Friar Lane & Epworth FC
Tuesday, November 22, 2005
Tiger territory
Friar Lane & Epworth 1 Stourbridge 5
Replacement bus services and trawls through London finally wore me down and I decided to head North to Leicster. I woke up to an extremely hard frost and fog! Surely not another Newbury? The journey to Leicester was extremely easy with everything leaving on time. Conditions had become bright and sunny until about 10 mins outside Leicester when the fog returned. To say you couldn't see your hand in front of your face would be ridiculous as I was on a train, but outside, you could barely make out anything. I was seriously concerned until on approaching the city centre, it lifted again with visibility in the town centre, perfectly clear. I had e-mailed the club in advance asking for directions from the train station. I was pleasantly surprised to receive a response and the directions were spot on, thanks guys! The walk takes you through the University of Leicester campus with students at every turn. One student was on my train and I'd watched her tuck into a lunch of sushi, crisps and a rather attractive looking packaged salad. I thought they were supposed to be hard up! Her lunch put my slightly stale Double decker firmly in its place. Around the university, you walk down Tiger way which leads to Tiger stadium, home of the Leicester Tigers. Nice looking stadium with the next game at the end of the month already sold out. Made me think how much egg chasing had changed in the last decade. I used to occasionally watch Wembley FC, who were based next to Wasps old ground. Wasps ground was probably the equivelant of a current Ryman premier ground. Many people knocked professional rugby when it came in, but the revenue received, has certainly made the facilities a lot more attractive. Once I was happy that I was on the right road, I detoured to find some lunch and found a chip shop that provided me with an excellent sausage and chips. I ate it in a recreation ground called 'Nelson Mandela Park'. This made me feel like an extra from 'Only fools and horses.' I was intrigued by a castle like building next to the park which on closer observation, turned out to be a prison. Kind of ironic that Nelson Mandela park displaying a large board with the tag-lines 'A short walk to freedom' & 'There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere' should be right next to the local slammer. The walk to the ground from the station is probably just over 2 miles, leave yourself 45 mins for a gentle walk and you'll be fine. The roads you walk along are very busy though. On finding the ground, you walk across a little bridge just past the bar. On looking up, my first impression was that this was the worst pitch I'd ever seen. On closer examination, I realised that I was looking at a training pitch. On walking past this, you reach the entrance which was reasonably priced at £4 including a programme. The programme was OK, but there was no thoughts or information about the game and no details of the visiting team. The ground runs parallel to the railway line and one of the sides is overlooked by a railway embankment. There is one small stand that sits about 30 and hard standing around a quarter of the pitch. The changing rooms are right at the back of this stand, this means that the players are extremely close to the spectators and you can hear every word of the managers team talks. The Friar Lane boss was explainiing before the game that the performance was more important than the result, this gave me hope for a great game. I was not disappointed, this match was hugely entertaining from the first kick to the last with fast, skillful attacking play. Stourbridge probably just edged it by 5~1 flattered them hugely. stourbridge flew out the blocks and it was no surprise when they scored on 10 mins. Rogers broke down the left in acres of space, his cross/shot caught a deflection leaving the keeper helpless as it flew in at the near post. Friar Lane then started to play although Stourbridge were still looking dangerous. The second goal again came from Rogers on 30 mins, almost a carbon copy of the first except that the shot went straight in without a deflection. the rather cramped tea hut provided me with hot chocolate at half time as the temperature plumetted, bottles of beer were also on sale and were clearly popular as the singing and chanting started just after time, actually, this was a fair sized crowd and there was a good atmosphere. Friar Lane scored on 48 mins when the keeper never got hold of a punch and it was hooked into an empty net from 22 yards. Stourbridge knocked the stuffing out of a resurgent Friar Lane 4 mins later when a midfielder timed his run to perfection, collected a pass and easily rounded the keeper to restore the 2 goal lead. Friar Lane played some delightful stuff but were finished off on 73 mins when a poor headed clearance was chipped back to the far post to a striker who headed home from point blank range. As the mist started to envelop the railway embankment, the final goal came in stoppage time. A throw in near the corer flag fell at the feet of a striker who easily turned his marker and slotted home again at the near post. This was the last kick of a really entertaing match. Nice to tick off my first ground from the Leicestershire senior league and extremely accessible by public transport.
Replacement bus services and trawls through London finally wore me down and I decided to head North to Leicster. I woke up to an extremely hard frost and fog! Surely not another Newbury? The journey to Leicester was extremely easy with everything leaving on time. Conditions had become bright and sunny until about 10 mins outside Leicester when the fog returned. To say you couldn't see your hand in front of your face would be ridiculous as I was on a train, but outside, you could barely make out anything. I was seriously concerned until on approaching the city centre, it lifted again with visibility in the town centre, perfectly clear. I had e-mailed the club in advance asking for directions from the train station. I was pleasantly surprised to receive a response and the directions were spot on, thanks guys! The walk takes you through the University of Leicester campus with students at every turn. One student was on my train and I'd watched her tuck into a lunch of sushi, crisps and a rather attractive looking packaged salad. I thought they were supposed to be hard up! Her lunch put my slightly stale Double decker firmly in its place. Around the university, you walk down Tiger way which leads to Tiger stadium, home of the Leicester Tigers. Nice looking stadium with the next game at the end of the month already sold out. Made me think how much egg chasing had changed in the last decade. I used to occasionally watch Wembley FC, who were based next to Wasps old ground. Wasps ground was probably the equivelant of a current Ryman premier ground. Many people knocked professional rugby when it came in, but the revenue received, has certainly made the facilities a lot more attractive. Once I was happy that I was on the right road, I detoured to find some lunch and found a chip shop that provided me with an excellent sausage and chips. I ate it in a recreation ground called 'Nelson Mandela Park'. This made me feel like an extra from 'Only fools and horses.' I was intrigued by a castle like building next to the park which on closer observation, turned out to be a prison. Kind of ironic that Nelson Mandela park displaying a large board with the tag-lines 'A short walk to freedom' & 'There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere' should be right next to the local slammer. The walk to the ground from the station is probably just over 2 miles, leave yourself 45 mins for a gentle walk and you'll be fine. The roads you walk along are very busy though. On finding the ground, you walk across a little bridge just past the bar. On looking up, my first impression was that this was the worst pitch I'd ever seen. On closer examination, I realised that I was looking at a training pitch. On walking past this, you reach the entrance which was reasonably priced at £4 including a programme. The programme was OK, but there was no thoughts or information about the game and no details of the visiting team. The ground runs parallel to the railway line and one of the sides is overlooked by a railway embankment. There is one small stand that sits about 30 and hard standing around a quarter of the pitch. The changing rooms are right at the back of this stand, this means that the players are extremely close to the spectators and you can hear every word of the managers team talks. The Friar Lane boss was explainiing before the game that the performance was more important than the result, this gave me hope for a great game. I was not disappointed, this match was hugely entertaining from the first kick to the last with fast, skillful attacking play. Stourbridge probably just edged it by 5~1 flattered them hugely. stourbridge flew out the blocks and it was no surprise when they scored on 10 mins. Rogers broke down the left in acres of space, his cross/shot caught a deflection leaving the keeper helpless as it flew in at the near post. Friar Lane then started to play although Stourbridge were still looking dangerous. The second goal again came from Rogers on 30 mins, almost a carbon copy of the first except that the shot went straight in without a deflection. the rather cramped tea hut provided me with hot chocolate at half time as the temperature plumetted, bottles of beer were also on sale and were clearly popular as the singing and chanting started just after time, actually, this was a fair sized crowd and there was a good atmosphere. Friar Lane scored on 48 mins when the keeper never got hold of a punch and it was hooked into an empty net from 22 yards. Stourbridge knocked the stuffing out of a resurgent Friar Lane 4 mins later when a midfielder timed his run to perfection, collected a pass and easily rounded the keeper to restore the 2 goal lead. Friar Lane played some delightful stuff but were finished off on 73 mins when a poor headed clearance was chipped back to the far post to a striker who headed home from point blank range. As the mist started to envelop the railway embankment, the final goal came in stoppage time. A throw in near the corer flag fell at the feet of a striker who easily turned his marker and slotted home again at the near post. This was the last kick of a really entertaing match. Nice to tick off my first ground from the Leicestershire senior league and extremely accessible by public transport.
Monday, October 31, 2005
Sunday, October 30, 2005
How's their play dough?
Mile oak 0 Slade Green 0
29/10/05
I decided to visit a Sussex league ground as I hadn't been to one for about 15 years. It was also a reason to see if the Thameslink service was always as bad as my first visit. In fairness, this time it was OK. At Gatwick airport a young lad got on the train and immediately made a call on his mobile. The Gentleman behind him on hearing this leapt out of his seat exclaiming "Oh, for God's sake" and stormed off into the next compartment. An interesting reaction, as the young lad was talking in a completely normal voice, the only disturbance to the carriage was this idiot throwing his toys out of the pram. The guy on the phone didn't even realise what was going on. There's nowt as queer as folk! I travelled to Fishersgate station and from there it's supposed to be a 1.8 mile journey. I walked it and was there in just over 20 mins, there's also a bus that goes from near the station to Mile oak. The walk was fine apart from the steep hills. Note to self. "Choose a ground in a flat area next round" A suggestion to Sussex, they should be called the Sussex ups, not downs and Mile Oak should be called Mile high! I was greatly encouraged to turn a corner to spot a fish and chip shop only to find it shut! I then came across a Sky Sports van, maybe Sky had finally seen the light and would be showing my game live, let's face it, it couldn't be any duller than live celebrity poker? It's always comforting to finally see something that suggests you're in the right location. this occured as I bumped into the Mile oak community centre, gospal hall and medical centre all in a row. Maybe that's the natural progression in Mile oak? You join the community centre, get roped into singing at the gospel centre and on over-doing it, finish up in the medical centre. Or maybe the lack of oxygen at such a height was getting to me. I found the ground easily enough and on attempting to find the entrance, was invited into the clubhouse for a cup of tea. I've seen some different set-ups in my time but have never seen a football club using a playgroup hall as their clubhouse. It was kind of surreal talking football whilst surrounded by pictures of Mr Men. I texted 'er indoors to let her know as she's a teacher and received back, her one witty text of the year. It merely said "How's their play dough?" I ordered a cheese burger and tea which was really good and was told by an official that Mile Oak's players are not paid a penny, no expenses or anything. Nice to see that the club seems to run so well for a small outfit who are actually based in the nearby Mile Oak pub. Both teams were written up well in advance on a blackboard, don't you just love it when clubs make the effort to do this? I was made to feel welcome, so much so, that the kick-off sailed straight to my foot and if I may say so, I had a hell of a first touch. This was the first time that Mile oak had ever been in the first round proper of any FA competition. Nice to witness such history. The pitch slopes (The views from up there are great), the grass was long, the ground was dry and bumpy and there was a fair wind. Control was never going to be easy and neither side never fully adjusted. Slade Green should have scored in the first half with an unmarked player meeting a corner 6 yards out, but it hit the keeper in the midriff and was hacked clear. In the second half, Mile oak hit a 25 yard screamer just over and Slade Green had a goal disallowed for a clear push. They also saw a man clear through but he screwed his shot badly wide. Extra time arrived and Slade Green immediately went down to 10 men as a player was sent off for 2 yellows.One player said to the referee in extra time "Why are you so busy?" and I'm afraid that somewhat summed him up and extra time became a bit of a battleground. It was all Mile oak until the end and they were unlucky to see one 18 yard effort crash off the bar. In the end they couldn't find a way through, so it'll be a replay in Kent on Tuesday.
An unusual set-up and a highly original ground to visit.
29/10/05
I decided to visit a Sussex league ground as I hadn't been to one for about 15 years. It was also a reason to see if the Thameslink service was always as bad as my first visit. In fairness, this time it was OK. At Gatwick airport a young lad got on the train and immediately made a call on his mobile. The Gentleman behind him on hearing this leapt out of his seat exclaiming "Oh, for God's sake" and stormed off into the next compartment. An interesting reaction, as the young lad was talking in a completely normal voice, the only disturbance to the carriage was this idiot throwing his toys out of the pram. The guy on the phone didn't even realise what was going on. There's nowt as queer as folk! I travelled to Fishersgate station and from there it's supposed to be a 1.8 mile journey. I walked it and was there in just over 20 mins, there's also a bus that goes from near the station to Mile oak. The walk was fine apart from the steep hills. Note to self. "Choose a ground in a flat area next round" A suggestion to Sussex, they should be called the Sussex ups, not downs and Mile Oak should be called Mile high! I was greatly encouraged to turn a corner to spot a fish and chip shop only to find it shut! I then came across a Sky Sports van, maybe Sky had finally seen the light and would be showing my game live, let's face it, it couldn't be any duller than live celebrity poker? It's always comforting to finally see something that suggests you're in the right location. this occured as I bumped into the Mile oak community centre, gospal hall and medical centre all in a row. Maybe that's the natural progression in Mile oak? You join the community centre, get roped into singing at the gospel centre and on over-doing it, finish up in the medical centre. Or maybe the lack of oxygen at such a height was getting to me. I found the ground easily enough and on attempting to find the entrance, was invited into the clubhouse for a cup of tea. I've seen some different set-ups in my time but have never seen a football club using a playgroup hall as their clubhouse. It was kind of surreal talking football whilst surrounded by pictures of Mr Men. I texted 'er indoors to let her know as she's a teacher and received back, her one witty text of the year. It merely said "How's their play dough?" I ordered a cheese burger and tea which was really good and was told by an official that Mile Oak's players are not paid a penny, no expenses or anything. Nice to see that the club seems to run so well for a small outfit who are actually based in the nearby Mile Oak pub. Both teams were written up well in advance on a blackboard, don't you just love it when clubs make the effort to do this? I was made to feel welcome, so much so, that the kick-off sailed straight to my foot and if I may say so, I had a hell of a first touch. This was the first time that Mile oak had ever been in the first round proper of any FA competition. Nice to witness such history. The pitch slopes (The views from up there are great), the grass was long, the ground was dry and bumpy and there was a fair wind. Control was never going to be easy and neither side never fully adjusted. Slade Green should have scored in the first half with an unmarked player meeting a corner 6 yards out, but it hit the keeper in the midriff and was hacked clear. In the second half, Mile oak hit a 25 yard screamer just over and Slade Green had a goal disallowed for a clear push. They also saw a man clear through but he screwed his shot badly wide. Extra time arrived and Slade Green immediately went down to 10 men as a player was sent off for 2 yellows.One player said to the referee in extra time "Why are you so busy?" and I'm afraid that somewhat summed him up and extra time became a bit of a battleground. It was all Mile oak until the end and they were unlucky to see one 18 yard effort crash off the bar. In the end they couldn't find a way through, so it'll be a replay in Kent on Tuesday.
An unusual set-up and a highly original ground to visit.
Monday, October 03, 2005
Down the Chippy
Chipstead 1 Brockenhurst 2 01/10/05
I'm not sure how many non-league grounds I've been to, but despite a couple of aborted attempts, I'd never visited a Combined Counties team. My criteria for this round was to tick off my first such team. I picked on Chipstead for no other reason. The replacement bus service on my line will be running every weekend until at least Christmas (Sigh). This particular journey took me on the Thameslink line for the first time, surprising how little things excite us ground-hoppers. I won't be so excited next time as delays, signal failure and general chaos meant that I was waiting at East Croydon station for 45 mins. When my train finally arrived, it stopped at a signal for over 5 mins. I thought I'd never arrive. Now football fans and school kids are often given a hard time for making excessive noise on trains. Let me add into that mix, horse racing fans. I had a train full of people going to Tattenham corner and boy, what a racket! When I arrived at Chipstead I'd heard so many hot-tips for different horses in the 1:55 at Epsom, that I was sure that it was going to end in an 8 horse dead heat.
I decided to print off an AA route from the station to the ground. The first time I'd done this in addition to multi-map and it worked very well...It would have worked better if the station hadn't had two exits, fortunately, I picked the right one. I passed a little parade of shops on leavin the station and was looking out for food. I decided to give the Chipstead Tandoori a wide berth, in hindsight, a mistake as I never saw another shop. My route took me up quite a steep hill. A nice enough walk but cars flew up and down this quite narrow road at a hell of a speed, it was quite hairy at times and I was glad when I reached the High street. High Street? I'd hate to see the low street. I saw no shops and on reflection, no houses, just a rugby club and some kind of Nature reserve.
But I found the ground easily and headed hungrily for the clubhouse...Only to be informed that there was no food as the bloke wasn't there. So lunch was a bag of crisps and a kit=kat. How can there be no chips in Chipstead, should be called crispstead!
The clubhouse was quite nice with a well stocked bar and adequate room for a pool table. The ground itself was a white rail affair with one reasonable stand that sat about 80 people. The pitch was in quite good nick and it had very pleasant surroundings.
Chipstead and Brockenhurst had actually met earlier in the season in an FA Cup tie, don't supporters just hate it when you get drawn against the same team twice in a season?
Chipstead offered an excellent programme and I particularly liked the two articles on footballing greats, this week was Shearer and Viv Anderson.
I enjoyed watching the referee and linesman warming up and was amused when the ref instructed his assistants to join him in doing a Morecambe and Wise. This involved a knees-up run with the hands flicking up behind the head. They seemed to have a good relationship with plenty of banter and they worked well as a team during the game.
The first half was terrific and Brockenhurst took only 3 mins to score when the keeper could only palm a snap shot from the edge of the box into the top of the net. Chipstead easily had the best of the posession after this although it was end to end stuff, the Brockenhurst keeper pulled off one great full length diving save. But on half time, Brockenhurst scored again with a nice drive from the edge of the box that gave the keeper no chance.
Half time and I found a bloke serving tea and some food out of a little kitchen in the clubhouse. I had a cheeseburger, no offence to the guy who made it but Disgusting! It reminded me why I don't normally eat at football grounds.
The second half opened with a torrential downpour that lasted about 10 mins. It made conditions very tricky after this with several players imitaing Bambi on ice. The game was still end to end but Brockenhurst were a lot more comfortable and looked more of a threat up front. Chipstead did manage to score deep into stoppage time as a cross was put away with a bicycle kick that looped over the keeper and in.
An enjoyable game and a nice but quiet ground, kind of in the middle of nowhere.
If you're going to visit by train, avoid race days!
I'm not sure how many non-league grounds I've been to, but despite a couple of aborted attempts, I'd never visited a Combined Counties team. My criteria for this round was to tick off my first such team. I picked on Chipstead for no other reason. The replacement bus service on my line will be running every weekend until at least Christmas (Sigh). This particular journey took me on the Thameslink line for the first time, surprising how little things excite us ground-hoppers. I won't be so excited next time as delays, signal failure and general chaos meant that I was waiting at East Croydon station for 45 mins. When my train finally arrived, it stopped at a signal for over 5 mins. I thought I'd never arrive. Now football fans and school kids are often given a hard time for making excessive noise on trains. Let me add into that mix, horse racing fans. I had a train full of people going to Tattenham corner and boy, what a racket! When I arrived at Chipstead I'd heard so many hot-tips for different horses in the 1:55 at Epsom, that I was sure that it was going to end in an 8 horse dead heat.
I decided to print off an AA route from the station to the ground. The first time I'd done this in addition to multi-map and it worked very well...It would have worked better if the station hadn't had two exits, fortunately, I picked the right one. I passed a little parade of shops on leavin the station and was looking out for food. I decided to give the Chipstead Tandoori a wide berth, in hindsight, a mistake as I never saw another shop. My route took me up quite a steep hill. A nice enough walk but cars flew up and down this quite narrow road at a hell of a speed, it was quite hairy at times and I was glad when I reached the High street. High Street? I'd hate to see the low street. I saw no shops and on reflection, no houses, just a rugby club and some kind of Nature reserve.
But I found the ground easily and headed hungrily for the clubhouse...Only to be informed that there was no food as the bloke wasn't there. So lunch was a bag of crisps and a kit=kat. How can there be no chips in Chipstead, should be called crispstead!
The clubhouse was quite nice with a well stocked bar and adequate room for a pool table. The ground itself was a white rail affair with one reasonable stand that sat about 80 people. The pitch was in quite good nick and it had very pleasant surroundings.
Chipstead and Brockenhurst had actually met earlier in the season in an FA Cup tie, don't supporters just hate it when you get drawn against the same team twice in a season?
Chipstead offered an excellent programme and I particularly liked the two articles on footballing greats, this week was Shearer and Viv Anderson.
I enjoyed watching the referee and linesman warming up and was amused when the ref instructed his assistants to join him in doing a Morecambe and Wise. This involved a knees-up run with the hands flicking up behind the head. They seemed to have a good relationship with plenty of banter and they worked well as a team during the game.
The first half was terrific and Brockenhurst took only 3 mins to score when the keeper could only palm a snap shot from the edge of the box into the top of the net. Chipstead easily had the best of the posession after this although it was end to end stuff, the Brockenhurst keeper pulled off one great full length diving save. But on half time, Brockenhurst scored again with a nice drive from the edge of the box that gave the keeper no chance.
Half time and I found a bloke serving tea and some food out of a little kitchen in the clubhouse. I had a cheeseburger, no offence to the guy who made it but Disgusting! It reminded me why I don't normally eat at football grounds.
The second half opened with a torrential downpour that lasted about 10 mins. It made conditions very tricky after this with several players imitaing Bambi on ice. The game was still end to end but Brockenhurst were a lot more comfortable and looked more of a threat up front. Chipstead did manage to score deep into stoppage time as a cross was put away with a bicycle kick that looped over the keeper and in.
An enjoyable game and a nice but quiet ground, kind of in the middle of nowhere.
If you're going to visit by train, avoid race days!
Monday, September 19, 2005
Visit Royal Tunbridge Wells & eat like a King!
Tunbridge Wells 0 Moneyfields 0 aet
As the FA Vase reaches the latter stages, I'm grateful to be able to get to any of the matches. At the 1st qualifying round stage, there's so many choices of games, I didn't know where to start. 'Er indoors told me to pick somewhere interesting. So, interesting...Tunbridge Wells...It was the logical choice.
I decided on the game a couple of months ago and having worked out the travel arrangements, was delighted as British rail once again inflicted a replacement bus service around where I live, how many times...?
My spirits lifted about 20 mins outside Charing Cross as London's concrete towers were replaced by the beautiful Kent countryside on a lovely sunny afternoon.
I was surprised how old and small Tunbridge Wells station was, but was delighted that it was situated bang in the middle of the High street.
If you ever get grief from your partner about ground-hopping, take her with you to Tunbridge Wells. it has a fantastic array of shops in the High Street and a huge shopping mall with a further choice, shoppers paradise!
Now in 20 years of ground-hopping, I've eaten some nice food as well as some downright dreadful, but Tunbridge Wells provided me with the most fantastic lunch I've ever experienced on my football travels. I chose a small Chinese restaurant in the Mall as it had no queue. I ordered sweet & sour chicken which for 65p more, came with a can of drink and a duck spring roll. The food arrived within 3 mins, was piping hot and the taste was simply magnificent. It's worth returning just for that. Yep, 'Silks & Spice express' well and truely rocks!
I set off to find the ground and ended up getting slightly lost, all roads in Tunbridge Wells seem to start with Culverden! I ended up asking a guy on a ladder cutting his hedge for directions. Probably, taking somebody by surprise, who has an electric hedge trimmer, is not a good idea, especially if he gets angry. But this guy was very helpful although he did seem surprised that anyone would want to go to the local football club. Shame, as they don't know what they're missing. I arrived at the ground within 5 mins. You have to go down a wooded drive to the car park and ground, I can't remember any other approach to a ground like this and actually quite enjoyed the thrill of seeing what would be at the end of the drive.
Well I found a good sized car park and a square shaped clubhouse with a pool table in the middle, bar and tea/snack hatch. Reasonably good facilities and the service was friendly and fast.
There is height to view the ground from at one end which gives you an excellent view of the action. There is also a stand, as well as a covered standing area along one of the sides. The wide looking pitch was nicely mown although the grass was slightly long which meant that several passes early on were falling short. The red & white railings around the pitch were a simple but effective touch. The tannoy was crystal clear and the announcer certainly seemed the enthusiastic sort.
I enjoyed watching the youth team (Forrester's) kicking around on the pitch prior to the game. They'd obviously watched a lot of Premiership football as they spent most of their time trying to bring each other down. It was refreshing to see them bounce back up as they were fouled, killing themselves laughing. They then went off to be ball boys, a nice touch and meant that they watched the game rather than losing interest and wandering off to their own devices.
Tunbridge Wells have been in the National news recently following their record breaking penalty shoot-out win in the FA Cup. The programme came complete with a pull-out sheet giving details of the club and this record breaking event. An excellent addition to the normal programme.
So to the match itself. Firstly, a rarity to see a lady linesman. She was probably the most efficient of the officials.
Tunbridge Wells opponents were Moneyfields from Portsmouth. Moneyfields were easily the better first half team and should have scored when a chip found an unmarked striker, any contact would surely have produced a goal but the player headed fresh air and the chance went. Tunbridge wells then found a striker clean through, but he shot at the keeper who saved well with his legs. You can tell it's not the greatest game ever when spectators start arguing amongst themselves. One couple could take the complaining of another fan no more and moved away from him only for them to carry on their disagreement but from 20 yards apart, quite amusing. Tunbridge Wells were much improved in the second half and did have the ball in the net as a cross was headed home. The linesman however, had his flag up early and the effort was ruled out for offside. The game then disintegrated somewhat with errant passes and several long stops for injury. Extra time arrived and Tunbridge Wells so nearly scored early on, as their centre forward hit a 30 yard chip over the stranded Moneyfields keeper, but it went agonisingly wide. The game was crying out for someone to put their foot on the ball and try something a bit different. Moneyfields number 11 Vikram Singh seemed to be that man. But he must be so frustrating to manage. Beats players for fun and creates some lovely positions. However, his final cross, pass or shot were often so far off target, it defied belief.
In the end, the full time whistle was a blessed relief to a disappointing match. But as is so often the case, the replay will probably be a cracker.
So off I went until when almost home, the replacement bus driver got lost and I ended up sitting at the front of the coach giving the driver directions. Never a dull moment!
I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to the town. My advice to fellow ground-hoppers.
Visit Royal Tunbridge Wells and eat like a King!
As the FA Vase reaches the latter stages, I'm grateful to be able to get to any of the matches. At the 1st qualifying round stage, there's so many choices of games, I didn't know where to start. 'Er indoors told me to pick somewhere interesting. So, interesting...Tunbridge Wells...It was the logical choice.
I decided on the game a couple of months ago and having worked out the travel arrangements, was delighted as British rail once again inflicted a replacement bus service around where I live, how many times...?
My spirits lifted about 20 mins outside Charing Cross as London's concrete towers were replaced by the beautiful Kent countryside on a lovely sunny afternoon.
I was surprised how old and small Tunbridge Wells station was, but was delighted that it was situated bang in the middle of the High street.
If you ever get grief from your partner about ground-hopping, take her with you to Tunbridge Wells. it has a fantastic array of shops in the High Street and a huge shopping mall with a further choice, shoppers paradise!
Now in 20 years of ground-hopping, I've eaten some nice food as well as some downright dreadful, but Tunbridge Wells provided me with the most fantastic lunch I've ever experienced on my football travels. I chose a small Chinese restaurant in the Mall as it had no queue. I ordered sweet & sour chicken which for 65p more, came with a can of drink and a duck spring roll. The food arrived within 3 mins, was piping hot and the taste was simply magnificent. It's worth returning just for that. Yep, 'Silks & Spice express' well and truely rocks!
I set off to find the ground and ended up getting slightly lost, all roads in Tunbridge Wells seem to start with Culverden! I ended up asking a guy on a ladder cutting his hedge for directions. Probably, taking somebody by surprise, who has an electric hedge trimmer, is not a good idea, especially if he gets angry. But this guy was very helpful although he did seem surprised that anyone would want to go to the local football club. Shame, as they don't know what they're missing. I arrived at the ground within 5 mins. You have to go down a wooded drive to the car park and ground, I can't remember any other approach to a ground like this and actually quite enjoyed the thrill of seeing what would be at the end of the drive.
Well I found a good sized car park and a square shaped clubhouse with a pool table in the middle, bar and tea/snack hatch. Reasonably good facilities and the service was friendly and fast.
There is height to view the ground from at one end which gives you an excellent view of the action. There is also a stand, as well as a covered standing area along one of the sides. The wide looking pitch was nicely mown although the grass was slightly long which meant that several passes early on were falling short. The red & white railings around the pitch were a simple but effective touch. The tannoy was crystal clear and the announcer certainly seemed the enthusiastic sort.
I enjoyed watching the youth team (Forrester's) kicking around on the pitch prior to the game. They'd obviously watched a lot of Premiership football as they spent most of their time trying to bring each other down. It was refreshing to see them bounce back up as they were fouled, killing themselves laughing. They then went off to be ball boys, a nice touch and meant that they watched the game rather than losing interest and wandering off to their own devices.
Tunbridge Wells have been in the National news recently following their record breaking penalty shoot-out win in the FA Cup. The programme came complete with a pull-out sheet giving details of the club and this record breaking event. An excellent addition to the normal programme.
So to the match itself. Firstly, a rarity to see a lady linesman. She was probably the most efficient of the officials.
Tunbridge Wells opponents were Moneyfields from Portsmouth. Moneyfields were easily the better first half team and should have scored when a chip found an unmarked striker, any contact would surely have produced a goal but the player headed fresh air and the chance went. Tunbridge wells then found a striker clean through, but he shot at the keeper who saved well with his legs. You can tell it's not the greatest game ever when spectators start arguing amongst themselves. One couple could take the complaining of another fan no more and moved away from him only for them to carry on their disagreement but from 20 yards apart, quite amusing. Tunbridge Wells were much improved in the second half and did have the ball in the net as a cross was headed home. The linesman however, had his flag up early and the effort was ruled out for offside. The game then disintegrated somewhat with errant passes and several long stops for injury. Extra time arrived and Tunbridge Wells so nearly scored early on, as their centre forward hit a 30 yard chip over the stranded Moneyfields keeper, but it went agonisingly wide. The game was crying out for someone to put their foot on the ball and try something a bit different. Moneyfields number 11 Vikram Singh seemed to be that man. But he must be so frustrating to manage. Beats players for fun and creates some lovely positions. However, his final cross, pass or shot were often so far off target, it defied belief.
In the end, the full time whistle was a blessed relief to a disappointing match. But as is so often the case, the replay will probably be a cracker.
So off I went until when almost home, the replacement bus driver got lost and I ended up sitting at the front of the coach giving the driver directions. Never a dull moment!
I thoroughly enjoyed my trip to the town. My advice to fellow ground-hoppers.
Visit Royal Tunbridge Wells and eat like a King!
Monday, June 20, 2005
FINAL - AFC Sudbury 2 Didcot Town 3
AFC Sudbury 2 Didcot Town 3
14/05/05
A lot of people over the years have done the Wembley to Wembley trip. Am I the only one to ever complete the White Hart Lane (Haringey Borough) to White Hart Lane (Final) trip?
My confession is that in my youth, I used to be a Spurs season ticket holder and went every week to both first team and reserve matches. It must be over 20 years since I’ve been there and I found it quite embarrassing when on leaving Seven Sisters station, I wasn’t sure which way to go. Instinct took me in the right direction; That and the fact that I had to get away from the truly terrible evangelical singer standing at the top of the station steps. I’m not sure what he was trying to convert people to, but the only way he was going to get me was if he STOPPED SINGING.
I had a mate with me and had warned him that it was a bit of a walk to the ground. I’d forgotten just how far it was, half an hour later as we finally arrived we were just desperate for a drink.
But first of all I had to visit the Spurs club shop. My daughter seems to think that one of the laws of parenting includes buying her a present whenever I leave the house. She asked for a Spurs baseball cap and my old affiliation meant that I was secretly pleased and agreed to buy this gift. The club had an end of season sale on and the cap was very reasonably priced. It is interesting to note that when walking along White Hart Lane, a lot more of the locals where Arsenal tops than Spurs ones, wonder why that is??
The hospitality areas inside the ground are quite cramped around the bars and food areas, it’s really difficult to walk anywhere and that was with only 8 thousand people, goodness knows how they cope when it’s full. When you get into the actual ground itself it is nothing short of immaculate. The seating is pleasing on the eye and the pitch itself was like a billiard table, at least 6 groundstaff ready to pounce on any stray balloon or divot that appeared as the teams warmed up.
There was a lovely atmosphere at this game, I don’t ever remember seeing so many women and young children at a match. We were put with the Didcot fans and I think the entire town must have come to the game on mass. It did make me smile when the young lady sitting next to me, announced after 10 minutes of the match that she was enjoying herself but that it needed some music.
The actual game was a credit to both teams. After a tight first half, Didcot scored on 56 mins as Beavon pounced onto a ball and swept a low shot home. Didcot looked comfortable with their lead until out of the blue, Wardley hit a magnificent 25 yarder into the top corner, a goal to grace any cup final. But just 2 minutes later Didcot scored again as a low cross hit an unlucky defender and crept in for an OG. In stoppage time, the game was made safe as Beavon received a flick on, side-stepped his man and finished well. There was still time for Sudbury to score a penalty through Calver following a trip, but this was the last kick of the game.
Definitely Didcot’s day, the town was even mentioned on the Dr Who episode later that evening.
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