Monthly Archives: April 2012

The Crunch

28 Saturday Apr 2012

Posted by in O

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 28th April 2012 ko 3.00pm

League 2

OXFORD UNITED 0

SOUTHEND UNITED 2 (Hall 19 Mohsni 31)

Att 9,356 (1,106 away)

Entry S/T

Programme £3 (incl Ox Mail)

Right let’s get one thing straight, Southend were by far the better team and deserved their win. One look at the two benches shows you why. For Oxford the youth team keeper, a loanee, and two players returning from injury to complement Adam Chapman. For Southend fire power from Elliot Benyon and almost unbelievably, Freddy Eastwood. It says something that neither were needed.

It was game with plenty resting on it for both teams. For Oxford a chance to return to the playoff zone, and for Southend the chance to keep in the chase for automatic promotion. With goalkeeper Wayne Brown having damaged his knee in training Middlesbrough’s youth keeper Connor Ripley was drafted in late yesterday. Peter Leven’s shoulder was deemed to be the wrong side of acceptable, and Cristian Montano made way for Jon-Paul Pittman. A fit-again Damian Batt allowed Supporters’ player of the year Andy Whing to return to midfield. Adam Chapman was relegated to the bench in favour of a supposedly fit-again Simon Heslop.

Oxford made a bright start with the impressive Dean Morgan seeing his shot blocked by Cameron Belford, only for Asa Hall to blast the rebound over. Southend soon took control over the midfield, and two through balls saw Southend forwards make forward runs only to be stopped crudely by firstly Jake Wright, then Michael Duberry. Both were booked but it was the free kick as a result of the second that took the game towards the visitors. Ryan Hall’s 19th-minute effort had power, but was straight at Ripley, who somehow let the ball pass through his hands and into the net.

At a stroke Oxford’s confidence and fluency evaporated and the struggle got more up-hill in the 31st minute. A looping cross from the left should have been dealt with, but Bilel Mohsni peeled off the back of marker Liam Davis to glance a header perfectly into the bottom right corner.

Ripley was beaten for a third time 6 minutes before the break, when Neil Harris’ chip beat the young debutant, but Duberry raced back to hook the ball off the line. The ever reliable Whing forced a decent save from Belford, but at half time the Shrimpers would good value for their lead.

For the second half Chapman replaced Heslop, but at no point did the hosts regain full fluency. Pittman scuffed a Scott Rendell cross, then saw a better effort blocked by Belford.  As Oxford got more desperate Tom Craddock replaced Morgan and then Montano the hard-working Andy Whing, who’d done nothing wrong. Chapman fired a free kick just over the bar, and Montano’s jinking run into the box resulted in him being hacked down. To everyone’s amazement referee Lee Collins saw fit to award only a goal kick.

As the game wound down I listened to the supporters’ comments. Yes, OUFC were very second best, but sat as I was in front of the press box, you could see what the problem was. For sat in the press area were the likes of Ryan Clarke, Peter Leven, Alfie Potter, and James Constable, all injured. That’s where Oxford season has disappeared to, mournfully sitting with the journalists, unavailable. Much has been made of Chris Wilder’s use of the loan market, but if those and others had been available for more of the season, I’m certain we’d be at worst, in the playoff zone.

As it is, Oxford need to win at Port Vale next Saturday, and hope Crewe lose at home to nothing-to-play for Aldershot to sneak an unlikely play-off slot. At the final whistle the people I sit with wished each other a happy summer, in the cold and gloom.

I’ve been hearing some supporters call for Chris Wilder to be sacked. Well, I’d be careful what you wish for. What manager would want to come to a club that’s sacked a manager who’s improved the club’s league position each season of his tenure? And that’s not considering who’s available either, although I’m sure there are a few that think that Pep Guardiola could be convinced by a club flat on Greater Leys. Patience is a virtue, it took 4 years to get out of the Conference, and simply throwing money at it isn’t a long-term solution, just ask the likes of Plymouth…….

A Thankful Village

27 Friday Apr 2012

Posted by in S

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Thursday 26th April 2012 ko 6.45pm

North Bucks & District League Intermediate Division

STOKE HAMMOND WANDERERS 1 (M Read 30)

CITY COLTS 1 (Greening 12og)

Att 11 (h/c)

Entry FREE

Nothing for sale

Stoke Hammond is a small village about 3 miles south of Milton Keynes, and if you were deaf you’d never know you were near the new town! That’s because the village is right next door to the A4146 and the main northern railway line. The impact is a constant rumble, and a regular whoosh as the next pendolino blasts by. It is one of the 51 “Thankful Villages” which lost no men in the First World War, as first identified by the writer Arthur Mee in the 1930s.

The home team is a result of quite a merger. Stoke Hammond had a Sunday side but no Saturday side. Bletchley Trees (named after the Three Trees pub in the town) were dissatisfied with their home in a public park so merged with Woburn Sands Wanderers to become Stoke Hammond Wanderers. They decamped to Bragenham Side in search of better facilities, so I was surprised to see the visitors complaining at the size of the changing rooms. I had a look, and yes they were suitable for a tennis doubles competition! With City Colts having drafted in 4 reserve players, their reserve team manager Paul came along to watch, and spotted me from last week’s game at University of Buckingham and we had a good chat before kick off.

With a double rainbow above the ground, two sides with ambitions for the runners-up spot behind Great Horwood kicked off rather late I thought. As usual I was wrong as we got the full 90 minutes in with sufficient light.

Sadly the game failed to live up to the talents of both sides. Colts took the lead when a cross from the right was turned into his own net by Steve Greening. I fully expected the floodgates to open, but Colts were unable to kick on, and the game settled into a pleasant enough but ineffectual passing competition. Hammond equalised mid way through the first half, Michael Read evading his marker to fire home.

After that the main source of entertainment was club officials convincing the local constabulary that the alarm going off wasn’t the clubhouse one, and that therefore we were all there legitimately!

This draw will have gained little for either side, and for these two friendly sides another season in intermediate football beckons.

Community Champions

26 Thursday Apr 2012

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , ,

Wednesday 26th April 2012 ko 6.30pm

North Berkshire League Division Two

BERINSFIELD 4 (Stockford 21 79 Ingram 39p 62) Ingram missed penalty 42

BENSON LIONS 0

Att 57 (h/c)

80 minute game

Entry FREE

Programme (by Mick Birt) FREE

Tea-in-a-mug 50p

Bacon Roll £1

With the amount of times I’ve seen Berinsfield, it was about time I paid Lay Avenue a visit. At work in Banbury I watched the rain pelt down, and as I left the streets were flooded. It couldn’t be on, could it? It was on, and best of all it was being well publicised by secretary Jackie Cullen on the social media, and by Jackie picking up the phone to each of the gaggle of hoppers that nervously checked before heading out. As it happened, the pitch was in superb condition.

The village of Berinsfield lies about 7 miles south of Oxford on the road to Reading. It occupies the site of RAF Mount Farm, a satellite of RAF Benson, initially used to train bomber pilots. It was later taken over by the United States Army Air Forces, who used it as a reconnaissance base. From here stars including Bob Hope, Dorothy Lamour and Glenn Miller took off to entertain the troops in Europe. Miller performed for the US service personnel at the base in December 1944. From there he went to RAF Twinwood, boarded a Noorduyn Norseman single-engined aircraft, took off for Paris – and was never heard of again.

In 1957 the Air Ministry sold the airfield for civilian use. Bullingdon Rural District Council decided to build a new village – the first in England for 200 years – to be named after Birinus or Berin, a local saint. The word ‘field’ was added because the Americans called their base an airfield. To this day the village is markedly different to the obviously affluent villages that lie adjacent, Berinsfield is working class and proud of it, and the football club with its friendly welcome reflects this.

The club actually uses two pitches at Lay Avenue. This was to be the last game on the pitch used this evening, despite it facing the tea bar which did a roaring trade. The pitch will be rotated through 90 degrees, freeing up space for a children’s pitch. The “other” pitch will be used for first XI fixtures, and the rotated one for the club’s new reserve team. The club have just been turned down for floodlights.

It’s always more interesting watching a game with something riding on it, and with Berinsfield needing a point to take the Championship there was a real feeling of anticipation. With Benson Lions second from bottom it didn’t look likely that Berinsfield would miss out, especially when AJ Stockford (why does he always find a way into my reports?)  was at the end of a slick passing move to open the scoring. This was a very special game to watch, with a good playing surface helping both sides to play attractive passing football. It would be easy to paint the Lions as the fall-guys in the piece, but they matched Berinsfield pass for pass, and only missed out on a point from great keeping by Berry’s Toby Coffey, and bad luck.

Berinsfield doubled their lead from the penalty spot after Stockford was brought down. Captain Mark Ingram slotted away the penalty to end the first half and was asked to repeat the feat in the opening salvo of the second. This time, the kick was weak, and the shot was saved by Andy Gillespie. He made up for it after 62 minutes, heading home at close range.

I should apologise at this point to David Murphy, as in my War Memorial Cup Final report I stated that there are only 3 things in life are guaranteed, death, taxes and David Murphy scoring for Berinsfield. It was therefore inevitable that Murphy would fail when I saw him next! He came close though, dancing through the entire Lions defence, only for his blocked shot to fall kindly to Stockford who made no mistake from a full yard out.

As the game wound down the club made a lasting impression on the 5 or so hoppers present. Jackie Cullen came out with a tray with 5 portions of sausage and chips for the hoppers that had visited. She commented, ” You’ve come to visit, the least we can do is feed you.”  That’s 5 friends that club’s made for life, and reflects brilliantly on both the club, the league and the village itself.

As I drove out of the car park, something happened that summed up Berinsfield perfectly. I spotted 2 young lads wearing hoodies hanging around. I was just wondering, but then one of them grinned at me. It was AJ Stockford telling me to get home and start typing! Great people, great club, and congratulations on your championship.

 

 

 

Run In Stillettos

25 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by in B

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday 24th April 2012 ko 7.45pm

Sussex County League Division Three

BROADBRIDGE HEATH 2 (Wrigley 37 Samson 90)

SALTDEAN UNITED 3 (Dan Smith 16 Loader 59 Watton 65)

Att 51

Entry & Programme £2

In so many ways my attendance at this one didn’t make any sense. Why travel 100 or so miles to watch an intermediate level game in the middle of an athletics stadium, near Horsham. Factor in also, that with the clocks long since gone forward there was no lack of non-floodlit alternatives closer to home. The answer is of course the clarion call of the bulldozer, as Broadbridge Heath Leisure Centre is set to close leaving the club with an uncertain future. Of course with me being me, on arrival I discovered that far from this being the club’s last home game here, if they do move it’ll be in around a year’s time. Still, its been done……

Broadbridge Heath is the birthplace of the great romantic poet Percy Shelley, a great influence on more modern poets and authors such as WB Yeats, Thomas Hardy and George Bernard Shaw. Mahatma Gandhi’s policy of passive resistance was apparently influenced and inspired by Shelley’s non-violence in protest and political action in the poet’s lifetime, cut short by his drowning aged 29.

I’m no fan of football pitches in the middle of athletics tracks, although regular trips to Sweden where they are far more prevalent means I’ve almost got used to them. This is a particularly bad example, as there’s quite a distance from the stand (the one legally viewable side) to the long jump pit and then on to the track, then finally the pitch. There is at least a decent pitched roofed stand with some elevation, but the saving grace is the people who run the club, a friendlier bunch you will not meet.

 The programme was worth £2 on its own, and it being the Sussex County League the evening’s line-ups were posted on a whiteboard. I asked to stroll round the stadium before kick off and take some photos, to which the club readily acquieced. I did enjoy the notice that said that high heels should not be used on the track. Given that there was just the one elderly gent using the track before the game, I did wonder…..

The game went pretty much to the form book. When I was researching this game, I was surprised to see Saltdean in the County League’s bottom flight, and they look to be making a rapid exit up and out of it. This win puts them 2 points clear at the top with just one round of games to be played this Saturday. They started the stronger but once Dan Smith had given them the lead Heath came on strongly and their equaliser was fully deserved.

The interval came at completely the wrong time for the hosts as Saltdean notably upped the tempo after the break. Dean Loader pounced on a defensive error to restore the lead, and Richard Watton snaffled the winner following a free kick. Jamal Sultan’s goal for Heath was so late in stoppage time so as to create no impression of a comeback.

So, not the kind of ground that a hopper normally would make a beeline for but don’t let the threat of the bulldozer be the only reason to visit. It really is better than that.

The C Word

23 Monday Apr 2012

Posted by in M

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Monday 23rd April 2012 ko 6.15pm

Reading League Senior Division

MORTIMER 2 (Chowdhary 5 Davies 60) Chowdhary sent off 25 (2nd booking)

PARK UNITED 2 (Tungy 10p Bickerton 32)

Att 37 (h/c)

Entry FREE

No Programme (old copy FREE)

Tea-in-a-mug 50p

I occasionally get asked what the aim of this blog is. For a time I’d say that there wasn’t one, but now I suppose its to answer the question, “Why would I want to visit there?” With what I saw tonight, you may find answering that question difficult.

Mortimer, just south of Reading is in fact Mortimer Common. You are very much in commuter belt, and expensive commuter belt at that. The village is named after the family of the same name, the most famous of whom, Roger de Mortimer, 1st Earl of March was for three years de facto ruler of England after leading a successful rebellion against Edward II, before being overthrown and executed in 1330 by Edward III, with his lands (including Mortimer) seized by the crown.

The Alfred Palmer Memorial Playing Field is to be found on the outskirts, and for its level, Step 7, is reasonable well-appointed. There’s a small clubhouse and bar, and the pitch is enclosed on three sites with what appears to be schoolyard metal fencing. The administration staff were notably friendly.

On the pitch, with Mortimer third and with a shout of the championship against Park United struggling, second from bottom, it looked like a home banker. Add to that that despite being from the next village along Burghfield Common, Park struggled to get 11 players there for kick-off. It was therefore no great surprise when Mortimer took the lead, Kaser Chowdhary finishing well from the left side of the 6 yard box.

It was in the 10th minute when the whole complexion of the game, and the 4 neutrals there’s evening changed. A Park forward was clean through and was taken out by goalkeeper Stuart Gosby. For me it was out of the box but a penalty was awarded by referee David Jewell , but Gosby was extremely fortunate to stay on the pitch as it looked to be a clear goalscoring opportunity. Whatever the facts of the matter, Chowhary was booked for dissent, before Ahmet Tungy tucked away the penalty.

What followed was utterly unacceptable. A diatribe of the ugliest possible language from the home bench resulted in the dismissal of Mortimer assistant manager Dave Hobbs. That seemed to involve him standing about a foot further back, and he and his colleagues continuing to hurl foul mouthed abuse at the officials. I’m certainly not prudish when it comes to swearing, but this was far beyond what an official should have to put up with.

It got worse on 25 minutes when Chowdhary went down rather easily in the box, and collected his second booking for diving. The bench went mad, and the term “Cheat,” was being hurled about freely. I can live with swearing but the club officials calling referees cheats is completely unacceptable. If I’d have been in charge, I’d have been tempted to have abandoned the game there and then.

As it was, the game took on a whole new slant when Ed Bickerton rifled home to give the visitors and unlikely lead. They held on quite comfortably until half time when we were treated to the Mortimer manager John Davies marching on to the pitch to confront the officials. As they home players trooped off one was heard to comment ” For f***s sake lads play the opposition, not the ref,” If only the management had taken heed.

It was a similar story in the second half, with the abuse eminating from the home dugout, and Mortimer having the lions share of possession but only managing an equaliser for all their superiority, Mike Davies firing home from 5 yards out. Manager Davies was soon dismissed for calling long-suffering Jewell a, “F*cking cheat,” again and gave an interesting insight on his priorities when a player complained about the latest dismissal. “Don’t f*cking shout at him, that’s my job,” before trudging away.

The fact that it finished 2-2 seemed utterly irrelevant at the final whistle. So lets revisit my earlier question, “Why would you want to visit Mortimer?” The answer sadly, is do so, but only when there’s a change of football management. I would refer those two to the poster I saw in the clubhouse at half time.

Fours & Fives

22 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by in M

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Saturday 21st April 2012 ko 7.00pm

North Berkshire League Cup Final

DIDCOT CASUALS “A” 3 (Smith 66 Harper 68 71)

EAST HENDRED RESERVES 1 (Allen 27)

Att 126 (h/c)

At Milton United FC

Entry & Programme £2

Att 126

This for me was a complete bonus. I’d planned to take in the afternoon’s game at Stanford in the Vale, for quite some time, so with this one kicking off in perfect time for anyone doing an afternoon game in the area to call in, it really would have been rude not to!

I suspect quite a few groundhoppers will have visited “The Heights” when GroundhopUK finished off a day in the Hellenic League there. That was before I became involved, and I wasn’t there either, as I’d already done the ground, many times before! It’s a good example of how a village sports field can be improved to suit a club’s ambitions, and these days it reflects the club’s fortunes, as a side yo-yo’ing between the Hellenic Premier and Division One. It also reflects the league it originated in, the NBFL as there’s a fantastic view of Didcot Power Station! Until recently it was also used by Oxford United as a training base!

I should explain the title of the cup. It actually is the League Cup for teams that play in the bottom two divisions of the league. At present that’s Divisions 4 East and West, but it looks like that may revert to 4 and 5 for next season. With the majority of the teams in those divisions being reserves or “A” teams it was of no surprise that both finalists were not first XI’s.

There was a wonderful surprise when Jens from (near) Dusseldorf ambled up, beer in one hand, and fag in the other. Jens has over 5,400 grounds ticked, but approaches the hobby as I like to, with his tongue firmly in his cheek. I introduced him to League Press Officer Phil Annets, and oddly enough they got on like a house on fire! Don’t mention the War-Memorial Cup Final Phil!

If the Division 4 East table was to be believed this was an East Hendred banker, with the Casuals rock bottom with only 4 League wins all season! However the Casuals looked anything but a basement side, and looked secure in defence. Hendred did take the lead when Kevin Allen was at the end of a fine passing move to dink the ball over the on-rushing Nick Guiry in the Casuals goal. Hendred looked comfortable if unable to find a way though again, but everything changed during 5 mad second half minutes.

It all started with a goalkeeping howler, as Hendred keeper Roland Pacey’s misguided throw went directly to Casuals’ Andy Smith. His shot hit the bar, then down on to the goal-line, up on to the bar again in. Two minutes later, Casuals took the lead with a quite fabulous strike, a forty-yard blast of a free-kick from Daryl Harper. Three minutes after that, there was Harper again, tapping in after Pacey had done well to block a free kick played into the box.

A real turn-up for the books, and although Hendred pressed forward in the forlorn hope of redemption, they met with defence that didn’t look like it had shipped 47 goals in 20 league games. And in case you’re wondering whether players were shipped in for the final, not the case as the “A” side seem to run themselves separately from the rest of the club. Just one of those evenings when it all worked well for them.

The cup was presented by “Mr Milton United” John Cannon a real gentleman, who I’d had the honour to meet over a cup of tea at half time. A satisfying end to a great day’s football.

 

A Preview

22 Sunday Apr 2012

Posted by in S

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 21st April 2012 ko 2.30pm

North Berkshire League Division 3

STANFORD IN THE VALE 1 (Gregory 76)

WANTAGE TOWN A 6 (Stevens 11 28 75 Bowsher 37 Hummel 40 Goodchild 54)

Att 36 (h/c)

Entry FREE

No Programme

Tea-in-a-mug 40p

The West Oxfordshire village of Stanford-in-the-vale is best known as the birthplace of poet Pam Ayers. I drove in via Pusey and what a beautiful part of the world it is, with the stone cottages set against a backdrop of the White Horse Hills in the background. I think its part of human nature that we tend to marvel at places we’ve travelled long distances to see, and ignore what’s on our doorstep.

Apart from the obvious attractions of a game of football, I wanted to visit Stanford as its the only ground provisionally on the 2012 NBFL hop I knew nothing about. With the hop visiting divisions at a level never featured on an organised hop, I wanted to be available to help the clubs make the most of next September 22nd.

I met club secretary Simon Jackson, and he told me all about the club. They’ve no qualms about accomodating 200 or so hoppers. The ground is enclosed, so they’ll have someone on each gate with a box of programmes, they’ve got a huge barbeque set so that’ll be handy, and since the White Horse Brewery is in Stanford, there’ll be real ales to try. It should be a great day out for everyone.

What a charming ground Cottage Road is too. The clubhouse is good enough to attract drinkers who aren’t there to watch Stanford, and the pitch is railed on the near side. There’s trees on two side, which proved to be helpful in the midst of a hail storm! I was struck by how well this Oxford United fan was well-treated by what appeared to be a club of Swindon Town fans, although I’m bound to point out that Stanford play in OUFC yellow and blue!

Simon had told me that Stanford were going into this game with 6 players missing due to injury and suspension, and that Wantage’s A team is very strong. Incidentally they play at the Wantage Leisure Centre, and not at Alfredian Park, so there’s somewhere else so me to visit! Simon’s fears were justified as Wantage ran out easy winners. Centre half James Stevens collected a hat-trick as Stanford failed to convince when defending any form of cross. James Bowsher, Ben Hummel and Andy Goodchild piled on the misery as the visitors were first to everything and had the better ideas.

But let’s not dwell too much on the game. I drove away afterwards, thinking “What a lovely little club” and “That’s club I don’t have to worry about next September.”

I took a little detour to visit Uffington United, as its only around 4 miles away. That’s set to be the finale of the hop under their lights. Forget their league position, they’re just as ready for the crowds as Stanford, and you’ll be amazed at the ground.

 

Death & Taxes

20 Friday Apr 2012

Posted by in B, S, W

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Friday 20th April 2012 ko 7.30pm

North Berkshire League War Memorial Cup Final

BERINSFIELD 5 (Rawlings 45 90 Kenny 46 D Murphy 56 Ingram 90)

SUTTON COURTENAY 2 (Oram 33 Childs 37) Johnson sent off 85 (2nd Booking)

Att 340 (h/c)

Played at Alfredian Park, Wantage. (Wantage Town FC)

Entry & Programme £2

That’s right folks, a measly two quid. I mean, what of significance can you buy for £2 these days? Of course, if you like the NBFL it buys you a fantastic evening’s entertainment.

The match was hosted by Wantage Town, a ground I’ve visited quite a few times over the years. It used to be positively ramshackle, I once described the stand as looking like a scene from “Tenko” but on each time I returned there have been improvements. Firstly the stand was rebuilt, then the ground enclosed. Now there’s a turnstile block, and I would imagine the ground now meets Southern League standards.

This is the North Berkshire League’s Cup for first XI’s that aren’t in the top division. The fact of the matter though, is that Berinsfield for the last two years have been in an entirely false position. Continue reading →

Gimme Shelter

19 Thursday Apr 2012

Posted by in U

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Thursday 19th April 2012 ko 6.15pm

North Bucks & District League Division Two

UNIVERSITY OF BUCKINGHAM 0

CITY COLTS RESERVES 3 (Horwood 41 Chapman 45 Hinkley 51)

Att 16 (h/c)

Entry FREE

Nothing for sale

I suppose the first point to note is that the University’s playing fields aren’t in fact in Buckingham. They’re about 1.5 miles southwest, just outside of Gawcott, a village whose claim to fame is that it’s the birthplace of architect Sir George Gilbert Scott. He designed many iconic buildings in the UK. Amongst these are the Midland Grand Hotel by St Pancras Station in London, and Martyrs’ Memorial in Oxford. His grandson Giles Gilbert Scott designed Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral and famously the red “K6” British phone box!

The North Bucks & District League in theory feeds into the Spartan South Midlands League, and is split into 4 divisions. There’s Senior, then Intermediate Divisions, followed by divisions 1, and 2. I expected therefore, to be watching a game on little more than a park pitch, what I got was much more interesting. Continue reading →

County Boundaries

18 Wednesday Apr 2012

Posted by in M

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday 18th April 2012 ko 6.30pm

Oxon Senior League Division One

MIDDLETON CHENEY 5 (Twynham 26 42 S Finch 37 Mason 55 69)

ENSTONE SPORTS 1 (N Bott 83)

Att 23 (h/c)

Entry FREE

No Programme

The village of Middleton Cheney lies just off Junction 11 of the M40. You take one turn off for Banbury, another for Daventry and the last for here, on the road to Brackley. I must have travelled hundreds of times past the Astrop Road ground to Milton Keynes as the A422 rumbles along behind and below the far side of the pitch. That of course if you know me well, is a major reason for visiting any ground!

The village has its very own hero, Vice-Admiral (posthumously Admiral) Lancelot Holland who was killed on HMS Hood whilst in command of the British naval forces during the Battle of Denmark Strait in May 1941 against the German battleship Bismarck. Neither of the two local pubs are named after him but one in nearby Banbury is!

That’s a pointer to the confused identity of the place. Here’s a village in Northamptonshire under an Oxford postcode. The football team are affiliated to Continue reading →