Tag Archives: Premier League

Slightly Miffed Strawberry Blond

15 Friday May 2026

Posted by in D

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sunday 1st March 2026 ko 14:30

North West Counties League First Division North

DAISY HILL 2 (Sheppard 10 Singleton 73)

STEETON 0

Emmerson sent off 90+3 (violent conduct)

Att 478

Entry £7

Programme £2

Things have changed in Westhoughton. We’d become aware of just how much at the start of last year’s hop at Ramsbottom when the attendance at the New Sirs was far higher than ours! Then when we advertised this year’s hop on the GroundhopUK website using a photo at Daisy Hill from a couple of years ago we were told by the club that no, they don’t play at the New Sirs, the ground is now called “The Ginge Power Stadium” as the ground is now sponsored by streamer Angryginge!

Continue reading →

Free Fallin’

11 Monday May 2026

Posted by in A

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sunday 1st March 2026 ko 11:30

North West Counties League Premier Division

ATHERTON LABURNUM ROVERS 2 (Bacon 5 Obasoto 73)

EUXTON VILLA 0

Att 593

Entry £6

Programme £2

Sunday dawned, or more interestly St David’s Day, and the groundhopping tradition of buying my wife Robyn Daffodils. Robyn is from Bristol, and since we visited Albania and our friend Ditmar famously said, “Bristol, isn’t that nearly in Wales?” she’s been teased about being “Welsh” ever since! It’s not often a girl from Bristol walks round Atherton with a bunch of daffs is it?

Continue reading →

Mechanics

05 Tuesday May 2026

Posted by in B

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 28th February 2026 ko 19:30

North West Counties League First Division North

AFC BLACKPOOL 3 (Smith 1 Robinson 16 Bury 74)

HOLKER OLD BOYS 0

Att 405

Entry £6

Programme £2

Is it wrong that I still think of AFC Blackpool as their former selves at Blackpool Mechanics? The club started out in 1947 as Blackpool Metal Mechanics before changing their name to Blackpool Mechanics soon after. They initially played at part of Stanley Park in the town before moving to Jepson Way in 1949.

Continue reading →

Background

29 Wednesday Apr 2026

Posted by in D

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Friday 27th February 2026 ko 19:45

North West Counties League – First Division North

DARWEN 0

COLNE 0

Att 895

Entry £7

Programme £2.50

So back on GroundhopUK duty, but the 4 of us have been doing it so long we just slip into our roles without any great effort, and that also goes for the North West Counties League too. That for us adds up mainly as Martin Fallon, who seems to become a groundhopper for the weekend! Robyn and I were particularly looking forward to visiting Darwen, with their background of Football League membership, but the evening was to straddle comedy and the bleakest of tragedy in the space of minutes.

Continue reading →

Where Every Game Is At Home

26 Sunday Apr 2026

Posted by in D, P

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 21st February 2026 ko 14:00

Bristol Downs League Division 3

PHOENIX DOWNS 7 (Trott 18 30 50 68 Morris-Edwards 45 Hilton 57 Green 66)

HELIOS 0

Att 1 at Pitch 26, Circular Road, Clifton Down, Bristol

Free Entry

Every so often groundhoppers start worrying about what counts. Is this a ground? Or should this be discounted? I have long since worked out that if there’s a football match being played, then its of interest. I’d make two other observations; that you don’t fancy watching something then that’s your prerogative, and that some with the most hard and fast rules often don’t have the experience to back it up. I’d also observe that no-one should act as a gatekeeper as to what does or doesn’t count; it’s your hobby with your rules.

Continue reading →

The Marches

17 Tuesday Mar 2026

Posted by in S

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday 16th December 2025 ko 19:45

North West Counties League Division One South

SHAWBURY UNITED 1 (Sowe 76)

TELFORD TOWN 3 (Greer 53 70 Hesson 55)

Att 162

Entry £6

Programme £1.50

In all walks of life it pays to be adaptable, and that goes double if you’re trying to watch non league football in December in the wet! Oddly I was fortunate, I was heading to Allscott Heath near Wolverhampton but got caught in traffic. Since I was stationary I checked Twitter and soon found my choice of game had fallen to a waterlogged pitch. No matter, I had plan B….

Continue reading →

Largesse

10 Tuesday Mar 2026

Posted by in L

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

Tuesday 9th December 2025 kp 19:00

Premier League International Cup Group B

LEICESTER CITY U21 2 (Carr 63 Otchere 73)

FC NORDSJAELLAND U21 2 (Seidu 57 Johannsson 90+4)

Att 81 at LCFC Training Ground, Seagrave

Entry £3 (must be booked in advance)

Teamsheet FREE

If I’d have written this piece the day after this game I’m pretty certain the title would have been “Envy”. Since my Oxford United were promoted back to the Championship I’ve been comparing everything we have to what our rivals have, usually unfavourably!

Continue reading →

Hope for Capricorns

09 Monday Mar 2026

Posted by in L

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 6th December ko 14:00

Bristol Premier Combination Division One

LION 0

AFC MANGOTSFIELD 3 (Mansfield 9 Rice 23 Douglas 49)

Dorrington sent off 90 (violent conduct)

Att 2 at Little Stoke Park, Bristol

Free Entry

Red sun go down way over dirty town
Starlings are sweeping around crazy shoals
Yes and a girl is there high heeling across the square
Wind it blows around in her hair and the flags upon the poles
Waiting in the crowd to cross at the light
She looks around to find a face she can like.

Church bell clinging on just a trying to get a crowd for Evensong
Nobody cares to depend upon the chime it plays
They’re all in the station praying for trains
Congregation late again
It’s getting darker all the time these flagpole days
Drunk old soldier he give her a fright
He’s a crazy lion he’s a-howling for a fight

“Lions” Dire Straits 1978

On one hand it isn’t usually difficult to find a game in Bristol on a Saturday afternoon. I’d organised to drop Robyn off at a friend’s birthday celebration in town, and the idea was to pick her up as soon as it was over. That meant that I wouldn’t be able to travel far, but that wasn’t going to be a problem was it?

Continue reading →

The Hill

25 Wednesday Feb 2026

Posted by in K

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 8th November 2025 ko 14:00

Kent County League Premier Division

KINGS HILL 4 (Sibley 38 Grainger 52 Young 62 Wade 65)

CANTERBURY CITY 2 (Ikem 19 31)

Official Attendance 176

Entry & Programme £2.50

I know I’ve said it many times before but I do like to see groundhops in the diary that aren’t organised by ourselves at GroundhopUK. Other than the feeling that I don’t want to be the only game in town, I do like to attend other hops as there is always either something to learn, or at worst to reinforce our way of doing things. So when the Kent County League announced a Groundhopper Day I was a little intrigued.

Continue reading →

Culver Road

22 Sunday Feb 2026

Posted by in L

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Saturday 1st November 2025 ko 17:45

Southern Combination Premier Division

LANCING 1 (Collier 36)

NEWHAVEN 3 (Blunt 3 Roag 60p Oliver 87)

Att 293

Entry £8

Programme £2

If you are going to revisit a ground as a neutral, then I’d suggest leaving plenty of time between the visits, and go when the changes to the stadium are clear and manifest. I’d argue that Culver Road and I would be a case in point.

Continue reading →