Shropshire County League
Premier Division
Friday 21st August 2026
Kick Off 18.30 Actual 18.32
Shrewsbury Up & Comers 1 Ercall Rangers 1, attendance 95
59’ 1-0
74’ 1-1
@ Salop Unison Club
Abbey Foregate
Shrewsbury
SY2 6LY
£3 Admission
No Programme.
Despite living under twenty miles from this ground for around thirty years, I never got here for a game. I did attempt a game here in April 2023, but wrong information on the F.A. Full Time website (not really a surprise!) saw me arrive at the ground, but cricket was taking place and the game was switched to an outside grass pitch at London Road Sports Centre, about a mile up the road. At least it was a new ground visit for me. In September of the same year I saw them play a Friday night match, again switched to London Road due to cricket, with the floodlit pitch inside the athletics track hosting the match this time. At least tonight was third time lucky, helped by advances in social media, with both clubs stating the venue on their respective sites.
The Salop Unison Club is easy to find when entering the town on the A458 from Bridgnorth, which I was, as the entrance is just off the roundabout with the easily visible Lord Hill’s Column adjacent and the pitch is at the back of the Shropshire Council buildings, via a lane that leads off Abbey Foregate. There’s a sizeable car park, with a table set up at the entrance to take admission. On entering, the clubhouse (where you had to sign in if you wanted a drink) is to the left, as are the changing rooms, with picnic tables on the grassed area in front. The cricket pitch is nearest, with the football pitch to the left, running lengthways away from here. Dugouts are on the far side, whilst the pitch is roped behind the near goal end and along the right hand touchline until just beyond the cricket square. As expected, the pitch was bone dry, but very flat and in good condition otherwise.
Up & Comers started the evening third bottom in the league table, having lost their opening three games by just one goal (1-2, 2-3, 0-1). Ercall Rangers had faired much better, winning their opening two, before a 0-0 draw at Llanymynech, but they had suffered their first defeat by losing 1-2 at home to Wrockwardine Wood Juniors on Wednesday night. Tonight’s game was keenly contested, with Ercall probably the less happy of the two with their point. It took until almost the hour mark for the opening goal to arrive, when Up & Comers scored from a free kick just outside the box that beat the ‘keeper low into the bottom corner. Ercall equalised with sixteen minutes left, when an over hit cross from the left was controlled and finished with a low shot back into the far corner. Minutes later they saw a header hit the crossbar, that bounced down onto the goal line before being hacked clear and also had a shot in injury time that spun up into the air and clipped the top of the crossbar.
