Football
Reds to honour much-loved Bill

THERE will be a poignant feel to tomorrow's match at the Valley Stadium as Redditch United pay tribute to a stalwart former player and supporter when Brackley Town arrive.

The Reds have declared the fixture against the Evo-Stik Southern League Premier Division leaders as a memorial match in honour of former centre back William (Bill) Aston who sadly passed away recently aged 89.

Bill joined Redditch in 1951 and enjoyed many excellent seasons, including 1953 when he captained the team to become Birmingham Combination champions and Worcestershire Senior Cup runners-up.

This success was also repeated in 1955 and in 1957 the Reds were runners-up in the Birmingham Senior Cup.

Before the match, in which the Reds will bid to halt a slump in form which has seen them lose four of their last five matches to drop to within two places and three points of the drop zone, United chairman Chris Swan and players will join Bill's family to pay tribute to a much-loved associate of the club.

Club spokeswoman Lisa Thomson said: "Bill was always a dedicated footballer and when he could not get to training he would train on his own.

"His dedication went as far as him playing with a broken ankle, stuffing snow down his boots to numb the pain!

"Bill always said he was not a brilliant player, but he sure knew how to stop the ones who were!"

Redditch, who will welcome St Albans City to the Valley on Tuesday in a rearranged league fixture, were undone by an 86th minute winner from Wayne Turk as they lost 1-0 at second bottom Cirencester Town on Saturday.

In a poor match played in blustery conditions, the visitors had ridden their luck somewhat in the opening hour but came to life in the final third of the game when boss Graham Hyde introduced Lee Osborne from the bench to play on the left and Walsall loanee Jake Jones switched to the right wing.

Home keeper Mike Hedges produced a sublime save to thwart Tom Berwick's 70th minute snap-shot and soon afterwards defender Tesfa Robinson headed just over.

The hosts then struck against the run of play and the Reds, despite seeing Osborne fire just wide and Jones denied by another fine save at the death, had to return empty-handed.