Yours truely with the FA Vase
Friday, March 09, 2007
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
Tuesday, March 06, 2007
Monday, March 05, 2007
Defeat, a kick in the face for Wimborne
AFC Totton 2 Wimborne Town 1 aet
3rd March 2007
When you get to the quarter finals of a National competiton & have two grounds you haven't visited within reasonable distance, you know that it's not all going wrong. It was between Whitehawk & AFC Totton, I'd visited a Sussex league side earlier in the competition at Ringmer, so decided on Totton. Yet another heavy nights rain meant that I was concerned that the game would still be on, it must be about 12 weeks in a row this has happened and I've been mostly lucky to find games still on. The journey is remarkably easy, about 85 minutes from Waterloo on a train with loads of space. The only confusing thing is why they announce that you'll be fined if caught travelling on this train without a ticket, this announcement is made about 2 minutes after the train has pulled out from the station. The journey went without incident through some delightful countryside. Totton was a little larger than I'd expected and I eagerly hit the town in search of lunch. I was a little disappointed, loads of chinese takeaways and the odd Indian, but not the little cafe or chippy I was hoping for. I ended up in Asda looking for a supermarket cafe but could only find a MacDonalds in Asda, it took about 15 minutes to reach the front of the queue & with hindsight and local knowledge, I would have eated in the ground. The ground is only about a 10 minute walk from the station and very easy to find. The crowds were flocking up the street and I was hugely impressed when I got through the gate. Loads of programmes (Hillingdon & Causeway take note), two well staffed fast food outlets, a pick n' mix van for the kids, cheerleaders, a town crier and a wacking great marquee selling beer. Great to see a club making this effort and it certainly paid off, I kept hearing guys ringing their mates and telling them to come down. FA officials had also brought the Vase trophy to show off and I'm grateful to the official who took my picture with the trophy, very splendid and would look good on my mantlepiece. I've never seen a town crier at a game of football before but he gave it a brave shot as did the cheerleaders who were never going to be able to compete with the enthusiastic Wimborne fans. There's a small stand and another covered standing area set back from the other side. Surprisingly, the pitch was quite bumpy although it soon softened up when the inevitible downpour arrived. There was a great crowd of over 1300, this had a real cup tie feel. My favourite comment of the day came from a guy standing next to me with his son. Dad was receiving updates of premiership scores on his mobile. When he announced that Arsenal had scored twice, his son asked who had scored. " I don't know!" replied Dad, "Oh yes, there you are...Samsung & Cancel" Went way over his sons head but made me laugh.
This was a game of two halves. Totton never showed up ntil half time, Wimborne scoring first after 35 mins when a shot from just inside the box caught a wicked deflection and gave the keeper no chance. Once Totton started playing, they were much the better side and equalised on 54 mins. A cross was curled to the far post, usually with this type of ball ,the player coming in just can't reach it, this time he did and managed to steer it in from a tight angle. The game was considerably delayed due to two nasty Wimborne injuries. First a player was stretchered off with a leg injury and then the keeper was down for about 15 minutes after accidently being kicked John Terry like in the face. The keeper looked decidely dodgy after this and you wonder what effect that knock had on the final outcome, you cannot fault his bravery though. The winner came 8 minutes into extra time, a free kick was hit to the far post, an unmarked man headed for goal, the keeper could only palm it across the 6 yard box to Stevens who blasted into an empty net from only 2 yards out.
I'm delighted for Totton, the club made such an effort which was greatly appreciated, wimborne played their part and will look back and feel that luck was not on their side.
3rd March 2007
When you get to the quarter finals of a National competiton & have two grounds you haven't visited within reasonable distance, you know that it's not all going wrong. It was between Whitehawk & AFC Totton, I'd visited a Sussex league side earlier in the competition at Ringmer, so decided on Totton. Yet another heavy nights rain meant that I was concerned that the game would still be on, it must be about 12 weeks in a row this has happened and I've been mostly lucky to find games still on. The journey is remarkably easy, about 85 minutes from Waterloo on a train with loads of space. The only confusing thing is why they announce that you'll be fined if caught travelling on this train without a ticket, this announcement is made about 2 minutes after the train has pulled out from the station. The journey went without incident through some delightful countryside. Totton was a little larger than I'd expected and I eagerly hit the town in search of lunch. I was a little disappointed, loads of chinese takeaways and the odd Indian, but not the little cafe or chippy I was hoping for. I ended up in Asda looking for a supermarket cafe but could only find a MacDonalds in Asda, it took about 15 minutes to reach the front of the queue & with hindsight and local knowledge, I would have eated in the ground. The ground is only about a 10 minute walk from the station and very easy to find. The crowds were flocking up the street and I was hugely impressed when I got through the gate. Loads of programmes (Hillingdon & Causeway take note), two well staffed fast food outlets, a pick n' mix van for the kids, cheerleaders, a town crier and a wacking great marquee selling beer. Great to see a club making this effort and it certainly paid off, I kept hearing guys ringing their mates and telling them to come down. FA officials had also brought the Vase trophy to show off and I'm grateful to the official who took my picture with the trophy, very splendid and would look good on my mantlepiece. I've never seen a town crier at a game of football before but he gave it a brave shot as did the cheerleaders who were never going to be able to compete with the enthusiastic Wimborne fans. There's a small stand and another covered standing area set back from the other side. Surprisingly, the pitch was quite bumpy although it soon softened up when the inevitible downpour arrived. There was a great crowd of over 1300, this had a real cup tie feel. My favourite comment of the day came from a guy standing next to me with his son. Dad was receiving updates of premiership scores on his mobile. When he announced that Arsenal had scored twice, his son asked who had scored. " I don't know!" replied Dad, "Oh yes, there you are...Samsung & Cancel" Went way over his sons head but made me laugh.
This was a game of two halves. Totton never showed up ntil half time, Wimborne scoring first after 35 mins when a shot from just inside the box caught a wicked deflection and gave the keeper no chance. Once Totton started playing, they were much the better side and equalised on 54 mins. A cross was curled to the far post, usually with this type of ball ,the player coming in just can't reach it, this time he did and managed to steer it in from a tight angle. The game was considerably delayed due to two nasty Wimborne injuries. First a player was stretchered off with a leg injury and then the keeper was down for about 15 minutes after accidently being kicked John Terry like in the face. The keeper looked decidely dodgy after this and you wonder what effect that knock had on the final outcome, you cannot fault his bravery though. The winner came 8 minutes into extra time, a free kick was hit to the far post, an unmarked man headed for goal, the keeper could only palm it across the 6 yard box to Stevens who blasted into an empty net from only 2 yards out.
I'm delighted for Totton, the club made such an effort which was greatly appreciated, wimborne played their part and will look back and feel that luck was not on their side.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Monday, February 19, 2007
Sunday, February 18, 2007
Giant win at Causeway
Causeway 0 Curzon Ashton 5
17/2/07
Every now and again, the weather works in your favour. I had been unable to attend Vase matches the previous weekend due to an evening engagement. But thanks to heavy snow & rain, 3 of the matches were postponed to this Saturday. I'd visited VCD previously so had to choose between Leamington or Causeway. I decided on Causeway with a mental flip of the coin & prepared maps and timetables for the lengthy journey. I flicked to the Causeway website just before leaving home and discovered that there was a 9:30 pitch inspection, not good when my train left at 9.50. I went to the station and telephoned the club at 9.40 who informed me the game was on. I was greatful to whoever answered the phone, another 10 minutes & I couldn't have taken the risk and would have returned to VCD. It amused me to hear Arsenal fans on my first train discussing who might score their first goal. If only they knew where I was going, I couldn't name a single player at this point, let alone one who might score. The Virgin train from Euston was very busy but stayed on time, I did have one mild panic when the 'train manager' informed us that we were approaching Crewe...He meant Rugby! The train between Birmingham & Dudley Port is the first ever train I've been on which has TV's in each carriage showing Sky News/weather/sport etc. Quite nice actually as everyone else was attracted to the screen whilst I stayed up the other end of the carriage watching the World go by or in this case, watching the Industrial estates go by, not an attractive journey for scenery. I arrived at Dudley Port station, had a 50% chance of turning the right way and got it wrong, fortunately I soon realised. This mis-direction did take me past a chippy so I called in for lunch. I selected Saveloy and chips. I've never seen such yellow looking chips in my life and they were disgusting, I wished I'd taken the assistant up on her offer of curry sauce. Fortunately, the saveloy was OK, but those chips!! I was miffed when 5 minutes later, I passed a perfectly good looking 'Subway'. The ground is about a 2 mile walk from the station along very busy roads but easy enough to find. The clubhouse was packed so I waited outside for the gate to open. this happened about 2:30. I was fourth in the queue and couldn't believe my ears when I was told that there were no programmes. They'd only printed off about40 which had all been sold in the clubhouse. Several travellors mingled inside trying to purchase a programme from somewhere. An official promissed to print off some more and bring them round to us. I waited until kick-off but the programmes never appeared, very disppointing. I was actually buying a cup of tea at the tea hut which also offered curry sauce with chips, does this happen everywhere in the Midlands? Norton comfortable put away the early chance for Curzon. 3 minutes later Curzon won a penalty when Moore was decked in the box. He was pushed in the chest and threw himself to the ground holding his face, disgusting! I try to remain neutral but was delighted when the keeper saved his spot kick. 3 goals in 6 minutes started on 24 mins when Norton scored again when a stray shot inadvertantly put him through. Another penalty was awarded on 26 mins, hard luck on the defender as a flick hit his hand. It was a definite case of ball to hand. Moore this time took a good penalty. On 30 mins, Moore dribbled into the area, changed feet and hit a beauty across goal and in off the inside of the far post, a lovely finished. A shell shocked Causeway tried to lift it in the second half but Curzon killed the game. Curzon still created all the good chances and Norton was so unlucky when a 40 yard chip hit the bar with the keeper ending up caught up in his net. The final goal came on 71 mins when substitute Holt scored easily from a Norton pass.
This victory was as comfortable as the scoreline suggests.
A lengthy trip but well worth the effort.
Next stop, AFC Totton.
17/2/07
Every now and again, the weather works in your favour. I had been unable to attend Vase matches the previous weekend due to an evening engagement. But thanks to heavy snow & rain, 3 of the matches were postponed to this Saturday. I'd visited VCD previously so had to choose between Leamington or Causeway. I decided on Causeway with a mental flip of the coin & prepared maps and timetables for the lengthy journey. I flicked to the Causeway website just before leaving home and discovered that there was a 9:30 pitch inspection, not good when my train left at 9.50. I went to the station and telephoned the club at 9.40 who informed me the game was on. I was greatful to whoever answered the phone, another 10 minutes & I couldn't have taken the risk and would have returned to VCD. It amused me to hear Arsenal fans on my first train discussing who might score their first goal. If only they knew where I was going, I couldn't name a single player at this point, let alone one who might score. The Virgin train from Euston was very busy but stayed on time, I did have one mild panic when the 'train manager' informed us that we were approaching Crewe...He meant Rugby! The train between Birmingham & Dudley Port is the first ever train I've been on which has TV's in each carriage showing Sky News/weather/sport etc. Quite nice actually as everyone else was attracted to the screen whilst I stayed up the other end of the carriage watching the World go by or in this case, watching the Industrial estates go by, not an attractive journey for scenery. I arrived at Dudley Port station, had a 50% chance of turning the right way and got it wrong, fortunately I soon realised. This mis-direction did take me past a chippy so I called in for lunch. I selected Saveloy and chips. I've never seen such yellow looking chips in my life and they were disgusting, I wished I'd taken the assistant up on her offer of curry sauce. Fortunately, the saveloy was OK, but those chips!! I was miffed when 5 minutes later, I passed a perfectly good looking 'Subway'. The ground is about a 2 mile walk from the station along very busy roads but easy enough to find. The clubhouse was packed so I waited outside for the gate to open. this happened about 2:30. I was fourth in the queue and couldn't believe my ears when I was told that there were no programmes. They'd only printed off about40 which had all been sold in the clubhouse. Several travellors mingled inside trying to purchase a programme from somewhere. An official promissed to print off some more and bring them round to us. I waited until kick-off but the programmes never appeared, very disppointing. I was actually buying a cup of tea at the tea hut which also offered curry sauce with chips, does this happen everywhere in the Midlands? Norton comfortable put away the early chance for Curzon. 3 minutes later Curzon won a penalty when Moore was decked in the box. He was pushed in the chest and threw himself to the ground holding his face, disgusting! I try to remain neutral but was delighted when the keeper saved his spot kick. 3 goals in 6 minutes started on 24 mins when Norton scored again when a stray shot inadvertantly put him through. Another penalty was awarded on 26 mins, hard luck on the defender as a flick hit his hand. It was a definite case of ball to hand. Moore this time took a good penalty. On 30 mins, Moore dribbled into the area, changed feet and hit a beauty across goal and in off the inside of the far post, a lovely finished. A shell shocked Causeway tried to lift it in the second half but Curzon killed the game. Curzon still created all the good chances and Norton was so unlucky when a 40 yard chip hit the bar with the keeper ending up caught up in his net. The final goal came on 71 mins when substitute Holt scored easily from a Norton pass.
This victory was as comfortable as the scoreline suggests.
A lengthy trip but well worth the effort.
Next stop, AFC Totton.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
Monday, January 29, 2007
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Thursday, January 25, 2007
VCD storm through
VCD Athletic 2 West Auckland 1
When the draw was made for this round, I decided on VCD as I hadn't yet visited a Kent league club this season. I consulted my Cherry red directory & saw that they ground shared with Lordswood. This ground is a fair treck from Chatham station & I was starting to have a few doubts. On visiting their web site, I noticed that they'd actually moved back to their home in Crayford and my enthusiasm returned. Now, two days before this game, Britain had experienced the worst storms for 20 years along with vast amounts of rain. I half expected the game to be cancelled but set off in the hope that my luck was in. About 10 minutes outside London Bridge, I saw a sight to warm the cockles of any grounhoppers heart....2 games of park football being played. This gave me hope that the rain had only been a mild monsoon in Crayford and I left the train with a positive spring in my step. The ground is a simple 10 minute walk from the station, normally at this point I would comment on my choice of lunch, but I was so keen to find the ground, that I flew straight past MacDonalds, KFC & various other assorted pubs, kebab shops & cafes. As I turned the final corner before the ground, I was once again greeted with a marvelous sight, this time the West Auckland coach. Since they'd come all the way from Durham, they surely wouldn't arrive to find the match off. The gateman confirmed that the game was on & I was a very happy man. For some reason, Kent league grounds often verge on the quirky, Greenwich Borough for instance is the only ground I've visited where you pay on the door. I'm happy to report that VCD is a definite exception. I loved this ground, you enter through the turnstile and see a steepish path which leads down to the ground. This high ground gives a great ariel view of the game to those interested. There's a stand that sits about 150, the rest of the ground is uncovered with hardstanding around a white rail. The pitch looked and indeed played fabulous and for a change, was dead flat. There's a fair sized clubhouse with at least 3 TV's showing the lunchtime premiership match. I was slighlt perturbed when there was a sudden power cut behind the bar, I had visions of floodlight failure, but the locals took it all in their stride & this is clearly a common occurence. Lunch was a burger from the van inside the ground, not exactly fine cuisine but was pleasant enough. I learnt that there had been a morning pitch inspection, but I've seen games playd on 10 times worse a surface. So to the game. The first half hour was extremely scrappy with the blustery wind causing a few problems. West Auckland took the lead on 28 mins. A free kick was given centrally 25 yards out. Whilst the wall was being set, Fairhurst asked the referee if he could take it quickly, the ref. blew his whistle & Fairhurst side footed a shot into the bottom corner whilst the keeper was still miles out of position setting his wall. West Auckland were suddenly well on top and VCD will be glad that halftime came when it did. VCD's halftime talk did the trick and they equalised on 48 mins. A corner from the left was half cleared and played back out to the corner taker. He whipped in another cross that Peneny met with his head, his effort at goal squirming in under the keepers body. We suddenly had a wonderfully competitive, evenly matched cup tie played in a marvelous spirit. West Aucklands keeper made a great double save from a VCD forward, but just as extra time was loomig, VCD scored again on 87 mins. A Forward was bundled over on the right edge of the area. I was very close to this incident, sure, it was a foul, but I have to say that it looked suspicously like it was just outside the box. Anyhow, the referee pointed to the spot and Probets put away a neat penalty. And that was that, an unexpected gem of a match at a ground where so many things are done well.
Unfortunately, I'm away for the next round..Roll on the quarter finals.
When the draw was made for this round, I decided on VCD as I hadn't yet visited a Kent league club this season. I consulted my Cherry red directory & saw that they ground shared with Lordswood. This ground is a fair treck from Chatham station & I was starting to have a few doubts. On visiting their web site, I noticed that they'd actually moved back to their home in Crayford and my enthusiasm returned. Now, two days before this game, Britain had experienced the worst storms for 20 years along with vast amounts of rain. I half expected the game to be cancelled but set off in the hope that my luck was in. About 10 minutes outside London Bridge, I saw a sight to warm the cockles of any grounhoppers heart....2 games of park football being played. This gave me hope that the rain had only been a mild monsoon in Crayford and I left the train with a positive spring in my step. The ground is a simple 10 minute walk from the station, normally at this point I would comment on my choice of lunch, but I was so keen to find the ground, that I flew straight past MacDonalds, KFC & various other assorted pubs, kebab shops & cafes. As I turned the final corner before the ground, I was once again greeted with a marvelous sight, this time the West Auckland coach. Since they'd come all the way from Durham, they surely wouldn't arrive to find the match off. The gateman confirmed that the game was on & I was a very happy man. For some reason, Kent league grounds often verge on the quirky, Greenwich Borough for instance is the only ground I've visited where you pay on the door. I'm happy to report that VCD is a definite exception. I loved this ground, you enter through the turnstile and see a steepish path which leads down to the ground. This high ground gives a great ariel view of the game to those interested. There's a stand that sits about 150, the rest of the ground is uncovered with hardstanding around a white rail. The pitch looked and indeed played fabulous and for a change, was dead flat. There's a fair sized clubhouse with at least 3 TV's showing the lunchtime premiership match. I was slighlt perturbed when there was a sudden power cut behind the bar, I had visions of floodlight failure, but the locals took it all in their stride & this is clearly a common occurence. Lunch was a burger from the van inside the ground, not exactly fine cuisine but was pleasant enough. I learnt that there had been a morning pitch inspection, but I've seen games playd on 10 times worse a surface. So to the game. The first half hour was extremely scrappy with the blustery wind causing a few problems. West Auckland took the lead on 28 mins. A free kick was given centrally 25 yards out. Whilst the wall was being set, Fairhurst asked the referee if he could take it quickly, the ref. blew his whistle & Fairhurst side footed a shot into the bottom corner whilst the keeper was still miles out of position setting his wall. West Auckland were suddenly well on top and VCD will be glad that halftime came when it did. VCD's halftime talk did the trick and they equalised on 48 mins. A corner from the left was half cleared and played back out to the corner taker. He whipped in another cross that Peneny met with his head, his effort at goal squirming in under the keepers body. We suddenly had a wonderfully competitive, evenly matched cup tie played in a marvelous spirit. West Aucklands keeper made a great double save from a VCD forward, but just as extra time was loomig, VCD scored again on 87 mins. A Forward was bundled over on the right edge of the area. I was very close to this incident, sure, it was a foul, but I have to say that it looked suspicously like it was just outside the box. Anyhow, the referee pointed to the spot and Probets put away a neat penalty. And that was that, an unexpected gem of a match at a ground where so many things are done well.
Unfortunately, I'm away for the next round..Roll on the quarter finals.
Sunday, December 17, 2006
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Monday, December 11, 2006
Is this a trophy I see before me?
Stratford Town 2 Colliers Wood United 1 aet
Living in the south of England and not being a driver means that I tend to shy away from visiting Northern clubs. I try every now and then to make a journey further North and this was one of those occasions although the tie was still in the Southern section of the draw. Having run train times from the Intenet, I called at the station to buy my ticket. The assistant asked whether I was going via Banbury. I claimed that I didn't think so, but wasn't sure. All I knew was that I changed at Marylebone. Apparently, there was an £8 difference in the price. To his credit, the assistant took a minute to look my journey up in a book and informed me that i would be going via Banbury, he then sold me the cheaper ticket. Fair play to the bloke for not trying to rip me off. The journey is just over 2 hours from London and went without a hitch. The only thing worth mentioning was the group of Europeans who got on the train at Banbury, each armed with a miniature bottle of wine. They all started to drink from their bottles. After every gulp, they'd look at the label and all burst out laughing. I couldn't quite work out why. Maybe it was the quality of the wine. If they wanted to sample fine wines in England, Banbury station would not have been the best starting place. Last week I groundhopped to Gravesend & Northfleet where you see the ground as you pull into the station, Stratford is the same and it takes a huge amount of stress away, knowing that you're not going to spend the next hour desperately trying to figure out if you're going the right way. A large Morrisons is also next to the station. I hoped they had a cafe and was not dissapointed. I could have chosen their Christmas lunch for a very reasonable price. Instead a stuck with the trusty sausage, chips, egg & beans. Again, well priced and with quick service and good, hot food, I couldn't complain. I also chose an iced, fruit finger which I discovered had also been buttered. Well done Morrisons, actually an excellent choice of food. I walked round to find the ground which was easy enough. I was slightly unnerved as I saw cars driving away, so asked a committee member whether the match was still on. His reply of "I hope so" didn't exactly fill me with confidence.
My two major interests are non-league football and amateur dramatics. Occassionally. well, very occassionally. Actually, for the first time ever, the two interests combined. With an hour or so to spare, I decided to explore the Stratford-upon-Avon town centre. A strange place. A mixture of modern shops along with some very old architecture, something about it didn't quite work for me. I did however manage to track down the site of the house where Shakespeare lived and eventually died. I've always been slightly guilty that I haven't liked Shakespeare. I love so much about theatre, but just cannot get on with Shakespeare at all. His brilliance however, cannot be denied and I felt by visiting the place where he lived, I feel like I made a kind of peace.
Back to the ground where I was relieved to find the game on. The ground is surrounded by a building plant and is quite intimidating with bits of heavy machinery occassionally encroaching over the fence. There is one basic stand which sits about 100. Other than that, it's hardstanding around a low blue rail. The pitch slopes lengthways, but it didn't notice once the game got under way.
This was the first time that Stratford had played against a Combined counties league team in a competitive fixture. It's fair to say that this part of their history didn't get off to the most friendly of starts. Stratford could have scored in the 2nd minute but a header went just over. The game was very competitive and even. Colliers Wood took the lead on 25 mins. A ball was flicked through to Longley who rounded the keeper and shot into an empty net from 12 yards. Stratford raised their game in the second half and equalised soon after the restart, Robinson held the ball up and laid it off to Stephenson who curled in a nice 15 yard effort. The second half then descended into virtual warfare. Fierce tackles, scuffle after scuffle, injury after injury and every single decision argued against. The game developed into farce as a member of the Stratford management team had to be restrained for about 5 minutes and was sent off from the fence, closely followed by a colleague. Disgraceful scenes that have absolutely no place in football. Colliers Wood was then sent off for stamping creating yet another melee. The half eventually ended having lasted 57 mins.
Thankfully, a calm descended during extra time. The winner came on 108 mins as Robinson met a Mitchell cross with a flying header.
I understand this ground is to close in January as Stratford prepare to re-locate. This will never be one of my favourite grounds but it was nice to get it in before it sees it's final game. This was a fine competitive game which was unfortunately ruined by several mindless idiots both on the pitch and more worryingly, on the bench. I hope these incidents haven't overshadowed Stratford's journey to the FA Vase 4th round for only the second time in their history.
Living in the south of England and not being a driver means that I tend to shy away from visiting Northern clubs. I try every now and then to make a journey further North and this was one of those occasions although the tie was still in the Southern section of the draw. Having run train times from the Intenet, I called at the station to buy my ticket. The assistant asked whether I was going via Banbury. I claimed that I didn't think so, but wasn't sure. All I knew was that I changed at Marylebone. Apparently, there was an £8 difference in the price. To his credit, the assistant took a minute to look my journey up in a book and informed me that i would be going via Banbury, he then sold me the cheaper ticket. Fair play to the bloke for not trying to rip me off. The journey is just over 2 hours from London and went without a hitch. The only thing worth mentioning was the group of Europeans who got on the train at Banbury, each armed with a miniature bottle of wine. They all started to drink from their bottles. After every gulp, they'd look at the label and all burst out laughing. I couldn't quite work out why. Maybe it was the quality of the wine. If they wanted to sample fine wines in England, Banbury station would not have been the best starting place. Last week I groundhopped to Gravesend & Northfleet where you see the ground as you pull into the station, Stratford is the same and it takes a huge amount of stress away, knowing that you're not going to spend the next hour desperately trying to figure out if you're going the right way. A large Morrisons is also next to the station. I hoped they had a cafe and was not dissapointed. I could have chosen their Christmas lunch for a very reasonable price. Instead a stuck with the trusty sausage, chips, egg & beans. Again, well priced and with quick service and good, hot food, I couldn't complain. I also chose an iced, fruit finger which I discovered had also been buttered. Well done Morrisons, actually an excellent choice of food. I walked round to find the ground which was easy enough. I was slightly unnerved as I saw cars driving away, so asked a committee member whether the match was still on. His reply of "I hope so" didn't exactly fill me with confidence.
My two major interests are non-league football and amateur dramatics. Occassionally. well, very occassionally. Actually, for the first time ever, the two interests combined. With an hour or so to spare, I decided to explore the Stratford-upon-Avon town centre. A strange place. A mixture of modern shops along with some very old architecture, something about it didn't quite work for me. I did however manage to track down the site of the house where Shakespeare lived and eventually died. I've always been slightly guilty that I haven't liked Shakespeare. I love so much about theatre, but just cannot get on with Shakespeare at all. His brilliance however, cannot be denied and I felt by visiting the place where he lived, I feel like I made a kind of peace.
Back to the ground where I was relieved to find the game on. The ground is surrounded by a building plant and is quite intimidating with bits of heavy machinery occassionally encroaching over the fence. There is one basic stand which sits about 100. Other than that, it's hardstanding around a low blue rail. The pitch slopes lengthways, but it didn't notice once the game got under way.
This was the first time that Stratford had played against a Combined counties league team in a competitive fixture. It's fair to say that this part of their history didn't get off to the most friendly of starts. Stratford could have scored in the 2nd minute but a header went just over. The game was very competitive and even. Colliers Wood took the lead on 25 mins. A ball was flicked through to Longley who rounded the keeper and shot into an empty net from 12 yards. Stratford raised their game in the second half and equalised soon after the restart, Robinson held the ball up and laid it off to Stephenson who curled in a nice 15 yard effort. The second half then descended into virtual warfare. Fierce tackles, scuffle after scuffle, injury after injury and every single decision argued against. The game developed into farce as a member of the Stratford management team had to be restrained for about 5 minutes and was sent off from the fence, closely followed by a colleague. Disgraceful scenes that have absolutely no place in football. Colliers Wood was then sent off for stamping creating yet another melee. The half eventually ended having lasted 57 mins.
Thankfully, a calm descended during extra time. The winner came on 108 mins as Robinson met a Mitchell cross with a flying header.
I understand this ground is to close in January as Stratford prepare to re-locate. This will never be one of my favourite grounds but it was nice to get it in before it sees it's final game. This was a fine competitive game which was unfortunately ruined by several mindless idiots both on the pitch and more worryingly, on the bench. I hope these incidents haven't overshadowed Stratford's journey to the FA Vase 4th round for only the second time in their history.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
Hoppers gather as Northampton cruise through
Northampton Spencer 5 Thetford Town 2
When the draw was published, I have to confess that I struggled somewhat for inspiration. I marked a few possible ties, but none of them filled me with any excitement for some reason. I decided to sleep on it for a few days. The inspiration came when I saw that Northampton Spencer had won a replay & were drawn at home. Now, I've heard of Frank Spencer, Spencer Tracey, Marks & Spencer; But Northampton Spencer, what's all that about? Here was my chance to find out. I've been ground hopping a number of years now and yet had never visited a ground via Euston station. Most London Stations are old and vaguely crowded and not particularly pleasant places to wait around at. Euston, was almost a joy. It's modern, uncrowded and has a delightful area just outside the terminus where you can sit on a nice day with various mobile food outlets. I enjoyed a Starbucks coffee and actually found it a bit of a wrench as I headed off to board my train. Signal failrues near Wembley meant that the previous train had been cancelled, mine was therefore packed but did leave on time. Bless the old couple sitting opposite me. They were trying to get to a church in Leighton Buzzard for 1pm and had travelled up from Hove. What an adventure they'd had! A train breakdown in Brighton, cancellations and a signal failure in Wimbledon. They put a brave face on it, but were clearly upset by this horrendous journey. The Scottish lady showed a lovely gesture in lending them her mobile phone to call ahead saying that they'd be late, restored my faith in Human nature. They arrived at Leighton Buzzard at 1:10pm and still had to find the church. I hope they made it! I did have the pleasure of going past the new Wembley stadium. It looks absolutely fantastic and slightly futuristic. When I saw it all lit up in the dark on my way home, it sent a shiver up my spine. I just can't wait to go if it ever,ever opens. On arriving at Northampton, I got my bearings and on doing so, walked along consulting my multimap. Suddenly, I was aware of two men walking towards me, also holding a multimap saying "Here's someone who looks like he's going to football." It turned out to be two fellow groundhoppers who I'd never met before, do we stand out that obviously? I enjoyed my walk to the ground with them which takes about half an hour. It turned out that one of them collects local newspapers and he kept popping off into newsagents to see what he could find. It always fascinates me the different hobbies that people have. As I had company, I didn't go out of my way to find food and decided to try my luck at the club. For anyone planning a visit to this ground, take my advice and don't eat on the way. I had the best chips I'd ever had at a football ground, piping hot and cooked in clean oil, the burger was also very nice. Washed down with a bottle of bud. made this a most acceptible lunch. Northampton Spencer have a superb function room with ample space, a couple of TV's and a large, well-stocked bar. the deluge of rain we'd had the day before worried me slightly, but the pitch, although not spectacular, had held up well and the game was never in doubt. There's a stand which sits about 75 and another covered area along the same stand. The rest of the ground has a white rail with hard standing. it's not the most charismatic place I've ever been to set in an Industrial area, but does the job. Funny, in a week where Mike Newell had been in the press for slagging off a female lino. that I should turn up to discover that this match was to be refereed by a lady. To be fair, Miss Hong gave an extremely credible performance.A lot of her decisions were contested, but have you ever been to a game when they're not? Her performance was understated and it was nice to see a referee not wanting to be the centre of attention, good luck to her. The game was slightly scrappy, but with 7 goals, you certainly can't complain. Northampton scored after only 4 mins as Frost hit a lovely 18 yard drive across goal and in off the inside of the far post. on 16 mins, Frost scored again as he beat the offside trap, side-stepped the keeper and scored from 14 yards. It looked like it could be a landslide, but Thetford fought back and scored 2 in 10 mins. Firstly, a cross was allowed to bounce and Pask headed over the advancing keeper and then Crashaw shot home from 12 yards after a defender missed his clearance. Northampton clearly upped their concentration in the second half and the result was never in doubt once they'd re-taken the lead. on 66 mins, a freek kick from wide right was headed towards goal by Nedomovic and allowed by the keeper to squirm under his body. The keeper unfortuately repeated the favour 4 mins later when he allowed Frost to complete a hattrick by allowing his 18 yard shot to again, squirm underneath him. The final goal came on 77 mins as Cottle drove home from the far post after a great cross by Foster.
The Spencer part of the team name. Well, it turns out that the club were formed by members of Spencer school old boys, the team based on members of their old school team, the Spencer name has remained with the team. A mention also for the matchday programme. A most unusua 8 inch by 4 inch pamphlet style.
I also bumped into a photographer who I've previously met at other non-league events, Definitely a game where groundhoppers gathered for some reason.
It took a while for me to decide on this game, but all in all, a most enjoyable afternoon at an interesting club to visit.
When the draw was published, I have to confess that I struggled somewhat for inspiration. I marked a few possible ties, but none of them filled me with any excitement for some reason. I decided to sleep on it for a few days. The inspiration came when I saw that Northampton Spencer had won a replay & were drawn at home. Now, I've heard of Frank Spencer, Spencer Tracey, Marks & Spencer; But Northampton Spencer, what's all that about? Here was my chance to find out. I've been ground hopping a number of years now and yet had never visited a ground via Euston station. Most London Stations are old and vaguely crowded and not particularly pleasant places to wait around at. Euston, was almost a joy. It's modern, uncrowded and has a delightful area just outside the terminus where you can sit on a nice day with various mobile food outlets. I enjoyed a Starbucks coffee and actually found it a bit of a wrench as I headed off to board my train. Signal failrues near Wembley meant that the previous train had been cancelled, mine was therefore packed but did leave on time. Bless the old couple sitting opposite me. They were trying to get to a church in Leighton Buzzard for 1pm and had travelled up from Hove. What an adventure they'd had! A train breakdown in Brighton, cancellations and a signal failure in Wimbledon. They put a brave face on it, but were clearly upset by this horrendous journey. The Scottish lady showed a lovely gesture in lending them her mobile phone to call ahead saying that they'd be late, restored my faith in Human nature. They arrived at Leighton Buzzard at 1:10pm and still had to find the church. I hope they made it! I did have the pleasure of going past the new Wembley stadium. It looks absolutely fantastic and slightly futuristic. When I saw it all lit up in the dark on my way home, it sent a shiver up my spine. I just can't wait to go if it ever,ever opens. On arriving at Northampton, I got my bearings and on doing so, walked along consulting my multimap. Suddenly, I was aware of two men walking towards me, also holding a multimap saying "Here's someone who looks like he's going to football." It turned out to be two fellow groundhoppers who I'd never met before, do we stand out that obviously? I enjoyed my walk to the ground with them which takes about half an hour. It turned out that one of them collects local newspapers and he kept popping off into newsagents to see what he could find. It always fascinates me the different hobbies that people have. As I had company, I didn't go out of my way to find food and decided to try my luck at the club. For anyone planning a visit to this ground, take my advice and don't eat on the way. I had the best chips I'd ever had at a football ground, piping hot and cooked in clean oil, the burger was also very nice. Washed down with a bottle of bud. made this a most acceptible lunch. Northampton Spencer have a superb function room with ample space, a couple of TV's and a large, well-stocked bar. the deluge of rain we'd had the day before worried me slightly, but the pitch, although not spectacular, had held up well and the game was never in doubt. There's a stand which sits about 75 and another covered area along the same stand. The rest of the ground has a white rail with hard standing. it's not the most charismatic place I've ever been to set in an Industrial area, but does the job. Funny, in a week where Mike Newell had been in the press for slagging off a female lino. that I should turn up to discover that this match was to be refereed by a lady. To be fair, Miss Hong gave an extremely credible performance.A lot of her decisions were contested, but have you ever been to a game when they're not? Her performance was understated and it was nice to see a referee not wanting to be the centre of attention, good luck to her. The game was slightly scrappy, but with 7 goals, you certainly can't complain. Northampton scored after only 4 mins as Frost hit a lovely 18 yard drive across goal and in off the inside of the far post. on 16 mins, Frost scored again as he beat the offside trap, side-stepped the keeper and scored from 14 yards. It looked like it could be a landslide, but Thetford fought back and scored 2 in 10 mins. Firstly, a cross was allowed to bounce and Pask headed over the advancing keeper and then Crashaw shot home from 12 yards after a defender missed his clearance. Northampton clearly upped their concentration in the second half and the result was never in doubt once they'd re-taken the lead. on 66 mins, a freek kick from wide right was headed towards goal by Nedomovic and allowed by the keeper to squirm under his body. The keeper unfortuately repeated the favour 4 mins later when he allowed Frost to complete a hattrick by allowing his 18 yard shot to again, squirm underneath him. The final goal came on 77 mins as Cottle drove home from the far post after a great cross by Foster.
The Spencer part of the team name. Well, it turns out that the club were formed by members of Spencer school old boys, the team based on members of their old school team, the Spencer name has remained with the team. A mention also for the matchday programme. A most unusua 8 inch by 4 inch pamphlet style.
I also bumped into a photographer who I've previously met at other non-league events, Definitely a game where groundhoppers gathered for some reason.
It took a while for me to decide on this game, but all in all, a most enjoyable afternoon at an interesting club to visit.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
Monday, October 09, 2006
Sunday, October 08, 2006
Someone call a cop, Rigmer have been robbed!
Ringmer 0 Selsey 1 aet
After enjoying my trip to Mile Oak last season, I decided to visit another Sussex club, Ringmer were the selected club. As I approached Hayward Heath, it occurred to me that the journey had so far been made without incident, foolish me. I stepped off the train to hear announcements that a replacement bus service would be taking me to Lewes and that was likely to be delayed due to roadworks. Now, earlier in the morning, I'd seen Clinton cards advertising National bosses day on October 16th. I'd like to propose a Saturday for National non replacement bus service day, it would have my full support & I'd even buy a card. As the bus set off, our driver turned on a mic, welcomed us and informed us that due to law changes, we'd have to put on our seat belts. Cue lots of scuffling about and people getting to know their neighbours better, the rather large Irish lady next to me touched me several times in places verging on the inappropriate, totally oblivious as she was focussed solely on her seat-belt. As I tentatively went to fasten mine, it turned out to be about 2 foot too short. I decided to throw caution in the wind and travel un-belted. The threatened roadworks never materialised and we arrived in Lewes in good time. I then did a brief tour of the town in search of the number 28 bus stop. after several wrong turnings, a queue in a chip shop that i gave up on after 2 minutes and a stagger up a well steep hill, I found the bus stop & was delighted when a bus appeared within a minute. The journey to Ringmer took only 10 minutes or so and was livened up by a youth who got on board and bought a ticket with a £10 note. The driver, after requesting some smaller money & been refused, proceeded to give out all the change in 10p coins. The look on the youths face was pricelss and as he sat behind me, I learnt several new swear words. The inevitable happened as the lad stood up and all the coins fell out his tracksuit pocket. I left him grovelling on the floor picking up the coins as I alighted the bus. Ringmer is a lovely little village, I rejected the Anchor pub for lunch as the food seemed a bit too extravagent, I would have happily paid for sauage, chips & beans. I found the local shops, entered the convenience store and enjoyed a sausage, cheese and pickle sandwich in glorious suuny conditions. this really is a delightful spot in good weather. First impressions are so important & I'd like to thank the Ringmer gateman and lady programme seller who greeted me with a big smile and friendly hello, I really did feel welcome. The ground is lined with fir trees behind one goal and along one side with the Sussex downs peaking over the top. there's a little stand that seats about 50 and a covered area which houses the clubhouse, tea bar and changing rooms. The pitch has quite an end to end slope but this didn't ssem to seriously affect play. A frenetic start arguably saw Seley on top, but they lost their impetus when forward Ridley went off after 15 mins with a hamstring strain. After that, it was all Ringmer. They had hlf a dozen good chances, 3 of them unmissible which were all...missed! The second half was again mostly Ringmer, the closest they came, a great 25 yard effort from Evans that rattled the post. Selsey defended gamely and created a few half chances, you just couldn't see them winning. With England kicking off at 5pm, extra time was somewhat inevitible. Where the first 90 mins were entertaining & interesting, extra time was pulsating, total commitment from both sides. Ringmer create so much down the left side through Evans and McLaughlin and it would have been fitting if McLaughlin had scored a minute into the extra period, however, again the chance went begging. As I thought a goal would never be scored, Selsey scored on 110 mins. A long ball from defense was flicked on to Rishman who burst into the area and drilled a low 16 yard shot past the keeeprs right hand side. Ringmer threw in the kitchen sink and 5 mins from the end seemed to have secured a penalty as substitute MacMillan was scythed down in the box. A dreadful challenge that resulted in him being stretchered off. Unbelievably, the referee who until then had enjoyed a really good game, claimed the ball had been won and no foul was given. The entire crowd and in truth, players from both sides were astonished. Despite their best efforts, Ringmer couldn't break through and at 5:30pm Selsey secured their victory. There's a saying that all goalkeepers are slightly mad, it was good to see Selsey keeper Hoare who played the game in exactly the right way with humour and banter throughout the afternoon.
A thoroughly enjoyable game but Ringmer will still be shaking their heads wondering how they let this one get away.
After enjoying my trip to Mile Oak last season, I decided to visit another Sussex club, Ringmer were the selected club. As I approached Hayward Heath, it occurred to me that the journey had so far been made without incident, foolish me. I stepped off the train to hear announcements that a replacement bus service would be taking me to Lewes and that was likely to be delayed due to roadworks. Now, earlier in the morning, I'd seen Clinton cards advertising National bosses day on October 16th. I'd like to propose a Saturday for National non replacement bus service day, it would have my full support & I'd even buy a card. As the bus set off, our driver turned on a mic, welcomed us and informed us that due to law changes, we'd have to put on our seat belts. Cue lots of scuffling about and people getting to know their neighbours better, the rather large Irish lady next to me touched me several times in places verging on the inappropriate, totally oblivious as she was focussed solely on her seat-belt. As I tentatively went to fasten mine, it turned out to be about 2 foot too short. I decided to throw caution in the wind and travel un-belted. The threatened roadworks never materialised and we arrived in Lewes in good time. I then did a brief tour of the town in search of the number 28 bus stop. after several wrong turnings, a queue in a chip shop that i gave up on after 2 minutes and a stagger up a well steep hill, I found the bus stop & was delighted when a bus appeared within a minute. The journey to Ringmer took only 10 minutes or so and was livened up by a youth who got on board and bought a ticket with a £10 note. The driver, after requesting some smaller money & been refused, proceeded to give out all the change in 10p coins. The look on the youths face was pricelss and as he sat behind me, I learnt several new swear words. The inevitable happened as the lad stood up and all the coins fell out his tracksuit pocket. I left him grovelling on the floor picking up the coins as I alighted the bus. Ringmer is a lovely little village, I rejected the Anchor pub for lunch as the food seemed a bit too extravagent, I would have happily paid for sauage, chips & beans. I found the local shops, entered the convenience store and enjoyed a sausage, cheese and pickle sandwich in glorious suuny conditions. this really is a delightful spot in good weather. First impressions are so important & I'd like to thank the Ringmer gateman and lady programme seller who greeted me with a big smile and friendly hello, I really did feel welcome. The ground is lined with fir trees behind one goal and along one side with the Sussex downs peaking over the top. there's a little stand that seats about 50 and a covered area which houses the clubhouse, tea bar and changing rooms. The pitch has quite an end to end slope but this didn't ssem to seriously affect play. A frenetic start arguably saw Seley on top, but they lost their impetus when forward Ridley went off after 15 mins with a hamstring strain. After that, it was all Ringmer. They had hlf a dozen good chances, 3 of them unmissible which were all...missed! The second half was again mostly Ringmer, the closest they came, a great 25 yard effort from Evans that rattled the post. Selsey defended gamely and created a few half chances, you just couldn't see them winning. With England kicking off at 5pm, extra time was somewhat inevitible. Where the first 90 mins were entertaining & interesting, extra time was pulsating, total commitment from both sides. Ringmer create so much down the left side through Evans and McLaughlin and it would have been fitting if McLaughlin had scored a minute into the extra period, however, again the chance went begging. As I thought a goal would never be scored, Selsey scored on 110 mins. A long ball from defense was flicked on to Rishman who burst into the area and drilled a low 16 yard shot past the keeeprs right hand side. Ringmer threw in the kitchen sink and 5 mins from the end seemed to have secured a penalty as substitute MacMillan was scythed down in the box. A dreadful challenge that resulted in him being stretchered off. Unbelievably, the referee who until then had enjoyed a really good game, claimed the ball had been won and no foul was given. The entire crowd and in truth, players from both sides were astonished. Despite their best efforts, Ringmer couldn't break through and at 5:30pm Selsey secured their victory. There's a saying that all goalkeepers are slightly mad, it was good to see Selsey keeper Hoare who played the game in exactly the right way with humour and banter throughout the afternoon.
A thoroughly enjoyable game but Ringmer will still be shaking their heads wondering how they let this one get away.
Thursday, September 28, 2006
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Monday, September 25, 2006
Sunday, September 24, 2006
Lovely day for a wedding!
Frimley Green 0 Arundel 3
23/9/06
I was on holiday for the first qualifying round so was eagerly awaiting this weekend. Always so many matches to choose from at this stage. My criteria is a) Ground I haven't visited, b) Team that play at a fairly low level - The big boys will keep c) Somewhere that takes my fancy. Frimley Green had a nice sound to it, so I decided to give this a go.
After a glorious late summer, I woke up to thick fog! Seriously, couldn't see the other side of my street. I had visions of another Newbury or Friar Green & Epworth, but it had burnt off by mid-morning and turned out to be a lovely warm late Summer's day.
I've recently got myself a Network rail card, valid for a year and costing only £20. One month in and I've already saved about £13. Why have I never done this before? Definitely the railcard for Groundhoppers.
The journey was passing with out incident, I reached Reading in plenty of time for my last leg of the journey until, 10 minutes before due to leave, the train to Farnborough North was suddenly cancelled due to there being no driver, You would have though they'd have thought of that! Platform 4A was suddenly full of stranded passengers being given zero information. You could see the terror in the station staff as hundreds of people descended on them asking when the next train would be. The staff suggested that various other services might make extra stops and then they found an excuse to disappear into their offices never to be seen again. Being a seasoned travellor, I went to the information desk. They atleast were honest, no trains would be stopping & I'd have to wait another hour. So a 1 hour 20 minute wait on platform 4A, people have had and lost jobs for shorter times! One of the things I like about these trips, is taking in a bit of the town before games and having a nose round, this would now not be possible as I'd only have 30 mins to find the ground once I arrived. So lunch was a disappointing Tuna & cucumber sandwich on the platform followed by a double decker. I did have the pleasure of seeing a floppy haired guy missing his train by seconds and then proceeding to have a Basil Faulty style hissy fit on the platform before storming off, very amusing!
My mate from Somerset was able to make this game & met me at Farnborough North station, I therefore cannot tell you how easy it was to walk, I can tell you that we drove up most roads in Farnborough & Frimley trying to find the ground. On finding our way, I have to say that Frimley station is only about a 10 minute walk from the ground and probably a better destination than Farnborough North.
The ground is in a recreation area consisting of playing fields & tennis courts. It's a really nice setting on a sunny day.
On entering the car park, the first thing I saw was a bride in full wedding dress just standing amongst the cars, not what you really expect at a non-league football match. It turned out there was a reception in the clubs function room. It was a bit surreal watching a game with people walking around in formal dress, although the young ladies in stunning dresses were certainly easy on the eye.
There's a grassy mound just over the far side of the ground along with some benches. these are outside the ground but give a perfect view. There were at least 20 people watching the game from there, a real shame for the club who would have gained an extra £70 if they'd come through the turnstile.
The pitch was bumpy and on quite a severe left to right slope. The clubhouse has a quite small bar area & reasonable sized function room. If you go round the back of the clubhouse and through the gate at the far side, there's a 30 yard covered area, this was a bit dark and damp for my taste, although we did on investigating this area, stumble across the tea bar. I never saw this tea bar advertised anywhere & I think we were her only customers.
The game itself was OK, but a bit one-sided with Arundel winning at a canter. The first goal came on 23 mins, the keeper spilling a 22 yard shot to HUCKETT who slotted home with ease. Frimley Green battled valiantly, but were always on the back foot. The second goal came on 48 mins, a midfielder toe-poked a shot which the keeper saved well, but the rebound fell to BOXALL who couldn't miss. The final goal came on 72 mins, scored by a substitute who'd been on about 30 seconds. Again a snap shot was well saved but the rebound hit the substitutes knee and luckily rolled into the net.
An enjoyable start to this seasons Vase and definitely a ground to visit in warm weather.
23/9/06
I was on holiday for the first qualifying round so was eagerly awaiting this weekend. Always so many matches to choose from at this stage. My criteria is a) Ground I haven't visited, b) Team that play at a fairly low level - The big boys will keep c) Somewhere that takes my fancy. Frimley Green had a nice sound to it, so I decided to give this a go.
After a glorious late summer, I woke up to thick fog! Seriously, couldn't see the other side of my street. I had visions of another Newbury or Friar Green & Epworth, but it had burnt off by mid-morning and turned out to be a lovely warm late Summer's day.
I've recently got myself a Network rail card, valid for a year and costing only £20. One month in and I've already saved about £13. Why have I never done this before? Definitely the railcard for Groundhoppers.
The journey was passing with out incident, I reached Reading in plenty of time for my last leg of the journey until, 10 minutes before due to leave, the train to Farnborough North was suddenly cancelled due to there being no driver, You would have though they'd have thought of that! Platform 4A was suddenly full of stranded passengers being given zero information. You could see the terror in the station staff as hundreds of people descended on them asking when the next train would be. The staff suggested that various other services might make extra stops and then they found an excuse to disappear into their offices never to be seen again. Being a seasoned travellor, I went to the information desk. They atleast were honest, no trains would be stopping & I'd have to wait another hour. So a 1 hour 20 minute wait on platform 4A, people have had and lost jobs for shorter times! One of the things I like about these trips, is taking in a bit of the town before games and having a nose round, this would now not be possible as I'd only have 30 mins to find the ground once I arrived. So lunch was a disappointing Tuna & cucumber sandwich on the platform followed by a double decker. I did have the pleasure of seeing a floppy haired guy missing his train by seconds and then proceeding to have a Basil Faulty style hissy fit on the platform before storming off, very amusing!
My mate from Somerset was able to make this game & met me at Farnborough North station, I therefore cannot tell you how easy it was to walk, I can tell you that we drove up most roads in Farnborough & Frimley trying to find the ground. On finding our way, I have to say that Frimley station is only about a 10 minute walk from the ground and probably a better destination than Farnborough North.
The ground is in a recreation area consisting of playing fields & tennis courts. It's a really nice setting on a sunny day.
On entering the car park, the first thing I saw was a bride in full wedding dress just standing amongst the cars, not what you really expect at a non-league football match. It turned out there was a reception in the clubs function room. It was a bit surreal watching a game with people walking around in formal dress, although the young ladies in stunning dresses were certainly easy on the eye.
There's a grassy mound just over the far side of the ground along with some benches. these are outside the ground but give a perfect view. There were at least 20 people watching the game from there, a real shame for the club who would have gained an extra £70 if they'd come through the turnstile.
The pitch was bumpy and on quite a severe left to right slope. The clubhouse has a quite small bar area & reasonable sized function room. If you go round the back of the clubhouse and through the gate at the far side, there's a 30 yard covered area, this was a bit dark and damp for my taste, although we did on investigating this area, stumble across the tea bar. I never saw this tea bar advertised anywhere & I think we were her only customers.
The game itself was OK, but a bit one-sided with Arundel winning at a canter. The first goal came on 23 mins, the keeper spilling a 22 yard shot to HUCKETT who slotted home with ease. Frimley Green battled valiantly, but were always on the back foot. The second goal came on 48 mins, a midfielder toe-poked a shot which the keeper saved well, but the rebound fell to BOXALL who couldn't miss. The final goal came on 72 mins, scored by a substitute who'd been on about 30 seconds. Again a snap shot was well saved but the rebound hit the substitutes knee and luckily rolled into the net.
An enjoyable start to this seasons Vase and definitely a ground to visit in warm weather.
Friday, May 12, 2006
Thursday, May 11, 2006
Wednesday, May 10, 2006
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Nantwich are champions!
Hillingdon Borough 1 Nantwich Town 3
When I looked through the first draw back in July and chose Tunbridge Wells, I was looking forward to the final being held at the new Wembley stadium. Well we all know of the Wembley saga and several months ago, it had been announced that Birmingham would host the final. In the end, not the worst thing that could have happened as this was my first trip to St Andrews. Quite a long train journey, but Birmingham, being in the middle of the country, is accessible from everywhere. I shared part of the journet with a load of Leicester rugby fans and it was interesting listening in as they tossed about the various permitations still possible for their play-offs. Birmingham New street station has to be seen to be believed and is actually more like an airport than any station I've ever been do. Surprisingly, it seems to run a lot more efficiently than most, much quieter stations. I'd run an AA route from the station to the ground. The first instruction told me to leave the station and turn right. What it didn't tell me was that the station had about 6 different exits. I had no idea where to go and being in a major city, the whole surrounding area looked vast. I eventually selected the exit where the taxis were and more by luck than judgment, discovered that I was going the right way. The Birminham Bullring is an impressive looking building, but I wanted to find the ground and didn't have time for a proper scout round. I can't say I particularly enjoyed my walk through Birmingham, give me Chipstead in October any day. I found the ground a lot easier than I had any right to and was delighted to find a MaCdonalds only 200 yards from the entrance. On arriving at the stadium, I asked a steward where the ticket office was. He pointed to an area of the ground. Last year at White Hart Lane it was a complete bun fight buying tickets with people everywhere. This year, I gently walked to the window and paid straight away. the hugely disappointing crowd of under 3 and a half thousand people probably explains why. Entering St Andrews reminded me why I follownon-league football. The place really has no character and is exactly like most other football league grounds you see, only Blue. The bar area inside the gates is very small, fine for our meagre ground but must be hell on premiership match days. The pitch was not bad but not as pristine as White Hart Lane. Only 5000 programmes had been printed and were only being sold outside the ground, I had to ask a steward to let me out to buy one, others in the ground could not get one as somehow they seemed to have sold out. Poor! Nice to see Trevor Francis performing the honours, I coouldn't think of a better person for where we were. I like watching the teams in their pre-match warm-up, it tells you a lot. Hillingdon were waving to the crowd and breaking away from their warm-up to continually have their pictures taken. Nantich were just getting on with it like in any other match.
In the end, Hillingdon froze on the big stage and were never, ever in it. Them shaking their heads at the end told the whole story. Nantwich were terrific. Fastest, most imaginative, fiercest and most clinical, they were never going to lose. They kicked off and had about 10 touches before a Hillingdon defender manager to toe it out of touch. Nantwich hit the post after 5 mins when they should have scored but still managed to take the lead on 15 mins. A Hillingdon defender failed to shield the ball out of play, Nantwich cut the ball back from the dead ball line to KINSEY who faked to shoot gaining a yard and then picked his spot low to the keepers right, a very composed finish. The lead was doubled on 33 mins. A break down the left saw an interchange of passes inside the box, it was eventually played out to SCHEUBER who hit a 22 yard left foot low shot across the keeper and in. Hillingdon tried to lift it at the start of the second half but only created half scrambled chances. The game was made safe on 70 mins. KINSEY picked the ball up on the edge of the box, side-stepped a challenge and blasted a shot past the keeper at his near post, Kinsey then dislocated his shoulder throwing his shirt into the crowd, a good job they won as he'd never live that down otherwise. Hillingdon got a consolation on 90 mins. A deep cross from the right was headed back across goal, Tilbury hit the post and Nelson scuffed in the rebound, the linesman declaring that the ball had just crossed the line.
And that was it, an enjoyable, if one-sided final.
Congratulations to Nantwich, worth winners. Roll on July and the draw for next season.
When I looked through the first draw back in July and chose Tunbridge Wells, I was looking forward to the final being held at the new Wembley stadium. Well we all know of the Wembley saga and several months ago, it had been announced that Birmingham would host the final. In the end, not the worst thing that could have happened as this was my first trip to St Andrews. Quite a long train journey, but Birmingham, being in the middle of the country, is accessible from everywhere. I shared part of the journet with a load of Leicester rugby fans and it was interesting listening in as they tossed about the various permitations still possible for their play-offs. Birmingham New street station has to be seen to be believed and is actually more like an airport than any station I've ever been do. Surprisingly, it seems to run a lot more efficiently than most, much quieter stations. I'd run an AA route from the station to the ground. The first instruction told me to leave the station and turn right. What it didn't tell me was that the station had about 6 different exits. I had no idea where to go and being in a major city, the whole surrounding area looked vast. I eventually selected the exit where the taxis were and more by luck than judgment, discovered that I was going the right way. The Birminham Bullring is an impressive looking building, but I wanted to find the ground and didn't have time for a proper scout round. I can't say I particularly enjoyed my walk through Birmingham, give me Chipstead in October any day. I found the ground a lot easier than I had any right to and was delighted to find a MaCdonalds only 200 yards from the entrance. On arriving at the stadium, I asked a steward where the ticket office was. He pointed to an area of the ground. Last year at White Hart Lane it was a complete bun fight buying tickets with people everywhere. This year, I gently walked to the window and paid straight away. the hugely disappointing crowd of under 3 and a half thousand people probably explains why. Entering St Andrews reminded me why I follownon-league football. The place really has no character and is exactly like most other football league grounds you see, only Blue. The bar area inside the gates is very small, fine for our meagre ground but must be hell on premiership match days. The pitch was not bad but not as pristine as White Hart Lane. Only 5000 programmes had been printed and were only being sold outside the ground, I had to ask a steward to let me out to buy one, others in the ground could not get one as somehow they seemed to have sold out. Poor! Nice to see Trevor Francis performing the honours, I coouldn't think of a better person for where we were. I like watching the teams in their pre-match warm-up, it tells you a lot. Hillingdon were waving to the crowd and breaking away from their warm-up to continually have their pictures taken. Nantich were just getting on with it like in any other match.
In the end, Hillingdon froze on the big stage and were never, ever in it. Them shaking their heads at the end told the whole story. Nantwich were terrific. Fastest, most imaginative, fiercest and most clinical, they were never going to lose. They kicked off and had about 10 touches before a Hillingdon defender manager to toe it out of touch. Nantwich hit the post after 5 mins when they should have scored but still managed to take the lead on 15 mins. A Hillingdon defender failed to shield the ball out of play, Nantwich cut the ball back from the dead ball line to KINSEY who faked to shoot gaining a yard and then picked his spot low to the keepers right, a very composed finish. The lead was doubled on 33 mins. A break down the left saw an interchange of passes inside the box, it was eventually played out to SCHEUBER who hit a 22 yard left foot low shot across the keeper and in. Hillingdon tried to lift it at the start of the second half but only created half scrambled chances. The game was made safe on 70 mins. KINSEY picked the ball up on the edge of the box, side-stepped a challenge and blasted a shot past the keeper at his near post, Kinsey then dislocated his shoulder throwing his shirt into the crowd, a good job they won as he'd never live that down otherwise. Hillingdon got a consolation on 90 mins. A deep cross from the right was headed back across goal, Tilbury hit the post and Nelson scuffed in the rebound, the linesman declaring that the ball had just crossed the line.
And that was it, an enjoyable, if one-sided final.
Congratulations to Nantwich, worth winners. Roll on July and the draw for next season.
Friday, April 07, 2006
Thursday, April 06, 2006
Monday, April 03, 2006
Semi final nicely balanced
Bury Town 1 Hillingdon Borough 1
Following consultation with the police, it was decided to play the FA Vase semi finals between these two teams on a Sunday. This accompanied by the decision to also play the second leg at Nantwich on the Sunday, means I could only make it to this 1st leg as I’m away next week. It was also announced that this would be all ticket. Great panic when I discovered this with a week to go, but I sorted it out and received my ticket with a couple of days to spare. Why then did I turn up at the game to find them selling tickets on the gate?
This had a bit of a surreal feel to the whole day. I normally get to my venue with loads of time to spare and take in a bit of the town. For some reason, what with it being a Sunday and WAGN deciding once again to do essential maintenance every weekend until mid-June, meant that I got to Bury with only an hour to spare. Plenty of time, but I never got to see much of Bury St Edmunds at all.
Lunch was a couple of cheeseburgers at Stevenage station and a stale kit Kat at the ground. The journey was without incident and actually took me through quite picturesque surroundings. It’s only a 10 minute walk from the station to the ground, but I still managed to take a wrong turning and ended up in the back streets of Bury. Normally, there’s people bustling around and it’s easy to find someone to ask for directions. Again, maybe it was because it was Sunday, but I walked for 5-10 minutes and didn’t see a single soul on foot or in a vehicle, very eerie. I eventually found my way and arrived at the ground in good time. According to the press, there were only 580 people at the other semi final the day before at Cammell Laird. By 14:20, Bury Town was packed and I just managed to get a place on the rail. By kick off, it was about 2 deep all the way round and no space whatsoever behind both goals. I’ve been to the ground once before a few years ago for an evening match but didn’t have a chance to look round this time as I didn’t want to lose my place. The big crowd ensured a good atmosphere. The one spoiling factor was the wind. Once a year, every year, you get a game like this when the wind is so strong that goalkeepers struggle to reach the halfway line with their kicks. To be fair, both teams adjusted really well and this was a cracking game right from the first whistle.
Hillingdon attacked from the kick-off and were unlucky not to get in after only 10 seconds. They impressed me greatly. Intelligent strikers, energetic in midfield and strong at the back. They deserved their draw and ensured an exciting second leg. Bury hit the post early on before scoring on 11 mins. They won a free kick 30 yards out that was brilliantly dispatched into the bottom left corner by McGavin. Tilbury then went really close for Hillingdon with a brilliant 35 yard wind assisted volley that grazed the woodwork. Then Hillingdon won a cast iron penalty on 25 mins after a player was flattened in the box. Craft blasted the penalty into the top right corner giving the keeper no chance. It was nip and tuck after that with both sides having half chances, Lawrence coming closest for Hillingdon with a 22 yard effort that clipped the top of the bar.
Hillingdon will be happiest going into the second leg, but this tie is far from over.
I’m just gutted I can’t make the second leg.
Next stop for me, St Andrews and the final.
Following consultation with the police, it was decided to play the FA Vase semi finals between these two teams on a Sunday. This accompanied by the decision to also play the second leg at Nantwich on the Sunday, means I could only make it to this 1st leg as I’m away next week. It was also announced that this would be all ticket. Great panic when I discovered this with a week to go, but I sorted it out and received my ticket with a couple of days to spare. Why then did I turn up at the game to find them selling tickets on the gate?
This had a bit of a surreal feel to the whole day. I normally get to my venue with loads of time to spare and take in a bit of the town. For some reason, what with it being a Sunday and WAGN deciding once again to do essential maintenance every weekend until mid-June, meant that I got to Bury with only an hour to spare. Plenty of time, but I never got to see much of Bury St Edmunds at all.
Lunch was a couple of cheeseburgers at Stevenage station and a stale kit Kat at the ground. The journey was without incident and actually took me through quite picturesque surroundings. It’s only a 10 minute walk from the station to the ground, but I still managed to take a wrong turning and ended up in the back streets of Bury. Normally, there’s people bustling around and it’s easy to find someone to ask for directions. Again, maybe it was because it was Sunday, but I walked for 5-10 minutes and didn’t see a single soul on foot or in a vehicle, very eerie. I eventually found my way and arrived at the ground in good time. According to the press, there were only 580 people at the other semi final the day before at Cammell Laird. By 14:20, Bury Town was packed and I just managed to get a place on the rail. By kick off, it was about 2 deep all the way round and no space whatsoever behind both goals. I’ve been to the ground once before a few years ago for an evening match but didn’t have a chance to look round this time as I didn’t want to lose my place. The big crowd ensured a good atmosphere. The one spoiling factor was the wind. Once a year, every year, you get a game like this when the wind is so strong that goalkeepers struggle to reach the halfway line with their kicks. To be fair, both teams adjusted really well and this was a cracking game right from the first whistle.
Hillingdon attacked from the kick-off and were unlucky not to get in after only 10 seconds. They impressed me greatly. Intelligent strikers, energetic in midfield and strong at the back. They deserved their draw and ensured an exciting second leg. Bury hit the post early on before scoring on 11 mins. They won a free kick 30 yards out that was brilliantly dispatched into the bottom left corner by McGavin. Tilbury then went really close for Hillingdon with a brilliant 35 yard wind assisted volley that grazed the woodwork. Then Hillingdon won a cast iron penalty on 25 mins after a player was flattened in the box. Craft blasted the penalty into the top right corner giving the keeper no chance. It was nip and tuck after that with both sides having half chances, Lawrence coming closest for Hillingdon with a 22 yard effort that clipped the top of the bar.
Hillingdon will be happiest going into the second leg, but this tie is far from over.
I’m just gutted I can’t make the second leg.
Next stop for me, St Andrews and the final.
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