Landmark fixture to close 2025 home campaign
- dbettley
- Dec 18, 2025
- 5 min read
RUNCORN LINNETS v Atherton Collieries
Friday, December 19th 2025
Pitching In Northern Premier League West Division
APEC Taxis Stadium, Stockham Lane, Murdishaw, Runcorn, WA7 6GJ
Our final game before Christmas and last home match of 2025 brings Atherton Collieries to town for what will be our 950th competitive game.
With our first ever meeting with Colls coming back in our second season and intense battles in the mid-2010s as we fought for the NWCL Premier Division title, it is easy to think that Linnets and Colls have been forever rivals.
But there have been just five previous home games against Friday's visitors, all of them in the league.
We had first encountered Colls in the opening game of 2006-07, drawing 2-2 at their ground in our first top-flight North West Counties game.
Subsequent relegation and promotions meant we have not spent more than two successive seasons in each other's company.
Linnets v Colls - a timeline of home meetings:
2006-07
Runcorn promoted to NWCL Division One as Division Two runners-up
2007-08
Tuesday, October 23rd 2007
RUNCORN LINNETS 1
Atherton Collieries 5
(at Wincham Park)
Attendance: 145.
2008-09
NWCL Division One is renamed Premier Division
Tuesday, September 16th 2008
RUNCORN LINNETS 3
Atherton Colls 0
(at Wincham Park)
Colls relegated to Division One at end of season.
2014-15
Colls seal return to NWCL Premier Division as Division One champions.
2015-16
Saturday, September 19th 2015
RUNCORN LINNETS 1
Atherton Collieries 4
Attendance: 360
2016-17
Saturday September 24th 2016
RUNCORN LINNETS 2
Atherton Collieries 0
Attendance: 431
Colls win NWCL Premier Division title and are promoted to NPL Divison One as Linnets finish runners-up for a third season in a row.
2017-18
Runcorn finally clinch the NWCL Premier Division championship and promotion to NPL Division One to be reunited with Colls.
2018-19
Saturday, January 12th 2019
RUNCORN LINNETS 0
Atherton Collieries 3
Vincent Bailey (40), Ben Conway (75), Ian Rowlands (87)
Attendance: 480
Runcorn Linnets team: Dylan Forth, Louis Corrigan, Peter Wylie, Aaron Morris, Matt Russell, Ronnie McCarthy, Kurt Sherlock, Kyle Hamid, Freddie Potter, Paul Shanley, Ryan Gibson. Subs: Josh Dobie, Luke Noble, Mitch Bryant. Not used: Kris Holt, Bobby Evans.
Colls win NPL West Division title and go up to the NPL Premier Division
2023-24
Colls are relegated back to the second tier of the NPL.
2024-25
Friday, January 24th 2025
RUNCORN LINNETS 2
Luke Wall (39l, Lewis Doyle (82)
Atherton Collieries 1
(Aron Dwyer 90+3)
Attendance: 483
Runcorn Linnets team: Bayleigh Passant, Peter Wylie, Naim Arsan, Jacques Welsh, Callum Grogan, Jack Grundy, Adam Moseley (Jaden Jones, 58 mins), Lewis Doyle, Dean Adekoya (Ryan Brooke, 77 mins), Luke Wall (Lewis Nolan, 89 mins), Eden Gumbs. Subs (not used): Karl Clair, Przemek Staniszewski.
Brad's in charge against former charges
We have hosted Colls with five different managers - Steve Carragher (2007), Steve Wilkes (2008), Joey Dunn (2016) Michael Ellison (2019) and Antony,Kay (2025).
Colls' visit to Murdishaw in January was Antony Kay's penultimate game as our manager.
Now Brad Cooke becomes the sixth, tackling Colls for the first time at the APEC after two away victories in as many attempts against his former club.
The second of these was in this season's NPL opener on August 9th when we ran out 2-0 winners with goals from Adam Moseley and Scott Bakkor.
After missing out last Saturday at Sporting Khalsa, this is another chance to bag our first double of the campaign.
Colls connections
Linnets players Lewis Doyle, Adam Rooney, Scott Bakkor and Marcus Cusani are all former Atherton Collieries players.
Form guide
The visitors are 10th in the NPL West table, four places and five points behind Linnets, having played two games more.
Colls triumphed 3-2 at Stafford Rangers in theur last away game but had picked up just one point from the previous four matches on their travels, this being a very encouraging 0-0 at Bury which leaves them unbeaten in two on the road.
Their other NPL West wins on opposition soil have come at Newcastle Town, Witton Albion and Chasetown. Colls have the division's seventh best away record with 14 points from 11 games.
Linnets' haul of 22 points from nine games leaves us fifth in the home standings, although we have played fewer home games than all the teams other than Clitheroe who have likewise played nine.
Tuesday's 2-0 home defeat of Clitheroe brought our fifth clean sheet in our 20 league matches this season, the others have come against Kidsgrove, also at the APEC, and away to Colls, Mossley and Nantwich Town.
How to get here
By car - postcode for APEC Taxis Stadium is WA7 6GJ.
By train - Runcorn is served by two railway stations, Runcorn (Liverpool Lime Street to London line, also with services from Chester and Birmingham) and Runcorn East (trains to and from Manchester, Chester and North Wales). Both stations are served by buses running close to the stadium, although Runcorn High Street bus station (10-minute walk) offers a wider choice for passengers using Runcorn Railway Station.
By bus - the ground is a short walk from the Runcorn Busway - alight at Orniston Bollingbroke Academy (Halton High School) and follow pathway on the opposite side of the busway from the school to Murdishaw Avenue and cross into Stockham Lane. Many local services (including Shopping City circular) run on the busway as well as those from Widnes, Warrington, Liverpool and Chester.
A local taxi service is provided by APEC Taxis (tel 01928 575757)
Christmas in the community
This is the last opportunity for our fans to contribute gifts for this year's Halton Christmas Toy Appeal and our own collection for those living in local care homes.
Items, new and unwrapped please, can be brought to the clubhouse before this game. We would be very grateful for donations.
Club shop
Don't forget to pop into our Linnets shop on matchdays. There are plenty of Christmas gift ideas inside! Alternatively, visit our online store.
Car parking
There is a large free car park on site.
Bar and catering
The licensed clubhouse bar offers a range of alcoholic and non-alcholic drinks while hot food, tea, coffee and soft drinks and confectionery are on sale from the tea bar.
Admission
Adult - £11
(£2 discount for Halton Leisure Card holders)
Concession (Over 65s) - £8
Juniors (18 and under) - £2
Tickets can be purchased in advance here
Season ticket holders can bring a friend for free
For this fixture only, our season ticket holders are invited to bring a guest - somebody who would not ordinarily attend our matches - for free admission.
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