WEST COUNTRY FOOTBALL

Tag: August

  • Spur of the Moment.

    Spur of the Moment.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    – Date: Friday 1st August 2025
    – Kick Off: 19:30
    – Attendance: 207
    – Distance Travelled: 68 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Competition: SW Peninsula League – East Div.
    – Venue: The Recreation Ground | TQ12 2AR
    – Weather: Sunny, mild
    – Admission: £6
    – Programme: ?

    The Intro

    Tonight sees the meeting of two teams that have consistently finished in the top half of the table, every season since Okehampton were promoted from the Devon League in 2021. Last time out Newton Abbot Spurs finished 2nd; 11 points behind Sidmouth Town, while Argyle ended the season in 7th place – actually their lowest finish since they’ve been playing at this level.

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  • El Dorado.

    El Dorado.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos
    The Line-Ups

    – Saturday 17th August 2024
    – 15:00 Kick Off
    – Attendance: 38
    – Distance Travelled: 16 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – South West Peninsula League – East Division
    – Haye Road, Plymstock
    – Weather: Cloudy, breezy
    – Admission: £6
    – Programme: £1

    Intro

    Last season saw a mid-table finish for Elburton Villa who finished 8th out of 17. They had a decent run in the FA Vase, beating Newton Abbot Spurs and Ilfracombe Town, before losing narrowly at Royal Wootton Bassett Town. Their final game of the season was the final of the League Cup. Taking place at Bovey Tracey, they faced-off against Okehampton Argyle. It did end in disappointment for Villa as they lost 3-1 in front of 400 fans. The opening game of the season for Villa was a goal-fest as they travelled east to Crediton United and came away with an impressive 5-3 victory. Last weekend they hosted Newton Abbot Spurs, who ended up getting revenge on Elburton for knocking them out of the FA Vase last year, winning 2-1.

    Bridport have had a disappointing start to the season. They’re only 3rd from bottom by virtue of a better goal difference than Torridgeside, and Axminster Town being deducted 3 points as they were unable to field a side against Bovey Tracey last Friday. Home losses to Teignmouth and Sidmouth Town, followed by a defeat at Torrington sees them pointless after 3 matches. This pales in comparison to last campaign where they finished in 4th position, just one point behind 2nd place, albeit way off Champions Ivybridge Town who stormed to the title.

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  • Taking Stock.

    Taking Stock.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos
    The Line-Ups

    – Saturday 3rd August 2024
    – 15:00 Kick Off
    – Attendance: ~40
    – Distance Travelled: 45 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Somerset County League – Premier Division
    – Stockwood Lane, Bristol
    – Weather: Sunny, warm
    – Admission: £2
    – Programme: N/A

    Intro

    Last season Stockwood Wanderers finished 5th; just inside the potential promotion places. As it was, only Mendip Broadwalk were promoted from the Somerset County League for this campaign. Presumably Wanderers did not apply for promotion due to ground regulations. Either way it was a strong season for them. I saw Wanderers play away at Fry Club back in 2019 when they were on the wrong end of a 6-1 scoreline.

    Weston-Super-Mare-based Uphill Castle will look to improve on their 11th placed finish in their first season at the top level of County football. They continue to play their home matches at the 3G pitch outside of the main Woodspring Stadium, home of Weston-Super-Mare AFC – perhaps a result of ground grading restrictions in the Premier Division.

    When these sides met last season, Stockwood won 0-2 away in Weston-Super-Mare, while the reverse fixture ended in a 2-2 draw.

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  • Call it a Draw.

    Call it a Draw.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    – Tuesday 22nd August 2023
    – 19:45 Kick Off
    – Attendance: 32
    – Distance Travelled: 42 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Western League – Division One
    – BTRA Sports Ground, Bristol
    – Weather: Sunny, mild.
    – Admission: £6
    – Programme: £1

    Intro

    Saturday saw Bristol Telephones beat Hallen 1-0 in an away win that was the latest result in a topsy-turvy beginning to the season for the south Bristol club. Currently 8th in the league, the Phones have won 4 and lost 3 of their 7 games so far. A home win over Odd Down was swiftly followed by a 4-3 loss to Cribbs Reserves as the season began with a bang. A slightly concerning loss to struggling Gillingham Town is probably the low point of the season so far.

    League newcomers Middlezoy Rovers – who won the Somerset County League last season – started life in the National League System with two wins. A 4-1 win away at Hallen gave them the perfect beginning and they followed that up with a 1-0 win over Bishop Sutton in south Somerset. They were brought back down to Earth with a couple of defeats to Bradford Town and Portishead Town, before beating Cadbury Heath. Their last game, at the weekend, was a 1-0 loss to Shirehampton, and Rovers currently lie in 12th position.

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  • Border Control.

    Border Control.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    – Saturday 19th August 2023
    – 14:00 Kick Off
    – Attendance: ~110
    – Distance Travelled: 74 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Welsh Cup – 2nd Qualifying Round
    – Larkfield Park, Chepstow
    – Weather: Sunny spells
    – Admission: £6
    – Programme: Free

    Intro

    These two teams coincidentally faced each other just 4 days ago as they played out a 2-2 draw over at Ystrad Mynach in the Ardal League South East. Last weekend Chepstow conceded an injury time equaliser to draw in the local derby at home to Caldicot Town. Before that they won their first two league games of the season – 4-1 at home to Hay St Mary’s, followed by a 4-3 away win at Blaenavon Blues. To reach this stage of the Welsh Cup, Chepstow beat Wattsville FC 3-2 at home back at the end of July.

    Risca’s season has been a bit of a rollercoaster so far: close-sounding losses to Undy AFC and Newport City either side of a convincing win over Brecon Corries, mean they will need to find some consistency if they want to replicate last season’s good showing which culminated in a promotion play-off loss to Baglan Dragons. Risca seemingly received a bye to this round of the Cup and so will look to kick off in this competition on the right foot.

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  • Rocky Road.

    Rocky Road.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    – Sunday 6th August 2023
    – 14:00 Kick Off
    – Attendance: ~45
    – Distance Travelled: 54 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Preseason Friendly
    – Cockrams, Shaftesbury
    – Weather: Sunny Spells
    – Admission: Free
    – Programme: N/A

    Intro

    An impressive 22/23 season in the Dorset Women’s League in which they only lost 2 games, means promotion to tier 6 for Shaftesbury. They’ll be playing in the Eastern Division of the South West Regional Leagues for the new campaign. Today’s opponents will compete in the level above: the Southern Region Football League Premier Division. Seemingly spared relegation last season despite finishing at the bottom of the pile with just the 2 wins to their name. Winchester City Flyers will be looking for an improved performance in 23/24.

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  • Green About The Gills.

    Green About The Gills.

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    – Saturday 5th August 2023
    – 15:00 Kick Off
    – Attendance: 32
    – Distance Travelled: 49 miles
    – Full Photo Gallery

    – Western League – Division One
    – Woodwater Lane, Gillingham
    – Weather: Rain
    – Admission: £6.50
    – Programme: £1

    Intro

    An inauspicious start to the burgeoning season has seen Gillingham Town lose both of their 2 matches so far, conceding 4 goals on both occasions. The Gills hosted Shirehampton on the opening day and lost 4-0, while midweek they travelled west to Cheddar and fared little better – a 4-1 loss this time.

    Cadbury Heath travel down from Bristol today looking to continue their quest for an immediate return to the Premier Division of the Western League. The opening day of the season had the Heath visit Portishead; the hosts won that close encounter 1-0. The Bristol club then won a 5 goal thriller in midweek over last season’s 3rd place finishers Wells City.

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  • Out of Gas

    Out of Gas

    BRISTOL ROVERS 1 – 1 SHREWSBURY TOWN

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    Saturday 27th August 2022

    League 1

    15:00 Kick Off

    The Memorial Stadium, Bristol

    Attendance: 8,570

    Sunny and Warm

    Admission: £28

    Intro

    Rovers secured promotion to League 1 in dramatic style at the end of last season – beating relegated Scunthorpe United by the required 7 goals to go up automatically on goals scored. A decent amount of comings and goings over the summer may go some way to explain their somewhat up-and-down start to this season, along with the increase in the quality of opposition. That being said they did get off to the perfect start with a 4-0 away win over Burton Albion, followed by a home win over Oxford United. They were then brought back down to earth with defeats to Barnsley and Portsmouth, conceding 3 goals against each side.

    The visiting Shrews have struggled so far this season, with a solitary win over Wycombe Wanderers the only highlight. A goalless draw against Derby County is not to be sniffed at, but defeats to Ipswich and Accrington Stanley see the Shropshire side languishing in the lower reaches of the table at this early stage of the campaign. They’ll certainly be looking to improve on last season’s 18th place finish, when they found themselves 10 points above the drop zone on the final day.

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  • Battle Royale.

    Battle Royale.

    ROYAL WOOTTON BASSETT TOWN 1 – 1 WINDSOR FC

    The Intro
    The Ground
    The Match
    The Photos

    Saturday 6th August 2022

    FA Cup – Extra Preliminary Round

    15:00 Kick Off

    Gerard Buxton Sports Ground, Royal Wootton Bassett

    Attendance: 119

    Sunny and Warm

    Full Photo Gallery

    Admission: £6

    Intro

    A fixture with regality written all over it marks the 2nd game of the season for the home side – a tough match against Hellenic League new boys Mangotsfield United on Tuesday ended in an impressive 1-0 victory for Bassett. Last season they finished in a comfortable mid-table position, losing as many games as they won. In last year’s FA Cup they made it past this round, before succumbing to Ardley United in a Preliminary Round replay. They had more success in the FA Vase, lasting until December when they lost to eventual semi-finalists Hamworthy United in the 3rd Round.

    Windsor make their competitive debut for the season today, with the Combined Counties Premier League North not starting until next weekend. They finished last season’s campaign at 7th in the league but quite a way off the promoted teams. Not too surprising when you hear that league winners Hanworth Villa drew 4 and didn’t lose a game all season, storming to the title. Like their opponents today, The Royalists had an equal number of losses and wins. A short-lived FA Cup campaign last season had Windsor beaten by Tuffley Rovers in the Extra Preliminary Round, while in the FA Vase they beat Kensington & Ealing Borough, before losing heavily to Wellingborough Whitworth in the 2nd Qualifying Round.

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  • Mashed to a Polp.

    Mashed to a Polp.

    Polperro AFC 5 – 1 Sticker AFC Reserves
    St Piran League – East Division
    Saturday 21st August 2021
    Killigarth, Polperro (view on map)

    Attendance: c36
    Admission: Free
    Weather: Misty, showers, some sun

    View the full photo gallery HERE

    The Season So Far:

    The St Piran League acts as a feeder league to the South West Peninsula League. I was originally planning to visit an SWPL fixture – Liskeard Athletic v Godolphin Atlantic – but the away side had to pull out due to a Covid outbreak. So a swift rearrangement was necessary on my part and, what with my accomodation for the week being in Polperro, it made perfect sense to visit Killigarth for Polperro AFC’s second game of the season. A relatively new league, this will be only the 3rd edition of the St Piran League and will hopefully be the first season to reach a meaningful conclusion. The previous 2 falling victim to the Corona Virus. The 2020/21 season ended prematurely of course, with Polperro flying high in 2nd but with a couple of games in hand over Bude Town in 1st. Sticker Reserves, on the other hand, were languishing somewhat in 13th (out of 15).

    Opening the campaign with 2 consecutive home matches, Polperro began the season last week with a convincing 7-1 victory over Millbrook Reserves (Click here for the ‘Where’s the Tea Hut’ visit to that game). Bizarrely, and I’m not quite sure why, only a handful of fixtures took place last weekend, meaning that Sticker Reserves’ first run out of the season is today. Hopefully they won’t be too daunted by the prospect of coming up against a side who won by 6 clear goals 7 days ago.

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