Broxbourne Borough 1 Stotfold 2

Officials seating

Uncovered seating area

Broxbourne fold in the wind

Broxbourne Borough 1 Stotfold 2

03/10/09

Broxbourne Borough are one of those clubs that I’ve kept putting off. Geographically, they’re not far from me at all, but on looking it had seemed tricky to reach and I had always plumped for a different option. One the draw came out, it once again caught my eye & this time I decided to bite the bullet and find a way there. It looked to be a couple of miles from Theobalds grove station. I decided to go into London and after a couple of stops on the Tube, drop down to my destination. Oh silly me! Needless to say, once again my plans were scuppered by London Transport who decided it would be a good idea to close the entire Victoria line on a Saturday. What other major capital city in the World has to constantly put up with this constant inconvenience. Plan B was put into action. My wife kindly agreed to drive me to Hertford East station where I could catch a train to Cheshunt & then change onto another train for my one remaining stop. On reaching Cheshunt & with 25 mins to wait, I looked at a station map of the local area and decided it would be considerably quicker to walk from there. This I did and the actual walking time was probably no longer than going from Theobalds grove. A brisk 25 minute walk did the trick although I was slightly concerned knowing I had to cross the A10. No need to have worried as a flyover was conveniently placed. I looked down from the flyover and spotted the HQ for the local sea cadets. When I was a boy scout, I always liked the idea of being a sea cadet. But back then I had the same thought as I did in the middle of Cheshunt, how can you have a sea cadet base in the middle of the Home counties with no water and certainly no sea for at least 50 miles? As I was early I had a walk around the local park, on a windy day this was a hazardous idea with acorns and conkers falling with vigorous monotony from the trees – I could have done with a hard hat. I witnessed some local vandalisation by a few teenage boys on making my way to the ground as they kicked down a fence post and carried over to some mud mounds to use as a jump for their bikes. Even when facilities such as this bike area is laid on for kids, they still need to have more! I arrived at the ground and entered the clubhouse that was positively teaming with people all drinking, eating 7 generally enjoying themselves in a very loud way. Loads of kids in football kits were milling about and I looked forward to a bumper crowd at the game. When I later entered the ground itself, I couldn’t believe how empty it was. Hardly any of the people in the clubhouse seemingly stayed to watch the match. I enjoyed a very tasty jumbo sausage with chips and sat at a little table on a low stage as there was no other room. Whenever you sit on a stage for whatever reason, you feel like everyone is watching you & I felt a little self conscious. It was nice to see 4 of those little sweet vending machines where you insert 20p, turn a handle and a few sweets drop out. I sneakily bought myself 20p of Minstrels and thoroughly enjoyed them.

The ground itself has a seated area with no roof which looks a little odd although I understand that this construction is not yet finished. All the remaining cover available surrounds a corner flag, although made of a nice wood, it is quite unusual, particularly the officials area which is literally positioned right in a corner and doesn’t give a great view of the action. A rail surrounds the pitch with hard standing.

As stated earlier, it was an incredibly windy day which was blowing across the playing surface.

The game itself was not great. The elements were the ultimate winner and it was a day where every pass seemed to catch a deflection or be blocked.

All the goals came in the second half. Firstly Stotfold scored with an unmarked header from a corner, then they got a second from the spot after a tackle from behind. Broxbourne scored the best of the lot 7 minutes from the end when their skipper who had pushed up front scored with a falling volley from the edge of the box.

This ground turned out to not be half as difficult to reach as I anticipated.

Lancing FC

Lancing 2 Dorking 4

View across the ground

Lancing into the night

Lancing 2 Dorking 4 aet

19/9/09

On examining Sussex league division two, I discovered that I hadn’t visited any of the grounds. I’ve certainly been to fixtures in this league before but all the clubs I’d visited had been either promoted or relegated. I skimmed through the fixtures for this round and Lancing were the first side from this league that caught my eye.

The journey is remarkably simple, from London to Brighton and then a branch line to Lancing from where the ground is only a 5 minute walk away.

On arriving at Brighton station, the place was swarming with police. I couldn’t establish any particular reason and my confusion was increased when one officer walked up to a guy sitting on a bench, said “Okay, let’s go again” and then pulled out a camcorder. You certainly see some diverse looking people in Brighton, the places makes London look positively boring.

On arriving in Lancing, I set about finding my lunch venue. There is an Asda right next to the station & I popped in there to see if they have a café. They don’t, but what I found left me open-mouthed! I have been to Canada twice recently and they have a chain of fast-food shops called ‘Tim Horton’s’. They are designed a bit like McDonalds and are found with the same kind of regularity at every roadside and junction. Instead of burgers, Tim Horton’s sell coffee and donuts. The stores are clean, the food and drinks are tasty and remarkably cheap. I was under the impression that there were no such outlets in this country. But low and behold, on entering Asda, there was a little Tim Horton’s, serve yourself area with donuts and hot drinks to go.

I left the shop in a state of shock and found a little café where I sat at a table whilst texting my family details of my find. Lunch at the very British and friendly ‘Rainbow café’ was an omelette and chips. It won’t win any awards but was hot and nice enough and I always like to support this type of establishment. I then rushed with excitement back to Asda for my hot chocolate and donut. I left to find the ground, a happy and contented guy.

Lancing FC is also the headquarters for the Sussex FA and the parking and clubhouse buildings all look very modern and well maintained. There is a good sized function room and other areas that I did not have access to. This clubhouse complex is part of the same building used as the main stand which has ample seating. The pitch was good but the rest of the ground was of a much lesser standard. High netting behind each goal is essential to protect surrounding houses but looks ugly. There are doors leading up to the near corner flag that looked like lock up garages, very odd in a football ground. The far side has some mounds behind the hard standing but they were very bare with little grass and you get the overriding feeling that so much more could be done here. Obviously, it’ easy to say that, but would cost loads of money. On climbing the bank, you get a view of two pitches the other side of the fence and I spent a happy ten minutes watching some local games.

The second half of the match was interrupted by a small red, stunt plane performing aerobatics on the horizon. Very impressive, but you would not get me in one of those for love nor money.

The match itself started as a scrappy affair but settled down and was ultimately quite entertaining. Lancing scored on 37 mins after some nice trickery on the left and Dorking equalised 5 minutes later. Lancing went ahead again on 75 mins only for Dorking to quickly equalise again after a man was left criminally unmarked at the far post from a corner. Dorking pulled away in extra time with Lancing clearly exhausted. Two goals in the first period pushed them past the finishing line.

An interesting day full of surprises played in glorious, warm sunshine on the South coast.

Warminster Town FC

Warminster Town 0 Hayling Utd 5

View across the pitch

Hayling win at War

Warminster Town 0 Hayling United 5

5/9/09

Twice I’ve been to Center Parcs at Longleat, only a mile or so from this ground. Both times I was in the area, Warminster Town were away. So this was a ground I had a determination about visiting, & here was a good opportunity.

Firstly, another complaint about British rail. I have a Network rail card, when I examined the websites at National Rail & Raileasy, the cheapest fair was about £55 return. Now, I was prepared to pay this but had to renew my expiring Network card. Whilst examining the coverage map on the leaflet, I saw that it reached Bath. I wondered to myself if it would be cheaper to get a network return to Bath & then buy a straight return from Bath to Warminster. Needless to say, this way came in £12 cheaper. Although please with myself, it made me think that it may be even cheaper another way & why did these websites not flag up this option?

My journey was straightforward enough and I had an interesting view of where the Reading festival was the week before. The marquees were still up. There were abandoned tents still in the fields along with thousands of rubbish bags. The music festivals certainly have their place but what a nightmare to clear up.

I did my good deed at Bath station whilst catching my connection. The train pulled in & a member of staff barked out loud “Well get off then”. This small boy and girl, I’m guessing about 5 years old came to the door and stood looking terrified as there was quite a gap between the train & the platform. I reached out & helped them down. As I boarded the train, the member of staff in a polite voice asked me if I’d like a drink from the trolley. I gritted my teeth & declined to tell her what I was actually thinking.

Whilst looking for a lunch venue in Warminster, I was suddenly greeted with the sight of a Routemaster, red London bus coming round he corner. Talk about a sight for sore eyes, it was an absolute delight to see it and gave me a warm glow for the rest of the day. I looked it up on the Internet when I got home & discovered that it was being used for trips to Imber open day on Salisbury plain, this location is usually completely off bounds to the public as it is an MOD site, wjhat a great idea!

Lunch was taken in a café off the main High street called Gorge café. I got excellent cod, chips & peas for only £3.40, a bargain. It was a strange little café with loads of elderly ladies passing the time of day over the dregs of a coffee cup, one of them at an outside table got through 3 cigarettes in 20 minutes. I initially felt a little sad for them, but with hindsight they probably love the place and the company.

The ground is about a 15 minute walk from the station, the last segment up quite a steep hill. Being so high, you are treated to superb views of the rolling hills and indeed, a view right down on to Warminster town. The clubhouse has an unusual beige coloured roof and its shape reminds me of a little aircraft hanger. The inside has a bar, large screen TV and all looks quite tidy and modern. A white rail surrounds the pitch, there is hard standing around about half the ground, some cover and a single row of seats in front of the clubhouse. Another little covered area at the near end is also available, this may be designed for wheelchair users?

After a bright start by Warminster, they were comprehensibly beaten by a well drilled Hayling unit who looked quite useful.

Hayling were four up at half time after a header, a penalty after a push and a couple of extremely skilful and well finished moves. Warminster were given the softest of penalties for handball only a minute into the second period but the Hayling keeper made a classy diving stop. The final goal came on 75 minues straight from a 30 yard free kick that the keeper should have stopped.

Nice to get the competition under way again and a trip that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Whitley Bay 2 Glossop North End 0

The end of another long Vase campaign. For one reason or another, my travels came to a stuttering conclusion and a mixture of the weather & circumstances made this one of my less memorable Vase years. I still have fond memories of great fish & chips at London APSA, bustling committee members at Faversham, an enjoyable reserve match at Bitton, the biting cold in Long Eaton, two contrasting matches at Chalfont and a great new stadium in Biggleswade.

For the second year running, the weather was more than kind to us and it was shirt sleeve weather as I polished up my best Northern accent for Whitley Bay against Glossop.

I went to the game with a friend and we had decided to drive to Stanmore and catch the tube from there as parking anywhere near Wembley stadium is a nightmare. Thanks once again to London Transport’s seemingly never ending maintenance, there was only a bus replacement service from Stanmore. Quick thinking and a 10 year old map helped us find our way to Northwick Park, just 2 stops from Wembley on a different tube line. I used to live not far from here when I was a kid and hadn’t bee there for about 25 years. It’s surprising how little it had changed and I had a huge wave of nostalgia as I sat on the station remembering all the shots which I’d sent sailing over the bar at Northwick Park playing fields.

Once again we spent half an hour sitting near the fountains, drinking bear and eating chips. Strangely, the beer was a pound cheaper than last year and you got twice as much. The chips were also reasonably priced and were cooked in clean oil. Prices inside the stadium as still as outrageously overpriced as before and I therefore didn’t buy anything there – when will they learn?

Having looked round the rather good Wembley stadium shop, we tossed a coin and brought tickets for the Whitley Bay end. We were allocated seats behind the goal which gave us a great view and the Northern humour was in fine form from all the fans around us. I good sized crowd enjoyed an entertaining match.

Glossop started strongly and had chances to score. Whitley Bay held on and two fine pieces of skill and neat finishes gave Whitley Bay a lead that they never relinquished despite strong pressure in the last 10 minutes.

All in all, I think the best team won this years tournament and I look forward to the draw in early July so that we can start all over again.

All to play for

Chalfont St Peter 3 Glossop North End 3

I decided to visit Chalfont for the second time in this years competition and would then attempt the long journey to Glossop the following week. It takes the pressure off when you've been to a ground before and know where you're going and I had an incident free relaxing journey to Gerrards Cross station. Having polished off another Italian BMT Subway (How nice are they!), I started a leisurely walk to the ground, this time vouching to avoid the dual-carriageway. I diverted down a road and turned right into another road called School Hill. This little road was quite attractive, but really steep and quite narrow. You had to dive into a hedge whenever a car came along to avoid being wiped out, there's obviously not many pedestrians on this road as most cars screamed along at about 60mph. At the end of this road, I discovered that I was almost back where I started & had once again, taken a slightly wrong route. I picked myself out of the hedge as another vehicle shot by, found the correct road at last and made my way to the ground. It's quite strange to see a ground you've visited several times in the past, often with only about 50 supporters, jam packed with folk waving scarves and singing. Glossop had certainly brought a good number of fans and must have outnumbered the Chalfont faithful. The local Chalfont cheerleading group came along to offer vocal support and it sounded weird to hear 'When the Saints go marching in' sung tunefully at a football ground.

The atmosphere was good, the weather was rubbish as usual with strong winds and two hail storms and the game was brilliantly officiated, I noticed the referee for the first time about 5 minutes from the end  and only then did I realise that no cards had been shown. 

There were a few scuffles in the crowd, such a shame at a place like this. There's absolutely no place for it! Fortunately, it didn't come to much and we could enjoy an enthralling match.

Unfortunately, I discovered that the second leg was to be all ticket and hard as I tried, I couldn't buy a  ticket for the second leg and would be unable to visit Chalfont during the week to collect one. Disappointing & slightly annoying when you've been following a competition from the earliest rounds when only 20 people turn up and you almost have a ground to yourself, but understandable that people come out to support their town.

So to the game. Chalfont struck first, a throw from the right resulted in a shot well saved, but it dropped to Strutton who shot in from 12 yards. Then on 31 mins, a corner from the left fooled the keeper who fumbled it against the near post and Carroll turned it in from 6 yards. Glossop got back into it on 38 mins when Gorton stooped to head home from a left hand corner. Only 4 mins into the second half and Chalfont restored a two goal advantage. A throw from the right saw a lovely turn to the dead ball line fool the defence, the low cross was expertly turned in at the near post by Brosnan. Chalfont then seemed in cruise control and weren’t being troubled until two defensive lapses let Glossop back into the tie. On 73 mins, a ball over the top found Hodges clean through who simply lobbed the keeper on the first bounce from the edge of the box. Then on 78 mins, a ball through skidded off a defenders foot freeing Bailey who slid a shot home. An almighty scramble at the end almost gave Glossop the win but Chalfont hung on.

I'll be rushing home from whatever game I attend next week to check on how this tie turned out.

Chalfont St Peter FC

Clubhouse & old stand - Now condemned

Chalfont St Peter 4 Christchurch 0

Saints destroy church

Chalfont St Peter 4  Christchurch 0

14/2/09

This game had been postponed  the previous Saturday due to the huge quantities of snow that had dropped on this part of the World during January, 2 days prior to this game, the southeast was hit by another covering, but it miraculously disappeared overnight and the club secretary gave me the all clear before I left. I was happy to see a blackbird washing itself in a puddle on my way to the station, all water on the ground had been solid ice for about a fortnight prior to this. The fun started at Kings Cross as British rail decided to make life as difficult as possible for its customers. The gates to the underground were shut due to overcrowding, the official on duty claimed it was just Saturday traffic. Actually, it was because the Victoria line, Hammersmith & City line and various other lines were closed, so nobody could actually get anywhere. Notice how the prices are never reduced when all this work goes on. When there was no sign of the gates opening after 5 mins, I walked across the road to St Pancras and went in that way, I then had a 15 minute wait for a tube. What a joke! It's why I always give myself plenty of time. I reached Gerrards Cross in good time & was pleased to find a Subway, one of my favourite fast food joints. My Italian BMT with cucumber, Jalapeno peppers and bbq sauce was the business! It seems anything involving the word Amersham comes with a steep hill, those of you who've visited Amersham FC may know what I mean and my walk along Amersham Road presented me with another mountaineering challenge. Google maps had directed me to the A413. Thanks lads! for future reference, there's no footpath and walking along the soft grassed route next to this busy dual carriageway was interesting to say the least and I was knackered by the time I reached the ground. After the event, I consulted a map at home and realised I could have avoided this route, ho hum, the adventures of a football traveller! The ground is set just outside this sleepy little town, there's a stand behind the near goal and a more interesting, condemned old stand behind the dugouts. Best to visit here on a nice day, but the pitch was flat although very sticky and the ladies in the tea hut did their best despite being out of their comfort zone. 

This game will probably be remembered as it was Christchurch's first game after the tragic death of their player Marc Burrows, a cancer victim at the young age of 30. Nothing I can say will do this player justice, it was great to see that the minutes silence was impeccably observed by all those present.

I expected Christchurch to be likely winners but they just simply never showed up, I guess for obvious reasons and were brushed aside by a rampant Chalfont. The keeper made an early fumble that almost gifted a goal and then on 9 mins, he did the same again, this time the ball fell to a striker who picked his spot. Chalfont kept pushing forward and on 19 mins, a defender slipped at a crucial point and the attacker on the right of the area shot across the keeper and into the bottom left hand corner. The third came on 33 mins, a lovely diagonal ball was inch perfect finding the left sided attacker who shot across the keeper, this time into the bottom right hand corner. Christchurch had their best chance just before half time, but the Chalfont keeper saved well. Chalfont remained superior in the second half, hit the bar and put the tie to bed on 52 mins when an attacker was put through just beating the offside trap and finishing well past the keeper from 16 yards.

Nice to see a small club like this make the quarter finals.

Biggleswade Town FC

Biggleswade Town 2 Croydon 1

Entrance to Biggleswade Town FC

View from the road

Washout saved by Waders

Biggleswade Town 2 Croydon 1

17/1/09

Once again, I had good intentions when the draw was published. I decided on visiting Christchurch despite the fact that it was quite a journey with a long walk to the ground. But after weeks of freezing weather & heavy frosts, the temperature warmed up & suddenly we had storms and heavy rain. And at 8am on match day, the game was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch. I have to commend Christchurch who published the pitch inspection the night before on their website and updated their site as soon as a decision was made. So plan B was put into operation, step up Biggleswade.

Whenever a new ground opens, Hoppers all descend on mass & you read report after opinion on the new facilities. I usually leave it a few years to see a ground once it’s settled down. But beggars can’t be choosers and having checked that the match was on, I made the simple journey to the ground.

It’s funny how events happen & having taken a seat on my train, I took to reading a book. A couple of stations down the line and /i became aware of a conversation on the seats across the aisle from me where two guys were discussing the postponement at Christchurch and why they couldn’t understand it. I probably scared the hell out of them by butting in & explaining the reason for the postponement. The guys then showed me the way to the ground from the station, a happy coincidence. For those who don’t know, you turn right out the station towards the town centre, keep walking until you reach the fish and chip shop where you turn left, walk along the road under the A1 and the ground is on your right. It’s about a 15 minute walk from the station.

Biggleswade’s previous ground was little more than a pitch at a recreation ground with a tiny covered area and a tiny clubhouse with no facilities. The new ground is about as different as can be. A purpose built stadium set back from the road with good parking, it makes an immediate impression. The clubhouse is large with a bar, pool tables and will certainly be used for other functions. There is also a gym and physio area. The pitch is flat and there is an impressive stand for this level, a much smaller covered area is on the opposite side. A neat, tall fence surrounds the ground. Everything looks very new and the officials are justifiably proud. I never thought I’d see Biggleswade (The Waders) in such a facility.

I broke my rule of not eating hot food at football grounds and ordered a hot dog from the burger van. It was edible but basically reminded me of why I normally eat in the town I am visiting.

Croydon were the liveliest side from the whistle and I don’t think we ever saw the best of Biggleswade all game. The first goal came on 28 mins for Croydon. A quick free kick down the left channel into the box was crossed to the far post where Atkins scored with a stooping header. Biggleswade equalised on the stroke of half time, winning a dubious penalty after a man was bundled over in the right of the area, Kilroy scored comfortably from the spot. The winner came on 50 mins, a neat 1-2 30 yards out resulted in a 25 yard drive that caught a wicked deflection and left the keeper with no chance, it has to go down as an og. Croydon pressed for an equaliser and the Biggleswade keeper made one superb save.

Nice to see a 'Good news' story in non league football for a change.

Long Eaton FC

Long Eaton 0 Bootle 1

Entrance to Long Eaton FC

Keeper error gives Long Eaton the boot

Long Eaton United 0 Bootle 1

06/12/08

After my visit to the Midlands in the previous round was replaced by a trip to the West country, I was on the look out when the draw was produced for a chance to head North. Long Eaton therefore seemed a perfect choice, not too far to travel, but in a Northern based league and at a ground I hadn't previously visited. 

The usual garbage weather during the week leading up to the game, namely rain and snow potentially put the game under threat. But I woke up to a glorious, sunny day with not a cloud in the sky although it was breathtakingly cold. 

The journey towards Nottingham was going without a hitch until the train ground to a halt just outside Grantham. Having sat still for 10 minutes, a guard walked through the carriage announcing that we were just waiting for a platform. I'm not sure whether they were building the platform, had mis-placed the platform or just forgot about us. We eventually moved after being at a standstill for 15 mins. A lady behind me was talking on her phone to her family. Apparently, she hardly ever used a train and was desperately excited by this long delay. It's amazing what gets some people 'turned on', but sitting on a stationery train with no information for what seemed like an eternity doesn't do it for me.

Luckily, I still made my connection at Nottingham and it's only a short trip to Attenborough station. Quite why this train only consisted of two carriages is a mystery I didn't get to the bottom of. 3 weeks from Christmas and we were squeezed in like sardines. The ground at Long Eaton is about a 15 minute walk from Attenborough along the Nottingham road passing a retail park. There were a couple of pubs on the other side of the road but it would have involved taking my life in my hands crossing the road to reach them, so I settled on my annual visit to a McDonalds. My quarter pounder was actually quite enjoyable and entertainment was provided by the couple with 5 kids sitting on the table next to me. They had the wrong drinks, one of them bashed his head on the table, another lost his new watch, a couple of them had a fight and this was all in the apace of 5 minutes. The parents must go to bed at night completely exhausted. 

I found the ground easily enough down a side street just past a bowls club. The bowls club had a security guard outside it complete with radio and fluorescent jacket. I couldn't quite understand why he was there as he appeared to be the only person there. The ground is actually bang on the Nottinghamshire/Derbyshire border next to a quiet street where everyone seemed to be washing their car. It really is quite a nice little area.

Happiness is turning up at a ground and finding a match on an adjoining pitch. The game I found was a kids match and not a bad standard in a Long Eaton v Beeston contest. Always refreshing to see the game played with no histrionics. I entered the ground at about 2:45 and for the second round running, the club I was visiting had sold out of programmes. Never mind, my spirits were restored when the teams came out to R.E.S.P.E.C.T by Ottis Redding being played on the P.A, first time I've seen that done, nice idea!

A large corrugated fence surrounds the ground. A nice, good sized stand, a smaller stand on the opposite side and also a small, covered standing area. A good sized pitch.

Dazzling sunlight caused a few first half problems. Bootle came out as the more energised team and caused some early problems. Long Eaton hit the post with their first meaningful attack, but still fell behind on 19 mins following a dreadful error by their keeper. A firm back pass saw the keeper completely mess up his first touch which ended up at the feet of Fowler who slotted it into an empty net. After this, it was attack versus defence with Long Eaton throwing the kitchen sink at Bootle. Bootle defended superbly as if their lives depended on it. Long Eaton did get the ball in the net with ten minutes remaining, but the referee had already blown for a foul.

Another enjoyable trip with an excellent competitive game at the end of it.

Bitton FC

Entrance to Bitton FC

Bitton rack 'em up playing Poole

Bitton 4 Poole Town 2

15/11/08

A particularly nasty virus struck me on the weekend of the previous round & having been unable to leave the house, I was particularly looking forward to this weekends games. After the usual research & thought, I decided to visit Daralston. Then, my friend who coaches a village team in Somerset, E-mailed me to say that he had a free weekend & would I like to take in a Vase game down his way. He gave me a list of 4 potential ties & I needed all of the grounds except Frome. On paper, Bitton versus Poole seemed the most appealing and that's where we ended up. Having got into London, you have to travel to Keynsham station. There's actually 3 grounds within easy distance of Keynsham. Keynsham themselves, Brislington (Also at home in the Vase) and Bitton, quite unusual for a tiny station with only one train an hour. As usual at Paddington station, the platform number for my departure was put up with under 10 minutes to spare and there was a mass bundle as everyone manoeuvred for position trying to find a good seat. As a sea of people descended on platform 1, there was one dapper old fellow standing there with an umbrella in the air trying to get somebody's attention, he was probably flattened in the rush. Having secured a seat, I was surrounded by a group of Spanish girls either going to hen night. They were certainly in good spirits and loud but I forgave them this mainly due to the fact that I was mesmerised by the bride to be's ability to do a French plait without looking at what she was doing. She combed each of her friends hair and then whilst talking to somebody else and not looking, knocked up this masterpiece arrangement with not a single hair out of place. I tried this on my daughter once and ten years later, she's still trying to get the knots out of her hair. I had to change at Bath, a City that i never tire of. There were cranes and scaffolding everywhere and yet somehow it still looked magnificent, I think it's the brick work and how the buildings are built into the hills, one of my favourite cities! On arrival there were a group og guys clearly doing their community service, sweeping leaves. They seemed to be working hard until the train pulled out, then they all leant against the railings and lit up cigarettes. When my friend arrived ten minutes later, they were still in the same positions. The ground was only a five minute drive from the station. We did a quick wander around the outside of the clubhouse to have a look and were amused when an elderly chap mistook us as officials and asked my friend if he could buy two programmes from him. I wished we'd followed him as when we did enter the ground at 2:45, they'd sold out. There was a small clubouse where we bought a pint which also did filled rolls. Happiness on arriving at a ground is finding a game on an adjoining pitch and we were lucky enough to see the first half of Bitton reserves match, not a bad standard although we saw no goals.

Bitton's ground will not go down as a favourite of mine. A small stand and another covered area on the opposite side provide shelter, there is hard standing on both sides and behind one goal, the far goal just has grass for you to stand on. There is a sweeping end to end slope, this and a sticky pitch must have sapped the players energy. Bitton were top of their league and Poole third in theirs, so a tight game was expected. The pitch did seem to be quite long and this certainly helped an exciting end to end match.

Poole started strongly and were only denied by an excellent early save. When Bitton scored after a defensive slip on 12 mins it was against the run of play. 7 mins later and Bitton doubled their lead with a sharp finish but Poole came straight back to make it 2-1 after only 20 mins. Bitton scored again on 36 mins after another defensive slip. I expected that Poole would make a second half comeback as they were kicking down the slope but they had the wind taken out of their sails following a penalty. A great Bitton run down the left wing ended in a pinpoint cross that was met with a header that crashed against the bar, came back and unluckily hit a defender on the arm. The penalty wasn't convincing but still beat the keeper. Poole did get one back on 68 min but if anything, Bitton finished the stronger as Poole chased the game and were delighted with their win.

Great to be back on the Vase trail and Bitton could claim a few scalps on their quest for a Wembley place.

Faversham Town FC

Faversham Town 0 Tunbridge Wells 1

Entrance to Faversham FC

Faversham pay the penalty

Faversham Town 0 Tunbridge Wells 1

Once again, I chose this fixture on the day that the draw was published, mainly due to the fact that I hadn’t visited the Kent league for a couple of seasons. Little did I know that Stuart Robinson would be doing a review of this very club in the Non-League Digest issue before this, Faversham is obviously the place to be in September.

A glorious late summer day made a most pleasant change. Little to spoil my journey then until on arrival at Kings Cross, I was informed that there was no Victoria line that weekend. Not a huge issue, just plain annoying with about 25 mins added to my tube journey with the whole population of the South East seemingly on the Piccadilly line. I was also slightly unnerved on boarding the train at Victoria as it was announced that it would split with half going to Ramsgate, the other half to Dover. Suddenly people were flying in all directions up & down the platform trying to select the appropriate carriage. I joined in for about 5 mins until I discovered that the train was splitting at Faversham & I could sit anywhere. I’ve not really visited the North Kent coast and made a mental decision to return as there are many clubs in the area. Interesting views of the Kent countryside and the harbours at Chatham & Rocester. I had a choice of 2 exits on reaching Faversham & naturally enough, chose the wrong one. I have quite a good sense of direction but always seem to choose the wrong exit when groundhopping. I wandered down the high street which is only a minute from the station, found a Martins newsagent and consulted a map of the area ( I often use this tactic), I quickly got my bearings and as luck would have it, found myself outside a chippy. I was given a huge portion of sausage and chips which took an age to eat but I’m certainly not complaining. It often amuses me in the Non-League paper when Sad Hopper says that he can’t resist the smell of burgers at a football ground. I think in my time, I’ve had two nice burgers at a football ground & I’ll usually walk miles to find an alternative.

I wandered back to the station, went through a little tunnel & then walked down a couple of quiet back streets before reaching the A2. Considering this is a major road, it was remarkably quiet on this particular afternoon. I have busier B roads near where I live. The ground is on the other side of the A2 & is clearly signed. It’s probably no more than an easy 10 minute walk from the station.

I actually found the ground to be quite old fashioned in its look. The main stand has an unusual shaped tin roof & there are plastic bench seats littered underneath for folk to sit on. There’s also a covered area behind the near goal and a small covered area by the corner flag again at the near side. The pitch slopes from side to side but played quite well. There was a disappointing backdrop though. I was hoping for some nice views but there’s basically, nothing to speak of at all.

I wandered in to the clubhouse to buy a drink and was impressed by all the officials. They all looked extremely smart in the blazers and club ties and were all buzzing about the place carrying out their duties. Clearly, they all knew their stuff and fired an instant response to any question posed to them. I sat to watch a bit of TV as I was a little early only for one old boy to turn it off the second I sat down. It wasn’t done deliberately, I don’t think he’d even clocked that I was there but it did amuse me.

The game was a tight inter-league affair with Tunbridge Wells always slightly in the ascendancy. About once every 10 mins in the opposition half, they settled and constructed a string of about 15 neat passes. I believe Soccer AM call it total football. It’s very pleasing on the eye and they could be a real force if they could do this on a more consistent basis. They scored on 33 mins when debutant Tate played a neat 1-2 just inside the left of the box and managed to drag a finish across the young rookie keeper and in to the far corner. Then it was a tale of 2 penalties. First Faversham were awarded one presumably for a push although I was up the other end and couldn’t see exactly what had happened. The penalty kick was weak to the keepers right, he saved it but the rebound was bundled in only for it to then be disallowed for another push. 15 mins from time Tunbridge won their penalty for a more blatant trip. Their taker tried a dinky Di Cannio style chip. Embarrassingly for him, the keeper hadn’t moved and just stood there to catch the softest penalty I’ve ever seen.

A few scares at the end, but Tunbridge held on to reach the first round proper.

London APSA FC

London APSA 1 Oxhey Jets 3

Docklands light railway

Oxhey Jets stay on track

London APSA 1 Oxhey Jets 3

06/09/08

On the day in July that the draw for the Vase was published, I was due to go to Blackpool on business. The draw was to come out at 11am, my train left at 12. What followed was some frantic printing & stapling, in good film style fashion, I completed the task with minutes to spare and rushed off just in time to catch my train. Sure, I could have waited another day to see the draw....hell, no I couldn't, now I had a whole evening in a Blackpool hotel to pick out my opening fixture. This I did & off to Birstall was my intention. But over time, I went off the idea of starting the competition in the Leicestershire senior league again, so I re-examined the draw and chose Pershore. And then the rains came and carried on and on and on, the forecast was dreadful, there was flooding everywhere & at the last minute, I chose London APSA as I hadn't been there before and there was more hope of the game going ahead. In hindsight, all three of my choices were played, but I'm happy with the decision that I made. 

It was an easy journey to this ground, on reaching London I took the tube to the interestingly named Prince Regent station on the Docklands light railway. Many things worry me about the 2012 Olympics. Security, will the stadiums be built on time, strikes by workers... One thing that doesn't worry me is the Docklands light railway. It almost doesn't belong in London. It's clean, is not crowded, always seems to be on time and winds its way over ground through interesting London landmarks. If only the rest of the tube was like this. The London Expo centre is right next to the station, the surrounding area was nothing more than a building site and was most unattractive. Fortunately, I was going in the other direction and found myself in quite a quiet part of the East end, a nice little area! I searched for a suitable lunch venue and with not a lot of choice, ended up selecting a saveloy and chips from a local chippy. Is it just me who when in the East end, has an uncontrolable urge to 'Cockney up' my language. Before I knew what I was saying, there were darlin' & mate's coming out my mouth and I left happily saying something along the lines of "Cor blimey, wot a nice gaff" The food was fine and I sat and ate it in a nearby park. Again, this was extremely quiet and it didn't feel particularly like I was in the country's capital city. 

The ground itself is about a 10 minute walk from the station. You have to negotiate a busy road but there are traffic lights as well as a bridge over this road. Theground is within Newham leisure centre and is surrounded by a running track, not a feature that I'm fond of at all at football grounds. Some kind of indoor running track is being built under the stadiums stand. It was due to have been finished at the end of August but the project was behind schedule. Please don't let this be an omen for 2012! Because of this, there was no cover to watch the game. Fortunately, we only had a couple of light showers, a minor miracle as most other games suffered a deluge of some sort.

I arrived in good time and was immediately approached by an official who asked if I was there to watch the game. He offered me a programme which turned out unusually to be in A4 format. I actually quite liked this for a change and it seemed to fit the personal attention that this club gives to all its match day duties.  The same official then pointed me to a porta cabin where tea was on sale, he then hopped round the counter, served me himself and also found time to have a chat with me. I can't remember ever having a warmer welcome from a club and I have a huge amount of respect for the effort that the volunteers put in, despite them being very few in numbers. I then got chatting to a London APSA player who was unfit after fracturing his arm during his first game for the club. Again, a really nice feller. I hope he's fit to play again before too long.

Having plenty of time, I went for a walk around the running track. I can't remember the last time I did the 400 metres, it must be about 20 years ago, this time i completed the lap in about 7 minutes. I was taking photos on the way, at least that's my excuse. On my second lap, i met someone walking the other way who turned out to be a fellow groundhopper. It always interests me as to the different way people carry out the same hobby. This gentleman mainly visits grounds in the South East and only does so for FA Cup & FA Vase matches. Still, he was good company and we spent the whole game standing together, discussing the different places that we'd visited.

A big plus was that we were allowed across the running track and literally watched the game standing on the touchline. The pitch was both long and wide, was as flat as a billiard table and seemed remarkably dry considering all the water that had fallen on it over the recent weeks.

The game itself was tight early on until Oxhey scored two in two minutes around the half hour mark. London APSA got back into it on 70 minutes after a nice strike by a substitute, but Oxhey secured the tie 5 minutes later after a nice passing move.

The best team won but I was sorry that London APSA were knocked out. A venue that grew on me the more time I spent there, due to the warm and friendly welcome that I received.

Visit if you get a chance.

Victorious captain lifts the Vase

Kirkham & Washam 2 Lowestoft Town 1

Water play at Wembley

Last gasp winner secures Vase for Kirkham & Wesham

Kirkham & Wesham 2 Lowestoft Town 1

In contrast to the cold conditions with driving rain for last seasons final, we had the most fantastic day with temperatures threatening 30 degrees for this years contest. I always find myself reminiscing about earlier rounds and it’s certainly been another eventful campaign. A postponement in Crowborough, early summer in Merstham, strong winds at Hungerford & Needham Market, I’ve experienced all four seasons. Great food at Merstham & Rothley Imperials, lunch at a station for Concord Rangers, again it’s been the good, bad ^ ugly. Great comebacks at Shrivenham & Merstham twice, the football has never been dull. The final lived up to its billing with Kirkham finishing off a truly great season. It was great to sit near the fountains at Wembley watching children & some adults cavorting in the water on a fabulous summer like afternoon. It would have been even better if the beer hadn’t cost £3.50 for a small bottle of Fosters, outrageous and Wembley should be ashamed of ripping people off. Wembley had told me that tickets would not be available on the day, the FA told me they would. So I was a little apprehensive during my journey, fortunately the FA were indeed correct. I was about to buy my £20 ticket when a Lowestoft fan offered to sell me hers as she’d managed to obtain a VIP ticket. She sold me the ticket at a £5 discount and it turned out to be a great seat near the half way line. The pitch looked immaculate as did the whole of Wembley stadium. It’s certainly a stadium that takes your breath away. Despite the obligatory ‘Mexican wave’ the whole game was hugely enjoyable.
I had no idea which way this was going to go,` although I felt that Kirkham’s name might just be on the trophy. I had no idea just how late they would leave it. Lowestoft started the stronger and took the lead on 9 mins. A deep cross from the left touchline caught a Kirkham defender in two minds, in attempting to clear he headed it past his own keeper. Lowestoft seemed content to sit on their lead playing a defensive 4-1-4-1 formation. They were effectively attacking only on the break, the majority of the match from this point was played in Lowestoft’s own half. A fascinating tactical battle was being played out although, despite a couple of miraculous escapes with woodwork being hit and last gasp blocks being made, it looked like Lowestoft would hold on. But on 84 mins, a ball down the left channel caught a defender on the wrong side, the ball was squared to Walwyn who took a nice first touch and buried it past the keeper from 9 yards. From then on, there was only likely to be one winner although extra time seemed inevitable. But 30 seconds before the end of stoppage time, Kirkham beat an increasingly high up the pitch offside trap, a 1 on 1 resulted in the ball being played to Walwyn and with the keeper being taken out of the game, he scored easily.
A fitting climax to another season, I can’t wait for next seasons draw.

Needham Market FC

Needham Market 0 Kirkham & Wesham 1

Needham chippy

Kirkham secure Wembley final place

Needham Market 0 Kirkham & Wesham 1

29/3/08

My run of seeing a game in every round of this competition came to an end over the Easter weekend. The offer of seeing 8 games in 2 days at the CML hop was too big a temptation to turn down. Fortunately, the semi final between Needham Market & Kirkham and Wesham was nicely set up with Kirkham holding a slender one goal advantage. So I prepared for my trip by calling up the National rail website and yes, you’ve guessed it, REPLACEMENT BUS SERVICE. They must be my most hated three words in the English language. This time, the maintenance was from Bury St Edmunds, so I’d have to complete my journey on said bus. The journey to Bury was uneventful, I stepped off the train, took a deep breath and headed for the queue of busses. Surprisingly, I was pointed in the right direction, the bus left on time and away we went touring a couple of delightful Suffolk villages. Delightful that is, until a bunch of rowdy, teenage Ipswich fans got on at Thurston. About a dozen of them got on board, the first words I heard were “Let’s burn it up at the back”. My heart sank! To be fair, once they’d settled down they weren’t too bad, but there’s always one with an annoying, monotone, loud voice who usually has bleached hair. The driver actually threatened to throw this individual off the bus when we reached Needham, probably as he was sick of listening to his voice & inane comments. I do like a spot of irony and that moment came when on a replacement bus service, we had to stop at a level crossing to let the slow moving, freight train pass by on the very line that I was not allowed to travel on. Never mind, I reached Needham in plenty of time & was happy to find a chippy almost immediately which had a couple of tables for those wanting to eat inside. My pie & chips were superb and piping hot, although not quite up to the standard of the one I visited twice in Crowborough. I ate my lunch to the sound of Kirkham fans singing away in the pub next door, all bode well for a good atmosphere at the game. A couple of older Kirkham fans came into the chippy with their wives, I felt their pain when the owner informed them that he didn’t serve gravy. The look of utter shock & bemusement on the Kirkham fans face was a picture- After all, Northern boys love gravy! It’s a simple 10 minute walk to the ground along very residential, but quite attractive streets. I was delighted to see that admission would only cost £6 and that under 12’s would be allowed in free. Where else do you get value like that for the semi final of a National competition? The ground is quite high up and a little exposed although the line of fir trees on one side of the ground gave a little relief from the wind. There is a reasonable sized stand and a couple of other covered standing area. The pitch was perfectly playable but rather sticky following a deluge of rain the day before. I never got to see a clubhouse, but other facilities at the ground were more basic than a lot of Ridgeon’s grounds. A crowd of 1270 watched the game, Kirkham fans by far the more vocal.
Any semi final always holds the interest, but this never quite got going as a contest. Both sides defended well although chances were few and far between. Kirkham always tried to play a neat passing game and should have scored in the middle of the first half when Patterson was clean through, but his shot went straight at the keeper. The second half was much of the same, Needham unable to carve open any clear cut openings. They did have one shot headed off the line and saw the giant Kirkham keeper make one fine save, but Kirkham were always more likely to score on the break as Needham pushed forward. Right on 90 mins, Kirkham secured the tie to win 4~2 on aggregate. They broke clear on the left and as the Needham keeper closed down the angle, the ball was squared for Walwyn to tap in the easiest of finishes. Kirkham on the day, were deserved winners.
Coming home, we had a 45 minute wait for the replacement bus service that we eventually caught from the main street. Nice of Network rail to provide signs telling us that the busses would be there. One poor guy had been waiting by the station for nearly 2 hours. Still, nice to meet up with fellow ground hoppers and discuss our hobby.
Needless to say, the same bleech haired Ipswich fan was on the bus going back towards Bury. I took my seat and switched on my I-Pod!

Hungerford Town FC

Hungerford Town 0 Whitley Bay 1

Hungerford Town FC clubhouse

Bay breeze past Hungerford

Hungerford Town 0 Whitley Bay 1

Quarter final day and I considered that I'd had a result. For anyone who takes note of what I write......Just me then! You'd remember that I almost visited Hungerford earlier in the tournament, only for me to change my plans after an offer to visit a friend in the West country. So when Hungerford were drawn at home for the quarter finals, I was able to visit a new ground within reasonably easy reach of my home. Once a month, I attend a men's breakfast club in a village near why I live that basically involves a large fry up & a chat with mates about a current affair topic. So with sausage & black pudding weighing me down, I headed straight for the station and off into London. The journey was very straightforward with a direct train from Paddington. All was going to plan, although I did think the train was strangely packed. It soon became apparent that the vast majority of the travellers were going to spend the day at Newbury races. The crowd seemed to mainly be made up of young blokes , dressed in suits who were intent on drinking as much lager as possible in as short a time as possible. Having said that, everyone seemed in good humour and 'Sure thing' tips were flying up and down the carriage. The train stopped at Newbury racecourse station and took about 10 minutes to empty. This put us behind time and we crawled the rest of the way to Hungerford, stopping at every possible signal. I still arrived at the station in good time, normally I would have wandered into the town and had a nose round, but today, there were a group of fans at the station obviously going to the game & fearing a big crowd, I decided to follow them so that I didn't have to worry about examining maps and finding the way. It's actually a really straight road and the walk takes no more than 10 minutes. Following my big breakfast, I called in at a local 'one stop' that I happened to pass and lunched on a cheese and ham salad sandwich which I ate at the ground and really enjoyed. Who needs chips! I seem to bump into the FA Vase trophy on at least one occasion every season & for the second year running, it was at the quarter final stage. The FA were on hand taking photos of fans standing next to the trophy, I nice touch that always goes down well.

I quite liked this ground which had a standard sized stand around the halfway line as well as a covered area on the other side and behind one of the goals. A good sized clubhouse with a bar, the pitch slopes from end to end and was hard & bumpy. Tea and coffee was being thoughtfully sold both inside & outside the clubhouse, there was also hot food and cold snacks available.

 A windy day along with the bumpy pitch, meant that skill was in short supply. The ball spent most of the game either high in the air or out of play. Hungerford never really got out of first gear. When they did create an opening, they completely failed to get a quality strike on goal. Whitley Bay spent the entire game closing the opposition down and not allowing them any time on the ball, a tactic that proved to be extremely effective. It was no surprise when Whitley Bay were the team to score, the goal came on 46 mins. Two Hungerford players went for the same ball, Whitley Bay picked it up, a low cross was missed by a defender and Robinson from a central position, shot under the keeper from 11 yards. Hungerford did manage to force two fine saves late on from the Whitley Bay keeper, but in all honesty, Whitley Bay were deserved and reasonably comfortable winners.

Now annoyingly. No, incredibly annoyingly, the first leg of the semi finals are on Easter Saturday when I'm away at the CML groundhop and even if I wasn't, there's never any trains running. So I'll have to make do with one of the second legs.