Scottish Professional Football League

League 2

Friday 1st October 2021

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.44

Edinburgh City 1 Cowdenbeath 1, attendance 314

8’ 1-0 D. Handling

83’ 1-1 K. Renton

@ Ainslie Park Stadium

94 Pilton Drive

Edinburgh

EH5 2HF

£14 Admission

£3 Programme, 56 pages.

I was fast running out of opportunities to tick off Ainslie Park Stadium whilst it is hosting Scottish League football. It is normally home to non-League club Spartans F.C. who play in the Lowland League. Back on 6th January 2001 I saw Spartans lose 1-3 at home to Stirling Albion in a Scottish F.A. Cup 2nd Round match, a tie that was played at City Park, in nearby Ferry Road. They left that ground, since demolished and built on, in November 2008, moving here to Ainslie Park. Edinburgh City signed a deal to play their matches here whilst their home ground at Meadowbank Stadium underwent a complete rebuild, due to move back there at the start of this season, but work has overrun, so they have extended their stay here a little longer. They are due to play their first game back home some time in November, so time was certainly of the essence to visit Ainslie Park as a League ground, although there is always a chance that Spartans themselves could gain promotion in the future.

With this weekend being the ‘Scottish Ground Hop’, with six matches being played from Friday-Sunday at staggered kick off times, it fitted in perfectly for me, especially as there were only two grounds hosting matches that I hadn’t yet visited (11.15 and 17.00 on the Saturday). The only problem was how the ‘fuel crisis’ might affect things, but once clear of the M25, there was a very high availability of fuel at the petrol stations en route, which improved the further north you went.

Tonight’s match was 5th versus 10th (bottom) in the league table and when Edinburgh City opened the scoring just eight minutes in, it looked to be going to form. However, Cowdenbeath came back into it and really made a game of it. They dominated the second half and totally belied their league position. The equaliser came seven minutes from time, when a cross from the right was flicked past the ‘keeper at the near post. In the end, they will feel disappointed that they only got a draw. They certainly deserved all three points against a very poor Edinburgh City side.

The ground here is not great for a ‘League ground’. One goal end is not accessible to spectators and there is open grass banking at the other. The far side, where the dugouts are, is also out of bounds. Although the 500+ seated stand on the near side looks impressive, it is not much use on a wet and windy night like tonight, as it is on the eastern side of the ground, so people got wet even on the back row (admittedly only 6 rows).

It is not surprising that the crowds here are so poor. With Heart of Midlothian and Hibernian also based in Edinburgh, then Edinburgh City are very much the third club of the city (some of the non-League clubs might dispute that). There seemed very little ‘home’ support, with most of the crowd appearing to be neutral. I wouldn’t think charging £14 for this level of football is encouraging too many new fans either.

I’m now left with just Cove Rangers to complete visits to the current 42 Scottish League grounds.

Combined Counties League

Premier Division South

Tuesday 28th September 2021

Kick Off 19.30 Actual 19.31

Sheerwater 3 Molesey 1, attendance 101

47’ 1-0

52’ 2-0

55’ 2-1

89’ 3-1

@ Eastwood Leisure Centre

Albert Drive

Sheerwater

GU21 5RF

£7 Admission

£1.50 Programme, None on gate at arrival, so didn’t bother buying one when they finally arrived.

This is one of the all too common 3G caged pitches that are taking over the non-League game. This was the first midweek match Sheerwater have played at their new ground here at Eastwood Leisure Centre, with at least a quarter of the crowd made up of ground hoppers. It is only a few hundred yards from the old ground, and as far as cages go, this one isn’t too bad. You can watch from all four sides, but can’t complete a full lap of the pitch due to the dugouts on the far side. The left hand side of the pitch, from where you enter the cage in the corner of the near goal end, is fully covered. There is a single row of seating in the centre, with the rest of the area given over to standing, although it is all on one level, so not as good as it looks.

The cover was certainly put to good use tonight though. Just before kick off it started raining and it soon turned into a torrential downpour. At one point it looked like we might not even get the game finished, as despite being a 3G pitch, there was standing water and the ball was holding up and not running freely and tackles saw water splashing up waste high. It rained heavily for almost the entire match, but had eased significantly by the end, although the drive home wasn’t good due to the amount of water on the roads.

Sheerwater started the night seventh in the league table, whilst Molesey were rock bottom, having lost all nine of their matches so far. They certainly didn’t look like a team that hadn’t picked up a point and Sheerwater had to work hard for the three points. It took until two minutes into the second half for the hosts to make the breakthrough, when a run down the left saw a shot saved by the ‘keeper, but the rebound was followed in. Five minutes later it was 2-0, a long throw into the box saw the ball tucked away with a shot on the turn from close range. Within three minutes Molesey pulled it back to 2-1, with a shot from the corner of the box finding it’s way under the ‘keeper. The hosts finally killed the game off a minute from time when they scored their third goal.

Yeovil & District League

Division 1

Saturday 25th September 2021

Kick Off 16.45 Actual 16.43

Pen Mill Athletic 1 Ilchester Reserves 4, attendance 165 (official)

22’ 0-1

32’ 0-2

54’ 0-3

56’ 0-4

66’ 1-4

@ Yeovil Sports & Social Club

Johnson Park

Coronation Avenue

Yeovil

BA21 3DX

No Admission

£1 Programme, 12 pages.

I think this was a first as far as ground hops go, as two matches were taking place simultaneously on adjacent pitches. The programme covered both games, for those who wanted to watch the reserves rather than the first team. Not many did, as only 28 watched the alternate fixture and I’m pretty sure no ‘hoppers bothered watching it, so not really sure what the point of it was really.

Anyway, I went for the first team game, played on Pitch 1, which is nearest the buildings and has a decent bit of cover. It would be very impressive if only they aligned the pitch to make it feel as though it is actually part of the ground, rather than offset and well back from the touch line.

The game itself was not much of a contest. Ilchester were far too strong for the hosts. It was 0-2 at the break and the lead was doubled eleven minutes into the second half. At least Pen Mill got on the scoresheet, heading in from a corner to pull it back to 1-4, but never looked liked adding to it. A very comfortable and deserved win for the visitors.

Judging from the comments, the Yeovil & District League and it’s clubs were very pleased with how the day went. It was certainly well received by the ‘hoppers that made the effort to support it and hopefully it will not be a one off. Credit must go to Tim Lancaster, and those at the clubs involved, who organised a really good day. It just goes to show that ‘hops don’t always have to be ‘all about the organisers’.

Yeovil & District League

Premier Division

Saturday 25th September 2021

Kick Off 14.15 Actual 14.17

Odcombe 2 Manor Athletic 1, attendance 102 (official)

19’ 1-0

41’ 1-1 (pen)

90’+ 6, 2-1

@ Odcombe Village Hall

Old Road

Higher Odcombe

BA22 8XP

No Admission

£1 Programme, 12 pages.

Game 2 of today’s ’hop was just four miles south east of the first. Thankfully, the drizzle that greeted kick off didn’t last long, as apart from a strange wooden construction in one corner of the pitch, there was no shelter from the elements.

This match was far harder to call than the previous one and was in the balance right up until the final whistle. Odcombe were ahead within twenty minutes, a left footed shot beating the ‘keeper at his near post. Manor Athletic levelled it up at 1-1, courtesy of a penalty, just before halftime. Both teams could have won it, but just as it looked like we were heading for a draw, a cross from the right was diverted past his own ‘keeper by a Manor Athletic defender, giving Odcombe a 2-1 win, six minutes into stoppage time.

Northern League

Division 2

Wednesday 22nd September 2021

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.47

Sunderland West End 2 Billingham Synthonia 1, attendance 145 (official)

1’ 0-1

14’ 1-1

85’ 2-1

@ Ford Quarry Football Hub, Pitch 1

Keelman’s Lane

Sunderland

SR4 0HB

£5 Admission

No Programme.

This wasn’t my intended match tonight. I had planned to visit St. Mary’s 1947 for their North Riding League Premier Division match versus Thirsk Falcons, due to be played on the 3G pitch at Trinity Catholic College, the same complex where they normally play on a grass pitch. However, during the day, they tweeted that the match was now being played at the Herlingshaw Centre, in Eston, a ground I had already visited, seeing Boro Rangers play there under lights in October 2018, although it was known as Middlesbrough F.C. Foundation then. There are actually two floodlit grass pitches here, my game being played on Pitch 1. I could have taken a chance that I might pick up the other pitch, but photos on Twitter confirm the match was on the same one I’d done.

I had very little time to check out the Sunderland West End game, although it was confirmed as going ahead on Twitter, which was good enough for me. I did, however, know that I would need a QR Code to gain access to the complex, which is one of these dreadful 3G hubs which are springing up all over the place, this one consisting of three cages, with tonight’s match on Pitch 1, which is the ‘show pitch’. It’s not much of a ground, as you’d expect from a cage. There are a couple of Atcost seated stands plonked on the halfway line and the spectator access is limited to three sides, but at least all the spare goals for the small sized pitches are on the far side, so don’t affect the view. Not impressed by the various other coloured markings on the pitch though. Not having a QR Code was not a problem. You simply write your details on a form and then receive the details by e-mail once processed.

Sunderland West End used to play on a grass pitch here, before the site was redeveloped into it’s current configuration. The old pitch ran the opposite way to the new one, but there is a 50% overlap of the original footprint. I never got to see them play here, but did see them host Kirkbymoorside in a Wearside League match on 20th February 2013, a game played midweek at Leyburn Grove, Houghton-le-Spring, due to a lack of floodlights at Ford Quarry back then.

Tonight’s match was 4th versus 2nd in the league table, between two very evenly matched teams. Synthonia opened the scoring inside the first minute, but West End levelled, when a miss hit cross sailed over the keeper and dropped in the far corner of the net inside quarter of an hour. Defences were certainly on top and Synthonia looked the more likely of the two to go on and win it. They had a great chance to take all three points sixteen minutes from time, but the West End ‘keeper saved the penalty, pushing it onto the post and out for a corner. With three minutes left, West End had a free kick out near the corner flag. The ball was clipped into the 6 yard box, evading everyone and finding its way into the net via the far post. Two goals for the hosts, both from flukes, but they all count.

West End now leapfrog Synthonia into second place in the league. They trail leaders Heaton Stannington by 5 points, but do have a game in hand. They also seem to be picking up a decent level of support now. I counted just two fewer than the official crowd given of 145. It is certainly an improvement on the paltry 19 that watched the game I saw them play in Houghton-le-Spring.

Football League Cup

3rd Round

Tuesday 21st September 2021

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.47

Brentford 7 Oldham Athletic 0, attendance 12,819

3′ 1-0 M. Forss (pen)

16’ 2-0 M Forss

38’ 3-0 Y. Wissa

43’ 4-0 R. Diarra (OG)

44’ 5-0 M. Forss

60’ 6-0 M. Forss

87’ 7-0 Y. Wissa

@ Brentford Community Stadium

166 Lionel Road North

Brentford

TW8 9QT

£10 Admission, Print at Home ticket

£2 Programme, fold out poster style, didn’t bother buying.

It was as far back as 31st December 1988 that I made my only visit to Griffin Park for football, when I saw Brentford 2 Wolverhampton Wanderers 2 in a Football League Division 3 match in front of 8,020 spectators. I returned on 17th September 1995, this time for rugby league, seeing London Broncos defeat Leeds 26-12 in a Division 1 match, where the crowd was 3,576. It was a ‘proper’ ground, the like of which are now disappearing, as clubs look to move to more modern facilities. It oozed character and was typical of the type of grounds that were so common back in 1990, when I first completed a visit to see a match at all 92 clubs in the Football League. Sadly, the ground is no longer. It was knocked down a few months back, in readiness for the builders to move in.

This season has seen the move to the brand new Brentford Community Stadium, which is just under a mile from Griffin Park, further east towards London. The capacity here is 17,250, which at the time of planning was probably thought to be perfectly adequate, but they simply wouldn’t have envisaged starting life at their new home as a Premier League club. When inside, it feels very small and gives the impression that it is more like a ground of only around 10,000 capacity. I think the ground would have looked much nicer on the eye if the seats had been done in the red, white and black club colours, rather than the random hotch potch design that they have gone for. Perhaps that’s why it feels so small.

With Brentford’s move to the new stadium coinciding with their debut in the Premier League, it meant tickets would be very hard to obtain. However, the League Cup invariably throws up an opportunity to pick up tickets quite easily, often at a discounted price, especially when the big boys are drawn at home to one of the lower division sides. In fact, you can’t get any lower than Oldham Athletic, currently propping up the entire Football League, as they sit bottom of League 2, having taken just four points from their opening eight matches. It is hard to believe that Oldham played in the inaugural season of the Premier League, back in 1992/93 season, where they finished fourth from bottom in the table, surviving relegation by the skin of their teeth.

I had no qualms doing this match, knowing full well that Brentford would make wholesale changes from their win at Wolves on Saturday. It made no difference to me anyway, as apart from Ivan Toney, I couldn’t name another player of Brentford’s first team squad. After just three minutes, it became apparent that the only player I’d heard of before tonight, wouldn’t be making an appearance, even though he was named as a substitute, as Finnish striker Marcus Forss put Brentford 1-0 up from the penalty spot and it was game over already. There was to be no cup upset. Oldham were totally overwhelmed, in as one sided a half as you are likely to see. By halftime it was 5-0, with Forss completing his hat trick, adding to a strike by Yoane Wissa and an own goal. On the hour mark Forss smashed in his fourth goal of the night, in off the underside of the crossbar, before Wissa completed the rout, with the goal of the night, scoring a superb bicycle kick to make it 7-0.

I had parked at the north end of Lionel Road North, in Rose Gardens, where parking restrictions finish at 15.00 in midweek. It was a brisk fifteen minute walk to the ground from here. I exited the West Stand at 21.40 and was back home just 70 minutes later.

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.

Witney & District League

Division 4

Sunday 19th September 2021

Kick Off 10.30 Actual 10.59

Sherborne Harriers 3 Hatherop Reserves 2, attendance 136 (official)

10’ 1-0

38’ 2-0

41’ 2-1 (pen)

74’ 2-2

80’ 3-2

@ Sherborne Park

off A40

Sherborne

GL54 3LY

£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.)

Well, it looks like the organised ground hops have reached their lowest point. This was a game that is notionally Step 13 of the non-League football pyramid, which is the seventeenth level overall. To charge an admission price of £4 is an absolute joke. It is not the fault of the club, as they are instructed what to charge, but they should feel embarrassed at charging that amount for such a low level game.

The match finally kicked off twenty nine minutes late, as it was supposed to be a 10.30 kick off according to the Full Time website and the front cover of the match programme. Then again, the programme also failed to note that the opposition were Hatherop RESERVES and not their first team , who play in the Swindon & District League.

The standard of football was dreadful, although that doesn’t mean it wasn’t entertaining. Sherborne went in front with a fluked lob over the ‘keeper after ten minutes. Three minutes later, Hatherop Reserves, who arrived here as league leaders, had a chance to level the scores, but they missed a penalty, which was well saved by the ‘keeper. When Sherborne went 2-0 up it looked like they might have a comfortable win, but the visitors pulled it back to 2-1 just before the break, this time making no mistake from the penalty spot, having failed earlier on.

Hatherop Reserves had the better of the second half and it was no surprise when a left footed shot into the bottom corner of the net levelled the game up at 2-2 with sixteen minutes left. Having got back into it, they were caught out with a long ball over the top and the striker looped a header over the ‘keeper to win it for Sherborne ten minutes from time.

Witney & District League

Premier Division

Saturday 18th September 2021

Kick Off 17.00 Actual 17.03

Hanborough 2 Hailey 3, attendance 161 (official)

40’ 1-0

57’ 2-0

71’ 2-1

74’ 2-2 (pen)

83’ 2-3

@ Hanborough Playing Field Association

Roosevelt Road

Long Hanborough

OX29 8JG

£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.)

In the end the journey from Summertown Stars back to here was trouble free and we were parked up by 16.32. We had even more time to spare than we thought as the match kicked off three minutes late. The league don’t give the impression of being a well run set up. On the Full Time website they couldn’t even be bothered to put an address on for this match, simply listing the venue as ‘Hanborough First’.

The game was of a better standard than the morning match, although it would have to go some to be any worse. At least we were getting to see a Premier Division match, but it is still a total rip off to charge £4 for what is basically Step 9 football. Hanborough have dropped down into this league from the Oxfordshire Senior League, a drop of two levels, as they were in the Premier Division last season.

The first half was very poor. Both teams had a goal disallowed and Hailey missed a 28th minute penalty, which was well saved by the ‘keeper. Five minutes before halftime Hanborough edged in front and when they went 2-0 up just before the hour mark, it looked like they were coasting to an easy win. Hailey pulled one back on 71 minutes, then levelled it up at 2-2 with a penalty three minutes later. Hailey then completed an unlikely looking turnaround, when they netted the winner seven minutes from time. Hanborough could have rescued a point, but a good save from the visitors ‘keeper in the last minute prevented them from doing so.

Just like the last Witney & District League ‘hop, the football has been of very poor quality. Even allowing for the level we are at, you’d hope for better. Still, it could be different tomorrow, although don’t bank on it. We are starting off with a Division 4 match, where the opposition are a Reserve team……