Whitchurch Alport boss Luke Goddard believes the club showed the best of itself over the weekend in their 1-1 home draw with City of Liverpool at Yockings Park.

Goddard felt the club’s stature has grown in the way it has built its links to the town and other clubs.

“I think what we have done is put the town of Whitchurch on the map and it’s something that people who live here should take intense pride from, irrespective of whether they come to the ground or not,” he said.

“Our season’s average has risen to 242 which is a rise of around six per cent on our promotion season. We have two games at home over the Easter period and it would be lovely if we could maintain that average which is one of the top four in the division.”

On the field, the Reds’ chief is pretty happy with the way his side has transitioned since the start of the season.

He added: “I think we have a very strong group at the moment, not just in terms of ability but also in terms of togetherness.

“It’s easy to have that when you’re winning all the time but when sometimes you face adversity it’s not quite so easy and you can sense some division among a few people.

“Behind-the-scenes though, we have a very clear plan and there is an awful lot of work done away from the football field. To draw against the likes of Telford and City of Liverpool is a clear indication of how we are galvanising this team into one that can go places over the coming few seasons.

“There have been some lows this season but they have only served to make for a stronger Whitchurch Alport.”

n Monday marked the 30-year anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy and on Saturday the club cemented their relationship with City of Liverpool by honouring the 96 fans who lost their lives and presented visiting chairman, Paul Manning, with a huge flag in remembrance.

Manning was visibly moved by the gesture and social media went into meltdown over the weekend as supporters paid tribute to Alport, while club officials arranged for a minute’s silence ahead of the fixture, which was impeccably observed by both sets of supporters.

Alport’s media manager Martin Wild felt the whole occasion was handled perfectly. He said: “We had so many things to do on Saturday to make sure we handled things with dignity and respect.

“It was an idea that we came up with ahead of the fixture due to its close proximity to the Hillsborough tragedy and in light of the opposition on Saturday, we felt we could further cement the relationship between both clubs.

“I don’t think that City of Liverpool could quite believe what we had done and there were some tears shed. The flag was taken back to Liverpool for them to hang in their clubhouse and all the comments we received after the match made you proud to be associated with the football club.

“I’m not sure if there are any other clubs that would have even thought of such a gesture but here at Whitchurch we are pretty good at doing nice things when the opportunity arises.”

Martin added that Alport’s social media feeds were buzzing over the weekend, with a number of interactions on Twitter, which he puts down to the club’s desire for uniting communities, whether that be in Whitchurch or further afield.