Being grateful

FUTURE LEGENDS 4-0 ALVESTON RESERVES

Saturday 27th November

Midland Combination Division 3

Moat House Leisure Centre, Coventry

What a surprise...a change of plan, though this had nothing to do with my indecisiveness but the weather. If any readers from outside this overcrowded little island do not know then the picture below will give you a pretty good idea. This was the scene outside my house at around 7am this morning, though snow itself is not a problem but frozen pitches are. 

I'm sure some of you from North American or northern Europe are thinking that we are a bunch of softies / pansies etc but unfortunately we have a case of health and safety gone mad over here. Are frozen pitches worse than rock hard ones found at the start and end of the season? No need to answer as I was being sarcastic. In the end myself and Gary had a limited choice in the East Midlands but a game on a 3G (3rd generation artificial) pitch in Coventry some 25 miles away gave us the get of jail free card.

I can hardly tell you a thing about our host club today because quite simply I have no information on them. All I know is that they joined the Midland Combination (Division 3) in the summer and they are based at the Moat House Leisure Centre in the northern suburbs of Coventry. End of. Well not quite - they currently sit in ninth place in the fourteen team division with ten points from their nine league games played so far. Opponents Alveston sit two places and three points below them though they have played four games more.

The game was not too bad though the first half was somewhat sterile with the home side scoring twice in the space of five minutes on (I believe) the fifteenth and twentieth minutes. The first was a header from Shahid Ahmed with the second from Suleimon Leluu. The game livened up a lot after the interval with both sides having chances to increase the scoring. The visitors were unlucky not to get on the score sheet as the Future Legends keeper made three top class saves during the half while other chances went wide of the uprights. Legends scored two more goals but they also could have had numerous more. Richard Roantree got both goals number three and four - the third with around fifteen minutes from time when he made a run into the Alveston penalty area and finished well past the keeper. His second and Legends fourth came on the 82nd minute when he turned home a free kick from several yards out. How the home side failed to add to the scoring is something that they will wonder themselves as the frame of the goal was struck four times during the second period.

Overall I'm just glad to get a game in at a new venue, something that will be increasingly difficult if the cold weather persists.

Admission / programme: none

Attendance: 24 (head count)

Match rating: 3 out of 5

Further photos of the game taken during the first half can be found here: FLFC

Liverpool double

Saturday 20th November 2010

An offer of a ticket to watch Liverpool against West Ham United from my mum was too good an opportunity to turn down. My mum’s other half (Dave) is a Liverpool fan who made his first visit along with my mum to Anfield a couple of weeks ago for Liverpool’s Europa League tie with Napoli. They were outside the stadium the following day and managed to get tickets for this game for Dave and myself. I seldom do any of the ‘92’ mainly due to cost of tickets, parking and everything else that goes with the so called big clubs now days. My original plan for today was to take in a game in north Derbyshire in the Central Midlands League – let me think of a second...Dronfield or Liverpool. A bit of a no brainer really considering I had never been to Anfield to watch a game before, with my only previous visit was a tour of the stadium some twenty years ago with my dad. About ten days ago I found out that this game was kicking off at 5.30pm for the benefit of ESPN viewers and all the armchair football fans out there, and this got me thinking...would there be a non-league game we could get to beforehand that is within a short distance from Anfield that kicked off around 2pm? After an enquiry about this on Tony’s Non-League forum a response came up with Waterloo Dock FC (current Liverpool Premier League champions) who play their home games less than a mile away at The Dockers Club on Townsend Lane in the Clubmoor area of the city. Sorted then with only the weather able to put a spanner in the works!!!

The journey up to Liverpool took around 2 ½ hours with the M6 being its usual self – i.e.: stop start between Stoke and Warrington. The plan was to go to Anfield first and stop briefly which would allow me to take a few photos in daylight, but even with four hours to kick-off this proved almost impossible. All I managed was one of the statue of legendary manager Bill Shankly. It was then a case of finding somewhere to park but as anyone who has been to this part of Liverpool there are an abundance of residents parking schemes in operation. We were told we could park behind a Texaco petrol station for £13 – seriously. I don’t think so as we didn’t want to be robbed legally!!! In the end we made the rather easy decision to head straight to Waterloo Dock FC. The club were charging (a lot more respectable) £5 to park, but when enquiring if we would get a discount as we were watching the Dock first we were allowed to park for free.

Game 1

WATERLOO DOCK 2–1 OLD XAVERIANS

Liverpool County Premier League (Premier Division)

The Dockers Club

The club have been one of (if not) the most successful non-league clubs in Liverpool since their formation in 1963. Originally joining the Liverpool Business Houses League they won both the division two (1966/67) and one (1967/68) titles before winning the league championship itself in 1969/70. In 1970 they made the step up to the Liverpool County Combination (LCC) and won the division two title at the first attempt. For their remaining time in the LCC until it merged with the I-Zingari League in 2006 to become the Liverpool County Premier League (LPL), Dock won the league championship on twelve occasions and in the last twelve years of the LCC they never finished below 3rd place. They became founder members of the LPL like already stated in 2006 and have dominated the league since winning all four league championships to date. This season they again sit at the top of the table recording eight victories from twelve league game played, currently having a three point lead over Aigburth Peoples Hall. Last Saturday they recorded a 5-2 victory over South Sefton Borough in the 3rd round of the Liverpool County FA Challenge Cup. Opponents Old Xaverians currently sit in sixth place in the LPL some nine points behind ‘Dock.

The Dockers Club is located on Edinburgh Park and is split from the rest of the club by a wall that separates it from the rest of the park. There are three pitches, all of which were in use this afternoon with the pitch Dock use nearest the club itself. The pitch was railed off on two sides, roped on another and nothing behind the goal nearest the wall. There is no hard standing, cover or floodlights. The game itself was not bad and very competitive throughout. Old Xavs seemed more up for it during the first half and certainly gave as good as they got against the league leaders. Dock showed only glimpses of their quality and it was the visitors who took the lead. Around the 35 minute mark a rasping shot from outside the area crashed against the corner of the upright which came back into play, and the ball was put back in the middle for a simple side footed finish from Anthony Conroy. The lead lasted only four minutes when a long ball was flicked on and the Dock’s number 10 finished well past the keeper. There was though a strong case for offside against one or possibly both of the Dock players involved in the goal. The second half was a lot more open with both sides pressing forward at every opportunity. The home side had more of the chances with them coming close on a number of occasions. Not to be outdone Old Xavs forced the home keeper into a smart save. The winner came with sixteen minutes from time when a long ball was layed off for the number 10 to smash the ball home from twenty yards or so out.

Overall not a bad game on a pitch that appeared (from the sidelines) to be difficult to play good football on. Dock on the balance of play, mainly in the second half deserved their victory but they certainly were made to work hard for it. One thing that I have not seen before at non-league level is that the referee and his two assistants were miked up, which (obviously) allowed better communication between the three of them.

Admission / programme: none
Attendance: between 50 and 60
Match rating (in relation to level): 3*

More photos can be found at WDFC

Game 2

LIVERPOOL 3-0 WEST HAM UNITED

FA Premier League

Anfield

The walk to Anfield was very straight forward and took around fifteen minutes and we arrived with around an hour before kick-off. As you can imagine the pace was buzzing with the game being a sell out. The tickets we had were in the corner of the upper tier of the Anfield Road stand with the West Ham fans being to the right of us. Anfield is a very intimate stadium with the stands being very close to the pitch. It doesn’t take long to make you realise that you are in one of the great temples of world football. One thing to note is that there was no issue regarding cameras and taking pictures before and during the game, unlike at Burton Albion (the last ground in the 92 that I visited) who do not allow photography from fans to be taken during the game. Let’s hope that the other lot over the other side of Stanley Park are just the same in three weeks time.

What is there to be said about Liverpool Football Club that could do it justice on a ground hopping blog? I don’t know but I shall have a go anyhow.

With a club with such an illustrious history as Liverpool I could probably write about 5,000 words on the subject but all I shall do is give a (relatively!!!!) brief history in a timeline format, while a detailed version can be found on the official website: HISTORY

1892    Founded and joined the Lancashire League

1892/93 Lancashire League champions

        Promoted to the Football League Division 2

1893/94 Football League Division 2 winners

        Promoted to division 1

1894/95 relegated back to division 2

1895/96 Division 2 winners, promoted to division 1

1900/01 Football League champions

1904/05 Division 2 winners, promoted to division 1

1905/06 Football League champions

1921/22 Football League champions

1922/23 Football League champions

1946/47 Football League champions (5th time)

1961/62 Division 2 winners (4th time), promoted to division 1

1963/64 Football League champions

1964/65 FA Cup winners

1965/66 Football League champions

1972/73 Football League champions

        UEFA Cup winners

1973/74 FA Cup winners

1975/76 Football League champions

        UEFA Cup winners

1976/77 Football League champions (10th time)

        European Cup winners

1977/78 European Cup winners

        European Super Cup winners

1978/79 Football League champions

1979/80 Football League champions

1980/81 European Cup winners

        League Cup winners

1981/82 Football League champions

        League Cup winners

1982/83 Football League champions

        League Cup winners

1983/84 Football League champions (15th time)

        European Cup winners

        League Cup winners

1985/86 Football League champions

        FA Cup winners

        Screen Sport Super Cup winners

1987/88 Football League champions

1988/89 FA Cup winners
1989/90 Football League champions (18th time)

1991/92 FA Cup winners (5th time)

1994/95 League Cup winners (5th time)

2000/01 FA Cup winners

        UEFA Cup winners

        League Cup winners

2001/02 European Super Cup winners

2002/03 League Cup winners

2004/05 European Cup winners (5th time)

2005/06 FA Cup winners

        European Super Cup winners

Since the formation of the FA Premier League in 1992 the club have not been crowned league champions and (I’m sure with a lot of pain) seen arch rivals Manchester United equal their number of domestic title wins. This season the club have had a disappointing start and last Saturday lost 2-0 @ Stoke City. This is nothing compared to opponents West Ham United who under manager Avram Grant find themselves propping up the Premier League table.

I have seen a few one sided games this season and this was no exception. Liverpool went at West Ham from the off with David Ngog forcing Rob Green to make a save inside the first minute. Maxi Rodriguez and Fernando Torres also came close before inevitable happened. A Raul Meireles corner was controlled by Glenn Johnson who then drilled a shot past green for the opening goal on 18 minutes. The home fans did not have to wait long for the second when Danny Gabbidon handballed in the box on 27 minutes. This then allowed Dirk Kuyt to send Green the wrong way to put Liverpool two up. It was then a case of how many Liverpool would then score and it was not surprise that they added a third before half time. It came on 37 minutes as Green produced a fine save from Torres, only for the ball to fall to Paul Konchesky who crossed for Rodriguez who glanced a header past the keeper. Game over. The performance of the Hammers (in relation to the level they play at) was one of the most inept I have seen in a very long time – they offered nothing, not even pride. It wasn’t until forty five minutes that they won their first corner of the match! The second half was not as one sided, probably due to the fact the Liverpool players knew that had the game won. Despite this they still had chances to increase the margin of victory with Rob Green producing a couple of fine saves from Torres and Poulsen.

It was hard to make an opinion on how good Liverpool were due to fact that their opponents were so poor. West Ham will need to improve vastly and quickly if they do not want to be playing Championship football next season.

At the end of the game we made our way back to the Dockers Club for a drink before setting off on the journey back down to Leicester. It was a long but enjoyable day out for my first experience of watching football in the city of Liverpool. As things would have it I am back here on December 11th for the Everton – Wigan game.

Admission: £41 (ticket was an early Christmas present from my mother)

Programme: £3

Attendance: 43,024

Match rating (relative to level): 3*

A few more photos can be found here: LFC

Late change of plan

AYLESTONE LOUNGE 2-6 KINGSWAY CELTIC

Saturday 13th November 2010

Leicester & District League Division 2

Braunstone Park, Leicester (Pitch 2)

more photos of the game can be found on my picasa web album here: ALFC

Like the headline states I had to change my plans at very short notice with this encounter not even on my radar as a potential game this afternoon. The original plan was GNG v Burbage Old Boys in round 2 of the Leicester & District League Cup, but on arriving at Belvoir Drive, home of former Leicestershire Senior League side Leicester YMCA I found the place deserted. I then found out that the game had been switched to Burbage and it did not give me enough time to get to Houghton for their match in the same competition. In the end I went home and walked down to Braunstone Park with no idea if any of the three sides (Birstall Social, Aylestone Lounge and Braders) that use the pitches were at home, let alone who they would be playing. In the end there were two games on - Birstall Social v Kibworth Town and the one I watched. There are four full size pitches on Braunstone Park that are fully railed and they are all adjacent to Cort Cresent which runs along one side of it.

Both sides are new to the Leicester & District League this season with Aylestone transferring from the Leicester City League in the summer. Looking at the tables before they get updated this evening Aylestone occupied ninth place recording three wins and four defeats in their seven league games played, while Kingsway sit in second place recording six victories from their seven league games and are only behind division leaders Allexton & New Parks on goal difference.

This was my first game ever in division two of the District League though I have watched a game at a lower level in the North Leicestershire League this season. The game was not a bad one and was a fairly even encounter. The visitors started the brightest with Tom Mansfield coming close on a couple of occasions in the opening ten minutes. The home side took time to get going and gave the divisional high flyers something to think about, though it was Kingsway who took the lead on the twenty minute mark when Ben Bayliss scrambled the ball home from a couple of yards out. The lead did not last long as Aylestone were level within three minutes - Jimmy South heading home from a right wing cross. Ten minutes before the end of the half and Kingsway made it 1-2 when Bayliss hit an unstoppable shot from a narrow angle into the back of the net. Captain Alex "Bongo" Mackness made it 1-3 a seven minutes later when he headed home a corner to give the visitors some breathing space. Despite not kicking off at the start of the second period Aylestone were almost back in the game straight away but the ball went just wide of the Kingsway goal. This was to prove costly as on 54 minutes Bayliss got his third of the afternoon when he hit a powerful shot past the motionless Aylestone keeper. Four minutes later and Bayliss got his fourth and Kingsway's fifth when he went on a run, beat of couple of defenders and gave the keeper no chance again with an excellent finish. Aylestone did not let their heads drop and got a goal back just after the hour mark when a well worked move resulted in Jim Baker putting the ball underneath the Kingsway keeper. A minute later he was so close to getting his second but a rasping free kick smashed the bar and bounced away to safety. The final goal of the afternoon came with seventy-two minutes on the clock when Tom Mansfield scored with a shot from the edge of the area. The final fifteen minutes or so saw both sides have further chances but neither could find the back of the net.

Overall not a bad afternoon on a sunny November afternoon which was also spent talking to the players and management of Kingsway. It was also the first time I had tried out my new camera and I am pleased with the results - now I just need a lens with a better zoom. Click on the link at the top of the report for around 50 photos.

Attendance: a handful

Match rating: 3 out of 5

Double 'C'

Saturday 6th November 2010

I think at the end of it, this was plan D for the four of us (myself, Gary + Pete and Alan from Liverpool) with youth teams at Eastleigh and Cirencester going by the wayside due to the games not being played on the respective clubs’ main stadium. Before anyone comments about Cardiff City’s Under-18’s they actually play on a stadium over the road from the main Cardiff City Stadium used by the football club (City) and rugby team (Blues).

The day started with Gary picking up yours truly at 6.30am for firstly the short drive to Nuneaton railway station to pick up the afore mentioned Pete and Alan. We then made our way across the M6 and M42 to Bromsgrove for what is now becoming the customary breakfast at the Pit Stop Cafe on the A38. We arrived in Cardiff in good time and despite a detour around the city going past the Sophia Gardens cricket ground and Millennium Stadium, we arrived at the Cardiff International Stadium around an hour before kick-off. This gave us time to have a wander over the road to McDonalds for a coffee and have a look in the club shop shared by both City and the Blues. A retail park is also adjacent to both stadiums which includes Asda amongst other large outlets. The Cardiff International Stadium is in a nutshell a multisport stadium which is home to the Cardiff City FC youth teams, Cardiff Grange Harlequins FC and Cardiff Amateur Athletic Club. All the facilities are on one side with a large seated stand housing the changing rooms, offices etc.

Game 1

Cardiff City Under-18’s 2-1 Coventry City Under-18’s
FA Premier Academy League Group B

Cardiff International Sports Stadium

This was to be my first youth team game for a number of years and first not involving a side representing Oadby Town. No admission was charged or programme / team sheet issued. The game was fairly entertaining which despite the result I thought the visitors from Coventry were the better side on the whole. Cardiff took the lead inside the first ten minutes from a penalty kick with Coventry deservedly equalising before the end of the half. The second period saw the home side score the only goal, though despite creating a number of chances Coventry could not find a deserved equaliser.

Admission / team sheet: none

Attendance: around the 50 mark

The only annoyance was that the referee kicked off the game late which did not give us enough time to make our first choice second game in the Welsh Valleys. A decision was made to head across the River Severn to Wiltshire for a 3pm kick-off in the Southern League at Chippenham. The journey primarily across the M4 took around an hour and we arrived with around twenty minutes to kick-off.

Game 2

Chippenham Town 2-2 Windsor & Eton

Southern League Premier Division

Hardenhuish Park

Chippenham is a market town in Wiltshire located a few miles south of the M4 motorway (which runs across the country from west London to south west Wales) between Bath (13 miles to the west) and Swindon (20 miles east). The ground is located to the west of the town centre on the A420 Bristol Road and is a compact affair.

The club were formed in 1873 and joined the Western League (WL) in 1904. Just two seasons were spent in the WL finishing in 9th and 8th position respectively before they resigned and joined the more local Wiltshire League. Two league titles quickly followed in 1908 and 1909. In 1930 they re-joined the WL and won their first league championship in 1952. In 1964 they made a return to the Wiltshire League for four seasons before making the step up again, this time to the Hellenic League. Five seasons were spent in the Hellenic League and they recorded three 5th place finishes before returning again to the WL in 1973. The Western League title was won for a second time in 1981 and they spent another twenty years in the WL before a runners-up spot secured promoted to the western division of the Southern League. Chippenham found their new surroundings to their liking and another runners-up finish allowed them to take their place in the premier division. The club have been ever present in the premier division ever since, recording a 3rd place finish last season.

A narrow drive leads you up to the entrance with programmes being sold before you enter the ground. You enter the ground in one corner with the catering hut immediately in front of you on the left, followed by the main stand and club shop. There is further cover on the opposite stand and another covered stand behind the near goal. Finally behind the far goal are two or three steps of uncovered terracing. To be honest there is very little room at the ground and it did have a cramped feel about it. The club shop is a little gold mine with plenty of old programmes, badges and Chippenham Town merchandise for sale.

The game started with the home side doing all the running and they won a penalty after around 15 minutes but the resulting kick was put horribly wide. A few minutes later and the home side had the ball in the W & E net only for the referee to disallow the goal. The visitors gradually got into the game and started to create chances of their own with David Pearce looking particularly dangerous. Six minutes from the end of the half W & E took the lead when Michael Chennels made up a couple of yards on a Chippenham defender, rounded keeper Chris Snoddy and rolled the ball into an empty net. Ten minutes into the second half and the home got a deserved equaliser when a free kick was put back into the box first time and this allowed Marvin Brown to bring the ball down and slot the ball underneath Delroy Preddie. Almost immediately W & E re-took the lead when Chennels got his second when he turned in a cross at the far post. Both sides continued to push forward with the visitors looking for a killer third goal and Chippenham for another equaliser. Adam Bernard should have given the visitors a two goal cushion but headed over from a few yards out when it seemed easier to score. This proved costly as with just twelve minutes left Alan Griffin smashed the ball home from a narrow angle to make the game all square for a second time. Bernard missed his second sitter of the game when he put the ball over from a few yards out, and like the first miss it seemed a lot easier to score than what he actually did. This was his final fling as he was substituted shortly after!!! The game saw no further drama and it ended in a 2-2 draw which in my neutral unbiased opinion was a fair result.

Admission: £8

Programme: £2

Team sheet: free

Badge: £3

Hot Dog: £1.50 – a complete rip off.

Attendance: 369 (official)

Match rating: 3 ½ / 5