Hebburn Town to be honoured alongside Newcastle United and Sunderland stars at awards night

Hebburn Town will be recognised alongside fellow non-league clubs Gateshead and Stockton Town at the North East Football Writers Association annual awards dinner on Sunday evening.

The Hornets enjoyed a remarkable second half of last season as they won 12 of their last 13 league games to pip Stockton to the Northern Premier League East Division title on the final day of the campaign. Two goals from Dean Briggs were enough to claim a win at Sheffield on a dramatic day when Daniel Moore’s side were crowned champions and secured a first ever season in the third tier of the non-league game.

Stockton joined Hebburn in the Northern Premier League Premier Division with a penalty shoot-out win against North East rivals Dunston UTS just a week later - and both clubs will be recognised for their achievements alongside FA Trophy winners Gateshead when the North East Football Writers Association hold their annual awards at Ramside Hall in Durham this weekend.

Speaking ahead of the awards, Hornets manager Moore told The Gazette: “It’s great recognition and when we were told about it, I was really proud. (We are) really looking forward to it and I think it’s a brilliant thing for the football club. We were the only team in the North East to win a league title (above Northern League level) so we are really proud and it’s good to be recognised amongst the professional teams and other North East non-league teams.”

Hebburn will be honoured alongside the likes of Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak, who has landed the Player of the Year award, and Hebburn-born Sunderland midfielder Chris Rigg, who was named as joint-winner of the Young Player of the Year award alongside Black Cats team-mate Jobe Bellingham. This will be the second time the Hornets have been recognised in recent years and chief executive Stephen Rutherford believes the invite is a sign of the on and off-field progress made at the club during that time.

He said: “The Football Writers Awards, it’s an honour to be invited and to celebrate our success from last season. It’s a good all-round event for the North East and we also have Chris Rigg there this year, who is a Hebburn lad and previously there was Dan Neil, who came from our junior setup. In the eight years I’ve been involved with the senior side, we have taken massive strides on and off the field and it’s a credit to the volunteers, supporters, the owners and the lads that do it on the pitch.”

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