Tag Archives: East of Scotland League

West, yes!

13 Tuesday May 2025

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Sunday 16th March 2025 ko 12:30

East of Scotland League Third Division

LINTON HOTSPUR 2 (Martin 4 McLean 49)

LIVINGSTON UNITED 0

Att 372

Entry £5

Programme £2

Sunday’s fixture on the Scottish Hop saw a complete change of locale. We’d spent a day and a half visiting industrial, and post-industrial towns in the Central Belt. Now it was time to head south and make for the border.

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Creamery

30 Wednesday Apr 2025

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Saturday 15th March 2025 ko 16:30

East of Scotland League- Second Division

BATHGATE THISTLE 0

EASTHOUSES LILY MWFC 3 (Leslie 44 Dyer 53 Elliott 72)

Att 307

Entry £7

Programme £2

Sat on the coach heading from West Calder to Bathgate I checked social media and was a little surprised. I knew we’d lose a few hoppers for the middle two games, despite our normal attempts to minimise this form of drift. I spotted a few (and I do mean a few) hoppers had opted to miss West Calder and Bathgate in favour of one SPFL game. I allowed myself a raised eyebrow but no more.

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The Lothian Question

15 Tuesday Apr 2025

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Saturday 15th March ko 11:00

East of Scotland League Division Two

HARTHILL ROYAL 1 (Strickland 66)

Carroll missed penalty 59

DALKEITH THISTLE 0

Att 328 (ground record)

Entry £5

Programme £2

Sometimes it’s what, sometimes its where, but in the case of Harthill Royal is was definately a case of both! The small town of Harthill lies close to Whitburn and like there, owes much of its existance to coal mining – in this case the Polkemmet Colliery. Back in the day Gibbshill Park was known as Beechbank Park and was home to Polkemmet Juniors. When the mine closed in 1984 the football club lasted only another 4 years.

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Wish You The Best

23 Tuesday Apr 2024

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Sunday 17th March 2024 ko 12:00

East of Scotland League-Division One

WHITBURN JUNIOR 1 (Liddell 65)

WHITEHILL WELFARE 0

Att 540

Entry £8

Programme £2

I came into this game with a little inside knowledge. I knew just how fortunate we’d been that the Sauchie Juniors but I also knew from Craig Dabbs just how nervous Whitburn were over the state of their pitch. He’d been there on Friday morning to collect their programmes for advance ticket holders, saw how hard they were working in their pitch, and clearly built up an excellent working relationship with Ann Haddow the club secretary. Now no organiser likes to see a postponement, but that relationship meant we all felt that little bit extra pressure.

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Beechwood

19 Friday Apr 2024

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Saturday 16th March 2024 ko 20:00

East of Scotland League- Premier Division

SAUCHIE JUNIORS 3 (D Smith 7 30p 44)

Kavanagh sent off 39 (violent conduct)

HILL OF BEATH HAWTHORN 2 (Watt 46 Tosh 83)

Att 447

Entry £10

Programme £2

We left the Perth area with mixed feelings. On one hand we’d visited 3 lovely clubs and taken advantage of the weather holding while we were visiting grounds with little or no cover, on the other the rain was hammering down putting the evening’s game at Sauchie in doubt, and by extension at Whitburn on Sunday morning.

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Down By The Riverside

12 Friday Apr 2024

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Saturday 16th March 2024 ko 16:45

East of Scotland League Premier Division

JEANFIELD SWIFTS 1 (F Smith 5)

DUNBAR UNITED 1 (Hendry 90+2)

Att 385

Entry £7

Programme £2.50

We stayed in Perth for the third game of the day, and arguably the club I was anticipating visiting the most. The reason for that was pretty arcane, I’d been very taken by them being willing to help the event back in 2019 by playing on a Saturday evening at Linlithgow Rose. It felt like a major undertalking on their part; I was and am grateful, and their fans did add a new beverage to the groundhop lexicon, namely “Dragon Soop!”

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Tulloch

10 Wednesday Apr 2024

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Saturday 16th March 2024 ko 14:00

East of Scotland League Premier Division

KINNOULL 0

PENICUIK ATHLETIC 0

Att 356

Entry £7

Programme £2

Like some others I’d heard the so-called experts’ opinion on Kinnoull and their home Tulloch Park. If some were to be believed we’d be visiting a dull ground, and a club on their knees. While it was true that at kick-off Kinnoull had just 4 points all season, there had to more to it than witnessing a club having a poor season?

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Bleach

03 Wednesday Apr 2024

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Saturday 16th March 2024 ko 11:15

East of Scotland League- Premier Division

LUNCARTY 5 (Woolley 21 McLaughlin 32 Davies 34 40p Scarborough 84)

CROSSGATES PRIMROSE 3 (Sutherland 3 Muirhead 31 77)

Att 386

Entry £7

Programme £2

There are so many reasons to love the Scottish Hop. For me though there’s far more to it than just the chance to visit new places and to put more ticks in my imaginary black book. One of the great joys is the time I get to spend with Davie Baxter, secretary of the league. It’s got to a point where I arm myself with a couple of hopefully erudite questions to ask him. And this year the question was one of boundaries.

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A Long Way To The Top

02 Tuesday Apr 2024

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Friday 15th March 2024 ko 19:45

East of Scotland League Division Two

ARMADALE THISTLE 3 (Jackson 13 Strickland 84 Wood 86)

ORMISTON PRIMROSE 2 (Adrian 11 43)

Att 436

Entry £6

Programme £2

Ridin’ on the highway,

Goin’ to a show 
Stop in all the byways
Playin’ rock ‘n’ roll…

I tell you, folks
It’s harder than it looks

Bon Scott 1975

The coach had already been on the road for over 4 hours before it reached Robyn and I in Lewknor. From Cardiff to Perth via London isn’t most folks’ idea of normal, but I don’t think there’s too many folks who think us hoppers are entirely sane…

I felt under certain amount of pressure for this hop. Part of it was the loss of the two Blackpool games on the North West Counties Hop, we really didn’t want to lose a game on each of the last three hops. But much more than that, was where were heading.

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Cuik

04 Thursday May 2023

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Sunday 19th March 2023 ko 12:15

East of Scotland League – Premier Division

PENICUIK ATHLETIC 0

Mair sent off (2nd booking) 38

LOTHIAN THISTLE HUTCHINSON VALE 1 (J Viola 77)

Att 398

Entry £8

Programme £2

It was in a couple of ways a bruising Scottish Hop. Obviously my wife Robyn’s tumble down the stand at Tynecastle made that statement literal, but the fact that I was driving the advance party around with a dying clutch made it figurative too. I parked up by Penicuik Park, and exhaled. At least on the way home I could to a large extent, stick the car in sixth gear, and forget about the clutch. Continue reading →