SILEBY TOWN 0-1 BLABY & WHETSTONE ATHLETIC RESERVES
Saturday 10th October 2015
Leicestershire Senior League Premier Division
Sileby Sports Club, Southfield Avenue, Sileby, Leicestershire
As is often the case now days my choice of football game is dictated by my work shift patterns, and after having nearly three weeks off it was a case of back to normal. With not getting home from work around 6.30am I managed to get a few hours sleep before rising around midday. I also needed to be back early as I had a family function on in Leicester city centre to celebrate my sister-in-law's fiftieth birthday. With nothing really standing out I decided it was a good as time as ever to visit Sileby Town FC's new ground. Also it would mean that I have again watched a game of football at every venue currently in use in the Leicestershire Senior League (LSL). My first would have been during the 1997/98 season when I saw then members Oadby Town play an FA Vase tie against Tooting & Mitcham United, while of the current members it would have been Highfield Rangers v Kirby Muxloe in August 1998.
Sileby Town left their previous home in the Summer to move into their new ground in time for the start of the 2015/16 season. It is located off Seagrave Road on the northern edge of the town / village and is next to a new housing estate that is being built. A fully tarmaced car park is in front of a building that houses the changing rooms, toilets and clubhouse. The clubhouse is of a decent size and there is a fully working kitchen and licensed bar. At present the pitch the pretty much fully railed on all four sides with dugouts located on the far side. There is no hard standing around the pitch or floodlights in place, though having spoken to a friendly club official he informed me that club are about to start the planning application for lights.
Sileby are currently the longest serving member club of the LSL having joined in 1953 and have been in continuous membership ever since. They (Sileby) are defending champions and at the start of play were unbeaten from their opening eight league games, sitting six points behind leaders Birstall United. Their visitors this afternoon had recorded three wins from their opening six games and were in the lower half of the league table.
A decent crowd showed up and they witnessed a tight game between two evenly matched teams. Sileby should have scored inside the opening minutes, but gradually Blaby began to cause their hosts problems. The game as is the case in this country no matter what the level was played at a fair pace, and was going back and forth. Neither side though were capable of really testing the opposing goal keeper and it was no surprise that they went in at half time all square. The only goal of the afternoon came in the opening couple of minutes of the restart when Ryan Shilton headed home a corner from six yards out. Both sides had their chances, though like the first half few were clear cut and generally both keepers had relatively quiet afternoons on that front. As the game wore on Sileby had more of the possession as they went in search of an equaliser, with Blaby utilising the pace of their left midfielder to hit Sileby on the counter attack.
Overall not a bad game, though with the ground in its current state I am glad I visited it when it was a mild afternoon. With the LSL now complete again my next target locally is to finish the top divisions of the Leicester & District League and North Leicestershire League respectively.
Admission: Free
Programme: do not issue
Attendance: around 100
57 photos of the ground and game can be viewed on my zenfolio photo site @ http://rambler77.zenfolio.com/p342896078
