first games of 2014

After a four week break from watching football due to work, the weather and a case of c.b.a, this weekend saw me watch two games of football and taking photographs at one of them.

First up was a game on Friday night (10th January) in Peterborough:

Peterborough Sports 3-5 Peterborough Northern Star Reserves

Northamptonshire FA Junior Cup Quarter Final

@ Peterborough Sports & Leisure Club, Lincoln Road, Peterborough

Admission: £3 including programme

My interest in this game was primarily the ground. Peterborough Sports FC joined the United Counties League (UCL) from the Peterborough & District League last season, and their home venue at the start of the season was one of only two that I had not seen a game of football at in the UCL. The other ground was the Elgoods Fenland Arena, home of Wisbech Town FC and I visited them for a pre-season game at the end of July. 

After a few hours sleep after finishing work that morning I made the trip east to Peterborough and met friend and fellow Oadby Town (and Ipswich Town) supporter Owen Jones at the ground. The ground is easily missed with it being down a track between buildings, though it opens up with an ample sized car park to the left and the decent sized social club and ground entrance to the right. A pre-match pint of Deuchars IPA cost £2.70 was had before paying the £3 admission fee. A good ground turned up for this local derby and witnessed a cracking game of football. Four goals were equally shared in the first forty five minutes before yours truly went to collect his winning raffle prize, which was a bottle of white wine. The second forty five minutes was equally as entertaining as the first. Sports led 3-2 after the visiting keeper put the ball into his own net, but Northern Star reserves turned the tie around with three goals of their own.

An enjoyable evening out, and after dropping Owen off at his abode I was back home at 11pm.

I was being my usual indecisive self for my game on the Saturday (11th January) and add several options in mind. Then came a u-turn as a posting on twitter caught my attention - the Kegworth Imperial - Whitwick game was to be played away from their normal home venue in the village. After getting confirmation of the address my decision was made.

Kegworth Imperial 6-1 Whitwick

North Leicestershire League Premier Division

@ Moor Lane, Normanton on Soar, Nottinghamshire

Admission / programme: none

Attendance: not many

Normanton on Soar is a small village a few miles north of Loughborough, though literally just over the border in Nottinghamshire and took me around half an hour to get to from my home in Braunstone. The ground is home to the Imps' junior set up and is located on the northern edge of the village about a hundred yards from the A6006. There is a small car park, clubhouse and external toilets but as expected nothing pitch side.

Despite the pitch being very heavy it was perfectly playable and a pretty decent ninety minutes of football followed. Kegworth scored first when, after an accidental collision between one of their players and the Whitwick keeper, they played on and put the ball in the back of the net. I heard the referee say to one of the visiting players that no foul had been committed so let play go on. A minute later and Whitwick were awarded a penalty but the resulting kick was skewed wide. The visiting then had the better of things for the remainder of the first half. They were denied by a cracking save from the Kegworth keeper, but deservedly equalised before the end of the first forty five minutes. The second half was less than a minute old when Kegworth re-took the lead, and then proceeded to add a further four more goals to run out convincing if slightly flattering winners. 

50 photos of the game can be viewed in the slideshow below:

500 and counting...

WISBECH TOWN 1-1 EYNESBURY ROVERS

Saturday 27th July 2013

Pre-season Friendly

Elgoods Fenland Arena, Lynn Road, Wisbech, Cambridgeshire

No plans originally today after spending the previous four Saturday afternoons watching three different sports (cricket, football and American Football), but having spotted that Wisbech Town Football Club had a pre-season friendly the decision was made to make the one hundred and thirty mile round trip. Wisbech is somewhere that has been on my radar for a number of years, and rather annoyingly didn't get to their old ground in the town Fenland Park. A visit to the club also became high on my priority since they joined the United Counties League (UCL) over the summer, having previously played in the Eastern Counties League (ECL). Why you may ask? Well simply because last season I completed the UCL for the first time with visits to the three remaining grounds, and want to keep on top of it as it were. After today there is still one more ground (Campbell Drive, Peterborough Sports FC) in the UCL to visit, with the intention to visit when Oadby Town play there on November 30th.

As the post title says this will be (in my records) my 500th venue that I have seen football played at. This total could and would have been reached sooner had I not got involved with Oadby Town in the late nineteen nineties, but I have no regrets and I feel I have the best of both worlds - the buzz of supporting a team, and also relaxing at games and not caring which team comes out on top. Some landmarks in terms of numbers are as follows:

1. Filbert Street - Leicester City FC sometime in the 1980's for Tommy Williams Testimonial

100. Rolls Royce Sports & Social Club - Hucknall Rolls FC 19th March 2002

200. Carters Park - Holbeach United FC 24th September 2005

300. Moira Dale Recreation Ground - Castle Donington Town FC 20th April 2009

400. Horsewell Lane - Sparta Moshdock FC 9th October 2011 

Wisbech is a market town, civil parish and inland port with a population of around 20,200 inhabitants. The town is located in the Fenland District of north-east Cambridgeshire, and is approximately twenty one miles east of Peterborough and thirteen miles west of King's Lynn. The tidal River Nene runs through the town and is spanned by two bridges.

more information on the town can be seen on the Wikipedia page: Wisbech

The football club were formed in 1920 following a merger of three local clubs and joined the Peterborough & District League (PDL). In their first season they finished in 9th place in the thirteen team division one. Town were crowned PDL champions five times (1924/25, 1927/28, 1928/29, 1931/32, 1932/33) before making a step up and joined the United Counties League (UCL) in 1935. Between 1936 and 1939 they also competed in the East Midland League (EM), which was probably due to a lack of fixtures in the UCL. In 1939 with the outbreak of World War 2 the UCL and EM competitions were abandoned, and they competed in played in a war time competition of the PDL. When the hostilities ended in 1945 Wisbech competed in both the UCL and PDL and finished 3rd in both competitions before solely concentrating on the UCL. Between 1946 and 1950 Town were crowned UCL champions three times and were runners-up once. In 1950 they transferred to the Eastern Counties League (ECL), spending just two seasons in the ECL before joining the Midland League. Six seasons were spent in the Midland League before another transfer, this time to the Southern League, which at the time was probably the strongest league outside of the Football League. Success was hard to come by in the higher standard of football, winning the division 1 title once in the 1961/62 seasons. In 1970 they switched back to the more local ECL, and since their formation spent the most time playing in the same competition (twenty seven years), winning the league title three times (1971/72, 1976/77 and 1990/91), before a runners-up position in the 1996/97 season secured promotion back to the Southern League. Five years were spent in the Southern League before they were relegated back to the ECL in 2002. After eleven years in the ECL Town are on the move again, this time back to the UCL for the start of the 2013/14 season. How long will they stay in the UCL this time? Who knows as they I believe their aim is to be playing step four football as soon as possible. This though will not be easy as the UCL premier division will be very competitive this season with the likes of Spalding United, AFC Rushden & Diamonds and Deeping Rangers expected to make a promotion challenge.

The drive across to Wisbech for me is very straight forward in terms of the route (all along the A47), but isn't the easiest drive. This is because of having to drive across Leicester - not a pleasant experience at the best of times, but with school children being on the summer break there are road works galore going on, and also the A47 is for the most part a single carriageway, with the part of it being dueled is around Peterborough. According to Google maps it is sixty four miles and should take 1 hour forty minutes, though I expect it to take slightly longer. In reality this was about right, with the only time that I was held up was a set of traffic lights on the east side of Leicester. I got into Wisbech at around 1.15pm and managed to park for free in the Horsefair car park. With not knowing about any decent pubs I made my way to the JD Wetherspoon outlet, the Wheatsheaf Inn on Church Terrace. A typical 'spoons lunch was had which was washed down with a very nice pint of Gold by the Grainstore Brewery. From then it was a short drive to the ground along Lynn Road at the eastern extremities of Wisbech.

I found the ground to be typical of recent new-build non-league grounds - practical and functional, but lacked character or originality. On to the people that are involved with the club - well I found them a friendly and welcoming bunch. A notable mention goes to the chap that does the announcements, as he waited for me at the end of the game and gave me his copy of the team sheet - much appreciated and thank you. The admission charge for this friendly was at the reduced rate of £3, though with no programme issued I purchased a strip of raffle tickets for £1 and ended up winning 2nd prize. This was a bottle of red wine which I donated back to club, this was due to myself not being a wine drinker and the wife preferring the white grape variety.  

The game was a competitive one and gave both teams a good work out with just two weeks before the UCL season starts on August 10th. Very few chances were created in the first half, and when it looked like it would end goalless the home side took the lead on 43 minutes. An excellent Tom James cross from the right was headed home by right back Neal Spafford. The second half was a more open affair with more chances at either end being created. With around seventy minutes on the clock Spafford needlessly pulled back Eynesbury substitute Lee Bassett's shirt and the referee rightly awarded a penalty. Bassett stepped up and slotted the ball past Tom Roberts in the Wisbech goal for the equaliser. Five minutes later and Wisbech were awarded a penalty kick themselves which was for handball. Unfortunately for the home side Callum Reed's kick was high, wide and not very handsome!!! The final fifteen minutes saw both sides test the opposition keeper before the referee, Anthony da Costa ended the proceedings bang on ninety minutes. In all fairness a draw was the right result.    

10 photos of the ground can be viewed in the slideshow below:

Completing the UCL

OLNEY TOWN 3-2 OADBY TOWN
Saturday 4th May 2013
United Counties League Division 1
East Street, Olney, Buckinghamshire

As the title of the post says, visiting Olney Town Football Club's East Street ground will mean that I have seen a game of football at every one of the current 39 grounds in the United Counties League (UCL). 

The full list in chronological order is as follows:

1) 24/08/97 The Dovecote
Shepshed Dynamo v Wisbech Town (2-2) Southern League Midland Division

2) 17/01/98 Wigston Road
Oadby Town v Tooting & Mitcham United (2-2 aet) FA Vase 4th Round

3) 07/02/98 Lincoln Road
Mirrlees Blackstone v Desborough Town (1-1) United Counties League Premier Division

4) 18/04/98 Waterworks Field
Desborough Town v Long Buckby (1-3) United Counties League Premier Division

5) 23/01/99 Farley Way
Quorn v Oadby Town (1-4) Leicestershire Senior League Premier Division

6) 16/02/99 Abbey Lawn
Bourne Town v Spalding United (0-5) United Counties League Premier Division

7) 23/03/99 Kingsthorpe Mill
Northampton Spencer v Ford Sports Daventry (1-1) United Counties League Premier Division

8) 05/04/99 Compton Park
Cogenhoe United v Wellingborough Town (2-0) United Counties League Premier Division

9) 05/04/99 Kiln Park
Raunds Town v Baldock Town (1-1) Southern League Southern Division

10) 29/09/99 Bird's Close
Bugbrooke St. Michaels 1-2 Ford Sports Daventry (1-2) United Counties League Premier Division

11) 27/12/99 Sergeant's Lawn
Rothwell Corinthians v Cottingham (0-6) United Counties League Division 1

12) 24/04/00 Fernie Fields
Northampton Vanaid v Wellingborough Whitworths (2-2) United Counties League Division 1

13) 01/05/00 The Hillgrounds
Kempston Rovers v Bourne Town (3-0) United Counties League Premier Division

14) 14/10/00 Sir Halley Stewart Field
Spalding United v Wisbech Town (1-1) Southern League Eastern Division

15) 19/05/01 Dickens Road
Harrowby United v Northampton O.N. Chenecks (3-4) United Counties League Division 1

16) 17/09/02 Recreation Ground
Stewarts & Lloyds Corby v Holbeach United (2-0) United Counties League Premier Division

17) 23/07/03 Station Road
Long Buckby v Cottingham (1-3) Pre-season Friendly

18) 20/12/03 Leading Drove
Yaxley v Raunds Town (6-3) United Counties League Premier Division

19) 08/05/04 Outgang Road
Deeping Rangers v Northampton Spencer (2-5) United Counties League Premier Division

20) 26/03/05 London Road
Wellingborough Whitworths v Irchester United (1-0) United Counties League Division 1

21) 24/09/05 Carters Park
Holbeach United v Newport Pagnell Town (Aban) United Counties League Premier Division

22) 08/10/05 Billing Road Sports Ground
Northampton O.N. Chenecks v Irchester United (2-1) United Counties League Division 1

23) 08/10/05 Jubilee Park
Huntingdon Town v Rothwell Corinthians (3-1) United Counties League Division 1

24) 24/12/05 Alfred Street
Irchester United v Blisworth (0-0) United Counties League Division 1

25) 26/12/05 The Hollow
Potton United v Stotfold (1-0) United Counties League Premier Division

26) 17/04/06 Chestnut Avenue
Peterborough Northern Star v Sleaford Town (1-2) United Counties League Division 1

27) 07/10/06 Weston Park
Wootton Blue Cross v Stotfold (5-0) United Counties League Premier Division

28) 04/11/06 Chancery Lane
Thrapston Town v Daventry Town (2-2) United Counties League Division 1

29) 27/03/07 The Dog & Duck Ground
Wellingborough Town 2004 v St. Neots Town (1-0) United Counties League Premier Division

30) 21/04/07 Latimer Park
Burton Park Wanderers v Olney Town (1-1) United Counties League Division 1

31) 05/05/07 Hayden Road
Rushden Rangers v Moulton (4-3) Northants Combination Premier Division

32) 10/11/07 Willen Road
Newport Pagnell Town v Yaxley (2-0) United Counties League Premier Division

33) 15/03/08 Westwood Road
St. Ives Town v Stotfold (0-1) United Counties League Premier Division

34) 15/09/09 Eslaforde Park
Sleaford Town v Matlock Town (1-2) FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round Replay

35) 23/10/10 Tattershall Road
Boston Town v St. Neots Town (0-5) United Counties League Premier Division

36) 12/02/11 Bowden's Park
Harborough Town v Bourne Town (2-1) United Counties League Division 1

37) 08/12/12 Alfred Hall Memorial Ground
Eynesbury Rovers v Oadby Town (0-1) United Counties League Division 1

38) 06/04/13 The Irish Centre
Buckingham Town v Oadby Town (0-3) United Counties League Division 1 

About Olney Town FC
The club were formed in 1903 and until they joined the United Counties League (UCL) in 1964, they fluctuated between the North Bucks League and the South East Northants League (which became known as the Rushden & District League). Since joining the UCL the club have spent the majority of their time in division 1, with their ground preventing them from making progress.

The ground is located on East Street to the north of the town centre and is, in a nutshell a recreation ground. The club have floodlights installed and there is a small stand and a clubhouse on site, but the pitch itself is only roped off.

The town itself
I found the town to be very pleasant place and one in which would have liked to have spent more time looking round. It has a population of around 6,000 inhabitants and is in north-east Buckinghamshire, close to the borders with Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire. 

More information on the town can be viewed on the wikipedia page: Olney

I went down to Olney with my dad who picked me up around noon and we headed south on the M1 to junction 14. From there it was a short drive north along the A509 to Olney itself. After managing to find a parking space very close to the market place, we went into the Bull Inn for some lunch and a pint. Before heading to the ground we had a brief look around the town, particularly the area around the church.

The game
It was one in which Oadby started off like a team in third place and were on the offensive right from the start. After creating a few chances, Jake Duffy opened the scoring after putting the ball past the oncoming keeper. A minute or two later and it became two nil through Levi Ramsey. The second half was a different story altogether as Oadby played like a team in the bottom three - in fact it was the worst forty five minutes that I have seen them play this season. With mid-table Olney only having pride to play for, they turned this game on its head and deservedly came away with all three points.

Admission: by donation - gave £3.50
Programme: £1.50 - vastly overpriced
Attendance: 63 (head count)

With new teams reportedly joining the UCL for next season it looks like my completing of the league will be shortlived.

37 ground and match photos can be viewed in the slideshow below:


18 photos taken of the town itself can be viewed in the following slideshow:

Buck-T

BUCKINGHAM TOWN 0-3 OADBY TOWN

Saturday 6th April 2013

United Counties League Division 1

The Irish Centre, Manor Fields, Bletchley, Milton Keynes

After a very busy Easter weekend in which in the space of four days, I watched seven games of football, a game of basketball plus viewing the new Danny Boyle film, Trance a sense of normality beckons today. Only one game of football and a choice of one in my eyes. This was one of three away days with Oadby Town that I had pencilled in before I the fixtures were released. It was originally due to be played back in November but had to be postponed due to heavy rain, and in the end that day I saw Corby Town beat Hayes & Yeading United in a thrilling FA Trophy tie.

The club

The following information is taken from the Wikipedia page:

The club were established in 1883 and initially played in local leagues. They won the Aylesbury & District League in 1902–03 and 1936–37 and the North Bucks League in 1924–25, 1928–29, 1933–34, 1935–36, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1948–49 and 1949–50. They were founder members of the Hellenic League in 1953, but left after only four seasons. They then joined the South Midlands League, in which they played until joining the United Counties League in 1974. They were Premier Division champions and Knockout Cup winners in 1983–84, and the following season they reached the first round of the FA Cup for the first (and to date only) time in their history, losing 2–0 at home to Orient. In 1985–86 they won the Premier Division again and were promoted to the Midland Division of the Southern League. They won the Southern Division in 1990–91, but were not promoted as their ground failed to meet the standards required. They remained members of the Southern League until finishing bottom of the Southern Division in 1996–97 season, when they were relegated back to the Premier Division of the UCL. They were relegated to Division One at the end of the 2006–07 season.

They were evicted from their traditional Ford Meadow home at the end of the 2010/11 season and played at the Winslow Centre, Winslow in 2011/12. This season they are again playing “home” games away from Buckingham, with the Irish Centre in Bletchley their current base. 

The ground

The Irish Centre is part of the larger Manor Fields sports complex that is also home to Bletchley Rugby Club and Bletchley Town Cricket Club. The football pitch is completely seperate from the rest of the complex and is a bit of a ramshackle affair. On the near side there is remnants of a large stand, while opposite there is a seated stand and the dugouts. 

The day itself

It started by picking up fellow Oadby Town supporters Owen Jones and Teri-Leigh White near to Braunstone Police Station around 11.30am, before heading south on the M1 to Milton Keynes. Lunch and some liquid refreshment was had at one of the four JD Wetherspoon outlets in the city, which was simply called Wetherspoons. Two halves were had, firstly Brewer's Passion by the Caledonian Brewery and secondly Tasmanian Wolf from the Wolf Brewery in Norfolk before making the short walk to the nearby Secklow Hundred for another drink. It must be said that Brewer's Passion is one of the nicest beers I have had in a very long time - very drinkable on a nice sunny day. 

From which we made the ten minute drive to the ground , arriving with about twenty minutes before kick-off. I was met at the ground by friend and Belper based groundhopper Neil Laughlin, who I had seen back in November 2009 for a Leicestershire Senior League game @ Melton Mowbray FC.

The game

It was a tale of two halves with Oadby dominating the proceedings in the opening forty five minutes and in truth be told should have been more than two goals up. New signing Levi Porter had a chance in the opening couple of minutes, but his header from an Ollie Brown-Hill cross was tame and the Buckingham keeper was able to make the save. The opening goal came from penalty spot which Jon Stevenson converted after Che Adams was brought down in the area. It was only a matter of time before Oadby increased their lead, and this came from Porter who slide the ball under the keeper. The second half was a completely different story with the home side belying their lowly position in the league table and looked like a side challenging for promotion. They caused Oadby all sorts of problems and created some excellent chances. The killer third goal came against the run of play late on in the game and was scored by Stevenson.

Overall

An enjoyable day out in Buckinghamshire for what was only my seventh game in the county ever, and my first for around four and a half years. After the game my travelling companions and I had a drink in the nearby Chequers Inn in Fenny Stratford before heading north back to Leicester.

58 photos of the ground and game can be viewed in the slideshow below:

Oadby cross out Wootton

OADBY TOWN 4-1 WOOTTON BLUE CROSS
Saturday 8th September 2012
United Counties League Division 1
Wigston Road, Oadby, Leicestershire

Another glorious sunny day with temperatures hitting twenty-five degrees Celsius, or seventy seven Fahrenheit in old money. I made my way to Oadby Town FC for a league match against Bedfordshire side Wootton Blue Cross. For anyone unaware where Wootton is, it is a few miles south west of Bedford. 

Oadby went into this game as firm favourites to take the three points, sitting in third place in the UCL Division 1 table recording two wins out of two. They have also reached the final of the Battle of Britain Charity Cup, a competition that they have won three times in the past. Wootton meanwhile have only picked up one point from their three league outings - a draw against AFC Rushden & Diamonds. 

The first twenty minutes or so saw both sides struggle to find any rhythm with Oadby seemingly having "heavy legs". Things were not helped as Ollie Brownhill replaced the injured Jon Stevenson, and they got even worse for the home side on twenty three minutes as Grant Williams drilled a shot passed Warren Butlin to give the visitors the lead. This probably gave Oadby the kick up the back side they needed, but on thirty four minutes they had another enforced substitution, this time Joss Cobb picking up an injury and was replaced by Mason Hurst. The final ten minutes of the half saw Oadby put a lot of pressure on the Wootton defence, but they held out and went in at half time one up.

The second half saw football's equivalent of the Alamo as Oadby lay siege on the Wootton goal. They created plenty of chances and played some cracking football to boot. Just after the hour mark the Oadby management team made their third and final substitution of the afternoon as Elliott Wright replaced Jim Dodds. A couple of minutes later and Oadby's pressure finally told with Che Adam equalising. Excellent work from Michael Reeve saw him lay the ball back to Adam, whose 1st time shot went past the flat footed Chris Woodward.Just five minutes later and the home side took the lead. Following a free kick there was a goal mouth scramble that saw Sam Benjamin prod the ball home from a few yards out. The goals came coming and it was Michael Reeve who got in on the act - his shot on the turn found the back of the net via the post. The fourth and final goal of the afternoon for Oadby came just twelve minutes after their first and they saved the best till last. Jake Duffy who was always a danger on the right side of midfield, chipped Woodward from ten yards out. The margin of victory should have been greater as Mason Hurst was brought down for a penalty, only for Duffy to have his spot kick saved by Woodward. 

Oadby played well for an hour in this game and deservedly kept their 100% record in tact at this early stage of the 2012/13 season. If they can play like this for ninety minutes then very few (if any) teams in this division would be able to live with them. 

Some photos can be viewed in the slideshow below:

A pummeling for Potton

OADBY TOWN 8-0 POTTON UNITED
Saturday 18th August 2012
United Counties League Division 1
Wigston Road, Oadby

Leading up to today I was being very indecisive (no sarcastic comments needed!!!) about where to go to get my footy fix. Do I put my groundhopping hat on or do I put my Oadby Town hat on?

Well it went the way of Oadby Town for their opening game in the United Counties League after they transferred from the East Midlands Counties League. Prior to the main even I took in a game in the Football League Youth Alliance between the under-18's of Burton Albion and Bradford City. This kicked off at 11am at the Welbeck Defence Sixth Form College in Woodhouse and ended 0-0, with an attendance of 40.

Probably like a lot of the country Leicestershire was bathed in glorious sunshine and I arrived at the ground at around 1.45pm. Admission was £5 and a further £1 for a programme and it was a case of heading to the clubhouse for a pint.

Over the summer Oadby have undergone changes on both the playing and management side with Clem Dublin joining from St. Andrews as joint 1st team manager alongside Lee Harriman. Having not seen Oadby during their pre-season games I only recognised about half of the team, and these included a some of them who played for Clem last season at St. Andrews.  Examples being goalkeeper Warren Butlin and Kris Stevenson, the latter of which I remember seeing play for Kingsway Rangers in the Leicester & District League a few years ago.

The game started off fairly evenly with some robust challenges from the visitors that resulted in numerous free kicks for the hosts. Oadby then took control of the game from the quarter hour mark and from then on it was primarily one way traffic. The opening goal came on twenty two minutes when Sam Benjamin headed from from twelve yards out. Eight minutes later and Tom Williams doubled the home sides advantage as he stabbed home a corner from just inside the penalty area. The third goal followed straight after as Jon Stevenson got the first of a brace and made it 3-0. As the first half went into the latter stages midfielder Jake Duffy got in on the act with two goals on 41 and 45 minutes respectively make it 5-0 at half time.

The second half was only four minutes old when Stevenson got his second beating the Potton keeper with a shot from outside the penalty area. A raft of substitutions followed from both sides and the game became a little disjointed, but Oadby had time to add two further goals. Firstly Duffy completed his hat-trick on seventy-three minutes and substitute Ben Harris completed the scoring with eight minutes left. 

Oadby could and should have won by a greater margin but some good goal keeping helped keep the score down.  

It is difficult to read much into this result regarding predictions for the season as Potton were one of the weaker sides in the United Counties League last season, but the 8-0 scoreline was the biggest victory I have seen them personally achieve since I first watched them in 1998.

Admission: £5
Programme: £1
Attendance: 91

A slideshow of forty photos taken during the first half can be viewed in the slideshow below:

Late Saints

ST. NEOTS TOWN 3-3 BLACKSTONES
Saturday 19th February 2011
United Counties League Premier Division
Hunts Post Community Stadium

This bloody weather...postponements on mass caused by rain spreading across the country in an easterly direction overnight Friday and Saturday morning. Luckily our (my dad I’s) first choice survived. Two phone calls to the club, one at 11.30am and one at 12.30pm reassured us that the game would go ahead with no problems. And thus we set off from Leicester to make the seventy mile journey. The route took us down the M1 to junction 19, then the 45 miles or so along the A14 to the A1, onto the A1 itself which took us to St Neots.

The following information on the town itself is taken from the page on Wikipedia:

“St Neots is a town and civil parish with a population of 26,356. It lies on the River Great Ouse in Huntingdonshire District, and is the largest town in Cambridgeshire, Cambridge and Peterborough both being cities. The town is named after the Cornish monk St Neot whose bones were stolen from the village of St Neot on Bodmin Moor and concealed in the nearby priory of the same name.

The pilgrim trade brought prosperity for the town, and it was granted a market charter in 1130. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the town enjoyed further prosperity through corn milling, brewing, stage coaching, and railways.

Today, St Neots is a thriving dormitory and market town. The modern town incorporates Eynesbury (originally the main settlement and the oldest part of the town) and two areas across the river, Eaton Ford and Eaton Socon, which were originally separate villages. Already the largest town in Cambridgeshire, after the cities of Cambridge and Peterborough, St Neots continues to grow rapidly due to a huge demand for modern housing.

Technology-based industries now operate from some of the town's light industrial estates, and there is a gas turbine power station at Little Barford on the edge of the town. Recent development has added Eynesbury Manor and The Island, Little Paxton bringing the population above 30,000.[citation needed] Over 1,200 new homes are in course of construction at Love's Farm Estate, to the east of the town.”

A history of the club is below, some of which is taken from the club’s website:

The football club were formed in 1879 as St Neots FC and the first recorded honour was winning the Huntingdonshire Senior Cup in the 1888/89 season. This was won a further four times before the turn of the 20th century. Around 1924 the club changed its name to St Neots & District and won the Huntingdonshire Senior Cup in the 24/25 season. They also won the local Scott Gatty Cup three times in succession between 1927 and 1929.

In 1927 the club joined the Bedfordshire & District League Division 1 which is the first league I know St Neots played in. They finished in the runners-up position in their debut season and 4th the following year. In 1929 the league changed name to the South Midlands League (SML) and the Saints were crowned champions in 1932/33. In 1936 they switched to the United Counties League (UCL) until the outbreak of World War 2. When football resumed after the end of the hostilities they rejoined the SML for three seasons before switching leagues again, this time to the Metropolitan & District League (MDL) in 1949. Success was immediate as they lifted the MDL title at the first attempt. Just one more season was spent in the MDL before another switch, this time to the UCL for the second time. In 1956 they changed their name to the present title of St Neots Town, and (something of which was becoming a habit) changing leagues again to the Central Alliance (CA). A mere four years were spent in Division 1 South of the CA before switching back to Metropolitan League. Not wanting to get to familiar they transferred to the UCL for a third spell in 1966. Three years were spent in the UCL with league and double being achieved in the middle of the three. A four year stint in the Eastern Counties League followed between 1969 and 1973 before they were back in the UCL. They remained member of the UCL until 1988 when they were forced to disband following the sale of their ground by the landlords. Re-forming in 1989 they joined the local Huntingdonshire and won the title four years in succession before re-joining the UCL in 1994. They subsequently won the division one title and promotion to the premier division at the first attempt, and have remained there since.

This season they are in a three way battle for the UCL title with Newport Pagnell Town and King’s Lynn Town and currently lead Newport by one point at the start of play. Visitors Blackstones from Stamford currently sit in mid-table.

This is to be my second visit to St Neots Town having seen them at their old ground, Rowley Park for a friendly against Oadby Town around eight years ago. The Love’s Farm estate now covers the site of Rowley Park.

Glen Fuff (St. Neots) striking at goal

David Burton-Jones heads home Blackstones 3rd goal

In the end it was an injury time equaliser from Lewis Webb that rescued a point for the league leaders and were only ninety seconds away from only their second league defeat of the season. The first half saw a disjointed display from the home side, who without Shane Tolley upfront struggled to get any rhythm going. Blackstones soaked up a bit of early pressure and for the majority of the half were at least the equal in terms possession and chances created. A touch of good fortune gave them the opening goal on 25 minutes when a Ben Porter shot deflected off the unfortunate Jordan Gent to wrong foot the St Neots keeper Tim Trebes. Around ten minutes later and the visitors doubled their lead. Billy Oliver split the stationary home defence with an accurate through ball, and Addie Staffieri rounded Trebes and finished with aplomb into the empty net. An expected St Neots came out firing at the start of the second half and Stefan Moore pulled a goal back from close range on 49 minutes. The Alamo didn’t materialise straight away and Blackstones stunned the home crowd by restoring their two goal advantage a couple of minutes later. A free kick from Elton Holmes was headed in by David Burton-Jones who just got to the ball a split second before the advancing Trebes. Moore then had a goal disallowed and the final third of the match was primarily played in the visitors half of the field. With around fifteen minutes to go Moore got his second of the game as he bundled home a Lewis Hilliard corner. The equaliser should have come earlier than when it did as firstly, Theo Davis side footed the ball wide with the goal gaping on 78 minutes and then a minute later a Kieron Davies shot crashed against the crossbar. With time about up Moore put in a cross from the left and Webb headed home to give St Neots a deserved share of the spoils and with it used up one of their “get out of jail free” cards.

 

Following on from visits to Boston Town, King’s Lynn Town and Harborough Town this season, this leaves me with the grounds of division one sides Olney Town and Eynesbury Rovers to visit to complete the set.

Admission: £5

Programme: £1.50 – 16 pages and vastly overpriced. A complete rip-off.

Badge: £3

Attendance: don’t know. None announced and none on their website.

Match rating: 3 ½ out of 5

With Newport Pagnell’s game called off and King’s Lynn in League Cup action, St Neots have a one point lead over Newport but have played two games less. King’s Lynn themselves are seven points adrift but have played two games fewer than the Saints. The race for the UCL title is well and truly hotting up with St Neots still having to play both Newport (at home) and Lynn (away).

Websites:

St Neots Town FC

further photos of the game can be found here: SNTFC

Main Stand

Harborough

HARBOROUGH TOWN 2–1 BOURNE TOWN
Saturday 12th February 2011

United Counties League Division 1

Bowden’s Park

Another Saturday and another game in my home county of Leicestershire for the third time in a row. This time my options were not that limited but I wanted to be back in a reasonable time so as to spend the evening with the better half. With yours truly being as indecisive as ever I told myself this morning to go with the original choice and stop pratting about. If this carries on for much longer I am going to christen myself “Mr Switzerland”!!!

St. Dionysius Church and Old Grammar School (source: Wikipedia)

Market Harborough is a market town that lies on the River Welland in south east Leicestershire. It is close to the border with neighbouring Northamptonshire and is the principal (if not) the only town in the Harborough district. The town does find itself at a crossroads geographically speaking with Leicester some 15 miles the north east, Northampton 17 miles south with Kettering and Corby 10 and 11 ½ miles to the south east and east respectively. According to the 2001 census the town had a population of just under 21,000 inhabitants. The town centre is dominated by the steeple of St. Dionysius church which rises directly from the street.

Harborough Town compete in division one of the United Counties League (UCL), which sits at step 6 of the English non-league pyramid. The earliest information on the club that I can find only goes back to 1996. A brief history of the club (in a timeline format) that is to the best of my knowledge is below:

1996    joined the Northants Combination as Spencer United

1997/98 Northants Combination Division 1 winners.

        Promoted to the Premier Division.

2002    changed name to Harborough Spencer

2003    changed name to Harborough Spencer United

2004/05 relegated to Division 1

2006    changed name to Harborough Town Spencers

2007    changed name to current title of Harborough Town

2007/08 Northants Combination Division 1 runners-up.

        Promoted to the Premier Division

        Division 1 Knock-out Cup Winners

2009/10 Northants Combination champions.

        Promoted to the United Counties League Division 1

This season the club sit in mid-table in their first season in the UCL currently occupying 10th place. Today’s opponents from Lincolnshire find themselves two places and one point better off, though they have played a game more.

The ground is part of a large complex that includes the leisure centre and rugby club and is very easy to find. If coming from the A14 whether it is from the east or west exit at junction 2 onto the A508 and follow the signs for Market Harborough. The complex is just inside the town boundary on the left hand side with the football club behind the rugby club. There are several pitches though the main one that they use is separated from the others by a wooden fence and the clubhouse. The pitch is accessed through the clubhouse itself which is home to a licensed bar, club shop and catering facilities. I was charged £3 admission and team sheets were given out free of charge because originally there were no programmes, these though arrived after about half an hour into the game and cost £1.

Matthew Gamble (HTFC)

The game was to be fair not the best with the first 45 minutes being better and more entertaining than the second. Bourne looked the better side and deservedly took the lead on fifteen minutes through John Currall. The ball was worked across the pitch from left to right and he drilled home a shot into the bottom corner across the Harborough keeper Luke Maher. Bourne continued to look the better side with the game being played primarily in the middle third. The second half saw the hosts come close on 55 minutes when a free kick caused confusion in the Bourne defence but Harry Parker headed wide. The next fifteen minutes was forgettable and to be honest it started to drag a bit, but on seventy minutes Harborough equalised. After good work from Parker on the right, the ball found its way to Will Arnold on the edge of the area who hit an unstoppable 1st time shot past Bourne keeper Dan Jarman. Arnold nearly got his second four minutes later but his curling shot was well saved by Jarman. This was probably the only save of note by either keeper in the whole game. Harborough’s winner came on seventy seven minutes when Greg Pitt hit a first time shot into the top corner from twelve yards or so. This chance came more about from poor defending than any decent attacking play. The final ten minutes were generally like the majority of the game played out in the middle of the park and Harborough comfortably held on for a victory that moves them above Bourne in the table.

Overall I found Harborough to be a very friendly and welcoming club. It is just a shame that so few people turned up and watched. Just three more grounds left in the UCL to visit to complete the set: Eynesbury Rovers, Olney Town and St Neots Town. 

Further photos of the game can be found at HTFC

Admission: £3

Programme: £1

Attendance: 22 (head count)

Badge: £2

Team Sheet: Free

Match Rating: 1 ½ out of 5

Boston Town

BOSTON TOWN 0-5 ST NEOTS TOWN

Saturday 23rd October 2010

United Counties League Premier Division

Tattershall Road

Today was one of those days where I could not make up mind in the context of what direction to head in and who to go and watch. I had been looking at the weather forecast from the start of the week but as each day went by, so the forecast for each particular part of the country I was looking at changed. Come Friday evening and I had to finalise a decision in order to let my dad know where we were going and at what time to meet up, whether it be at his house or mine with us both living on different sides of Leicester. The decision was made to head east and specifically Boston Town FC of the United Counties League.

The United Counties League (UCL) is a league that I am quite familiar with, having visited majority of the clubs and grounds in both divisions over the past ten or twelve years or so. I think there are now only five grounds I have not visited in the league and they are in no particular order Kings Lynn Town, St Neots Town, Eynesbury Rovers, Olney Town and Harborough Town. The league currently sits and steps 5 and 6 of the non-league pyramid and covers an area stretching from Sleaford in the north to Newport Pagnell in the south.

A brief history of the club in a time line format is outlined below, with some of the information taken from the clubs official website: BTFC

1964    Formed and joined the Lincolnshire League

1964/65 Lincolnshire League champions

1965    Joined the Central Alliance

1965/66 Central Alliance champions

        Lincolnshire Senior ‘B’ Cup winners

1966/67 Joined the Eastern Counties League

1968    Joined the Midland Counties League

1973/74 Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1974/75 Midland Counties League champions

1976/77 Midland Counties League Cup winners

1978/79 Midland Counties League champions

1979/80 Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1980/81 Midland Counties League champions (3rd time)

        Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1981/82 Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1982    Founder members of the Northern Counties East League

1987    Joined the Central Midlands League

1988/89 Central Midlands League champions

        Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1989/90 Lincolnshire Senior ‘A’ Cup winners

1991    Joined the United Counties League

1994    changed name to Boston Town

1994/95 United Counties League champions

2000/01 United Counties League champions

2003/04 United Counties League Cup winners

2006/07 United Counties League Cup winners

2008/09 Lincolnshire Senior Trophy winners

St Botolph's Church

Boston itself is a town and port located in eastern Lincolnshire with according to the 2001 census had a population of just over 35,000 inhabitants. It’s most recognisable landmark is the tower of St. Botolph’s Church which is more commonly known as the “Boston Stump”. The town is situated in a very rural part of the country with this part of Lincolnshire being very flat. The popular holiday resort of Skegness is 22 miles to the north east with Grimsby being some 48 miles to north along the A16. Grantham and Spalding are some 31 and 15 miles to the west and south respectively. Our journey from Leicester took us across the A47 before heading north on the A43 to Stamford. From Stamford we joined the A16 which took us into Boston itself going via Market Deeping and Spalding. The journey took was just over 66 miles and took around 1 hour 45 minutes. We arrived in Boston around 1.15pm and went into the town to have a bite to eat and have a look at “The Stump”. The Britannia Inn was chosen which is located between the church and the market square. A good choice indeed with a pint of Bateman’s Autumn Fall ale going down a treat with a ham, egg and chip lunch.

The ground is a mix of the old and the new. The turnstile, clubhouse, changing rooms and catering hut are all behind the near goal as you enter the ground. There is a covered stand that runs along the majority of the near side, a section of both seated and standing accommodation behind the far goal with further seating along the right hand touchline. There are also improvements going on along this side of the ground with some of it cordoned off from spectators.

Going into the game Boston find themselves in 7th place recording seven victories from their eleven league games. Meanwhile opponents St Neots sit top of the table with an unbeaten record from thirteen matches, and currently have a three point cushion from Kings Lynn Town though having played a game more. The game was over as a contest after the first forty five minutes with the visitors stunning their hosts with five goals. The opener came on seven minutes when a cross from Junior Konadu was headed home emphatically by Dan Jacob. Just nine minutes when by when the Saints added a second through an own goal. The confidence from a team sitting at the top of the table was all too apparent as they knocked the ball around with ease and you felt it was a matter of time before further goals were added. This came around the half hour mark when a cross from the right was spilled by the Boston keeper James Doughty only for the ball the fall at the feet of Konadu who had a simple finish from six yards out. Shane Tolley who had come close on several occasions beforehand got his deserved goal when he guided home a cross into the corner of the net. The scoring was complete just before the end of the half when a well worked move was finished off by former Aston Villa striker Stefan Moore. I did feel though despite their superiority the score was harsh on Boston as they always looked to get at the visitors but were not as clinical in the final third of the pitch. The second half was a more disjointed affair with Doughty in the end keeping the score down as he made three excellent saves, one of them being from a header by Tolley. The following is taken from the report from the Boston Town website:

“As the teeming rain of the first half subsided, the home fans contented themselves with having drawn the second half 0-0 as well as aiming a few barbs at St Neots' star striker Stefan Moore along the lines of "You're not worth £1,500 a week.”

Admission: £5

Programme: £1

Match rating: 2 ½ / 5