Friendly

Saturday 15th August 2020

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.01

Rainham Working Mens Club 2 Dagenham United 3, attendance 18

38’ 0-1

42’ 0-2

56’ 1-2

61’ 1-3

63’ 2-3

@ Rainham Working Mens Club

74 Upminster Road South

Rainham

RM13 9AA

No Admission or Programme.

The ground here at Rainham W.M.C. was home to Rainham Town from 1945 to 1948, before they moved to their Deri Park Ground. They had played in the Delphian League, Metropolitan League and Athenian League, before reaching the Isthmian League in 1977. In 1994 they left Deri Park, playing out what turned out to be the remainder of their days at the grounds of Purfleet and Aveley, before finishing bottom of Division 2, seeing them relegated to Division 3, but the club folded before playing at the lower level.

These days it hosts Essex Alliance League games. Both todays teams are in Division 2, the third level of the league, which is Step 13, so no problem allowing spectators in, although you were politely asked to leave contact details for track and trace in case of anyone at the match testing positive for Covid-19.

It was a good even contest which Dagenham deserved to win. Just before halftime it began to rain, then for the next 30-40 minutes it was torrential and the pitch was becoming waterlogged down the centre. A league match may have been abandoned, but the Referee was happy to continue and none of the players were complaining, which makes a change. The last few minutes were played in a light drizzle and it had stopped completely by the time I exited the car park.

Friendly

Saturday 15th August 2020

Kick Off 11.30 Actual 11.31

Wakebury 11 Ashingdon 1, attendance 22

7’ 1-0

10’ 1-1

16’ 2-1

25’ 3-1

27’ 4-1

31’ 5-1

36’ 6-1

38’ 7-1

61’ 8-1

72’ 9-1

79’ 10-1

81’ 11-1

@ Post Office Sports & Social Club

Gardiners Way

off Gardiners Lane South

Basildon

SS14 3AP

No Admission or Programme.

Again, there were no problems getting round the ridiculous F.A. ban on attending matches between clubs of Step 7 and above, as this was Essex Olympian League Division 3 (Step 10) versus Southend Borough & District Combination League Premier Division (Step 11).

This was over as a contest once Wakebury made it 3-1. Ashingdon were dreadful, not helped by a total lack of fitness. They played with a different ‘keeper in each half, neither of which were any good. Ten of the eleven goals they conceded would have been stopped by anyone half decent.

As well as this match, there were two noon kick offs on the two parallel pitches beyond ours, with three more matches to follow at 2 o’clock.

Before the F.A. decided to do their best in trying to starve clubs of any possible income during pre-season, by introducing the ‘fan ban’, my afternoon match would have been ‘next door’ at Basildon Town, but as they play at Step 7 and their visitors Sawbridgeworth Town are in the higher level Essex Senior League, then I would have to leave it for another day. A shame really, as the two pitches run end to end and are no more than 20 yards apart. There is even a gap in the hedge so getting there couldn’t be easier……