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Villa Dino Christchurch v Newport Civil Service

4pm 25 August 2018

Gwent County League, Division One
Villa Dino Christchurch 1 Newport Civil Service 3 (att 201)

The Villa Dino is a restaurant in Newport, but whereas I'd just assumed they were a long-standing sponsor of Christchurch the match programme informed me that Villa Dino FC had merged with Christchurch to form the current club in the 1990s.

They're long established in the Gwent County League, and have taken up residence at the well-equipped Whitehead Sports Ground in Bassaleg where the facilities may allow them to step up into the Welsh League if they can get it together on the pitch.

They were anything but together in the opening minutes of this game, defensively at least, and it didn't take long before Newport Civil Service - Welsh Leaguers themselves until recently - had a 2-0 lead.

Villa Dino pulled one back in the second half but Civil Service added a third goal to put the result beyond doubt. The visitors did have a player sent off towards the end but there was little chance of a home team comeback.

The ground has railed off pitches for both rugby and football, although as yet there's no cover for spectators by the football pitch, which Villa Dino Christchurch would need should they want promotion.

This game marked the three-quarters point of the day's games for most groundhoppers on this hop but thankfully I'd already been to the day's final venue, at Pill YMCA, so I was spared a fourth game that might just have tested my keenness for non-League football. These days three matches in a day is plenty.










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