With only just over twelve hours of 2013 left as I'm typing this, and with nothing better to do, I have gone through my sporting photographs that I have took during this calender year and come up with a top eight. Thanks to everyone who has viewed the photographs and this blog over the past twelve months and hopefully some even better ones will be taken during 2014. Cheers Rob They eight are in order of date taken: 1. 2nd March - A Uttoxeter Town player being fouled in the penalty area in their game against Chesterton AFC.
2. 29th March - MDH Knights lifting the Alliance Football League EW Foster Cup after beating KS Leicester Polska in the final @ Holmes Park.
3. 27th April - A collision between an AFC Emley player and the goalkeeper of Hemsworth Miners Welfare.
4. 22nd May - Howzat - Leicestershire's Claude Henderson (out of picture) taking a wicket in a 3 day 2nd XI friendly against Nottinghamshire.
5. 13th July - Manchester Titans' Chris Heap scoring a touchdown despite the attention of three of the Leicester Falcons defense.
6. 25th August - goalmouth action in a Burton & District Sunday League encounter between Moira United and New Inn.
7. 30th November - an Old Northamptonians player being being tackled in their game @ Coalville
8. 8th December - an Ellis Park player makes a perfect sliding tackle in their Sunday Premier Cup tie @ Egerton Park in Melton Mowbray.
After last weeks trip to Coalville RFC I always had the intention of watching another rugby union game this Saturday as well. It was a case of which local side to visit, and with the fixtures giving me plenty of options I narrowed it down to a shortlist of three. There were along with Bosworth, South Leicester and Leicester Forest.
Market Bosworth play their home games on Cadeby Lane which is on the eastern edge of the village. As you enter there are three pitches, large car park and clubhouse. The main pitch nearest to the clubhouse is railed off on the two sidelines only, with dugouts on the far side and a scoreboard in the far corner. Also there was no hard standing surrounding the pitch or cover for spectators. When arriving at the ground I was not charged an admission fee and no programme was issued.
The game today was a bottom v top encounter in Midlands 1 West and on paper it should have been a comfortable victory for the unbeaten visitors. Bosworth opened the scoring early on with a penalty before two unconverted tries gave Lichfield a 10-3 lead. The home side got the final score of the first half with another successful penalty attempt. Early on in the second half Bosworth took the lead for the only time in the game. A penalty attempt struck the upright and they gathered the ball to go over for a try which was converted. Lichfield then upped their game and scored two more tries, both of which were converted to give them a lead of 13-24. After a spell of sustained pressure Bosworth finally got a second converted try to reduce the arrears to just four points with four minutes remaining.
With no football games locally that grabbed my attention I decided to go and try my hand at rugby union photography for the first time. After checking the fixtures on the RFU's website I chose a game in Midlands 1 East, which is one of the regional leagues that sits at the sixth level of the game in England. Coalville are the only side from Leicestershire in this division, with the other thirteen teams are spread across five more counties. They are Derby, Ilkeston and Matlock (Derbyshire); Mansfield, Newark and Paviors (Nottinghamshire); Market Rasen & Louth (Lincolnshire); Bugbrooke, Kettering and Old Northamptonians (Northamptonshire) and Huntingdon & District, Peterborough and Peterborough Lions (Cambridgeshire).
pitch side view of the clubhouse
Coalville play their games at the Memorial Ground in Coalville itself and it is located down a driveway off Hall Lane. This opens up to a large car park, two storey clubhouse / changing room building and several rugby pitches. The main pitch nearest the clubhouse is floodlit, fully railed off with dugouts and a scoreboard on the far side. The clubhouse is located on the first floor and is impressive with both bar and kitchen facilities, and a large balcony gives a good view of the action happening on the pitch. There was no admission charge but a 12 page programme was on sale for £1 behind the bar.
On the pitch Coalville were at the wrong end of the table, recording just one win in their eleven league games with only Peterborough below them. Their visitors from Northampton are having a much better season and record eight victories from their eleven games and sat in 5th place. The game went to form with Old Northamptonians producing some impressive running rugby and had the game all but won in the opening twenty minutes, scoring four converted tries and ended the half with a twenty three point advantage (5-28). Following a sin bin for a Coalville player midway through the second half, ON's scored three more tries (two of which were converted) in the space of about ten minutes. The home side got the final score of the afternoon with a converted try late on.
I went into this with a bit of uncertainty regarding how things would be off the field, but if I lived in Coalville then I could imagine myself being fairly regular at their home games with everyone friendly and welcoming. The game itself was fairly enjoyable for a neutral like myself and I got talking to the ON's photographer which helped pass the time. There is one thing that I find about rugby union tedious and that is the scrum, as it took every one several attempts for the players to get it correct in the referee's eyes. This could be due to new laws that have come into place. One thing that is guaranteed and that is I will be back to watch some more rugby union very soon, and will start looking at the fixtures later on in the week.
I have set up a new blog (Sunday League Footy) that will be focusing on Sunday League football in Leicestershire & Rutland and will run along side this one. The idea behind this is to hopefully act as an informative resource, providing details on the leagues and competing clubs. At the moment it is a work in progress, but over the next few weeks more information will be added, so by the time 2014 comes around it should be fully operational as it were. Also any match reports and photos on Sunday League games will also be posted on the new blog, and not on this one.
My original plan for today was to take in a tie in the 2nd round of the Birmingham FA Saturday Vase between Jaguar-Daimler and Paget Rangers, but a posting on the Non-League Matters Forum stated that the home side had recently moved from their home base to ground share. With nothing really standing out I made the decision around Saturday lunch time to head into South Yorkshire. Worsbrough Bridge had been on my hit list for a few years now, and with nothing to stop me I made the 150 mile round trip. Bridge play on Park Road which is located on the A61 a few miles from junction 36 of the M1, and was one of the easiest grounds in terms of location that I have been to. On arrival there is a small car park and despite arriving about thirty five minutes before kick-off space was at a premium.
A warm and friendly welcome was had by the chap taking the gate and I paid £4 for the admission and a further £1 for a programme. The entrance to the social club and tea room are outside the confines of the ground, but today the former was out of bounds due to an impending function. The football club share the ground with the cricket club and steps lead you down to the playing surface. Most of the facilties (main stand, dugouts, changing rooms and hospitality room) are on the right hand side while there is a small covered stand on the left hand side. Behind the far goal and part of the left hand side are out of bounds to spectators.
After originally forming in 1923 as Worsbrough Bridge St. James, the club reformed in 1947 as Worsbrough Bridge Athletic Club playing both football and cricket, and as like today at Park Road. After success in the local Barnsley League they were accepted into the Sheffield & Hallamshire County Senior League in 1962. After enjoying both league and cup success in the 1960's Bridge stepped up to division 3 of the Yorkshire League in 1971. In 1982 they became founder members of the Northern Counties East League when the Yorkshire League merged with the Midland League and they have remained in this competition ever since.
Going into the game Bridge sat in fourth place in the NCEL Division 1 table with 35 points from their sixteen league games, while their visitors from Dunswell found themselves eight points and six places below their hosts in the table. The first half was fairly even with neither goal keeper being tested that often, though I did feel going towards half time that the home side would be slightly ahead on points. With one minute left of the first half a defensive error gifted the visitors the lead, as a misplaced and mistimed back pass allowed Matthew Crane to roll the ball into an empty net from a narrow angle. The home side put the pressure on the visiting goal in the second half, but I felt that they would be vulnerable to the counter attack and this proved to be the case. Another misjudgment in the home defence allowed Chris Adams to double Rangers' advantage on seventy five minutes. Their third and final goal of the afternoon came just five minutes later when Adams hit an unstoppable shot from the edge of the area.
Overall a scoreline that probably does not reflect the game in relation to the balance of play, but football like other sports is about taking the chances created and one presented to you. On this day Rangers did just that and they made the trip back to East Yorkshire with all three points.
Admission: £4
Programme: £1
Attendance: 89 (official)
Badge: £3 - available from club secretary Charlie Wyatt
Three games over the weekend and two of which I took photos at. Saturday 2nd November 2013 Thurnby Valley 4-3 Whetstone Athletic Leicestershire FA Saturday Vase 2nd Round Willowbrook Park, Colthurst Way, Thurnby Lodge Estate, Leicester Admission / programme: none Attendance: 16
Oadby Town 5-1 Thrapston Town United Counties League Division 1 Freeway Park, Wigston Road, Oadby, Leicestershire Admission: £5 Programme: £1 Attendance: 138 Sunday 3rd November 2013 Wigston United 3-10 Athletic Oadby Leicestershire FA Sunday Intermediate Cup 2nd Round Willow Park, Aylestone Lane, Wigston, Leicestershire Admission / programme: none Attendance: 12
Nothing really stood out in terms of where to go, with my only requirement was that the fixture had to be local, and preferably an early kick off as well. This was due to winning two tickets to watch the Leicester Riders v Glasgow Rocks in the British Basketball League. Following a scan of the fixtures in the Nottinghamshire Senior League (NSL) this cup match caught my attention between Keyworth United of the Senior Division and Moorgreen of Division 2.
According to the NSL website the kick-off was 2pm and also their (Keyworth United's) ground on Platt Lane was the nearest at step 7 and above that I had not previously visited. The ground (and Keyworth itself) is straight forward to get to for myself coming from Leicester - a few miles on local roads to the A46 Leicester Western Bypass, and then stay on the A46 until the exit with the A606 (Melton Mowbray and Nottingham). Heading north west on the A606 towards Nottingham, you turn left when signed for the British Geological Survey, and the ground is on the right after the bridge. You enter through some gates into a fairly large car park and the main pitch and clubhouse are to the right. The ground is home to numerous full size and junior pitches and also Keyworth Cricket Club. The main pitch is railed off on three sides, has dugouts on the Platt Lane side and had recently installed floodlights with connection to the national grid happening this week. The clubhouse is also new with the club receiving grants from the Football Foundation.
the clubhouse
I arrived at the ground at around 1.45pm in readiness for what I thought was the advertised 2pm kick-off, but in turned out to be 2.30 which gave me enough time for a sausage cob which were on sale in the clubhouse for £2. I got recognised as a hopper by one of the home officials and he told me about the club, and that they were looking forward to being part of the NSL groundhop in April.
The football club are one of the oldest in Nottinghamshire, and have played under various names, at different grounds and in different leagues throughout their existence. An excellent detailed history of the club can be found on the club website: history.
programme cover
Keyworth went into this game at the bottom of the NSL's Senior Division recording just one league win so far, while their opponents from Eastwood sit top of division 2 with an unbeaten record. I saw Moorgreen earlier on in the record when they recorded a 3-0 victory at Greyfriars FC and they looked a decent side. Right from the off Moorgreen looked the better side and most of the action was in the Keyworth half. It felt only a matter of time before the visitors would take the lead, but the first half ended goalless. The visitors were again the better side, creating the better chances and at one point coming very close to opening the scoring but the ball struck the cross bar. Against the run of play on 82 minutes Keyworth were awarded a free kick on the right hand side, and the resulting kick was turned into the back of the net by a defender. Their lead lasted just three minutes as Moorgreen took the game into extra time when Sam Dilks levelled the proceedings. An even first period of extra time followed, with the home side having their first shots on target during this time. The visitors winner came on 108 minutes when Ben Holmes cut inside from the left and smashed the ball past the Keyworth keeper. Dilks should have put the game to bed but missed two excellent chances in the final ten minutes. No further scoring and the visitors deservedly booked their place in round 2.
In the previous three Saturdays I have watched three games of football, two of which I took photographs at. Saturday 5th October 2013 County Hall 5-0 Ketton Leicestershire Intermediate Cup 1st Round @ County Hall, Championship Way, Glenfield Adm / programme: none Att: 3 Saturday 12th October 2013 Redditch United 1-1 Hitchin Town Southern League Premier Division @ Valley Stadium, Redditch Adm: £10 Programme: £2 - overpriced Badge: £3 Att: 175 Saturday 19th October 2013 The Bell (AEI) Rugby 4-0 Leamington Hibernian Birmingham FA Saturday Vase 1st Round @ Dunchurch Sports Field, Dunchurch, Warwickshire Adm / programme: none Att: 15-20
COVENTRY COLLIERY 1-4 aet BRINKLOW Saturday 28th September 2013 Coventry Evening Telegraph Challenge Cup 1st Round Coventry Colliery and Keresley Sports & Social Club
Went along to this tie with my dad after our original choice of Dunlop v Coventry Copeswood in the same competition was called off. This was due to the home side being unable to raise a team. The attended tie was an all Coventry Alliance affair and pitted division 1 Colliery against premier division Brinklow. There was no admission charge but the club had drinks and food on sale in the clubhouse, with coffee, sausage rolls and mars bars costing 50p each.
The game wasn't a classic but was not the worst I have seen. It was goalless at half time before the visitors took the lead mid-way through the second half. From then I expected Brinklow to take control and run out comfortable winners, but it didn't happen as the home side equalised on 72 minutes with a superb curling free kick. Brinklow should have re-take the lead almost immediately, but the ball was put wide with only the keeper to beat. The game went into extra time and the home sides resilience was finally broken as Brinklow added three goals to secure their place in round 2.
The location of the ground can be seen on this link: map, and it is number 45.
50 match photos taken during the first half can be viewed in the slideshow below:
BEER ALBION 0-8 NEWTOWN Saturday 21st September 2013 Devon & Exeter League Premier Division Furzebrake, Stovar Long Lane, Beer, Devon
A weeks holiday to the village of Eype near Bridport in Dorset threw up numerous options for football in the area, and with only having visited one ground, Bridport FC options were aplenty. Unfortunately my original plans (Lyme Regis, Portland United, Chard Town among others) were all allocated away fixtures. This left me looking at fixtures in the Devon & Exeter League and the Somerset County League, and I then narrowed it down to a shortlist of three. with the other two being Seaton Town and Ilminster Town.
Apologies for there being no report etc, but the only internet connection I had while on holiday was the 3G service on my mobile phone. The photos have been uploaded since I arrived back today (Friday 27th September), and 40 of the ground and game can be viewed in the slideshow below:
LLANSANTFFRAID VILLAGE 1-5 BERRIEW Saturday 14th September 2013 Welsh Cup Qualifying Round 2 Recreation Ground, Treflan, Llansantffraid-ym-Mechain, Powys
After recent visits to basic recreation grounds in and around Leicestershire over the past few weeks, I fancy something different today. Where was to be the stumbling block, as if often the case when I have no or limited restrictions I am very indecisive. In the end I looked at possible games in the Welsh Marches, or for anyone unfamiliar with the term, one of the sides close to the English border. I narrowed it down to a shortlist of three and chose the above fixture. Also this was to be only my seventh game in the principality.
About Llansantffraid Village FC
LLansantffraid (spelt with or without the 't') Village FC were formed in 2007 after the original village club decamped to Park Hall over the border in Shropshire. The club were subsequently accepted into division 2 of the Montgomeryshire Football League (MFL) and won the division at the first attempt. They lost only one league game all season, finishing four points ahead of runners-up Montgomery Town and gained promotion to division 1. The 2008/09 saw them crowned MFL champions, remaining unbeaten throughout their league games. Montgomery Town were again runners-up to Village, though the gap between the two had increased to nine points. A second successive promotion was also achieved, this time to the Mid-Wales League (MW). The MW sits at the third level of the Welsh Football system, and feeds into the Cymru Alliance. This season is Llansantffraid's fifth season in the MW, and in the four previous seasons they have finished in 8th, 5th, 10th and 11th place respectively.
Llansanffraid-ym-Mechainis
avillage,communityandpost
towninPowys,Mid-Wales,
close to the border withShropshire, about 5 miles (8.0 km)
south west ofOswestryand
10 miles (16 km) north ofWelshpool.
St. Ffraid's Church
Llansanffraid means "Church ofSaint
Bride" in theWelsh
languageandym-Mechainrefers
to its location in themedievalcantrefofMechain.
The name is based on the story of
St. Bhrid, who is said to have floated across theIrish
Seaon
a sod of turf, or was carried to Scotland by two oystercatchers. The followers
of St. Bhrid possibly set up new settlements known by the Welsh as 'Llan Santes
Ffraid', Church of Lady Saint Bhrid.
In recent years the correct spelling
of the village name, with or without a "t", has been a contentious
issue, recognised byPowys
County Council providing a dual spelling of the village name on road signs in
the locality.
The
earliest written form in Liber Landavensis, The Book of Llandav, a 12th-century
document, refers to 'Llann sanfreit' in 1066. With so many places named
Llansanffraid in Wales it was necessary to add location details, hence
Llansanffraid-ym-Mechain (in Mechain) or Llansanffraid Glyn Ceiriog etc. The
earliest written record for Llansanffraid-ym-Mechain is 1254 as Llansanfret.
In 1526 the name of the village
appeared as 'Llansayntefrayde' in an English document. "The 'saynte'
suggests an English influence on the Welsh name.The English language Tithe Maps
of the early 1800s use two anglicised forms, 'Llansaintffraid' and
'Llansaintfraid'.
The firstOrdnance
SurveyDrawing
map by Robert Dawson in 1830 records the spelling of the village name as
'Llansanffraid'.
Welsh place names were often
anglicised. For example, when the railway arrived in the village in 1862, the
station was called 'Llansaintffraid'. The Border Advertiser, was originally a
railway company publication to advertise the railway but as it became a local
newspaper it continued to use this spelling.
By the beginning of the 20th century
the 'i' was lost and the spelling for some appears to change again. In 1922
when theGWRtook
over the Cambrian Railways, the station name changed to Llansantffraid.
Apparently, in 2008, the letter 't'
was officially dropped by Powys County Council, which claimed it was correcting
a 'mistake'.However, the council's website still refers to the name of the
village as "Llansantffraid".The different spellings in the name of the village are
also reflected on local road signs.
A brief history of the Welsh Cup
The Welsh Cup is organised by the Football Association of Wales, and has been run every year since its inception in 1877 apart from during the two world wars. The winners qualify for the following seasons UEFA Champions League, though this has only been since 1999 after the demise of the European Cup-Winners Cup. The first victors of the competition were Wrexham who overcame Druids 1-0. Until
1995, some clubs playing in England were also invited to play in the Welsh Cup,
but could not progress to the European Cup Winners' Cup by winning the Welsh
cup. Instead, the best placed Welsh club in the Welsh Cup would take the
European place. The first English winners of the cup were Shrewsbury Town who defeated Wrexham 5-2 in the 1890-91 season.
From
1996 to 2011, only clubs playing in theWelsh football league systemwere
allowed to enter the Welsh Cup. This rule excluded the six Welsh clubs who
played in theEnglish
football league system:Swansea City,Cardiff
City,Newport
County,Wrexham,Colwyn
BayandMerthyr
Tydfil/Town. On 20 April 2011, the Football Association of Wales invited these
six clubs to rejoin the Welsh Cup for the 2011–12 season but only Newport
County, Wrexham and Merthyr Town accepted. In March 2012 UEFA stated that Welsh
clubs playing in the English football league system could not qualify for
European competitions via the Welsh cup but they could qualify via the English
league and cup competitions, hence they were subsequently again excluded from
the Welsh Cup. Prestatyn Town are the current holders as they overcame Bangor City 3-1 after extra time in the final, which was played at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham. The 2013/14 season will be the competitions 127th edition and competed for by 191 teams. It kicked off on the weekend of 17th/18th August with 51 ties in Qualifying Round 1.
A full list of Welsh Cup finals can be viewed here, while the Welsh Football Data Archive is an superb resource for anyone with an interest in the history of football in Wales.
Match preview
Both teams play in the top division of the MW and on paper this should be an away win. The home side currently sit in the lower reaches of the division, winning only one of their six opening league games. This came on the 24th August against Builth Wells with a 4-0 scoreline. Last Saturday they were thrashed 6-1 at home to Llandrindod Wells. Berriew meanwhile sit top of the table with a 100% record from their opening five games, four of which have been away from home. Their last two games have seen them record comprehensive victories at Dolgellau (9-0) and Montgomery Town (7-0).
The main stand
The day, ground and game I left home around 11.30am with the intention of getting there early to have a drink in one of the two pubs and take a few photos of the village. In reality I arrived at the ground with just fifteen minutes before kick-off, this was because the M6 around Birmingham was a nightmare and it did its best to scupper my plans!!! The ground is set back off the main A495 that runs through the village, and if coming from either the east or west, follow the signs for the community centre. This leads to a car park with the ground entrance ahead of you. There is a turnstile block, but it wasn't in use today as instead admission money was paid to an "old boy" with a Guinness bucket on the right just before the tea hut. For anyone wanting any alcoholic liquid refreshment there is a decent social club on site. There are two areas of cover at the ground, both of which are all seated. The larger of the two sits behind the near goal, while a small one straddles the half way line on the far side in between the dugouts. The home side kicked off, but found themselves a goal down inside the opening twenty seconds. A ball down the right was crossed in and finished first time. This set back stunned the home side and they took time to get into the game. Berriew meanwhile tried to play balls over the top of the Village defence, but were denied by their inability to stay onside, or some decent defending and goalkeeping. It was far from one way traffic as the home side belied their lowly league position and deservedly equalised just before half time. The ball found its way to two unmarked players around the penalty spot, and the number four made it 1-1. At half time the programmes arrived which was a folded sheet of A4 paper. It didn't look like one that the club would normally issue, but regardless someone has made the effort and despite being told I could have it for nothing I gave them a £1.
The view from the main stand
For the second half I sat in the stand behind the goal having put my camera in the car, and watched an entertaining forty five minutes of football. Both teams were intent on attacking, though it was the visitors who had the more numerous and better chances. It took them until sixty nine minutes to re-take the lead, when a long ball over the top of the Llansantfffraid defence was finished with a low shot across the keeper. The tie was effectively over on seventy eight minutes when Berriew scored a third goal. This time it was a simple tap in after an original shot was well saved by the keeper. Two goals in the final few minutes put a gloss on the score, and one in which was harsh on the home side. Berriew's fourth of the afternoon was from another long ball which saw the ball lobbed over the oncoming keeper and it went in via the post. The fifth was unlucky as a shot was covered by the keeper, but a deflection from a defender saw the ball in the back of the net. Overall a enjoyable visit into Wales at a ground that did not disappoint. A warm welcome was also had by the chairman. After the game the run home was generally pain free, though I did get held up on the M6 again but thankfully not by as much as on the outbound journey.
Match stats Admission charge: £2 Programme issued: a 4 pager came at half time Badges: £2.50 - available from the social club Attendance: no more than 50 Match rating: 7 out of 10 Coffee: £1
Driving time: 2 hours 4 minutes (Google maps) Driving distance: 107 miles some more photos of the ground can be viewed in the slideshow below:
Last weekend saw me take in two games of football, one on the Saturday and one on the Sunday. The Saturday saw me change my plans, which was originally to be Oadby Town v Peterborough Sports and instead I headed into Nottinghamshire to catch up with Rob Hornby who was attending a game in the Notts Senior League (NSL). I last met up with Rob on Easter Monday at Wollaton FC. This time he was heading to NSL new boys Greyfriars FC. Greyfriars FC play their home games on the Burton Road Jubilee Park in Carlton, to the east of the Nottingham city bounday, and the venue is as basic as they come. There is a very small car park which is totally inadequate when like today, there are two football games going on. I arrived at 2.40pm after a pint at The Wheatsheaf in nearby Burton Joyce to find Rob already there. This was to be Greyfriars' first home game of the season and saw them up against unbeaten Moorgreen, who had won three and drawn one of their opening four games and without conceding a goal in the process. It was a hard fought game, but one in which the visitors never looked like losing. They opened the scoring inside the opening twenty minutes through Matt Clowes and added two more after the break for a comfortable three nil victory. There was as expected no admission charge or programme issued, and also no refreshments for spectators.
The game on Sunday morning saw me head east to the other side of Leicester to the village of Scraptoft. The game chosen was an Alliance Football League Division 5 fixture between Humberstone 2000 and United Revolution. Humberstone have moved to the village in the summer and now play their home games at Aylestone St. James RFC on Covert Lane. The rugby club is a well appointed set up and there are three pitches, two of which are floodlit and a large clubhouse as well. The game today was played on the middle pitch and there is no pitch side furniture to speak of. The visitors who come from Huncote started the brighter of the two teams, but against the run of play the home side took the lead around the fifteen minute mark. This set the pattern for the rest of the opening forty five minutes, as without being outplayed United found themselves four down at the interval. By this my brother had joined me, having walked up from his house with his dog and youngest son. The clubhouse was open and selling drinks (tea & coffee - £1) and hot food (sausage sandwich - £1.50), and we then spent some time chatting while keeping an eye on the football. By the end of the second forty five minutes Humberstone had added another five goals to record a slightly flattering nine nil victory.
Photos from both games can be viewed in the slideshows below:
Castle Donington Town 2-3 Loughborough United Saturday 31st August 2013 North Leicestershire League Division 1 Spittal Park, Spittal, Castle Donington, Leicestershire
My plans for my football fix on Saturday were limited to somewhere local, and preferably an early kick-off. With this in mind my attention turned to the fixtures in the North Leicestershire League and the Leicester & District League, but nothing really stood out for me. Probably not really surprising considering that I have watched football at 125 venues with Leicestershire & Rutland, but then on the Friday I noticed a change of venue for the above fixture. With confirmation from both teams via their twitter feeds that this was the case my decision was made. Castle Donington Town normally play their home games at Moira Dale on the east side of the village, but due to a clash with the local cricket club it was being played at Spittal Park. Spittal Park is a large multi-sport and multi-pitch recreation ground on the north side of the village. It is home to their numerous junior and ladies sides plus the local rugby club, who were also at home this afternoon.
I found the easiest way to get to Spittal Park was via the M1 and A50, and instead of going into the town turn right at the second traffic island after leaving the A50 and go round the top of the industrial estate. Spittal Park is signposted and you turn off Back Lane onto Spittal. The entrance to the sports ground is on the left hand side and the football club parking at the bottom. There is a large building that houses changing rooms, toilets and a clubhouse, though sadly the latter was not open so chance of refreshments. The game was played on the pitch on the east side of the venue and they roped it off on one side. The only furniture was a couple of benches though a grass bank behind one goal gave a decent vantage point in which to watch the game. As expected, with this being the 14th level of the English pyramid there was no admission charge or programme issued which is the norm for this level of football.
The game was one in which both teams showed plenty of endeavour, but there was very little quality and clear cut chances in the opening forty five minutes. The home side nearly scored in the opening twenty minutes when the bar was struck following a long ball over the top of the United defence. It was on twenty three minutes that CD made the breakthrough when a ball over to the left hand side of the penalty area was hit first time into the roof of the net. United had enough possession but rarely troubled the home keeper and the half ended 1-0. With around ten minutes gone in the second half the home side made it 2-0 and, following a poor back pass, the United keeper struck his clearance against an oncoming forward, who then had the simple task of rolling the ball into an empty net. This set back seemed to galvanise the visitors who then set about the task of trying to turn defeat into victory. With fifteen minutes to go they were awarded a penalty kick but it was well saved by the Donington keeper. Far from being downhearted they continued to pressure the home defence, and were rewarded with a goal with ten minutes remaining. Game on, and just three minutes later they made it 2-2. United were not finished and they completed a remarkable turn around scoring the winner with just two minutes left on the clock. Joy for the visitors, but the home side were left wondering how they ended up losing a game in which they were in total control.
Anstey Town 3-2 C.K. Dons Monday 26th August 2013 Leicestershire Senior League Division 1 Terrace Road, Ellistown, Leicestershire
The Falcon Inn
A day out today spent with the wife (Angela) and dog (Millie), and not just for football. Firstly we headed up to Whatton House in the north of Leicestershire and had a look around the gardens. Admission was £3.50 each and payment was made at an honesty box at the entrance. Whatton House is located to the north of Long Whatton and we turned down Mill Lane (next to the church) in the village and followed the single track road to the house. After spending a pleasant hour walking around the gardens we then headed to the Falcon Inn in Long Whatton itself for some lunch before heading south for my football fix.
21 photos of the house and gardens can be viewed in the slideshow below:
The drive to Ellistown took around twenty five minutes and we arrived with around fifteen minutes before the scheduled 3pm kick-off. No admission was charged or programme issued which is what I expected, though Anstey Town used to issue when previously in the Leicestershire Senior League (LSL). Both teams today are new members to the league, though Town were previously members between 1982 and 2009 before dropping down to the North Leicestershire for four seasons. Info on the Dons can be found on a previous blog post by clicking here. As you might have gathered by now Anstey Town do not play in Anstey itself but share the facilities at Ellistown. There is small section of cover between the two dugouts on the near side and an uncovered stand on the far side backing onto the second pitch.
The Dons had made an unbeaten start to life in the LSL winning two (2-0 v Anstey Nomads Reserves and 2-1 @ Hathern) and drawing one (1-1 v Asfordby Amateurs) of their opening three games, while Anstey had drawn one (1-1 v Hathern) and lost one (2-0 @ Barlestone St. Giles) of their opening two games. The first half was pretty poor though Anstey found themselves two nil up and the half time interval. The first came on seventeen minutes when Brown rounded Andrew Nicholson in the Dons goal and rolled the ball into an empty net. The second came just after the hour mark and was the result of a controversial awarding of a penalty by the referee. To be honest I had an excellent view of the incident and had no idea what he awarded it for, but anyhow Brown stepped up and sent Nicholson the wrong way. The second half was much more entertaining and the Dons will wonder how come the end they did not take at least a point from the game. They got a goal back on sixty three minutes when Steve Kirkham slotted the ball past the Town keeper. Anstey though quickly restored their two goal cushion as Brown completed his hat-trick just a minute later as he headed in a cross at the far post. The Dons were soon back within striking distance as a Tom Potts free kick on sixty seven minutes made it 3-2. The Dons always looked the more likely to score next and to be honest if it wasn't for the woodwork would have done. Firstly a Leighton Nicholson shot struck the base of the post, and finally in stoppage time Tom Potts and Steve Kirkham both headed against the bar within a matter of seconds of each other. This was their final chance of the afternoon and Anstey held on for their first victory of the season.
33 ground and match photos can be viewed in the slideshow below:
