Atherton Collieries are delighted to confirm the return of Ben Hardcastle to the Skuna Stadium. Having already made the second highest number of appearances in the Stripes of any player in the 21st Century, Ben is a player who certainly needs no introduction to the Skuna faithful.
Ben first signed for the Collieries in the summer of 2014, and was one of many iconic players to debut away at Cammell Laird on the opening day of the historic 2014/15 season.
Hardcastle, who is versatile across both the front line & wide positions, has since become one of the most decorated players in Black & Whites history, playing a vital part in our three league titles & promotions over the course of Michael Clegg's tenure, complemented by additional winners medals in the NPL League Cup, NWCFL League Cup & Bolton Hospital Cup.
Ben's contribution to this era can be evidenced with his myriad of individual honors, most notably collecting the Northern Premier League Division 1 West Player of the Season award following our 2018/19 campaign, amidst a raft of similar titles.
In total, Ben has already made 273 appearances in Black & White, and with 94 goals to his name so far, rejoins in touching distance of joining the incredibly illustrious Colls 100+ Goals Club.
Since departing for Ashton United with Michael Clegg in 2019, Ben has made 102 appearances for the Robins, scoring 10 goals, and added the Manchester Senior Cup to his medal tally at the end of last season, scoring the winning goal in the opening minute of the final. We will be publishing a full interview with Ben and manager Brad Cooke on our YouTube & social media feeds tomorrow.
Match Preview: Morpeth (A)
December 1, 2023
Atherton Collieries head to Morpeth on Saturday 2nd December, aiming to break a duck which has led to the Colls so far never recording a
