RAAL La Louvière

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Sunday 8th March 2020 15.00
Belgian Second Amateur Division (ACFF Section)
RAAL La Louvière 2 Acren-Lessines 0 HT: 2-0 Att: 300hc
Malela 21, Renquin 38p
from Stade du Tivoli

After glitzy Pro League Belgian football in the Dutch-speaking region, it was now time to sample a more pastoral lower league vibe in the French-speaking region. 

This was fourth tier Belgian football – zut alors!. Their fourth tier is regionalised – this was the French speaking ACFF league and there are two Dutch speaking leagues, the VFVA and the VFVB. The Belgian pyramid is a bit odd in that the top flight and third tier have 16 teams, but the second tier has just eight. From what I can gather the First Division B play each other twice for a 14 match season before Christmas, then play another season after Christmas and the two winners have a play-off for promotion at the end.

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Lutterworth Athletic

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Tuesday 15th September 2020 19.45
United Counties League One
Lutterworth Athletic 1 Northampton Sileby Rangers 2 HT: 1-0 Att: 150 (hc)
Atkinson 17 : Koriya 55p, 65
from Hall Park

In the space of eight days Dave and I had done a brace of Lutterworths. Town last week and Athletic this. It was very much an aptly named Groundhog Day for us. Same pick up time, same fast uninterrupted journey, same Fish and Chip shop, similar comments about the town’s anchor tennant – Angel’s Touch Massage. Did this signify a new style of ruthless efficiency in our groundhopping. Would the Wellingboroughs be up next? Whitworth and Town?

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FC41

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Saturday 26th September 2020 14.30
Staffordshire County Senior League Division Two
FC41 2 AFC Alsager Development 3 HT: 1-3 Att: 30 (hc)
Tudor 15, Lawton 65 : 5, 11 Send off 22, 35 (pen)

from The Northwood Stadium

Aside from the 3G cage, Northwood Stadium hadn’t been used for football for nearly ten years. The last team to do so were AFC Milton, who played there in 2011. I heard that Stoke City Council, who own the sports facility, demanded too much rent for use of the pitch and it seemed like I’d missed the opportunity to watch a Staffs County game at the venue.

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Glentoran

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Friday 4th October 2019 19.45
NI League Premier
Glentoran 0 Cliftonville 1 HT: 0-0 Att: c3,500
Murray so 63 : Gormley 84

from The Oval

Many hoppers will cite Glentoran as their favourite ground and many more will have it in their top five. I’d seen pictures of it and agreed it looked like a good one and was keen to see it for myself, although there was also a tinge of slight irritation that comes from people raving on about something (it took me years to watch Trainspotting, sick of all the effusive hype, but then I loved it). Well it turns out everyone was right, and then some. What an experience.

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