Four young Cods are still out on loan at as many clubs and have been in action over the last week, with one of them scoring and being named man of the match – here’s how they got on.
Connor Teale (Curzon Ashton – National League North)
The young defender has had some time off the pitch after suffering symptoms of Covid-19 in recent weeks, which is why he wasn’t named in the squad for the Nash’s league losses to Kidderminster Harriers and Spennymoor Town last week.
Thankfully, he made a full recovery after that and was named in the starting line-up once again for their clash against Brackley Town on Tuesday evening. All reports from the game have been positive about Teale as he helped sure up the defence so they would pick up their first clean sheet in a few weeks.
Next game: Boston United (H – Saturday 9 April)
Akiel Raffie (Nantwich Town - Northern Premier League Premier Division)
After coming on with nine minutes to go against Grantham Town a couple of weeks back, he was named on the bench once again in their league fixture against Lancaster City as the side celebrated Non-League Day.
The Dabbers reached a milestone early in the game as they managed 500 minutes without conceding a goal, but that only lasted eight minutes after that point as Lancaster took the lead 25 minutes in. Raffie was introduced to the game after 58 minutes as a wing-back and helped the side stop the attacks from Lancaster, but the side was unable to make an impact at the other end of the pitch as the game ended 1-0.
Scarborough Athletic was up next at home and the midfielder was introduced to the starting line-up once again, donning the number seven shirt, and what an impact he made! Less than 20 minutes in, he was fed the ball on the right-wing, before beating his man and drilling a low effort past Whitley in goal.
The away side pulled one back 15 minutes later to bring the game back to level terms, but Sean Cooke made the most of a goalkeeping error to get the Dabbers back in front. Raffie was subbed off with 12 minutes to go, with the side keeping hold of their lead until the final whistle, earning them all three points on a sunny afternoon in Nantwich – marking five home wins in a row.
Next game: Atherton Collieries (H – Saturday 9 April)
Danny Edwards (Colne – Northern Premier League Division One West)
Edwards was looking to back up his man-of-the-match performance against Ramsbottom United in their game against Leek Town, it all started well as he was named in the starting line-up alongside former-Cod, Oliver Roberts. Even though he managed to create attacks during the game, it wasn’t meant to be as they lost the clash 1-0 on the afternoon.
He started in the next game, which took place on Saturday away from home against Workington AFC. It was the start from hell for Colne as they had Hakan Burton sent off, with the home side ending up netting the penalty 10 minutes before the half-time break. It was more misfortune to follow as they conceded a second just before the end, but a positive is that Edwards got 90 minutes under his belt.
Next game: Marine AFC (H – Saturday 9 April)
Donte Thompson-Prempeh (Kendal Town – Northern Premier League Division One West)
The Mintcakes hosted City of Liverpool in their last game in March, with Thompson-Prempeh sitting on the bench at kick-off. The Scouse side took the lead late in the first half, with Fleetwood’s young forward replacing former-Cod, Kian Makepeace, at the start of the second half. It was a tough battle until the end after he was introduced to the game, with it ending in a narrow 1-0 loss.
He certainly left an impression on the game though as he was promoted to the starting line-up for their next game against Market Drayton Town at Greenfields. The opening 45 minutes were uneventful, with not much happening for either side but in the second half, three goals were scored. Donte netted his first goal for Kendal 12 minutes into the half, but two quickfire goals saw MDT take all three points on the day.
Next game: Ramsbottom United (A – Saturday 9 April)
Player(s) returning from loan
Max McMillan – returning after an initial-month loan from Radcliffe