​It's a known fact that, in the West Midlands, you don't go to Lye, you go 'Down The Lye'. And so it was this Saturday, that I found my self going down the Lye. In truth, if Spennymoor wasn't quite so far and I didn't need to get back to Oxford at a reasonable hour, I would have been halfway up the M1 and preparing to watch Stourbridge battle The Moors for a place in the National League North. However, a final day game between Lye Town and Loughborough University, and another chance to watch a game with my Dad, was a very good substitute and much needed distraction from events in the North-East. The game was also the last in the 7 year managerial reign of Flyers boss Darren Goodall, who had announced his decision to step down at the end of the season during the week.

The Sports Ground, Lye's home turf since their formation in 1930, is just outside the town centre and, like neighbours Stourbridge, is a three-sided ground shared one one side with Lye Cricket Club. There is limited parking at the ground but plenty of spaces in nearby streets. Entrance is through a single turnstile which takes you in at the cricket ground corner of the stadium at the Stourbridge Road end. The clubhouse is also in this corner of the ground, as are the players facilities and the Boardroom. There is a covered stand behind the Stourbridge Road end goal and covered seating on the Cemetery Road side, which also houses the snack bar. Both the Stourbridge Road Stand and the Cemetery Road Stand are showing signs of age but have a certain charm about them. As I said to my Dad as we walked around, it is a proper old football ground, full of character. On today's evidence, it is also full of very friendly, welcoming and knowledgeable football people. Upon entering the ground myself and my Dad got talking to a couple of club officials who had noticed I was wearing a Stourbridge FC fleece. We got into a discussion about their chances at Spennymoor, the player connections between Lye and Stourbridge and generally about football. When I mentioned to my Dad that we should get a cup of tea, we were directed into the nearby Boardroom and given a cuppa and the offer of biscuits. You wouldn't get that in the Premier League! Not only that but it turned out to be the outgoing manager's Mum that was making our tea.

​Unfortunately for Lye, their ground has also been a cause for concern this season. Aside from concerns over rate increases to the lease, they were also informed that the lack of security at the ground meant that they could not apply for promotion into Step 4. This news coincided with the club's drop-off in form after a very promising first half of the season in which they were threatening eventual champions Alvechurch at the top of the table.

Today's game was against Loughborough University, a side near the foot of the table but never really threatened with relegation. In mid-August Lye had stormed into a 3-1 half-time lead only to be pegged back by The Scholars who scored two second-half goals to share the spoils. 

There were no prizes on offer for today's game but, from kick-off, it was clear that both sides were keen to finish the season on a high. In the case of the home side, they also wanted to put in a good performance for the sake of their outgoing manager.

Both sides made chances in the first-half and both sides should probably have scored from one-on-one opportunities.
Jack Till's bustling style up-front for Lye was causing all sorts of trouble for the Loughborough defence. Till was not giving them a minute's peace.
Loughborough like to play the ball out from the back, keeping it on the floor and putting passing moves together avoiding long balls. However, after a period of very little rain, the Sports Ground surface was quite dry, dusty and bumpy on Saturday making it difficult for The Scholars to keep hold of the ball.
Just before the half-hour mark my Twitter feed, and the Black Country radio coverage of the people next to us, reported that Spennymoor had finally made the breakthrough after holding the upper hand for much of the play-off final game.
Not so the game at Lye though, which was very much still in the balance with absolutely no quarter being given in the midfield battle, particularly between Lye's Simon Williams and the visitor's number 10, Joe Boachie.

HT Lye Town 0 Loughborough University 0.

​Lye were out early for the second half, clearly keen to get on with it. They had an early bonus when, after 52 minutes, an attack was curtailed illegally on the edge of the Loughborough box. The referee gave the free-kick and, after consultation with his assistant, issued a red card to the Loughborough defender, Christoph Ivanusch. I can only assume that it was deemed to be a goalscoring opportunity but, to me, it looked like the striker still had a lot to do and there was at least one more defender close by. A harsh decision? To be fair, there was little complaint from the Loughborough team.

Despite being a man light, Loughborough persevered with their passing game and were still giving as good as they got. Lye were now having a little more of the ball and, as a consequence, started to make one or two more chances. They were thwarted by Scholars keeper Connor O'Keefe who made a couple of very good stops, tipping one effort over the bar and then acrobatically clawing a header out when it looked like the ball was beyond him.

Then after 64 minutes Lye broke down the left and, when the ball was played into the box, it fell to Jack Till on the edge of the box. This time O'Keefe was powerless to stop it as the shot flew past him into the net. 1-0.

An end of season game with nothing riding on it, a goal behind and down to 10-men. Many teams would have folded at this point. It is great credit to Loughborough that not only did they not buckle, they actually took the game to Lye in the closing 15 minutes. They continued to play some very nice football and carved out a number of reasonable chances. However, the home defence stood strong and saw out the game. They did have a couple of chances to increase their lead, but that was not to be either.
The game ended 1-0 which, unfortunately, was the same result at Spennymoor.

FT Lye Town 1 Loughborough University 0. The Lye team formed a guard of honour for Manager Goodall as he left the pitch for the last time.

Thanks to everyone at Lye Town for their hospitality. What an absolutely delightful club. Non-league football is all about the people. People who give up their own time and money to keep the game going and people who make visitors, either opponents or neutrals, feel welcome at their club. Lye has this in abundance. I sincerely hope that the off-field issues get sorted and that the club goes from strength to strength in the future. Good luck also to Loughborough, they play a very attractive style of football and, in my opinion, look to be a better side than their league position suggests.

Lye Town - lyetownfc
Loughborough University - lborofootball

It's getting very close to the end of the season now so an unexpected opportunity to take in a game on a Thursday evening was very welcome. The game being the Wiltshire County Senior Cup Final between Swindon Supermarine of the Southern League Division One South & West and Highworth Town of the Hellenic Premier League. The game was to be played at Swindon Town's County Ground which in the context of this website would be a new ground to tick off. In reality, I have actually been to the County Ground before to watch West Brom take on Swindon many years ago. A game which saw the 
massed ranks of Albion fans get absolutely drenched in the uncovered away end.
This evening just the Arkell Stand was open to the public. So, unusually for a non-league contest, there were seats and shelter available to all.

The Wiltshire Senior Cup was first contested in 1886, the first winners, and in fact winners for the first 6 years, were tonight's hosts Swindon Town. Of the two sides contesting this evening's game Highworth Town had the best record with six wins, last last of which was in the 2014-15 season when they beat Bradford Town 2-1 in the Final. Supermarine, in their current guise, have never won the Senior Cup. However, the current team was founded in 1992 after two clubs, Swindon Athletic and Supermarine FC, merged. Supermarine had won the Cup once, a 2-0 victory over Penhill in the 1985-86 season. Athletic could claim two victories, a 3-1 win over Trowbridge in 1892-93 (becoming the first team to prevent Swindon Town winning the cup) and again almost 100 years later in 1989-90.

So history was definitely on the side of The Worthians.However, current league standings favoured Swindon, as a Step 4 team, who finished in a very creditable seventh place. Highworth, a step lower, were placed sixth in their league. With the two clubs being just over 2 miles apart, both fielding players that had played for both clubs in their starting line-ups and Supermarine boss, Dave Webb, having played for Highworth, there was always going to be an edge to this game.

The opening encounters of the game were quite even but as the teams started to settle it was Highworth who looked the more comfortable on the ball, putting together some really nice passages of play and using the space provided by the County Ground pitch.

Conversely, after the tidy passing moves that The Worthians had produced, it was a route one move that saw them take the lead. A Supermarine corner was collected by Worthians keeper Kauppinen who, spotting Ashley Edenborough upfield, went for the long ball to the striker. The Supermarine defence seemed to be taken completely by surprise allowing their former team-mate to go clean through and finish calmly past Johns. 
0-1.
​
Swindon picked up their game a little after going behind but, it has to be said, Highworth were worthy of their lead. However, it didn't last too long.
A Supermarine attack was stopped illegally on the edge of the Highworth box and Josh Parsons stepped up to curl a lovely free-kick past Kauppinen and into the net. 1-1
That was the way it stayed until half-time.

HT Swindon Supermarine 1 Highworth Town 1. The Worthians would probably feel that they deserved to be in front at the break having been the better side for a large part of the half. However, Swindon have kept themselves in the game and must still fancy themselves as the game wears on.

​It took just four minutes of the second-half for Swindon to establish a lead in the match. A right-wing corner was headed goalwards and parried by Kauppinen. Former Highworth player Ash Taylor was first to respond to the loose ball, smashing it under the keeper and into the corner of the net. 2-1.

Swindon were more in the game than the first half but Highworth still looked dangerous when going forward. Their plight was not helped in the 70th minute, however, when dangerous forward Asa Corrick was shown a straight red for a lunging challnge in midfield. Corrick shrugged off a couple of challenges but, after pushing the ball a little too far ahead, he went in quite recklessly in an attempt to retrieve the situation. I have to say, from my vantage point, my first thought was that he would see red. There was a little bit of a scuffle following the challenge before the referee gave Corrick his marching orders.

Even a player light, Highworth still tried to take the game to their opponents but as time began to run out, they did have to rely on keeper Kauppinen, now almost playing as a sweeper, to keep them in the game a couple of times. His counterpart, Connor Johns, was also called into action, saving well from Edenborough and preventing any extra-time.

FT Swindown Supermarine 2 Highworth Town 1. Swindon Supermarine win the Wiltshire Senior Cup for the first time. Highworth, to their credit, made them work very hard for their win in what was a pretty tight and even encounter.

Swindon Supermarine - @supermarinefc
Highworth Town - @highworthtownfc
​Wiltshire FA - @wiltscountyfa

Loughton Manor hit all the right notes on Grendon's award winning surface.
​
​Another one of those fairly rare chances to watch a game on a Saturday. With the Mighty Glassboys at home to Nantwich in a game that would decide home advantage in the play-offs, it was tempting to go to the Midlands. However, I really needed to be back home as early as possible, so I decided to stay local. In the end it boiled down to a choice of a new ground, Grendon Rangers, or a local derby between Bicester Town and Ardley United. As Grendon do not have floodlights my chances to watch them, being a bit of a midweek hopper, are limited. So, Grendon it was.

Grendon Underwood is a picturesque village about midway between Bicester and Aylesbury. The local club, Grendon Rangers, play on a pitch just behind the village hall. This is Step 7 of the pyramid. A world away from the Premier League, even half a world away from the likes of Stourbridge. The facilities are basic. There is no fencing, no entry fee and only one very small covered area which sits just behind the dugouts on the far side from the car park and village hall (which is where the changing facilities and snack bar are situated). However there are two things that Grendon has that many other clubs cannot match. They have a really good kids play area, which I am sure my seven year old would have loved ad she not been off dancing, and, even better than this, they have a top grounds-person in Robin Taylor. Mr Taylor has just been awarded Grounds-person of the Year for Step 7 and below, you can see why when you get a look at the playing surface. I spoke to a couple of locals during the game and both were full of praise for the amount of work that their grounds-person puts in. So, congratulations Mr Taylor. Nice to see one of the, largely unsung, heroes of non-league getting some recognition.

​Today's game was against Loughton Manor who, at the start of play, were sixteen points and six places above 15th placed Rangers. The reverse fixture, back in August, had finished 4-1 to Manor. However, Grendon had come back from 2-0 at 5th placed MK Gallacticos to win 3-2 on Wednesday evening and could well take confidence from the result.

The game kicked off in glorious sunshine. Still a cool breeze, but a lovely day for watching football especially in such a picturesque setting. The opening encounters were pretty even. Loughton, kicking down the slight slope, probably just edged it on possession and their forwards looked quite lively.
It was 18 minutes before either side forged a clear cut opportunity. When it arrived, it fell to the away side. After a foray down the left and a dangerous looking cross, the ball was only half cleared. It dropped into the path of Manor's number 11 inside the box but he could only blaze his strike over the bar.

​A few minutes later a challenge near the Loughton dugout left the Grendon number 6 writhing in pain. There was nothing malicious about the challenge but as the players went down the Grendon player seemed to twist his knee quite badly. He was eventually helped off the pitch and, although strapped and iced up, he did watch the rest of the game. It did look like a nasty one at the time and we wish him a speedy recovery.

Just before the half hour mark we had the opening goal. A free-kick from the Loughton right flank was glanced across the goal by number 8. The ball beat the keeper and went in off the far post. 0-1.

The home side were not behind for too long though. Some three minutes later they also won a free-kick, this time on their left hand side. The ball was delivered deep and headed back across goal by their centre-half directly into the path of Jason Riddell who was left to nod the ball home. 1-1

Despite conceding, Loughton continued to look the more dangerous side and, just before half-time, they got their noses back in front. Some good work again on their right wing led to a driven ball being played across the six yard line. The ball found number 9, unmarked, who had an easy finish. 1-2

HT Grendon Rangers 1 Loughton Manor 2. The away side looked the sharper of the two. Maybe the exploits of Wednesday evening has taken it out of Grendon. I also heard that they have a few players missing today but, having said that, I also believe Manor had a few out with injury as well.

​Loughton took advantage of the spring sunshine and stayed out on the pitch for their half-time team talk. Maybe it was the extra vitamin D from the sunshine or maybe Grendon were feeling 'leggy' from midweek. Either way, it was Loughton who took the game by the scruff of the neck in the second-half.

Ten minutes in they called the Grendon keeper into action. First of all the keeper was quick to react in a one on one situation, saving well with his legs. Then a few seconds later he through himself in front of a goal-bound effort to deflect it over the bar. The heroics were all in vain though. When the corner came over, 10 was left unmarked in the six yard box to power in a header. 1-3.
Loughton continued to control the game, allowing Grendon few opportunities to get back into the game. The home side did bring the Loughton keeper into action once or twice, but overall they were second best on the day.

A few seconds after the referee had responded to an enquiry regarding the time left, to which he answered 15, Loughton got their fourth. A left wing corner was cleared by Grendon but, as the players came out of the box, the ball was lofted over the defence and Loughton's 11 ran through to beat the keeper to the bouncing ball and head into the net. 1-4.

On 84 minutes an increasingly tired Grendon side allowed a Loughton player to make headway down the right. His driven, low cross was turned in by 10 to make it 1-5.
There was still time for Loughton to almost make it six when an effort from outside the box clipped the woodwork with the keeper beaten.

FT Grendon Rangers 1 Loughton Manor 5. Tough afternoon for the home side, who looked tired, against a Loughton side that had quite a bit of pace up front.
​
A wonderful place to watch football on a bright, sunny Spring afternoon. Well worth a visit if you happen to be in the area.
To make things even better for me, Stourbridge came from a goal down at half-time to win 4-2 and secure a home play-off tie. So, that is Monday evening's entertainment sorted. Stourbridge v Workington under the lights at The War Memorial. Can't wait.

Grendon Rangers - @grendon_rangers
Loughton Manor - @loughtonmanorfc

Apologies for the lack of player names in the blog. If I can get them, I will edit the report later.

Harps show defensive qualities to hold off Baldock and earn all three points in the South Midlands Division One promotion race.

The season is rapidly drawing to a close and there are vital games at the top and bottom of leagues all across the country. On Tuesday evening the hottest ticket in town was the big South Midlands Division One clash between third-placed Harpenden Town and the team just above them, Baldock Town. The league has been a three horse race for some time now with Biggleswade holding the aces in top spot and these two hanging on to their coat tails.
A few weeks ago I watched a thoroughly entertaining 3-3 draw between Biggleswade and Baldock in which the Greens scored a last minute penalty to hang on to top spot. Could that have been the turning point for the title race? 

Since that game Baldock have stuttered a little, drawing two of the next four in a tough series of games. Biggleswade have won all three of their games since and now have a four point lead at the top. Harpenden have also been on a good run, winning six and losing one of their last seven games.
With Biggleswade at home to bottom side Arlesey Town Reserves, the game this evening was pretty much a shootout to see who could remain in the title race or, should the game end all-square, it could all but hand the title to Biggleswade. Earlier in the season Harpenden had come away from Roker Park with all of the points after a 4-0 victory. This evening was always going to be a much closer game than that.

Rothamsted Park is situated just outside Harpenden town centre, on the edge of the park and next to the town sports centre and tennis club. Parking is in the sports club car park (note: pay and display applicable until 6:30pm) with the ground being a short walk away up a narrow access road. The club house is separate from the ground but, once you have paid your entrance fee, you are free to move backwards and forwards. The ground itself is almost completely surrounded by trees. There is a small covered spectator area on the near side with the dugouts opposite. Hard standing surrounds the rest of the playing area.

After a quick visit to the bar to get a cup of tea, have a brief chat with Baldock media man (and more) Lee Rusbridge, and jot down the starting line-ups it was almost time for kick-off.

The game was only three minutes old when Harpenden made the initial breakthrough. A throw-in was chested down into the path of Kyle McLeish just inside the right-hand side of the Baldock box. The striker took a touch and fired a shot across Reds keeper Bennett into the far corner. 1-0.

It was just the start that Harps wanted and, almost immediately after going a goal up, there was a noticeable change of tactics from the home side. They clearly wanted to take the pace out of the game and prevent Baldock from getting any momentum going. 

It became apparent that there were only three match balls available. Now, to be fair to Harpenden, I had not noticed if this was the case right from kick-off or if this was a deliberate tactic after going a goal up and I not condemning them either way. As with most grounds at this level, the ball can often be sent over trees or way out of play. A limited number of match balls ensures that there is always a slight break in play when the ball goes out. It's not illegal and, in this case, had it's desired effect.

Baldock certainly had the lion's share of possession for the next 30 minutes or so but didn't manage to stretch Sansom in the home goal aside from one Lee Harman effort that the keeper got well behind. In fact, it was Baldock keeper Bennett who had to be alert when a long-range effort forced him into a fingertip save to push the ball over.

​Just after the half-hour mark we had a little delay when one of the referee's assistants went down with an injury (later reported as a fractured 
wrist. We wish him a speedy recovery) and had to be replaced after consultation with both benches.

Just before half-time Baldock had their best opportunity to equalise. A misplaced defensive header fell straight to the unmarked Lee Harman on the edge of the box but, with the keeper scrambling across his box, the striker got his shot on target only to see the keeper make a good save. 

It's all very easy to comment from the sideline but I think the striker will be disappointed that he didn't score.


HT Harpenden Town 1 Baldock Town 0. All in all a fairly even half. Baldock edged possession but Harpenden defended very well and looked dangerous when they did attack. Ultimately, the game had swung on a very good finish from McLeish. 

The second half continued where the first had left off. If anything, Baldock had even more possession after the break but still could not force Sansom into any serious action.

As the half wore on tension certainly began to rise not helped by some contentious refereeing decisions and the aforementioned scarcity of match balls. Harpenden were more than happy to break the game up. They used every trick in the book although I stress, nothing illegal, to make life frustrating for Baldock and it was certainly working.

The Harpenden defence has to be credited at this point. In the second half and, especially in the final 15 minutes, Baldock through everything at them but they stood firm. It was a defensive display that the famous Italian teams of the past would have been proud of. Baldock did finally make Sansom work a little and there were one or two last ditch tackles or blocks in the box.

However, Harpenden saw the game out and took a very hard-earned three points.

FT Harpenden Town 1 Baldock Town 0. Frustrating for The Reds but credit to Harpenden for a resolute display after scoring very early on.

Biggleswade also ran out 4-1 winners against Arlesey which means that Baldock can no longer win the the title. Harpenden can still mathematically overtake Biggleswade but, in truth, it would take a miracle.

I want to finish this blog with a comment on a subject that has been bothering me for a while this season. That is the level of abuse that referees and assistants get these days. I said earlier in the report that tension in the game wasn't helped by some of the official's decisions. 
In my opinion, this is true but I certainly do not think the referee deserved the torrent of swearing and abuse that came his way.  I'm not going to say which side the abuse came from because it was hard to tell, it could have either side or even both. Frankly, it doesn't matter. I will say that I believe it was supporters not team officials that were the culprits.

We all get frustrated at refereeing decisions, especially when so much is at stake. We should also be able to expect more consistency amongst officials. However, where would we be without them? We would not have a game to watch at all. I wish people would respect this and respect the officials more. They expect comments, they expect people to disagree with them. That's part of the game and comes with the territory of being a referee or assistant. What supporters need to understand is that decisions have to be made very quickly and, whatever decision is made, one side will probably not be happy with it. It concerns me greatly that, if this abuse and threat is not stamped out, we will soon be in a position where there are not enough officials to go around. Games will get postponed and, lower down the pyramid, we may start to lose leagues.
​
I know that clubs are all signed up to the Delete that Expletive initiative which is great. However, how does it get enforced? I don't have the answer but I hope that we start to see some changes soon before it is too late.

One final word. Although I have brought this subject up in this blog, I am in no way trying to say that either of the clubs involved are to blame for any of the abuse. I am sure that both clubs do everything they can to prevent this kind of thing from happening. I have seen and heard abuse in some form at many games this season.

Harpenden Town - @harpenden_town
Baldock Town - @baldocktownfc

Nuneaton Griff, despite constant second-half pressure, come away from Littleton with all three points.

Having spent the day in London, an environment that I am very much not at home in, I was really looking forward to getting out to a game on Wednesday evening. Out into the fresh air, watching football, a setting in which I feel much, much happier.
It was an opportunity to finally visit Littleton FC. Twice before I had made plans for a trip to deepest Worcestershire but on both occasions the weather had got the better of me. No chance of that this evening. Clear skies and, albeit slightly chilly, a lovely spring evening.
This game was a re-arranged fixture against Nuneaton Griff and, although there was nothing but league placings to play for, I was anticipating a competitive game between two good sides. At the start of play, Littleton were in eighth place, three places and four points above Griff with 
both teams having played 33 games. The reverse fixture at The Pingles Stadium just a couple of weeks back, ended in a 0-0 draw.

Five Acres, Littleton's home ground, is situated just outside the village of North Littleton about a third of the distance between Evesham and Stratford-upon-Avon. From the ample parking space you access the ground through a single turnstile alongside the the main facilities building. 
This block and the clubhouse is set back a little from the actual playing surface. The main covered area, The Jim Cox Stand, is directly in front of you as you enter, with dugouts either side of it. There are two other covered sections around the ground, a small seated stand just to the side of the goal at the poultry farm and another small stand, that resembles two bus shelters bolted together, on the far side. First impressions count for a lot and the first impression of Five Acres is that it is a pleasant location for a football match. Staff and supporters in the clubhouse were very friendly, and happy to have a chat. Spotting an official carrying what looked like team sheets, I asked if I can take a quick photo of them and he was more than happy to oblige. I say this quite a lot in my match blogs but I am always taken aback by the friendly atmosphere of non-league clubs. The majority are very happy to welcome newcomers, opposing supporters and neutrals.

Although the previous meeting between the sides had finished 0-0 this fixture had produced 24 goals in four matches. Griff held sway as far as points tally, winning three of the four games, 4-1, 4-3 and 2-1. However, two season ago it was Littleton who had racked up the biggest margin with an 8-1 home victory.

When the game kicked off it was clear from the outset that this was going to be a fairly tight encounter. There was not a lot between the sides 

for the first 15 minutes or so and neither team manged to get a shot on target in this period, although not for the lack of effort. It might have been a late season game with not much riding on it but it was obvious that neither side wanted to give any quarter.

If anything it was Griff who looked the more threatening of the sides with the pace of Danny Taylor looking to be a threat. The breakthrough came in the 22nd minute and it was Taylor who did the damage, though not with his pace. Griff forced a corner on their left which was floated to the far post. Taylor got his head to it and the ball looped over everyone, in the direction from which it came, dropping under the bar and into the net. 0-1.

​The goal instantly gave more confidence to Griff and it was no real surprise when, six minutes later, they increased their lead. This time a low 
cross from their right found The Pieman, John Russell, at the near post. He was allowed to turned and fire a shot across McCarthy into the far corner. 0-2.

Littleton were rocked by this quick-fire double but they re-grouped and managed to stem the flow, whilst starting to look a little more dangerous 
themselves.
On the 40 minute mark we had the first of three controversial incidents that went against the home side. A through ball cut open the Griff defence and sent Sean Brain clear, one on one with the Griff keeper. However, before the striker had a chance to pull a goal back the assistant's flag went up for offside. Whilst I have a lot of sympathy for officials, who have a very difficult job, Brain clearly ran past the last defender to get to the ball. There is no way that he was offside. Of course, we will never know if he would have scored or not, but he should have had the opportunity.
So, as it was the away side went in two goals to the better at the break.

HT Littleton 0 Nuneaton Griff 2.

The Ton Boys came out for the second half with renewed vigour. Kicking down the slight slope and with the wind behind them, they immediately set about getting themselves back into the game. Their reward wasn't long in coming. Great work in the middle by Mat Fusco, wriggling clear of a number of challenges before sending an inch-perfect ball through the middle for Dan Stokes to run onto. Stokes produced a delightful chip over the on-rushing keeper to make it 1-2.
The goal sparked a flurry of what can only be described as 'handbags'. A Littleton player tried to retrieve the ball from the net, a Griff player tried to stop him and more players joined in with general pushing and shoving. The upshot, after some consultation between the officials, was a few yellow cards for players on both sides.

From the restart Littleton were hunting the ball down in packs. Driven on by getting a goal back, it looked like just a matter of time before they go the equaliser. On two or three occasions balls flew across the Griff penalty area but always just out of reach of a Littleton striker. 
This set the pattern for the next 30 minutes. Littleton pressing forward at every opportunity but either being denied by some resolute defending or not being able to quite find the killer pass in the last third.

​Despite all the pressure the home side could not make it pay and time was starting to slip away from them.
Then, with three minutes left on the clock, came the second big decision that went against the home side. A long ball down the middle was contested in the air by a Littleton striker and a Griff defender. The ball found it's way into the path of Stokes who was clean through but in an offside position. He finished well but the assistant's flag was up. Whilst the player was definitely in an offside position, the ball looked like it came off the Griff player last which would have meant he was onside. Once again, a difficult decision for the assistant to make but Littleton will feel quite hard done by in my opinion.

To make matters worse, Griff went straight up the other end of the pitch and scored their third goal. Lewis Collins clipping one over the keeper from outside the box. A very well struck effort from some way out. 1-3.

With only a couple of minutes left on the clock, the game was over as a contest. However, the controversy wasn't. Into stoppage time and Griff tried to break through the Littleton back-line again. The attack was stopped illegally by a home defender but there was plenty of cover and it could, in no way, have been described as a clear goal-scoring opportunity. The referee, however, disagreed and pulled out a red card. That just about summed up the evening for Littleton.

FT Littleton 1 Nuneaton Griff 3. Harsh on the home side in some ways especially after they laid siege in the second-half but Griff took their chances and defended very well. You could say that they produced a Professional performance, soaking up the second-half pressure and then hitting their opponents on the break. So, it was very apt that Lewis Collins scored their third goal. Quite possibly no-one under forty will get that reference.

Best of luck to both sides in their final few games. I've seen them both play a couple of times this season and have thoroughly enjoyed all of the matches. Two entertaining teams that both try to play good football. Here are links to the previous games this season:
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Nuneaton Griff v Dudley Sports - FA Cup, August 2016
Southam United v Littleton - Midland Div 1, January 2017 

Littleton - @thetonboys
Nuneaton Griff - @nuneatongriff

​Way back in August I had the opportunity to indulge in a little nostalgia when I saw one of my home town teams, Dudley Sports, take on Nuneaton Griff (http://www.botp.co.uk/blog/a-bostin-cup-tie).

This weekend I had the chance to see another Dudley side, Dudley Town, but this time back in my old stomping ground and acompanied by my Dad. With Stourbridge up at Ilkeston and me having to get back to Oxfordshire at a reasonable hour, we didn't have time to drive up to Derbyshire, so leaving my daughter to 'help' her Nana, we set off for The Dell Stadium in Brierley Hill. I find it quite sad that a town the size of Dudley can't find a decent home for either of it's two highest ranked teams (both play in Brierley Hill). Yes, I know Team Dudley still play in the town, but where are the facilities that would enable one of the sides to progress up the pyramid?

It's also a little sad that  Step 6 is the highest that any of the Dudley teams can muster at the moment. Of course, Town have made it as high as the Southern League but, since the loss of their ground in the mid-eighties, they have never been able to recreate those halcyon days. I'm not going to go into the story behind the decline of Dudley Town but I did find a really good piece about it on the twohundredpercent blog. Well worth a read (http://twohundredpercent.net/the-rise-decline-fall-of-dudley-town/).

Onto the modern day incarnation of the club. Dudley Town now play their home games at The Dell Stadium, Bryce Road, Brierley Hill, a multi-sports centre that has an athletics track around the pitch, much like The Pingle Stadium where I saw Sports play Griff. There is a fairly large covered seating area along one side of the ground and a very strange looking, small, uncovered seating area on the same side. This stand looks very much like the sort of temporary, scaffold-based, stands that you see at many stadiums. What makes it odd is that it is just three seats wide and sites on it's own. Just behind the mystery stand is the clubhouse, snack bar, and changing facility block. The dugouts are on the far side of the ground.
Oddly, although The Dell is just a long goal-kick from where my Dad grew up and less than 2 miles from where I grew up, neither of us had been to the ground before, well not since it became a stadium.

The match this Saturday was against Wolverhampton Casuals and, with games running out, it was quite an important afternoon for both sides. Although the league title was decided last week, with Haughmond taking the honour, Cassies still had the opportunity to turn their current fourth spot into third or even second.
Town, seventeenth on 30 points, were just two places above the drop zone but had played two extra games to Wellington Amateurs who currently sat second from bottom. Just to spice things up a little, the other side in the relegation battle is Dudley Sports, one place and one point below Town. A one further twist, next week sees the Dudley derby, Town at home to Sports. It's all kicking off in Brierley Bonk!

The sides made their way onto the pitch on the hottest day of the year so far. Bright blue skies and blazing sun. More akin to cricket weather than football.
It was Cassies who started the brighter, as you would expect for a team near the top. The Robins had clearly been told to keep it tight to start with, especially as they had lost the reverse fixture 7-0 earlier in the season. Playing one up front and having top scorer Shaun Devonport sitting quite deep, the plan looked to be to frustrate Casuals. It appeared to be working quite well too. Dudley were certainly no threat themselves, but they kept Cassies at bay with very few scares. However, they were broken down just before the twenty minute mark when a Casuals move down their right ended with a low cross giving Liam Hughes a simple tap-in to put the away aide in front. 0-1.

Dudley now had to open up a little and, in doing so, suddenly looked to be a better side. Two minutes after going behind they mounted their first major offence on the Cassies goal with the final shot clipping the side netting. It was now Dudley who were on the front foot most of the time. On 32 minutes they got their rewards for their adventurous play. Cameron broke loose on the right and drilled a low cross along the six yard line which was met my Connor Rich. 1-1.

Six minutes later the turn around was complete. Devonport ran onto a through ball amidst vociferous offside calls from Cassies. The top scorer tried to round the keeper but was foiled at the first attempt. However, he made no mistake with his second effort, drilling the ball home to make it 2-1.

HT Dudley Town 2 Wolverhampton Casuals 1. Town were under the cosh for the first half of the game but then looked like a team transformed for the remainder and just about deserved their lead.

​I'm guessing that the Cassies management read their team the riot act at half-time because, when the second half kicked off, they seemed to have renewed vigour for the game. It took them just six minutes to find an equaliser. Hughes once again scored the goal, this time a delightful lob over Horton that left the keeper helpless and dropped in under the bar. 2-2.

Similar to the first twenty minutes of the game, it was all Cassies now. Dudley, with Devenport pushed further up the field, were struggling to get the ball to their front men and finding their back-line under increasing pressure.

Sure enough, with 63 minutes gone, former Wolves youngster Kevin Nickle, broke the home offside trap and finished very neatly off the far post to put his side back in front. 2-3.

Two minutes later Cassies should have made it four but, with two players almost getting in each others way, captain Ian Boswell somehow managed to hit the post from eight yards with an open goal glaring.
On 73 minutes Boswell was almost made to pay for his profligacy. Only a fine save from Vitor Pinheiro, tipping a powerful header onto the bar and out for a corner, kept Cassies in front. This was to be Dudley's last chance to get back into the game though.
Three minutes later Boswell made up for his miss by smashing an unstoppable drive from 25 yards, which left Horton stranded as it flew into the net. 2-4.
Then, to round things off in the 90th minutes, Hughes was given, and took, the opportunity to get his hat-trick. 2-5.

FT Dudley Town 2 Wolverhampton Casuals 5. Town looked good for 20 minutes in the first half but Cassies showed their superiority in the second half and Dudley were never really in the game after half-time.

Cassies remain fourth after Malvern also won, but they do have a game in hand. Dudley Sports drew 2-2 with Shifnal and leapfrog Town on goal difference ahead of the derby game. However, with Wellington Amateurs losing 4-0 at home to Bewdley, the Dudley sides have a reasonably comfortable seven point gap between themselves and the drop zone.

Dudley Town - @dudleytownfc
Wolverhampton Casuals - @cassiesbanter

Thank youThose of you who have visited the BotP Home Page will no doubt have seen the logo of the charity that the site supports, Edie's Butterfly Appeal. Edie is the god-daughter of my wife. She was diagnosed with a malignant ependymoma brain tumour in 2011, aged just 6.  You can read more by clicking on the logo.
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Since that time Edie has undergone all kinds of treatment both in the UK and in the US. She has stayed strong throughout, even during the period when she lost her hair. She is an absolute inspiration. 

The purpose of this short blog is to point out that, this Sunday, my wife is running her first ever marathon in Brighton with the aim of raising awareness and, hopefully, some more funding for Edie's Butterfly Appeal.

Any donations would be very gratefully received and would all go to a very good cause.
Click here to DONATE

Thank You

​It's not often that you get a chance to visit a new ground, that's been on your list for a while, and have the possibility of seeing a side win their league at the same time. Tuesday night was one of these rare opportunities. A trip to Cinder Lane, Fairford, to watch Fairford Town versus Milton United in the Hellenic Division One West. The home side needed a point to gain promotion and three points to guarantee the league title.

The journey to Fairford took me through Faringdon and then Lechlade, a lovely Cotswold town that reminds me of childhood holidays in the South of England. We would always set out from the Midlands at the break of dawn and stop in Lechlade for tea and breakfast cooked over a small camping stove. My memories are of a meadow next to the Thames, which at this point is not much more than a stream, with early morning mist hanging low over the surrounding fields. Enough of this reminiscing though. There are pressing non-league matters at hand.

Fairford Town's ground is at the end of a small lane, Cinder Lane, just off the main road into Fairford. Yes, it is the same Fairford where they have an annual air show. If you are driving to the ground you can pay your entrance fee without leaving your car, drive behind one of the goals and park up in a large field at the rear of the stadium.
The ground itself is nothing short of superb for a club that has not been higher than Step 5 in it's history. Along the Cinder Lane side of the ground there is a two-story clubhouse which incorporates the snack bar and also seems to have a pretty large function room. There is also a shallow covered seating area which has padded bench seats set into it and an open plan laundry area. Opposite this are two smallish covered seating stands and, separated by over half a pitch length, the dugouts.
It really is quite a unique stadium and is certainly up there rivalling Hardenhuish Park as my all-time favourite.

On to the game. Whether or not it was down to nerves, Fairford did not start the game like a team almost guaranteed the league title. Milton, to their credit, were making sure that no-one could say they were to make up the numbers and were giving as good as they got. However, neither side was finding any fluency in their passing and the game was a little scrappy.
As the game progressed Fairford did seem to shake off their initial edginess and gradually started to get on top without really making any serious threat on the Milton goal.
That was until the 20th minute. The home side won a corner on the left, which was half-cleared to the edge of the area. When a fierce drive came in, Milton keeper Craig Griffiths responded with a good stop only to see the ball fall to Fairford skipper Sam Ockwell who smashed it back into the net. 1-0.

This was the point where the majority of the large crowd expected the floodgates to open. However, it was not the case. Fairford certainly looked a lot less tense now, but Milton dug in and worked hard to keep Town at bay without ever really mounting a serious threat of their own.
Two minutes from half-time Fairford won another corner on their left. This time the cross was met by a firm Ockwell header that beat both the keeper and a defender on the line to make it 2-0.

HT Fairford Town 2 Milton United 0. Not the most fluent game. Both sides struggling to put passages of play together but Fairford are now well on top and on their way to the league title.

Eleven minutes into the second half Fairford produced the best move of the game which culminated in them also putting the game, well and truly to bed. A slick passing move and a tremendous defence splitting pass found Lee Smith on left. He cut inside past a defender and then drilled the ball past Griffiths to make it 3-0.

Once again, credit must go to Milton United for not completely collapsing at this point. There were plenty of encouraging calls from their players, showing that they were determined not to let the score get embarrassing. They stood firm for a further eleven minutes before a loose ball across their own back line was easily picked off by Levi Cox. The striker was afforded a clean run through on goal and he beat Griffiths with some ease to make it 4-0.

This mistake actually seemed to bolster the resolve of United and, although a well beaten side, they held out well for the next 20 minutes. Then, with a couple of minutes left, Dan Reynolds rounded off a very good personal performance with a great run and shot from 20 yards which dipped over the keeper and went in off the under side of the bar. A spectacular and fitting end to the game. 5-0.

FT Fairford Town 5 Milton United 0. Congratulations to Fairford Town, Champions of the Hellenic Division One West.

Fairford Town - @fairfordtownfc
Milton United - @miltonunited