My football journey
Nuneaton Borough celebrating a goal
Colour photograph of Nuneaton Borough players in blue and white stripes celebrating a goal in front of a large jubilant crowd.
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Nuneaton Borough goal celebration
Colour photograph of a Nuneaton Borough player in blue and white stripes celebrating a goal in front of a jubilant crowd, with a red-shirted opponent (number 3) looking on.
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Boro score with Aidan
Boro score with Aidan
MASCOT for the night Aidan Jenkins with his hero, Boro' striker Mark Rosegreen. JJ 1707F.
Full report and pictures
Full report and pictures inside
[Black and white photograph caption:] Two up! Borough players converge on striker Mark Rosegreen after his 77th-minute goal had given John Barton's men a 2-0 lead. J1695
Mark Rosegreen fires home
Mark Rosegreen fires home Boro's winner to grab the points. JJ1951
'We're on our way!'
'We're on our way!'
[Box caption:] Mark Rosegreen points the way after Paul Culpin scored his first and Boro's second goal
[Jersey on player in foreground reads:] BREW XI
Nuneaton Borough line up
Nuneaton Borough line up for their biggest match of the 1990s so far.
Rosegreen's double keeps Boro
Rosegreen's double keeps Boro bubbling
Nuneaton Borough ...2 Leicester Utd. ...0
TWO-GOAL Mark Rosegreen was the Borough hero, spearheading them to a vital Beazer Midland victory as they battled their way through the Manor Park quagmire.
Rosegreen gave Borough the comfort of an early lead and then put the issue beyond doubt midway through the second half as Nuneaton completed their third away win of the campaign over their Leicester visitors.
Goal man: Mark Rosegreen who struck in each half
□ Man of the
□ Man of the match Mark Rosegreen fires Borough's second goal following a slick move which tore apart the home defence apart. JJ1620
□ Borough fans show
□ Borough fans show their delight after Mark Rosegreen's 11th goal of the season while colleague Tony Simpson joins in the celebrations. JJ1620
□ Despite a full
□ Despite a full length dive from keeper Marsden, Mark Rosegreen's penalty puts the Boro in front
Derby duel: Racing Club
Derby duel: Racing Club Warwick's Lennie Derby clears as Mark Rosegreen moves in for Nuneaton Borough
□ Paul Culpin lying
□ Paul Culpin lying on the floor has thundered in an acute angled second goal, and Mark Rosegreen cannot disguise his joy
Tribsport - The winning
Tribsport - The winning team every week of the year
MOSCOW
Nuneaton Borough striker Mark Rosegreen went into Saturday's FA Cup clash at Wembley fresh from a million pound deal in Moscow.
The 26-year-old from Dordon missed the 3-1 win over Congleton in the FA Trophy but had the perfect excuse for boss George Rooney.
An electronics engineer with Spark Tec Europe, the former England schoolboy and Southampton player was in charge of installing the "Brain" that will control steel production in a new plant opening in Moscow.
It was part of the largest East-West deal since the collapse of communism and German firm Sundwig have invested £400 million in the new plant.
Rosegreen has recently been promoted to project manager after four years with Spark Tec. They are one of only five firms worldwide to supply this kind of sophisticated equipment and Moscow is expensive.
"I have travelled to the USA, Germany and now Russia. There are also plans to sell the machines to Korea and Japan so I'm hoping to travel there too," said Rosegreen.
Brought up in the shadow of Coventry RFC's Coundon Road ground, the young Rosegreen was forced to play rugby before his school, Bar's Hill, would let him play soccer for Coventry schools and Warwickshire — no small achievement for a school with no football pitch. "I hated rugby and especially Bablake school which was nearby but it turned out to be quite useful later. I'm fairly well-built and I find I can shrug off tackles and hold up the ball while the rest of the attack arrives," he said.
Eventually he escaped the rugby tyranny, making his name at AP Leamington, playing for England schoolboys and being talent-spotted by Lawrie McMenemy, then boss at Saints, now assistant to Graham Taylor with England.
"I had a great year there, scoring lots of goals in the reserves, but I was too old by then to be an apprentice and they let me go at the end of the season although Lawrie said I'd done myself proud.
"I really thought I was going to be a professional footballer but my father persuaded me to retake my A levels and I went on to gain a HND in electronics and computing at Birmingham Polytechnic before starting work with Spark Tec," he said.
Like most footballers he moved around, playing for Alvechurch, Bromsgrove, Redditch and Kidderminster Harriers before becoming leading scorer at VS Rugby with 25 goals last season.
"I moved to Dordon by that time and the travelling was getting me down so when George Rooney came in for me I was only too happy to move. Boro are a big club that are going places and I think the start to this season has proved that.
"What is especially pleasing is the team spirit that exists and the presence of several players capable of scoring regularly which takes the pressure off.
He said that his first trip to Moscow had been "a major culture-shock."
"It was -13 centigrade and it didn't look like anything had changed for 50 years. The people are still mentally oppressed but they really opened up once they found out I was a footballer.
"Sport is the only thing they have and they are fanatical about it. They wanted me to play for the factory team but I didn't think George Rooney would have been too delighted if I had been injured so I had to turn them down.
"Once they knew us a little the people took to us and showed us with gifts. But I always felt a little ashamed, casually paying for drinks with a ten dollar bill when I knew that was a month's wages for most people."
Mark Rosegreen by ROBIN BIDGOOD
– MARTIN ROBERTS
VS ease home and
VS ease home and keep up pressure on leaders
VS Rugby...........................2 Waterlooville......................0
MARTIN NEEVES / Evening Telegraph
WELL-TO-DO VS Rugby kept their Beazer Homes Premier Division challenge on the boil with an uncomplicated victory over relegation-threatened Waterlooville at windswept Butlin Road.
A goal in each half was enough to give Rugby the spoils in a contest that did little to ease the wind-chill factor.
A happy Jimmy Knox was content in the knowledge that his side had maintained the pressure on leaders Bashley, who played two points clear after beating Gravesend 3-0.
The observing Rugby boss admitted: "We knew it was going to be a battle in such conditions, and I was pleased with the commitment shown by the side."
With the gale-like conditions at their backs in the first half, VS totally dominated, and the only surprise was that they only led by a single Mark Boyland strike at the break.
With the recalled Mark Rosegreen always prominent up front, Rugby carved a number of gilt-edged chances with Ian Crawley heading the best of them over the top in the second minute.
The goal that put them in front after 34 minutes was simplicity itself. Goalkeeper Mick Martin's free-kick reached Boyland, and he turned and fired past Robbie Stokes from 25 yards.
Rather than sit back and defend against the elements, Knox's upwardly-mobile troops continued to take the game to Waterlooville in the second half and Crawley headed just over from Boyland's cross.
Waterlooville twice went close with one-on-ones, but Martin denied both David Boyce and substitute Colin Ball before Rosegreen wrapped it up with six minutes left.
Gary Fitzpatrick's sweeping crossfield ball gave Tom McGicty space and Rosegreen acrobatically smashed home.
On the ball: Mark Rosegreen surges forward against Waterlooville at Butlin Road on Saturday
Birmingham Senior Cup Soccer
BIRMINGHAM SENIOR CUP SOCCER — Birmingham v VS Rugby
Jubilant VS bag one trophy and eye another
Birmingham City VS Rugby
PHIL HORSEFALL — Evening Telegraph
STYLISH VS had really caused Birmingham City the Reds to tilt — their skill and enthusiasm as they swept to a first time victory built the Club's first cup tally of the year, secured around what everyone was calling "The Club's first cup" — perhaps not a failure too soon.
Pennant style is perhaps not a failure too long with the city.
VS had lined up by experience against them, and Birmingham proved a game that VS and their bigger players had proved — how VS had the side and they let far for the competition.
"Let go" — at the start when Mick Shearer slid-in to rob Gary Grogan after Anthony Ebony and the slipping Nigel Niblett were left standing by Keith Lockhart's pace.
"It was a good, fair tackle and I won the ball," said Shearer.
But more — and this was the important thing — the ball went in and Rosegreen drove the ball home from the penalty.
Doreen shot one who will placed, shortly before half-time — the box receiving another quality finish.
Larkins about VS Rugby's Ian Crawley — pictures this dramatic pass taken up by Birmingham's Nigel Larkins.
VS's Rosegreen drew cheers from the crowd.
A £21,000 signing from Cork City.
Mark Rosegreen! Clincher
