Category Archives: B

I.D.

24 Wednesday Sep 2014

Posted by in B

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 20th September 2014 ko 19.45

North Berkshire League Division Three

BENSON LIONS 1 (Papa 47)

GROVE RANGERS 1 (Reid 59)

Att 172 at Defence Academy of the United Kingdom, Faringdon Road, Shrivenham

Entry & Programme £4

Badge £3

Catering: Beef and Veggie Burritos and Tacos

Beer: Chiltern brewery Flanders Pale Ale, Lord Lieutenants Porter

On the 2013 North Berkshire Hop we paid a highly enjoyable visit to see Benson Lions at their home ground at RAF Benson, report here. The base required an ID check, and we worked hard with Lions’ chairman Jon Radcliffe to ensure the event went smoothly.

In all groundhop games you have to have a good club and good officials to work with and that counts double for a game on an MOD base, and in Jon there’s a man who I could confidently hand the staging over to him in the knowledge it would be done beautifully. So when last year’s hop was over I phoned Jon with a proposal. Continue reading →

Slate

31 Sunday Aug 2014

Posted by in B

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Sunday 24th August 2014 ko 11.00 am

Welsh Alliance Division Two

BLAENAU AMATEURS 4 (Roberts 24 Williams 51p Copsley 90 Bradley 90p)

PENMAENMAWR PHOENIX 2 (S Williams 32 Prince 38)

Att 320

Entry £3

Programme £1

Badge £3

We’d shaved a few minutes off the start time to Blaenau Ffestiniog from Chester University. After the difficulties of the previous day, a little time less in our beds was a fair price for breakfast! Of course on the action-reaction principle we got to Blaenau ahead of time. That was no bad thing, as the town is the sort of place you’d want to linger in, even if for one or two that added up to a frantic search for a newsagent that had the “Non League Paper” in stock!

Continue reading →

Memories

28 Thursday Aug 2014

Posted by in B

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 23rd August 2014 ko 18.30

Welsh Alliance Division One

BARMOUTH & DYFFRYN 6 (Lewis 20 22 59 Harrison 27 S Jones 32 Ap Gwyndwr 63og)

LLANRWST UNITED 2 (Griffiths 43 45p)

Att 294

Entry £4

Programme £1

Two years ago when we at GroundhopUK and the Welsh Alliance agreed that a groundhop should take place, one club loomed large, purely down to its location. In Welsh Alliance terms Barmouth is rather out-on-a-limb, a southern outpost of the league to the extent that on arrival I was struck at how much the scenery reminded me of Aberdyfi which we’d visited on the MID-Wales hop! Continue reading →

Scrumpy the Dog

15 Friday Aug 2014

Posted by in B

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Wednesday 13th August 2014 ko 18.30

West Dean Charity League Intermediate Section

BREAM AMATEURS 1 (Ward 7)

RUARDEAN HILL RANGERS RESERVES 0

Att 15

Entry FREE

Programme NO

So dear reader, once more to the A48 and the Forest of Dean, this time just south of Lydney. During my trips to this part of the world I’ve got used to the idea that there’s precious little between the main road and the Severn. As ever I was wrong, there’s a good mile or so of land to work with in the pretty village of Aylburton. Its the type of village built as ribbon development, the land shelves steeply upwards rapidly as soon as you leave the road as I found out as soon as I tried to park!

more

Wenchford

13 Wednesday Aug 2014

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Wednesday 6th August 2014 ko 18.30

West Dean Charity League Intermediate Section

BLAKENEY 5 (Lindsay 11 Rowles 24 51 Ellison 28 Hilton 50)

TIDENHAM 1 (Jones 84) Hansen missed penalty 84

Att 16

Entry FREE

Programme NO

So more Forest of Dean action from the North Gloucestershire’s pre-season tournament. The village is easy to find, its on the A48 south from Gloucester, but the Blakeney Playing Field is rather more difficult to reach. In fact you could say its pain in the Butt to find! Continue reading →

Death of a 1000 passes

14 Monday Jul 2014

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Thursday 10th July 2014 ko 18.45

Europa League 1st Qualifying Round

BANGOR CITY 0

STJARNAN FC 4 (Rauschenberg 53 Bjorgvinsson 61 81 A Johannsson 85)

Agg 0-8

Att 805

Entry £14

Programme £3

Let’s be honest here, I’d waited far too long to visit the Welsh club’s new home on the banks of the Menai straits. But the decision to wait proved to be a good one, as a competitive game this time of year is not to be sniffed at, and I’d never watched a side from Iceland either!

Continue reading →

Similarities & Differences

08 Tuesday Jul 2014

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , ,

Friday 4th July ko 19.45

League of Ireland Premier Division

BRAY WANDERERS 1 (Kelly 19) Mitchell sent off 60 (2nd booking)

DROGHEDA UNITED 3 (Brennan 4 Holahan 37 Brady 90)

Att 495

Entry €15 (€1 = £0.80)

Programme €3

Badge €3

Pennant €10

NB. The Irish tour’s cost of £285 included entry into all the 3 games, and programmes, all transport, all excursions, and 3 nights bed and breakfast at Dublin City University

This weekend represented something new for GroundhopUK, a trip outside the UK, and the chance to try something different, a tour that didn’t revolve exclusively around football. We’ve been aware for some time that people can attend an organised groundhop and never see much else save for a steady succession of football grounds. This tour was to break that mould completely. Continue reading →

Two Magpies

27 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by in B, M, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Sunday 25th May 2014 ko 13.00

Scottish Womens Football League 2nd Division South East

BOROUGHMUIR THISTLE 3 (Livingstone 10 Hanson 50 To 83)

HUTCHINSON VALE RESERVES 1 (C Devlin 15)

Att 13  at Meggetland Sports Complex, Edinburgh

Entry FREE

No programme

As I stood in the almost deserted stand watching a game a pitch’s width away I watched two magpies stand on a crash barrier and survey the scene. Like me, they were sheltering from the torrential rain, most of the other spectators tried to keep their umbrellas from turning inside out at pitchside, but lets face it, if there’s cover its best used! Continue reading →

Cow Roast

12 Monday May 2014

Posted by in B

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , ,

Thursday 8th May 2014 ko 18.45

Aylesbury & District League Premier Division

BERKHAMSTED SPORTS 5 (Alexander 4 Whittaker 47 64 Shode 66 Gower 85)

AYLESBURY DYNAMOS 5 (Ashell 14 Woolard 17 31 45 Shennan 29)

Att 13

Entry FREE

No Programme

I wonder how many travellers have visited either Berkhamsted or Tring and travelled along the A4251 to get there. Chances are you’ll fly through the little hamlet of Cow Roast, glance across at the pub of the same name and carry along your way, thinking no more about the place. I’m oft heard to comment that every settlement has a story to tell, and little Cow Roast has more to say than most….

Continue reading →

I Know Where It’s At

11 Sunday May 2014

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Wednesday 7th May 2014 ko 18.30

Northants Combination Premier Division

BRIXWORTH ALL SAINTS 1 (Ling 52) Dufty sent off 90 (2nd booking)

MILTON 0

Att 27

Entry FREE

No Programme

Brixworth lies to the north of Northampton, a stone’s throw from the M1/M6 interchange at Catthorpe immortalised in a million traffic reports. The team takes its slightly unusual name from the huge parish church of All Saints. Its one of the oldest, largest and most complete Anglo-Saxon churches in the country. It was founded circa 680 AD and was called  “The finest Saxon church north of the Alps.”

The village church is mentioned in the Peterborough Chronicles, being a monastery founded when Sexwulf became Bishop of Lichfield before the death of King Wulfhere in 675AD. Many elements from the original building remain visible, although there are later additions, notably the tower. The club is to be found on Froxhill Crescent, the mid-point of a modern estate and in the middle of it all is the wide expanse of the St David’s Playing Fields. Continue reading →