Tonight was what football is all about. Camaraderie. Togetherness. Going to battle as one. And when we started that first pre-season training session down at Newhouse Farm last July, it was all about seeing if we could get our hands on a trophy. So after working really hard, the lads had that chance - and all that stood in our way was 90 minutes and Rossendale Athletic...

Wayne played a very different team against Rochdale St Clements Dev. last weekend - in our last game of the league season - and the young lads that stepped up done us a wonderful job despite the 0-2 reversal - showing that there is good development going on within our Club - and it did the job for the boss as it gave lads a rest and more time to get fit. Would it work though? We'd soon see...

We knew that we'd beaten these already this season but that means nothing when it comes to the Cup Final - so the lads got together for a light training session on Tuesday night and the place was buzzing. The feeling that only a Cup Final can bring. The lads were sprightly and wanting to impress so they could claim a place in today's starting-11 and as we left - knowing the next time we met up would be at Scholes Bank tonight, the boys seemed confident...

And when we arrived at the venue for tonight's game, the boys seemed calm and up for it. They walked the pitch pre-match and although it was really dry and quite obviously bobbly in places, both teams would have to play on it. As the crowds started to arrive, it was going to be interesting to see if we could get more numbers there than we did in that semi-final at Buckley Wells a couple of weeks ago. There was no need to worry - as the Breightmet community came over to Horwich in their droves to get behind the boys. Some estimates put the crowd tonight at just over 200 -however that's unofficial nut we'll take it. The gafffer brought his troops out for their warm-up and as the sun bore down on the pitch, the scene was set. This was going to be a cracker of game and we knew that if we wanted our hands on that trophy, we'd have to work harder than them...

As with all good Cup Finals, both teams were led out by their skippers and the Match Officials and we could quickly see the team that were starting. It saw one change from that side that started against Bury GSOB Reserves - as Liam came in for Nathan who had a pre-booked family holiday bless 'im - but with Mr Haycock anywhere in the ranks, we've got quality. The bosses' words in the dressing-room were more like a war-cry - reminding his troops that this was going to be won as an army. As brothers. As a collective. We knew that if we could match them for work-rate and play our game, we had more than enough in the tank to do the business - and as they entered the arena to a rapturous applause, it was down those 11 men now. Did they want it enough? We'd soon see...;

In truth, the opening exchanges saw the Rossendale lads get the better of the chances - as they were snapping into tackles and coming away with the ball - and we just couldn't seem to get started. Our passes weren't meeting their man and on our left-hand side, they were working the ball well to get in behind us. Ste was working tirelessly to keep their winger at bay however we had to plug that gap soon. We gave them a flurry of free-kicks and throws on that side and with the boss urging his team to calm down and play the game and not the occasion, the minutes ticked on...

One such free-kick was swung in on 9 minutes and as it looked as though their striker was about to plant his head on it, out came Mitch's out-stretched arm to punch it clear before he could get to it - and the chance was gone. But on the quarter-hour mark, they did manage to get one right and as the ball was played high into our box, we were guilty of ball-watching and as the ball came in from the header, it seemed to get bundled over our line somewhat scrappily - but they all count - and as the team in blue wheeled away in triumph, the Breightmet lads had a choice to make. Do we lay down and simply melt away our chances of glory? Or do we roll up our sleeves and start playing football now? That's definitely not what the large United following wanted and as the ball came back for the re-start, they were urging their heroes on...

We were so close to going two goals behind though - as another ball lofted into the box saw a mixture of heads go up to get it - and as the Rossendale player got his forehead to it about 3 yards from goal, it looked destined for the back of the net - but that was until from nowhere, Mitch managed to spring the full length of his line to get down quick enough to palm it off the line and away from danger. What a save! And exactly when we needed it...

Going behind did somewhat settle us down though and as we began to get the ball down and play, so began the openings further up the pitch. We were speeding things up now and as we got the ball up to the to-two more often, we saw a lot more of it in their half. Charlie had a good chance delivered on a plate to him from Ben on 23 minutes but on his left-foot, his volley could only raise high over the bar and the chance was gone. Better though...

Chris and Keegie were in a real battle with their strikers but as always, they stood firm - and Chris was looking determined that nothing was getting past him tonight. They had both already made some excellent challenges but on 27 minutes, one firm tackle from Mr Gettins saw him come away with the ball - but the referee deemed it to be a little too robust and dished out the yellow card. That could be an issue with the way our Chris plays - and something for the boss to keep his eye on...

The game went on and it seemed as though the tide had turned as the ball was spending more time in the Rossendale box now and just after the half-hour mark, Charlie had a near carbon-copy chance as his first one - but once more he just couldn't find the target. He was putting a real shift in though and not giving their centre-halves a moment's peace. And on 34 minutes, he was instrumental in us getting back on level-terms. We had won the ball well in the middle and fed it out to Liam on our right. He brought it under control quickly and that enabled him to set Ben off with a great ball down our right. Ben managed o get the wrong side of his marker and clipped a great ball into the path of where our Charlie was charging - and he dinked out a glorious cross towards the back-post. There was Yatesy in a race with two defenders - but he threw himself full-length and connected with a great diving header to slam the ball into the back of their net! The United fans went wild and as his team-mates rushed to congratulate him, Yatesy's experience told him how important a goal that could be. 1-1 and it was all-square again...

There was plenty of banter going on between the two benches and as the minutes went by, both sides knew that the next goal could be the crucial one. We were looking the most likely to get it but they had shown enough already to make us wary of allowing them any opportunities. We were now winning things - tackles in the middle of the park, the 50-50 challenges around the edges of the pitch and Chris and Keegie were still bossing things at the back. On 42 minutes we once again worked it well down our right and this time Ben cut inside before unleashing a left-footer - but the ball bobbled just before he hit it and flew well wide of the mark. The Rossendale bench laughed - oh how they laughed - but just remember this part for later into this report...

Chris was called into action again just before the break as they charged through the middle in numbers - and as their striker went to put it around Chris and be clean through on goal, our No.5 came across and simply took the ball off his toes, thwarted the attack and set us on our way forward again. Superb defensive play...

That was that for the first-half and as the referee blew his whistle to bring proceedings to a halt, it was pretty much as it started - and both teams now only had 45 minutes by which to win this before penalties. The United fans were quick to show their appreciation and as they made their way to the Clubhouse for a beer, we set about how we'd plan to win this now...

Half-time: Rossendale Athletic 1-1 BREIGHTMET UNITED

The bosses kept the lads on the pitch as they began their team-talk - and the message could be heard from the side-lines. Wayne felt that we needed to stretch the pitch more - with Ben and Lewis needing to hug the touchlines - and we needed to speed play up. Things are made so much easier for defenders if they have time to get back in - so make our passes quicker, give options to the man with the ball quicker and keep battling. The lads knew that they had frozen for those opening 20 minutes or so - but now it was about forgetting that and making sure that these last 45 minutes of a long, hard season were rewarded with something at the end of it. Did we want to see them celebrating in front of us? Did we want that embarrassment? Well the gaffer made it clear that they now had one half of football to make sure that didn't happen. The boys rallied, gulped their drinks - and made their way back out there...

The second half started at a frenetic pace as both sides went at it - and the Rossendale coaches had obviously done their work as their team came out really strongly - in the sense of the tackles they were putting in. The referee was quick to brandish a yellow card to one of theirs for a naughty tackle on Ste and then another one was shown for a whack on Ben - but it looked as though we had got them rattled now. They had worked really hard with their long-ball and their running in those opening 20 minutes or so - and our fitness was now starting to show. Marko then saw a yellow card with his name on it for what looked like a pretty innocuous tackle - probably due to the cards that had been given the Rossie lads - and as the minutes ticked away, the United fans were still being loud and proud behind the dug-outs...

And then it came. Once again, Chris stood like a brick-wall and as he came away with the ball, he looked up and spotted Ben making a great run down our right. An inch-perfect pass was required - and that's exactly what Mr Gettins delivered - and without breaking his run, our No,12 was onto it. Their full-back made the fatal mistake of trying to dive in to nick the ball - but Ben dropped his shoulder, played the ball to his left and picked out a corker of left-footed curler that saw it go past the outstretched arm of their keeper and nestle into the bottom corner of their net! The place went mad! Ben was almost crushed by his team-mates as they bundled all over him and it seemed the only two people that were not being swept away with the emotion were Wayne and Brian. They were quickly reminded Chris and Keegie that this was about brain now - and they needed to settle the boys down, use their football intelligence and protect what we had. 65 minutes gone and we had the lead. 2-1. Then we saw that famous Ben Schofield back-flip - as he sprinted towards the United fans gathered behind the barrier - going about 20 feet in the air before landing it neatly! 10/10 for that one fella..

With the excitement and the nerves building now, it was a shame to see what happened next as the skipper went down with what looked like cramp to others - but to the gaffer it looked like a reoccurrence of the knock he got in the semi-final - and when Alex Williams says he has to come off, then something definitely isn't right. A quick conflab between Wayne and Brian - and on came Logan in a move that saw him drop in at right-back and Liam sliding into his more-favoured central-midfield berth. Logan had spent some time over there last weekend and again in training during the week - but to throw a 17year-old into the Cup Final was a brave move to make. Boy would it pay off though...

Because about five minutes later, the Rossendale lads got their best chance of the second-half - and if it was not for Logan, they would have equalised. A good move down their right saw the ball swung into the middle and as their guy got his foot to it, the ball was destined for the top corner of our net - until across came Logan from nowhere to raise like a salmon and head the ball off the line and away from danger. The opponents were already jumping for joy as they were so sure it was going in - but our Logan had a different idea. What a piece of defending...

We won a free-kick on the edge of their box next - and as their keeper lined up his wall, Yatesy placed the ball down. From about 22 yards out and in a central position, they were expecting him to curl it left or right - but John decided to smash it straight and as it swerved, it took a great save from their No.1 with his wrists to keep it out. That would gave eased the nerves a lot that one...

Things got even tougher as we went into last 15 minutes as Marko called across to the bench and said his race was won - so as Wayne looked behind him, he elected to be brave - and brought Mohamed on to the left-wing and drop Lewis back into full-back and Ste to the middle of the park to see us through. Lewis looked a bit puzzled but knew that it was for the good of the team. And he did really well in making sure that he watched the line and worked with Chris and Keegie back there to shore things up. We were so close now...

So can imagine how the place erupted when we got our third? Oh it was loud! And what a goal it was! With 87 minutes on the clock, the Rossendale were throwing the kitchen sink at us in an attempt to get back in it - but Chris and Keegie - ably assisted by our Lew - were dealing with whatever they had to offer and as Ben got hold of the ball, he played a superb 1-2 with Ste before cutting it inside to the run of Logan. He set off on another dribble the likes of which he did in the semi-final and as he put one Rossendale player on his back-side, the United fans were urging him to shoot. He decided he wasn't ready to do that yet - so as he dropped his shoulder and sent another blue defender for a hot-dog, the goal opened up in front of him. You could hear the anticipation as the fans drew their breath in to scream - but still he didn't shoot! He had one more trick up his sleeve - sending the keeper the wrong way - before slamming his shot hard into the back of their net and with that, the Cup was won! It was pandemonium as United fans ran onto the pitch to join in the celebrations and it was so good to see! Now Wayne and Brian could relax and enjoy it! 3-1 with 3 minutes to go - or so we thought...

Because the man in the middle adjudged there to be an additional 8 minutes to play and that was enough to make the gaffer feel this still wasn't guaranteed. But then we saw another piece of magic from that man that is Mo - as he got the ball out on the left and cut inside their full-back. Across came the midfielder to try and get it off him - but Mo played it through his legs and he was off. He got the byeline as their defender came across - and all he could was swipe our Mo's legs from under him and as the referee blew his whistle sharply and pointed to the spot, the United fans once again went crazy! The lads decided that as he had worked so hard to win it, Mo could have the spot-kick - and as he took his run-up, the Breightmet fans were willing it into the back of the net. He smashed his shot - and it flew about 10 yards over the bar! If the score had been 1-1 or 2-1 still, can you imagine? But the United players and fans alike applauded our Mo and on we went...

But it was done by then. The Rossendale lads were resigned to the fact and despite having the better of the first-half, the score of 3-1 is probably a good reflection of the game itself. And when that whistle went, the look of delight on all of the United faces' was a joy to behold. The lads had worked so hard not just out there - but all season - and they deserved that tonight. It was good to see both sets of players shaking hands with respect and we look forward to at least two more cracking games against these again next season. But this was all about us now - and boy were we going to milk it...

As the lads popped the champers and poured it all over each other - with the cameras snapping away and the videos rolling - it was excellent to be a part of. And hopefully something that will drive the boys forward as we prepare for next season. We have shown that we can more than mix it with some of the better teams in our division and if we can cut out the silly draws and losses, there's every reason to believe that we can replicate this again in 12 months time.

This was the here and now though - and as the lads lined up and applauded the match officials to the medals - along with the runners-up - it was then our turn. Credit to the Rossendale players, officials and supporters who warmly received our boys and as the skipper went last, we waited. And we waited. And the rumbling started. The Cup was held aloft to a raucous ringing of 'Champione.. Champione... Ole Ole Ole' and we'd done it. Breightmet United were the new holders of the John Mackereth Cup. In our first season! As we said at the start, we'd have taken that when we started out last year...

The celebrations lasted for an age out on the pitch - and then again back at The Clubhouse at Moss Park - as the boys, their partners, the Club Chairman and Mrs Chairman and supporters partied the night away - and we're sure that there would be several sore heads as people awoke on Friday morning...

All of the lads played their part out there today - each and every single one of them - and nuff respeck' to Rav, Jay and Brian who didn't get on - but there was a clear Man of the Match out there tonight. Chris Gettins was unbelievable! The man did not let one thing past him and set the young lads off on many a good run with some great passes. His experience and calmness (Chris? Calm? We hear you say...) really did help the situation out there and hats off to the man! A mountain for us out there tonight and well-deserved...

What a way to end a season eh? With a trophy? Thousands of teams would have wanted that this campaign and guess what baby? We did it!

A massive, massive, massive thank you to all of the Breightmet massive that came over tonight and we really do appreciate your support. It gives the lads that added benefit of knowing you are all behind them and we'd love to see you down at Moss Park for our home games next season. There's a real little buzz going on around the place now and that can only be aided by adding a trophy to the cabinet...

So that's that for the 2024-2025 season. We finish in a credible 5th place in our first season in the LAL and win a Cup. We're happy with that. Now we've had a taste though, we'll be wanting more don't worry about that...

See you in July people - when the Cup winners come back out for pre-season - so have a good break and we hope that we made you happy on the last evening of the season...

#OnceUnitedNeverDivided