North Walkden FC clinched the Manchester FA Saturday Amateur Cup at Seel Park on March 14, following a commanding 2-0 victory over Didsbury FC Villa.
On a windy, freezing Tameside evening, North Walkden managed to keep their opposition at arms-length, handling the occasion with an air of inevitability in the face of Didsbury pressure.
The Little Hulton side travelled to Mossley with their sights set on silverware, after exiting the Atherton Charity Cup on Monday in a 3-1 defeat to Daisy Hill FC at the semi-final stage.
North Walkden raced into the lead in the 4th minute, with a long ball breaking through the Didsbury press, landing favourably for striker Adam Doyle to slot past the goalkeeper.
Didsbury fought to gain a foothold in the game, causing problems in the North Walkden box with efforts at goal and dangerous play across the pitch.
However, North Walkden’s resilience paid off, as the side doubled their lead towards the end of the 1st half with a volley from captain Aiden Heaton in the 3rd minute of added time leaving them 2-0 ahead at the break.
In the second half, Didsbury continued to push for their opener, with North Walkden goalkeeper Andrew Mulroney standing tall between the sticks.
With tiring Didsbury legs, North Walkden showed character and maturity in retaining possession for large parts of the second half, ensuring their cup final victory by keeping the ball away from their opponents.
At full time, fans and coaches flooded onto the pitch to celebrate their hard-fought cup triumph, taking the crown from last year’s winners Manchester Corinthians.
Ahead of the game, North Walkden coach Antony Staines spoke on the importance of cup finals for the club, as he said: “These cups are massive. Any final, whether it’s charity or county, everyone wants to play in one, but the county cup final’s the big one for us, we’ve been aiming to be in it for some time.”
North Walkden currently sit second in the Manchester Football League Division Two, three points from top-of-the-league Moston Brook with three games in hand.
An exclusive look inside the day of the final can be found here:
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