News

Welcome back to Meadow Park everyone for the start of 2018/19 season.

I’d just like to start by thanking everyone for last season - players, management team, committee, fans and sponsors - for all your support and commitment last season.

Finishing fourth was a huge achievement for us, a small club with limited resources, and it’s testament to everyone involved with the club. As people often say we are punching above our weight in this league. What we have is a team of hard working and dedicated committee, a fantastic group of players, a great management team and a superb set of fans which makes the club what it is today.

On the playing side we’ve managed to keep all the lads who we had last season and also added a few great additions. Mark ‘Sparky’ Davison is a top, top player who has joined us from Morpeth and needs no introduction to RCA. We’ve also signed Alex Ramshaw from Seaham, who’s a player we’ve all been impressed with pre-season. As we like to have a core of local lads at the club we’ve also signed some young exciting talent in Dom Moan, Sam Lilley, Sam Robinson and young Spanish keeper Andy Kokoska.

James - Lenny - French has joined RCA as a goalkeeping coach. Carl Morris will continue with us, but because of family commitments - his daughter has started playing football - he cannot make every Saturday.

Lenny played Northern League football for most his career and worked with Martin Swales at Ryhope CW and Bishop Auckland. He's a great addition to our team.

Lenny started playing for Greatham in the Wearside League many moons ago. They then merged into Hartlepool Town and eventually made it into the Northern League Division 2, only to fold shortly afterwards due to financial problems. From there Lenny went to Chester-le-Street, the club he played for the longest. He then stopped playing - for all of three months. He returned to the game to play for Esh Winning when they we were promoted to the Northern League Division 1. Lenny then signed for Washington and subsequently for Ryton, gaining promotion to Division 1 with both clubs. After leaving Ryton he signed for Ryhope CW and moved into coaching. Lenny then followed Martin Swales to Bishop Auckland, finishing there last season.

Ross McNab in first half action for RCA.

Please click here for more photos from the match. Thanks very much to Simon Mears for the photos from tonight.

After another sweltering day more suited to Perth in Australia than Perth Green in South Tyneside, RCA took the short trip to Northern League Division 2 side Jarrow for their sixth pre-season game. We had played Jarrow in a friendly before last season and they gave us a good game. That was the club's first season in the Northern League where they finished 12th. I expected a proper game which would give some indication of what we might expect this season.

New signing Sam Robinson turns with the ball during a first half attack by RCA in Thursday evening's pre season game at AFC Killingworth.

After having me tea at Bob and Thelma's, I made my way to Amberley Playing Fields for the pre season friendly against AFC Killingworth, who had kindly agreed to reverse the original fixture. The home club,  the product of a recent merger between Killingworth YPC and Killingworth Town, have had a great start to their pre season, beating fellow North Tyneside club Cullercoats 8 - 1.