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First Team

Chorley: Club Connections

Posted by Kelly Gilchrist
Posted on Mon 9 Jan 2017
Posted in First Team

FC Halifax Town will take on Chorley at the MBi Shay Stadium this Tuesday, December 10 (7.45pm). Here we take a look at some of the players who connect the two clubs.

James Dean was the Shaymenโ€™s top scorer in 2009/10, when the club were crowned champions of the Unibond Division One North. He scored an impressive 40 goals in all competitions, including 27 in the league. He joined Chorley in 2013, his second spell for the club after he made a solitary substitute appearance for them all the way back in 2004. Since his second spell for Chorley, which ended in May 2016, he has played for Warrington Town and Padiham.

Harry Winter is another to have played at both the Shay and at Chorley. Central midfielder Winter initially joined Town on loan from Northwich Victoria in the 2009/10 season, but was recalled by the Vics in March 2010. He signed a permanent deal for the Shaymen later that year but his season was plagued by injury and he left in 2011. He went on to play for Hyde FC, Matlock Town and then AFC Fylde, before signing for Chorley in 2014. He stayed at Victory Park for just over a season and joined FC United of Manchester in November 2015.

The hugely successful former FC Halifax Town captain Tom Baker, who led the club to successive promotions in 2009/10 and 2010/11, is another former Shayman to have graced Victory Park. Chorley was his last destination as a player however, as he announced his retirement in 2015 at the age of just 29.

During his time at the Shay, Town won the Unibond Division One North, the Evo-Stik Premier and had an FA Cup first round proper appearance against Charlton Athletic at the Shay, which was shown live on national television. Bakerโ€™s tenure as captain is fondly remembered by Town fans, and he has now made the step into management with Trafford FC where has been in charge since 2015.

Simon Garner was another player from the successful period of 2009-2011 for the Shaymen and enjoyed highlights such as scoring the winning goal against FC United in a 1-0 victory at Gigg Lane. He left the Shaymen to join Chorley in 2012, but then left Victory Park by mutual consent in 2013. He took over as manager at Clitheroe later that year, where one of his signings was current Shayman David Lynch. Garner landed a first team coaching role at Altrincham at the start of this season, but has since left and re-ignited his playing career under Tom Baker at Trafford.

Other players to have played for both clubs include Jack Dorney, Cameron Darkwah and Marcus Carver, who suffered a serious injury whilst playing for Chorley recently. Several players appeared for the original Halifax Town AFC and the Magpies, two of the more notable ones being Lee Bracey and Paul Fleming, the latter of whom made over 150 appearances for the Shaymen.

Read more posts by Kelly Gilchrist

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