Scenery

Ambleside United  2  Windermere Social Club  2

Westmoreland League – Division One

Admission / Programme – No / No

I’ve been to some pretty scenic venues to watch football matches in my time.

You don’t have to stray far from my own County to find some of the best, Belper and Matlock are right up there, but even then you only have to travel an hour or more up the M1 into West Yorkshire and you can find some absolute belters.

I would also say that some of the venues I’ve been to in Wales have been absolutely stunning in terms of the views and the backdrops, but, I can honestly say, when we strolled around the Hillard Park home of Ambleside Unted recently, it jumped to the top of the pile.

The Lake District holiday was in full swing, and to be truthful, I wasn’t overly fussed about a midweek game because everything looked to be a good hike away. Until of course I spotted one that was a mere five minute walk away from where we were staying, and, it was a local derby against Windermere Social Club, who are based just four miles away from Ambleside.

Hillard Park (anyone else used to go to Hillards in Alfreton for the big shop, before it changed to Tesco?), is located just to the South of the centre of Ambleside, with a park separating it from the shops and the pubs etc. It’s also right behind the main car park that serves the town, so location wise, it’s pretty much perfect.

To access it you can either cut through the park or enter via the car park, but either way, it is a fully enclosed ground that is privately owned, with a large dressing room block sitting towards one end of the North side line, with a covered area in front of it where you can stand and watch the game and be sheltered from the elements. 

Otherwise, you’ve got narrow grass banking down the opposite side to the dressing rooms and also half way along behind the Western goal. Even taking the scenery out of the equation for a moment, the actual setting of the ground, with it's tree lined perimeter and fields makes it a lovely spot to watch football. We chose to stand opposite the dressing rooms and from that vantage point it’s where you can truly see the natural beauty that surrounds you. 

The mountain region that sits to the North of Lake Windermere, including Helvellyn, dominate the vista, and earlier during the day we’d been treated to the noisy but awesome sight of RAF Typhoons flying low on exercise through the area. You couldn’t help but be awe inspired by the backdrop, but, on a lovely evening, a large crowd had assembled to watch a game that it appears had not taken place between the two clubs since the 2017-18 season.

I’ll be honest, I don’t know anything about the Westmoreland League, nor do I have much of a handle on the history of Ambleside United, but I do seem to think at one time they did compete in the West Lancashire League

What I do know is that Ambleside won promotion from the second tier of the league last season, having finished runner’s up to Kirkoswald Reserves, while the game against Windermere was to be the clubs opening league fixture of the new campaign.

The game itself was very entertaining. The hosts lead 2-1 at the break thanks to two goals from Thomas Blenkharn, one of them being a penalty and one being a screamer. The Windermere goal having initially come via Sam Harrison, which was noisily cheered by a good size away following.

The visitors piled the pressure on in the second period, and it did look as though they had run out of steam but a late own goal made it 2-2 and the points were shared. On balance, it was probably a fair scoreline in the end.

I would estimate a crowd of around 150 dipped in to watch the game and I’m sure no one could have had any complaints about what they were treated to, or for that matter, the location that they chose to spend ninety minutes in.

Hillard Park is a stunner, and we commented as to what the scenery might be like on a winter’s afternoon, with snow sat on top of the mountains. Having said that, despite the excellent condition of the pitch, and the heavy rain of the previous 24 hours, I’m not sure I’d risk a journey in January or February, I can imagine it’s a bit treacherous on various levels.

So that was the Lake District holiday, we just had the Sheepdog Trials and Hunting Dog Show up the road in Rydal the following day, and that was an eye opener to say the least. That said, it was still the cheapest pint of the week!

If you are in the area, and looking for some football though, make Ambleside United your first port of call, it will certainly not disappoint.

A Brief Encounter

Carnforth Rangers  0  Lytham Town  4

West Lancashire League – Division One

Admission / Programme – No / 50p

The Lake District, that’s right, my voting rights had been removed and it seemed I was going on an extended family holiday to the Lake District, for a week, in August.

Don’t worry, was the mantra, you’ll find some football, was the assumption. They have football in Lake District don’t they, was the question?

Ok, so the base was Ambleside, on the very Northern tip of the pond that is Windermere, with beautiful mountains flanking it, rammed with tourists and pubs selling overpriced beer, but what of the football?

I’ll admit, when it comes to the North of England, I like to think I know my football and I know my geography, but, when it comes to Cumbria and the vicinity, I’m not that well versed. I worked out we were about half an hour from Kendal who were at home, but I’ve been there and done that a few times, we also had Barrow at home, where again, been and done it, and not only that, a pain in the backside to get to. Workington were at home as well, I refer you to my answer about Barrow.

The ones I quite fancied were Penrith and Whitehaven Amateurs, but as is often the case, the fixture Gods were not on my side, so I had to delve a bit deeper, and by that it meant a conversation with my mate Dave who it appears is something of an expert in the area.

The top end of the West Lancashire League was an option (by top end I mean geographical), more locally you had the Westmoreland League, and you also had the Furness League but that wasn’t due to start during our stay.

So, I started with the West Lancashire League, largely because many observers reckon it to be the best Step 7 competition in the Country in terms of it’s standards and it’s facilities. The next problem was, I’d look at some of the teams and have to refer to a map to work out exactly where they played, and, if they were accessible on a Saturday afternoon, bearing in mind I had to be back for 6pm as we had a table booked.

The top division  offered nothing that would work, so I had a look down at the lower divisions and came up with a shortlist.

Carnforth Rangers, Crookland Casuals, Kendal County, Millom, Kendal United and Walney island were the choices, but which of those would be the preferred option, I had no idea so I asked Dave for some advice. He instantly told me Carnforth, it was 45 minutes from my base, it was a nice ground, with cover if it rains, they had a good pitch and they were good with social media so I could keep updated.

That was it then, Carnforth Rangers, which entailed a journey that took me back through Windermere, along the bypass that runs past Kendal, onto the M6 and down one junction from Cumbria into Lancashire, then just a very short journey from the motorway.

I'll be honest, my only previous experiences of Carnforth were effectively seeing the sign on the motorway exit, and, travelling through it on the train when either one the way to, or on the way back from Scotland. The town, while not blessed with a huge population, being resident to around 6,000 people, it is a notable railway town. Once having a depot, it was one of the remaining places to house steam locomotives, and indeed today some remain as part of the tourist attraction that is West Coast Railways. Interesting fact time, Carnforth Railway Station was the filming location for some of the scenes in David Lean's 'Brief Encounter', in fact the refreshment room at the station commemorates this.  

Prior to visiting, I’d been warned about the potholed lane that winds it’s way to the ground. It wasn’t as bad as I was expecting, it was just Dave being hyper-sensitive again, so once that had been traversed, and a parking spot secured, it was time to have a look at what all the fuss was about.

What a super little ground, with a rail on three sides, it has the dressing rooms, storage buildings and a small bar / tea bar behind the goal, while down one side is a tidy seated stand that is cut into the steep banking that flanks the perimeter. The initials CRFC are painted in red along the bank wall of the stand, while the seats are of the red plastic variety.

The club had communicated via Twitter (it will always be Twitter for me) about the game in the morning and my messaged enquiry about the weather conditions and the pitch was answered promptly. However, when I saw the pitch I needn’t have had any concerns, it was in superb condition and resembled a bowling green.

Carnforth Rangers are a well established club who play, as I said, in Division One, but having spoken to club officials before the game they are keen to make it into the Premier Division. In fact, it’s important to point out at this stage that the people I spoke to at the club were nothing other than very friendly and welcoming, and they clearly take pride in the fact that neutrals want to visit them.

I’ll be honest though, if they want to get promotion this season, then they will have to play better than they did against the Fylde coast visitors Lytham Town, who had the edge all over the pitch and cruised home relatively comfortably with a 4-0 victory.

It was pointed out before the game though that the hosts did have a few key players unavailable, so once they are back into the fold it may well be a very different story moving forward, or at least you would hope.

So, on a day that started with heavy rain and finished with bright sunshine, the choice to go to Carnforth Rangers, in my opinion, had been a very good one. A great little club with excellent facilities, and a very warm welcome. Dave had called it spot on, even if his pot hole concerns had been a little over the top.

What more could you ask for?

The Long Way Home

Shawbury United  3  AFC Bridgnorth  3

Midland Football League – Division One

Admission / Programme – £5 / No

I can remember it so vividly, it would have been November 2004 and I was felling pretty crappy. I’d got a heavy cold, and on top of that the industry I was working within was going through a significant legislative change, so consequently it was a nightmare from a system and process point of view.

I was torn, did I just feel sorry for myself, admit defeat and go home, or, did I jump in the car, drive to Wem, and watch Shawbury United play Pelsall Villa?

I was nearing my exit of the A38 at Ripley, and I was on the phone to a colleague, the conversation had being going about five minutes and we’d kind of cheered each other up a bit so I decided rather than leave the A38 and go home, I would soldier on to Wem.

I was sat in the bar at Wem when it was announced that there would be a delay to proceedings because Pelsall had got kit issues (it was in a players car and he was running late). Anyway, eventually we got going and it was while I was stood waiting for the referee to start the game, that a bloke I was next to turned to me and said…

“I  can get here from f***ing Chesterfield on time, yet they can’t get from Pelsall!”

It struck a chord, because I too had started my journey that night, in Chesterfield, so as you can imagine, we got on, and we got on well, especially when I also learned he worked in the Financial Services industry like myself!

That man was Steve Reading, my mate Steve, the man who for almost twenty years now I’ve spoken to on a weekly basis about football, about life, about pubs, about all kinds of shite to be honest! I’ve lost count of the number of games we’ve either gone to together, or just met up at, by choice or by accident. Our other halves are letting us have a jolly boys weekend away together in a few weeks time when we finally get to the Isle of Man for a couple of games, the emergency services have been placed on alert!

There is an irony though, and it only came to light some time after that night. The game itself ended 4-1 to Shawbury, but it was declared null and void because the referee chose to only play forty minutes each way! At the time, because we had been chatting, we had no idea. Anyway, for all intents and purposes, the game where we first met, no longer exists in the record books!  

From time to time we do laugh about that night, but to be honest, since that day, I’ve never seen Shawbury play again, despite them being stalwarts of the West Midlands Regional League and nowadays the Midland League.

One thing I have been aware of though is that fact that Shawbury have been desperate to play in their home village in Shropshire, but they’ve been denied for years due to a lack of suitable facilities for the level they compete at, despite having got planning permission on a site back in 2014. They played at Wem when I first became aware of them, then when they left Wem they went to Ludlow, but at the start of the season, with rumours of work starting any time soon on the site in Shawbury, it was announced that for the current season at least, they’d be playing on a 4G ground located in what is effectively the car park of Shrewsbury Town’s ground.

Being the cynics that Steve and I are, we both worked on the principal that because talk of the move to a new home in Shawbury has been going on for such a long time, it was very much in the “we’ll believe it when we see it” category. So, on that basis we’d add the home at Shrewsbury onto the visit list, as it may not be quite as temporary as had been suggested. This isn’t a dig at Shawbury by any means, it’s just that history tells us these things are often more prolonged than anyone intends them to be, largely due to the unforeseen! I actually do hope that they do get into Shawbury sooner rather than later, not least because having now been to the temporary home, it’s clear that as a club they are going to struggle to move forwards until they have a place of their own.

In simple terms, to access the ground you drive into the large car park at Shrewsbury Town, follow it round to the area at the back of the South Stand, where you will find a 4G pitch with a viewing area down one side, while next to it is a building that houses the dressing rooms and a tea bar area that served a limited selection of offerings.

Other than the gate receipts, it’s hard to see how else Shawbury will be able to generate any income from home games, but then I guess life has been like that for a while now? There isn’t any cover at the ground, but thankfully it was a warm and dry evening.

If the facilities were a little underwhelming, the game certainly wasn’t.

Shawbury raced into a two goal lead inside ten minutes thanks to strikes from Seth Ellis and Ablay Sowe, but on the 12th minute Bridgnorth pulled a goal back through Jordan Graham.

Luke Morris then made it 2-2 in the 26^th minute, and the turnaround was completed in the 43^rd minute when Mark Danks made it 2-3 just before half time.

Shawbury forced a last minute equaliser through Bobby Abyemang but then as we were well into the lengthy spell of eight minutes of added time, the game took a sour turn when Jordan Graham went down in the box with what was clearly a serious injury. After initial assessments by the medical team at Bridgnorth, the referee elected to blow the final whistle, and it subsequently transpired that Graham had suffered a double fracture of his leg, with the x-ray being displayed for all to see the following day via social media. Clearly, I join everyone in wishing him a speedy recovery.

A very entertaining game, at a good club who desperately need to get back home finally after all of these years. I reckon once it happens, I ought to perhaps go with Steve, it would be like old times, let’s hope on this occasion when they do kick a ball again in Shawbury, the referee remembers to play ninety minutes!

Grace

FCV Grace Dieu  2  Ellistown  1

Friendly

Admission / Programme – No / No

If you have the time or the inclination, feel free to scan back through my musings to December 2018 when I went to Thringstone Miners Welfare.

I talk at length about the nearby Grace Dieu Priory and it’s legendary ghost, the ‘White Lady’, and indeed the fact that the then incarnation of the said football club, if you trace it back, can be linked to a merger between clubs called Grace Dieu United and Thringstone United. I then went on to poke fun at the spiritual World, and the fact a ghost doesn’t have to buy a ticket to travel on a bus!

So, in short, on the main road the links Shepshed and the M1 with Ashby de la Zouch (A512), you have on the left hand side the ruins of an Augustinian Priory, which has been the site of numerous accounts of paranormal phenomena, largely attributed to the fact that it sits on the geological Thringstone Fault, which in turn sets it within close proximity to several ley lines. I don’t profess to understand how all of this stuff works, but it seems it’s got many of the features that prove attractive to spooks and ghouls!

I kind of forgot all about Grace Dieu Priory, pretty much within seconds of posting the blog, probably because it was nearly Christmas and I had stuff to do, but then last season I was chatting to my mate Dave and he told me he’d been doing a bit of research into a football club who played in the Under 21 Division of the Midland League, called FCV Grace Dieu, who appeared to be some sort of footballing academy….

I’ll be honest though, I failed to make the connection between the club and the Priory, right up until the Notts Senior League announced it’s constitution, and I think only when I saw the name actually written down, did I realise that we were talking about a club, that played in the grounds of the said Grace Dieu Priory.

This was now somewhat intriguing, what was FCV Grace Dieu all about, but also, how come it was located where it was, on pagan land!

Before we get into what detail I can glean, let’s give it the build up. I spotted via the media formerly known as Twitter that the club had a friendly against neighbours Ellistown, a club on the edges of Coalville. I engaged with Steve on the matter and a mutual agreement was made, we were going!

To access the ground, you have to keep your wits about you as the entrance is on the left hand side as you enter a fast band as you drop down a hill. Once into the entrance it’s a short drive up with fields on both sides, before you get to a car park that sits in front of an impressive building with the words FCV International Football Academy spelt out on the fascia.

Behind this impressive building, which was serving meals to the home playing squad when I arrived, is a modest sized Manor House clad in white rendering. Further educational and sports related buildings, of varying ages, are dotted around the complex, but more importantly from our point of view, what looks like being a very decent football ground is a work in progress on the Eastern edges of the site.

It's a 4G pitch, with the entrance via a tall fence behind the South goal, while moving round clockwise you have the Western side that isn’t accessible to spectators but it does have the dugouts and a green mesh fence that gives the ground an enclosed feel. The North side is also inaccessible but again it has a green mesh fence, but this time a large black and red banner sits impressively all the way along the end with the words, yes, you’ve guessed it, FCV International Football Academy displayed across it. The Eastern side is where the spectators can go, and you have a choice, you can either stand behind the barrier and go pitch side, or you can stand behind another barrier that sits at the top of a bank that runs the length of the pitch. It does look like building work is set to start on the top of the bank and I would hazard a guess that it will be the changing rooms and such like, as a an entrance way to the pitch area is already in place.

I did like the floodlights as well, the lamps were sat on top of what looked like green ladders, quite an old fashioned look about them, and I would suggest in keeping with the surroundings.

So then, what the heck is FCV Grace Dieu / International Football Academy all about then?

Well, it’s a privately owned football academy where students are full time residents, and they combine football stuff with educational matters. The roots of the academy go back to 2000, when the founder, Graham Starmer, who created the footballcv.com website (hence FCV), gave footballers a platform to be spotted by talent scouts, before choosing to expand and open up a football academy.

The academy initially started in Irthlingborough, before then moving to Stamford, until finally deciding upon the 66 acre site it currently stands on. Once located at Grace Dieu, that was when the students / footballers could become residential and take advantage of the facilities on offer.

Since the academy began, several players have gone on to sign professional contracts, and indeed gain international honours at varying levels.

But why Grace Dieu, from a location point of view? No idea to be honest, unless of course it was simply a case of it being the right location at the right time, but whatever the reason, it’s clearly worked out very well.

So, this season they have decided to drop a team into senior men’s football, and quite what a culture shock it will be when they rock up at some of the place and the pitches in the Notts Senior League is anyone’s guess, but for now, they are up for giving it a good go. They have been allowed to join the second tier of four in the NSL, so clearly they are confident, but what of the game against Ellistown?

To be fair, the young FCV side played some decent stuff and came out with a 2-1 victory that they just about deserved on the night against what looked to be a more experienced Ellistown side. I see from social media that Grace Dieu have over recent weeks announced a few new signings, and whether or not they are actual academy students I’m not sure? Maybe a blend of youth and experience is perhaps the right way to go as they transition to a different level.

This is definitely a story to watch with interest, off the field they look to be building something very impressive, on the field it isn’t necessarily about winning titles and promotions, of course they would love to do that, but player development is the key, and of course the two can go hand in hand.

Saying all that, I’m not sure how I’d feel about being a resident within spitting distance of a haunted house, no matter how good the facilities!

Cages

Oldbury United  2  Bewdley Town Development  1

West Midlands Regional League – Division Two

Admission / Programme - £5 / No

I had a plan, we’d leave Weymouth early on the Saturday morning, and as long as the traffic behaved itself, then I reckoned I could drop Mrs and Master H off, before doing an about turn and heading to football, in Wolverhampton!

All went pretty much to plan, Storm Adolf or whatever it was called wasn’t helpful as high winds and rain buffeted much of the South of England, and of course the lottery that is the A38 at Lichfield gave us a decision to make in terms of going all the way up to East Midlands Airport.

Feeling a little weary after what was around four and a half hours on the road, the car was unloaded and it was time to do an about turn, the destination being the City of Wolverhampton College, Bilston Campus!

My only concern was the game I’d got in mind, Oldbury United v Bewdley Town Development, while it may have been scheduled to be played on an artificial surface, I had no concerns about the weather, but at the same time, neither club had put anything on social media. I did have a backup plan at Dudley Kingswinford which wasn’t far away, but I was mindful that was due to be played on a grass pitch, and to be fair, games across the Country were being called off.

It’s the West Midlands Regional League, we’ve got two new venues this season to visit, it was looking like four at one stage but when Brierley Hill Alliance discovered they couldn’t find any players, and Kewford Eagles decided not to bother, it left us with a couple of clubs in the Black Country, both of which were not far from each other.

Oldbury came as a bit of a surprise though, they’ve been around, on and off, for a while now, so not a new club by any means, more on that later, but I must admit, I wasn’t expecting to see them on the new grounds list for this season. But, what of this club?

I remember the name from when I first got into non-league football in the mid-Eighties. And the reason I remember it is very specific. I think we were on a family day out to West Midlands Safari Park, and when we drove down the M5 I remember seeing a set of distinctive floodlights on the right hand side, very close to the edge of the carriageway. I can’t remember exactly how I worked it out, probably via the Non-League Directory and a Birmingham A-Z, but it was the Cricketts home of Southern League club Oldbury.

Oldbury United came about when clubs Queens Colts and Oldbury Town merged and joined the Worcestershire Combination in 1966. A couple of years later they joined the Midland Combination before electing to join the Midland Division of the Southern League. They remained for four seasons before a bottom placed finish saw them relegated to the West Midlands Regional League. They won the competition in 1992-93 but were not promoted, and instead were founder members of the newly formed Midland Football Alliance which commenced in 1994-95 season.

They remained in the competition until the 2008-09 season which was a campaign marred by a dispute with the owners of the Cricketts, which meant they had to spend the season at the home of Tividale FC. Unfortunately, the loss of the Cricketts was too much and at the end of the said season, the club folded.

A reformed club (I can’t comment on whether any links to the previous club remain) appeared in 2017-18, in the West Midlands Regional League Division Two, but the following season saw them resign part way through. Once again though, they re-appeared at the start of last season, in Division Two, finishing in seventh place. This time around, as we know, they have set up base in Bilston, eight miles away from their old home which was on York Road in Rowley Regis.

I was fortunate to get to the Cricketts on York Road, it was a midweek game, it would have been 2003 and I seem to think it was a Birmingham Senior Cup tie, possibly against Moor Green, but as I’m writing this blog from a holiday home in the Lake District, I don’t have my records to hand to confirm!

I remember it being a proper old fashioned non-league ground, which, if Google Maps is anything to go by, still stands. It had low roofed covered standing behind one of the goals and also on the M5 side, while a seated stand and some more cover sat on the York Road side, where the dressing rooms and the impressive clubhouse were located. I don’t know if it’s in use anymore, I seem to think other teams did play there after Oldbury, one of the being Crown if memory serves me correctly, but as it stands right now, I couldn’t tell you.

Anyway, back to present day, the journey down was fine, I had to deal with the Walsall Ring Road and then out over the M5 to the Black Country Route, but once past the distinctive Queen Street home of Bilston Town, it was a right at the next roundabout, up through Bilston itself with the college on the right hand side.

The 4G is round the back of the college and is exactly what you would expect, a caged facility but without a viewing area, and a couple of temporary dugouts on the far side. I was relieved to see it was game on when I arrived, in fact, not only was it game on, it was £5 admission to watch it, from the outside of a cage, through a fence…….but, it seems one or two clubs are charging a decent amount in the WMRL Division Two this season, which is fine, but as someone who was charged similar at Dudley Kingswinford said to me, this is effectively Step 8 football? Having said that, when you consider the costs of actually putting a game on when you add in venue hire, officials, other expenses etc, you can’t blame clubs for wanting to generate cash in any way they can.

Game wise, it was a competitive affair, goals from Luke Aherne and Alex Thompson put the hosts 2-0 up but a late strike from Wilfie Cavanagh reduced the arrears and lead to a nervous closing stages for Oldbury, but they did ultimately hold out for the three points. Interestingly, before the game I understand the referee made it very clear that he would not hesitate to issue yellow cards for any form of dissent. It seems that warning fell on deaf ears to a certain extent, until the message finally got through when it was clear he meant business. Nine yellows issued in total!!

I was ready for a lie down when I got back, 330 miles to watch a West Midlands Regional League Division Two game, not the sort of thing I’d do every weekend!

The Best You've Never Had

Dorchester Town U23  7  Swanage Town & Herston  0

Friendly

Admission / Programme – No / No

I was asked recently as to what I considered to be the best football ground in England……..that I haven’t actually seen a game at.

I was kind of torn, because first things first, I haven’t been to the said places, so I could only work from photographic evidence, but I had got it narrowed down to two grounds, both of which in the grand scheme of things are pretty close to each other.

Salisbury and Dorchester Town, and with the holiday in Dorset booked, surely I would be able to get to one of them, and hopefully, from a geographical perspective, it would be Dorchester because from our base in Weymouth, it was only about a ten minute drive away.

The footballing Gods looked down on me, and while it wasn’t to be a first team game, I did spot that the Under 23 side were playing at home to Dorset Premier League outfit, Swanage Town & Herston, that, ladies and gentleman, would do for me!

Let’s have a childhood rewind again. It was the Summer holiday of 1987, we had been to a pre-season friendly at Weymouth where they entertained Cardiff City. It was played at the clubs shiny new Wessex Stadium home, the club having recently moved from the old Recreation Ground which is now an Asda that can be spotted a short distance away from Town Bridge down in the harbour.

Knowing that Dorchester also had a club, I seem to recall Dad made some excuse while we were out and about in the car to go and have a drive to have a look at the ground. We did that a lot on holiday, many of which I have since been back to for games, Sidmouth Town, Newquay and Ottery St Mary spring to mind. Anyway, we went to Dorchester, an old fashioned ground on the South side of the town, but plans were afoot for a move, only a few yards away!

And that was what happened, in 1990, the club moved to what at the time was a publicly well received facility, literally next door to the old site, which came with a seal of approval than none other than the current King Charles! It seems the £3 million project was built on land owned by the Duchy of Cornwall, so Charlie had a big say in the architectural and aesthetic side of the project. Not one for ‘monstrous carbuncles’, he has visited the site on a few occasions, although I don’t think he’s ever done it for a pre-season friendly!

To be fair to His Highness, he got it spot on in terms of designing a football ground, what a beauty it is, albeit, for a first time visitor it is now starting to show it’s age a little, but that in no way detracts from what is without doubt a top drawer stadium, that did host Football League games in 2001-02 season when AFC Bournemouth had a spell away from Dean Court while it was being re-developed.

As expected the journey from Weymouth was a breeze and a good hour before kick off I’d negotiated the roundabouts and was pulling into a space right outside the main entrance to the ground. Let’s start with the exterior, from the outside the ground has the feel of a fortress, with high brick walls, and pitched roofed buildings in each corner that resemble turrets. The main stand is a significant building and from the rear where the main entrance and signage is,  you can see that it contains all of the facilities the club needs such as the changing rooms, the bar and of course club offices.

It was free admission, so in I wandered and first hand got to experience the majesty (no pun intended) of the stadium. The main stand offers an impressively elevated viewing position with a large number of seats (DTFC can be picked out in black and white), while either side of the stand, right down to the corners are areas of uncovered terracing. Behind the South goal is a steep area of terracing complete with crush barriers and a pitched roof, while on the East side of the ground a similar but lengthier structure is in situ, punctuated by a large turnstile block area that straddles the half way line.

Finally, behind the North goal is another area of elevated terracing, this time without a roof, but, this area looks like one that can easily be segregated should Weymouth or Yeovil Town pay a visit. Yes, it is a fabulous stadium, but what it does have is a bit of class, with a nod to the historic. I can see exactly why it received so much positive publicity when it was first built. One change that has taken place very recently is the laying of a 4G surface, the Avenue is very much a community facility.

But what about the football club, because, when you build a new ground it’s often looked upon as the launchpad to success on the field?

Well, going back to the Post War period the club were a Western League side, before moving to the Southern League in 1972 where they became members of Division One South. The club did get promotion to the Premier Division where they remained through the latter part of the Eighties and into the Nineties when they moved to the Avenue.

They made the cut to become founder members of the Conference South in 2004, where they remained without making much of an impression for ten years before being relegated back to the Southern League again, where they remain.

Since being back in the Southern League, the highest finish has been thirteenth, so right now, they do have the feel of a club that is somewhat entrenched in Step 3.

They’ve had some FA Cup success, one of the highlights being 1981-82 when neighbouring AFC Bournemouth were held to a 1-1 draw at home in the Second Round, before a replay at Dean Court ended in a 2-1 defeat. A First Round 9-1 defeat came at Oxford United in 1995-96, while in 2000-01 they fell to a 3-1 defeat at Wigan Athletic.

Oxford United were then held to a draw in 2008-09 before they won a replay 3-1 at the Avenue, while in 2012-13 the clubs first victory over a Football League club came when they beat Plymouth Argyle 1-0 at the Avenue, before losing 3-1 at Luton Town in the Second Round.

So that kind of brings us up to the present day, but what did the Under 23’s get up to against the Dorset Premier League side, who themselves have competed at a higher level in the past? Well to be honest the hosts blew them away with an impressive 7-0 victory, five of the goals coming before the break.

To be fair, Dorchester won the Hampshire Combination Development League last season, losing only two games an averaging almost four goals per game scored, so they are clearly a decent outfit, and on the night they were simply too good.

So the best ground in England I’d never visited, has now had a visit, and I’d go as far as to say, in terms of grounds I’ve been to, and there have been a fair few from a non-league perspective, it would be right up at the very top end.

It shouldn’t be in the Southern League though, it’s better than that……….Charlie would agree I'm sure! 

The Panini Years

Wimborne Town  0  Worcester City  1

Friendly

Admission / Programme – £5 / No

It’s Summer holiday season again and in a break from tradition this year, it wasn’t going to involve Devon or Cornwall.

No, the destination was slightly more East than usual, with Dorset being our base, in fact Weymouth to be more precise.

Weymouth, childhood memories of being in a train compartment with the family, which at the time included two Grandma’s and a Grandad. You see, back then I’d discovered car sickness, so the decision was taken that we would start to head to the seaside courtesy of British Rail. It would have been the Summer of 1980, and I know that because it was the Summer where I really started to get into football, ok, I was not quite eight yet, but it was all about football at that time and I was soaking up the knowledge….

I’d discovered the Panini sticker book, so much of Weymouth in 1980 was made up of filling that in, but I was a bit late to the party, it was the 1979-80 edition, and Derby County were at that time a First Division side. As everyone knows, Derby were relegated at the end of the 79-80 campaign and were due to spend a significant period out of the top flight, but as far as I was concerned, the Second Division was going to a breeze, and as the T-Shirts used to say, “We’ll be back in 81”….

To cut the story short, Weymouth 1980 was when I truly fell in love with football, it had a lot to answer for, clearly!

I have been to Weymouth a few times since that Summer of Love, again with M&D in 1987, and a couple of times since under my own steam, but it’s been a while, over 20 years in fact since it was last a destination of choice, Dorset was due to be re-explored, but what did it hold from a football perspective?

Not a lot if we are being honest, on the day we travelled, the only game of note, bearing in mind it was still pre-season, was an hour away in Wimborne, a town to the North of the Poole / Bournemouth area. They were playing Worcester City who I suspect were having a pre-season jolly of their own at the seaside, but I could be wrong.

An early start meant we were arriving in Weymouth mid-morning, and with an early check in assured the roads past Dorchester and out towards Wimborne were relatively clear, meaning we were driving through the pretty Minster town just under an hour before kick off.

Wimborne have recently moved grounds, from the Cuthbury which was on the North side of the town on the way in, to the New Cuthbury which is out on the West side in amongst a new housing development. Steve went just after it first opened, a midweek game against Weston-super-Mare, it got abandoned due to a waterlogged pitch, so I did joke with him the week prior that I was hoping to at least get a full game in!

So what’s the Wimborne Town history then?

Formed in 1878, they played in various Dorset based leagues before joining the Western League in 1981, where they remained, out on a limb somewhat, until 1987 when they became founder members of the Wessex League.

The league was won three times (1992, 1994, 2000), before a runners up spot in 2004 saw them take up a place in the Southern League (South & West Division). A couple of difficult seasons were followed by some modest seasons, until 2018 when they actually lost a Play-Off Final to Swindon Supermarine, only to be promoted anyway due to a vacancy. Covid interrupted the clubs spell at the Premier Division South, but in what was technically the clubs four season, last time out, they finished bottom and are now back in the First Division South.

In the FA Cup, they did reach the First Round in 1982-83 season, only to lose 4-0 at Aldershot, but their crowning moment came in the FA Vase. It was the 1991-92 season (when they first won the Wessex League), Bamber Bridge were beaten in a two legged semi-final before favourites Guiseley were met at Wembley and beaten 5-3. To this day, Wimborne are the only Dorset club to ever win a trophy at the national stadium.

So what’s the shiny new ground like then? Very good I have to say. A good sized car park welcomes you before a smart building with the clubs name on the side greets you as you walk up towards the turnstiles. Once clicked through you’ve got the dressing rooms to the left and the impressive clubhouse to the right, with the tea bar attached to the side. Two seated stands sit in front of the building, straddling the half way line, while on the opposite side is flat standing.

Behind the goal to the left is some cover over a flat standing area, while behind the opposite goal it is also covered, but this time with terracing steps. In the corner to the right hand end is a very impressive electronic scoreboard, in colour!

On a glorious day, a crowd of closing in on 300, with a good number having travelled down the M5, were treated to a very competitive and at times spiky affair. Wimborne had the edge in the early stages but as the tackles flew in and tempers rose, the hosts found themselves down to ten men when a reckless challenge right in front the stand saw a red card produced.

It was still a bit fruity after the half time interval, but as both sides made changes things did calm down somewhat and the Step 5 visitors then started to exert themselves with a man advantage. A goal eventually arrived, and despite late pressure from Wimborne, it was the boys from Worcester who gained the victory, which they celebrated at the final whistle.

It definitely didn’t have the feel of a friendly, and this is something I’ve noticed especially this pre-season, the number of games that have had to be curtailed early due to player misconduct, or, have seen sides either reduced in numbers or been asked to substitute players, seems to be on the up.

A very enjoyable afternoon out though, Wimborne Town as a club have a really nice feel about them, everyone seemed friendly and the club themselves were very informative both prior to the game and during it. I hope they can bounce back this time around.

But it was now time for the road back to Weymouth, and a trip down memory lane, can you still get Panini sticker albums, asking for a friend?

A Port In A Storm

AFC Sandiacre  1 Sandiacre Town  5

Friendly

Admission / Programme – No / No

To be completely honest, I had no idea where to go on Saturday 22^nd July.

Nothing was coming up for any of the clubs I specifically wanted to visit, and given the weather forecast of torrential rain, no way was I planning on travelling far for a game, when a club could suddenly call a game off to protect the pitch (which did happen to be fair all across the Country).

No, I was bereft of ideas up until the Friday night when I spotted on Twitter that Sandiacre Town were playing what I think are their reserve side (AFC Sandiacre) on the plastic pitch at Friesland School. So, it was a local game, on a surface that wouldn’t be a problem, and I’d never been to the said school, so why not, and if I arrived to find it was off, Derby County were playing Stoke City a bit further back down the A52.

So, it was off to Sandiacre, where the first team right now are looking forward to their first season at Step 6 following promotion from the Notts Senior League last season. They will be competing in the United Counties League, which to be fair is the highest level they’ve operated at in the modern era, having previously got as a far as the Supreme Division of the Central Midlands League.

AFC Sandiacre have taken up a place in the second tier of the NSL this season, which is notionally Step 8, and if memory serves I think the highest level they can play at given the first teams status, if I recall there has to be a two step difference, but of course I could be wrong. However, being called AFC Sandiacre, is that a reserve team or is it a different club, I’ll let you decide on that one……!

It was a crappy old day to be fair, and having driven through the driving rain, my first challenge was locating the entrance to the school, which I missed first time around, when I realised what I thought was the entrance was in fact someone’s driveway….anyway, a quick about turn and we were soon meandering our way through the school and out to the back where the floodlit 4g pitch is situated.

Turns out the advertised 2pm start was more of a guide, the game kicked off closer to 1.45pm, well, I guess if everyone’s ready, and getting wet, why not just get on with it?

Facilities wise, it’s what you would expect, with a viewing area down one side. I think the game was only being played at the school due to availability and pitch preservation reasons, I expect AFC will play at St Giles Park along with Town this season, but I stand to be corrected.

The game, well for saying they were all technically team mates, it was a competitive affair, so much so after an altercation in the second period a player from each side was forced to be substituted as efforts to instil peace between the two seemed to be failing miserably. Whether they met up for a pint back at the clubhouse afterwards is anyone’s guess!

Town won the game 5-1, it was relatively straightforward and I guess expected. I’m hoping Town have a good season in the UCL, they were a club who back in the early Nineties were being touted as an up and coming outfit that could go on to mix it with some of the bigger boys, but that never transpired and the club did drop into the Midlands Regional Alliance and what is effectively local parks football.

I will have a run down this season and see what’s developing, as for AFC Sandiacre, well, again, it will be interesting to see what the season holds for them, but I think they will be more than ok at the level they are in.

The journey home was again through pouring rain, and I was just glad to get out of the wet clothes and dry off. It’s meant to be July, it’s not meant to be like this, in fact this time last season games were being called off for safety reasons as it was too hot!

You can’t beat the good old British Pre-Season can you……….

Geography

Meadow Park  4  Hampton  2

Friendly

Admission / Programme – No / No

My gaffer isn’t known for his sense of geography.

“I’m in Manchester on Thursday, pop over and see me in the morning, it’s not far from you is it?”

Mileage wise no, it’s not that far, but time wise first thing in a morning it’s an absolute crock of the proverbial. The first forty miles can take an hour, the remaining ten miles even longer, it’s an absolute pleasure, but then again, did I have much of a choice?

No, of course I didn’t, but as the day drew ever closer, I’d begun to hatch myself a wee little plan. You see, the boss was driving back to Scotland the same day and had made it clear he needed to be away by 2pm, myself on the other hand, well I’d worked out that I would have more than enough time to do the M6 and M5 run South, to the Southern outskirts of Bromsgrove.

I can’t say as I’ve been to Bromsgrove very often, not football wise that is, I’ve only been a couple of times to watch Rovers play. At one point going back three bosses ago, he was stationed in the town so I had to make the odd trip to to an estate agency branch, but apart from that, it’s a place I’m not altogether familiar with.

The Midland Football League called it’s constitutions quite early this Summer, and one name that dropped onto the list was that of Meadow Park, a club cased in Stoke Prior, who last season had been plying their craft in the lower divisions of the Hellenic League, the divisions that clubs reputedly get conned into joining only to find out that officially you cannot get promoted out of as they don’t form part of the Regional Feeder Leagues!

I can’t say why Meadow Park have chosen to make the move, maybe it is the promotion issue, although I would suspect it’s more a case of playing in a league that suits them geographically, as they would have been an outpost in the Hellenic. But anyway, they’ve made the move, and after broaching the subject with Steve, we both decided to make the trip.

The motorways did indeed behave themselves, and just as I was traversing the ring road and roundabouts that punctuate the edges of Bromsgrove, Steve called to tell me that he’d parked up and had found the pub we’d planned on visiting. It seems Stoke Prior, was welcoming us accordingly.

Now, word of warning if you are going by car, if you don’t do your homework I can 100% guarantee that you will miss the entrance to the ground. For a start, you will never think to turn into some factory gates, but it seems you do, because to the very side of the said gates, hidden from view as you are passing, is a small entrance that takes you up a slope and into the car park. Yes, I did miss it, and I won’t be the last!

An hour before kick off, players were arriving, kids were training on the vast expanses, and a pitch was marked out with corner flags in place, all looked ok so off to the pub we went, a short walk away crossing over the canal.

We arrived back at the ground just as the players were coming out onto the pitch, and that gave us a little bit of time to survey the scenery. A grass bank flanks two sides of the pitch, with dugouts currently being built on the factory side. The dressing rooms sit behind the goal, and to be fair we never ventured into the building to see if any refreshment options might be available, so if they do, apologies Meadow Park.

As for the game, well it’s was a strange one as the higher ranking visitors went into a two goal lead and for all intents and purposes you could see nothing other than an away victory, but fair play to the hosts who fought back to not only regain parity, they also scored twice in the second period to seal what on paper looked like a fairly straightforward victory. It wasn’t that straightforward though, they had to re-group at 2-0 to turn the game around.

So that was it, and it was only when I turned the sat nav on that I remembered about the carnage that is the roadworks Northbound on the A38 at Lichfield, which in turn culminated in taking the M42 all the way up to the M1 at East Midlands Airport. It probably didn’t add that much more on time wise than had I gone the normal route without the roadworks, it just felt like it was longer.

It’ll be interesting to see how Meadow Park perform this season, and it will also be interesting to see when the gaffer resumes our meetings North of the border, only it seems a long while since I was at Stirling Albion…..and with respect, it beats a morning in Manchester!