Ref with the smooth

Regular readers of our Matchday Magazine will know all the facts and figures behind each new week at Cliftonville Football Club, while our Twitter followers are regaled with daily delves into the archives and, as Heritage Development Officer Paul Treanor notes, tomorrow’s friendly with Southport represents our sixth fixture with the English National League North side.

It is, however, the Clubs’ first ever meeting that carries particular significance courtesy of an experiment that saw two referees overseeing the action at Haig Avenue.

On April 19, 1932, Sid Over was the Reds’ goalscorer in a 3-1 defeat which, according to contemporaneous reports, the referees – who each operated in one half of the pitch – controlled in “easy fashion”, rendering the second-half introduction of linesman unnecessary.

Two years later, meanwhile, Cliftonville lost 4-0 at the same venue and suffered a 3-0 reverse in 1950 before Tony Bell hit the only goal of an August 1978 encounter.

Haig Avenue once again played host to a 0-0 draw in the summer of 1995, with tomorrow marking exactly 29 years since that tie as we welcome The Sandgrounders to Solitude for the very first time.

As well as providing additional preparation for the second leg of the Reds’ UEFA Conference League tie with Auda, this weekend’s match also provides everyone of a Cliftonville persuasion with an opportunity to say farewell to former captain Chris Curran, who will be donning the boots for one last time having announced his retirement in the aftermath’s of May’s Irish Cup success.

Kick-off at Solitude is at 3pm and, though cash turnstiles will be in operation, advance tickets can be purchased online at a cost of £9 for Adults and £4 for Concessions.

Cliftonville’s history v Southport
April 19, 1932: Southport 3-1 Cliftonville (Sid Over)
April 30, 1934: Southport 4-0 Cliftonville
April 24, 1950: Southport 3-0 Cliftonville
August 5, 1978: Southport 0-1 Cliftonville (Tony Bell)
July 27, 1995: Southport 0-0 Cliftonville