Author Archives: laurencereade

Life At The Grassroots

14 Friday Feb 2020

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Saturday 30th November 2019 ko 13.30

North Berkshire League Division 2

KINGSTON COLTS 0

LONG WITTENHAM ATHLETIC RESERVES 6 (Crowley 4 27 Bishop 9 24 Hunt 13 Barton 28)

Att 4 at Dalton Barracks, Shippon, near Abingdon

Free Entry

The North Berkshire Hops may be over for now, and despite me being from Oxford I’ll always be a North Berkshire man. It’s a league that put their trust in me to organise a hop when many wouldn’t, and those who really know me knew that back in 2011 I was at a pretty low ebb. I remain on the league’s management committee and will probably do so while they feel I can be of some use to them. Being right at grass roots does give you an insight as to what life really is like at the bottom of the pile. Continue reading →

Claremont

13 Thursday Feb 2020

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Tuesday 26th November 2019 ko 19.45

Middlesex Senior Cup 2nd Round

HENDON 1 (Mitchell 58)

WINGATE & FINCHLEY 3 ( Ruff 17p Ochineng 32 Fleming 68)

Att 110

Entry £6

Programmes sold out

Teamsheet 50p

When Hendon left their crumbling, yet atmospheric home of Claremont Road in 2008 few could have envisioned their search for a new home would lead them to a place the width of Silver Jubilee Park from Hendon, even if the stadium itself is on the western edge of the park, and Hendon itself on the eastern! Continue reading →

A Hundred Thousand Welcomes

10 Monday Feb 2020

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Tuesday 19th November 2019 ko 19.45

Leicestershire Senior League – Division Two

NORTHFIELD EMERALDS 7 (Carter-Fell 10 MacIntosh 33 Kewmoss 33 Claricotes 37 Turland 83 Boumedi 83 87)

ST ANDREWS RESERVES 0

Att 36

Free Entry

Here’s a groundhopping top tip. If you fancy an unusual midweek fixture then keep an eye on the Leicestershire Senior League. For a league whose top flight is at Step 7 there are a surprisingly large amount of grounds with floodlights. Moreover, this season the league has expanded so there’s more teams, more grounds and more floodlit games! Continue reading →

The Class Of 92

09 Sunday Feb 2020

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Saturday 16th November 2019 ko 15.00

League 2

SALFORD CITY 2 (Rooney 4p 90p)

swindon town 3 (Doyle 9 54p Yates 78)

Att 3,509 (1,340 away

Entry £10 (terrace)

Programme £3

Its been many years since I completed the 92, that is the grounds of the 92 clubs that make up the Premier League and EFL. For what little it’s worth I finished at Doncaster Rovers’ old home of Belle Vue, and each season I normally get a new ground to aim for. This season though, the 92 has been reduced to 90, with Coventry City sharing at Birmingham City and Bury FC having been ejected from the EFL. But with Tottenham at their new ground, and Salford City having been promoted into the EFL, I had two new grounds to visit, and you could easily argue Salford is the more interesting case! Continue reading →

Our Former Self

06 Thursday Feb 2020

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Tuesday 12th November 2019 ko 19.45

West Midlands (Regional) League- Premier Division

DARLASTON TOWN (1874) FC 0

WOLVERHAMPTON CASUALS 0

K Miller sent off 49 (2nd Booking)

Att 110

Entry £5

Programme £1

Back in the day I used to use the M6 as a kind of a footballing acid test. I’d ask the question,

“If you drive along the M6 around Birmingham heading north after Spaghetti Junction which club do you think of?”

I suspect many would say Aston Villa and Walsall whose grounds are both clearly visible from the motorway/ traffic jam, but I reckoned any groundhopper worth his salt would have said Darlaston Town. Continue reading →

Coincidence

02 Sunday Feb 2020

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Saturday 9th November 2019 ko 15.00

Western League Premier Division

PLYMOUTH PARKWAY 5 (Calver 17 52 Krac 33 80 Williams 89)

Carter penalty saved 37

CHIPPING SODBURY TOWN 2 (Brown 47 72)

Att 157

Entry £6

Programme £1.50

The coach had just left Wellington after the final Western Hop and someone commented, ” I suppose that’s the league completed for you Laurence?” I replied in the affirmative and it was only a few days later that I realised I’d missed out Plymouth Parkway. I could see why, Parkway featured on a Devon County Hop but I wasn’t there…. Continue reading →

All About Wickhurst Lane

27 Monday Jan 2020

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Tuesday 8th November 2019 ko 19.45

Sussex Senior Cup 2nd Round

BROADBRIDGE HEATH 2 (Jones 27 Wanstall 61)

PEACEHAVEN & TELSCOMBE 3 (Wiltshire 38 Ford 50 Bant 90)

Att 64

Entry £6

Programme £1

After all that had gone before, it seemed strange to be returning to pyramid football. Not in any perjorative sense, although the inevitable battle with the M25 evening rush hour was as unwelcome. As hellish as the traffic was, it was familiar I’d passed Broadbridge Heath’s new ground on the way to Horsham a couple of months earlier. I found myself wishing my journeys were a little more straightforward, but then that is skill that Broadbridge Heath are rather good at! Continue reading →

Wedding Speech

13 Monday Jan 2020

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As I’m sure many of you know Robyn and I were married on Saturday at Coombe Lodge, in Blagdon, North Somerset. For anyone who for one reason or another couldn’t make it, here’s my speech (annotations in bold).

I’ve included the message Swedish groundhop organiser Kim Hedwall sent that formed part of Simeon’s best man speech, and the first photo from the photographer, the wonderful Lee Hatherall. We hope you enjoy it, 

Laurence & Robyn January 2020 

Kim’s message 

“On behalf of my wonderful wife and I sincerely thank you to all of you for being here to share our special day.

Continue reading →

Times Like These

10 Friday Jan 2020

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Saturday 2nd November 2019 ko 15.00

FA Premier League

ARSENAL 1 (Aubameyang 20)

WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS 1 (Jiminez 76)

Att 60,383

Entry £56.50

Programme £3.50

For a while I’d known my future brother-in-law Scott wanted to visit the Emirates Stadium. Now on one hand I’ve seen enough of Arsenal over the years for there to be little or nothing to be achieved from another visit. It is a case of “Been there done that” but on the other hand, he’s family and I’ve got history. Continue reading →

The Shocker

08 Wednesday Jan 2020

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Friday 25th October 2019 ko 20.00

FA Premier League

SOUTHAMPTON 0 

Bertrand sent off 10 (serious foul play) (VAR)

LEICESTER CITY 9 (Chilwell 10 Tielemans 18 Perez 19 39 57 Vardy 45 55 90p Maddison 85)

Att 28,762

Entry – Complimentary

Programme £4

Back in Albania I was sat in the cable car heading down from Mount Dajti and was speaking to one of our guides Ditmar. He has the advantage of being a footballer, playing in the 3rd tier of the Albanian League for Mirdita so I attempted to explain groundhopping to him. The mechanics aren’t difficult to explain, watch a football match in as many places as possible, but the philosophical side is always a little more difficult. Why would someone set out to visit 5 Albanian grounds with only one being top flight? I explained it as being the type of person that likes to see what’s round the next corner.

But where are the limits he asked? For me there are very few, as long as its 11-a-side I’m happy, which does tend to throw people a little. It did with Ditmar, so he asked where I was heading next. I half smiled, half winced. “Southampton” I said, I’m not convinced he still understands completely just how far down the pecking order I watch. Part of me wished I’d said something in the Southampton & District League!

Continue reading →