Stoke & Staffordshire

Latest Updates

  1. The front entrance to the Lea Hall Miners Welfare Centre. There is a glass windowed front section leading to a stone brick building, painted in ivory, with a mural showing a minor above the entrance.

  2. A bald man wearing a green T-shirt with a grey hoodie and then a black coat over it, stares into the camera. Behind him is a wooden table with glass display cases of pottery on the wall.

  3. Four police officers standing next to a cordon next to the Holiday Inn Express in Tamworth. The building is green and beige and has the logo on the left. Debris can be seen next to the hotel, behind the cordon.

  4. Stoke City boss Mark Robins

  5. The Crooked House, prior to being completely demolished, is seen in a derelict state. It has black and yellow tape around it and a large red wheelie bin in front.

  6. Stoke sign former Hammers youngster Fawunmi

    Favour Fawunmi in action for West Ham's under-18s last seasonGetty Images

    Stoke have signed teenage forward Favour Fawunmi, who recently left West Ham.

    The 18-year-old has penned a deal until 2027 and will initially link up with the Potters' under-21s, subject to FA and EFL approval.

    Fawunmi scored twice while on trial with Dave Hibbert's side in a 4-2 victory against Huddersfield on Tuesday.

    He made 44 appearances for the Hammers' under-18s over the past two seasons, scoring 17 goals.

  7. Did you know? Stoke City v Cardiff City

    Stoke City and Cardiff City club badges

    Stoke City welcome Cardiff City for an all-Championship FA Cup fourth round tie on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

    The Potters were runners-up in the 2011 final and made it to the quarter-final the following year but haven't gone past the fifth round in the 12 seasons since then.

    • Stoke City are winless in their past nine matches against Cardiff City (D6 L3) since a 2-0 victory in February 2020, with all these matches coming in the Championship.

    • Cardiff have faced Stoke in the FA Cup in three previous ties and have been eliminated in all three, in 1967-68 (third round), 1986-87 (fourth round) and 2010-11 (third round).

    • Stoke are looking to reach the FA Cup fifth round for the third time in the past four seasons, having only gone beyond the fourth round once between 2012-13 and 2020-21.

    • Cardiff City have been knocked out in their past four FA Cup fourth round ties between 2014-15 and 2021-22. They last reached the fifth round in 2013-14, beating Bolton in the fourth round that season.

    • Stoke's Tom Cannon has been involved in three goals in his past four FA Cup appearances (2 goals, 1 assist), scoring their opener in the 2-1 win at Sunderland in this season's third round.

  8. A man with short hair and a short beard standing in half-shade in front of a wooden door which is painted white and he is wearing a dark blue shirt.

  9. Cut out images of a woman wearing glasses and a dark coat and two men, one bald with a dark jacket and the other with grey hair, glasses and a grey coat, looking at the camera. The images are laid on top of a blue background featuring images on mining equipment

  10. Two mugshots of men wearing grey Tt-shirts. Both men are looking into the camera. The left hand one has curly brown hair and stubble on his chin. The right hand has short dark hair and a short dark goatee beard

  11. A pothole in the middle of a road with dozens of cars and houses on each side.

  12. Robins faces striker shortage for Cardiff Cup game

    Stoke City boss Mark Robins looking pensive Rex Features

    Mark Robins' first win as Stoke boss was the FA Cup third-round extra-time triumph at Sunderland

    Stoke City boss Mark Robins faces a real frontline crisis for Saturday's FA Cup fourth-round date with Cardiff City.

    Robins, who won the Cup as a player with Manchester United in 1990, enjoyed a memorable run to Wembley last season when his Coventry City side were cruelly beaten on penalties in the semi-final by his old club.

    And, having enjoyed his first league win as Stoke boss last Saturday at Hull, the Potters boss ought to be fancying his side's chances of another Cup scalp at home to a struggling Cardiff City side who shipped seven goals at Leeds the same day.

    But new Ipswich Town loan signing Ali Al-Hamadi, who scored on his debut last week, is cup-tied - and so is joint EFL top scorer Nathan Lowe.

    Al-Hamadi came on as a late substitute for Ipswich when they were already 3-0 up in their third-round win over Bristol Rovers, while the now recalled Lowe played in Walsall's first-round win over Bolton and the Saddlers' second-round home defeat by Charlton.

    With nine-goal top scorer Tom Cannon now sold to Sheffield United by Leicester City after being recalled from his loan at Stoke, both Million Manhoef and Sam Gallagher out injured, and Niall Ennis sent out on loan to Steve Bruce's Blackpool, Stoke did make one up-front signing this week.

    West Bromwich Albion's teenage forward Adriel Walker signed an 18-month contract. But the 19-year-old was signed for the Potters' Under- 21s and may not be considered yet ready for first-team duty.

    Stoke also now have Ryan Mmaee back at the club following the end of his loan at Rapid Vienna. But he was kept sidelined in Austria by injuries - and is not expected to figure until next month due to a hamstring problem.

    Robins does have the options of teenager Emre Tezgel, who came off the bench in the third-round win over Sunderland, on-loan Lewis Koumas, who has not netted since early December, and Andre Vidigal, who made such a dramatic start to life in Stoke with five goals in his first six appearances last season, but he has not started a league game this term.

  13. A grey road surrounded by trees, grass and brick walls either side.

  14. Teens drinking in a park in daylight, images blurred. Four figures can be seen, holding and drinking from bottles which appear to hold alcohol. Yellow and red play equipment can be seen and green railings around a children's play area.

  15. Robert Morley wearing a black beanie hat and a yellow high visibility jacket on top of a grey hoodie.

  16. The White Hall Academy sign outside the school amongst some bramble and behind a green fence

  17. A police cordon around a shopping centre. There are two police officers seen standing by police tape and an ice cream stand is visible in the corner of the image.

  18. We see the backs of two people wearing high-vis green jackets over their clothes, standing in front of the blurred outline of a home being built with a crane overhead. The woman wears a yellow hard hat and has long dark hair. The man has a checked shirt on and a blue hard hat and a dark beard.

  19. A woman with glasses and brown hair is cuddling her dog, of a cockapoo-type breed. The dog has a red jacket on that reads 'assistance dog. Do not distract.'

  20. 'Underwhelming - in window which might prove crucial in relegation battle'

    Your views banner
    Mark Robins laughing in the Stoke dugoutRex Features

    'If Mark Robins keeps us up with this squad then he really is a good manager' - Paul H

    On Tuesday we asked what you made of Stoke City's business in the transfer window.

    The Potters signed Ipswich forward Ali Al-Hamadi on loan to plug the gap left by Tom Cannon's loan spell being ended early by Leicester, while 19-year-old forward Nathan Lowe was recalled from a prolific spell at League Two title-chasers Walsall.

    Stoke also signed left-back Josh Wilson-Esbrand from Manchester City on loan for the rest of the season while midfielder Lewis Baker was recalled by Mark Robins from a loan spell with Blackburn to help try to steer the Potters away from trouble at the wrong end of the Championship table.

    Here are some of your responses:

    Callum: Mark Robins has loaned, sold and had recalled, too many strikers this window while only bringing in Al Hamadi, Wilson-Esbrand, and Lowe. This is good but there being no defenders is a concern, and honestly it's our defence that's letting us down this season.

    Keith: There is a lack of desire and passion for the fight which is required EVERY WEEK! There are some average players who show intent but every match, every week, I'm sorry but they don't want promotion. In the boxing world they would be classed as journey men. Get paid, go home, not a cat in hell's chance of winning anything. Every week I hope to see change, up for the 12 rounder but most times even with the odd win it's more about the mistakes that the opposition made rather that the creative genius of this squad.

    William: Well done Stoke City, two quality signings plus I hope Nathan Lowe continues to impress, plays and scores goals.

    Paul: The fans deserve more from the club after so many years of watching doom and gloom football, but with John Coates involved this is what you get, all he deserves is to be relegated. What a poor transfer window. I hope it comes back to bite him.

    Darryn: Lets be honest, it's an abject failure after years of failures. Each year is worse and to bring in no one to give a glimmer of hope is depressing, but unfortunately disappointment is expected nowadays.

    Adrian: It isn't any more signings we need, it's grit and determination. Mark Robins will demand that commitment and will get the best out of the squad to move us away from the "drop zone". After that it depends on that bit of luck!

    Oli: Underwhelming, the club's need for a consistent centre back on a permanent basis has been apparent for over a year now, not only did they not sign one, they failed to sign a permanent first team player at all, only signing one 19 year old midfielder, who will join the U21 team for the rest of the season, as well as two loan players, who I'd be surprised if either one surpassed five appearances for the club, given that Al-Hamadi is cup tied and Wilson-Esbrand has already been named as a substitute since his debut.

    Whilst clubs also at the bottom end of the Championship table secured deals for top quality, Championship-level players such as Louie Barry, Matt Crooks, Aasgaard and Aouchiche, Stoke City have failed to secure a single marquee signature, in a window that may well prove crucial in this year's relegation battle.

    Paul H: Poor recruitment, the club is crying out for a big centre forward and strong defensive midfielder due to Walters signing injured players in Gallagher and Lawal. If Robins keeps us up with this squad then he really is a good manager. Here's hoping Coates sees the light and dismisses Walters before next season.

    Joe: Needed to sign a centre half and send a couple of young players to Walsall on loan to get experience and game time. A solid winger would have been nice too. UP THE POTTERS

    Paul I: Wish I understood financial fair play as some teams spend millions and others, including Stoke, spent barely anything. How can we have fair play in football when teams can spend so much more than others? The term fair play should never be used as its pretty clear there is nothing fair about it.

  21. A police mugshot of a man with a shaved head, stubble and blue eyes. A blue and black hoodie and neck of white t-shirt can just be seen.

  22. Head shot of Jack Cooper Love warming up in his Burton Albion training top

  23. A man in a yellow high visibility jacket and yellow helmet can be seen working on a large solar installation.

  24. The red deer has various debris in its antlers and it attached to fencing via a cord or rope.