Non - League thread 2009/10

[handbags_harris]

Compo, Farnborough v Oxford City, Wednesday...

[Compo's Hat]

Compo, Farnborough v Oxford City, Wednesday...

Been there to be honest so not fussed. As i'm hoping to work closer to home next year i might as well do this new ground now.

[Four Of Clubs]

50/50 as to wether i go at the moment. Need a non league fix before the year is out and this might be my only chance, particularly as Thatcham is called off tomorrow night.

... yes indeed - and the reason the Thatcham game was off, was the Gloucester FA insisting their scheduled opponents (Bishops Cleeve) fulfill their Challenge Cup Tie vs 'Brizzle Roverrrs' - and - sure 'nuff' that games been postponed this PM!

I was going to head up to Wantage vs Marlow Utd tonight but that's been called off fairly early today - apparently someone played on it last night and the pitch cut up badly.

Not left with much else - there were a few tasty CCL League games scheduled but the Surrey FA have also insisted their County Cup takes priority; so there are now not games on at Sandhurst, Bedfont nor Badshot Lea
(suppose Farnborough might be quite pleased with the last one since they played @ Cherrywood last night and are due there again on Wednesday vs Oxford City.)

Don't fancy Stag Meadow again so soon (W&E 's 'lodgers' are playing Frome) - Kidlington's a shade too far and the M25 always puts me off trying for a couple of new grounds up in the 'NW corner'. (Wealdstone/Leverstock Green)

So I'm left with the choice of some cr@ppy Cup Ties @ Fleet, Hartley Wintney, Wallingford or Farnboro NE - all of which might succumb to a cold spell and all could go to ET/pens.

[Compo's Hat]

Guildofrd game postponned due to snow and ice. Never mind.

[Four Of Clubs]

... errr the preview's a bit foreshortened this week - as well as late.

I might post something/edit this about mid-day time - IF anything at all has survived - but it's not looking good - certainly for any 'local' home matches.

They were optimistic of getting a match on @ Woking and we're probably awaiting news of Pitch inspections from Thatcham, Abingdon Utd ## & Bedfont G.

...games already declared off from last night include Ascot, Ash, Badshot Lea, Bookham (Dorking), Cove, Holyport, Henley, Wokingham & Emm and this AM we've already lost Bracknell, Burnham & Fleet.

Certainly the leagues below these are likely to get a 'wipe-out'

..... later (maybe)

## ... as I typed Abingdon Utd & Thatcham declared postponed!

POSTSCRIPT [22:00h] :-

Well there was almost a complete wipeout around our local leagues:
- there were no games played in the Combined Counties, Hellenic or South Midlands
- in the Isthmian only Lowestoft and Hastings played; in the Southern only Bridgwater.
The Conference South did relatively well :
Dover v St.Alebuns 1-1
Newport 1-0 Staines (winner in the 89' 'Exiles now 12pts clear with game in hand))
Woking 1-3 Bath City

There were a handful of matches completed in the Wessex - including the one I got to @ Hythe & Dibden v Amesbury (2-3)

... forecast for the next week is pretty grim too, so looks as if the NL programme may be severely curtailed over the holiday period. I think this is the first time Royals have been at home on a Boxing day 'proper' for a few years - otherwise I'd have been planning & fretting over possible 'doubles' i.e morning KO then mad dash somewhere for a 15:00h game.
Might still try for a 'double' on the Monday (28th) - some 'heavy duty Anoraks' go for a third game too if they can find one kicking off in the evening!

[Four Of Clubs]

... hmmm see this thread's become 'Tumbleweed Central' again

.. for those interested there were a few 'local' sides in action today amongst the welter of inevitable postponements:

CONF-South
Eastleigh 6-0 Basingstoke
Maidenhead 0-3 St Albans
Havant & W. 1-1 Woking

...and elsewhere
Hampton & R 1-4 Staines
Lewes 6-2 Dover
Worcester P-P Newport - reportedly paid a lot of money for pitch covers and tried to get something towards the expense from Newport - who none-too-politely told them where to go - seemed it didn't work anyway !

SOUTH-Premier
Bashley 0-4 Farnboro
Diddy 4-4 Oxford City
SOUTH-ONE South & West
Bedfont Green 0-2 Windsor & Eton @ Stag Meadow
Hungerford 1-2 Thatcham
VT FC 0-3 AFC Totton (4th vs 2nd)

Hellenic Premier
Highworth 2-4 Reading Town - good win at what is normally a tough place to go
Wantage 1-2 Shrivenham

no games survived in One East - one notable score from the West section

Cheltenham Saracens 14-0 Cirencester Utd

Wessex One
AFC Aldermaston 1-6 Tadley Calleva - still no points at all for the home side.

... I 'zipped' up the M4 this AM for an early KO in the Combined Counties One : Feltham vs Bedfont Sports. Result:1-3
Traffic was a complete B@st@rd on the M25 - doesn't bode well for my planned 'doubles' on Monday.
...back home in plenty of time to get out again to the MadStad.

[Royal Rother]

A workmanlike performance from Windsor & Eton to beat ground-sharers Bedfont Green 2-0 on an extremely wet and muddy Stag Meadow pitch.

Nothing too much to say about it really except that 49 points from a possible 57 is no mean achievment. Despite beating AFC Totton recently the latter are not going to be easy to shake off - they beat 4th placed VTFC 3-0 away today. As predicted after the table-top clash W&E and AFCT look likely to pull right away from the rest.

[Compo's Hat]

Planning on going up to St Albans for the return fixture against Maidenhead on New Year's Day, might be a miserable trip if yesterday's result is anything to go by.

[Four Of Clubs]

Looks like a fairly curtailed Bank Holiday programme in the 'local' NL this week:

Tomorrow (Mon 28th) - all 15:00h KOs unless indicated
CONF-South
Basingstoke Town v Worcester City
Braintree Town v Hampton and Richmond Borough
Bromley v Eastleigh
Dover Athletic v Chelmsford City
Newport County v Dorchester Town
St Albans City v Welling United
Staines Town v Bishop's Stortford
Thurrock v Lewes
Woking v Weston-Super-Mare

Southern-Prem
Stourbridge v Farnborough

Isthmian seems to be playing on Tuesday 29th (evening KOs) this week

Friday 1st Jan - again all 15:00h
Conf-South as said reverse of Boxing day fixtures
Basingstoke Town v Eastleigh
Bromley v Welling United
Dover Athletic v Lewes
Newport County v Worcester City
St Albans City v Maidenhead United
Staines Town v Hampton and Richmond Borough
Woking v Havant and Waterlooville

Southern-Prem
Farnborough v Hemel Hempstead Town
Oxford City v Bashley
Swindon Supermarine v Didcot Town
Southern One S&W
Thatcham Town v Bracknell Town
Windsor & Eton v Uxbridge

No scheduled 'local' games before the 2nd Jan in the:
Combined Counties - apart from four Div One games @ 11:30 tomorrow (Mon)but none are all that local (Bedfont, Staines [Lammas], Sheerwater & Couldsen)
Hellenic
Wessex

[AthleticoSpizz]

Thatcham it is then

[Four Of Clubs]

Thatcham it is then

....hmmm - don't build your hopes up - supposedly some more freezing white stuff heading our way this midweek so expect a load more postponements on the Friday.

The Conf South games all survived today though:-

Basingstoke Town v Worcester City 0-1
Braintree Town v Hampton and Richmond Borough 1-1
Bromley v Eastleigh 3-0
Dover Athletic v Chelmsford City 0-1
Newport County v Dorchester Town 3-0
St Albans City v Welling United 1-2
Staines Town v Bishop's Stortford 2-2
Thurrock v Lewes 3-1
Woking v Weston-Super-Mare 2-1

Farnborough's game @ Stourbridge was an early casualty to frost/waterlogging - not sure which. (edit: Frozen Pitch)

I spent a fairly stressful and partly frustrating day driving on and around the North & North Western bit of the M25 - traffic was a complete b@st@£& - eventually gave up on getting to an early game - all frozen off or not answering their f@(&ing phones

Even drove into Risborough Rangers car park just as the matey was walking round collecting the corner flags - must've just been called off.

Ended up at a fairly niggly and overall quite tedious match in the S.Mids Premier @ St Margaretsbury (nr Hertford) - then took over 2 hrs to get home - news from Devon didn't soften the mood either!

[AthleticoSpizz]

Thatcham it is then

....hmmm - don't build your hopes up - supposedly some more freezing white stuff heading our way this midweek so expect a load more postponements on the Friday.

I would hardly call watching Thatcham "hopes"

But thanx for the warning anyway FOC

[Royal Rother]

Windsor & Eton thrashed an outclassed Uxbridge 5-0 this afternoon at a perishing Stag Meadow to go 11 points clear of AFC Totton, who have 3 games in hand. The team is getting better and better.

Victor Osobu has now left the club to play in Malta, reportedly on £1k per week. He always had it as an option when he joined us, but has now made up his mind to go. Can't blame him! Shame for us but good luck to him.

We have apparently signed James Taylor, AFC Totton's leading scorer last season, (and a bit of a cult hero down there by all accounts) as replacement.

Bet that won't go down too well with them.

Edit: Not James Taylor, but Nathan Jack apparently.

[AthleticoSpizz]

A good result for Hayes & Yeading 1-0 victors over Wimbledon in front of their biggest ever home crowd of 1800+

[BF11]

Thatcham hammered Bracknell 5-0 today. Good result against a very poor team.

(and better than watching Reading).

[Four Of Clubs]

Thatcham hammered Bracknell 5-0 today. Good result against a very poor team.

(and better than watching Reading).

Yup - popped along to this one too - in the end I let my Lad have his first choice and it was here - he normally prefers STEP05 or 06 but since there weren't any scheduled for today he went for where there were likely to be goals.

He wasn't disappointed, though Stag Meadow had been on the list too.

Thought Bracknell were as poor as their position would suggest but on another day might have got something - though I very much doubt it.
First goal was a keeping howler - let a fairly airy-fairy curling swipe of a shot drift round him and in off the far post.
2nd and 3rd goals with about 15' to go killed them off and the last two, virtually in injury time, added gloss to a performance that didn't really deserve it.
Thought Thatcham sat back too much and maybe waited for Bracknell to implode.

Elsewhere on a frosty PM:

Conf-South
Basingstoke Town v Eastleigh PP
Bromley v Welling United 0-1
Dover Athletic v Lewes 2-0
Newport County v Worcester City 1-0
St Albans City v Maidenhead United PP
Staines Town v Hampton and Richmond Borough 4-0
Woking v Havant and Waterlooville 2-0

Southern-Prem
Farnborough v Hemel Hempstead Town 3-0
Oxford City v Bashley 1-1
Swindon Supermarine v Didcot Town PP

PS wasn't the aforementioned Nathan Jack at Bracknell last season?

[BF11]

It wasn't the best game of football I've ever seen, but my cousin plays for them so I suppose I should show some support.

[Royal Rother]

PS wasn't the aforementioned Nathan Jack at Bracknell last season?

Yep, same fella.

Totton are sorry to see him go (one of their best players but a touch greedy) , even though he's only been there this season from what I can gather.

[Four Of Clubs]

Yep, same fella.

Totton are sorry to see him go (one of their best players but a touch greedy) , even though he's only been there this season from what I can gather.

... looking on their website they aren't all that happy with his manner of departure - BUT then again he is a 'local' lad (to round here NOT Totton)

http://www.pitchero.com/clubs/afctotton/?section=clubnews&news_id=90549

... and is he by any chance a former Academy/Triallist for us (RFC that is ) - we certainly had a lad of that surname back in 2002?

[AndyRFC]

Woke up and jumped on to a train to St Albans City v Maidenhead, got there match off. Went to pub and deliberated and ended up having a thoroughlly enjoyable trip to Stevenage v Cambridge via T Le Mesmer who had driven up from the Royal County

4-1 to the home side, and a good performance.