Mobility

17 Wednesday Apr 2013

Posted by laurencereade in F

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Brockenhurst, Combined Counties League, Fleet Spurs, Jeff Kenna, resigned, soccer, Warren Kenna, wessex league

Tuesday 16th April 2013 ko 19.45

Wessex League Division One

FLEET SPURS 0

BROCKENHURST 3 (Ritchie 46 Spinney 53 Kenna 72p)

Att 23

Entry £4

Programme £1

I hate the fact the only reason I did this game is because Fleet Spurs have resigned from the Wessex League. It is the lot of the groundhopper that the end of the season is spent at least in part doing clubs and grounds that may not be there the next time round.

The Southwood Pavilion, in Kennels Lane, lies more or less equidistant between Fleet and Farnborough on former MOD land. At one end is the soon-to-be vacated Nokia building, the other woodlands leading to the Cody Sports and Social Club the former home of Farnborough North End. Therein lies the problem, the facility is nowhere near any population, so the most relevant statistic above is the attendance. They didn’t even cover the cost of the referee and linesmen this evening.

With financial facts of life stacked against you, a change is clearly necessary, but what that actually is isn’t known as yet. The club like would a sideways move to the Combined Counties, thereby reducing travelling costs, but a drop in status to the Hampshire League is possible, as is no move at all. It’s all down to the committees and darkened rooms of the FA to decide next month, or maybe the month after, the club simply doesn’t know. That can’t be easy for the players, not knowing even the level you’ll be playing next season.

And to be honest it showed, as promotion-chasing Brockenhurst dominated. They contrived to miss a string of chances during the first half. Over an excellent burger and cup of tea, the Fleet faithful feared the worst if the visitors found their shooting boots. Which they did with much of the crowd (such as it was) still in the pavilion, Dan Ritchie blasting home from 25 yards. Fleet worked hard, but offered little up front but it took something fortuitous for Brockenhurst to double their lead. The ball was worked well from the left but Mike Spinney’s shot was scuffed. A clean shot would have been easily blocked by keeper Ryan Bone, but instead it spun up and over the wrong-footed glovesman and looped in.

A silly penalty will no doubt help Brockenhurst’s goal-difference, it is extremely tight at the top after all, that was easily dispatched by Warren Kenna, the brother of former Southampton professional Jeff, for a rather harsh scoreline for Fleet.

Maybe I was the mood I was in, but I found myself warming to the small band of volunteers trying to keep Fleet Spurs going despite almost insurmountable odds. I wish them well whatever the FA decides.

Buster Gut

08 Thursday Mar 2012

Posted by laurencereade in V

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Brockenhurst, buster merryfield, duke of monmouth, Football, groundhopping, Jack Satterley, jessie matthews, lionel jeffries, Ross Lloyd, Verwood Town FC, Wessex, wessex league

Wednesday 7th March 2012 ko 7.45pm

Wessex League Division One

VERWOOD TOWN 2 (Satterley 52 Lloyd 84og)

BROCKENHURST 1 (Lloyd 72)

Att 118

Entry £5

Programme £1

Verwood is the first town you reach after crossing west from Hampshire into Dorset. The name derives from Fair wood, and the arboral feel still exists today, both in the town, and Potterne Park where its football team plays. The town seems to be very good at producing actors, as Lionel Jeffries, Jessie Matthews and more latterly Buster Merryfield (Uncle Albert in “Only Fools and Horses”) all hailed from here. Former King Crimson vocalist Gordon Haskell is also from here. The Monmouth Ash pub is reputed to mark the spot at which the Duke of Monmouth hid from his pursuers in a tree after his ill-fated rebellion in 1683. It didn’t work well, as he was beheaded in 1685!

Potterne Park is a country park on the southern edge of the town, and since other than the walking areas, there’s also space for cricket and a BMX/Skateboard track, the place can be difficult to find. It didn’t help that I was running late due to hold-ups leaving Banbury, and it is on the outer limits of what I can get to from a 5pm start. I reached the ground about 10 minutes before kickoff after pushing myself and the car a little too much! I was fortunate that Mike Woodward was there to buy me a programme and confirm that the club had posted the lineups on a whiteboard. Many thanks Mike!

With the club top of the league frantic efforts are being made to get the ground up to Premier Division standards. The footings for a Paybox are in place and a new fence will go up behind the far goal, the only inaccessible side of the pitch. The 4 “Arena” stands are in place, two with seats, two without. For the football ground purist that’s what’s wrong with the place. The club has only been in the Wessex League since 2004, when the league absorbed the Hampshire League, and so the ground has had to keep pace with grading requirements since then, and from being little more than a pitch and a set of changing rooms. There’s simply been no time to create “Character.”

What is beyond reproach is the team. A point clear of Team Solent and with two games in hand before this, they looked a fine outfit against another good team as Brockenhurst are fourth. The best description of the match I can give is that for a large percentage of it I thought I was watching an Premier Division game, as the teams maintained a breakneck pace, while maintaining a decent passing game.

It took time for the first goal, Jack Satterley being put clean through to fire home. There was an element of controversy about the equaliser. A corner was played in from the left, and headed back from the far post for centre-half Ross Lloyd to nod home at the near. The Verwood players thought the ball had been headed back from beyond the goal-line, but from where I was stood behind the goal, it looked fairly clearly in. In the final analysis it didn’t matter as Lloyd was to score against rising beautifully again, but this time to inexplicably to head past his own keeper following a cross from the right. He will no doubt blame his defensive colleagues for not shouting that he was under no pressure, and it was notable that no-one commiserated with him afterwards.

Rough on him and rough on Brockenhurst whose performance looked worthy of at least a point. I drove home considerably slower than I did a couple of hours earlier!

The Amiable Side of the Avon

19 Thursday Jan 2012

Posted by laurencereade in A

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Amesbury Town, Barker, Bonneymead, Brockenhurst, Brockway, Football, groundhopping, Morse, Nathan Jones, Wessex

Wednesday 18th January 2012 ko 7.45pm

Wessex League Division One

AMESBURY TOWN 2 (Brockway 74 Jones 83)

BROCKENHURST 2 (Morse 23 Barker 56)

Att 63

Entry & Programme £5

Tea 70p

The Wiltshire town is of course most famous for Stonehenge, the prehistoric landmark that lies within the parish around 2 miles from the town centre. I of course managed to drive in and out of Amesbury without seeing it!

There’s so much to like about the Bonneymead Ground. It’s set on common land close to the River Avon, which makes it rather prone to waterlogging. If quirks make a football then Bonnymead is up there with the best of them. There’s the clubhouse and verandah with the comfy chairs. Add to that, the signpost showing the right of way across the ground, and the temporary fence due to the dual use with cricket, and you get my drift.

The welcome was fulsome too, with the offer of the lineups much appreciated, as well as the offer of 3 old programmes. A polypin of Stonehenge bitter at the bar was popular too! Yes, folks I actually felt well-disposed to a team from Wiltshire!

That sentiment looked to be completely wasted for the first three-quarters of the game, as even the Amesbury committee admitted that Brockenhurst were well worthy of their 2 goal lead. Richard Morse found himself on the end of a curling free kick to open the scoring and a counterattack after the break put Mark Barker through to double the lead. It looked game over at that point, and to be honest, I don’t know quite how Amesbury hauled themselves back into contention. Was it Brockenhurst trying to sit on a lead or was it the inspired introduction of Toni Camilleri? We’ll never know, but within a minute of his introduction, he found Nathan Jones, whose cross from the left, positively invited Tyler Broadway to score. The 17-year-old made no mistake. On 82 minutes Amesbury completed an unlikely comeback when Gareth Horner’s free kick, found substitute Darren Crook. He dummied his header leaving the ball to run through to Jones who rammed the ball home to equalise. Amesbury nearly completed a remarkable victory when the suddenly omnipresent Jones fired in a free kick that Darren Crook got his head to, but Brockenhurst keeper Callum Maher was able to make a good save to maintain parity.

A point that Amesbury barely deserved on the balance of play, but it was hard to begrudge them a point when the whole evening was so enjoyable.