Suffolk & Ipswich League

League Cup Semi Final

Saturday 14th March 2020

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.01

Haughley United 1 Henley Athletic 2 (AET), attendance 96

60’ 1-0 (pen)

76’ 1-1

118’ 1-2

@ National Playing Field

Green Road

Haughley

IP14 3QZ

No Admission or Programme.

It looked like the mass hysteria and scaremongering on the news and social media was going to present a problem with getting any football played today, but thankfully, a number of leagues pressed ahead with fixtures, as the country will be shutdown completely soon enough, so games will then be called off when they actually need to be. One thing that was noticeable was how quiet the M25 was. In fact, until I got to the Dartford Crossing I had cruised along at 70 m.p.h. not needing to use the outside lane at all. It is the first time I have ever driven there without any queuing traffic (usually at least a couple of junctions on the approach) and it all seemed really odd.

Both clubs and the league had tweeted that the game was on, with this being the League Cup (Morrison Freight Trophy as far as sponsorship is concerned) Semi Final, which was between the teams in second and third place in the league table of the Senior Division, level on points, but with Haughley having a goal difference better by four.

As expected, it was a very even contest, but I didn’t expect the game to produce so few chances, especially in the first half. Haughley went ahead on the hour mark, when their young centre forward was fouled and he took the penalty himself, calmly slotting in the opening goal. The game opened up, as Henley pushed for an equaliser. It came sixteen minutes from the end. A free kick on the corner of the 18 yard box was chipped towards the six yard box and the ball was volleyed into the top corner of the net. No more goals in normal time, and it looked like there would be none in extra time either, but with just two minutes left, a corner from the right wasn’t cleared and the ball was smashed into the net from 20 yards to give Henley a late winner. There was still time for Haughley to finish the game with ten men, when their No.5 finally received a second yellow card, which should have come well before the fifth minute of stoppage time that it did! Haughley were denied a penalty eight minutes into stoppage time, when the Henley ‘keeper clattered a home striker having failed to punch a corner clear. At any other stage in the match I’m sure the Referee would have given it.

British Universities & Colleges Sport

South Eastern 4C

Wednesday 11th March 2020

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 13.59

University Roehampton 1 Royal Holloway University 11, attendance 3

9’ 0-1

11’ 1-1

14’ 1-2

23’ 1-3

36’ 1-4

42’ 1-5

44’ 1-6

59’ 1-7

80’ 1-8

82’ 1-9

84’ 1-10

88’ 1-11

@ Bank of England Sports Centre

Bank Lane

off Priory Lane

Roehampton

London

SW15 5JT

No Admission or Programme.

I saw a game at The Bank of England Sports Ground, as it was called then, on 7th February 1995, when I saw a representative match where The Southern Amateur League ‘B‘ beat The Arthurian League 2-0. That match was played on the main pitch, which is immediately on the left as you enter the complex, running lengthways away from the very impressive looking main building that is raised above the near goal end, separated by a grass bank and the driveway. I had only recently found out that Roehampton played their games here on a different pitch to this. In fact, it couldn’t be any further away. It is in the far left hand corner, hemmed in by tennis courts and a good 500 yards away from the main pitch.

Today’s fixture was the only game versus first team opposition that Roehampton would play this season, and was the final match in this division. It was bottom of the table (on minus 6 points) versus top, so it wasn’t likely to be a very close contest. Royal Holloway took an early lead, but Roehampton soon levelled. Within minutes Holloway were back in front and by halftime they had rattled in another four goals, as well as missing a penalty, to lead 1-6. Roehampton had started with the bare eleven players, but just before halftime three substitutes arrived and all three entered the game for the second half. It certainly made it a more even match, as they looked far better than the players they had replaced, but eventually the team tired and Royal Holloway comfortably took their goal tally into double figures.

United Counties League

Premier Division

Tuesday 10th March 2020

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.48

Shepshed Dynamo 2 Pinchbeck United 1, attendance 95 (official 110)

33’ 1-0

40’ 1-1

70’ 2-1

@ Aylestone Park F.C. 3G Pitch

Mary Linwood Ground

Saffron Lane

Leicester

LE2 6TG

£7 Admission

£1.50 Programme, 32 pages (from original match on 15th February with an insert cover added)

Shepshed had tweeted earlier this morning that they may switch the game from their own ground, to that of Aylestone Park F.C., depending how the 13.30 pitch inspection went. It didn’t go well, so it was indeed switched. The only problem was, that neither Shepshed or Pinchbeck bothered to mention on their Twitter that it was being played on the 3G pitch here (there are also two floodlit grass pitches), but after a bit of investigation, it was confirmed that it was indeed on the plastic.

The pitch is railed along the near side and has a small section of cover which has two rows of bench seating, but the view from here is poor due to the fences running intermittently along the side of the pitch. Apart from the main clubhouse, there is a separate tea bar at the entrance to the cage, so you didn’t need to traipse all the way back past the main pitch at halftime. Unfortunately, both teams and the three officials went back to the changing rooms though, so it was 20.54 before the second half got underway. I don’t watch much football at Step 5 these days, certainly not for a first time visit, so had forgotten how expensive it is….£7 to watch a game in a cage seemed excessive, but I suppose this is what non-league football has come to these days. Then again, some of the organised ground hops charge £5 to stand in a field or public park at far lower levels than this, so……

The game didn’t really appeal, apart from it being at a ground I hadn’t visited, with Shepshed sitting fourth in the league table and looking near certainties to win it, such is the amount of games they have in hand over the teams above them. It would take a failure of some scale for them to blow it. Pinchbeck, on the other hand, are bottom of the table, with just one win from their twenty matches!

Shepshed wasted chance after chance, perhaps because it was too easy, but finally broke the deadlock just after the half hour mark when a cross from the left was swept into the net. Pinchbeck offered absolutely nothing, but out of the blue they levelled it up at 1-1 five minutes before halftime, when a 25 yard free kick was fired into the top corner, but the ‘keeper should have really saved it. The second half was much of the same and Shepshed got the winner with twenty minutes left, when a fumble by the ‘keeper was followed in from close range.

Belgium

Oost Vlaanderen Provincial 2A

Sunday 8th March 2020

Kick Off 15.00 Actual 15.02

K. Standaard S.V. Denderleeuw 2 Zeveren Sportief 3, attendance 84

41’ 1-0 (pen)

59’ 2-0

63’ 2-1 (pen)

66’ 2-2

86’ 2-3

@ Stadion Armand De Pelsmaeker

Walleken 18

9470 Denderleeuw

€5 Admission

No Programme.

The driver and the other two passengers were heading for a game at Brabant Provincial 2 club V.C. Leeuwkens Teralfene today, which I had visited back in January 2015, so I needed to find an alternative. I came up with the match here in Denderleeuw, which despite the two grounds being only two miles apart, it is in the province of Oost Vlaanderen.

The match was 10th versus 9th in the league table, so it didn’t have a lot riding on it, but it turned out to be a cracking match, eventually…… It was a pretty dull first half, which apart from each team hitting the woodwork, there were few chances. Denderleeuw were awarded a very soft penalty just before the break to go in 1-0 up.

Five minutes into the second half Zeveren had a man sent off for a ‘last man’ foul just outside the centre circle. Nine minutes later it was 2-0 and it looked to be all over, but far from it! Four minutes later Zeveren had a shot come back off the post, but the ball wasn’t cleared and a handball during the scramble to clear the ball saw them awarded a penalty. They duly scored and it was very much game on. Within three minutes it was all square at 2-2, when a shot beat the ‘keeper at his near post. Denderleeuw then looked to regain the lead, hitting the crossbar twice, but couldn’t break the resolute defence down. Zeveren played very effectively on the break and their three strikers put in one hell of a shift. With four minutes left, a corner was played short and an exchange of passes ended with a shot rifled into the bottom corner of the net from the angle of the 18 yard box. It was nothing less than the visitors deserved, taking all three points, that certainly didn’t look likely with half an hour left.

Our outbound 09.20 Tunnel left a minute ahead of schedule. We were booked on the 19.50 back, but with the Eurotunnel being very quiet when we arrived at check in, we were offered a place on the 19.36 instead. Even better, we managed to then ‘tail end’ onto the 19.20, which left three minutes early. Arriving back in Kent earlier than expected meant we were ahead of the nightly closures on the M20. Result!

Essex Olympian League

Premier Division

Saturday 7th March 2020

Kick Off 14.30 Actual 14.31

Springfield 2 Shenfield 5, attendance 38

2’ 0-1

38’ 1-1

55’ 1-2

74’ 2-2

76’ 2-3

82’ 2-4

86’ 2-5

@ Springfield Hall Park

Arun Close

Springfield

Chelmsford

CM1 7QE

No Admission or Programme.

I had hoped I wouldn’t have to do a second 3G pitch in order to get my double in today and thankfully, that was how it turned out. The Springfield Manager (formerly of Shenfield) had tweeted last night that this match was 100% on and it fitted perfectly with my earlier game. I was surprised on arrival to see the pitch was in superb condition, and both teams were warming up on it, despite the amount of rain we have suffered recently.

The match was 5th versus 12th (out of 14) in the league table and delivered a surprising result. Shenfield went ahead with their first attack of the game. A defensive header back to the ‘keeper fell short and the striker nipped in to lift the ball over him into the empty net. Springfield missed a penalty after thirty five minutes, which was saved, but three minutes later they levelled the scores with a close range finish to make it 1-1 at halftime.

Ten minutes into the second half it was 1-2. Another defensive mistake saw a miss kicked back pass again leave the ‘keeper stranded and he was lobbed from 20 yards. A cracking 25 yard shot looped into the top corner to level it up at 2-2 with sixteen minutes left, but Shenfield were back in front within two minutes. In the last eight minutes the visitors wrapped it up with two more goals on the break to give them a resounding 2-5 win. If they played like this every week, then they wouldn’t be battling against relegation.

Mid-Essex League

Premier Division

Saturday 7th March 2020

Kick Off 12.00 Actual 12.13

Writtle 0 Burnham Ramblers Reserves 3, attendance 22

4’ 0-1 (pen)

29’ 0-2

81’ 0-3

@ Melbourne Park, 3G Pitch

Salerno Way

Chelmsford

CM1 2EH

No Admission or Programme.

With Writtle switching their second successive home match to the 3G pitch which is adjacent to the ground of Chelmsford City, combined with the noon kick off, it meant another double possibility today. The match finally got underway thirteen minutes late, due to the fact that it took the various youth teams using the facility, ten minutes over their allotted booking slot to vacate the pitch.

The match was 7th versus 9th in the league table. Writtle were second best from the off and the 0-3 score line flattered them somewhat. An early penalty set Burnham on their way and the second goal came just before the half hour mark, when a one-two on the edge of the box was finished with an unstoppable shot into the bottom corner of the net. The Burnham ‘keeper pulled off some decent saves in the second half, before they rounded off a resounding win with a close range headed finish with nine minutes left.

The late kick off was nullified by the teams taking just six minutes for halftime, but with a 52 minute first half, followed by a 49 minute second, it meant this didn’t finish until 2 o’clock. Luckily, my second match was only eleven minutes drive from here.

British Universities & Colleges Sport

Midlands 5B

Wednesday 4th March 2020

Kick Off 15.15 Actual 15.03

Cranfield University 0 Moulton College 13, attendance 3

4’ 0-1

15’ 0-2

22’ 0-3

41’ 0-4

44’ 0-5

46’ 0-6

51’ 0-7

54’ 0-8

61’ 0-9

62’ 0-10

63’ 0-11

80’ 0-12

84’ 0-13

@ Green Lane, 3G Pitch

Wixams

MK42 6DA

No Admission or Programme.

I had been here previously, having seen Wixams play a Bedfordshire County League match on the grass pitch that runs parallel to the 3G caged pitch. This is actually one of the better caged venues to watch from, not that it takes much to be better than the majority of these places. Viewing is along nearly the full length of one side and there are very few obstructions in the way. It also helped that the pitch is only divided into 2 small sized pitches during other use, so fewer other coloured lines to contend with!

I only arrived here a minute before kick off, nearly being caught out by them kicking off twelve minutes early. Moulton came into this with a 100% winning record from their nine matches so far and had beaten Cranfield 9-0 in the reverse fixture. Today was an absolute hammering, but to be fair, all the goals were top quality finishes and it was easy to see why Moulton have won all their matches. It would be nice to see them against better opposition, but there won’t be too many teams testing them at this level.

Belgium

Hainaut Provincial 3A

Tuesday 3rd March 2020

Kick Off 20.30. On Time !

R.F.C. Luingnois 2 F.C. Bleharies 1, attendance 121

14’ 0-1

20’ 1-1

90’+5, 2-1

@ Futurosport, Pitch 1 Synthetic

Rue de la Barrière Leclercq 13

Mal-Cense

7711 Dottignies

No Admission or Programme.

This match was switched from R.F.C. Luingnois normal home ground in Luingne, to here at the youth complex of Belgian top division club R. Excelsior Mouscron, as it was certain to go ahead on the 3G surface. I had actually been here to watch a game when I lived in Belgium, as it was supposed to be where Mouscron were playing their Reserve match, but on arrival, it became apparent that the information concerning the venue on the Belgian F.A. website was incorrect. It was the only time that I failed to get a match, when having travelled, in my time living there!

Luingnois came into this match in third place in the league table, knowing that a win would see them go top on goal difference. Ninth placed Bleharies took an early lead, but Luingnois soon levelled, with a shot that went in having struck the inside of both posts and evading the ‘keepers best attempt to claw the ball away before it crossed the line. The second half was one way traffic. The Bleharies keeper made a number of good saves, as well as seeing the goal frame come to his rescue a couple of times, but deep into stoppage time, he could do nothing to stop a shot from the edge of the box finding the bottom corner of the net via a slight deflection and nick the three points Luingnois needed to take over at the top of the league table.

Our outbound Tunnel crossing left a minute ahead of schedule and although our 01.22 return left on time, it lost 10 minutes during the crossing. The M20 was closed, yet again, from Junction 6 to Junction 4 for our drive home.

Capital Counties Feeder Leagues Trophy

Quarter Final

Saturday 29th February 2020

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.02

Buckhurst Hill 5 Rayleigh Town 2, attendance 41

13’ 1-0 (pen)

22’ 2-0

27’ 3-0

31’ 4-0

44’ 5-0

79’ 5-1

85’ 5-2

@ Roding Valley High School, 3G Pitch No.2

Alderton Hill

Loughton

IG10 3JA

No Admission

Programme free, 8 pages.

Today was quite an unusual day for watching football, as it was the first time since 1992 that it has been possible to watch games on five Saturdays in the month of February. I wasn’t even born when it occurred the time before that and when it next occurs is 28 years away……..

Back in 1992 I was still very new to ground hopping, which certainly shows from the games I attended on the Saturdays that month….Buckingham Town, Grantham Town, Gainsborough Trinity, Newport (I.O.W.) and West Midlands Police. I can’t believe how many grounds I visited on Saturdays back then that were floodlit, although working until 17.30 did make it harder to do as many midweek matches as I do now. Only WMP on that list hadn’t got lights at that time, and were reachable for me for an early evening kick off, but as it was an F.A. Vase Quarter Final tie versus Sudbury Town, which attracted their record crowd at the time of 1,072, I obviously decided to stay much more local that day!

More notably, perhaps, is the fact that all the games were played on grass! With climate change really kicking in now and the fact that it tends to rain every Friday and Saturday, most games this month have been on 3G pitches. Today, the theme continued. Rather than travel in the hope a game would actually take place on grass, I settled on a handful of options, deciding on this match when I was informed it had been confirmed as on, as well as the change of venue. I wasn’t aware that there were two 3G pitches here at Roding Valley High School though. I arrived at where I thought the match was, but discovered that the game I wanted was actually being played on a second 3G pitch that was accessed via Roding Road, being on the south side of the railway line, the pitch running parallel to Loughton Underground Station. At least there was spectator access, along most of one side of the pitch, but we had the usual other coloured pitch markings and a wire above the halfway line. One thing that was lacking though, were floodlights! There aren’t too many caged pitches built without them these days.

The competition is known by the sponsor name ‘Anagram Records Trophy’ these days, this match being between two teams who are in the Essex Olympian League Premier Division. It was 3rd versus 7th as far as positions in the league table go, but it soon became obvious this wasn’t going to be much of a contest. Buckhurst Hill were just far too good and they scored at will, in a first half that saw them coast into a 5-0 lead. In the first half we had hail and rain, but the sun came out as the afternoon wore on. Rayleigh also improved in the second half, but it was too little, too late. A couple of goals for the visitors, in the last eleven minutes, made the score line look much closer than it was.

British Universities & Colleges Sport

South Eastern Conference Plate Semi Final

Wednesday 26th February 2020

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.02

Buckinghamshire New University 2 University Sussex 3rds 1, attendance 18

6’ 1-0

12’ 1-1

54’ 2-1

@ The Cressex Synthetic Sports Pitch Centre

Holmers Farm Way

High Wycombe

HP12 4QA

No Admission or Programme.

This was the first match that Buckinghamshire New University have played at this venue. It is typical of so many of these caged pitches, with multiple coloured line markings, no corner flags and a wire across the centre of the pitch (to curtain off the area into smaller sized pitches) which was hit on at least half a dozen times, resulting in a drop ball restart.

Buckinghamshire went in front early, but were soon pegged back. The game threatened to get out of hand a number of times and became very niggly. It wasn’t helped by the Referee spending most of the game in the centre circle, resulting in him being too far away from any incidents that were occurring. Not unexpectedly I suppose, as he didn’t even bother to change out of his tracksuit to do the game in the first place.

The second half never really got going, but it did produce what turned out to be the winning goal for Buckinghamshire. A corner on the right was floated into the six yard box, with the Sussex ‘keeper failing to make contact, and the ball was swept into the net from close range.