​This weekend, being FA Vase weekend, I had earmarked a trip to Gloucestershire for Tuffley Rovers v Fleet Spurs but as often happens when I plan to visit Glevum Park, something crops up to prevent me from getting there. This time it was the fuel shortage. Whilst I had enough to get there and back I knew I needed to take a trip to The Midlands on Sunday and most of the stations around my town had already run out of diesel. So, I decided it was wiser to stay fairly local and tick off another ground that had been on my list for a while with a visit to Oxfordshire Senior League side Halse United. 

The Ground
Halse play their home games in Syresham, a village just off the A43 approximately halfway between Brackley and Silverstone Circuit. Their pitch is at Syresham Sports & Social Club, a multi-sport facility which encompasses football and cricket and features quite a large clubhouse. There is a separate changing bock, built in 2002, next to the clubhouse. Parking is available in the car park adjacent to the clubhouse or, following a track around the pitch, in a field just the other side of the ground where, in bad weather, you could watch the game from the comfort of your car if you so wished. The pitch itself slopes slightly away from the clubhouse towards the technical areas and makeshift car park beyond. There are no dugouts as such. However, there is a lean-to shelter behind the home technical area which seems to be used as a dugout by Halse. The opposite side of the pitch is open to the cricket pitch.

​​The Background
There's no league history between these sides as far as I know. Garsington, who played in the Hellenic for a short perios in the 70s, have been playing the Ocfordshire Senior League for some time now and have fluctiated betwen the Premier and Division One in recent years. Halse promoted from the Banbury District and Lord Jersey League at the end of last season and are playing their first season at this level.
Halse had a great opening day 1-0 victory at Yarnton and were then awarded a walkover win against Eynsham in their second game, so today will be their first home game of the season. Gasington lost their opener, to another of the new boys Bicester Hallions, 6-1 but followed that up with a 5-4 win over Summertown Stars before going down 2-1 at home to Yarnton last weekend, so something of a mixed bag so far.
​

​The Game
I don't know if Garsington had borrowed their game plan from West Brom's Valerien Ismael (or that Spanish bloke at that little club in Manchester, Pep something or other), but they started like they meant business. A full pitch press clearly designed to stifle their opponents. And it worked to begin with. In the first minute the visitors came close to opening the scoring when Chalmers was played in but, with just the keeper to beat, pulled his shot narrowly wide of the far post. Undeterred, Garsington continued to press their hosts and Halse really struggled to get a grip with The Greens intensity for the first 15 minutes. Credit to the home side though, they gradually started to play their way into the game as their midfield began to get hold of the ball more. On 17 minutes they finally made the Garsington keeper earn his corn when James Keen tried his luck from all of 40 yards. The ball was heading for the top corner until the stopper got a hand to it, diverting it for a corner. A few minutes later United striker Dean Ingram was presented with a better opportunity but volleyed wide of the mark. Definite signs that Halse were beginning to get a foothold on the game. Then, on 25 minutes, Liam Simpson demonstrated his passing ability with an inch-perfect ball into the channel between the right-back and centre-half, allowing Jack Hamblin to race clear and finish at the near post. 1-0
Garsington almost replied immediately with a lovely flowing move. A diagonal pass from Lewis Judd set Callum Lucas free. The run of the ball forced him slightly wide allowing a defender to between him and the goal. He cut the ball back to Coble who curled a lovely effort which beat George Kingham in goal but also just beat the far post.
Halse then hit back with a lovely move of their own, some neat interchange of passes and a decent finish but the linesman's flag had already gone up before the ball hit the net.
On 38 minutes Garsington got themselves level. Elliston Coble was played in on the right flank. His attempted driven cross was miscued slightly and, despite the best efforts of Kingham ended up in the back of the home net. 1-1. The equilibrium did not last long. Two minutes later another superb through ball found the full of Gilsenan. He controlled the ball well but was forced wide of the goal. He fizzed a cross shot across the six yard box where the unfortunate Brad Dolton inadvertently turned the ball into his own net. 2-1.

HT Halse United 2 Garsington 1. The away side dominated for the first 15 minutes but couldn't get a goal to show for their efforts. Halse worked their way back into the game, with Simpson's range of passing being a key factor in leading at the break.

​Halse came close to extending their lead a minute into the second-half when a superb Cameron Harris free-kick was matched with a equally good save from Liam Smith, turning the ball onto the bar with his fingertips. However, if the assembled crowd thought this was a sign of more excitement to come in the second period, they were to be disappointed as the game went  a little flat for twenty minutes or so, with a few niggles happening across the pitch, probably not helped by some decisions from the referee who seemed to want to officiate mainly from the centre-circle. I'm not sure how he could make judgement calls when that far from the play.
Were were into the last 20 minutes when Ingram was again denied by a good save from the visitor's stopper. then, with 11 left on the clock, Garsington launched a good move down their right side. Joe Ryan was quick to latch onto a ball down the wing before driving a cross perfectly into the path of Callum Lucas, who made no mistake with the finish. 2-2.
There was still enough time for Garsington to almost snatch it at the death when they saw a header crash back of the host's crossbar, before the referee called time.

FT Halse United 2 Garsington 2. Both sides will probably feel they should have won it. Garsington looked happy to settle for a point and, overall, I think it was a fair result. Halse climb to fourth and continue their unbeaten start to life in Step 7 ahead of their trip to second placed Summertown Stars at the weekend. Garsington are in ninth spot and welcome fifth placed Southam United on Saturday.

Halse United: Kingham, Lloyd, Harris, Hamblin(vc), Gilsenan, Read(c), Simpson, Brown, Ingram, Hackett, Keen. Subs: Hilton, Shilderley, 
Garsington: Smith, O.Ludlow(c), Loveridge, Dolton, Rees, Chalmers, Gaul, Judd, J.Ryan, Cobe, Lucas. Subs: Boaden, Bartlett, F.Ludlow, L.Ryan

Ground Number: 281
Att: 
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A

​My choice of game for this midweek outing was not fully decided until about 30 minutes before kick-off. I had been toying with the idea of a trip back to Wiltshire for Downton v Laverstock & Ford but, eventually, decided to head for Leicestershire where there were two choices within a 4 mile radius. The Leicestershire Senior League clash between Northfield Emerald and Highfield Rangers or the United Counties Division 1 game between Birstall United and Bourne Town. I had only seen one of the four teams play before, Birstall United in an FA Vase tie at Pinxton a couple of years ago. Parking seems to be a bit of a problem at The Emerald Centre which made my mind up. Meadow Lane it was. 

 A very smart first look at Meadow Lane. Once inside there are also many changes. First of all, on the far side of the ground, which used to be open to the adjacent play park, there are now not one but two stands, one for seating and another, The William Hercock Stand, for standing spectators. Opposite these, on the same side as the new entrance, there are now two very smart looking dugouts. Behind the Meadow Lane end goal is the new clubhouse which houses the players and officials changing areas, a fairly large bar and a tea hut. Alongside this is a patio area complete with barbecue and trestle tables. It is clear to see that a lot of time, money and hard work has gone in to making this a really good non-league facility in keeping, I have to say, with a number of grounds in the Leicester area which seems to take great pride in its non-league football clubs.
Meadow Lane or The Football Cards Direct Stadium to give it its full name, is situated on the Eastern side of Birstall, a large village some 3 miles North of Leicester city centre. As always, before going to a new ground, I do a bit of research, especially as far as parking goes. So, I'll be honest, after seeing the ground on Google Maps (photo is from 2010), arriving at the ground is something of a revelation. The club has clearly spent a fair bit on renovation of the ground and the clubhouse. It is entirely different. I parked in a small parking area to the side of the ground where the new entrance is situated, a rather shiny new double turnstile complete with club logo and sponsor signage.

 A very smart first look at Meadow Lane. Once inside there are also many changes. First of all, on the far side of the ground, which used to be open to the adjacent play park, there are now not one but two stands, one for seating and another, The William Hercock Stand, for standing spectators. Opposite these, on the same side as the new entrance, there are now two very smart looking dugouts. Behind the Meadow Lane end goal is the new clubhouse which houses the players and officials changing areas, a fairly large bar and a tea hut. Alongside this is a patio area complete with barbecue and trestle tables. It is clear to see that a lot of time, money and hard work has gone in to making this a really good non-league facility in keeping, I have to say, with a number of grounds in the Leicester area which seems to take great pride in its non-league football clubs.

​The Background
There's not too much history between Birstall United and visitors Bourne Town having spent much of their histories in different leagues. Birstall transferred into the United Counties structure from the Eat Midlands Counties League in the Summer of 2018, finishing 17th of 20 in their first UCL season (although this did include a 6 point deduction). Bourne meanwhile finished 11 points and 4 places above them. Despite the league positions, Birstall had the better of the head to head that season, drawing 0-0 at Meadow Lane and winning 1-0 at Abbey Lawn.
With the 2019-20 season voided, the only other registered league meeting came in last season's truncated campaign when Bourne ran out 5-1 winners at home. So far this season it is Birstall who have had the much better start, winning six and drawing two of their opening ten games to see them sitting in fourth spot on 20 points. Bourne have so far only won once in their eight outings and are currently 19th of 23 teams.

​The Game
After some initial sparring the first real chance came after 10 minutes when Birstall were awarded a free kick just inside the Bourne half. The ball was drifted into the penalty area where Chris Larter just couldn't quite get enough of a head on it to divert it goalward. Ten minutes later it was Bourne's turn to carve out an opportunity when a lovely through ball found Josh Hales through on goal. He hit his shot quite early but was matched by a superb save from home keeper Charlie Doherty.
It was frantic stuff at Meadow Lane with both sides playing at 100 miles an hour somewhat to the detriment of the quality. It felt as if the team who could slow it down and play with a little more precision would be able to make some inroads into the game.
Quite early on Birstall identified a way to get in behind the Bourne defence. Dion Potter's pace aided by the occasional overlap from Watts was causing a lot of problems for the Bourne defence. Time and again diagonal ball's into the gap between centre-half and left-back allowed Potter in but unfortunately for Birstall the final ball in always eluded a striker. However, it was quite clear that if Bourne did not plug this gap, eventually it would pay off for the home side.

HT Birstall United 0 Bourne Town 0. A full-blooded half blighted by a lack of composure from both sides. Birstall had the lion's share of possession but lacked the killer pass in the final third. Bourne, despite being on the back foot for some time, managed to cr4eate the best chance of the game, thwarted by a good save from Doherty.

​It was Bourne who settled earlier in the second-half, creating a decent chance after just 5 minutes, with Watts having to be alert to prevent and damage. Potter had switched from the right onto the left and this had seemingly solved some of Bourne's issues for them. For the first 15 minutes of the second period Birstall had stopped peppering their left side with balls for Potter to run onto. That was, however, until the 67th minute and it wasn't Potter who did the damage. Instead it was captain Sean Phillips who latched onto a ball on the right-wing. His excellent, low, cross towards the front post was perfect for top-scorer Paul Pallett who got in before the keeper and slotted the ball home to make it 1-0.
Bourne's plight got worse 8 minutes later when Corey Newman clattered Birstall number 8 Andres Articolo, leaving the United midfielder in a heap. This sparked quite a scuffle between a number of players from both sides. It was difficult to see exactly what went on but once it had calmed down the referee delivered a straight red to Newman, possibly for a raised hand in the scuffle rather than the tackle. He also booked Birstall goal-scorer Pallett who didn't appear to have been in the melee.
With a numerical advantage and a goal in front it looked unlikely that Birstall would let the points slip and, sure enough, with seven minutes remaining they secured the win. Again it came from the right where Potter had re-appeared, his cross was only half-cleared, straight into the path of Articolo who hammered it back into the net. 2-0
There was still enough time left for substitute Luke Moran to evade a couple of tackles before drawing a superb one-handed diving save from Swales, but the game was up for Bourne.

FT Birstall United 2 Bourne Town 0. Birstall climb to second in the league with just goal difference separating them from Kimberley Miners Welfare who, admittedly, have a game in hand. United have a break from the league at the weekend as they welcome St Andrews to Meadow Lane in the FA Vase. Bourne continue to look for their first three points on the road this season and welcome 12th placed West Bridgford to Abbey Lawn on Saturday.

Birstall United: Doherty, Armstrong, Z.Watts, Sibson, D.Watts, Phillips(c), Yusuf, Articolo, Potter, Larter, Pallett. Subs: Moran, Bibby, Ballinger

Bourne Town: Swales, Gordon, Klinkovics, Fitzjohn, Moss, Panten(c), Warrener, Newman, Mason, Hales, Van Der Drift. Subs: Botterill, Brooks, Cardell, Troth

​Ground Number: 280
Att: 45
Entrance: £5.00
Programme: £1.00

Week four and another cup match for Jovial Monk. With both recognised goalkeepers unavailable for goalkeeping duties, manager Shaun Smith had to don the gloves and take up a position between the sticks. Just to make it even more 'Sunday League', Shaun decided to mix things up a bit before the game and draw players out of the hat for each position, which made for a very interesting starting line-up (normal positions in brackets).

Shaun Smith (Manager)
Zak Keegan (FW), Jake Kimber (CM), Jono Peachey-Score (FW), Daniel Bond (FW)
Anthony Collett (LB), Kris Redford (CM), Dean Kennedy (CM)
Jesse Seward-Nice (CB), Luke Burroughs (CB), Adam Burroughs (Assistant Manager)

Shaun's start as a safe pair of hands did not go quite as planned. Early on, and already a bit bored of playing in goal, the Gaffa decided against clearing the ball and went for a wander, got tackled and then had to watch as the opposing captain tried his luck from halfway. Luckily for Shaun Zak Keegan had covered his boss and was there to clear off the line. Lesson learned for Shaun? Time would tell.
With normal goal-machine Jono Peachey-Score playing centre-half, Shaun decided to set him a challenge by betting hi that he couldn't get on the scoresheet from defence. "Hold my beer", replied the striker and, sure enough, 5 minutes later Monk are a goal to the good.
Wanderers only managed one more shot in the first half which, apparently, was repelled by a cat-like save from the gaffer (remember, he sent me this text).

HT Jovial Monk 1 Swindon Wanderers 0

At half-time Monk made a couple of changes. Josh Riggs, a centre-half by trade, came on for Jesse Seward-Nice and Jake Kimber was replaced by Maher Ali (CM) to play alongside Jono in the centre of defence. Maybe that unsettled the team because early in the second period Wanderers scored to make it 1-1. However, the genius move (or surprise of the day, depending on your viewpoint) of playing a centre-back up front soon paid off for Monk as Josh Riggs scored twice to make it 3-1.

Not wanting to make things too easy though, Monk managed to find a way of giving Wanderers a foothold in the game. A little mix up at the back led to The Cat being lobbed from quite a long way out to make it 3-2. Clearly that early lesson was not learned. Luckily for all concerned Luke Burrows and Anthony Collett popped up with a couple of goals to make it safe for the home side.

FT Jovial Monk 5 Swindon Wanderers 2
The lesson of the day, when in goal, stay on your line.

If you want to catch Jovial Monk in action, their next game is away at second-placed Mario's FC this coming Sunday (26/09/2021).
10:30 KO, Meadowcroft Recreation Ground, Addison Crescent, Swindon, SN2 7JX
#WatchTheMonks

​After the best part of two weeks away from live football, I was back on the road on Wednesday this week and not just a local game either, 98 miles each way in fact. I was heading for Wiltshire, a popular destination these days, but this time a little further South West than my recent jaunts, close to the border with Somerset, to the ancient town of Warminster. The trip down from Oxfordshire took we through Andover, past Amesbury and across the A303 past Stonehenge. When you drive around this part of the country, especially at dusk, it is easy to see why there were a number of reported UFO sightings some years ago. The wide open vistas, big skies and presence of military aircraft could easily give rise to sightings. Still, certainly not the worst journey to a football match.

The Ground
Warminster's Weymouth Street ground isn't far from the town centre. There is very limited parking at the ground but plenty of on-street parking along Weymouth Street, all within a short walk of the ground, which is accessed via a short service road. Access is through single turnstile which brings you in close to the halfway line, the clubhouse (which incorporates the main stand, is immediately to your right, as is the tea hut. To the left of the goal at the Weymouth Street end there is a small covered standing area which seemed popular with the locals. There was also Jerk Chicken on offer just next to the entrance. I'm not sure if this is a regular occurrence or a one-off, but the smell of it certainly made me wish I hadn't had my dinner before I left. I was sorely tempted to indulge anyway but the fact that I have recently had to move buckle on my belt one hole to the right reminded me not to.
The dugouts are on the far side of the pitch which slopes slightly towards the Weymouth Street end and very slightly away from the main stand towards the dugouts.
I've got to say, I loved the feeling of this ground. It's a proper non-league football ground with atmosphere and a feeling of history to it. Well worth a visit if you haven't been there.

​The Background
Warminster were coming into the game after a good start to the league season but a disappointing 4-0 FA Vase defeat at Farnham Town last week. Putting that Vase exit aside, five victories and two draws from their opening nine had seen Warminster climb to fifth in the table, six points adrift of the evening's visitors but with a game in hand. Warminster could also boast the joint second lowest (with Sherborne Town) number of league goals conceded.
Welton were coming into the game as league leaders, unbeaten in ten and without a single goal conceded at home. They had also progressed to the next round of the FA Vase with a 4-0 win at Elburton Villa last weekend.
History in this fixture was very much in favour of the visitors and, although Warminster won 2-0 at Welton's West Clewes ground during the 2016-17 season, I found out later that they had not managed a win at home against Rovers since 1996. So, something of a bogey team for the Red & Blacks, especially at Weymouth Street.

The Game
Welton's home ground in Midsomer Norton is over 17 miles from Warminster but, the way this game started, you coudl have been esxcused for thinking this was a very local derby. Both sides clearly wanted to make an early mark and there was a frantic pace and edge about the game. 
It was Welton who managed to create the first real opening, after 9 minutes. Chris Pile headed a cross down for Jake Slocombe who saw his effort well save by Sam Thompson in the home goal. It was quite breathless stuff in the opening 20 minutes with Welton looking to more likely to score but neither side stretching the opposing goalkeeper.
On 26 minutes there was a really big call from the referee. When a long ball was played into the Warminster penalty area Joe Battrick and home keeper Sam Thompson challenge for it. The Welton striker definitely gets his head on the ball first before being clattered by the goalkeeper. The referee blew immediately and, certainly from where I stood almost in line with incident, it was a clear penalty. However, the referee pointed the other way, awarding a free-kick to the goalkeeper. Would that be a big decision?

Welton continued to look the stronger side for the remainder of the first half. With 38 on the clock, James Batchelor tied his luck from way out, sending a skidding effort towards the bottom corner but Thompson got down well to push it away for a corner which was then headed narrowly over. Thompson was certainly the busier of the two keepers as we drew towards half-time. Having said that, the final chance of the half went to the home side, and it was their best of the first 45 minutes as the ball was squared to McKay inside the box but the nippy winger blazed his shot over Glover's bar.

HT Warminster Town 0 Welton Rovers 0. Not too many clear cut chances for either side. Those that have been created have mostly come the way of the visitors who should also have had a penalty.

​What a difference a half-time break makes! Warminster came out for the second half looking like a totally different side, completely reinvigorated and immediately putting Welton onto the back foot. It took only 8 minutes for Town to get a reward for their new-found energy. Welton managed to partially repel a couple of balls into the their box, but when it was played in again from the right, it evaded all defenders, falling into the path of Conor McKay who this time made no mistake, blasting the ball past Grover to make it 1-0.
It's Warminster's turn to look the more dominant team, quelling any response that Welton may have tried to muster and the visitor's position worsened on 68 minutes when, after a free-kick was awarded to Warminster on the edge of the Rovers' box, Batchelor was sin-binned for his complaints to the referee. That could have spelled the end of the visitors but instead it seemed to give them more impetus. So much so that, five minutes after going down to 10 men, they equalised and it was their two substitutes who made the impact. Jacob Bird did well on the right-wing, his cross was picked up by Kyle Box who managed to squeeze a shot past Thompson into the far corner. 1-1.
It was game on now and, with Welton back to full strength, the game could swing either way. Both sides were trying to win the game but with 4 minutes remaining it was the away side who got their noses in front. Warminster conceded a free-kick way out on the left, some 40 yards or so from goal. The ball was played deep towards the far post where defender Joe Garland was lurking. He managed to guide the ball perfectly into the path of Joe Ellis who, in turn, drilled his shot past Thompson. 1-2.
There was very little time left for Warminster to respond and the late goal proved to be the difference. It's now 25 years since Welton last lost at Weymouth Street.

FT Warminster Town 1 Welton Rovers 2. A strange game in a lot of ways. Rovers were the better side in the first half but failed to score. Warminster definitely the better side in the second half, got ahead but then dropped their guard and conceded an equaliser almost immediately, and then a late second goal killed them off. Welton certainly look like a team that has the momentum that could keep them at or near the top of the table but Warminster also look to be a good side and will almost certainly be up there too. Best wishes to both sides for the remainder of the season.

Warminster Town: Thompson, Bartley, Milburn, Cockerill, De Silva, Churchyard(c), Hiscocks, M.Johnson, Graham, Wain, McKay. Subs: Humphrey, Atkins, L.Johnson, Seviour, Miluk
Welton Rovers: Glover, Wych(c), Savery, Morris, Garland, Ellis, Pile, Bachelor, Battrick, Slocombe, Coleman. Subs: Bird, Parfitt, Box, Smith

Ground Number: 279
Att: 151
Entrance: £5.00
Programme: £1.00

This Sunday saw Jovial Monk kick off their Swindon Sunday League Division 2 campaign and, after the heavy cup defeat last week, a chance to get back some much needed confidence.
There was, at least, some good news for Monk prior to kick-off with one of their goalkeepers passed fit to play, player-manager Shaun was spared the task of donning the gloves. In fact, with 5 subs available, Shaun was able to give himself the weekend off completely.

Of course it wouldn't be Sunday League without some mishap or problem. This week, however, it was not a problem with players or kit but rather the referee who turned up 20 minutes late because he was 'waiting in his car'. No one seemed too sure what he was waiting for but at least he was there I suppose. A delayed VAR decision perhaps?

The first Sunday of the Swindon Sunday League season and Jovial Monk have been handed a very tricky opener as they face First Division AFC Walcot in the Knockout Cup. Walcot are traditionally one of the best sides in the Swindon Sunday League setup and despite the game being a home tie, it represents a difficult start for Monk.

For manager Shaun Smith the day started badly. His 20 man squad had already been reduced to 15 for one reason or another, and to make matters worse, one of the 15 available didn't have any boots. It was only 8:45 on match day.

The day didn't get any better either. With an under-strength squad Monk found themselves 3-0 down by half-time. They'd battled hard and matched their opponents at times, but the were set back by Walcot scoring what Shaun described as a "worldie" for their first goal. Walcot kept the pressure up in the second half and Monk, after using up all of the substitutes including their player-manager, sustained an injury to their goalkeeper which meant they finished the match with only 10 men on the pitch.
The final score was 7-0 to Walcot signalling a very swift end to Monk's cup run.

Next week is another week but, with both regular goalkeepers injured, Manager Shaun is expecting to have to play between the sticks himself. The Monks travel to Mannington Rec where they will face AFC Stratton, who got off the mark in the league this Sunday, drawing 3-3 at home to Mario's FC.

• Can Jovial Monk get their league campaign under way?
• Will Shaun need to play in goal?
• Will everyone have boots?

Find out next week but, meanwhile, why not go along to support grassroots football?

AFC Stratton v Jovial Monk
Sunday 12 September 2021, 10:30am
Mannington Rec, Pitch 4. Paddington Driver, Swindon, SN5 7YW

Catch up on previous editions:
1. A Sunday In Swindon - Edition 1

​It was a tough decision this weekend. The FA Cup Qualifying First Round on Saturday was extremely tempting. However, on Sunday, there was an opportunity to see the opening league game for Caversham United Women whose right-back, Katie Dearling (randomly chosen by Chairman and Twitter guru Paul Gutteridge), I sponsor. Knowing that games on both days was not an option, I decided to forego the FA Cup (hoping for a good replay game on Tuesday evening) and head on down to Stonesfield for the opening day of the Thames Valley Counties Women's League. Not only was this a good chance to see The Goats in action but Stonesfield just happens to be their closest away game or me. Of course, it was also the debut of the new Caversham United kit. Definitely an occasion not to be missed.

The Ground
West Oxfordshire Women play at Stonesfield Playing Field just behind the Village Hall of the Oxfordshire village, not a million miles away from Blenheim Palace. This is not my first visit to the ground, however last time I was there it was in the capacity of a coach of my girl's team after we drew Stonesfield away in a cup match (we will be back this season in the league). I'm also pleased to say that my last visit was a successful one for my team (we won 3-1) and quite special for me as a coach and a Dad, as my daughter scored her first ever competitive goal (it was a cracker too). The main pitch, which is where I was heading today, is further away from the Village Hall and cricket pavilion, towards the far end of the field. There's not too much to say about it. There are no covered areas or dugouts. This is a community playing field. The pitch slopes slightly length-wide, but not too much, and seems to be on the smaller side of recommended dimensions, especially width-wise. Although the dry weather meant the ground was quite hard, the pitch looked to be in pretty good condition.
​​
​The Background
This was the opening day of the season in the Thames Valley Counties Women's League Division One. Neither of these sides played in the league last season, well not in their current form anyway. Caversham AFC have played in the league for a number of seasons but during the Summer became Caversham United and, looking at the squad list from last season, have retained a fair few of the squad.
West Oxfordshire have also had a name change. They won Division 3 West last season as Witney Vikings Ladies and earned themselves promotion directly to the top flight. 
I'm sure someone will put me straight if any of this information is incorrect.

​The Game
The Goats started like a house on fire. Less than a minute had been played when a through ball found captain Emma Hopkins clean through. The Caversham striker made no mistake, slipping the ball under Amy Bourton to make it 0-1.
West Oxfordshire almost hit back immediately but stand-in keeper Sam Thoreau in the Goats goal reacted quickly to save with her feet after a quick break from the home side.
Despite the early lead for the visitors, it was the home side who settled into the game better and whilst they seemed to be quite capable of playing the ball around, they quickly found that a more direct approach, with the slope in their favour, could cause problems for the Caversham defence. Goalkeeper Amy Bourton could easily reach deep into the visitors half with her kicks and given that the ground was quite hard, the bounce was going to cause an issue. To be fair to Caversham though, central defensive pair Sophie Wicks and Shannon Hobson coped admirably with the aerial bombardment and when they did miss the first ball, Hobson's pace got them out of trouble.
At the other end, the same could be said. When Caversham did attack the narrow pitch funnelled them through the centre where West Oxfordshire defenders looked at their most comfortable.
Half-time was rapidly approaching when, after 37 minutes, West Oxfordshire's tactic came up trumps. Bourton launched another ball into the heart of the Caversham defence and for once neither Wicks or Hobson got to the bounce of the ball. Home striker Milly Downing had taken a chance and run through the defensive line. The ball sat up nicely for her and she unleashed a superb dipping volley over Thoreau to make it 1-1. 

HT West Oxfordshire 1 Caversham United 1. A blistering start from the Goats but they failed to take advantage, allowing West Oxfordshire to settle and, ultimately, to look marginally the better team. The equaliser was no more than the home side deserved on the balance of play. However, with the slope against them in the second half, they were unlikely to be able to apply the same tactic.

​Caversham started the second half looking a lot livelier, trying to get the ball down the flanks after failing to get any return from the West Oxfordshire central defensive duo in the first half. Thy looked especially lively down the right flank with Nelson and Hopkins alternating runs down the channels.
However, ten minutes into the second period, it was the home side who took the advantage. A corner was swung in from the left, the ball dropping inside the 6 yard box. From my position it was impossible to see who got the last touch or even if the ball went over the line after it was hacked clear by a defender, but the referee signalled immediately for a goal. Judging by the congratulations from the West Oxfordshire team, I guessed that Emily Prior was the player who got the final touch. 2-1. Something of a controversial goal with a number of complaints from the victors.
It seemed to rattle Caversham and they were very grateful to Thoreau in goal just a minute later as the stopper was quick off her line to make a great block and prevent the home side going further in front.
Just past the hour mark came another controversial moment when Price was put clean through before being taken down by Caversham's Charlotte Clarke. Absolutely no doubt that it was a free-kick but could it have been seen as preventing a clear goal-scoring opportunity? The home bench and support clearly thought so but the referee was more lenient, just giving the Caversham left-back a yellow card. As it happened West Oxfordshire were not complaining anyway a minute afterwards when Stacey Coles produced a beautiful free-kick, planting the ball high to Thoreau's left to make it 3-1.
It looked to be game over at that point but Caversham and, in particular, Stephanie Nelson, were having none of it. Just three minutes after going two goals behind, Nelson picked the ball up on the edge of the box, turned sharply, and fired over the home keeper to make it 3-2. Game back on. Caversham tried to push for the equaliser but, to be fair to them, West Oxfordshire steadied themselves, slowed the game down, and managed to prevent Caversham from getting up a head of steam. Nelson did come mightily close to an equaliser with another turn and shot that went narrowly over, but try as they might, Caversham could not find that illusive third goal.

FT West Oxfordshire 3 Caversham United 2. A very entertaining game of football on what must have quite an unpleasantly warm day for the players. Two evenly matched teams who both gave it everything they had, you can't ask for more than that. Next up for West Oxfordshire is a trip to Wargrave who drew with Penn & Tylers Green on the opening day. Caversham will be on cup duty as the welcome Warminster Town to Berkshire.
Best of luck to both teams for the remainder of the season. 

West Oxfordshire: Bourton, Avery, Godin, Gunzkover, Preston(c), Coles, McNab, Prior, Downing, Hewson, Hirons. Subs: Jones, Pitman
Caversham United: Thoreau, Dearling, Wicks, Hobson, Clarke, Levy, Walsh, Butler, Ali, Hopkins(c), Nelson. Subs: Swan

Ground Number: 278
Att: N/A
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A

During the Spring and early Summer BotP became very involved in the Cricklade Supreme Trophy and Shield competition. Of the 32 teams involved only one was a Sunday League team, Jovial Monk FC from Swindon. They performed brilliantly, reaching the Semi-Final of the Shield competition, putting in some great performances along the way, including a superb Quarter-Final destruction of Siddington which BotP was privileged to witness - Monks Get Winning Habit.
Over the Summer I had the idea to put together a weekly(ish) article documenting their forthcoming season, hopefully in a 'warts and all' style, showing the trials, tribulations, and fun side of a Sunday League team. BotP has therefore teamed up with Jovial Monk player-manager Shaun Smith to get the weekly lowdown on events straight from the horses mouth.

Jovial Monk play in Division Two of the Swindon Sunday Football League. League fixtures do not begin until September 12th with Monk facing a short trip to face AFC Stratton. However, before that they have the not so small task of taking on Division One side FC Walcot in the Wiltshire County Sunday Cup. Monk have been drawn at home but still face a very tough test against a side who are traditionally very strong. That being said, Monk have themselves showed some excellent form in pre-season including a very creditable 4-4 draw with Stroud League outfit Seend United who have won every other pre-season friendly they have played. So, that sets the scene nicely for Sunday's clash. It should be a great game so if you want to get along to watch the game it is a 10:30am kick-off at Lambourn Sports FC, Bockhampton Road, Lambourn, RG17 8PS.

Follow on Twitter
Jovial Monk @jovialfc & @smudgeynwa
Swindon Sunday League @SwindonSundayFL
Twitter handle for FC Walcot not found

Keep checking in for the next edition and see how this series pans out. At the very least you'll get to know how the cup match went.

​When I am planning for a game I always like to do a little research about the teams and the towns/villages that they come from. When I started planning for this midweek's jaunt down to Hampshire I found a few interesting facts about both the home side Stockbridge and their visitors from Liss. Stockbridge was for a while the home of (in)famous actress and socialite Lillie Langtree. She stayed at Stockbridge House which itself has a varied history. At one time it had a reputation as a house of ill repute, it became a garage (which closed in 2005) and is now a restaurant. It is not clear just when Ms Langtry stayed in Stockbridge or how long she was there but could well have been during her liaison with The Prince of Wales in the late 1870s. If that is the case then she probably was not in the village when Stockbridge FC were formed in 1894. Liss, some 35 miles to the East and close to the Sussex border, can also boast a famous actress amongst its list of notable residents, Minnie Driver spent part of her early life in West Liss just to the North of the village centre.

​The Ground
Stockbridge FC moved to the Recreation Ground, on the Eastern edge of Stockbridge, in 1978 after playing on various fields around the perimeter of the town. The ground is accessed off the High Street via a short service road and sits parallel to the A30. There is limited parking on grass alongside the pitch but also plenty of free parking on High Street with just a short walk to the ground. The access road opens out onto a small area of tarmac behind one of the goals. Immediately to the left is a clubhouse and separate changing areas. On the left hand side of the pitch, where cars are directed to, there is a small covered seating area (currently cordoned off) and the two dugouts. There is hard standing around three sides of the ground with just the area behind the far goal not accessible. The pitch slopes a little across from the dugout side towards the A30 side.

The Background
The club has had a fair amount of success in local leagues and cups including the North Hants Senior League title in 1988, three North Hants Senior Cup wins and a North Hants League Cup trophy in 1991. Their best league position came in the 2006-7 season when they were placed 7th in the Wessex Division One table.
Liss Athletic were founded in 1962 and, although they have not got a list of honours to rival Stockbridge, they can lay claim to a Hampshire League Division Two title in 1995. Their best league performance came in the 2005-06 season when they attained a top five finish in the Wessex League Division Two table.
​In recent  years there have been plenty of goals in matches involving these two sides. Last season they only met once with Stockbridge edging a 7 goal game at Liss. In the 2019-20 season they did manage to play twice, Liss winning 2-1 at home but receiving an 8-2 hammering at the Recreation Ground. The season before that Stockbridge did the double, winning 3-2 at home and 4-3 at Liss. In the 2017-18 season it was Liss who completed the double 3-1 at home and 3-2 in Stockbridge. In all, there have been 41 goals in the last 7 meetings, almost an average of 6 per game. This season Stockbridge have started very well winning their opening three games before drawing at home with Fleetlands and then suffering their first defeat at Moneyfields Reserves last time out. They are, however, unbeaten at home. Top scorer so far is captain Reece Daly with 3 (1 penalty). Liss have won two and lost three of their opening five games, with both victories coming on the road, 4-2 at Winchester Castle and 3-2 3-2 at Denmead. They have suffered two consecutive setbacks in their last two games, conceding four both times. Their captain, Elliott Harrison, is not only their top scorer but is also joint league top scorer with 6 so far.

​The Game
The omens were not good for Liss even before kick-off when centre-half George Davy had to dash behind the goal during warm-up to throw up, and things were to get even worse for the big defender after only 5 minutes when he was judged to have handled a driven cross in the area. The ball definitely struck his hand but was hit quite hard from a short distance away, so there was little he could do. However, under current rules, there was little alternative for the referee than to point to the spot. Top scorer Reece Daly stepped up and slotted home to  make it 1-0.
This set the tone for the first-half. Stockbridge were sharper in every department, quicker to the ball, snappier in the tackle and more precise with their passing. Liss seemed to be, well, listless to be honest. 
Lascelles Richardson's pace and willingness to run into the channels was causing a lot of problems to the Liss backline and, with Josh Graham willing to overlap on the left too, Stockbridge were getting in behind the Liss defence at will. However, their final ball or, in a lot of cases, lack of final ball meant that they did not get as many efforts on target as they should have. Consequently, after 30 minutes, it was still only 1-0.
That was until the 37th minute when Stockbridge finally put some clear water between themselves and their visitors. Once again, it came from good work on the left. Graham twisted and turned to give himself room to get a cross in. The ball eventually found its way to Kian Clark towards the back post. He took a touch to get the ball out of his feet and hammered a drive into the net. 2-0
It wasn't until the 43rd minute that Liss managed to get a shot on target and it was top scorer and captain Elliott Harrison with the effort, but his attempted lob was comfortably held by Levente Gonda in the Robins' goal.
Deep into injury time and Davy's eventful evening continued as he went down with an injury. The referee blew for half-time leaving the player still down receiving treatment as the players left the field. Thankfully he was soon back on his feet and able to continue, which is just as well for Athletic as, despite his misadventures, he had probably been their star performer in the first half.

​HT Stockbridge 2 Liss Athletic 0. The only real mystery about the first half was how Stockbridge were not out of sight. They were stronger, quicker and more incisive across the park but did not make the most of their possession in terms of goals. Having said that, a two goal advantage looked to be enough unless Liss coudl seriously step things up in the second period.

The home side were immediately back into their stride in the second half. We were barely two minutes in when Kian Clark tried his luck from just outside the box. His heavily deflected shot wrong-footed the keeper but hit the base of the post and went for a corner. The corner was cleared but the home side were straight back on the attack with the ball again finding Clark. This time his superb long-range effort beat the keeper but crashed back off the bar. The woodwork had saved Athletic twice in a minute.
The flow of the game continued to be pretty much one way, towards the Liss goal. However, to give credit to The Blues, they never gave up and continued to play the game to their game plan, which was clearly to play out from the back. This, however, was giving them problems because Stockbridge were able to press them very high up the pitch, forcing mistakes and, to be fair, they were also giving the ball away themselves on numerous occasions. Still, as we approached the last 10 minutes, they were only two goals down and had, once or twice, managed to mount attacks of their own. Would Stockbridge pay for not putting the game to bed?
The answer to that question came on 82 minutes and, again, it was the away side who were the architects of their own downfall, giving the ball away deep inside their own half. Home substitute Finley Belbin applied a glorious finish, lofting the ball over the keeper to make it 3-0.
Five minutes later Clark, who had been so unlucky twice early in the half, made it four with a tremendous effort from way out, giving the keeper no hope as he curled the ball into the top corner. 4-0

FT Stockbridge 4 Liss Athletic 0. The home side dominated the game from start to finish. Their defence restricted the league's joint top scorer to a couple of half chances, their midfield ran the game and their strikers caused problems throughout. I described it as comprehensive in my full-time tweet and that was exactly what it was, a comprehensive victory. On Saturday Liss will try to fix their home record when they welcome Paulsgrove to the Newman Collard Playing Fields. Stockbridge travel to bottom side Lyndhurst who have yet to pick up a point.

Stockbridge: Gonda, N.Abrahams, Graham, Taylor, Coleman, Daly(c), Clark, Savage, Richardson, Carrier, Morgan. Subs: Wilcox, Dusanjh, P.Abrahams, Walsh, Belbin

Ground Number: 277
Att: N/A
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A

Having not managed to get to a game last week, I was really looking forward to getting back out on the road this midweek. There were a number of games to choose from but the on that caught my eye was a Wiltshire Senior League local derby between Marlborough Town and Pewsey Vale. However, as it was an early kick-off (6:15) it was touch and go if I could make it depending on my work commitments. Luckily, things panned out and I was able to hit the A420 in plenty of time to get down to Wiltshire.

​The Ground
Marlborough Town were founded in 1904. They moved to their current ground, Elcot Lane just to the East of the town centre, in 1946 (to years before Pewsey Vale FC was formed). There is a decent sized car park adjacent to the ground and parking available on Elcot Lane, within a short walk of the ground. There is a good sized clubhouse that incorporates a food bar. The pitch itself has a slight slope from the car park end and across the pitch away from the Elcot Lane side. Dugouts are on the Elcot Lane side. There are no covered spectator areas (although there is a little cover on the clubhouse patio), so bring an umbrella if the weather looks bad. The club seemed to have a friendly, family atmosphere and there was a decent crowd for a Step 7 game, even considering the fact it was a local derby.

​The Background
Less than 8 miles separates Marlborough and Pewsey, so this was very much a local derby. The home side started this season with a mixed bag of results. The opening day 0-0 draw at Odd Down Reserves was followed by a good start at home, thrashing Stratton Juniors 5-0. However, last time out they went down 7-0 at home to Royal Wootton Bassett Town Development, who went top of the league in the process. The Vale, who were top when last season was prematurely halted, have started as they left off. They opened with a 4-0 defeat of Wroughton then beat Shrewton United 4-1 and Salisbury Development 3-0, all at home. Last season, Vale's first back in the Wiltshire League, in a game that saw a player from each side red-carded, was won 3-0 by Pewsey.
​

​The Game
Pewsey Vale, kicking towards the car park end in the first half, got off to a great start when after just 4 minutes they worked the ball down the left hand side. A deep cross came in finding two visitors unmarked at the back post. It was Zak Messenger who met it, planting his head wide of Jake Hull to make it 0-1.
Vale were well on top at this point but despite their dominance of the ball they could not add to their tally and, after 17 minutes, they put themselves in a position of danger when a clumsy challenge from Drewett was penalised on the edge of their area. The referee took some time to consult with his assistant, presumably because the offence was very close to being in the box. However, free-kick it was, and to the relief of the Vale defender Jake Woolliams put his effort over the bar. Marlborough would come to rue this as a missed opportunity as Pewsey once again took control of the ball. However,  they were finding it difficult to threaten Hull's goal.
That was until the 34th minute when the game burst into life. A Pewsey Vale free-kick from the left was met at the near post by a group of players, the ball eventually going in off a defender for an own goal. 0-2. A minute later the visitors made it three when some great work out on the left by Marsden resulted in him slipping the ball inside for Messenger to grab his second of the game. 0-3.
Four minute after that Pewsey had the opportunity to make it four when leading scorer James Guthrie was put clean through, one on one with Hull. However, on this occasion the Town stopper came out on top, saving well with his legs.

HT Marlborough Town 0 Pewsey Vale 3. A comfortable half for the visitors who had, in the main, controlled possession and with it the game. A lot of work for Marlborough to do in the second half.

​Any thoughts of a second half comeback from the home side were quickly dispelled after the restart. Vale continued where they had left off, taking and holding possession almost from the off with Ollie England running the show in central midfield, ably backed by brother Rory and Connor Marsden, the three were terrorising the home team at times.
Just before the hour mark Ollie England picked the ball up on the halfway line, skipped past a couple of challenges and laid off a perfect through ball for Guthrie have another shot at a one on one with Hull. This time the striker gave the keeper no chance, sliding the ball into the corner of the net. 0-4

It has to be said that, despite the score line, and coming off the back of a heavy home defeat, Marlborough continued to stick to their football philosophy of playing it out from the back. There must have been a temptation to play the ball long to give the defenders some respite, but they stuck to their guns and you have to credit the team and the coaches for that. It was, therefore, unfortunate that the fifth goal came as a result of them losing the ball inside their own penalty area. Ollie England put the pressure on, nicking the ball away before rounding the keeper and slotting home a richly deserved goal to cap an excellent performance, especially in the second half. 0-5.

Shortly after going five down Town had keeper Hull to thank again for throwing himself full length to keep out a goal bound effort. The home keeper made at least three excellent stops in the second half and was certainly the main reason the defeat was not heavier.

FT Marlborough Town 0 Pewsey Vale 5. Vale leapfrog Wootton Bassett to go top of the league after a comprehensive victory. The host Calne Town Reserves, who climbed to second with a 1-0 win over Wroughton, on Saturday. Despite the fact that it was a second consecutive home defeat for Marlborough I think it is fair to say that both of their conquerors are expected to be right up there all season. Marlborough try to play football the right way and have the chance to put things right when they welcome Malmesbury Victoria Dev. to Elcot Lane on Saturday. Good luck to both teams for the remainder of the season.

Marlborough Town: Hull, Clappison, Pullin, Harland(c), Fraser, Hatch, Conway, Woolliams, Smith, Crame, Maidment. Subs: Symon, Terrett, Morris
Pewsey Vale: Latouche, Robb, Drewett, Edmondson(c), Marsden, O.England, Force-Jones, R.England, Guthrie, Messenger, Hoareau. Subs: Britten, Neale, Twin

Ground Number: 276
Att: 
Entrance: N/A
Programme: N/A