Clubs face race against time
(11/02/02)
LOUGHBOROUGH’S two senior sides face a race against time if they are to meet the ground requirements for promotion from their respective leagues this season.
Student side Loughborough Dynamo look certain to finish in one of the two promotion spots from Division One of the Leicestershire Senior League, and the Luffs could be promoted if they finish in the top three of Midland Combination Division One.
The Luffs have been preparing behind-the-scenes all season for promotion, and a number of necessary ground improvements have already been completed, but the main improvement, both financially and logistically, will be the installation of floodlights.
Club officials have promised that the ground WILL be ready, but many fans remain nervous as the season begins to draw to a close:
“It’s gonna take time to get lights up at the Drome” said one concerned fan “I keep reading that Leamington have started work on theirs, it’d be nice to see a bit of movement down here at Derby Road”.
Loughborough Dynamo, on the other hand, are planning a complete re-vamp of their home at the Nanpantan Sports Ground at a cost of around £150,000. The club who have refused to pay their players and are clinging doggedly to their Amateur status are believed to have raised the cash through prudent accounting over the last 300 years.
A source close to the club said, “Obviously it’s a lot of money to spend, but bar profits have rocketed over the last six months and we find ourselves with a spare hundred thousand or so.”.
Loughborough Dynamo have enjoyed a qualified amount of success thanks mainly to their link-up with the Loughborough University this year, and the influx of players has turned them from whipping-boys into title contenders.
A student at Loughborough University, who didn’t wish to be named, said about the project “It’s an outrage if my Student Union have contributed any money towards this affair, it’s our money and they should be spending it on important things like cheaper beer and more swimming pools.”
Both sides face a desperate race against time to have their grounds in order before the start of next season.
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Luffs break £15 transfer barrier (1/12/01)
Loughborough
FC smashed their transfer record last week when they captured the signature
of talented young defender Carl Springthorpe from local rivals Shepshed
Dynamo.
The
deal which is believed to be worth in the region of fifteen pounds is THREE
times more than the Derby Road outfit have ever paid for a player. The
move was thrashed out behind closed doors on Friday afternoon, in
negotiations which took an astonishing twenty minutes. A Shepshed offcial
was reported as saying "Yes, things have been a bit tricky, we can only
get the roller on one end of the pitch at the moment"
The
promising youngster and former Loughborough Dynamo junior had been stewing
in Shepshed reserves for the first half of the season but was highly rated
by a former official of the Doc Martens club:
"Carl
is a smashing lad with a good attitude, and I believe will prove to be
a better player than some people at Shepshed think. He is just as good
as Coxie, who came through the reserves, and look how good he turned out
to be
"I
believe he was disillusioned at the lack of first team opportunities, and
who can blame him. We have a defence which leaks on average three goals
a game, and he has never been given the chance to prove what he could do"
Springthorpe,
the brother of Luffs stopper and fans favourite Paul, made an impressive
debut in the penalty shoot-out defeat against Rugby Town on Saturday and
won praise from the league leaders for his performance.
Meanwhile
Shepshed played an experimental formation without ANY defenders and were
unlucky to lose six-nil. |
Saturday
8th December: Luffs out of the League Cup after losing 7-8 to Rugby on penalties. Paul Gunn sees the decisive spot kick saved after scoring twice in open play in a thrilling 3 all draw
Tuesday
4th December: Rugby Town beat Holly Lane 3-1 at home
to maintain their 100 per cent record at the top of the table with 18 wins
from 18
Saturday 1st December: The
Luffs crash out of the Leicestershire Senior Cup to Blaby of the Senior
Premier
Saturday 24th November: The
wins keep coming as Luffs see of Wilmcote 3-1 at the Drome
Saturday 17th November: Paul
O'Callaghan scores 5 as Brownhills are put to the sword on their own turf |
