Harrogate Railway one step closer to promotion after semi-final win

Harrogate Railway Athletic are set to play North Ferriby in the tenth tier play-off final tomorrow.

After A 2-1 win against Brigg Town, Railway will play at the Dransfield stadium tomorrow.

Mick O’Connell, Railway’s manager, spoke about the win:

“We managed to get  a 2-0 lead going into half-time. We were very disciplined and were able to hold out. The lads were very bright in the first half and looked dangerous on the break.”

Railway travelled to Brigg Town for the semi-final and will play away again for the final. Mick said the away support was ‘great,’ with around 150  fans making the trip down to Lincolnshire.

Mick said:

“It was great, we had a full coach and more people travelled down to the game. We ended having around 150 supporters. I think they were able to get us through the last 20 minutes of the game.”

Mick O’Connell celebrating the win (Photo credit – Craig Dinsdale)

Joe Crosby, Railway’s midfielder, scored two goals in the first half to win the game. In the 90th minute, Railway were able to survive a ‘goalmouth scramble’ to prevent extra-time.

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North Ferriby FC, who finished second in the division, ended the year with the least amount of goals conceded.

Mick added:

“It’s a one off game so it will be a similar game plan. It’s a final so anything could happen but we have players up top who can cause trouble. We need to be ourselves and play the way we’ve done all year.”

The game will kick off at 3pm tomorrow and will be played at the Dransfield Stadium in North Ferriby. Tickets will be available on the gate.

The Ship Inn near Boroughbridge to reopen after serious fire

The Ship Inn will re-open its doors tomorrow, after a fire damaged the pub last October.

The fire, at the pub in Aldborough, was started by a washing machine and caused extensive damage. The restoration has cost £500,000 and the pub is now larger with enough seating to accommodate up to 200 people inside and outdoors.

Brian Rey and Elaine Howden, the owners of The Ship Inn, have been restoring the pub since January.

Brian said:

“It’s been amazing the response we’ve had from the community and our staff. We had 16 staff members and they all wanted to stay on, which I have to say was quite moving.

“We now can seat around 200 people throughout the garden and pub. We now have wi-fi outside and a second card machine to bring outside. We’ve also now bought a new pizza oven.”

Last October, the pub set on fire through an electrical fault with a washing machine. The emergency services were called when a fire alarm sounded at 2am.

Brian spoke about his experience when the pub set alight. He said:

“It was hardly believable, I thought I was hallucinating. When we called 999, five fire engines turned up. We were told that if we ingested smoke for another ten minutes we wouldn’t be here today.

The store room after the fire

“We just stuck some face masks on and I knew we needed to get out of there.

“After the fire, we had no heating so we spent a lot of time in bed, simply to get warm. We had one electric heater plugged in and that’s it.”

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Brian and Elaine have seen many high-profile guests to their pubs, including Prince William and Harry, as well as Gordon Ramsay.

The couple’s old pub, The Fenwick Arms, was featured on an episode of Gordon Ramsay’s Kitchen Nightmares in 2006. In the episode Gordon said he had ‘a lot of respect’ for Brian, as well as claiming that their Yorkshire puddings were ‘excellent.’

The episode led Gordon and Brian to set up a ‘Real Gravy’ campaign, which was created to promote Brian’s gravy and Sunday roast.

“I’ve had five million emails about the Real Gravy campaign and I’ll never be able to get through all of them,” Brian said.

Scenic 42-mile walking route from Bradford to Ripon created

A scenic 42-mile walk between Bradford and Ripon has been created that takes in Saltaire, Fountains Abbey and Brimham Rocks.

The Burley Bridge Association and Ramblers Lower Wharfedale, who devised the route, have invited ramblers to join them for the inaugural walk on Friday April 29. There will also be several guided walks spread out over the bank holiday weekend.

It will begin at Bradford Cathedral between 9am and 10am and will continue to Saltaire (4.5 miles) then to Burley (8 miles).

The third stage to Thruscross Reservoir (10 miles) will take place on Saturday April 30, starting at 10am from Burley Station, with mini-bus transport provided back to Burley. There will be a small charge to cover costs.

The fourth stage from Thruscross to Brimham Rocks (8.5 miles) will take place on Sunday May 1 and the fifth stage from Brimham Rocks to Ripon (11 miles) will take place on Bank Holiday Monday, May 2.

David Asher, secretary of the BBA said:

“It links the UNESCO World Heritage sites of Saltaire and Fountains Abbey and goes through some of the best scenery that West and North Yorkshire has to offer.

“From a hidden green corridor starting near the centre of Bradford, to upland moor landscapes with extensive views, stunning wooded valleys, and past dramatic geological formations such as Brimham Rocks.”

“There are also loads of bridges to cross including the 13th century Butterton Bridge which features on the waymarks along the route. The Wharfe can be crossed either by the stepping stones or by Denton Bridge depending on the water level.”

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The walk finishes at Ripon Cathedral and all walkers are invited to the Ripon Beer Festival that takes place that day. It is being hosted by the Cathedral as part of its 1350th birthday celebrations.

If you want to book, send names and phone numbers to burleybridge@gmail.com