CLITHEROE DOMINANT IN RAMS DERBY VICTORY

CLITHEROE 4 V RAMSBOTTOM UTD 0
NPL 1 NORTH AT SHAWBRIDGE
29 AUGUST 2016 --- 3PM

A CLASSIC CLITHEROE PICTURE THE VIEWS WITH SHAWBRIDGE IN FULL SPLENDOUR

A commanding performance from Clitheroe allowed them to completely dominate their near neighbours Ramsbottom Utd.  Indeed 3 up at half time, barring a disaster, signalled game over for the home side and even though the visitors restricted The Blues to a single goal in the second half they just could not find a way into a game that they looked totally off the pace of.

TODAYS DESTINATION WITH CLITHEROE CASTLE IN VIEW

Bank Holiday Mondays are often worth avoiding on the train travel front but having taken the risk a few times last year it worked out fine and as long as the seaside resorts are avoided it appeared to be a possibility.  So when Mike Bayly, see previous blog at Cheadle v FC Oswestry, suggested one of his favourites grounds was Clitheroe the old grey matter began whirring.  If I'm honest the East Lancashire town resting in the Ribble Valley had never really been on the radar but after a little hasty research over the weekend the travel arrangements were looked up and it was here that the blog found itself at base station just after 10am on this sunny[!] Bank Holiday morning.  So off to the north west for a further game this weekend and I have to say overall today was a case of which pictures to leave out its all very photogenic and difficult to chose but hopefully there is a fair selection.

ANOTHER VIEW FROM THE CASTLE

Departure on time to Manchester found a comfortable carriage with seats available indeed upon arrival at Manchester Piccadilly the through platform for my next connection to Salford Crescent just had to be supporting the Blackpool train and you can guess it was a well populated platform but we all boarded the 4 carriage Northern train and successfully changed at 'the Crescent' a few minutes later awaiting the Victoria departure to Clitheroe.  This would be a new line for the blog and although it had its quaint part, for example at Entwhistle, it was functional until we came up just short of Langho when the Ribble Valley appeared in all its splendour.  A day to be thankful for the beautiful Peak District on the journey to Manchester and now the glorious views to the immediate left of Lancashire.  We trundled into Clitheroe at just short of 1.15 with a few Ramsbottom fans departing too and the wonderful town was awash with sunshine and ready for some football but first a mini tour in the hour that was spare before the small walk to the ground.

THE COBBLED APPROACH TO THE TURNSTILES

Previous to visiting the only thing I would recognise as being connected to Clitheroe was the comedian Jimmy of the same surname who found fame in the 50's onwards.  From earlier mentioned hasty research I realised the castle was a must with its tremendous views of the surrounding countryside.  Upon departure of the station its a weird departure off onto a small road/footpath and back under the railway via a lane to reach the town side of Clitheroe.  The old station is a gallery and I believe an information centre which disappointingly was closed, a great shame because there appeared to be many tourists in the town who would I guess have liked more on the town for a future re visit.

TOWARDS THE MAIN STAND AND CHANGING ROOMS

The bunting strewn street led the blog to the castle and after a short climb the Keep was reached and the views were fantastic a place were you could have spent much time looking out at your favourite spots of the surrounding Ribble Valley sadly there wasn't too much time to hang around today but on the descent back down I ventured off the main street to take in the Parish Church of St Mary Magdalene which on the walk away from offered a superb view of the castle towering above the streets below.

CLOSER VIEW WITH THOSE ROLLING HILLS

The blog has to report no chippy located today and it was necessary to stock up at the local 'T's' just shy of the ground.  Shawbridge and the ground was reached after a short navigation at around 2.15pm and the entrance is the first thing of interest with an approach via a cobbled alleyway with the backs of terrace houses to the right and the grounds main turnstile opening up to the left.  Entrance fee, programme and golden goal purchased it was time to take a look around Shawbridge and the comments I had received were certainly correct although the weather today was also a deciding factor in the confirmation of opinions.

Description of this ground really cannot do it justice its a ground of 'character', its lived in but functional and as the amazing backdrops of the castle, church and the rolling hills down both touchlines.  But here goes immediately to the left is a deep but low roofed stand to the first touchline which contains a new hospitality cabin, snack bar, toilets and the new modern cabin changing rooms before the main stand which has some quality old style wooden pew like seats set within it.

THE SLOPE TO THE CORNER FLAG ADDS TO THE INTERESTING NATURE OF SHAWBRIDGE

To the far corner and we go behind the goal which slopes up to the far corner flag quite sharply.  This end has become the away end with the Rammy fans I travelled on the train with already in situ and cheering on their players who are warming up.  This sharp but not deep covered stand offered a cracking little view of proceedings.

COVERED TERRACING WITH A SUPERB VIEW OF THE GAME

The far touchline offers a commanding covered terrace for around 2/3rds of its length and its here I recognise a character from a past visit to Colne a few years more at half time.  There was also the chance to catch up with 'Cod Of The North' and his wife Liz who were taking pictures, indeed today there were a lot of people peering through a lens of one variety or another.

THE UNIQUE SEATS IN THE MAIN STAND

Back behind the goal were we entered and the clubhouse, again in modern cabin style, was doing a steady trade and we had got ourselves to 15 minutes to kick off.

TODAYS OFFICIALS HEADED UP BY ALAN BENNETT IN PRE MATCH WARM UP

The crowd was building up and indeed they must have come out of the bar and been some last minute arrivals because by the time referee Bennett blew his whistle we had reached an attendance of 436.

LOVELY APPLAUSE IN MEMORY OF CLIFF CHATBURN CLITHEROE FC

Before todays game there was a warm minutes applause for former clubman Cliff Chatburn who received a tremendous send off from the lady on the P.A. who really gave a feel for this gentleman for all us who did not know him and of course for those who had spent many happy times with him at his club.  Indeed one of his lasting memories will be the work he did on seeing through the installation of the smart new hospitality suite.  While on the P.A. topic it has to be said the lady in question did a sterling job all afternoon and as I've said before it makes such a difference to the atmosphere if its done well and it was here.

MATCH ACTION WITH THE CASTLE OVERSEEING

To the game then and it did not start well for the visitors when after 8 minutes Bradley Carroll lashed home a penalty after Rams keeper Jack Cookson had upended James Walker.

THE CASTLE AGAIN WITH RAMSBOTTOMS ALEX MEANEY IN PLAY

The second came just past the half hour mark when Bradley Knox fired an unstoppable shot from 25 yards when nobody probably expected him too.  The first half scoring was complete when just minutes later Kurt Wiloughby placed a lovely ball through for Alex Newby to run on and fire past the out coming Cookson.
We reached half time with the home side 3 goals to the good and Ramsbottom appearing shell shocked they just had not been able to get a foot hold in the game.

RONNIE MORAN AND HIS SON PAUL

On my earlier circuit I thought I had recognised Paul Moran who loves to take pictures at non league grounds and who I had met when Bootle were at Colne a few years back and his son was playing in goal for the Liverpool based side.  Well today it was an additional pleasure with Pauls dad the legend that is Ronnie Moran along with his son for the game.  Ronnie played 343 games for Liverpool as player and captain and of course went on to be part of the famous 'boot room team' alongside Bob Paisley, Joe Fagan, Bill Shankley and Reuben Bennett.  There was of course 2 spells as caretaker manager at the club as well as his time coaching which took his service to just short of 50 years at his only club.  It was great to meet him today 82 years old and still watching the footy, thanks Paul.

STEADY

Mr Moran junior had predicted a second half sending off and it came on 58 minutes when probably due to frustration Paul Linwood, in front of the referee grabbed Dimitry Tuanzabe around the front and received a straight red before anything could get out of hand.

HERE COMES THE RED

The visitors went onto amass 5 yellow cards and I guess the previously mentioned frustration was a deciding factor in this total.

AND HERE'S A YELLOW

Just past the hour mark Ramsbottom knew it would not be there day when Jason Hart found himself in a one on one with home keeper Chris Thompson only for the home custodian to race out to deny him but Clitheroe found Tuanzabe whose pace took him round the keeper and last defender to slot the ball home into an unguarded goal for 4-0.  The Blues could probably have had a few more non more so than in the first of three minutes added on when Walker saw his close range effort cleared off the line by Matt Atherton.

TUANZABE MAKES IT 4

Joyous local derby victory scenes by the Clitheroe fans at the fan whistle were of course not mirrored by the very unhappy Ramsbottom faithful who made their feelings clear about the visitors overall showing in this game.
Overall though this was a very fair result played in front of a nice sized crowd on a lovely day were this superb little ground is cupped in the hand of the nestling beauty that surrounds it in both town and countryside, well worth the visit.
With 3/4's of an hour to go before the departure provisions intake for the journey back was made at a Lancashire based food supermarket that I had not come across before Booths was by the station so I opted to leave a few pounds there.  They appear to be a local firm similar in style to Waitrose offering a more speciality type of produce alongside the national named items.
My choice fayre was a 'Toppings Pork Pie' boxed up nicely local produce with British pork, arriving back at the station in the glittering sunshine the logic told me eat the pork pie first.  I ended with the contradiction, when looking at where it was made, of eating a Yorkshire pie in a Lancashire town the shame.
The inward bound train for its return to Manchester Victoria had cleared the station from Platform 2 and was soon in place with 15 minutes to go before departure from number 1 platform.  Having enjoyed the last few minutes on the platform it was time to depart fro the first change at Salford Crescent.  An interesting experience here was a Freightliner train pulling through with Viridor waste containers emitting a non to fresh smell bit we we were soon connecting up at Oxford Rd were after a small wait the final train of the day was a comfortable affair which departed the blog at base station at around 9pm.
Overall the weather was fantastic and I'm sure has an influence on how you feel about visits like this but it has to be a must if you haven't done Clitheroe and its football club a superb ground full of everything that's great about football at step 4 and a town to also spend some time in if you should wish.

15O DROPS THE BLOG AT PLATFORM 2 WITH CLITHEROE CASTLE IN VIEW

CHEADLE FALL TO CLINICAL OSWESTRY

CHEADLE TOWN 1 V FC OSWESTRY TOWN 4
NWCFL 1 AT PARK RD
27 AUGUST 2016 --- 3PM

LIAM MOLLOY [LEFT] OSWESTRY IN ACTION

In a game that saw the home side put so much into their performance it was a case of missed chances and for Oswestry thanks to Tinsley, 'bar' and Molloy.  Keeper Connor Tinsley pulled off a string of second half saves, the cross bar struck on three occasions and then a double from Liam Molloy was enough to give the visitors a 4-1 victory.  It was a typical game that at all square after 45 minutes saw Cheadle press forward for much of the second period but the woodwork and an inspired performance from the visitors keeper produced 3 breakaway goals that swept away missed chances for the home side.  Take nothing away from Oswestry they were resolute and took their chances well but Cheadle probably had enough to have won this game by the same margin.
With the bank holiday weekend into full swing the decision was taken to try to avoid the rainy weather, something that with 15 minutes to kick off had clearly failed, and take the journey of around an hour to Stockport before hoping aboard a stripey boys number 11 service to Cheadle town centre.  Most of the journey was spent in an ear bursting shrill of two younger members who decided in unison to test the decibels from their pushchair but we were soon departing in the functional little town.  Thankfully we had made the correct destination with the town not to be confused with the Staffordshire town of the same name, mind you when you arrive here Cheadle is surrounded by Cheadle Heath and Cheadle Hulme, how many Cheadle's does one need?

ANOTHER NEW CHIPPY FOR THE BLOG

First point of call was a pre planned spot of a chippy and just off the main street on Wilmslow Rd was Macs Plaice for todays sample of the lunchtime delicacy and as the rain started we ambled back towards the ground.  In the process of trying to take pictures with full fish and chips I managed to drop a few but the attractive little park ahead at the road junction that would take us to Park Rd gave up a little gem.

SCOTCH BOB WELCOMES ALL TO CHEADLE

Carved from a tree was 'Scotch Bob' a former character of the town who was famous for his command of the horse drawn bus that took the local populace into Manchester, reputed to have driven 3 horses abreast quoting Robbie Burns as he travelled along the route.

PARK ROAD STADIUM HOME OF CHEADLE TOWN FC

Soon we were walking off the main street along Park Rd to the ground and after many recommendations including Mr Ryde of this blog we were at the base of Cheadle Town through the turnstile and into an ground that on 3 sides has no furniture except for being railed off and concrete hard standing all around.  The main star here is of course the narrow but deep stand which has recently gained a refurbishment and with green tip up seats to the front the back few rows offer terrace standing a superb idea and commanding a good view.  We declined the stands offer with the requirement to get some pictures pitch side but there can be few non league clubs offering a better terrace view.

A NICE BIT OF HISTORY

While completing the obligatory circuit I found the officials friendly and Mick had also got into conversation with quite a few home officials and he was similarly impressed with their welcome.  The clubhouse is at the side of the main stand and I believe next on the re development project for the club, it will be nice for them to have a new facility but they were a friendly bunch throughout the afternoon as were the visitors from Oswestry who it has to be said for both clubs made this the most pleasant of the season so far.
The home ground Park Rd has a nice link with todays visitors from Shropshire who play at TNS, Welsh Premier League Champions, ground Park Hall were they ground share.  A successful season has seen them gain promotion through the Mercian League and it adds a new aspect to the NWCFL but adds a big journey for the club with Carlisle City also newly promoted.  For the home side Cheadle are now back playing in their founder club, Grasmere Rovers, traditional green and although their history only goes back to 1966 its a nice touch.

DOUBLE STRIKE FOR LIAM MOLLOY [LEFT] WOULD WIN THE DAY FOR OSWESTRY

Most visitors here have reported to me a friendly club which we have experienced and of planes, lots of them!  With nearby Manchester Airport launching them every 30 seconds or so there is many a distraction as the ground is directly on the flight path.
Todays journey over the Peak District on the Liverpool bound train sailed by when at Sheffield the blog got into conversation with Mike Bayly, contributor to When Saturday Comes Magazine, and writer of a new book and 100 grounds you must visit.  Today Mike is off to The Giant Axe the home of Lancaster City.  We, I, had an enjoyable 45 minutes while we batted back grounds to one another like the proverbial tennis player walloping the ball over the net, a pleasure nice to meet you.  You can take a look at the Facebook page for the book which is due to launch in 2017 and contains approx. 75% non league grounds Mike is also one of the organisers of 'non league day' which is of course next Saturday.

SAM NOAR CELEBRATES THE OPENING GOAL

So to the game and when Cheadle took the lead after 5 minutes the game looked like it may only go one way.  With the ball flying about in the box Sam Noar lashed home the loose ball with conviction to give the home side the lead.
But we had read it wrong with FC Oswestry determined to get back into the game they gained more and more possession and apart from Luke Hincku for the home side who struck the bar on 27 minutes it was the visitors who were threatening.  The did equalise on 38 minutes through Richard Litchfield who raced onto a neat through ball and fired past the out coming home keeper.  Two minutes later they should have scored again referee Sims saw a push in the box and Littleton stepped up to take the spot kick but Ben Jupp flew to his left to save at full stretch and we would go into half time all square.

The second half started with the home side on the front foot but it was Oswestry who tooke the lead on 52 minutes when Callum Graybrook cut across the box to fire home past Jupp via what looked like a thwarting deflection.

GRAYBROOK [7] MAKES IT 2-1 TO FC OSWESTRY TOWN

Cheadle scorer Noar then saw Visiting keeper Tinsley deny him twice the second a one handed push away before the same player saw his effort blocked the follow up from Nathan Tosum find the visiting number 1 in fine form with a full length save for a corner.  There was even time for Chris Sherrington to be denied by the acrobatics of Tinsley before you guessed it the visitors went up the other end and scored Callum Graybrook off the right found Molloy who headed in at the far post on 69 minutes.
Amazingly the bar denied Cheadle twice in quick succession with Tinsley beaten this time on both occasions Hincku first struck the woodwork before a curling 25 yard free kick from Sherrington [C] found the same obstacle.
The obvious happened in the final minute of normal time when Molloy fired home unmarked in front of goal after an assist from Dave Hartshorn.
A second half that produced a rather harsh score line for the home side but take nothing away from a young Oswestry side that rode their luck but took their chances thanks to some determined goalkeeping and woodwork.
The reverse journey found us aboard a number 11 shortly after the final whistle and arriving back in Sotckport bus station we made the short walk to platform 0 at the station for the 5.54 train which dropped us off an hour later at base station for what had been an enjoyable afternoon with two friendly clubs and an entertaining game to remember too.

TRANSPORT PICTURE RETURNS THE 11'S VIA CHEADLE

TEVERSAL AND CHURCH GOAL LESS IN BLUSTERY WIND

TEVERSAL 0 V PENISTONE CHURCH 0
NCEL 1 @ CARNARVON ST
20 AUGUST 2016 --- 3PM

JASON GREGORY TEVERSAL FC

The lovely afternoon summer weather, blustery wind and rain, put paid to this game as a spectacle although both sides came close the final decider was the conditions.  A goal less game is never sought by any hopper or I guess football fan but at least the first one of the season is out of the way after 4 games.  Church came into this game in an early high flying league position and with just one game for Teversal in the NCEL they were resting close to the foot of the table for as much as tables mean anything at present.  Overall though Teversal will probably the more pleased with the point and although they edged the first half its was the visitors who threatened for much of the second half but the home defence stood up admirably well marshalled throughout by keeper Dale Sheppard.

TEVERSAL[L] MANOR STATION

Needs must today and a local blog was the requirement and as I have mentioned before Teversal used to be one of my regular stop offs but since the mid week night time bus service disappeared through the village it really ruled out calling in at Carnarvon St other than on Saturdays.  Today though was the chance to pop along just over 8 miles away on the hourly Spira service which runs through the village.  I have probably done a description before but the old part of the village which you have to seek out is a lovely feature with the old manor believed to be the reference point for D H Lawrence's Lady Chatterleys Lover.  There was a little time to pop along to the former Teversal Manor railway station [in old language Teversall Manor] which has a reformed part platform and old style signage with just one 'l'.

VIEW FROM PLATFORM 1

From the platform you can see the ground through the trees and rather than walk back to the road we took the trail to the country park information centre.  The handy unit which features café and lots of leaflets plus the local pamphlets was just about to close so we moved over to have a look at the cricket ground which as in the last few years lost its main stay of pavilion and viewing gantry at the rear of the club which has been demolished and now runs from a smart cabin set up.  No game today nor at the adjacent Bowls club.  Over the car park to Teversal FC and you get the feel for quite a selection of sporting activities in North Nottinghamshire.  If you like your sport and industrial history there is plenty here with a wide selection of local pits and two former stations serving the village sadly all former sites but there to explore still as country parks.

OVERVIEW OF WARM UPS LOOKING TOWARDS THE MAIN STAND

Without going through the ground descriptor the club house and snack bar are comfortable and cosy with a pa system and turnstile that is always open and operating early unlike some clubs.  The pleasant set up is aided by the greetings from the clubs officials and the day added to by their consistent and smart little programme for a club at step 6.  Todays blog will not feature, on their own anyway, the famous Tesco trolly park shelters which have been in situ for a while and which everybody wants reminding to when I say I'm visiting Carnarvon St.

NO TESCO SHELTERS YET

A healthy crowd of 72 have gathered by kick off but so too as a blustery wind which will go onto wreck much of the long passing game of both sides added to that the sharp showers and it wasn't really an August day at all.

CHURCH KEEPER RHODES SAVES BUT FAILS TO HIDE A FORMER TESCO SHELTER

The first half saw Brad Cox head against the visitors bar and on a couple of occasions home keeper Sheppard pulled off a couple of sharp saves Ash Ellis and Danny Joynes.  But we got to half time with nobody hitting the back of the net.

TEVERSAL ON THE BALL WITH BRAD COX

The second half favoured Penistone with Teversal looking to hit on the break but the home defence was admirable in its defending in denying their Yorkshire visitors.  With 14 minutes to go Joynes and Sheppard were on show again the former broke through and the latter pulled off a superb save as he came out to deny the Penistone player.

DANNY JOYNES DRIVES FORWARD FOR CHURCH

There had been moments previously that gave any seasoned footy fan the clear feel that this would be a nil nil game. But after this save and an 82nd minute header from close range from Tom Cadzow that flew over when the target looked wide we knew even after referee James Fox had allowed some injury time that the first 0-0 game would be chalked onto the blogs board before we had left August!
So as ever an enjoyable visit to Teversal always one of my favourites and well worth a visit if you have not walked Carnarvon St yet.

DEEP JOY AS LONG BUCKBY HIT LATE EQUALISER

LONG BUCKBY AFC 2 V OLNEY TOWN 2
UNITED COUNTIES LEAGUE 1 @ STATION RD
13 AUGUST 2016 --- 3PM

LATE SAVE DENIES LONG BUCKBY

In the words of comedian and former resident of Long Buckby Stanley Unwin Stevy Djedje brought 'deep joy' for the home side with an equaliser 3 minutes from time.  The second half had been more fruitful after a dour first half had ended goal less, the home side had taken gone in front before Olney Town shocked Long Buckby to take the lead and then that late equaliser brought both sides a point each to maintain their top 7 positions in the early league table.
The blog seems to be covering some UCL games last season and after last weeks Peterborough Sports game we decided to call in at a club we had passed on our journey to Northampton ON Chenecks last season.  Todays journey would involve 8 trains with changes at Derby, Tamworth and Rugby.  It was a pretty smooth procedure that saw us arrive at Long Buckby just after 1pm although as ever a fair amount of standing was the call of the day.  With new houses being built on Station Rd near the ground and with a large commuter car park the feel of regular Monday to Friday travellers to London was very evident.  The station is an unimpressive stilted affair with a commuter only ticket office that to be honest did not give a great impression.

We decided to walk past the ground which is easily accessible in well under 10 minutes and onto the village.  Its an attractive affair without being chocolate box representative there are many old and quirky houses and an attractive church which is the final resting place of the aforementioned Stanley Unwin who resided most of his life in the village and had invented his own language 'Unwinese'.  For those not familiar with the gentleman a You Tube search will bring up some funny interviews to enjoy from the more gentle times of comedy.  Before we did a mini tour of the village we called in at the local delicacy shop, fish and chips to you and me.  The Big Fryer had been researched and was well populated with a selection of customers and today we opted for fish cake and chips twice with Mick back on the travels today.  Interestingly base county is never far away with the shop owners having relatives running fish and chip shops in Matlock Bath and Ashbourne and formerly in Buxton.  The Northamptonshire shop though was looking good and people spoke well of it locally and we enjoyed our fayre this afternoon.  As we finished off our tray of lunchtime food we opted to take a look at Long Buckby Castle and as you can see its pretty impressive..................sadly only a mound is now left!

LONG BUCKBY CASTLE IN ALL ITS GLORY

Back to the ground which has an impressive little clubhouse on Station Rd with a walk way to the ground around 100 yards away.  To the left Long Buckby are in action with leather and willow and their little pavilion is well populated with adjacent to this the rugby clubs impressive building fronting up their pitch for when their new season starts shortly.  So an impressive collection of sports in one place in the village and going on round the back of the fenced off football ground are more open sports pitches.

LONG BUCKBY AFC CLUB HOUSE

Having decided to watch a bit of cricket till just shy of kick off time Mick had gone on ahead as an advance party.  Entrance to the club is a smart 2 sided turnstile block with immediately to the left a snack bar with hospitality and then the players changing rooms.

THE MAIN STAND AT STATION RD

To the front is the grounds impressive feature a half pitch length stand with European moulded seat bases in turquoise plastic bolted into the concrete but with no backs.  The top goal and far goal has hard standing with the top end edged off by large popular/conifer trees below the stand is a raised small terrace area which commands a good view of proceedings.  The far side houses the dug outs and sadly has no hard standing so is out of bounds which is a bit of a shame for a nicely situated stadium.  The floodlights are corner placed as opposed to most non league clubs which hug the touchline.  The public address system is in full swing with music which is good to raise the atmosphere although it does not re appear at half time or the end it is good to see clubs using them.

EDWARD KOSTIUK ON THE BALL FOR LONG BUCKBY

The small crowd of around 40 had gathered on this warm afternoon and for most of the first half its very agricultural stuff with lots of big ball and little in the way of controlled football although as ever at this time of the season the pitch does look a little bobbly and hard which may not be helping.  It was 33 minutes before the first real effort Nick Bines seeing his effort pushed away by the home keeper May.  This semed to wake Long Buckby up with the visiting keeper Jack Taylor pulling off a close range stop before Manny Salumu hit the post.

LEWIS SMITH OF OLNEY TOWN BRINGS THE BALL AWAY

Score less at half time was about right but the second half saw the home side start at a pace and take the lead after 53 minutes with Edward Kostiuk firing home with a firm strike.

CLOSE TO THE ACTION IN NON LEAGUE FOOTBALL

Long Buckby should have forced home their advantage but as so often happens when you don't you are punished and Olney equalised on 68 minutes when Aarron Murrell rose high at the back post to head home before on 80 minutes the visitors took the lead through Vinny Shrieves who was well placed again at the back post.  Just as it looked like the home side would have nothing to show for their afternoon efforts Dale Linton crossed from close in and substitute Stevy Djedje headed home to make it 2-2 with 3 minutes remaining.

In the final minute a succession of free kicks on the edge of the Olney box ended with a curling set piece from Linton which visiting keeper Taylor flew across to deny the home side three points.
Probably not one of the better games that will be viewed this season but a nice little club with a steady little village well worth a visit and indeed with a FA Vase game versus Hillingdon Borough in a few weeks it is sure to feature on further visitors lists this season.
A couple of balls viewed of the cricket as we made it smartly back to the station with the return journey taking a similar route back to base station with a little time built in for refreshments at Rugby.  Base station was achieved around 7.30pm and the only was the return stripey boys bus which messed up my connection.  Good day out nice visit to Northamptonshire and another UCL club visited on a nice summer afternoon.

WELCOME TO LONG BUCKBY STATION

BENGER HAT TRICK SEALS HEANOR VICTORY

HEANOR TOWN 5 HINCKLEY AFC 1
FA CUP EXTRA PRELIMINARY ROUND REPLAY
THE TOWN GROUND 10 AUGUST 2016 7.45PM
A first half hat trick from Nathan Benger helped Heanor to a 4-0 lead at Half time and towards victory over Midland League 1 side Hinckley on a disappointing night for the visitors.
A brief blog tonight with Heanor being regularly covered in recent months.
After 18 minutes Benger mis hit a back post shot into the floor that ballooned over the visitors keeper for a 1-0 lead.  Just a few minutes later saw the sweetest of moves with Elliott Reeves setting up Kieran Debrouwer for the first of his 2 goals.  Benger then completed his hat trick when Hinckley keeper Cross made a mess of a free kick clearance that fell to the number 9 to drive home before 5 minutes before the break a powerful header made it 4-0.
The second half was pretty much a non event Debrouwer doubled his tally on the night when he rounded the out rushing Cross to fire into an empty net and then in stoppage time Hinckley got a consolation goal through Sam Agar to make it 5-1.
The second half was a struggle the usual chip pea cob from the ladies in the snack bar was as ever worth the visit but then the fun started after the final whistle.  As any public transport hoppers will know late night travel is getting ever difficult and with a late running bus from Heanor and even after a sprinters run for the bus in Ripley I missed the first connection by 150 yards, if only I had not had those chips?!  Fifteen minutes later and a taxi had got us back on time for the final connection back to base but I have to question whether Heanor is still achievable for an evening game as this is becoming a regular occurrence.
Solid win for Heanor did what was needed for progression was disappointed in Hinckley AFC really hoped for a tighter game from them but they will re gather from what I'm sure was an off night.

SPORTS HIT EIGHT IN FA CUP VICTORY OVER GORLESTON

PETERBOROUGH SPORTS 8 V GORLESTON 0
FA CUP EXTRA PRELIMINARY ROUND @ PARKWAY
6 AUGUST 2016 --- 3PM

A dominant performance from UCL Premier side Peterborough Sports saw them progress with 4 goals in each half against their visitors from the Thurlow Nunn Eastern Counties Premier League.  The victory was further enhanced by two hat tricks firstly from Mark Jones and then livewire Avi Viera sadly although Gorleston never gave up they could not earn a consolation goal and it was Sports who progressed to the next round alongside a cheque for £1,500.
So as ever when the football starts there is always a dilemma of whether to continue with the rugby league and although I hope to cover some more oval ball games todays attractive fixture was a pull.  Having failed to get to see Peterborough Sports last season with the constant rain leading to a cautious approach of not making the long journey and today the chance to see a side from the Eastern Counties League it was to be all systems go.  Let season 2016/17 begin and where better than the hot bed of football Cambridgeshire.
Arrival at base station saw trains start to delay and with the journey today around about 1 3/4 hours without a change I was hoping for a smooth travel.  Of course as the train came up 5 minutes then 7 minutes before reaching 9 minutes late and then train delayed I started to wonder if I'm getting to old for this!  The announcement was then followed by train delayed by 'disruptive passengers', happy days.  The service rolled in around 10 minutes later with of course 2 carriages that were rammed with suitcases some people making family holiday trips to Skegness and others on for the whole journey to Norwich before changing for the delights of Great Yarmouth, which is of course the major town right by the side of todays away side Gorleston [on sea].  After the bulk of excited kids and stressed out parents departed for the seaside at Grantham the train calmed and we were soon pulling into Peterborough.  After a moments thought about taking a look around the city I decided I had seen the place many times before and opted for a walk out to the ground of around 25 minutes.  The route avoided the noisy nearby dual carriageway travelling via the railway cycle path and finishing on Bourges Boulevard, the latter word may give you thoughts of a delightful walk through a modern city but let your thoughts stop there its a functional route that brings you to Lincoln Road a small shopping area.

LINCOLN ROAD SHOPPING AREA BY THE GROUND

Having found little in the area to interest me I opted to enter the ground and having seen a game to the far side of the ground I had plenty of time to have a look around.
Back then to the main Parkway ground and the clubhouse is outside and amazingly has not 1 but 4 pool tables plus a large screen showing the horse racing.  A cold refreshing lemonade on this warm afternoon went down very well before securing todays teams from both sides secretaries, handily Sports display the teams on the 'refreshment hut' too.

The approach to the turnstile is via a paved garden area with a small selection of bedding plants beautifying the area, the walkway to the turnstile brings you into the ground at the back of the dugouts which are side by side and too the left a raised concrete area and top side again the aforementioned refreshment hut, sadly no hot food but cold drinks and warm drinks with chocolate bars and crisps were available.  We then walk past the changing rooms to do a circuit of the ground which has a  concrete walkway all round with advertising boards and blue meshes material separating the match ball from the spectator side.  As we come back to our original entry point the main focus of the ground is The Colin Day Stand which is an impressive 2/3rds seated area with the other 1/3 standing, all undercover.  Sadly the ground did not operate a PA system, not sure whether they normally do but otherwise it is a smart and functional ground which appears well looked after.
Todays game features Gorleston who are a week into their season and it looked like a good game in prospect with Sports winning silverware galore last season and hoping to have a go for the UCL Premiership title his season.  As ever I wont go into the history of the clubs but hopefully take the blog straight into the game, a long journey for Gorleston would see them need to get off too a good start.

EARLY TEA FOR SPORTS MANAGER JIMMY DEAN

Sadly for the visitors they were 3 down within 11 minutes and it appeared to be game over, firstly on 7 minutes Josh Moreman headed home at the back post before the lead was doubled 3 minutes later when Dan Clements turned in a left wing cross.  It looked like it was game over after 11 minutes when Avi Viera burst through on the inside left and drove into the far right hand corner of the visitors goal.
Gorleston were battling hard but could not get a foothold they were spared any more goals until 31 minutes when Viera turned supplier for Mark Jones to slot home.

Sports were probably a little guilty of some missed chances but went in 4 goals to the good.  The half time saw the visitors their 3 substitutes and the home side replace their now injured keeper.

SPORTS DAN CLEMENTS ON THE BALL

The warm afternoon saw the game lose a little of its pace until on 61 minutes it became 5-0 through a slick move which saw David Cobb set up Jones for his second.  Hat trick time arrived for Jones on 67 minutes with a lovely deflective finish.  A succession of missed chances and frustrating offside calls limited the home sides chances to extend the home sides lead but 2 late goals allowed Viera to get his hat trick with 4 minutes remaining he broke through and rounded the visiting keeper before on 88 minutes confidently firing home from the penalty spot after Cobb had been fouled to make it 8-0 to the Cambridgeshire side.

SPORTS VIERA IS DENIED

Referee Lander called a halt to proceedings soon after and a sharp walk reversing out outbound route found the blog with 10 minutes to attempt to get some now much needed food from the Waitrose adjacent to the station.  The journey back to base was all round more comfortable and arrive was secured just shy of 1930hrs.

REFEREE LANDER ISSUES A LATE CAUTION FOR ROSS GOODMAN OF GORLESTON

A steady little day out with Peterborough Sports an early season tip as one to watch in this seasons UCL Premier division I guess they wont be far off as for Gorleston they came up against a very good side and probably had a bad day at the office at the same time too.