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Post by eppinggas on Apr 23, 2023 8:24:21 GMT
Buckhurst Hill 2 West Essex 3 (Essex Senior League) Tier 9.
A last home game of the season for Buckhurst Hill (BH). Always a surprise how quickly the end of the season comes around after Easter. I really should have got used to it by now. BH were promoted to the ESL last year and I thought they would be mid-table, maybe better. Wrong. Southend Manor and Clapton have the 2 relegation spots booked and then comes BH. Interestingly Clapton FC should play in the same league as Clapton Community FC (the splinter Club) next season and that should be a very feisty encounter. West Essex are historically based in Chingford, so sort of a local derby. BH didn't look comfortable on the ball. They must have lost some decent players over the last year or so. West Essex (WE) were clearly the better side and played some good one touch football. WE smacked the post with the keeper well beaten. A great move down the WE left ended with a classy dummy and the ball was dispatched, 1-0. WE then hit the stanchion. 1-0 HT and a can of Stella. WE continued to control the game and scored another couple of goals to finish off BH. Or did they. Around 75 mins there was a rare BH attack and the WE keeper should have done better with the shot pretty much straight at him 3-1. WE wobbled a bit. A BH corner 10 minutes later and the ball was headed in at the near post. 3-2. WE now backs to the wall, but held on. It would have been criminal if they'd sneaked a point.
Result
Buckhurst Hill £12.50. (£7 entry, 10 page program a rather steep £2, can of Stella £3.50)
Attendance: 120. To be fair quite a few Orient fans go to Buckhurst Hill and they would have been celebrating the League 2 title at Brisbane Road.
Edit: Buckhurst Hill finished 4th from bottom. The sweary yobs from Sawbridgeworth finished below them. Fingers crossed for Sawbo relegation next season.
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Post by eppinggas on Jun 2, 2023 9:02:45 GMT
Season wrap up:
27 games at a total cost of £205.52, an average cost of £7.61 entry.
Most expensive Chelmsford City (£15) in Conference south. More expensive than Bundesliga 2 football (£14.19).
Cheapest - Old Brentwoods in the Arthurian League. Free entry.
Recommend: Old Brentwoods, Magdeburg, Hornchurch, Paulton Rovers, Saffron Walden, FC United, Buckhurst Hill, Waltham Abbey.
Avoid: Frenford, Redbridge.
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Post by eppinggas on Jul 30, 2023 8:38:27 GMT
And the season starts again...
Wormley Rovers 0 Clapton Community FC 0. Thurlow Nunn Eastern Counties Division 1 South (tier 10). Wormley is north of Cheshunt in the Lee Valley. An awkward 12 mile drive from Epping. Car park was full and managed to find a grass verge. A lot more welcoming than my last visit to Wormley with polite bar staff. Clapton Community FC (CCFC) were promoted last season and this was to be their first ever game at this level. They are very well supported and were formed after an acrimonious split from Clapton FC (CFC). CCFC now own the Spotted Dog ground in Forest Gate. CFC are now nomadic, losing support and not looking in good shape. CCFC are anti-facist, anti-establishment - dare I say hipsters... they sold 11,500 away shirts when they were a tier 12 side (the away shirt is based on the International Brigades and the Flag of the Second Spanish Republic). CCFC and CFC are now in the same division and that game is likely to get very tasty. Also I see Harlow Town in this division. They had to abandon last season due to a dodgy plastic pitch. Harlow are a big Club to be in tier 10. CCFC sported their famous away shirt (red, purple, yellow) and Wormley in red and black. CCFC were on top in the 1st half and unlucky not to go in a goal up. Their little No.7 linking well with the strikers. A very reasonable (for these parts) Bierra Moretti at £4.90 at HT. Wormley a lot better in the 2nd half, but a lot of huffing and puffing did not produce anything that looked like leading to a goal. 0-0 at FT and honours shared, a fair result. Their was minimal bad language, the game was played in good spirit and the officials had a very good game - these things are important to me.
Result
Wormley Rovers £20.70. £6 entry, free e-programme, 3 pints of Bierra Moretti (I was thirsty) £14.70.
Attendance: Est 120-150? A lot more CCFC than Wormley supporters. Will update if I can find it.
Attendance: 70. (Well Clapton made a lot of noise, it sounded more).
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Post by eppinggas on Aug 8, 2023 11:15:05 GMT
Larkhall Athletic 3 Corsham Town 1. FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round. Sat August 5th. Larkhall is to the north east of Bath, but retains it's own "little village" atmosphere. A pre-game slap up Full English in King of Wessex (Spoons) and 40 minute walk to the Larkhall Inn. Chatting to a chap in there who said Peter Gabriel and Dean Saunders pop in every now and again. Sunshine and very heavy downpours, but the match was on. A short walk up the side of a mountain gets you to Plain Ham. Busy bar, well stocked, friendly bar staff. Larkhall Athletic serve beer in branded heavy plastic glasses, (glasses a pound or return to get your pound back). The ground is cut into a steep slope and offers view back towards Bath to the south and Solsbury Hill to the east. Impressive. The stadium less so. The "South stand" housed no more than space for 6 people. If Craggy Island United had a stand - this is what it would look like. Corsham is only up the road and brought a fair few along. Local derby, would it be feisty? Oh yeah. Corsham No, 7 up front had a big frame and a big mouth to match. Referee warned him about his conduct after 5 or 10mins. On around 15mins Corsham No.11 went in hard and very late on a Larkhall midfielder. Cue a mass mellee. Big mouth grabbed someone round the throat and was red carded. At least he'll be first in the queue for pies at HT. No.11 yellow carded. Larkhall went 1-0 up before HT, headed in from a corner. Around 60mins they doubled their lead. Against the run of play Corsham got one back. Game on? Nope. A Corsham sub (No.23) came on and within 5mins lunged at a Larkhall forward, resulting in the Corsham player putting him in a MMA headlock on the floor. Very lucky with only a yellow. Larkhall then scored again, a shot that looked saved at the near post, only for the lino to rule it was a goal and for the keeper to get booked for his remonstrations. Corsham No.23 made another wild lunge at a Larkhall player and received his second yellow and marching orders. At this point I wanted the ref to blow up and stop any more nastiness. We were warned prior to the game that the ref was a bit officious. I thought the officials did really well in very testing circumstances. An eventful game. The driving rain in the 2nd half made it feel like December. Hey ho, only another 12 victories and Larkhall will be at Wembley. Entrance £10 (I think this is the FA "minimum). Beers £4.50 Attendance: Est 200-250? Will update if I get it. Attendance: 215. Yeah, a good day out. Edit: Adds the smallest stand in world football.  |
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Post by eppinggas on Aug 13, 2023 8:13:59 GMT
Clapton Community FC (CCFC) 2 Basildon Town 2. Thurlow Nun Eastern Counties Division One South (tier 10). So finally a trip to the Old Spotted Dog in Forest Gate, site of the 'oldest senior Football Club ground' in London. The home of CCFC since the back end of last season. The small stadium is behind the now derelict pub of that name, closed since 2004. Plans are still under way to try and renovate the pub. Grade 2 listed and allegedly frequented by Henry VIII. Forest Gate is very urban, but only a mile or so from posh Wanstead. Loads of parking available on the streets around the ground. £4 entry. Hoorah. A small clubhouse and a pop-up Asian street food restaurant. No draught beer, good selection of tins and friendly bar staff. The ground a bit ramshackle with the main terrace scaffolding and corrugated iron. I'm not critisizing - at least it's ready for the start of the season. The crowd were very hipster. Lots of CCFC home and away shirts and oddly enough a smattering of German shirts (mainly St Pauli, that sort of Club). CCFC played in white, red & black checked diagonal stripes, Basildon in blue. I had forgotten Basildon played in blue and was sporting an SV Tasmania Berlin shirt of exactly the same shade of blue. Bit of a bumpy pitch. Basildon on top early on and kept it on the floor, playing some decent stuff. Against the run of play CCFC took the lead, nice finish from outside the box low to the keepers right. Basildon heads didn't drop and they kept pressing, deservedly equalizing just before HT with a drilled low shot to the keepers bottom right. HT, can of San Miguel. 2nd half, much like the first - Basildon playing some nice stuff and CCFC pinned back. Around 85 minutes in and CCFC had a rare attack - lovely move down their left, ball whipped across the box, and dispatched with panache. CCFC 2-1 up and heading for victory, until the 86th minute. Basildon attacked straight from the re-start and pulled it back to 2-2. Honours even, but you'd have to say that Basildon really should have secured all the points. Basildon were beaten in the play-offs last season, they should be up there again. Both teams players and coaches behaved very well. Only one or two yellows I think. Good sportsmanship and respect shown to the officials. Which is what I like.
Entrance: £4
Beers: £5 (2 cans of San Miguel)
Programme: Free. Donated £1.
So £10 all in. Or could have gone to the Orient and spent £33 on the cheapest available seat. £33?!? Get out of town... or go to Forest Gate...
Attendance: Est 200-250
Attendance a very creditable 309. Including a lot of women and kids. CCFC a proper family friendly Club.
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Post by eppinggas on Aug 21, 2023 8:13:41 GMT
Buckhurst Hill 0 Northwood 1. FA Cup Preliminary Round. Buckhurst Hill (BH) have had a tricky start to the season in the Essex Senior League in tier9 , only a couple of points from their opening 4 fixtures. They welcomed Northwood who play in a level above them in the Isthmian South Central. BH in blue and black stripes, Northwood in all red. Northwood hail from north west London, formed in 1926 (though a number of Clubs carrying the 'Northwood' title came and went in earlier years). Northwood were far more comfortable on the ball and had BH pushed back early on. Apart from the BH No.9 who held the ball up well, BH didn't really offer much. Northwood had the wind behind them in the first half and had a number of clear shooting opportunities, but repeatedly failed to hit the target. 0-0 at HT and at least BH would have the wind behind them in the 2nd half. Nope, no difference and Northwood continued to apply pressure. Northwood unlucky not to go 1-0 uo as a shot from just outside the box smashed into the BH GK's top left stanchion. The game looked like it was fizzling out and that BH had clung on for a draw. Around 5 mins to go and rare BH attack. A through ball gave then a 1 on 1 and in it went. Given off-side, and not many complaints though. Into injury time and Northwood had yet another corner. BH didn't clear and the ball was thumped home courtesy of a slight deflection. Another 2 mins of playing time and that was it. Northwood the 1-0 victors and it really could have been 4 or 5.
Entry: £8 including decent quality 20 page programme. £3:50 for a can of Stella. A decent afternoon at my local Club.
Attendance: 133
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Post by eppinggas on Aug 27, 2023 9:25:24 GMT
Enfield Town 2 Cray Wanderers 0. Isthmian Premier League (promotion to National League South). My second visit and only a 20 minute drive - M25 from J26 to J25, Enfield ground is just off the A10. Loads of free parking. Enfield Town are 100% fan-owned (not to be confused with the 'original' Enfield FC, promoted from the Essex Senior League last year under a certain Jamie Cureton). Cray lay claim to being one of the oldest Clubs in the world, proudly displaying 1860 on their badge. Sadly I couldn't find any sources to back this up! (Sheffield FC is generally accepted as the oldest Club, formed in 1857). Cray (from south east London) made the play-offs last year - yellow shirts, black shorts. Enfield are currently top of the league with 3 wins from 3 - white shirts, blue shorts. Grabbed a pint before KO, walked through an open door and found myself in the 'posh seats' under cover. Thank goodness for that. Thunder bolts & lightening, very very frightening and very heavy rain during the first half. Despite the weather the pitch was in great condition, and both sides playing neat football. No real clear chances though and 0-0 at HT. Quick beer and on retracing my steps to the posh seats, realised there were numerous signs up saying "transfers to seats, £2". £2! Get outta town. Did a slow 360 of the ground in the second half. Enfield were getting on top and pushing Cray back. On 55 mins they scored from a corner which the Cray defence failed to clear, despite having at least 3 chances to do so. 10 minutes later Enfield broke and a deflected shot looped over the keepers head to make it 2-0. Scenes behind the goal where the Enfield 'ultras' were positioned. (Supporters swap ends at HT at this level). Fair play, Cray heads didn't drop and they continued top press and pass their way back into the game. They should have got one back, ball broke in the box and a certain goal as long as the No. 5 didn't hit it straight at the keeper. He hit it straight at the keeper. I think only 1 yellow all game and the officials had a very good game. Both teams played in good spirit. An excellent afternoon, though a tad pricey for this level of football.
Entry £12, programme £3 (£3!), 2 pints of London Tap (excellent local IPA) £8.
Attendance: 562.
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Post by eppinggas on Sept 3, 2023 8:21:01 GMT
Epping Town 2 Shoebury Town 2. Essex Olympian Football League Division 1 (step 8, tier 12). Epping have been playing up the road at Upper Clapton RFC (Thornwood) for the last few years having fallen out with Town Council. Following a merger between Epping Youth and Epping Town, bridges have been repaired and Epping Town are back in Epping, playing at Stonards Hill. There is a big catchment area as there are no teams above tier 12 in Epping / Theydon Bois / Loughton. Bright Autumnal sunshine and a lovely setting. But would anyone turn up? A 5 minute cycle to the ground and bumped straight into the manager of the Theydon Oak who was setting up a pop-up bar. A freebie Bierra Moretti was appreciated (I obviously went back for more later, and even paid). Around 80-100 people in attendance, but difficult to work out numbers as there was a lot of casual interest, dog walkers, and slightly confused Town Councillors. Epping in white shirts, black shorts (I wore my white Union Berlin away shirt and black cargo shorts so was nicely colour co-ordinated), Shoebury in light green. Shoebury from Southend. Epping opened the brighter, pitch in excellent condition. Against the run of play Shoebury went 1-0 up after 10mins- nice move down their right, cut back, tap in at the far post. Epping equalized from a strike from just outside the box to the keepers bottom right. Bit more pressure from Epping, a ball bounced in their box, the most blatant hand ball possible, penalty, no disputes and 2-1. The action for the first half was still not over. Just before HT a Shoebury player controlled the ball with his back to goal, turned and smacked it in to the Epping keepers top left. Lovely bit of skill. HT 2-2 and a very reasonable Bierra Moretti at £4.50 (usual price £6.75 in the Oak, £5 at the pop up bar, 10% discount applied as a 'regular' - happy days). Chatted to a chap who was involved at Buckhurst Hill who said that things were imploding there. Bit of a financial mess and a whole new team in (that I know aren't very good - see above). Back to Epping/Shoebury. The second half sort of fizzled out, though Epping had a great opportunity to take all points. A balled whipped across the box, Epping player 5 yards out, swings a boot, misses the ball completely and it bounces off his standing leg to safety. Hey, it's tier 12. Epping used to be an established Club in the lower leagues... from what I saw, they could be on their way back. Only one promotion (subject to FA approval) from the 'real world' of tier 11 football.
No yellow cards in a very sporting contest, ref had a good game. Linesmen were subs. No back chat, No swearing.
Entry: Free. No donation asked for. Free 10 page programme. 3 pints of Bierra Moretti £9.
Attendance: 100-120. Which if Epping can keep up, is very decent at this level.
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Post by oldie on Sept 3, 2023 8:56:06 GMT
Locally (Forest of Dean) I actively follow Cinderford Town, since moving here in 2016. For that time Cinderford played in the Southern League Div 1 south. After a couple of disastrous seasons they were relegated to the Hellenic League Premier. Local derby last Monday, Bank Holiday. Lydney Town Vs Cinderford.
Lovely weather and the small ground was packed. An unbelievablely poor first half and Lydney were 2-0 up. Second half, Cinderford turned up and scored four. Final result 2-4. A very entertaining game overall, very friendly atmosphere, lots of families and kids. Entry was £6, Morreti £4.90.
Lydney is a relatively low income town and it shows. The high st. is awful but lots of "Executive Homes" being built on surrounding green fields to accommodate Bristolians escaping the housing price bubble in Bristol now the bridge crossing is toll free.
Will be at Cinderford Tuesday night, desperate to wash off the turgid rubbish served up by Barton's tactics yesterday Vs Lincoln. £26 and Thatchers £5:50. Value for money...zero.
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Post by lostinspace on Sept 3, 2023 11:49:32 GMT
Was considering the NL South,Weston v Yeovil game on Tuesday Yeovil allocated 850 spaces,all sold,at £18;00 a go I will decline!! Some heavy "derbies" in this division this year, Taunton Bath city, Torquay, Weymouth..that will be spicy one v Yeovil,some history in that fixture
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Post by eppinggas on Sept 3, 2023 14:55:06 GMT
Was considering the NL South,Weston v Yeovil game on Tuesday Yeovil allocated 850 spaces,all sold,at £18;00 a go I will decline!! Some heavy "derbies" in this division this year, Taunton Bath city, Torquay, Weymouth..that will be spicy one v Yeovil,some history in that fixture NL South £18?!? That is expensive. The most I've paid in that tier is £15, and I thought that was pushing it a bit. I have a feeling that the hyper inflation of the premiersh*t and championsh*t is infecting pricing in the EFL and right down to tier 6 and maybe even 7. At this sort of level Clubs should be sustainable. If that means squeezing the last couple of quid out of supporters then surely that defeats the object of the exercise? From my 3 year odyssey around grass roots football I would conclude the lower down the pyramid you go, the more the Clubs are part of the Community and the better value for money they represent. The premiersh*t, 'elite' European football (with the exception of Germany), and particularly the repulsive Saudi Pro League just turns my stomach. I presume the "Pro" in the latter stands for prostitutes. I digress. |
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oldie
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Post by oldie on Sept 3, 2023 17:07:15 GMT
Was considering the NL South,Weston v Yeovil game on Tuesday Yeovil allocated 850 spaces,all sold,at £18;00 a go I will decline!! Some heavy "derbies" in this division this year, Taunton Bath city, Torquay, Weymouth..that will be spicy one v Yeovil,some history in that fixture NL South £18?!? That is expensive. The most I've paid in that tier is £15, and I thought that was pushing it a bit. I have a feeling that the hyper inflation of the premiersh*t and championsh*t is infecting pricing in the EFL and right down to tier 6 and maybe even 7. At this sort of level Clubs should be sustainable. If that means squeezing the last couple of quid out of supporters then surely that defeats the object of the exercise? From my 3 year odyssey around grass roots football I would conclude the lower down the pyramid you go, the more the Clubs are part of the Community and the better value for money they represent. The premiersh*t, 'elite' European football (with the exception of Germany), and particularly the repulsive Saudi Pro League just turns my stomach. I presume the "Pro" in the latter stands for prostitutes. I digress. Absolutely this👆👆👋👋 |
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Post by Mrs V Smegma on Sept 6, 2023 13:08:32 GMT
Saw a really entertaining game last night - not the chipmunk cup rubbish but Tytherington Rocks vs Calne Town in Hellenic L1 at Hardwicke playing fields. Tytherington started the better and were on top for the first 25 minutes and were getting a lot of joy from balls down the left channel. Speedy home forward Kyle Head was on the end of most of these and from one such move finished well to give them the lead. They also wasted a number of other chances to increase their lead. Inexplicably they stopped doing what was working so well and Calne grew into the game more - inspired perhaps by a string of saves their 16 yr old keeper made including a stunning one from close range that he palmed onto the bar and which bounced down and away. Some home fans thought it had crossed the line but this was impossible to tell from the angle we were at.
A decent cross from the right and a free header gifted to a Town player resulted in an equaliser so 1-1 at half time
Second half was a carbon copy of the first with the home side on top for the first 25, spurning a load of chances and more good saves by the Calne keeper and then running badly out of steam. Some inexplicable substitutions turned what had been a solid defence into a porous one and two quick breaks led to two more goals the first either being a deflection or touch on a fiercely struck shot from Town CF Josh Bright and the second being the pick of the goals - a really good crisp finish into bottom right corner from the same player.
Near the end Head was chopped down in the box and stepped up to take the resultant penalty. Cue young keeper showing him his left hand side and then leaping that way to save the spot kick. FT Tytherington 1 Calne 3
Game was played in an excellent spirit throughout, was well refereed and great value for the £6 entrance fee. Rocks are a very friendly club and one of their committee members and their manager came over to talk to us as they recognised we were not regulars. Standard of footy was not too bad considering this is step 6/L 10 of the pyramid. Att about 50 so about the same as our non-game vs Cheltenham.
Calne deserve particular credit since they were missing 12 first team regulars and their squad on the night contained 10 players aged between 16 & 18. Man of the match was undoubtedly their 16 yr old keeper who kept them in the game when they were under the cosh. Their manager is clearly one who plays the hand he has been dealt in the most effective way
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Post by oldie on Sept 6, 2023 15:05:05 GMT
Tuesday September 5th.
Cinderford Town Vs Hereford Pegasus (don't ask, I have no idea) Hellenic Premier. Pitch was perfect, which is quite something given that's laid on clay. £5 entry.
Very entertaining game, Cinderford 2-0 up in 25 minutes and squandered a host of chances. Hereford pulled one back before HT and you know what's happens next. Even 2nd half but Hereford scored 2 more and won the game 2-3. Their tall very young number 9 looked useful. Cinderford had Lewis Powell of ex Rovers fame and he scored their second.
I am guessing around 120 crowd.
Good game but frustrating if you lean in favour of Cinderford.
Gloucester City Saturday, National League North (I know).
A bit of fun.
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Post by Mrs V Smegma on Sept 6, 2023 22:43:55 GMT
FC Bristol (ex Lebeq) vs Malmesbury Victoria tonight - Hellenic 1 at Oaklands Park, the Gloucestershire FA HQ in Almondsbury on an artificial pitch.
First vs 3rd clash which started brightly with Malmesbury taking the lead from a header after a cross from the right. FC Bristol equalised from the penalty spot after a surging run down the left flank ended with the Bristol player being chopped down inside the area. Penalty was clinically despatched by their leading scorer and captain Sacha Tong. The game started to degenerate from thereon and became increasingly niggly with both teams increasingly moaning at the referee. He had a very poor evening allowing lots of stuff to go unpunished but then dishing out cards for minor indiscretions. HT 1-1.
Second half continued to go downhill and the game was very disjointed but at least we had some more goals. Pick of these was Bristol’s second to take a 2-1 lead. Decent cross in and excellent control to bring the ball down and fine finish from Tong who was a handful all evening. Malmesbury then scored two more themselves thanks to two keeper errors - firstly when he watched a cross land on a striker’s head no more than a foot in front of him and secondly when he allowed their left winger to go round him from a tight angle and slot into an empty net. Not as enjoyable as last night’s game but still good value for money for a fiver plus a quid for a hard copy programme. Both these teams would be too good for either Tytherington or Calne imho and there was very little to choose between them
Crowd about 30
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Post by Mrs V Smegma on Sept 9, 2023 17:39:01 GMT
Abertillery Bluebirds today vs Pontardawe - JD Cymru South (l1) Prettiest ground I’ve ever been to - right up in the Valleys, carved out of a hillside and surrounded by trees. Game was an entertaining 2-2 draw with the home side equalising near the end of the game. Standard of footy at this level is not great -GFA county league equivalent if that. Plenty of incidents to discuss - was the visitors second goal over the line? Was the home player really offside when their “equaliser” was chalked off? How did the away side fail to take a couple of the many chances they created in the second half. They really should have won by two or three goals. £5 entrance and an excellent afternoon out made all the better by the glorious weather. Crowd about 150. link |
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Post by eppinggas on Sept 10, 2023 8:01:45 GMT
Clapton FC 2 Hutton 1. Thurlow Nunn Division 1 South (tier 10). Early days but Hutton (in yellow) are top and Clapton one from bottom of the table. Hutton is a posh village just north of Brentwood, but currently share with and play at Billericay. Clapton play in white shirts with a black and red diagonal stripe, a bit Crystal Palace circa 1980's. Clapton (NOT Clapton Community FC) were formed in 1878 and have a rich history. Sadly some odd financial dealings saw the fans boycott pretty much en masse to form a splinter Club, Clapton CFC. Clapton lost their home (The Old Spotted Dog in Forest Gate) and now play in Newham, just off the A13. Pretty it is not. A bloody hour drive in 32c heat as the M11 and A406 were moving at walking pace. Arrived at 3:10pm, no signage. Was a game even on? Yes, a very friendly chap informed me as he took £5 entrance. I was gasping. Where was the bar? There is no bar. WTF? Due to the traffic KO was delayed til 3:15pm. KO was eventually 3:25pm as the ref talked and talked to players without any definable reason. A dry bumpy pitch surrounded by a running track. A stand in the shade thankfully provided cover. Clapton looked pretty good. Very quick No.12 on the right wing was causing problems. Superb cross from him saw the ball arrive on a silver plate in the box - Clapton had to score. Nope. Miraculously the ball was headed over the bar from about 5 yards out. An overly long water break at 25 mins. Clapton pressure finally told as the ball was bundled in from a badly defended corner. HT and a 5 minute walk to a corner shop to purchase a very cold and very necessary pint can of Kronenburg. 2nd half didn't kick off til about 4:30pm. A ball near the corner saw the corner flag uprooted. Cue 5 mins trying to put it back up. Eventually they gave up, found a spare, which was then planted at a 45 degree angle. Another overly long water break (duh - why not do it when the keystone kops were wrestling with the corner flag)? A decent Clapton break down the right saw a ball whipped in and converted. Hutton didn't give up, but didn't really test the Clapton keeper. The ref added a bizzare 20-25 mins injury time. He had earlier sent off a Clapton sub who was having a bit of banter with the players from the side-lines. Very odd. Hutton scored a late consolation at about the same time the pubs were calling last orders. (Well 5:40pm it felt late). Final whistle finally went. Clapton the deserved winners.
Entrance: £5. No programme available. There was supposed to be an online version, but the website had not been updated.
Attendance: 30? Clapton don't play in Clapton. No-one cares about them, apart from the friendly chap who took the entrance fee.
Udpdate: Attendance: 35.
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Post by Mrs V Smegma on Sept 12, 2023 22:53:36 GMT
Hellenic League Wiseman Lighting Floodlit cup tonight. Prem league Tuffley Rovers vs Stonehouse Town of L1. On paper an even match up with the home side 1 from bottom and their visitors mid table in the league below.
Turned out to be anything but, and was a really entertaining game with some good football especially from Rovers all played in a really good spirit and a credit to the Hellenic league. Tuffley went 2-0 up in the first half courtesy of a lucky goal from their no 11 Connor Walters who produced a really poor finish hitting Stonehouse keeper from point blank range and then finding the ball drop invitingly at his feet, and a second well worked and finished goal from the same player.
Shortly after half time they added a third through their long serving fullback Warren Mann - the pick of the goals - a delightful chip over the keeper from outside the box. They then made a few subs which disrupted their shape for a bit and Stonehouse pulled one back through a good cross from the left and firm header. Tuffley scored another excellent goal - a carbon copy of the Stonehouse one and just before the end added one for fun - Walters completing a rather fortuitous hat trick with a replica of his first goal
This was the best of the games I’ve seen this month and if Tuffley play like this every week they will get themselves out of trouble. They defended well ( and much better than Stonehouse whose defence was porous) and attacked with flair and invention. All their best work came through their no 7 Henry Birkett who had an excellent game.
£6 to get in and £1 for a hard copy programme. Nice set up too for a club at this standard.
Attendance appeared to be about 75
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eppinggas
Administrator
Ian Alexander
Don't care
Joined: June 2014
Posts: 8,612
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Post by eppinggas on Sept 17, 2023 8:07:35 GMT
Epping Town 1 Manford Way 1. Essex Olympian Football League Division 1 (step 8, tier 12). A short cycle ride to Stonards Hill, missed kick off by 2 minutes as had spent the best part of 4 hours attempting to procure Champions League tickets for Union Berlin vs Braga. The Epping fixture had been moved to the second pitch as a jobsworth groundsman had insisted that playing more then twice a week on the main pitch would ruin it. He might have a point on boggy winter pitches, but in the autumnal sunshine, this looked to be the decision of a moron. Manford Way are not named after Jason Manford and hail from Grange Hill (Just outside of Chigwell, the rough bit). Epping in white shirts, red trim and black shorts, Manford Way rather appropriately in a Shrewsbury kit. Sadly no pop-up bar this time. Manford were on top for most of the first half and had a bit of pace up front. They scored from a free kick routine - lobbed over to the back post, header back, and bundled in. HT a deserved 1-0 lead. Jumped on the bike, quick pint in the Black Lion, and back for the 2nd half. Manford were increasingly on top, but were also increasingly foul mouthed. Pathetic to see grown men effing constantly when a decent percentage of the crowd were women and children. Another Manford attack saw their No.9 taken out by the Epping last defender. Bit of fisty cuffs. Defender very lucky with just a yellow card. For the last 10 minutes Manford were wasting time, taking the ball into the corner, feigning injury and the levels of profanity increased. They complained at the amount of injury time. By swearing a lot. With literally the last kick of the game the Epping keeper launched a big kick up the middle, big bounce, bit of a bobble, a shot, their keeper parries it, and Epping smack home the equalizer. Get in! As the most yobbish of the Manford team trouped off (No 19, possibly reflecting his IQ) he screamed "f*ck*ng hell". At a hedge. Epping did not deserve a point, but more than happy to see them nick one. And I did get a Union ticket, so there must be a God. Free entry, free programme. Plans to have access to the Jack Siley pavillion and have a bar set up. All they need is a big fridge full of beers and they'd have a much needed revenue stream. Attendance: 35-40. Attachments:
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Post by lostinspace on Sept 17, 2023 20:17:01 GMT
Mid Somerset cup, Draycott v Tumley Athletic,The Cider Barn just 50 meters away providing ample refreshments... no admittance fee here, possibly 25 attendees.Tunley keeper had one of those days you can dream of, despite losing eventually 6-0 it could well have been 18!!and that excludes the wasted opportunities of the Draycott attack. One serious note , halfway through the second half and we had a male streaker!! 😎 there was a wedding going on in the Memorial hall ( in the lower half of this playing field and it was assumed the guy emerged from that event for a bet...the ref couldn't "book him" as he never had a number 😊
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