January 8th 2010

Well here we are again with the season just around the corner, remember Senior training gets under way the 3rd week in January. Pete Ware has been appointed as First Grade coach again, "congratulations Pete" we will be looking to continue on with another successful season that saw us finish 3rd in the Football Far North Coast Premier League last year though looking for an improved coordinated effort from all concerned to take us back to the top.

With Hans Enter reappointed as Club President the Club as a whole will be looking to continure on with another great year which included the memorable match and  day between Byron  Bay and Gold Coast United with approximately 2000 people in attendance.

Again the focus will be on Youth Development with the Premier Reserve Grade squad aimed at the very best under 21 talent that  we can find from the North Coast, so if you are a young guy looking to challenge yourself and break into Premier Division Football, Byron is the club for you. We are looking at making contact with any Youth players interested, even if you know of anyone that you think is capable of challenging themselves in the Premier League let them know we are looking for them.

Along with the Premier Squad teams, we will also be fielding teams in lower divisions so even if you aren't a Maradonna we will have a team for you to fit in so don't hesitate, come back and play or if your new come and meet some new crew and have some fun along the way. 

There will be a strict fees before you play deal this year so if your short of cash start putting the money aside now as the season opener is still a few months away, last years fees of $250 dollars are a possibility and we are aiming at keeping it the same if possible and if we are able to gain more sponsorship even lowering them somewhat.

Look forward to seeing you soon.

January 9th 2010

As most of you at Byron FC are aware I (Sheldon) was involved in  motor vehicle accident between my car and a semi trailer on the Pacific highway just on 2 years ago. As part of my recovery I've set a positive goal of travelling throughout Africa and along the way raising football / soccer equipment and donations for the kids in the Gondar and Lalibella regions in the north of Ethiopia. 

Matt Stockdale from Link Ethiopia is looking to set up a competition between a dozen or so schools and the kids need boots, shorts and shirts to play in and gear to practice with.. They have very limited equipment so anything would be very much appreciated.

Our first grade coach Peter Ware has set aside Saturday 13th  Febuary for the day.  On the day you can donate any old good conditioned boots. shirts shorts or simply make a donation to help get the gear over to the kids in Ethiopia. Even if you dont have anything maybe you could drop drop down to vinnes etc and pick up a pair of boots shorts etc for a few bucks what ever the size to donate them.

The other cause I hope  to raise awareness and donations for and as I'll be doing the trip on a motorbike is Riders for  Health which is a charity that supplies motorcycles and equipment to the local people so that they are able to get medical supplies to the remote communities throughout parts of Africa which  in itself is another fantastic cause.

It would be great if you could organize it so that you are free on that Saturday and be a part of what should be a fantastic fun day and great way to kick off the 2010 season.

Please take a few minutes to check two short videos on what we hope to hope to help with and visit my website at www.rideforsmiles.com

www.rideforsmiles.com
Click here to check out ex England and Liverpool legend John Barnes speaking in Ethiopia
Click here to check out a short video on Riders for Health
March 3rd 2010

United Nations in Byron Bay to play the world game.

Byron Bay has been attracting tourists from all over the world for many years and as we know many stay and settle. This season the Byron Bay Rams Premier League football squad has attracted gifted players from all over the planet to play what is called the world game. It's still called Soccer by many here in Australia and the US however the rest of the world is passionate about "their" game called Football.

The Rams have just signed players from Singapore, Ireland, Brazil, Switzerland, New Zealand, United States, Trinidad & Tobago, and 2 brothers from Sudan in Africa. They've also been trialing a player from France and one from Spain. 
Head coach Peter Ware (originally from Scotland) commented it is fantastic to have such a diverse squad that has so much combined international experience. The new squad has been training together for over a month while the coaching staff has been doing selection trials. The local lads love playing with the 'internationals" and can learn so much from each other's different playing styles.

With a few top-flight players going overseas or interstate in the off season to pursue careers in professional leagues and some other lads moving, Byron Bay FC took the decision to build their ranks with talented youth players from the region and develop them to the highest level. "Peter Ware said "we did the same thing several years ago, restructured the squad and had five exceptional lads aged only seventeen in the top grade Premier team, then went on to win the Championship!"

This season the club pushed hard to attract talented youth age players from all over the Far North Coast and to become a centre of excellence for developing youth football. The word got out and a host of ex-representative and other talented youth players from Lismore, Ballina, Alstonville, Lennox Head, Byron Bay, Bangalow, Ocean Shores and rural areas everywhere in between will now playing for the Byron Rams.

"We are looking to the future so this year we want our Premier League reserves team to be all aged under 21 if possible." Peter Ware added. "I'm really happy with the new squad and we've been surprised with the huge array of emerging talent that we have found. "Its great to see them all pushing the envelope at training with regards their skills development. There is a really enthusiastic vibe with everyone really enjoying playing the best football they can amongst other young talented players."

"I'm also pretty happy with the new patterns and combinations we've been working on and now we are just "tweaking" the younger lads' mental and physical toughness in readiness for the pre-season Anzac cup".

In another new development for the Rams, the Premier League squad will enter in the Northern NSW FA knock out competition in the next few weeks. The Club is "buzzing" with the way the new squad is shaping up so far and looking forward to a great season.

March 14th 2010

Byron Bay Rams give Pottsville a taste of the Premier League
(By Rick Knight)

The torrential rain over the last 2 weeks spoilt Pottsville's debut back into the FFNC Premier League last week in the 1st round of the pre-season Anzac Cup competition.  However it seemed even a soggy oval with sheets of water across it wasn't going to stop them from playing at their new ground against the Byron Bay Rams. With their competition win last year in 1st division and promotion to the Premier League, and several excellent new players, Pottsville was out to prove they will be a force to be reckoned with this season.
The Rams were still without several key players due to injury and suspension however this year they have signed several new experienced players and a host of very talented younger players, keen to prove they can claim a spot in top Premier grade.
Pottsville started with a bang and after only a few minutes had their first shot. They continued to dominate the scrappy play and force the Rams to play defensive football for the first 30 minutes. Byron is used to a fast tactical game however the slow soggy pitch and heavy water soaked ball worked against them.  Byron switched player combinations several times and finally got them working in the last 15 minutes of the 1st half. The Rams started channelling the ball up the flanks and 15 year old talented new comer Sam Robson in only his 2nd Men's  game slotted a beautiful cross in from the left wing to find the head of 16 year old Nolan Pierce. Pierce was able to make the most of his 6'2" height to win the ball in the air and flick it into the top right hand corner just a few minutes before half time.
The waterlogged conditions frustrated both teams, and 12 minutes into the 2nd half the Rams conceded a free kick just outside the penalty box and a deflection off the defensive wall went to an unmarked Pottsville striker. He made no mistake evening the score to the delight of the very vocal and parochial local crowd.  The goal brought the Rams to life and they dominated the rest of the match.  New signings - Greg McDonnell commanded the backline and Shannan Maciejewski dominated the centre combining well with Sam Owens in the front line. Jonathan Pierce created plenty of chances from the midfield however the winning goal proved elusive despite several shots from the Byron strikers, and they had to settle for a 1-1 draw.
No doubt Head Coach Peter Ware will be working hard at the training sessions again during the week to fine tune the combinations of his 9 new signings with the established players. "It takes time to develop" he said after the game "and we've got plenty of keen, promising talented footballers this year to work with. This Anzac Cup is a great opportunity for us to try new patterns and "battle harden" the young guys before the main competition starts in a few weeks".
The Rams are looking forward to next Sunday's tough clash at home against last year's Premier League runners up Goonellabah. It will be an exciting game between arguably two of the best Premier League clubs in this year's competition. The game will start at 4.30 on Sunday at the Byron Bay Recreation grounds.

March 21st 2010

Rams take the sting out of the Hornets

The Byron Bay "Rams" Premier League Football team went into the 3rd round of the Anzac Cup pre-season competition on the weekend as underdogs. Last year the Goonellabah "Hornets" beat the "Rams" convincingly in each of their 3 games. A long list of unavailable top line players and disappointing form in 1-1 draws to Ballina and Premier League debutants Pottsville over the last 2 weeks also didn't bode well for the Rams on paper.

As always there was a good crowd on hand to watch the two top flight clubs do battle and they weren't disappointed in what was to be an exciting high scoring clash.

Rams Coach Peter Ware totally restructured the squad during the week was finally able to utilise the experience of the Captain -Tom Ruhl, back from suspension and utility defender Ian Lennie now fully fit after a muscle injury.

The Byron home ground was in perfect condition and the Rams asserted themselves at the start with a solid strike from their new central midfielder, Irishman Greg McDonald in a goalmouth melee, finding the net after only 5 minutes to take them to an early lead. The Hornets closed up their defence after their early shock and fought back with a succession of attacks.

The Rams backline was rock solid with 3 new talented recruits - powerhouse Ben Coulter, Bruce Knaggs and brilliant 15 year old ex FFNC representative player Sam Robson with Lennie directing traffic. They took hit after hit from the determined Goonellabah strikers and kept them at bay.

Up front Tom Ruhl was enjoying his first game and getting his eye in with a couple of strikes on goal. 20 minutes in, Sam Owens saw Tim Knight making a break up the middle and chipped a well timed pass allowing Knight to slip past the Hornets defenders and deceive the Hornets keeper taking the score to 2-0. Goonellabah returned fire and Rams in-form keeper was forced to make a brilliant finger tip save just before the break.

Goonellabah showed more control and dominance in the second half and kept looking for holes in the Rams defence. Thiago Priori and Mario Tinning were stand outs in attack for the Hornets. Rams newcomer - Shannan Maciejewski was unstoppable in the midfield paring up brilliantly with Coulter, his old teammate from Ballina FC. Time and again they redirected the Hornets attack. Nolan Pierce was also strong in the midfield.

From one of many lovely builds up in play, Robson made a run down the flank and belted a cross off to Tom Ruhl hovering around goal. He took his chance with a flick into the net to demoralise the visitors 3-0.
With just 10 minutes to go the Rams had relaxed a little allowing the hornets to hit back with a late goal to salvage some dignity for their fans. However arguably the best Rams play of the day came next when Robson made an excellent break down the sideline and crossed to Owens, He slipped a high pass to Ruhl waiting on the right of the Hornets goalmouth. Ruhl made no mistake with a beautiful header into the top corner of the net to confirm victory at 4-1.

With only 2 minutes to go, an uncharacteristic slip up with a misdirected pass in the Rams backline caught Keeper Kai Connell off guard. Bruce Knaggs tried in vain to intercept the ball before it crossed the goal line but by then the win to Byron Bay was never in doubt and the final score stood at 4-2.

The positional reshuffle and new player roster has inject new confidence into the Byron Squad and they seemed to have put their 2 disappointing earlier games behind them. With the news that 2009 "Golden Boot" winner Jordy Campbell re-signed during the week and experienced play-maker Yantra Whitling will be available soon, Byron fans will really have something to look forward to this season. The make up for the Anzac Cup finals is still in doubt at the moment, with several important rescheduled games still to play.

However next Saturday The Byron Bay Rams will have a huge challenge when they take on Port Maquarie at home in the first round of the new Northern NSW Football Clubs knock out

10 April 2010

Young Rams debut against Ballina

On Saturday the long wait was over for most of the Byron Rams Premier Reserves team to play their first game of the season. They've been training for 2 ½ months now and had being itching to play. With an average age of just 17, for most it was to be their first taste of men's Premier grade football. The Rams have recruited very well from all over the Far North Coast and the young reserves players have been carefully selected for their excellent football talent and future potential to play in the 1st team.
Last Saturday's clash against last year's Minor Champions Ballina was to be a good test.  The teams were attacking and defending evenly in the first half until the Byron Rams Captain - Nolan Pierce celebrating his 17th birthday unleashed a cracker shot at goal. The Ballina keeper could only deflected it. Nick Enter pounced on the loose ball to score and the Rams took their one goal lead into the half time break.
The Ballina Seahorses came back in the second half fighting and despite powerhouse efforts from Rams Sam Robson, Tom Moore, Mav White and Pierce, Ballina racked up 3 goals to finally win 3-1. Rams experienced defender Bruce Knaggs also cemented the backline. Despite the loss the lads did remarkably well and have learnt valuable lessons in time for their "local derby" match against Bangalow next weekend.
In the top grade Premier game there was a score to settle after Ballina trounced the Rams in last year's semi finals. Ballina started strong and forced Rams keeper Kai Connell to use all of his skill to deflect a mighty strike after only 12 minutes. Defender Greg McDonnell had to be replaced after 30 minutes with an ankle injury .The Rams kept the attacks coming however a combination of good Ballina defence, luck and poor finishing kept the score at nil-all at half time.
The Rams finally found the net 8 minutes into the second half with an attacking break down the right flank. Jordy Campbell received the ball and crossed it in front of goal for Shannon Maciejewski to score in the bottom right hand corner of the net against his old team. The Rams dominated the rest of the game; however their strikers couldn't seem to find the net. With only 3 minutes to go Maciejewski broke his leg in an accident while defending in front of goal. He will be sorely missed as the Rams central midfielder workhorse.
The Rams successfully defended their 1- 0 win and early premiership points however it had come at a high price.
The Byron Bay Rams have a busy schedule this week with the Anzac Cup semi final game against Lismore Rovers on Tuesday night in Lismore, and the big showdown on Saturday against arch rivals Bangalow at the Bangalow fields.

Sunday 18th April

Arch Rivals Clash in Bangalow

The Premier League football local derby between Bangalow Bludogs and Byron Bay Rams is always one of the main events on the far north coast football calendar. There was a large and passionate crowd on hand to watch the clash on Saturday. A controversial split in the Byron Premier squad last year lead to several Byron reserves players transferring to Bangalow this season adding fuel to the rivalry. With 2 losses from their last 2 encounters last year the new look Bangalow squad was out to prove they were a match for the in-form Rams outfit. The Rams have had a busy preseason schedule playing in the Anzac Cup and Nth NSW FA Solo Cup and had been undefeated in 6 games already this year. However it has taken its toll with serious season ending injuries to talented midfielders James Packham and Shannan Maciejewski. Irish defender Greg McDonnell was also on the bench with an ankle injury. Before the game Coach Peter Ware said "with 3 games in a week and our 1-0 win over last year's competition winners Lismore Rovers on Tuesday night in the Anzac cup, the heavy schedule has left us with a few fitness worries. However we've got a great side this year with good depth so I'm still confident".
The 2 teams fought hard right from the start and the hit outs in the midfield were intense. Bangalow's central midfield playmaker Joel Rudgley distributed the ball to his striker Conner Benfield and the wingers beautifully however the Rams defence lead by American "enforcer" Ian Lennie and Trinidadian Bruce (man) Knaggs continued to shut them down each time. The play moved all over the pitch with each team looking for weaknesses. Both teams looked quite even until the 18th minute when Rams central midfielder Jonathan Pierce distributed a ball to Sudanese winger Baitok Thoingkol and he took off down the left wing and played a lovely ball to Jordy Campbell.  He evaded the Bludogs defence of Mark Shepherd and Josh McInerney then knocked the ball under the Bangalow keeper to break the stalemate.
The 2 teams looked evenly matched on the park for most of the game however the statistics told a very different story with the Rams 20 shots on goal to the Bludogs 2 shots. The Rams just couldn't seem to get on target with numerous strikes from Thoingkol, Tom Ruhl, Yantra Whitling, Tim Knight, Ben Coulter and Campbell missing their mark. Bluedogs striker Benfield looked dangerous almost scoring twice but Rams outstanding 15 year old defender Sam Robson stopped him in his tracks.
In the last few minutes Ruhl sent a beautiful through ball to Rams striker Jordy Campbell and in a 1 on 1 confrontation with the Bludogs replacement keeper he made no mistake to ensure the win for Byron Bay. However in the dying moments Bangalow returned fire forcing Rams keeper Kai Connell to work hard to parry a cracking shot.
The 2 nil win added to the Bludogs disappointment after they also lost to the teenage Rams 1-0 Premier reserves team in a scrappy and often spiteful encounter earlier in the afternoon, despite having a much more experienced squad.
The Rams high level schedule continues next Sunday when they contest the Anzac Cup Grand Final against Goonellabah then they will travel to Woolgoolga the following weekend to play Tamworth in the next round of the Nth NSW FA knockout Solo Cup. The Bluedogs will have a bye next weekend then play Thistles in Lismore on 1st May