East Sussex League

Division 3

Saturday 25th October 2025

Kick Off 14.00 On Time!

Wittersham 2 Burwash 2, attendance 36

1’ 1-0

45’ 2-0

47’ 2-1

51’ 2-2

@ Wittersham Recreation Ground (Sir Victor & Lady Mallet Sports Ground)

Poplar Road

Wittersham

TN30 7PD

No Admission or Programme.

What feels like a never ending pursuit to see a game on every first team venue in the Sussex Football Pyramid, took me to the Isle of Oxney and the village of Wittersham, a couple of miles across the county border, in Kent. Wittersham play on the recreation ground in the centre of the village, formerly known as Sir Victor & Lady Mallet Sports Ground. There’s a very small car park, with the clubhouse/changing room building to the right as you enter off Poplar Road. The main pitch is to the left, running lengthways away from here, with a slight slope towards the far end, enclosed by trees/hedges on two sides and the cricket square butting up to the right hand touchline. There are a number of picnic tables behind the near goal and the clubhouse was open for drinks/snacks throughout.

I’d seen Wittersham lose 6-2 away at Icklesham Casuals a couple of weeks ago, where the margin of defeat was a bit harsh and they came into today’s game sitting 6th (out of 11) in the league table, with the visitors two places above them. It took the hosts less than a minute to go in front, when a quick break down the right was finished with a low angled shot into the far corner of the net. There were numerous chances at both ends, but the second goal didn’t arrive until the dying seconds of the first half and again went the way of the hosts, when a long ball was flicked on, culminating in a pass to the far post for an easy tap in, which looked at least a yard offside. A substitute striker came on at halftime for Burwash and he had an immediate impact. Within two minutes, a long ball forward saw him hold off two defenders, before shooting on the turn, low into the far corner. Four minutes later he grabbed the equaliser, when a looping cross was hooked in from the right and met with a stooping header from six yards. Neither team settled for a draw, but the nearest we came to getting a winner, was when a 30 yarder smacked against the crossbar from Wittersham just as we reached the hour mark.

The journey down to Kent saw about a ten minute delay due to roadworks on the A21, just south of Tonbridge, with about a minute on the return at the same area. Apart from a very brief rain shower, it remained dry throughout and more blue sky appeared as the afternoon wore on.

United Counties League

Division 1

Tuesday 21st October 2025

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.49

F.C.V. Grace Dieu 1 Radford 0, attendance 111

39’ 1-0

@ F.C.V. International Football Academy

Grace Dieu Manor Park

Ashby Road (A512)

Thringstone

LE67 5UG

£5 Admission

No Programme.

I was aware during last season that F.C.V. Grace Dieu were looking to make the step up to Step 6 this season, so held off my visit to see them playing at the higher level. The ground isn’t much to shout about. It’s a 3G pitch, with spectator access behind the entrance end goal and along the right hand side, although a raised viewing area along towards the halfway line on this side does improve matters. Toilets and a tea bar, which did hot and cold food, are also situated along the top of the bank, whilst the dugouts are on the far side. There’s no evidence whatsoever of any seated stand being added yet, which is crucial to them remaining at this level.

The match was 3rd versus 16th (out of 23) and was pretty poor stuff and a game that we were lucky to actually see a goal produced. It came six minutes before halftime, when a cross from the right was partially cleared and returned with a looping header that just eluded the ‘keeper to give Grace Dieu the lead. They also hit the crossbar just before the hour mark, but that was about it. Not a great advert for this level of football.

Problems at the M25/M1 interchange meant SatNav took me via M40/A43/M1 instead, with the return via the more direct M1/M25. The only delay was caused by the closure of the M25 from J10-J9 and would have been home for midnight had the game not kicked off four minutes late and then having a second half that lasted exactly an hour, which meant the game didn’t finish until 21.55.

So, that completes the United Counties League for me once again and Step 1 to 6 grounds required is now down to three…..Darlington Town, Guernsey and Jersey Bulls.

Northamptonshire Combination League

Premier Division

Saturday 18th November 2025

Kick Off 14.30 Actual 14.32

Kettering Nomads 0 Medbourne 0, attendance 36

@ Isham Cricket Club

Orlingbury Road

Isham

NN14 1HW

No Admission or Programme.

I decided to head for a game in the top division of the Northamptonshire Combination League for my afternoon match, as the two clubs I’d yet to visit were both at home (Earls Barton United on their recently installed 3G pitch being the other). I chose Kettering Nomads, about half an hours drive away, as they play at a cricket ground, which means they very rarely play midweek home games at the start or end of season, invariably switching to alternate venues. This was certainly the case when I saw them host a midweek game versus Wollaston Victoria at The John Lowther Football Centre in Glendon, back in August 2023.

The car park and pavilion (open for drinks and snacks) back onto Orlingbury Road, with the football pitch on the far side of the cricket pitch, running widthways and roped off on all four sides. This looked like it would be a good game too, as 6th hosted 3rd in the league table. Despite being goalless, it was an enthralling match, very keenly contested and one that could have done with a far stronger Referee, who seemed well out of his depth and struggled to keep the players from both teams under control and it was lucky there were no serious injuries suffered, as some of the tackles that were going unpunished could have proved very costly to those on the receiving end. Nomads had a lob over the ‘keeper cleared off the line four minutes before halftime, before Medbourne had a man sin binned two minutes later, but it was no real surprise to see it remain 0-0 at halftime. The best chance of the second half came eleven minutes after the restart, when a Medbourne player rounded the ‘keeper, but his shot was cleared off the line and that was it as far as getting anything looking like a goal went.

In the end, it was probably a good point for the visitors, lifting them up to second place in the table, level on points with leaders Harpole, while Nomads drop a place to seventh.

Arthurian League

Arthur Dunn Cup 1st Round

Saturday 18th October 2025

Kick Off 11.00 On Time!

Old Kimboltonians 2 Old Cholmeleians 0, attendance 28

66’ 1-0

89’ 2-0

@ Kimbolton Preparatory School

Tilbrook Road

Kimbolton

PE28 0JJ

No Admission or Programme.

Traditionally, Arthur Dunn Cup matches are played at the main school of the clubs, but with Kimbolton School being unavailable, due to an Army Cadet training event taking place there, this tie was played at Kimbolton Preparatory School, a fact we only find out about on arrival. It’s about a mile to the west, on the left hand side of the B645 as you head out of the town. There’s a number of football pitches here, as well as a cricket pitch and tennis courts, with the wooden pavilion used as changing rooms.

The match was 6th in Division 1 versus 3rd in Premier Division, between two teams surprisingly well matched. There were very few chances in the first half and when Kimboltonians had a goal ruled out for offside just after the hour mark, it had the feeling of a nailed on nil-nil. However, four minutes later they did make the breakthrough, when a corner from the left was headed in from three yards. With just over a minute left they made the game safe, when another corner from the left was finished with a flicked volley at the near post.

With everyone staying out on the pitch at halftime, this was done and dusted just before 12.40, leaving ample time for myself and the other five ‘hoppers present to head off to an afternoon match.

Eastern Counties League

Division 1 North

Tuesday 14th October 2025

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.44

Halesworth Town 2 Framlingham Town 3, attendance 264

8’ 1-0

53’ 1-1

70’ 1-2

71’ 1-3

90’ + 2, 2-3

@ Dairy Hill Sports Complex

Dairy Hill

Halesworth

IP19 8JS

£7 Admission

£1 Programme available, didn’t bother buying.

Halesworth Town are newly promoted into Step 6 and tonight was their first game played under the newly installed floodlights. The ground is still being brought up to standard. The clubhouse is behind the near goal at the entrance end, with hard standing and a small bit of cover directly behind the posts. The pitch, which was in superb condition, is enclosed by wooden fencing, with hard standing continuing along the left hand touchline, where there’s a concrete base in readiness for a seated stand to be installed. The other two sides are out of bounds, with the dugouts on the far side.

Being the first game under lights meant a decent turnout, helped by playing Framlingham Town, who are only fourteen miles away. It was 13th versus 3rd in the league table and the game was certainly improved from a neutral point of view when Halesworth opened the scoring after just eight minutes, with a low finish into the bottom corner. Both sides had chances, but this was the only goal of the first half. Eight minutes after the interval Framlingham drew level, when an original shot hit the crossbar, with the rebound headed in. Framlingham went in front with twenty minutes left, when a cross from wide on the right was slid in from six yards. A minute later they made it 1-3, when a break from midfield saw a reverse pass that was cut back for a left footed finish into the bottom corner. Halesworth made it 2-3 a couple of minutes into stoppage time, when a cross from the right was tipped onto the crossbar by the ‘keeper and dropped perfectly for a shot high into the roof of the net, but the final whistle came seconds later.

Journey up to Suffolk took me via M25 and A12, with the only lost time being around fifteen minutes queuing at Dartford Crossing. With the A12 being closed south of Ipswich, SatNav took me home via A11, M11 and M25, with the only problem being no access onto the M25 due to roadworks, meaning heading in towards London then taking the A406 North Circular back towards Dartford.

Tonight’s visit once again completed the Eastern Counties League for me and was the last ground I hadn’t visited at Step 1 to Step 6 that actually has a grass pitch! Just four 3G’s left now….Darlington Town, FCV Grace Dieu, Guernsey and Jersey Bulls.

East Sussex League

Division 3

Saturday 11th October 2025

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.02

Icklesham Casuals 6 Wittersham 2, attendance 26

8’ 0-1

22’ 1-1

25’ 2-1

38’ 3-1 (pen)

73’ 3-2

74’ 4-2

75’ 5-2

80’ 6-2

@ Icklesham Recreation Ground

Main Road

Icklesham

TN36 4BS

No Admission or Programme.

I wanted to watch the Rugby League Grand Final on tv at six o’clock, so needed an early kick off, not too far from home and this fitted the bill perfectly. Icklesham is roughly halfway between Hastings and Rye and the club play on the recreation ground in the centre of the village. It’s shared with cricket and has a small car park and pavilion, where toilets were available to use. The pitch runs lengthways away from here, to the left of an artificial cricket wicket, with a gentle slope running towards the hedge that runs along the far touchline.

The match was 9th versus 6th (out of 11) in the league table and was actually closer than the final score suggests. A close range header saw the visitors, from across the border in Kent, take an early lead. Midway through the half Icklesham drew level, after a flicked on header was finished with a low angled shot into the far corner and three minutes later a near identical goal saw the same player make it 2-1. Seven minutes before halftime he completed his hattrick, dispatching a penalty, awarded for a foul, to see the first half finish 3-1. With seventeen minutes left Wittersham pulled it back to 3-2, tapping in at the far post, but any hopes of a comeback soon disappeared, as Icklesham replied with two goals in the next two minutes to make it 5-2 and they rounded off the scoring with ten minutes left, when a pull back from the left was volleyed in from six yards.

Northern Counties East League

League Cup 2nd Round

Wednesday 8th October 2025

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.50

Route One Rovers 7 Parkgate 1, attendance 63

10’ 1-0

15’ 2-0

17’ 3-0

37’ 3-1

50’ 4-1

72’ 5-1

81’ 6-1 (pen)

90’ 7-1

@ Myra Shay Sports Hub, 3G Pitch

489 Barkerend Road

Barkerend

Bradford

BD3 8QX

£6 Admission

£3 Programme available, didn’t bother buying.

There was plenty of time to grab something to eat after this afternoons game, as it was under six miles drive. There’s a large car park as you enter, with the clubhouse/changing rooms to the right. The pitch runs widthways in front of the building, at a slightly lower level, with two kit stands this side, one of which is seated, but the view is awful, due to people standing in front and the dugouts also being on this side. At least there’s access behind each goal, if you don’t mind dodging the spare goal frames plonked there. This once again completes this league for me and was a double tick, as Premier Division Albion Sports also host their home games here.

This was a League Cup tie, with Division 1 hosting Premier Division. Route One Rovers got off to a great start and were 3-0 up after just seventeen minutes. They could easily have doubled that amount as Parkgate struggled to get into the game, but the visitors did pull one back eight minutes before halftime, when a through ball down the right was finished with a dinked shot over the ‘keeper from 15 yards. Any hopes of a comeback disappeared five minutes into the second half though, when a low shot into the bottom corner made it 4-1, as Umar Alizahoor completed his hattrick. ROR had a chance to add to that five minutes later, but a penalty was missed, hitting the outside of the post. They did score a fifth with eighteen minutes left, poking in from close range, before a second penalty award of the night was this time dispatched by Zak Khan and the same player rounded off the scoring in the last minute, cutting in from the left, before turning two defenders inside out before sending a low shot into the bottom corner.

The journey back south wasn’t great. Firstly, the M62 eastbound was closed, meaning a diversion through Leeds and once onto the M1, there was a ridiculous stretch from just south of Leicester, down to the other side of Milton Keynes, where a 50 mph limit was enforced, despite there being no lane closures or roadworks taking place. To cap it off, the M25 was closed from J11 to J9, meaning arrival home was dead on 2 am.

National League U19 Alliance

North Division

Wednesday 8th October 2025

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 13.56

F.C. Halifax Town U19 2 Blyth Spartans U19 2, attendance 22

4’ 1-0

9’ 2-0

43’ 2-1

55’ 2-2

@ Wyke Community Sports Village, 3G Pitch

Wilson Road

Wyke

BD12 9HA

No Admission or Programme.

After an overnight stop following the game at Barrow last night, this game fitted in perfectly with my intended evening game. F.C. Halifax Town play their U19 Alliance games at Wyke Community Sports Village, which is roughly halfway between Brighouse and Bradford. It’s a standard cage set up, with viewing along one side. On the far side is just a single dugout, which was used today by the visitors. There’s plenty of car parking here, with toilets available inside the changing room building.

The match was 2nd versus 6th in the league table, with Halifax having three wins and one defeat from their opening four games, whilst Blyth were unbeaten, with one win and two draws from their games. Halifax got off to a flyer, when a well worked corner to the angle of the box was lashed into the bottom corner after just four minutes. Five minutes later they doubled their lead, when an original cross was headed out to the edge of the box, but was volleyed straight back, giving the ‘keeper no chance. Two minutes before halftime Blyth pulled a goal back, when a shot was half blocked before the rebound was hit into the bottom corner from the edge of the D. Ten minutes into the second half the visitors made it 2-2, when a cross from the right was hit first time, with a curling shot into the far bottom corner from just inside the box. Blyth came closest to getting a winner, midway through the half, with a shot that hit the angle of crossbar/post with the ‘keeper nowhere near it.

E.F.L. Trophy

Northern Section Group B

Tuesday 7th October 2025

Kick Off 19.30 On Time!

Barrow 1 Tranmere Rovers 2, attendance 581

9’ 1-0

22’ 1-1

80’ 1-2

@ SO Legal Stadium

Holker Street

Barrow-in-Furness

LA14 5UH

£10 Admission

No Programme, but Free Team Sheet available in Club Shop.

For the second successive night it was a 92 Club tidy up and another ground I’d only seen football hosted at when the club were outside the Football League. Having stayed overnight in Harrogate, I took the direct route of the A65, then A591 into Barrow-in-Furness, which took about two and a quarter hours. Light rain began to fall during the last hour of this and it never stopped until the second half of the game, but the pitch was in superb condition, even after ninety minutes. My first trip to Holker Street was in February 1990, when Barrow beat Farnborough Town 3-1 in a Conference match in front of a crowd of 1,002. I remembered the main stand and the covered terrace opposite, as well as the two storey building behind one goal, but some temporary seated stands have now been added, bringing the capacity up to around 6,000. The floodlights have been upgraded too, but one of the original four corner pylons remains in situ, as it is used as a tv/radio mast. The record attendance here was 16,874 for an F.A. Cup 3rd Round tie versus Swansea Town in 1954 and those sort of crowds will sadly never be seen again. Tonight, despite admission only being a tenner and half that for concessions, there were only 581 in attendance, which included 70 away fans. The club were prepared for the low turn out, with just the main stand side of the ground open, as well as a small section of uncovered seating next to the players tunnel.

These two are both in League 2, with this being 17th versus 18th as far as league positions go. They were evenly matched, with both teams trying to win the game. There was very little negative play and it was a good open game from a neutral point of view. Barrow went ahead after nine minutes, when a cross into the box was nodded down and hammered in by Elliot Newby from six yards. Tranmere drew level midway through the half, when a diagonal cross from the right was headed in by Charlie Whittaker. A minute before halftime they had the ball in the net again, but the goal was disallowed for a foul in the build up. There were plenty of chances in the second half, but it was the visitors who nicked the winner, when a cross from the right was headed in unmarked at the far post by Whittaker, for his second goal of the game, just as we entered the last ten minutes.

The win sees Tranmere top the four team group now, with Barrow bottom and out, having lost both their games so far. Blackpool host Nottingham Forest U21 tomorrow night, where a home win would see Blackpool and Tranmere qualify for the next round.

League 2

Monday 6th October 2025

Kick Off 20.00 On Time!

Harrogate Town 1 Crewe Alexandra 2, attendance 2,503

5’ 1-0

29’ 1-1

87’ 1-2

@ The Exercise Stadium

Wetherby Road

Harrogate

HG2 7SA

£26 Admission (£3 increase paying on day)

£5 Programme available, didn’t bother buying.

Tonight was another tidy up of ‘The 92’. I’d last been here way back in May 1991, where I witnessed a 1-1 draw versus Farsley Celtic in a Northern Premier League match, but tonight was a chance to visit the ground whilst it’s hosting as a Football League ground. The changes since then are immense and they’ve done well to develop it into a ground that now has a reported capacity of around 5,000 of which 2,000 are seated. It’s a real hotch potch of a ground, with seven different stands and the viewing, at least from the standing areas, is not great and that was with a crowd of just half capacity which apparently included 285 with the visitors. The ground is on the right hand side of the A661 when entering the town from the south. There’s no official parking, but plenty in the surrounding housing estates, with no restrictions for midweek night matches.

The game pitted 16th against 12th and was less negative than I’d been expecting at this level. It probably helped that Harrogate went ahead after just five minutes, when a cross from the left was finished with a downward header at the far post by Jack Muldoon. Crewe levelled the scores just before the half hour mark, when a corner was played to the near angle of the 18 yard box from where a first time shot from Reece Hutchison was hit left footed, looping over the ‘keeper into the far corner. The second half was back and forth, with both teams going for the win. Crewe had a shot cleared off the line with six minutes left, but did manage to nick a winner three minutes later, when a break from the centre circle saw Max Saunders curl a 25 yarder into the far corner. The win sees Crewe move up to fifth in the league table, six points adrift of leaders Walsall.

I’d had no traffic problems heading north, once I’d cleared the M25. I was certainly glad to be staying over though, as the game never finished until 21.56.