Shildon manager Gary Forrest and coach Phil Brumwell have said for years that trying to win the Northern League title is like climbing a mountain – and now they’re going to do it for real, by climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

Forrest, owner of the High Street Group, has generously paid for 12 of his employees to take on the mammoth challenge of climbing Kilimanjaro on June 26, including Brumwell and former Shildon player Paul Buzzeo.

They have decided to raise funds for Macmillan Cancer Support and have set an ambitious target of £40,000 – all of which will go towards Macmillan grants, offering people in the local area funds to maintain a normal life despite suffering from cancer.

Former Darlington player Brumwell, who is the company’s Operations Director, has been personally affected by cancer within his family.

“Gary and I have dreamt of tackling this challenge for quite come time,” he said. “I am delighted not only to be taking part in this once in a lifetime opportunity, but the fact we have chosen Macmillan as our charity of choice. Like many others, I have seen first-hand the excellent support that Macmillan can provide.

“Gary has given his employees the chance of a lifetime by funding the trip, but in return they must be both devoted to preparing for this challenge and fully committed to raising funds for this fantastic cause. “

The High Street Group will be arranging several large fundraising events, including a Charity Gala Evening at the Ramside Hall Hotel in June, and are also hoping to arrange a charity football game involving Northern League stars past and present. They are hoping the northern football community will pull together to help them meet their target, and will be seeking permission from all clubs to take collection buckets to a choice of games before the end of the season.

West Auckland manager Steve Skinner says that the three teenagers who came into the team last Saturday were “fantastic”.

For various reasons, Skinner is short of bodies in his squad at the moment, and last Saturday he put three Under 17s in the 16 to play Crook Town, Tom White, James White and Will Preston.

“They all did very well indeed,” said Skinner. “Between them, they scored our third goal, with Tom and James passing the ball well for Will to score. It was good to see them doing well, and I’ll call upon them again if necessary. At the moment, I’ve only got 14 senior players to choose from.”

Skinner was also delighted with the five goals his team scored without reply last Saturday. “The way it’s shaping up, at the end of the season it could all come down to goal difference. It was good to score a few goals against a team that had an excellent result at Benfield only a few days before.”

Guisborough manager Chris Hardy says that his side will settle for 1-0 wins over the rest of the title run in.

Guisborough stayed hard on the heels of West Auckland when they beat Celtic Nation 3-1 last Saturday, but in terms of style, it wasn’t in the same category as some of their victories this season, although their unbeaten run was stretched to 15 league games. They haven’t lost since Durham beat them at the King George way back in early November.

“I don’t think we were brilliant last Saturday,” said Hardy. “We created more chances and had better possession, but all wins are good at this stage.

“If we keep turning these sort of games into wins no matter who how, then we’ll take them. We maybe played the flashy stuff earlier in the season, but we’ll settle for 1-0 wins now. There is still plenty of football to be played this season.”

Marske manager Carl Jarrett thinks that the very competitive run in for the title can only be good for the league.

Marske are one of six teams who have a chance of winning the league in the last few weeks of the season, and going into today’s games, the destiny of the title is too close to call, with Guisborough, Shildon, West Auckland, North Shields and Dunston UTS all posing threats to Marske.

“I think it’s good for the interest in the league that there are six teams trying to win the title,” he said.

“A couple of wins has opened it all out for us again, so now we need to concentrate on winning games and picking up points. We won’t win every game, but neither will the others. We have big games coming up soon against Guisborough and West Auckland.

“No matter what happens to us, we’ve had an unbelievable season. Everybody has done well this season, and it has been a big stepping stone for us.”

Not many managers enjoy a 5-0 defeat, but Crook manager Peter Mulcaster did on Saturday at West Auckland.

Crook were relegated a fortnight ago, but there’s still plenty of life left in them, and they proved that by drawing 3-3 at Newcastle Benfield last midweek. The original game was abandoned because of fog, with Benfield leading 5-0, so a 3-3 draw in the rearranged game represented a big improvement.

“I’m really happy with the atmosphere in the dressing room. We’ve got players who are really willing to work hard, and over the last three or four games have done reasonably well. I knew when I went into the job that we weren’t going to stay up, but the attitude and commitment of the players had made it all quite enjoyable. They’re giving it everything they’ve got, and I can’t ask for more than that.

“Even though we’re relegated, I’m working with a good chairman and good people on the committee. I really am enjoying being manager at the moment.”