Nottinghamshire F.A. Senior Cup

1st Round

Tuesday 16th September 2025

Kick Off 19.45 Actual 19.47

Stapleford Town 1 Dunkirk 1 (abandoned 87 minutes, player injury) attendance 183

3’ 1-0

5’ 1-1

@ Hickings Lane Recreation Ground, 3G Pitch

Hickings Lane

Stapleford

NG9 8PJ

£8 Admission

Programme (apparently there was a free one, but never saw one).

After the club entered a ground share arrangement in order to gain promotion to Step 6, they are now back at their own ground in Hickings Lane. They used to play on a railed off grass pitch, which is still here, to the right of the car park as you enter the complex. They have now developed a 3G caged pitch, to the left, behind an impressive two storey clubhouse/changing room building, which although open, is not yet fully kitted out. The new pitch runs lengthways away from here and unusually for a cage, has spectator access behind the near goal end and along the left hand side. There’s the usual two kit stands, one seated, but as is often the case with these set ups, awful to view from, whilst the dugouts are opposite.

The match pitted two teams from United Counties League Division 1 (Step 6), with 9th hosting 15th, as far as league positions go. It started off brightly, but deteriorated very quickly. Stapleford opened the scoring after just three minutes, when a player was played through, riding a challenge, before firing a shot high into the near top corner. Dunkirk levelled it up within two minutes, when a diagonal cross in from the left was headed back across into the far corner. There was very little of note in the next eighty two minutes, until a bad challenge on the far side of the pitch resulted in an injury to a home player, who was too badly hurt to be moved and after about ten minutes of dithering, the Referee called the game off.

There were no real problems on either the M25 or M1 in either direction, although the A217 into Reigate was closed just after exiting the motorway, which resulted in a three mile diversion to get home.