Saturday 3rd December 2023 ko 14:00

Witney & District League- Division One

BAMPTON UNITED 6 (Parker 13 J Haley 44 Gardiner 48og S Haley 55 Pritchard 66 Hughes 75)

EYNSHAM SSC 1 (Oates 77)

Att c20

Free Entry

I’ll always feel that Bampton is the one that to some extent, got away. If like most you use the A420 to get here you’ll see just how this part of what is now West Oxfordshire forms the border between the North Berkshire League and the Witney & District League. As in to demonstrate the point, I drove past Kingston Bagpuise, of the North Berks, and the old Bampton Town transfered out of the North Berks in 2011.

On a personal level that was when we when I was putting together the first North Berkshire Hops. That makes me wonder how on earth I managed to take 12 years to get to Buckland Road! Come to think of it Buckland used to have a team in the North Berks, and Bampton Town were briefly Bampton & Buckland FC.

I always think of this part of the county as being agricultural. I remember a great-uncle being a tenant farmer in nearby Black Bourton, and as a child I knew a family who ran a cow-milking machine business in Buckland. I know these days I’m in a minority, much of the area was used as a backdrop for the Downton Abbey series.

Sadly, Bampton Town are no more, they folded a couple of years ago. These days Bampton United provide the adult football at Buckland Road, but within seconds of arrival you can see how back in the day Town unsuccessfully applied for the Hellenic League. The parallels are there with nearby Radcot Road, home to Clanfield, if only Bampton had seen the same level of building work.

Nevertheless, despite the wet weather and being close to Buckland Marshes, the pitch held up well and we were treated to an entertaining game. That was in no small part to referee Stephen Kirkpatrick, who came with the distinction of being both a Hibs fan and an Edinburgh native! He’s in the RAF at Brize Norton and the Witney & District are very good at making use of referees living at the nearby bases. Stephen had an excellent game, but both sides should be congratulated too for letting him do his job!

I am though wondering if I’m something of a Jonah when it comes to Eynsham Sports & Social. They were kind enough to provide the opposition at the very first Witney Hop game at Hook Norton and took a 5-0 drubbing for their gesture.

Here they shipped six, and while the result was justified the margin was harsh. Still, Eynsham did have a sense of humour over it; Bampton’s third goal was caused by Eynsham goalkeeper Lee Gardiner punching Scott Haley’s corner into his own net. When Haley then scored Bampton’s fourth by more conventional means, he claimed he got a brace, but was quickly put right by the unfortunate Gardiner,

“Noone is getting that goal but me!”

How many keepers would be that honest?

As is so often the case with local level football I left with an inward smile. I do think it’s good for your footballing soul to get muddy feet once in a while.