Spartan South Midlands League

League Challenge Trophy 3rd Round

Tuesday 26th November 2019

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.48

Crawley Green 2 Hillingdon Borough 3, attendance 21

48’ 0-1

61’ 1-1

77’ 1-2

86’ 1-3

90’+3, 2-3

@ The Stadium at The Brache

Park Street

Luton

LU1 3HH

£6 Admission

No Programme

I was surprised it was as long ago as December 1999 that I visited Crawley Green at their Recreation Ground home in Crawley Green Road. In the meantime, they ground shared to meet the floodlight requirements, before moving to The Brache at the start of last season. The complex here is also the training ground of Luton Town F.C.,with the main ‘stadium pitch’ being the former home of Isthmiam League club Vauxhall Motors, who vacated the ground in 1991. After they left it became a hockey pitch, but it is now a 3G pitch solely used for football.

Looking at the league positions, this should have been a comfortable home win. Crawley Green are sixth in the Premier Division, whilst Hillingdon Borough are thirteenth in Division One. A very drab opening half finished goalless, with the hosts forcing a couple of saves from the visiting ‘keeper, but very little else. Hillingdon looked a different side second half and opened the scoring with a shot off the inside of the post within a few minutes of the restart. Crawley Green levelled just after the hour mark, with a free kick that the ‘keeper got a hand to, but couldn’t keep it out. Hillingdon went back in front when a tackle between the ‘keeper and striker saw the ball ricochet into the net and the game was made safe when a left footed shot made it 1-3 with four minutes left. Crawley Green pulled a goal back in stoppage time, but it was too little, too late.

Completion of the top ten levels of English football edge a little closer. Just Tottenham Hotspur and Jersey Bulls (Step 6) to go.