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~ Laurence's football travels

Football: Wherever it may be

Daily Archives: September 23, 2012

Dancing With The Stars

23 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by laurencereade in U

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Appleton Stars, Ben Cousins, Jamie Glock, Keiran Watson, North Berkshire League, North Berkshire League Groundhop, Paul Nuckley, Uffington United

Saturday 22nd September 2012 ko 7.30pm

North Berkshire League Division 5

UFFINGTON UNITED 12 (Watson 2 20 33 43 59 70 82 87 Cousins 11 14 56 Glock 62)

APPLETON STARS 0

Att 188

Entry & Programme £4

Badge £3

Food: Meat and Veggie Chilli

Beer: White Horse Brewery

The final game of this year’s hop saw a trip to the pretty village of Uffington, best known for the 374 feet prehistoric “White Horse” carved into the chalk of the Berkshire Downs behind the village. It’s just about visible from the ground, but there’s more to the village than just that. Poet John Betjeman lived here during the 1930’s and Thomas Hughes, author of “Tom Brown’s Schooldays,” was born in the village.

Now if you thought a NBFL Division 3 game was trying something new, I’m not sure what the great hopping populace thought I was thinking planning this! I do what the Uffington committee thought, as they admitted to me at half-time; they thought I was absolutely stark raving mad when I presented my proposals at a club meeting at Tucker Park 2 years earlier!

The logic is simple, the ground at Fawler Road, has floodlights, and Uffington don’t seem to have played under them in living memory, With floodlit grounds at a premium in the NBFL this was an obvious closing game for the hop. That immediately raised another issue, that division 5 is primarily for reserve and “A” sides. Since hoppers by and large will not watch games involving reserve teams, my choice of opposition for Uffington was restricted to two, Challow and Appleton. Challow are new to the league this season, and so I knew nothing about them, but the Stars I know well.

The Stars re-entered the NBFL 3 seasons ago, and were placed in Division 4. They had a terrible season, and were relegated without registering a point. The next season they still finished bottom but at least registered 3 wins, but last season suffered from the league creating Divisions 4 East and West, and once again failed to register a point. With Uffington having finished next-to-bottom last season, I plumped to the Stars on the basis it might be competitive, and give the crowd some goals to view. I was correct on one count!

What surprised the visiting hoppers was just how well-appointed Fawler Road is. Apart from the fully railed off pitch, with dugouts and floodlights, there’s a second pitch (now there’s an idea!) and a clubhouse with ballroom. The latter proved to be handy as goalscorer Jamie Glock’s chilli sold like hot, well chilli. Common consensus was that it was delicious! NBFL media man Phil Annets went back for seconds, and he was not the only one!

I was worried about Appleton, and so were the NBFL committee. They’ve taken some real hidings over the last 3 seasons, and after a 15-0 drubbing at the hands of Benson Lions Reserves last Saturday we did have Challow on stand-by in case manageress Briony MacKellar decided this was a bridge too far for her team. I was wrong, and I should have known better, as I’ve seen Appleton a few times and they are a team in the purest sense of the word. They pull together, and even though they’ve taken some real beatings, including a 24-0 reverse, they play for each other and for fun. I had a brief chat with one of the players before the game, he admitted to me that the team was nervous so I found some hoppers and made sure they gave them a cheer.

I needn’t have bothered, as although Appleton shipped their first goal with less than 2 minutes on the watch, the crowd took to them as they gave the game a real go as they always do. And that’s where for me they avoided utter humiliation. Yes, Uffington are clearly a massive improvement on last season, but Appleton were not without attacking effort, forcing 3 corners and hitting the bar once. But you cannot be humiliated if you give it your best, and pull together. And that is what make me have a gigantic soft spot for the Stars.

Watching from the bench was Paul Nuckley. A veteran of Appleton’s previous stint in the NBFL, he was goalkeeper for most of the last 3 years, before opting to play for Stanford-in-the-Vale as he prefers to play left-wing. Nevertheless he decided to come along and support his former team-mates.

The difficulty he had as did everyone else there, was the floodlights were somewhat murky, perhaps I should have known as secretary Helen Wilkins did put in the excellent programme that the lights are, “Unique!” It ended up being a case of watch Uffington roll in yet another goal, and ask the bench who got it. The answer was ” Kieran, ” (Watson) a quite unbelievable 8 times! It made Ben Cousins’ hat-trick look positively tame! It broke all kinds of groundhop records, and after completing the crowd count, and saying thanks to the Uffington committee, I allowed myself the luxury of spending the second half on the Appleton bench, partly to check they were all right, and partly to indulge the part of me that is a fan.

And that concluded this year’s event. We produced an average attendance slightly up on last year, and tightened up on the little things that make a hop special. Two areas really pleased me; the clubs did excellent, varied catering, and I thought the 4 programmes were exceptional.

To finish I’d like to thank the NBFL committee, and especially Media Guru Phil Annets. Phil grasped the concept straightaway and his help makes my job so much easier. I’d also like to wish NBFL Chairman Leroy Paddock all the best as I know he’s going into hospital this coming week. I’d like to thank the clubs for their hard work, and at times indulging that bloke who kept sending them emails! The away clubs too, your time will come, as long as you want us there. Thanks also to everyone who attended any of the games, but especially to “Fast” Eddie McGeown who drove the other minibus. Lastly to Chris Berezai, normally I’m his deputy but for this one we swap places. We both know what sometimes you need a shoulder….

See you all next year, Benson Lions, Berinsfield, Long Wittenham and Didcot Casuals, you have a lot to live up to!


Paul Nuckley on the left, and the Appleton committee


;

Respect To Me Choppers

23 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by laurencereade in S

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Tags

Blewbury, Harry Moore, Jamie Gregory, Joe Lee Mitchell, North Berkshire League, North Berkshire League Groundhop, pam ayres, Sam Weeks, Stanford in the Vale, Taff Blackshaw, Tyrun Mayall

Saturday 22nd September 2012 ko 16.30

North Berkshire League Division 3

STANFORD-IN-THE-VALE 1 (Gregory 85) Mayall sent off 81 (foul and abusive language)

BLEWBURY 1 (Mitchell 23)

Att 178

Entry & Programme £4

Badge £3

Food: Cream Teas/ barbeque

Beer: White Horse Brewery

So let’s go back to the drawing board. Start at Coleshill, and finish at Uffington, so Stanford really was an obvious choice based on the geography if nothing else! The trouble was I knew absolutely nothing about the place other than that the poet Pam Ayres (“I wish I’d looked after me teeth”) hails from here. So in April I decided to go and have a look, and I liked what I saw.

https://laurencereade.wordpress.com/2012/04/22/a-preview/

Generally when I meet a club and explain how a groundhop works and what’s involved I get one of two reactions. Either I get a look that says, “You are completely mad,” which isn’t necessarily incorrect, or the club representative’s eyes get progressively bigger as the blind panic sets in! When I met Stanford’s Simon “Taff” Blackshaw I definitely got the latter! Whatever he thought at the time he did two things that made my life easy, he asked loads of questions, and came up with good ideas too.

The club used a farmer’s field opposite Cottage Road for parking, and produced the greatest whiteboard for the line-ups that I’ve seen on a hop, it was huge! The cream teas went down well, but I do wonder what the players ate after the game as the barbeque earmarked for them looked to be doing a good trade amongst the travellers! There was also a fascinating display of some wonderful old club memorabilia, as well as the beer from the White Horse Brewery, based in the village. The club had done their advertising too, a hopper reported that the village had a poster up everywhere you looked!

So good were the club’s efforts I completely forgot this was a first, Chris and I had never attempted to organise a hop game at a club this far down football’s pecking order. That said, I’d been made aware that Blewbury had had difficulties in the previous few days, so I was more than pleased to see them arrive! I was pleased to see them for another reason, they are the first ground in the NBFL I’d visited around 10 years ago.

There was some confusion as to which team was which. Stanford decided to christen their natty new yellow and blue nets, but NBFL rules state that if there’s kit clash the HOME team changes, so it was Blewbury to got to wear the yellow and blue kit.

Stanford’s main man is forward Tyrun Mayall, and it was his turn and shot that provided the first chance after 8 minutes.  Stanford had the majority of the play early on, so it was a surprise when Blewbury took the lead, Liam Saunders cross being rifled into the net by Joe Lee Mitchell. And despite more or less continuous pressure Stanford couldn’t find a way through. The frustration told most obviously on Mayall himself as he swore at linesman Harry Moore, himself taking a break from Hellenic duties, and followed it up with a rigid digit in Moore’s direction leaving referee Charlie Bullock with no option but to dismiss him.

From there I thought that would be the end of Stanford’s challenge, but as usual I got that one completely wrong. The equaliser, when it came was beautiful in its simplicity, Sam Weeks played a slide-rule pass through the righ hand channel for Jamie Gregory to glide the ball home. Deserved, and Stanford could easily have won the game if Weeks’ finish after a mazey run had have shown a little more finesse.

The game finished soon afterwards, but by that stage the talk was already about the final game. That game of course, had its own benefits and pitfalls.


That’s Taff in the baseball cap



No Folly

23 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by laurencereade in F

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

berkshire league, Dan Hoskin, Faringdon Folly, Faringdon Town, Luke Ingram, Matty Pill, Mayor, North Berkshire League, North Berkshire League Groundhop, Sam Paterson, Wootton and Dry Sandford

Saurday 22nd September 2012 ko 1.30pm

North Berkshire League Division One

FARINGDON TOWN 1 (Pill 50)

WOOTTON & DRY SANDFORD 0

Att 181

Entry & Programme £4

Badge £3

Food: Ham or Cheese Ploughmans

Beer: Arkells

With the first game at Coleshill there really was only one choice for the second, a trip to Faringdon’s Tucker Park. But have you ever thought about how the ground got its name?

Prior to World War I there was a Thursday Faringdon team, reflecting early closing on that day of the week. After the war the players returned to discover that 6 of of them had lost their lives, and that half day closing was a thing of the past. The £30 left in the club’s kitty was enough to buy and re-badge a racing trophy, as the Faringdon Memorial Thursday Cup, and the Faringdon Town ground was named after one of the fallen 6 players, Michael Tucker. The clubhouse you see today is the result of the fundraising done by the Thursday cup competition, and the cup is still played for today.

In fact, the Memorial Cup was a reason to be nervous as organiser as a combination of a final where there’s always a programme, and the unusual day of the week that its played, meant that many of the more senior hoppers would have done the ground, and therefore would look elsewhere. I knew Faringdon are an ambitious club, with their aim being promotion back to the Hellenic, and are improving the ground accordingly. Fence posts have appeared since my last visit, and the club hope to get permission for floodlights in the future. They’re also at pains to explain they’re going about it the correct way; local players only, and not spending money they haven’t got.

It was a lovely touch that the town mayor Mike Wise was there to welcome each and every person to his town’s game, and I was pleased to see him tucking into a Ploughman’s lunch later on! Those lunches went down a treat, especially with the small, but significant vegetarian contingent. As one of them correctly pointed out, ” A meat eater doesn’t have to eat meat at every meal.” As I chose the cheese version, I’m a good example. The tombola was a good money spinner too, with some bemused hoppers (me included) leaving with teddy bears!

This day was in marked contrast to the famous town Folly clearly visible above the far goal. The visitors were proudly carrying a 100% record coming into this game, and it was clear that what the game lacked in goalmouth action it made up for in tension and quality. It was hard to see this as Step 7 action.

It was Matty Pill who broke the deadlock firing home from 10 yards after good work from Dan Hoskin. Ultimately Wootton were to have to answer to this stike despite a lot of pressure late on. Luke Ingram should have done far better when clean through, and how Sam Paterson’s header hit the crossbar I’ll never know.

The celebrations at the final whistle were a reflection on what the win meant for Faringdon, and their ambitions for progress. I also felt it was a cheer for hard work earning a fair reward, both on and off the field.




One Man (and what a man!)

23 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by laurencereade in C

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Tags

Adam Little, Ardington and Lockinge, Bottom of the Hill, Coleshill United, Ian Stonham, Jamie Clark, Jonathan Eudell, North Berkshiore League, North Berkshire League Groundhop, oxfordshire village, Richard Evans, transportation

Saturday 22md September 2012 ko 10.30am

North Berkshire League Division 2

COLESHILL UNITED 2 (Evans 30 47) Evans missed penalty 17 Rees sent off 55 (dangerous play)

ARDINGTON & LOCKINGE 5 (Little 23 25 J Clark 29 72 Eudell 76)

Att 171

Entry & Programme £4

Badge £3

Food: Bacon Rolls, and Sausages

Beer: Old Forge Brewery

It doesn’t seem like a month since we were running round Mid-Wales, but the NBFL hop is very much my baby, and it does have its own challenges. This was a first if only for being the first time the organiser has also driven a minibus. All in day’s hopping I suppose!

I’d approached the 4 clubs some time ago, and soon realised I wanted Coleshill to open the event. I do wonder whether any hoppers turned up erroneously in Warwickshire, as this Coleshill is just about in Oxfordshire! During World War II Coleshill House, on the estate, was the headquarters of the secret Auxiliary Units, who were to resist the expected occupation of the United Kingdom by Nazi Germany. Continue reading →

No, we didn’t!

23 Sunday Sep 2012

Posted by laurencereade in D

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Chris Berezai, Clevedon Town, Didcot Town, Eliott Osborn-Ricketts, James Clark, Joe Flurry, Lee Matthews, Loop Meadow Stadium, Scott Murray, Southern League

Friday 21st September 2012 ko 19.45

FA Cup 2nd Qualifying Round

DIDCOT TOWN 3 (Clark 62 73p Osborn-Ricketts 77)

CLEVEDON TOWN 1 (Flurry 22)

Att 190

Entry £9

Programme £2

With the North Berkshire League hop the next day, this fixture couldn’t have been more convenient for those staying over the night before. Or in fact anyone who fancied a “warm-up” game. There were even 3 hoppers who’d watched Didcot Casuals, on Town’s training ground 2 years ago. I bet its unusual for the two grounds to be ticked off in that order! The convenience of the fixture lead to a rumour that Chris and I had got the fixture moved to attract hoppers. Not the case I’m afraid, we don’t carry that much clout, but Phil Annets media officer at the NBFL did get the club to put a full page advert for the hop in the excellent programme!

Loop Meadow Stadium is one of the better new-builds, replacing their Station Road (now a Sainsbury’s) home in 1999. The sight lines are good, and there’s now cover behind one goal, a condition of Southern League Premier football, now sadly a division above their current status.

Annoying for all concerned the draw gave Didcot the fixture that they would have had if neither side had made it through the 1st qualifying round, albeit with the away team at home. What the game proved, apart from that the Railwaymen have a nice little cup run going is that they should have little difficulty in collecting 3 points when the two sides meet again in the rearranged league fixture at The Hand Stadium next Tuesday.

It was a travesty that Clevedon were leading at the break. Joe Flurry’s stab home following ex Reading and Bristol City striker Scott Murray’s blocked shot, represented virtually the visitors’ only meaningful attack of the half. In contrast Didcot saw chance after chance go begging though a mixture of profligate finishing and the brilliance of Lee Matthews in the Clevedon goal.

The second half saw juctice prevail as Didcot made the pressure count. James Clark was put though by Sam Elkins to equalise. Didcot’s second was a little fortunate as Eliott Osborne-Ricketts powerful shot hit a Clevedon hand and a penalty was awarded on the linesman’s signal. Clark’s spot kick was emphatic to give Didcot the lead. 4 minutes later the tie was over as a spectacle as Osborne-Ricketts scored the goal of the game, skipping through two challenges before rifling home.

It was a highly statisfactory game to watch and the crowd was significantly higher than normal, so hopefully the experiment will be repeated. The statistic that no-one cold have predicted is how close 190 was to the crowds at the 4 NBFL games the next day!



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