Once again the Northern Alliance fixture list was affected by the weather but Hexham were fortunate that their Division Two match was given the go-ahead. Once again the squad was depleted with seven call offs in the morning due to injury and work commitments, but this year's squad has great strength in depth and Hexham were still able to name five subs.

Curtis Harvey scores his first senior goal for Hexham

There was even a change of match referee as appointed official Colin Smith was requested to take a game in Cumbria but another local ref Brian Young stepped in to save the day.

Newcastle BT had not come just for a day out and was looking for the points and for the first ten minutes had Hexham on the back foot. They seemed sharper in to the tackle and were finding their men better than the home side but did not put Dave Anderson in the Hexham goal under any serious pressure.

Hexham girls entertained North Shields at Tyne Green on Sunday in what was only their second league game of the season.

After a cold start, the Hexham girls settled into the match well with some good play up the left hand side between Beth Kennedy and Emma Smith. However as one of Hexham's attacks was broken down, the first goal of the match came as North Shields broke with a quick pass from the midfield over the Hexham defence to leave the North Shields striker to hit the back of the net.

Hexham's heads did not fall though and with growing communication between Holly Turley and Hannah Kennedy the defence grew strong.

The North East Regional Junior Academy will be selecting athletes to represent the area in the forthcoming 2010 season.

As part of that selection process, a talent identification day will be staged at the Wentworth Leisure Centre in Hexham on Saturday (12.30).

It has been six long weeks ago since Hexham took to the field in the Northern Alliance, the two week Christmas break and the arctic conditions that the region has been suffering have all conspired to make this seem like starting pre season all over again.

It was December 12th the last time Hexham took to the field and as coincidence would have it Swalwell were again the opposition. But this time Hexham were determined not to make the same mistake again as in the previous match when they let a two goal lead slip away in the last five minutes only to share the points.

Curtis Harvey was starting his first game for the home side and along with striking partner Jamie MacManee and they both made impression early on. As the game begun Hexham were on the offensive and could have scored in the first minute when MacManee and Harvey combined but visiting keeper Tim Wakefield rushed from his line to smother the danger.

Hexham travelled to the site of the old coke works on Spar Well Road, Blaydon on Saturday which is now home to the Swalwell Juniors football club. Alongside the junior section the senior team play their home games at these impressive facilities. The pitch itself was not quite as impressive and the strain of many matches and the recent rain had taken its toll.

The surface was heavily sanded and in racing circles it would have been described as Heavy. But it was good to get the game on and Hexham had the luxury of naming four subs as some of the injuries and illness were beginning to clear up.

From the off Hexham looked good as long as they kept the ball on the ground with Tom Phillips and Jamie McNamee leading the attack. Any aerial threat was snubbed out quickly by centre half Jason Raper who had a definite height advantage. So the ball had to be played to feet and into space from the midfield pair of Scott Coates and Neil Tiffin.

The early season pace setters came to Hexham on Saturday looking to get their season back on track after losing contact with the top two in the Pin Point Northern Alliance on Saturday. Hexham's horrendous run of injuries and illness continued with no less than eight regular squad members unavailable and several playing not one hundred percent.

But thanks to the strength in depth of the club two players Andrew Crawford and Curtis Harvey, who have come up through the junior teams were able to sign match day registrations and take their place in a squad of thirteen.

The Tyne Valley had escaped much of the rain which had caused chaos to the fixture list, this being only one of six matches played in the Alliance. The Wentworth pitch was in good condition and the sun was shining which caused problems for Hexham keeper David Anderson in the first half.

This was a Northern Alliance game between two very well matched teams. But the deciding factor in this encounter was to be the never ending illness and injury cycle which has hit the Hexham side.

Hexham travelled to Forest Hall with the bare eleven with no fewer than seven players all out for one reason or another. This was still a strong side that took the field but inevitably some players were asked to play out of position and in an unfamiliar formation.

Considering the rain the pitch was in good condition and after winning the toss Hexham decided to play with the low winter sun at their backs and went about their task . Both sides went for the points with Hexham leaving Tom Phillips as main striker with Thomas North and Scott Robson playing wide trying to create the bullets, but the main inspiration was Neil Tiffin who was making the midfield tick with some pinpoint passes.

A new squad means we have to find a new sponsor and Alan & Liz Birchall who own A2B private Hire Taxis stepped in to sponsor the group. Pictured are some of the squad with two of A2B six seater taxis's who are a local firm but operate throughout our region.

Also pictured are Alan And Liz with team coach Nicola Davey (centre) proudly showing off the new kit. The club is delighted to welcome them as team sponsors and look forward to the girls driving on to success.

Playing on a pitch more akin to a paddy field Hexham played themselves into the next round of the Tesco Cup with a solid, battling performance against a tough Newbiggin Hall side. On the soaking wet surface flowing football was never going to be easy but Hexham did their level best to stay with the passing game that has stood them in such good stead this season.

Within the first couple of minutes however Newbiggin Hall had a great chance on goal but they hadn't banked on coming up against Hope Lowdon who once again came up trumps with a fantastic save.

Hexham then got into the game and took the lead half way through the first period when Kelly Loughhead slipped the ball through for Rhiannan Castle to score. Marie McLoughlin and Georgina Callf were holding their own in the midfield and Roisin Edwards was once again taking them on out wide.

Two cup ties, two defeats for Hexham in successive weeks, but this was a completely difference performance from the team than the week previous. The score line leans heavily to Amble but in truth Hexham matched the home side for long periods of the game and only the old problem of not taking their chances came back to haunt them.

Scott Coates' penalty for Hexham

The day started badly with squad members dropping out at an alarming rate, due to the early kick off several players had work commitments and with the flu bug and injuries biting hard Hexham travelled with only eleven players with the promise of a sub getting there as soon as possible.

The event took place over three days and pits canoeists of all abilities and in a variety of crafts against the waters of the Tyne.

With up to 1,200 participants it is a popular event and a ceilidh on the Saturday night makes it a social event too.

The team trains on a Thursday evening at the Wentworth and play their matches on a Sunday in the NABC football league. So if you were under 16 on the first of September 2009 and fancy a game contact Phillip Loughhead on 01434 609215 or email from the contacts page at www.hexhamfc.co.uk

Away from the normal Northern Alliance duty Hexham had the distraction of the Northumberland Minor Cup on the agenda on Saturday but how they must have wished for anything but. This is a competition which the team from Tynedale had hopes of a long run in but all prospects came crashing down in the first twenty minutes in scenes which resembled a Sid James Carry On film.

It all started brightly for Hexham with Gavin Cox hitting the crossbar in the opening minute but from there on in it was downhill all the way. First goal for Walker came after keeper Sean Heads won the race to clear from a breaking striker, his well struck clearance hit the referee on the knee rebounded over his head and the home striker could not believe his luck with an open goal at his mercy.

Minutes after that a deep cross to the back post hit a Walker player who had fallen over on the chest and rebounded over the line. From there it just descended into a complete farce with Hexham conceding three more goals before the whistle went for half time.

After losing to Cramlington in their first league game of the season Hexham were after revenge on Saturday. In fact Hexham took the game to Cramlington right from the first whistle and, playing with the slope, managed to pin the opposition back for most of the first half. Hexham in fact took the lead following another thunderbolt from Georgina Callf leaving the Cramlington keeper with no chance.

Roisin Edwards was making great ground down the flank and Kelly Loughhead, Marie McLoughlin and Rhiannan Castle were all finding space up the middle. Cramlington did however defend well, managing to keep Layla Zahawi quiet which very few teams manage to do for a full game. Against the run of play though Cramlington leveled the score before half time with a thunderbolt of their own.

Top of the table Amble were the visitors to Hexham in this Northern Alliance Division Two fixture and the weather and pitch conditions were perfect. Amble are a much improved side from last season so it was a shock when they were heavily beaten last weekend by Newcastle BT which capitalised on a much weakened Amble side.

They were back to full strength for this match and were out to break Hexham's unbeaten home record for this season. But Hexham also were much stronger than last week when some of the flu victims were available for selection.