BARNARD Castle-based Glaxo Rangers FC have folded.
Manager Andrew Hall cited lack of commitment from players as the cause for the club’s demise.
The club played in the first division of the Crook and District League on a Saturday afternoon and had completed nine of their ten fixtures and were due to have welcomed Middlestone Moor FC to the Manor Farm ground last weekend.
In a statement Mr Hall, who was at the helm for five seasons, said: “Due to lack of commitment of players it is with immediate effect that Glaxo Rangers have withdrawn from the Crook and District league.
“This is in no way down to management and staff and solely down to player commitment.”
He added: “It’s a really sad day as I’ve been involved in coaching in Barnard Castle for 20 years, taking charge of an U6 side and taking them through all the ages in the Teesside Alliance league until they finished at U16 level. Five or six of that squad went on to Glaxo Rangers.
“These lads asked me to help the team out mid-season of 2016/17 when they were at the bottom of the second division.
“That season was a struggle but with a regular training structure and a good pre-season programme, Glaxo hit the ground running and won the second division by five points [in 2017/18]. They have been in the top flight ever since.”
Mr Hall said it wasn’t just Glaxo who were struggling with attracting players who wanted to take the field.
He said: “Commitment is a problem which has meant reduced leagues throughout the area.”
However, he paid tribute to those who have supported the club since its formation in the 2014/15 season.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank GSK for its great support and fantastic facilities, Sarah and all her staff at the social club, the financial help from all our sponsors over the years – especially Caroline Kelly at KGB cleaning and support services who has helped me with all my teams throughout the years.”
He added: “For the players who are keen, I hope you get to play at other clubs next season.
“I am now retiring from coaching but with football in my blood I’m pulling on my boots again and trying my luck at walking football with Middleton Wanderers WFC to still be involved with the buzz of a match day and the camaraderie of team sports.”
![A COUNTY councillor is backing a campaign to get a pedestrian crossing in Staindrop. Frustrated parish councillors in the village summoned their county council representative Cllr George Richardson to their latest meeting to discuss several issues, including the call for a safe way to cross the A688. Earlier this year their request for a crossing was turned down by the county council’s highways officers. Parish council chairman Jonothan Raper described the reasons for the refusal as “spurious” and called on Cllr Richardson to support their campaign. He added: “One of the arguments they made was there is no clear line of desire when they studied the village – well this isn’t a clear line of desire because there isn’t a crossing, people cross whenever they can. “When the lollipop person was there, one of the things I noticed was people would walk all the way down to the lollipop person to cross the road to go to the shop or to go to the school.” He added a problem of parking at the primary school is exacerbated because people are too afraid to walk their children across the road. Cllr Richardson said he had supported previous attempts for a crossing point with the first being made about 15 years ago. He added: “We went fairly well down the road with that and they looked into it. The only recommended place was where the bus stop is and to get the visibility splays, people on the other side of the road would lose their parking. “That didn’t go down well so it just died a death.” Cllr Raper said he suspected the real reason for the officers’ refusal was the cost of installing a crossing. He added that much of the cost could be recovered from savings made on not having to employ a lollipop patrol. Cllr Raper said: “A lollipop person only provides a benefit of crossing for three hours of the day. You are getting 21 extra hours of crossing time [with a pedestrian crossing].” Cllr Richardson said he would raise the issue with the county council’s cabinet member for highways, Cllr John Shuttleworth.](https://teesdalemercury.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/georgeR-120x86.jpg)
