www.altyfans.co.uk

It's sad to learn of the death of another one of those renowned characters from 1970s & 1980s Non League football.

John Williams was appointed as the manager of Altrincham FC in May 1986, as part of that unexpected and, frankly, bizarre exchange of bosses between the Robins and Runcorn in the almost immediate aftermath of the two clubs having contested the FA Trophy Final at Wembley Stadium, which of course witnessed that delightful 1-0 triumph for John King's men.

Notwithstanding Williams' considerable accomplishments in charge of Runcorn, which had included the impressive capture of the 1981/82 Alliance Premier League title, he was unfortunately unable to replicate that success during his relatively brief tenure at Moss Lane.

A decent sequence of results during the autumn of 1986 had engendered hopes of a significant title challenge, but this optimism rather evaporated after a particularly negative and dispiriting FA Cup Second Round exit at Telford United in December.

Further cup disappointment ensued in January 1987, when the Robins were eliminated from the FA Trophy via a 2-0 defeat at Maidstone United.

A respectable fifth-place finish in the 1986/87 GM Vauxhall Conference (GMVC) league table was duly attained, but the Robins finished 22 points adrift of the eventual promoted champions Scarborough.

Williams had undoubtedly made some good signings for the club e.g. left full-back Paul Edwards, midfielder Eddie Bishop and striker John Timmons, however there was also a collection of transfer flops such as the likes of central defender Graham Jones, forward Mark Hilditch, winger Stewart Hamill and, most notably, the expensive and injury-plagued forward Martin Hanchard. 

You sensed that Williams' previous strong connections with Runcorn had acted as a barrier to him becoming truly accepted at Moss Lane by the Alty faithful.

Despite a flurry of new recruits for the 1987/88 GMVC season, including such figures as goalkeeper John Butcher, midfielder Ossie Smith, winger Garry Worrall and experienced striker Colin Williams, a 2-1 defeat at Bath City in merely the 10th match of the campaign proved to be John Williams' swan song as Alty manager. He was duly relieved of his duties, which facilitated the dawn of the Tommy Docherty circus at Moss Lane.

For a variety of reasons, things just never worked out for him at Altrincham FC.

Sincere condolences to his family and friends.

Here's a splendid obituary on the Runcorn Linnets website:

https://www.runcornlinnetsfc.co.uk/post/most-successful-linnets-manager-john-williams-dies-at-88
 
 

One previous appearance for us against Runcorn Linnets in the Cheshire Senior Cup last season:

https://altrinchamfc.com/blogs/news/sonny-aljofree-joins-on-loan-from-manchester-united

Now that the colder weather is looming on the horizon, may I issue a plea for the club to do something regarding the limited visibility afforded by the main stand windows?

During our last home match against Kidderminster, the main stand windows were so murky that two corners of the pitch disappeared into an opaque fog.

Players and the ball simply became blurred figures, so much so that I began to fear that I was actually suffering with cataracts.

In fact, I actually ended up having a restricted view of the CSH, which is the very edifice which condemns me to a restricted view of the pitch on a regular basis!

As a result, I dread to think how amateurish the club looked, both in front of the new/infrequent attendees on the night who had been attracted by that £5.00 offer, and the visiting media team who were located at the rear of the main stand.   

Desperately sad news is filtering through to me regarding the reported death of Alty Legend Mark Maddox.

Even though, deep down, you knew that this day was coming, there was still a part of you that thought he just might be invincible.

A man of ineffable courage.

Condolences to his family and friends.

https://altrinchamfc.com/blogs/news/luke-wings-in-to-end-search-for-more-width

More sad news, I'm afraid.

I've been informed that Jenny Heslop died in Wythenshawe Hospital last night.

The loss of yet another Alty stalwart.

Sincere condolences to her family and friends.

https://www.derbyshiretimes.co.uk/sport/football/chesterfield-in-talks-to-sign-former-wigan-athletic-crewe-alexandra-and-sC**thorpe-united-winger-reports-3979629

Just prior to yesterday's game, sad news reached me of the death at the age of 89 of Alan Gorrill, a name and face whom many Alty supporters of a certain vintage will remember.

I believe that Alan first started watching the Robins back in the 1950s and he was a regular at Moss Lane (and on away trips) right up until the 1990s, when he relocated to Paignton in Devon. His funeral reportedly takes place on Wednesday, 28th December.

Some supporters may also recall that Alan's mother was an Alty devotee for many years and the pair of them often sat directly above the players' tunnel in the main stand.

In this image of the Golf Road End in the 1960s, Alan can be seen at the extreme right (the man in black next to a lady):