First Time Down South

Another day another business trip and this time staying over in Kent and the nearest match was the Kent League clash between Beckenham Town and VCD Athletic,on paper a match that should be fairly straightforward for league leaders VCD and so it proved.

Anyhow first things first and if you ever do go to Beckenham follow the map instructions on the website rather than putting the postcode into the sat nav or you will get lost like I did, when I did get there though I found a very pleasant ground with 2 small stands either side of the pitch and a lovely wooden clubhouse that has more of a cricket pavillion feel about it than a football ground

I must make special mention of the refreshment stall run by a very pleasant lady and prices about half of what I would expect to pay at this level of football,a very pleasant surprise

Something that was a bit quirky was that as there is not a tunnel from the changing rooms the players lined up  outside,well it was a very pleasant night but I bet this is no fun on a cold December afternoon, I still reckon the Scots have the right idea ,toss up in the changing rooms get out onto the pitch without the false handshakes and get on with the match

Anyhow onto the match and the expected result proved to be so and more as VCD took control from the off lead with an early penalty and went on to score 7 past the hapless hosts,to be honest it could have been more because the Beckenham defence seemed clueless in the face of the swift open attacking play that VCD employed.

 A plus point of the evening from a personal point of view was that I could combine my 3 loves of Photography, Football and railways as a very busy main line runs right at the back of the clubhouse

One downside to end on is that this was not the most welcoming club I have ever been to, I introduced myself to a group of officials explaining who I was checking that photography of the match was ok (They had not replied to my Tweets a la Partick Thistle) got a rather curt yes and from the club photographer a yes we are the team in red and I hate Nikon,lucky that I use Canon then.

So an interesting if not entirely pleasurable evening another new team ticked off but unlikely to be one I will visit again 

More Scottish Football

This week business took me to Glasgow and a 2 night stopover gave me a chance to visit my 3^rd Scottish ground in a little over 5 weeks,the initial plan was Partick Thistle v Raith Rovers as this was the ground nearest the hotel but this ran into a slight hitch.

Despite 2 emails, a Tweet a Facebook message and a Voicemail asking if photography from the terraces I had no response whatsoever from the club and so plan B had to go into operation.

So a quick scouting of the fixtures showed that Stenhousemuir were playing the Division 2 champions Queen of the South and that Ochilview Park was only half an hour away,a quick Tweet checking on photography was responded to in the positive within 20 minutes so off I went.

Ochilview Park is located in a residential area and I suppose the residents get a bit hacked off on match days when people like me park outside their houses but I made sure I was not causing an obstruction,very public spirited. Waiting for the gates to open I heard another English accent and got chatting to a really nice guy who adopted QOTS many years ago and is a regular traveller up from Oldham in Lancashire to support them,now that's dedication,it was remiss of me not to ask his name but I did take a photo of this hardy soul

Leaving him tio his coffee I went to get one of my own and noticed that they also sold Scotch Pies an alternative to the Pork Pie and something I am very partial to,well it was a good choice because the Pie at Stenhousemuir was one of the best I have ever tasted

Anyhow the match which really was supposed to be a fairly straightforward one for Champions and double cup winners QOTDS against a Stenhousemuir side safely ensconced in mid table and with only an outside chance of making the playoffs but nobody appeared to have told the Warriors.

From the start they were at QOTS harrying and tackling like they were the champions and not their opponents and it was no surprise when they took the lead after 26 minutes,as ever your correspondent failed to get the goal but at least the Warriors scorer came towards the camera rather than away as my own team do on a regular basis. 

The match was end to end after this and QOTS equalised with a quite sublime free kick on the stroke of half time,its not over exaggerating to say that few keepers on the planet would have got near the ball as it arrowed into the top corner,this time I got the QOTS fans celebrating

The second half was similarly entertaining and Stenhousemuir got a deserved winner after 72 minutes and despite QOTS pressure held on for a fine win in a highly entertaining match.

I must say that after watching 3 Scottish matches in the past few weeks I am highly impressed with the quality of play and the entertainment value and would castigate the people of Scotland for not getting off their backsides and supporting their local team,an attendance of just over 500 for this game was not what a richly enjoyable match was deserving of.

One slight downside having been treated so well at Albion Rovers and Livingstone was the attitude of the stewards,a private company I believe not Stenhousemuirs own.

During the second half I and an elderly couple were standing behind the wall on the left of the main stand as you look at it when a steward came along and told the couple to move back as they were causing an obstruction which they palpably were not,the lady asked why I was not told to move as well and was told “He's taking photographs”,whatever that had to do with the price of fish.

About 10 minutes later another Steward approached me and asked what paper I was working for,when I said I was just a fan taking photographs he told me to stop as I should have a hi vis vest on (Well in my experience pitchside yes on the terraces no) I said I had approached the club for permission and they had said yes at witch he said ok and walked away,had he pursued it I would have had to admit it was by Twitter.

My point is that Scottish football appears to be in a turmoil at present and behaviour like this does nothing to encourage people to come along and support the game.

Overall though a very pleasant evening and I look forward to watching more Scottish matches in the future

Non League in the North East

A business trip to the Newcastle area gave me the opportunity to go and sample the hotbed that is the Northern League for the first time,the initial plan was to visit Ashington and the opportunity to visit the North East's version of my home town of Dudley but due to the encouragement of Non League guru David Bauckham I ended up at Belle Vue park home of Consett FC for the match with West Auckland

Belle Vue will be demolished at the end of the season some 50 years after it was build by the local steel workers for Consett is a town that used to revolve around its now sadly gone steelworks,although some areas of the ground show that it is nearing the end of its days it was good to see the entrance area and turnstiles sporting what looked like a very fresh coat of paint,there is pride in the old place to the end.

As is typical of so many Non League grounds the welcome once I introduced myself as this Midlands nutter braving a cold night to watch no league football was as warm as the night was cold and I do hope that this carries on to the new ground and that a space is found for the lovely people who run the Corner Flag Snack bar.

It was also a very pleasant surprise to be asked into boardroom at half time for refreshments by the gateman whose name I am ashamed to admit I have forgotten ,as an side I think West Auckland were rather taking the mick as it appeared most of their travelling support crammed in for refreshments rather than just the officers of the club as is normal practice

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And so to the match ,well West Auckland as befits former World cup winners started much the brighter (Yes World Cup Winners and if you want the full story look here)
http://www.onthisfootballday.com/football-history/april-12-west-auckland-fc-world-cup-winners.php

So yes West Auckland started the brighter went 1-0 up early on hd a 2 goal lead by half time and mid way through the second half lead 4-0,so game over lets watch the clock run down and go home

However Consett had other ideas and throwing caution to the wind threw everything at their opponents,0-4 became 1-4,2-4 and amazingly 3-4 and West Auckland were hanging on by their fingernails,sadly time ran out but what had looked like an embarrassing rout for the home side had turned into a defeat with dignity

So we all trooped of home ,or in my case back to the hotel, thoroughly entertained and I was really pleased I had paid a visit to Belle Vue park before goes the way of so many traditional grounds

As a non football related aside the North East was one of the areas seriously affected by the policies of Margaret Thatcher who had died the day before, the steelworks that was the heartbeat of the town went in the 80's. Thatcherism hadn't affected me a great deal in this way but talking to those who had seen the heart ripped out of their communities by the political dogma of Margaret Thatcher made you realised why so many if not partying over her death at least will at least shed no tears.

Maybe Jack Wheelan and John Madejski should talk to the people of County Durham, Yorkshire and the Welsh Valleys before they  go on about a minutes silence before matches this weekend

The Bairns Of Falkirk At Livingston

Another couple of days in Scotland on business meant following on from my trip to Albion Rovers a fortnight ago this time it was step up to Division 1 and a trip to Livingstone for their match against Falkirk, thanks to my rather cheeky e-mail and the good auspices of the Livingston staff I was allowed in as Media and given pitchside access.

The Almondvale Stadium is about 18 years old and became the home to Livingston when the old Meadowbank Thistle moved and changed their name, as can be seen from the photographs it is a compact (10,000 capacity) but very pleasant place to watch football in with excellent site lines from all around the ground.

Prior to the match I was talking to one of the other photographers from the Scottish Daily Record who had been in the trade long enough to have used film and manual focus lenses,I have so much respect for guys like that who without all the modern aids got some truly awesome football photographs, however photographers here do have to watch out for the attentions of the local Lion

Livingston 3^rd in the table at the start of the match were facing 4^th place Falkirk who are a very young side and after the departure of manager Steven Pressley to Coventry were without a manager, although the next day former Scottish international Gary Holt was appointed. Falkirk started the brighter of the 2 sides and had chances early on but Livingston gained control and took a deserved lead when referee Brain Colvin gave a nailed on penalty that Livingston converted, as the half progressed Livingston created other chances and after 45 minutes although holding a slender lead looked the most likely winners.

What was in Falkirk’s half time Irn Bru I have no idea but not only did they totally dominate the second half but did it in a way that made the heart beat faster, the speed and quality of the passing and interplay was superb and the speed of closing down must have made the Livingston players wonder if Falkirk still had only 11 players on the pitch. I cannot remember when as a neutral I have enjoyed 45 minutes of football as much as I did from that second half Falkirk display and their performance got the merited rewards with 2 goals without reply to run out winners. Such a performance from young Scottish players does make you wonder why the national team are in such a rut at the moment.

As an aside much of the enjoyment of the match s a whole was down to an excellent performance from the aforementioned Mr Colvin who was spot on with his decisions, including the sending off of Livingston’s Iain Russell and used the old fashioned rule of Common Sense that so many refs in England seem to have forgotten

So a very pleasant evening and for those who read my wittering’s on the Albion Rovers match a much more pleasant experience weather wise without the horizontal snow flakes.

St George's lane Before It Ends

Having never been to watch Worcester City I decided as Bank Holiday Monday was free that I had better remedy that as the ground closes at the end of this season, being replaced by houses I believe, so off I went to watch the match v Oxford City.

The ground has real character to it reminding me of the Non League grounds of my youth like Dudley town and Brierley Hill Alliance and although living on borrowed  time still looked well looked after

Like all civilized grounds a good cup of Bovril amongst other usual refreshments was available and it certainly helped keep the cold out on yet another raw Spring day

Worcester have not yet won a match this calender year but despite this a good crowd of over 500 turned up and from the first  kick were vociferous in their support of the home team,this seemed to pa off as Worcester took an early lead much to the delight of the home fans

Despite Oxford equalising before half time Worcester put in a spirited performance regaining the lead before the break and adding another in the second half,Oxford pulled one back but were unable to force an equaliser and it appears I was a lucky charm as they broke their 2013 home duck

The real plus side f the day was bumping into another club photographer Peter Else from Hitchin who I follow on Flickr but had never met,he was in the area visiting family and once gain the benefits of wearing my easily recognizable  AFC Wulfrunians jacket bore fruit,Peter is now a member of the Non League Of Extraordinary Photographers Facebook group,and may the lord have mercy on his soul.

I must say that the Worcester City staff and fans that I spoke to were all extremely pleasant and did not,at least to my face,appear to be down over he fact that home games next  season will involve a 15 mile trip down the A449 to Kidderminster Harriers Aggborough stadium

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I am really pleased that I made the effort to see St George's lane before it goes the way of so many traditional football stadia

helped to keep out the cold on another raw Sp