IN the Furness Premier League the fixtures were progressing very well up to the end of October, but since the first week of November only 21 matches have been played in seven weeks.

The Riflemans Garage Premier Division looks like being the most open ever, with any of the top seven sides still having genuine hopes of picking up the title.

The current top five consists of five reserve sides who can sometimes be weakened by first team call-ups with two first teams, Haverigg United and Kirkby United, in sixth and seventh.

Pole position has changed hands several times so far and with so many teams involved there’s a big game almost every week.

Vickerstown reserves currently occupy top spot which is a great achievement given the injury problems in their first team that has had a knock-on effect on the reserves. They are only top on goal difference from GSK Ulverston Rangers reserves, who started very well, not losing until their eighth game. That was against Furness Cavaliers reserves, who also inflicted a first defeat on Haverigg United but then suffered a 10-1 humiliation against Holker Old Boys reserves.

Sean Mellen’s Holker side is a good mix of youth and experience and they certainly impressed me. Hawcoat Park reserves are another side with talented youngsters alongside old heads who are capable of playing good attacking football. Both Haverigg and Kirkby have a number of games in hand on the top five due their cup commitments, but that means they are likely to have a backlog come the end of the season, especially if they progress further.

Both sides are strong at home, potent going forward and solid defensively, which is a winning formula. Haverigg’s John Chmiel currently tops the Premier Division scoring chart with 20 goals in 15 games. Furness Rovers reserves have shown enough to be confident they can win enough games and not get sucked into the relegation battle which could involve any of the teams in the bottom half. Three sides who were challenging last season have had poor starts this season. Bootle, Barrow Celtic and Britannia have each had a turnover of players that has seen them struggle compared to the last campaign.

Barrow Wanderers also lost some key players following their resignation from the West Lancs and have taken time to adjust to the FPL.

Swarthmoor Social reserves were promoted from Division One and having lost a couple of players have struggled to score goals in the higher division.

Perhaps the biggest surprise is the form of Askam United reserves who have conceded the most goals in the division and currently sit second from bottom. That’s despite Brad Jackson’s excellent return of 12 goals in 10 games.

Millom reserves are bottom but they have gone close against a number of the top sides, but managed to lose from winning positions. Both these sides are capable of putting a few results together so the teams above them cannot rest on their laurels.

In Premier Tiles Division One Croftlands Park have carried on from where they left off last season and have an 11-point lead at the top of the table. They have scored 61 goals in 11 games and are favourites to win back-to-back league titles. Matt Dean has scored 22 goals in those 11 games to top the Division One scoring chart.

Holker Old Boys A are second and their experienced squad will hope to improve on last season’s third-placed finish, while reigning champions Hawcoat Park A are third mainly thanks to 11 goals in eight games from Ryan Muncaster.

Relegated Crooklands Casuals reserves started well with Terry Anderson consistently finding the net but defeats to Croftlands and Holker stalled their progress. Dalton United reserves are the outsiders for promotion but have a young squad who are improving all the time. Walney Island reserves and Barrow Wanderers reserves should be safe in mid-table but the bottom four sides will need to improve.

Haverigg United reserves and Vickerstown A have struggled to score goals while Barrow Celtic reserves have had trouble keeping them out. GSK Ulverston Rangers A look like making a instant return to Division Two having picked up just one point from eight games. Division Two fixtures have been disrupted by the resignations of two teams.

Unfortunately both Barrow Celtic and Askam United have had to withdraw their third teams.

Ormsgill North End had a 100 per cent record after seven games but were beaten in consecutive weeks by second-placed Millom A and also in the cup by Kirkby United reserves. Having just missed out on promotion last season Ormsgill will want to get back on track in the new year.

Top scorer Damian Minnican has 12 goals from eight games but they have several more players with an eye for goal.

Millom A’s good start has been mainly thanks to 17 goals in eight games from Mark O’Brien. Dalton United A have games in hand on the top two and have lost only once in five games played.

New sides FC Barrow Island and Coniston reserves are in the bottom two places. Coniston have struggled to find their feet with only one win so far while Barrow Island have paid the price for breaking the rules and have suffered from point deductions.