Tag Archives: Non League

Red, Gold & Green

01 Tuesday Sep 2020

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Saturday 22nd August 2020 ko 14.00

Friendly

HERSHAM FC 4 (O’Connor 28 Spencer 57 60 Long 86)
CLAYGATE ROYALS 2 (Heagney 48 Pitt 89)

Att c30 at Desborough Island, Walton-on-Thames

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West of London there are no end of small islands in the River Thames, and given how easy it is to maintain privacy on any of them they do tend to be quite exclusive. Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour has a houseboat studio “Astoria” moored at Hampton and D’Oyly Carte Island, once home to Richard D’Oyly the original producer of the Gilbert & Sullivan comic operas, is close to my destination, Desborough Island. Continue reading →

The Duck Pond

28 Friday Aug 2020

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Thursday 20th August 2020 ko 18.30

Friendly

CHILDREY FC 5 (James 6p Triallist 23 28 Burgess 35 Austin 75)

KINGSCLERE 3 (Foster 52 Sopp 57 Murtagh 70)

Att 39 at The Mallards Nest, Froud’s Close, Childrey OX12 9NT

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If you were to ask me what the quintessential North Berkshire League village ground would look like, I’d have always said Childrey, even if the village didn’t have a football club from 2013 to 2020. The village, just outside of Wantage lies alongside the likes of Challow and Letcombe who either have or currently stage North Berkshire League football. Continue reading →

Down The Road

26 Wednesday Aug 2020

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Tuesday 18th August 2020 ko 19.00
Friendly

KING’S SUTTON 2 (Walker 1 Moore 89)

HOOK NORTON 1 (Rickard 53)

Att c30 at Wheeler’s Rise, Croughton

If King’s Sutton had played this game at home I’ve little doubt I’d have been there. But with work taking place on the pitch, they’re playing their pre-season friendlies a few miles south-east at Croughton Playing Fields. Since there’s been no adult team at Croughton for a couple of years, it was enough to see some of the more senior groundhoppers take advantage of a rare opportunity to tick the ground.

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Down On The Farm

24 Monday Aug 2020

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Saturday 15th August 2020 ko 13.00

Friendly

HALSE UNITED 2 (Ingram 58 86)

BURE PARK 0

Att c20  at Halse Grange Farm

In groundhopper speak all too often a football ground lacking a ground is sometimes written off by the less experienced as being “Just a field.” Of course the ground isn’t a field, its a pitch without much around it- and you can accept it or reject it on its merits. But Halse United actually do play on a farm and their pitch is, literally, a field! Continue reading →

Hallions

21 Friday Aug 2020

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Thursday 13th August 2020 ko 19.00

Friendly

BICESTER HALLIONS 2 (Bone 10 Brooks 68)

BLETCHINGTON 2 (Godfrey 4 Deabill 17)

Att 33 at KEA Sports & Social Club, Bicester

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I wondered if I needed to be there, let along ought. The heat was oppressive, the clouds threatening, and I really didn’t fancy my first soaking of the season. As add to the malaise the engine management light on my car was on, and as I headed passed Bicester Village the dash bleeped “Engine Malfunction” In for a quid…. Continue reading →

Station’s End

20 Thursday Aug 2020

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Tuesday 11th August 2020 ko 19.00

Friendly

WATLINGTON TOWN 0

ARDLEY UNITED DEVELOPMENT 2 (Casbierd 15 Hollister 84)

Att c20

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When the North Berkshire League Hops ended at Appleton in 2017, there was one club that unquestionably missed out, and that was Watlington Town. When I tried to put together the 2018 edition all the other clubs that were left for us to visit either couldn’t host, didn’t want to, or in one instance complained that neither Phil Annets nor I hadn’t asked them to be on the very first hop! Continue reading →

Never A Step Backward

12 Wednesday Aug 2020

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Tuesday 4th August 2020 ko 19.15

Friendly

SILCHESTER FC 0

BADSHOT LEA (4 3 31 50 77)

Att c20 @ Queen Mary’s College, Basingstoke

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With a friendly lined up at an unusual venue in Basingstoke, and plenty of time to get there, I took the chance to stop and spend a few minutes at the Camrose.  Until 2019 the ground, gifted to the people of Basingstoke by Lord Camrose in 1945 was home to Basingstoke Town. Continue reading →

Garlic

07 Friday Aug 2020

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Saturday 1st August 2020 ko 14.30

Friendly

BASILDON TOWN 3 (O’Brien 5 Smith 56 Bradbourn 89)

BARNSTON AFC 1 (Rollins 85)

Att c50 at Basildon Sport & Leisure Club

I doubt I’ll manage a quicker trip between grounds all season. Just a fence separates the Post Office Sports Ground from the Basildon Sport & Leisure Club, and while the entities are entirely separate, the gap in the fence was handy! Continue reading →

The New Normal

05 Wednesday Aug 2020

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Saturday 1st August 2020 ko 12.00

Friendly

PITSEA TOWN 11 (Goggin 45 47 62 85 Gentry 67 M Lewis 68 Richardson 74 Lunn 80 82 L Pellin 83 R Phillips 86) 

SOUTHMINSTER UNITED 0

Att c20 at Post Office Sports & Social Club, Gardiners Lane South, Basildon

Entry FREE

The Covid 19 pandemic had given me and many others a 140 day opportunity. Yes, there was no live football to watch, but there was time in abundance. Time to work on the house, time to develop other interests, time to spend on loved ones, and also time to reflect. Continue reading →

The Other Ossett

26 Sunday Jul 2020

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Wednesday 26th September 2007 ko 19.45

Northern Premier League Challenge Cup First Round

OSSETT ALBION 4 (Kelsey 7, 32 78p Newton 15)

HARROGATE RAILWAY ATHLETIC 2 (Ryan 64 Hobson 74)

Jones sent off (2nd booking) 69

Att 69

Entry £6

Programme £1.50

Thank heaven for bank training courses. Thirteen years ago I’d just joined a major UK bank’s commercial department and was spending a week on a training course. I was based in a 4 star hotel in Sheffield, and once the day’s work was done there was little else to do but find a beer or ten somewhere. Unless of course you were a groundhopper…. Continue reading →