Witney & District League

Division 1

Sunday 19th September 2021

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.05

Kingham All Blacks 1 Chadlington 2, attendance 177 (official)

5’ 0-1

16’ 0-2

89’ 1-2

@ Kingham Playing Field

New Road

Kingham

OX7 6YP

£4 Admission, including programme, whether you wanted it or not. ( I never want or will buy a programme at any event organised by Groundhop U.K.)

The Witney & District League ‘hop came to a conclusion with the fifth (thankfully I’d only been at four of the matches) and final game of the weekend. If it wasn’t for the glorious weather, this would have been really hard going, as the standard of football over the weekend was dreadful. Looking round the ‘hoppers present, it drives home how the hobby of ground hopping is very niche, especially on these low level ‘hops. There are very few younger hoppers at these games, and it is the same old faces year on year. It is becoming more noticeable that a number are now only doing one or two matches on the schedule, choosing to go elsewhere for their double or treble opportunities, even when they haven’t visited the grounds on offer, which is perhaps an indication that the bottom of the barrel has now been reached.

When Chadlington raced into a two goal lead after just sixteen minutes, it looked like this might be a far more decent match than the other three ‘hop games I’d attended this weekend. It wasn’t. The game just drifted away and the second half really dragged. Perhaps if Kingham had scored their consolation goal earlier in the half, rather than the last minute, it could have been so much better.