Winsford United

Date: Tuesday October 13th 2009
Ground: Barton Stadium
Match: Winsford 0 Newcastle Town 1  HT: 0-0 ATT: 97
Boast 79
Additional: Entrance £6, Programme £1.50, Coffee/Tea £0.80

Barton Stadium in pictures

This was a late decision. I was originally going to watch Leek Town at Market Drayton, but MDT had an FA Trophy replay. So I decided to finally capture the closest ground (step 6 and above) that I had yet to visit. It had the added bonus of being against a Newcastle side who had started their season with 10 straight wins. Could Winsford stop their spectacular run?

Winsford were 5-0-5 and had the peculiarly mismatched home and away records of 1-0-4 , 4-0-1. Their home form was dire.

Winsford United were founded in 1883 as Over Wanderers, playing in the Welsh Combination League. Not long after that, they started playing at the Barton Stadium, although in those days it was the Great Western Playing Field. The new name of the ground was in honour of Mr. R.G. Barton, who led the committee to re-establish Winsford United after the First World War.

It used to be a Greyhound Stadium as well, which is evident in the pictures. It has the curves at each end and you can still see the mounted lights for the home straight.

Newcastle Town are a newer outfit, founded in 1964. They seem to have finished in the top four of the North West Counties League for about ten years straight but with no promotion. I’m not sure whether this is because of restrictions of the ground or whether they’ve just never finished quite high enough.

The ground was easy enough to find, with plenty of on-street parking. It is fairly centrally located in Winsford. The general rule of thumb is the older the ground the nearer to the town centre it is and the newer the ground the further out, in some retail park.

The ground is an unusual one, on account of the big sweeping ends, that were necessary for the dog track. It claims to hold 7,000, with 600 seated in the main stand. I don’t reckon that standholds 600, but I”ve read it written several times. I managed to pick a seat under the covered terrace under the bit of roof that was missing…on a rainy night. I swiftly moved round the ground.

Main Stand with bite out of it

The other side had a three-sweeping-steps covered terrace that was quite a good atmosphere. It is alongside the home track that the greyhounds used to charge down to victory.

The snack bar was very convivial and inviting as you come in,but the toilets were a bit scary.In retrospect, I’m not sure the toilets I went in were still in used. They may have been condemned or defunct; mind you, I couldn’t find any others. They were behind a wall, darker than a black hole, and what you could see was various debris hiding behind which I think was a gutter. (and maybe the Winsford Boggart). They made the cubic brieze block at Nantwich’s Jackson avenue look like an en-suite bathroom at the Ritz.

Toilets

I enjoyed the game. Both teams played some good football and there wasn’t a lot to choose between them. I thought I was going to witness the end of Newcastle Town’s great winning run; but on 79 Boast finished powerfully from a great cross to get win number 11 out of 11. Winsford may have felt a tad hard done by.

Since then Newcastle have won another six straight league games and are now 17-0-0. The win against Winsford was also the start of seven clean sheets. Remarkable record.

Barton Stadium in pictures

Ossett Town

Date: Tuesday September 8th 2009
Ground: Ingfield Stadium
Match: Ossett Town 3 Kendal Town 2  HT: 1-1 ATT: 233
Hardaker 19, Lee 56, Hollindrake 71: Wain 30, Steel 77
Additional: Entrance £7, Programme £1.50, Coffee/Tea £1.00.

Ingfield Stadium in pictures

 

Ossett is one of those unusual small towns that boasts two similarly sized non-league football teams. With a population of a little over 20,000, in the Metropolitan Borough of Wakefield, it is host to Town (Unibond Premier) and Albion (Unibond Div One North), both grounds near the town centre. These double team towns aren’t actually as rare as you might think,  like pairs of prime numbers. There’s Atherton with its Laburnum Rovers and Collieries, Ashton in Makerfield with its Athletic and Town and Ashton under Lyme with its Curzon and United, to name a few. It’s always been Ossett I think of, though, when it comes to two team towns.

 This was ground number 157, a prime number. I was desperately hoping 159 was prime, too, so then it’d be part of a prime pair; I could then visit Ossett Albion for my 159th ground, fulfilling the whole prime number pair analogy. Alas; it wasn’t meant to be. Damn the numbers 3 and 53.

The Ingfield Stadium was very much a bonus ground, one that I hadn’t considered before. My wife was watching a table on ebay, and while I didn’t think she’d actually put a bid in for it, let alone win it, when she said it was in Wakefield, I couldn’t help looking up the nearest non-league clubs in that area. Ossett Town were at home on the Tuesday and their ground was only 4.5 miles from the ebay pick-up address. I was suddenly showing huge interest in her item and its bid progress, for not entirely honest reasons.

The table she won was too big for our car, so we had the unexpected addition of needing to hire a transit, something I wasn’t looking forward to doing. My first football match by Transit van. I find driving the things quite scary, not sure of where the boundaries to the car are and feeling half blind, not having a rear-view mirror. However, I made it to Wakefield, via Leek and Buxton and skirting Chapel-en-le-Frith and Glossop, including the very picturesque B6105 with its views of the Torside reservoir. The pleasant cross-country route all the time tempered by my agitation at being in charge of a huge van, feeling like a ten-year-old that had stolen a juggernaut. I know, I’m pathetic, having been trained at the dandy school of driving.

After picking up the table and chairs I drove the short distance to Ossett; first impressions were of a pleasant little town, with a seemingly large concentration of eateries and restaurants. I had a bit of time to kill so got some fish and chips just off prospect Road, in the town centre. The nicest Fish and Chips I’d had since Warminster circa 1985. Cheap, too, with Fish £2.

Having parked my Transit in the free-after-6 town centre car park, I walked the short distance to the ground. The ground is so central, you almost expect a clock tower in the centre circle. It is slap bang in the middle of town. They have played there since 1957, the team having been founded in 1936.

A fine pair of Ossets. Town at the top and Albion, bottom

The end of the ground backs on to a main high street and opposite the new bus station.

Back of the main stand

The main stand is, unusually, behind a goal and holds approx 400.

Main Stand and, left, wheelchair area

There are two small covered terraces on either side of the pitch and a large array of buildings at the back behind one side housing friendly and spacious clubhouse/bar, snack area, club shops etc. It was almost like a little football village.

Terrace in front of many buildings including snack bar

Ossett had not had a great start to the season, while visitors Kendal were top, with no defeats and a hatful of goals. So it was a surprise to see Ossett start out on top and play some really good football. They deserved their lead, but allowed Kendal back in to the game before half time. In the second half Ossett again played really well and took a two goal advantage thanks to some superb attacking play. Kendal forced a goal back to make a very tense ending for the home side, but at the end Ossett thoroughly deserved to inflict Kendal’s first defeat of the season. A great advert for Unibond football, both these sides should be top half, and at £7, a bargain too.

Ossett is definitely one of my favourite grounds I’ve visited. The whole experience was very enjoyable and I even got the transit back to Stoke without any dents or scratches. And by the way the table and chairs I picked up were a bargain, even including van hire, petrol, fish and chips and match entrance – a fine investment by Mrs Groundhog, a valuable Ossett.

Ingfield Stadium in pictures

Leek Town update 19-09-09

Unibond League South
Sep 5 Leek Town 1 Stamford 0 HT: 0-0 ATT: 272
           Miller 51
Sep 12 Shepshed Dynamo 1 Leek Town 1 HT: 0-1 ATT: 141
              Ramsay 90                  Corden 6
Sep 19 Leek Town 1 Spalding 0 HT: 1-0 ATT: 276
              Cope 39

 

Leek stay top of the league after another 1-0 victory today, against Spalding. Two weeks ago they weren’t on top form, but managed to beat Stamford 1-0, thanks to an acrobatic strike from Miller in the second half. Stamford would’ve felt aggrieved at not getting a point there, though. It was a slim victory.

My Favourite Year (1990-91)

In a similar vein to the 1990 book of the same name this is an account of my favourite year, part one.

Brighton & Hove Albion – Second Division 6th place (losing Play-Off finalists) – FA Cup 4th round – League Cup 1st round.

Albion 1990-91 (wearing the worst kit of all time)

The motley bunch above, wearing the lurid pink strip, looking like some Gay World Cup side, is the team from my favourite ever season, 1990-91. The kit, incidentally, was voted as one of the worst five kits of all time. Not helped much by the words NOBO emblazoned on their chest. I still have this top in my wardrobe. 

Sutton Coldfield Town

Date: Monday August 24th 2009
Ground: Coles Lane
Match: Sutton Coldfield Town 1 Bedworth United 1 HT: 0-1 ATT: 158
Matt 90: Blair 22
Additional: Entrance £6, Programme £1.20, Coffee/Tea 60p Full food menu including Faggots.

Coles Lane in Pictures

 

Between two Leek Town home matches I had a free Monday evening. I had a choice of three venues all about the same distance away – Atherton Collieries, Curzon Ashton and Sutton Coldfield Town. Curzon Ashton’s is a new stadium but, while very modern with excellent facilities, too similar to the Weaver Stadium to entice me. Atherton are step six and so I guessed would be very small indeed, so I plumped for Sutton Coldfield from the Zamaretto League Midlands division (step four).

Leek Town 2009-10

Aug 22nd Leek Town 3 Mickleover Sports 2 HT: 3-2 ATT: 229
Unibond League South

Aug 25th Leek Town 5 Brigg Town 1 HT: 3-0 ATT: 216
Unibond League One South

Mickleover Sports was my first home game as a Leek Town fan. If I wasn’t already addicted on the Saturday, then I certainly was on the following Tuesday at home to Brigg. It wasn’t just the high scoring wins; it was the old routine of being a fan of one club, the familiarity, the same faces, stands and pubs beforehand. The willing of your team to win, rather than the polite attendance of a couple of random ones. It reminded me of days at the Goldstone Ground in the eighties, when I went to every home game.

Willenhall Town

Ground: Noose Lane
Date: Tuesday 18th August 2009
Match: Willenhall Town 1 Leek Town 2 HT: 1-1 ATT: 92
Warren 39: Griffiths 27 (og), Hawthorne 52
Comp: Unibond Division One South
Additional: Entrance £6 Programme £1.50 Coffee/Tea 50p Chips 80p

Noose Lane in pictures

 

My first game following Leek Town and their first away game of the season, after a 3-3 draw at home to Loughborough on the opening day. Their opponents for tonight’s game, Willenhall Town, from the Black Country, between Wolverhampton and Walsall. I believe they are the furthest south in the division. They started off on Saturday with a 3-0 defeat at Belper; this is on top of a ten point deduction for going into administration a few months back. Willenhall Town are very fortunate to be playing at all, having been saved from the brink of extinction.

Willenhall Town are known as the Lockmen, due to the Town’s history of making locks and keys. The town has a population of about 40,000 and just to the north is an area called New Invention. I can’t find out why it is so called. What was the invention?

Kettering Town

Ground: Rockingham Road
Date: Saturday 15th August 2009
Comp: Conference
Match: Kettering 1 AFC Wimbledon 2 HT: 0-1 Att: 1,746
Thomas 74: Kedwell 9, 66(pen)
Additional: Entrance £18 (stand) £14 (terrace), Programme £3, Hamburger £2.80, Hot drinks £1.00
Rockingham Road in pictures

Despite my decision to follow Leek Town this season, this game was booked in advance as a birthday present from my Dad, an AFC Wimbledon fan. Having seen the price of the ticket I’m very glad it was a present as I wouldn’t normally pay close on £20 to watch a Conference game.

Buckley Town

Date: Friday 7th August
Match: Buckley Town 4 Newtown AFC 3 HT: 2-0 Att: circa 75 hc
1-0,2-0,3-0,3-1,3-2,4-2,4-3
Comp: Friendly
Additional: No Programme, Cheeseburger £2.00, Coffee/Tea £0.80

The Globe in pictures

Going to a Cymru Alliance ground on a Friday night for a friendly was taking my groundhopping a bit far, I thought at first. Like a real ale lover cracking open an Old Speckled Hen for breakfast. As it turned out it was a great evening with no feelings of self-loathing and regret afterwards. Buckley Town vs Newtown was worth the drive, as was their Globe Way ground.

Oddments & the New Season

The new season is fast approaching like the distant glint of sunlight between clouds  on a windy day. It did kind of start already at TNS on 9th July, a start so early for me as to be uncanny, like the sun rising at midnight. So early it’s difficult to decide if it was an appendix to last season or a prologue to 2009-10.

I aim to write more this season and not just when I go to a game. It is my humble ambition to get the readership of this blog into single figures.