JANUARY

BROMSGROVE Rovers kicked off the New Year with a 3-3 draw away to Blakenall. Boss Steve Daley declared: "January is absolutely crucial for us. We've got to beat Paget, Solihull and Stourbridge at home and Yate away to get out of trouble." His words didn't fall on deaf ears -- they collected maximum points from all these games.

Off the pitch, chief executive Pat Bannister revealed that Daley and Phil Parkes had volunteered to work for free and warned: "If more investors don't come forward in January, we might not have a football club in February."

l Members of Barnt Green Cricket Club mourned the loss of President Alfred 'Nobby' Clarke. The 81-year-old died after a short illness. He was a well-respected and popular character who gave unstinting service to the Cherry Hill Road club over 50 years.

l Bromsgrove Rugby Club launched a 'Kick Meningitis into Touch' fundraising event.

FEBRUARY

MEMBERS of Bromsgrove Hockey Club mourned the untimely death of long serving umpire and friend, Robin Timms.

l Battling displays from Droitwich boxers in the West Midlands Schoolboy Finals ensured the Spa club an unprecedented six Midland finalists. The super six were Dan Bradley, Will Jones, Michael Pardoe, Terry Jones, John Bray and Marc Bonehill. Bradley, Pardoe, Bonehill and Will Jones went on to win titles in the finals at Ilkeston.

l Nearly 2,000 supporters watched two fundraising matches staged by Bromsgrove Rovers against Aston Villa and Wolves, after it was revealed the Victoria Ground outfit faced a winding up order if it didn't pay a £22,000 Customs and Excise bill by March 20.

MARCH

THE campaign to save Bromsgrove Rovers continued in earnest. Pat Bannister said he had been "overwhelmed" by the response of townsfolk to the club's desperate appeals for cash. Thankfully, the club settled the bill after Bannister and fellow directors dug deep to make up a £8,000 shortfall.

Director of football Simon Jones resigned while the club planned to bring back the reserve team. Rovers lose 1-0 to Kidderminster Harriers in the Worcestershire Senior Cup semi final.

l Bromsgrove School's U18 girls hockey team made sporting history by winning the British Aerospace national outdoor title for the fourth year running.

l Droitwich RFC secured promotion from North Midlands One with a 74-0 thrashing of Bromyard. They were crowned champions after a 15-3 win at second placed Redditch.

l Droitwich High School pupil Michael Pardoe made it through to the national finals of the prestigious English Schools Amateur Boxing Championships.

l Bromsgrove School pupil Nick Cox was selected to play for the England U18 rugby team against Wales in Chester.

l Sidemoor swimmer Alan Turk was presented with the Swim of the Year award for being the only man to complete two lengths of Windermere in the Lake District in 14 hours and 30 minutes.

APRIL

THE cricket season starts in earnest with Zimbabwean all-rounder Jason Vaughan-Davies the new man to watch at Bromsgrove CC.

l Front running tactics proved to be the key to Distinctive's win in the Lady Dudley Cup, at the Worcestershire Hunt point-to-point at Chaddesley Corbett.

l Bromsgrove teenager Mike Lammas is selected for the British Colleges rugby squad to tour South Africa.

MAY

STEVE Daley quits as manager of Bromsgrove Rovers after the Greens finish 17th in Dr Martens League Western Division. Pat Bannister said: "I'm very disappointed. I hope Steve does get another job, but I believe he could have enjoyed success with us and done what Jan Molby has done at Kidderminster." Among the favourites for the hot seat are former Worcester City boss George Rooney and ex-Rovers favourite Paul Webb.

l Sportsmen and women of all ages were rewarded at Bromsgrove's annual sports personality of the year presentation night at the Spadesbourne Suite.

l Hundreds of rugby players, fans and spectators flocked to the massive Kick Meningitis into Touch fundraiser at Bromsgrove Rugby Club. Organised by Kathy Hunt, whose husband John died after contracting the disease five years ago, it raised £19,000 for the Meningitis Research Foundation.

l Fairfield Villa finish third in Rapide Midland Combination Division One.

l Stuart Eades was named Worcestershire FA U18s footballer of the year for 1999/2000.

l Rubery Redstar, Rubery Social, Bromsgrove Town and Southside United win Divisions One, Two, Three and Four respectively in the Bromsgrove Advertiser/Messenger District Football League.

JUNE

BRILLIANT Bromsgrove CC progressed to the regional semi-final of the Abbot Ale National Knockout by beating Premier Division table toppers Walsall in their own backyard.

l Barnt Green CC sealed their first win of the season with a confident four-wicket triumph over Harborne.

l Football in Droitwich Spa received an enormous boost with the merger of the town's top two club's -- Droitwich St Peters FC and Droitwich Spa FC.

l Barnt Green Sports Club's squash coach, Lindsay Parker, achieved the Squash Rackets Association Level Four Elite and Club Professional Award.

l Rednal's Nigel Davey and Bromsgrove's Dave Brearley were selected for the Great Britain over 55s team for the World Duathlon Championships. The championships in Calais involved a 10km run, 40km cycle ride and then a 5km run.

JULY

GEORGE Rooney takes over as manager at Bromsgrove Rovers -- their sixth boss in less than three seasons. "I want to make Bromsgrove a difficult team to beat," he said.

Steve Frost and Marc Burrow are both signed in a bid to halt Rovers' defensive lapses. Mark Jones, Derek Dudley and Mark Bowater moved to Blakenall.

Worcester businessman Tom Herbert is poised to become the major shareholder in Rovers.

l Barnt Green CC were just three games away from Lords after a tense home victory over Clifton in the regional final of the National Knockout. They suffered heartbreak in the last 16 though, losing to Wroxeter.

AUGUST

ROONEY signs midfielder Jamie McWilliams in time for the Greens first match of the 2000/2001 season. They lose 3-1 to Rugby United but bounce back in the following match with a 1-0 victory over Sutton. Marc Burrow's header sealed the points. Rovers draw 3-3 with Blakenall in their next league outing.

l Bromsgrove CC face Pakistan and Aston Unity superstar Wasim Akram but lose by four wickets. The club's third XI win the West Midlands Third XI Championship after rain affected the penultimate week's matches.

l Worcestershire's Ryan Driver hits his second successive century to help Barnt Green to an important eight-wicket win over Kidderminster in Birmingham & District Premier League Premier Division.

l Bromsgrove and Redditch Athletics Club fail to gain promotion from Midland Men's Track and Field League Division Three by the narrowest of margins.

SEPTEMBER

ROVERS are dumped out of the FA Cup in their qualifying round one replay with Midland Alliance outfit Oldbury United. Then they lose 3-1 to bottom-of-the-table Racing Club Warwick.

Pat Bannister threatens to quit the club if the long-running saga over his offer to buy the shares of former chairman Stuart Arnold is not resolved. Meanwhile, fans of Rovers prepared for the inaugural meeting of the club's supporters' trust, spearheaded by club director Phil Baker.

l Bromsgrove triathlete Dave Brearley was selected to represent the Great Britain veterans' team for the World Triathlon Championships in Edmonton, Canada.

l An exciting last over victory against Sutton Coldfield was more than enough to secure Bromsgrove CC's future in Birmingham and District Premier League Division One. The match is Clive Bennett's curtain call as he moves on to pastures new.

l Barnt Green athlete Eleanor Caney was selected in the Great Britain team for the Junior World Championships in Santiago, Chile.

OCTOBER

CATSHILL teenager Richard White wins two bronze medals in the cerebral palsy 100m and 200m at the Paralympics in Sydney, Australia.

l Pat Bannister reveals youth team stars from Derby County could turn out for Rovers if an exciting partnership between the two club's bears fruit. Bannister vents his fury over director Phil Baker's decision to stage a supporters' trust meeting away from the Victoria Ground. Rovers striker Peter Sutton joins Halesowen Town while Jamie McWilliams joins Paget Rangers.

George Rooney links up with Birmingham City's Youth Academy to bring two players on loan after a spate of injury problems hit the Victoria Ground outfit. He also drafts in three Birmingham University students with Ryman League experience to help the squad.

Results fail to go his way though, with league defeats to Gresley, Solihull, Blakenall and Rugby. He parts company with the club at the end of the month after talks with chief executive Pat Bannister.

l Droitwich Rugby Club move to the top of Midlands West Four (South) after a 15-7 victory over Silhillians.

l Dodford race ace Richard Evans wins the 14-round Junior Avon Formula Ford Zetec Challenge Championship.

NOVEMBER

A WHOLE host of players re-join Rovers following Rooney's departure.

Four club directors release a statement voicing their disapproval over his exit and voice concerns over Pat Bannister's running of the club and his prospective take-over.

Bannister states that the four will not be re-appointed as club directors if he completes the take-over. Bannister states he is in no hurry to appoint a new boss with Eric McManus and Paul Madders taking over temporary charge of the team, revealing he has received a whole host of applicants for the vacant hot seat.

Rovers win the delayed Worcester Royal Infirmary Cup Final from last season 7-6 on aggregate after a 5-3 extra time triumph over Stourport Swifts. Their cup form continues to impress in the FA Trophy too, with a 1-0 replay win over Unibond League Premier Division outfit Droylsden.

But results in the league continue to suffer with defeats against Tiverton, Atherstone and Bedworth as Rovers slip towards the bottom. They also lose 2-0 to Halesowen Town in the Dr Martens Cup round one.

Rovers chairman David McQueen resigns from his post, unhappy over the continuing boardroom wranglings. Another problem Rovers face include a winding up order for an undisclosed amount.

Rovers sign St Kitts international Michael Crawford from Moor Green while Richard Burgess joins Nationwide League Division Two outfit Northampton Town.

Bannister invites anyone interested in buying Rovers to contact him after he withdrew his offer to buy the shares of former chairman Stuart Arnold.

l Lindsay Parker is named Squash Rackets Association Coach of the Year.

l Bromsgrove Rugby Club produce a fantastic performance at Finstall Park to hold league leaders Malvern to a draw in Midlands West Two.

DECEMBER

ROVERS are rewarded for their outstanding FA Umbro Trophy win over Lancaster City with a trip to face Chris Waddle and Worksop Town in round three. But they have to see off an appeal from their defeated second round opponents Lancaster City. The Unibond League Premier Division outfit had complained after three Bromsgrove players wore different shirt numbers to the team sheet. Rovers are rapped with a £250 fine.

Scott Gennard, Marc Burrow and Richard Cameron all leave the Victoria Ground while Richard Burgess is allowed to play for Rovers for a while longer after Northampton Town let him play while their reserve team have no fixtures. Bromsgrove lose to Hinckley twice and Mangotsfield to compound their troubles at the foot of Dr Martens League Western Division.

Rovers secretary Ray Barrow, reserve team trio Kevin Broadhurst, Alan Williams and Bob Philpot and physio Pete O'Connell all quit the Victoria Ground. O'Connell was due to retire in January while the others are believed to have left over their disillusionment with the club.

l Droitwich swimmer Kim Briggs wins two gold medals at the British Telecom National Swimming Championships, in association with Disability Sport England.

l Paul Duffy takes over from Nick Husbands as captain of Bromsgrove CC.

l Droitwich Spa's under 14 fencers win the Hereford and Worcester Team League for schools and clubs.