CHADDERTON 1 PRESTWICH HEYS 2

SATURDAY 26TH DECEMBER 2025 NW COUNTIES PREMIER DIVISION ATT: 358

Report by Stephen Howard
Pictures by Bethany Lee

Prestwich Heys rounded off the year in style with a superb victory at promotion chasing Chadderton on Boxing Day.

After their disappointing and lacklustre home defeat against Barnoldswick Town prior to Christmas, Heys performance here was the polar opposite, bursting with energy, grit and determination they largely nullified the division’s most potent attack, which combined with some fine football saw them emerge worthy winners on the back of first half goals from David Badrock and Dre Taylor.

Infront of a big Bank Holiday crowd, it was the hosts who opened the livelier and were first to threaten as they worked the ball down the middle, to the edge of the area, where Adam Dale fired in a shot that Heys keeper Lee White had to be alert to it push round the post in the third minute

Heys did begin to settle into their stride, with Takura Sambizi threatening down the left, and it was from his cross in the ninth minute, that they had their first opening, but Louis Holt couldn’t keep his header down.

However, Heys didn’t have to wait too much longer to take the lead as in the 12th minute Rob Worrall concluded some good build up play by whipping in a cross that was met by a fine looping header from David Badrock to register his first goal for the club.

There was little to choose between the sides as both pressed and probed and the home side were next to go close as from a corner the ball dropped for Dale, on the edge of the area, but his shot was blocked for another corner which Heys cleared.

With some niggly fouls beginning to punctuate proceedings the game became a little stop-start
and there was a delay when the home side saw their 37-goal top scorer Lewis Simon-Byrne have to leave the field in the 25th minute with an ankle injury.

When play resumed it was Heys who seized the initiative. On the half hour a Worrall cross picked out Holt whose low header was pushed round the post by Morgan Bacon, but the home keeper could do nothing to prevent Prestwich doubling their lead two minutes later with a superb team goal.

The move started deep in Heys half, with the ball progressing via some sharp passing to Sambizi on the left. The wideman then made a strong crossfield run before playing a slide rule pass in behind the defence for Luke Byron to run onto, from the right of the penalty box. From his cross the ball fell to Taylor who fired hard and low into the bottom right corner to cap a glorious passage of play.

Heys had the bit between their teeth now and almost had a third in the 35th minute when a Sambizi cross from the left found Holt whose header was kept out by the outstretched arm of Bacon, but it was doubtful whether the keeper knew much about it.

The lead was held until half time and on the restart, it was Heys who were again first to show with some fine play ending with an angled Taylor shot clipping the far post.

With the home side looking for a way back the game became tetchy with some niggly fouls and tempers boiled over in the 56th minute when Taylor was hit high prompting a coming together of players from both sides.

When play resumed Heys went close again when Worrall chased a through ball but was beaten to it by Bacon, but the keeper fired his kick straight at the Heys man and it rebounded goalwards but alas just wide.

Shortly after, Taylor was on the end of another sharp challenge and was replaced by Luke Mann, who made an immediate impression as he too went into the referee’s notebook, as the game continued to simmer.

Mann was to make a more positive contribution shortly after by almost adding Heys third as he latched onto a Luke Byron cross with a volley that went just wide.

As Heys looked to protect their lead, they made further changes with Alfe Carmichael and Ethan Cummings replacing Holt and Sambizi.

Entering the final stages, it was the hosts who pressed. Tyler Berry fired wide and White got down sharply to push a near post shot from Bentio Lowe to safety.

With the referee signalling seven minutes of added time, Heys dug in. Led by the Badrock brothers who has been solid throughout, the visitors continued to defend resolutely, as they had done all afternoon, a header here, a foot in there, amidst timely clearances combined to keep the hosts at bay.

In their 96th minute however their resistance was broken from the penalty spot. Former Heys player Connor Berry was the man who went to ground and the one who then stepped up to fire past White, although the Heys ‘keeper got a hand to it.

There was still time for one more attack however, with Chadderton forcing a corner, from which all twenty-two players on the field gathered in the box. When delivered the ball flashed across the face of goal and was promptly followed by the referee’s whistle to confirm Heys victory.

Heys opened 2025 rock bottom of the table, ten points adrift of third bottom Squires Gate, whom they faced at Adie Moran Park, winning three goals to nil to spark the Great Escape. They head into the New Year in a comfortable midtable position and their present thirty-six-point total from twenty-four games matches their total haul for the whole of last season. In the context of that statistic and this performance, it’s a testament to the progress they have made which they will hope to build on in 2026.

TEAM: Lee White, Joe Camozzi, Luke Findlow, James Badrock (Capt.), David Badrock, Josh Tinker, Luke Byron, Rob Worrall, Louis Holt, Nicholas Dre Taylor, Takura Sambizi, Subs: Luke Mann (for Taylor 65 mins), Alfie Belcher (for Camozzi 90 mins), Ethan Cummings (for Sambizi 81 mins), Alistair Bracken, Alfie Carmichael (for Holt 75 mins)