Report by Ben Miles:

The annual epic journey to WorldNet started on Friday 13th July as both Bury Fans’ teams met at a rainy Gigg Lane at dinner time and made the Journey to Leeds down the M62.

After arriving at their destination, Boddington Hall University site, and checking in at the hotel, Headingley Lodge, preparations began for the A Teams IFA Cup Final clash that was due to Kick Off at 6:30pm.

Jamie and Ste from the B Team went off to train for the England side that were due to play Scotland, and once changed,  the A Team made their way to the pitches to both support their compatriots whilst also warming up for their own game.

Poor weather conditions saw the Scotland side turn up late, causing the game to kick off later than expected.  When the match finally started, both Jamie and Ste were selected to play the first half, with Jamie being put on the right wing and Ste in his customary position at centre half.

Both players put in solid displays, but were unable to stop a strong Scotland side walking out 3-0 winners.

In driving rain, the A team made their way to the pitch, only to be faced with the news that their game had been reduced to just 35 minutes per half, due to the delayed England v Scotland game.

Fielding a side very different to the one that would take place in the following tournament, the well organized Hibernian side set about putting the Shakers under pressure from the very start.  Closing down well and not giving Bury any time on the ball, they raced into a 2 goal lead with a pair of well taken goals after some slick passing.

Having lost influential midfielder Ant early on, Lil H (Kevin Hothersall), deputised in the middle for the majority of the game.

With words of encouragement still ringing in their ears from manager Mark Hothersall, Bury began to pay like the side we all know they can.  With better passing and being more vocal with each other, they began to play more as a team and tested the strong Hibs team and made them work to keep the Shakers at bay.

Despite a better second half performance, the Hibs team ran out 5-0 winners, even though they were a man down for the remaining few minutes after some foolish back chat earnt a red card.

Despite the result, it was a very ‘strong’ Hibernian team that Bury came up against, and can be very proud of their achievements in making it to the Final.

Most of the Fans team went out into Headingley after getting showered and changed and spent most of the night in the SkyRack bar, and after a good drinking session went next door for a Curry/Pizza before heading back to their various accommodations for the night and getting some shut eye before the tournament began the following day.

Saturday morning brought with it an early start and overcast conditions, and after a good breakfast, both teams met up to start preparations for the day.  Between them, a total of 8 matches were to take place over the course of the day, with places in the Cup, Trophy or Bowl up for grabs.

Having lost Ant the evening before, he rang in to say he would be unavailable for the day and was spending the day with an ice pack on.  To further add to Bury’s central midfield problems, captain Carl was also absent due to personal reasons.

After watching the B teams first game, the A teams first match was against premiership West Ham.  A comfortable first game saw the shakers win 2-0, with goals coming from striker Graeme and winger Bob.

The second game, against Premiership opposition again in the form of Aston Villa, saw Bury once again triumph with a 2-1 victory, courtesy of strikes from Nev and a Villa own goal.  The game however had a sour note after Gaz was attended to by the paramedics standing by after getting caught in the face when on defensive duties.  The decision was taken for him to be taken to hospital with a suspected broken eye socket.

With all 3 of Bury’s central midfield now unavailable, Tom and Lil H were partnered in the middle for the remaining games of the day.

The next A team game, kicking off at 3:30, saw the Shakers pit their skills against the Liverpool fans, their 3rd Premiership opponents in a row.  Two goals from Graeme and 1 from Ben gave Bury a deserved 3-0 win, and with results going their way, Bury were through to the Cup competition with a game to spare.

With Manager Mark Hothersall determined to finish the day on a high, one of the last games of the day (6:15 pm KO), Bury were still playing for a win when they stepped against the Exeter B fans team.

Left winger Allan almost ripped a ball shaped hole in the Exeter net and Nev curled home a delightful left footed volley, and with the final whistle going Bury had finished the day unbeaten.

After the 1st day of the tournament, Bury A were 1 of only 2 teams out of the 72 taking part who finished on maximum points, with a goal difference of +8, having scored 9 and only conceding 1 goal in 4 games.

Another night out in Headingley beckoned, with the majority going to the Headingley Taps and some deciding to continue the nights exploits in nightclub Halo.

Another early start on the Sunday started with some members of the A Team watching the B team game with the others nursing sore heads.

The 1st game for the A team wasn’t scheduled to kick off until 1pm, as they were fortunate enough to receive a bye after the team they were due to play – their Cup Final opponents Hibernian – pulled out due to injuries.

Being drawn against the winners of Bradford v Celtic, Bury’s management and players watched the game with interest, looking for cracks in the armour of both teams.  With Bradford edging out Celtic on penalties after a 1-1 draw, a battle of the League 2 Rivals’ fans began.

With the rain once again coming down heavily, Bradford took an unexpected early lead after the Bury defence went to sleep.  With the 1st half about to end, Graeme pulled Bury back onto level terms with a deft lob over the Bradford City keeper and the teams went in at half time one apiece. The second half was a tight affair, with both teams going for the win.  Bury were the eventual winners, with stand in central midfielder Kev scoring to send the Shakers into the quarter finals.

The draw saw Bury take on foreign opponents, facing the winners of RC Lens and the Nigerian Arsenal supporters.

With little time to watch the game before it finished, Bury were straight back into action, facing the winners of the previous tie, RC Lens.

Being the strongest team Bury had faced since playing Hibs on the Friday, they were under the kosh early on as Lens piled on the pressure.  Taking a 1-0 lead going into half time, it was down to Bury to perform in the 2nd half and they had 15 minutes in which to do it.  Nev dropped back to help out with the strong Lens counter attacking, and a cracking goal from Tom sent the game into Golden Goal extra time.  With neither side able to break the deadlock, a penalty shoot out would decide the winner.

With the scores level at 4 apiece after 5 penalties per side, Bury had to score to win, but unfortunately the spot kick went wide of the post and we were into sudden death.  RC Lens converted their kick and Bury’s next went over the bar, and RC Lens had triumphed to reach the Semi Finals.

Every player who stepped up to take the penalties deserves credit for having the guts to step forward.

Every single squad member played a huge part in the successes over the weekend, and each and every one of them can be proud of themselves. 

Overcoming 3 Premiership teams and coming from behind twice in the knockout stages shows character and the true togetherness and determination throughout the squad.

Lots of positives were taken from the tournament and everyone is already looking forward to the forthcoming season in the hope of finishing in the top 6 in the League and giving themselves a chance of clinching the title that has eluded them over the past couple of seasons.

Report by Ben Miles, with thanks to Nev Hardman.

B Team Report by Neil Crossley:

Thanks to everyone who took part. I think everyone enjoyed it and everyone did get their promised two games on the Saturday, and it was just unfortunate that a friendly never materialised on the Sunday, but that was down to miscommunication and lots of teams leaving because of the weather too. Personally, I really enjoyed the weekend, and I hope everyone else did too.

I think the B team did everyone proud on Saturday. After getting beaten by a strong QPR side, we performed very well against Stockport B and were unlucky not to win. We were all over them and really should have taken something from the game. We then had, in my opinion, our best performance against Crewe, battering them 3-0, which gave us a lot of confidence. This carried through to our final group match against a depleted Hibs team. Although they could only produce eleven players, those players were quality and gave us a good match. With some of our squad players playing, we ended up losing 1-0, but were well worth the draw.

In the plate on Saturday, we held Mansfield to a scrappy 0-0 draw (after a good save by Neil) but were knocked out by a golden goal that came in contraversial circumstances. Their guy bundled into me and knocked the ball out of my hands, before handling it himself and putting it into the net. Linesman gave a penalty, the referee gave a goal, and chaos ensued. It was a really disappointing way to go out, especially as we probably did not do ourselves justice after our performances of the previous day.

However, I think everyone enjoyed the weekend and things are looking positive for the B team now if we manage to get into the IFA League this season.

The highlight of the weekend for me though has to be Rich's twenty minute rant in the curry house. Quality!

Chairman's view:

I hope everyone enjoyed the experience that is Worldnet.

I certainly did and thought that both sides on the pitch were excellent and were very unlucky on sunday to go out in the way that they did.

How many times have you seen a goal disallowed when a keeper is challenged ?
Unfortunately for us we had a referee who disagreed with the obvious and with this being 'a golden goal' that was it for the B team with the weather spoiling all our efforts at getting friendlies set up in particular for those players who did not start the Mansfield team.

The A team carried on the tradition now of finishing top of the saturday league then losing out on penalties against a very good RC Lens side.

That is 3 Worldnets and 3 defeats after extra time and penalties but there is always next year.

Off the field we met many friends who we have seen during the season and made many more.

I was very pleased in particular with our 'young uns' who seemed to really enjoy themselves, we all had a good time singing for Bury in the bar on friday (including me) and I am told that they were all as good as gold on saturday night with Christian in particular increasing our already good relationship with Preston.

Talking with other managers and officials it is clear that Forever Bury FC have a very good reputation in the IFA and this weekend I am sure has only enhanced this.

I think all the players should join me in thanking both the Managers and thanks also to everyone who helped 'behind the scenes' as well those who actually played for making Worldnet 2007 a big success.

A Team Manager's view:

Well worldnet is over for another year. But id like to say a massive well done to all my players for what i thought was a fantastic effort to win the tournament . We clean swept our group beating 3 premiership fans teams in liverpool , west ham and aston villa also playing exeter and only conceeding 1 goal . We got to the quarter final stage and where narowly beaten by rc lens on penalties on a bog of a pitch and with a bog of a referee who im sure had a tricoulour under his jacket but hey no sour grapes . I am proud of each and every one of you and im even more proud of the guys who steped up and took the penelties it takes guts to put your self in that position

Bob's Top Ten:

don't be too gloomy as there were so many high points at World Net. Everybody left everything on the pitch game after game and I am convinced that we DO have the squad to lift the trophy - eventually! So, without any reference to cup finals, penalty shootouts, or four-yard misses, here in no particular order is my top ten moments for the A team this year.

1. "My camera never lies"
As Gaz lies prostrate on the ground with a forehead like Frankenstein, Murray suggests...taking a photo of it.

2. "Through the Lens"
Tom's cracking equaliser against RC Lens sends the fans mad.

3. "East Ender"
Bob scores to floor the Hammers and get the Shakers' campaign going.

4. "Nut job"
Kev's winning header against Bradford.

5. "My Left Foot"
Al nearly breaks the net against Exeter B.

6. "My way or the highway"
Ben's booking against Lens, because we all know who was the star of that show.

7. "It takes two"
Was there a better strike partnership that Nev and Graham? Goals against Villa and Liverpool stand out.

8. "Stuck in the middle with you"
Instant midfield success for Tom and Kev.

9. "Big hands"
Murray made a couple of superb saves against the Villa to seal the points.

10. "Have I got news for you"
Big H's pre-match conversation with Bradford - "you're just full of good news, aren't you!?"