Belgium
Division 3 Amateurs A.C.F.F. A
Friday 20th September 2019
Kick Off 20.00 Actual 20.05
R. Union Saint-Ghislain Tertre-Hautrage 1 R. Leopold F.C. 1, attendance 127
13’ 1-0
84’ 1-1
@ Stade Saint Lo
Rue du Moulin 68
7330 Saint-Ghislain
€8 Admission
No Programme.
Having won Hainaut Provincial 1 last season, R. Union Saint-Ghislain Tertre-Hautrage have moved from their Stade Achille Bavier ground in Tertre, to this athletics stadium in Saint-Ghislain on their return to the Belgian League. It is quite distinctive, with its unusual blue running track, but oddly enough, the visitors also play at an athletics stadium that has a blue running track as well.
I only noticed this fixture had changed to a Friday night at around 17.30 on Thursday evening, and within half an hour it became apparent that they had indeed moved ground this season, so it was no problem filling the car for the trip across The Channel. We were booked on the 14.20 outbound crossing on The Tunnel, but having had a clear run down through Kent, we actually made it onto the 13.50, which left a minute early.
A quick look at the league table suggested this might not be the best of matches. Saint-Ghislain sat bottom, having lost all four of their matches, whilst Leopold were just two places above them, having picked up just two points from their first four games. Saint-Ghislain went ahead within a quarter of an hour with an angled shot across the ‘’keeper and Leopold had quite a few chances, some of them which looked harder to miss than score, but we reached the interval with it still 1-0. Leopold again had the better of the second half chances and they were finally rewarded with an equaliser, when a cross from the right was headed in from close range with six minutes left.
With the second half getting started nine minutes behind schedule, due to the Referee keeping both teams waiting on the pitch for a good five minutes before he reappeared, it meant we would be tight for our check in time for our 00.20 train home. We made it though and we actually left on time. Unfortunately, having arrived in Folkestone, a car ahead of us broke down, causing a fifteen minute delay to unloading, then a closure on the M20 meant we lost another 15 minutes on the diversion route.
