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?