vics last one saved….3-2 to Worksop! This was a great reward for the reserve team manager Roy Bennett.