Cheltenham League

Senior Charity Cup Quarter Final

Saturday 9th March 2024

Kick Off 12.15 Actual 12.16

Kings 0 Montpellier 5, attendance 15

19’ 0-1

36’ 0-2

57’ 0-3

64’ 0-4

79’ 0-5

@ Oxtalls Sports Park, 3G Pitch

Plock Court

off Tewkesbury Road

Gloucester

GL2 9DW

No Admission or Programme.

First up today was a game in the Cheltenham League’s Senior Charity Cup and a Quarter Final tie between two teams in Division 1 (second of three divisions), with 7th hosting 2nd as far as league positions go. Montpellier are unbeaten in the league this season (12 wins, 1 draw) and are favourites to take the title, as they trail leaders Cheltenham United, the only team they didn’t win against, by just two points and have five games in hand, as well as a far superior goal difference. Today’s game went to form, but Kings certainly made them work hard for it, especially early on. Montpellier were 0-2 up at halftime, both goals coming from corners and finished from close range.

When the visitors made it 0-3 just before the hour mark, there was no way back for the hosts. Goal number four arrived shortly afterwards, following a quick break down the right and the scoring was rounded off eleven minutes from time, when a ball over the top sent the striker through on goal and he finished with a shot into the bottom corner.

The complex was very busy, as you’d expect on a Saturday morning, with car park spaces at a premium, although good to see there were no charges. There are three caged pitches here. The first one, on the left as you enter, was hosting hockey, with the next one, on the right, marked out for rugby, with the main football one being the furthest, behind the building and running the opposite way to the other two. It is a standard set up, with spectator viewing along three quarters of one side and a pair of dugouts on the other.

Malta

Premier League

Sunday 3rd March 2024

Kick Off 16.15 On Time!

Floriana 5 Gudja United 1, attendance 700

26’ 0-1

33’ 1-1 (pen)

36’ 2-1

47’ 3-1

55’ 4-1

69’ 5-1

@ Tony Bezzina Stadium

Telgha Ta Ras Hanzir

Paola

PLA 3000

€10 Admission

No Programme.

The taxi ride from the earlier game saw us arrive here at the Tony Bezzina Stadium around ten minutes before kick off, dropped off about 50 yards from the ground. We went to the first ticket booth we saw, on the corner nearest that car park, which turned out to be the Gudja United section. No problem choosing a seat once inside as the number in this end just about reached 30. The ‘home’ end looked quite full, with plenty of flags being waved and singing and chanting for the majority of the game.

Yet again it was a one sided ground, with 11 rows of seats, which are fully covered and has a capacity just short of 3,000. It was opened in 1986 and was originally known as The Hibernians Football Ground, as it is home to Hibernians and was the first time a club had owned their own ground in Malta.

The match was 2nd versus 14th (bottom) in the league table. From a neutral point of view, it was good to see Gudja take the lead after twenty six minutes, when a cross from wide on the right touchline saw the ball sail high over the ‘keeper from around 35-40 yards and nestle in the far corner. It only took Floriana seven minutes to equalise, converting a penalty and three minutes later they were in front, curling into the far corner from just inside the angle of the 18 yard box.

Two minutes into the second half it was 3-1, finishing at the far post from a cross from the right and eight minutes later it was 4-1 and game over. The scoring was rounded off when they made it 5-1 with just over twenty minutes left, finishing one on one against the ‘keeper having been played through on goal.

The win sees Floriana close the gap on leaders Hamrun Spartans to a single point, with a seven point cushion over third placed Sliema Wanderers, whilst Gudja United remain bottom, still winless after 19 games, three points adrift of second bottom Sirens and a further ten points behind third bottom Valletta.

Another Uber picked us up after the game and soon had us back at our Valletta hotel. So, a successful first trip to Malta had gone as planned. All five grounds used in the ‘professional’ levels had been visited (1 on Gozo, 4 on Malta) and the weather had been very favourable. Even our return flight with Air Malta back to London Gatwick on Monday morning left within a few minutes of its scheduled departure time.

Malta

Challenge League (Top 6)

Sunday 3rd March 2024

Kick Off 14.00 Actual 14.01

Marsa 0 Melita 4, attendance 250

14’ 0-1

66’ 0-2

70’ 0-3

73’ 0-4

@ Victor Tedesco Stadium

Triq Mile End

Hamrun

HMR 1716

€6 Admission

No Programme.

Today started off with another Challenge League match in the fight for promotion to the Premier League, as 5th hosted 2nd in the league table. It was played at Victor Tedesco Stadium, which is home to Hamrun Spartans, who host all their non Premier League club games here. It is another one sided ground as far as spectator access goes. There are 1,800 uncovered seats, set out in 11 rows and once again each team were allocated half of the stand and we were in the Marsa section. There is a 3G pitch and again there are blind spots due to the pitch being tightly hemmed in and the front rows require viewing through the Perspex screen.

The match went to form in the end, but Melita only led 0-1 at the break courtesy of a goal in the opening quarter of an hour. Goal number two arrived twenty minutes into the second half and Marsa totally collapsed from this point, with a quick break down the right that was finished with an angled shot into the far corner to make it 0-3, soon followed by a cross from the right that was finished from close range to make it 0-4. The last fifteen minutes saw plenty of time wasting and needless rolling about after tackles.

The game finished at 15.51 and we were outside and in our Uber just minutes later, heading for another game that was due to kick off at 16.15. It was only across the other side of the harbour, with the floodlights clearly visible to our left as we walked down to this game from our hotel in Valletta, but it was nearly four miles by road.

Malta

Challenge League (Top 6)

Saturday 2nd March 2024

Kick Off 16.30 Actual 16.34

Zabbar St. Patrick 2 Zurrieq 0, attendance 350

34’ 1-0

82’ 2-0

@ Centenary Stadium

Triq ta Vnezja

Attard

ATD 4000

€6 Admission

No Programme.

It took no more than five minutes to do the short walk from National Stadium to the adjacent Centenary Stadium, even via the longer route exiting the former on the far side from where we needed to be. It was opened in 1999 and is a 3G surface with a capacity of 3,000 seats, all on one side, with each club once again allocated half of the stand each. Despite being relatively new, the sight lines are poor, with a low glass screen at the front and the near touchline can’t be seen wherever you sit as it is too tight to the seats.

The match was in the Challenge League, which is tier two in Malta and was a Top 6 match, where the teams that finished in the top half of the table play each other again, retaining their points already gained to date, in order to see who gains promotion to the Premier League at the end of it, with this being 2nd versus 6th in the table.

It was a crazy start to proceedings as Zabbar St. Patrick had a man sent off after just three minutes, bringing down an opposition player who would have been through on goal had he not been fouled. Six minutes later it was 10 a side, as Zurrieq had a man sent off for blocking a goal bound shot with his hand. The penalty was missed though, with the ‘keeper easily saving low to his right. Zabbar did break the deadlock just after the half hour mark, when a ball pulled back from the left was well saved by the ‘keeper, but put in on the rebound by the player who’d seen his penalty saved earlier on.

The second half was played at a much slower pace and Zabbar grabbed the all important second goal with eight minutes left, when a speculative effort from 25 yards out found the bottom corner and should really have been stopped by the ‘keeper. The win sees Zabbar now top the group, although second in the table Melita will regain the lead if they win their game tomorrow.

With the problem of where the bus would be running from after the game, we decided to order an Uber back in to Valletta instead and were picked up less than five minutes after the final whistle.

Malta

Premier League

Saturday 2nd March 2024

Kick Off 14.00 On Time!

Hamrun Spartans 1 Valletta 1, attendance 3,000

45’ + 3, 1-0

57’ 1-1

@ Ta’ Qali National Stadium

Triq ta Vnezja

Attard

ATD 4000

€10 Admission

No Programme.

The first match today saw a seven mile bus ride out of Valletta (€2.50 flat rate) to the Ta’ Qali National Stadium, just to the west of the town of Attard. It ended with a fifteen minute walk at the end, rather than a drop off outside the stadium, as roadworks meant the final approach road was closed off and the bus driver knew nothing about it and refused to go round, opting to abort the journey where we were. It certainly didn’t go down too well with a number of locals, one of which rang the bus company to vent his anger at them! As the name suggests, the stadium is home to the national team and has an all seated capacity of 17,797 although only the main stand was in use today, with each team allocated half each and we opted for seats in the Valletta section, purely based on the fact that it was the first ticket booth we arrived at. These are two of the most successful teams as far as Maltese League titles go, with Hamrun having won nine titles and Valletta twenty five (only Sliema Wanderers and Floriana, both with 26 have won more) and Hamrun came into this as league leaders, whilst Valletta are having a poor season by their standards, lying down in twelfth place (out of 14) and are in danger of being relegated.

It was a decent atmosphere, with Hamrun having the larger support, although neither set of fans had that much to shout about. It was a first half of few chances. Hamrun went close early on, but the Valletta ‘keeper kept out a good chance from about eight yards out and it looked as if we’d be heading for the halftime break goalless, but Hamrun managed to break the deadlock three minutes into stoppage time, cutting in from the left and finishing with an angled shot into the far corner, with no time to re-start.

Valletta levelled twelve minutes into the second half, nicking the ball off a defender on his blind side and he tripped the striker just inside the box as he attempted to clear. The penalty was easily saved by the ‘keeper, but the rebound was followed in successfully. The nearest we came to either side getting a winner was when Valletta saw a header from a corner come back off the crossbar with twenty minutes left.

There was plenty of time to make it to the second game of the day, kicking off at 16.30 at Centenary Stadium, handily located no more than 100 yards away, running widthways behind the north end of the National Stadium, although our side of the stand had to exit via the far side of the ground, which basically doubled the distance! What could possibly be easier when doing a double….

Malta

Gozo League

1st Division

Friday 1st March 2024

Kick Off 18.00 Actual 18.04

Oratory Youths 1 S.K. Victoria Wanderers 1, attendance 85

61’ 1-0

90’ + 1, 1-1

@ Gozo Stadium

Mgarr Road

Xewkija

Gozo

€3 Admission

No Programme.

A few days away in Malta and the opportunity to visit the second largest and second most populated island of the Maltese archipelago, Gozo. The fast ferry from Valletta, the Maltese capital, to Ghajnsielem, on the southern tip of Gozo, takes 45 minutes to cover the 17 miles and costs just €15 return. From there it is an easy bus ride (flat fare of €2.50) to the ground, which is to the south-east of the island’s capital Victoria, although we continued to the capital itself and later walked back to the stadium, which took around twenty minutes and was pretty much downhill all the way.

The Gozo League consists of two divisions (8 and 6 teams), with the top level games all taking place at the 4,000 capacity Gozo Stadium. Only one side of the ground is open for matches, with 8 rows of seats along most of the length of that side, with a small section of standing at the end, where the toilets and refreshment hut are. The stand is split with designated ends for each club, although unless you are wearing colours, there’s no way of distinguishing who’s who. You just purchased your ticket at the booth that was at the end you wanted to sit in….I just asked for two tickets (in the Oratory Youths end) and was charged €6. It was only when looking closer at the ticket that it stated ‘over 60’ on them. Not too bad for me, as I’m only two years short of that, but the other half certainly wasn’t impressed!

Tonight’s match was bottom of the league table versus third. The standard wasn’t great, although I’d somehow expected it to be a little better than it was. The first half was awful and apart from a fumble by the Victoria ‘keeper just before halftime, from a diagonal free kick into the box, that saw the rebound unbelievably put wide of the post, very little else occurred. The second half improved slightly, helped by Oratory taking an unexpected lead just after the hour mark, when a ball in from the left was controlled and finished with a shot across the ‘keeper into the far corner. Victoria grabbed an equaliser a minute into stoppage time, heading in a left wing cross at the far post. Oratory thought they’d managed to grab a winner, with what turned out to be the last play of the game, but the header from a free kick was ruled out for offside.

There was a second game kicking off after this, but the last fast ferry back to Valletta leaves at 21.15 on a Friday night, so just did the one game. Not sure I’d have fancied another ninety minutes anyway. The bus stop is right outside and the first bus arrived no more than three or four minutes after the final whistle, so back at the port in time to grab something to eat before boarding.

East Sussex League

Hastings F.A. Junior Cup Semi Final

Saturday 24th February 2024

Kick Off 13.30 On Time!

Bexhill Rovers 4 Hooe 1, attendance 26 (Abandoned Halftime, Waterlogged)

1’ 0-1

11’ 1-1

13’ 2-1

35’ 3-1

45’ 4-1

@ Bexhill Sixth Form College Playing Fields

Gunters Lane

Bexhill-on-Sea

TN39 4BY

No Admission or Programme.

This was the last of the East Sussex League grounds I hadn’t previously seen a game on and with nearby Westfield (Mid Sussex League Premier Division) kicking off half an hour later than here, also tweeting early on that their game had also passed a pitch inspection, this seemed the ideal time to make a trip down to the coast, for a cup match between two teams in Division 2 of the league, as 2nd hosted 3rd, as far as league positions go. According to the Met Office weather forecast, rain wasn’t due here until two o’clock, which would be another plus. However, once again, the forecast was completely wrong. It rained all the way from Gatwick down to Bexhill, but on arrival it was good to see nets and corner flags in place and both teams warming up. One of the goal mouths was being swept to clear a puddle, but it looked all good to go.

Hooe opened the scoring with only about 15 seconds on the clock, breaking down the right straight from the kick off, before pulling the ball back for a shot that was saved on the line by the ‘keeper, but followed in from close range. Bexhill levelled after eleven minutes, finishing a right wing cross with a half volley at the near post and were ahead two minutes later, when a free kick found the top corner from 20 yards. It was end to end stuff, with chances galore and with Bexhill getting the upper hand it was no surprise when they made it 3-1 after thirty five minutes, when a corner from the right saw a shot saved by the ‘keeper at the near post, but the rebound was smashed high into the roof of the net. Goal number four arrived in the dying seconds of the half, when a free kick from inside the centre circle was played into the box, but was only partially cleared and was finished with a shot hooked in overhead from six yards.

At halftime, both teams stayed on the pitch, but unfortunately, the Referee went back to the changing rooms. Whilst there, he was harassed (they’ll call it banter!) for almost the entirety by three or four players/officials of another team in this division (their tops had the club badge on) suggesting that the game should be abandoned and one of them continued to shout from the changing room door as the teams lined up to start the second half. We had ‘’it’s dangerous Ref”, “someone’s going to get hurt” and finally “they’ll sue you Ref”. I’m not saying this had any influence on the decision, or how clearly the shouts could be heard on the pitch, but at this point the Referee suddenly decided conditions were too bad to continue and immediately abandoned the game. The pitch was no worse than it had been at kick off. To be fair to the two teams actually involved in the match, there was no obvious suggestion from either that it should be called to a halt and full credit to Hooe for that, as they were the ones to really gain from this. It would certainly have taken a massive turnaround to see them pull back the three goal deficit in the second half and if there’s any justice, Bexhill will go on to win the tie when it’s rearranged.

Before I’d even left the car park the nets were coming down. I hadn’t even got out of Bexhill and the rain had stopped and the sky was brighter and the cloud was clearing. A few miles further west and there was blue sky and sunshine. It always seems to be the case when you leave an abandoned game!

Spain

Segunda Division

Sunday 18th February 2024

Kick Off 18.30 On Time!

Sociedad Deportiva Huesca 0 Sociedad Deportiva Amorebieta 0, attendance 5,630

@ Estadio El Alcoraz

Finca C. Ensenanzas Integradas

22004 Huesca

€15 Admission + €2 booking fee, Print at Home ticket

No Programme.

It was only 152 miles south east from Irun, in Gipuzkoa, to Huesca, in the region of Aragon, but it took just over three and a quarter hours to drive, as the last hour or so was non motorway and very arduous, but with some absolutely beautiful scenery. Again, tickets had been purchased online, but we arrived in ample time and could easily have picked up tickets at the stadium. We managed to park in a small side road/wasteland only five minutes walk away, following the lead of the locals, rather than try and park on the official car park.

The stadium takes its name after a battle that took place there in 1096 and was opened in 1972. In 2009, promotion to the Segunda Division resulted in extensive renovations and further work, following promotion to La Liga in 2018, now sees the ground with an all seated capacity of just over 9,000. That certainly wasn’t tested tonight, not helped by the visiting section behind the goal end to our left only having 24 fans in it! Not surprising though, as Amorebieta are rock bottom in the league table and it is just a matter of time before their relegation is confirmed.

Huesca came into this game in 16th place and would surely have looked at this as very much three points there for the taking. They didn’t take their opportunity though, in a game that was very poor. In fact, poor is probably being kind. It was absolutely dreadful. Nothing else to say. I didn’t even make a note of anything that barely resembled a real goal chance.

We stopped overnight in Huesca, less than 2 miles from the ground. It was a 200 mile drive back to Bilbao Airport on Monday morning, which took just under four hours and our 13.55 flight back to London Gatwick left about seven minutes late. Another successful trip. Some decent grounds, but not so good as far as the actual football went. Oh yes…plenty of driving too. Despite being a short stay, we still managed to clock up 790 miles.

Spain

R.F.E.F. Primera Division

Group 1

Sunday 18th February 2024

Kick Off 12.00 On Time!

Real Union Club 1 Real Club Celta Vigo ‘B’ 1, attendance 1,100

75’ 0-1

90’ + 5, 1-1

@ Estadio Gal

Patricio Arabolaza Kalea 2

20304 Irun

€15 Admission + €0.96 booking fee, Print at Home ticket

No Programme.

This morning we drove 3 hours east to the town of Irun, which borders France, where the Bidasoa River, that runs behind the Estadio Gal, forms the border between the two countries. Although now plying their trade in the third level of Spanish football, Real Union Club are steeped in history, albeit in their earlier days. They were formed in 1915 (merger of Irun Sporting Club and Racing Club Irun) and were founder members of La Liga in 1929, although they were relegated in 1932 and have yet to make a return to the top level of Spanish football. Although they have played 10 seasons in the Segunda Division, they have spent the vast majority of their time as a lower level club. They have won the Spanish Cup (Copa del Rey) four times though, in 1913 as Racing Club, then again in 1918, 1924 and 1927 after the merger, as well as finishing as runners up in 1922. The days of winning trophies may be long gone, but they do currently have a famous owner, Aston Villa manager Unai Emery, so perhaps the glory days might return….

The Estadio Gal has an all seated capacity of around 5,500 with just the goal end to the left (when looking from the main stand) being open to the elements, although not a problem today, as it was a glorious sunny day. We actually had seats in the stand opposite the main one, although there was no problem sitting anywhere on that side, or behind either goal, for that matter. We did sit at the open end for a while, where it was nice to be watching in just a tee-shirt, but a relief to get back into the shade after a while. Certainly not the sort of problem I’m faced with when watching football back in England during February!

The match was 13th versus 5th in the league table and certainly on the evidence of the first half, looked certain to finish goalless. A very drab first half had little of note, apart from Union hitting the post in stoppage time. The second half wasn’t that much better, but Vigo managed to break the deadlock with fifteen minutes left, shooting low into the far corner after a blocked effort rebounded perfectly to finish at the second attempt. From this point onwards the game deteriorated rapidly, as they decided to try and hang on for the win, cheating and rolling about after every challenge and time wasting at every opportunity. Thankfully, they didn’t manage to hold out and five minutes into stoppage time Union managed to grab an equaliser, when a cross from the left was only partially cleared and a shot from the edge of the box found the bottom corner.

We had parked alongside the river, behind the stand we had bought tickets for, but the ground was only accessible via the main stand side when we arrived, but we noticed that they were also allowing spectators to access via a ramp at the back of our stand as kick off approached. We had a real stroke of luck, as the gate remained open at the final whistle, saving us a walk around three sides of the ground and we were back in the car and on the road within minutes of the final whistle. Every little bit helps and as we had just over 150 miles drive to our next game, which was kicking off at 18.30, we certainly weren’t complaining.

Above : The outside of the stand by the river

Below : The view across the river to France from the same position.

Spain

Segunda Division

Saturday 17th February 2024

Kick Off 18.30 Actual 18.29

Real Sporting Gijon 1 Valladolid C.F. 1, attendance 21,130

27’ 0-1

51’ 1-1

@ Estadio Municipal El Molinon

Luis Adaro Ruiz Falco

33203 Gijon

€35 Admission + €1 booking fee, Print at Home ticket

No Programme.

We were on the 0830 (which left 33 minutes late) Vueling flight out of Gatwick, bound for Bilbao. It was to be a shorter trip than normal, as our only option last night would have been a level 5 game, on an artificial pitch, which we felt wasn’t worth paying an extra day for hire car and hotel and it was heading the opposite way that we wanted to go today anyway. Hire car was duly collected and there was plenty of time to head the 170 miles west along the north coast of Spain, with time to check in at our overnight hotel en-route, to the town of Gijon, in the Asturias region. The ground here was opened around 1908 and has been home to Sporting Gijon since 1917, undergoing a number of renovations over the years and also hosted group matches in the 1982 World Cup and currently has an all seated capacity of 29,371. It has four individual stands, which vary between two and four tiers, but has a continuous wrap around with all four corners filled in. We parked just off the first roundabout after exiting the motorway, parking in one of the residential streets, from where it was about 15 minutes walk to the stadium and ideal for a quick getaway after the match. Tickets had already been purchased, so ample time to grab something to eat in a tapas bar right next to the stadium.

The match was 4th versus 6th in the league table and attracted a crowd close on 4,000 more than their average attendance so far this season and a good atmosphere was produced from start to finish. I can only imagine what it must have been like at their last home game, which was a sell out for the visit of Real Oviedo in the Asturian derby. I was impressed by the turnout for the visitors today, although it’s probably one of their shorter trips (by Spanish standards) as it is only a three hour drive!

The game was end to end from start to finish. Both sides certainly came here with the intention of trying to take all three points. Valladolid opened the scoring just before the half hour mark, beating the ‘keeper from a tight angle at his near post and Gijon levelled six minutes into the second half, when the ball was cut back from the right and smashed first time low into the far corner.

Excellent game and stadium to start off our mini trip. It was an hours drive back east to our overnight hotel near Llanes, which would give us a bit of a head start for tomorrow’s first match.