Steve B the Groundhopper

2.15pm  23 November 2019 Wiltshire Senior League Ludgershall Sports 2 Malmesbury Victoria development 1 (att 15) It's been a tough season so far for Ludgershall Sports, who ahead of this match hadn't managed so much as a draw in the league and were knocked out of the county cup after a 19-0 thrashing. So I hope there were well-earned celebrations the social club next to the Astor Crescent pitch following this win against Malmesbury Victoria's 'development' side (reserves in old money). It wasn't a pretty match to watch, not that Ludgershall will care about that. They took two first half chances, and were resilient enough to hold on to their lead despite Malmesbury getting a goal back in the second period. Ludgershall is a small town close to Wiltshire's border with Hampshire. The football club have an enclosed pitch which is effectively one-sided for spectators, with a rope barrier to keep fans off the playing area. There are dugouts and advertisi...

11am  23 November 2019 EFL Youth Alliance, South West Forest Green Rovers U18 1 Cheltenham Town U18 2 (att 52) Credit to Forest Green Rovers who were more helpful than some EFL clubs when I got in touch to check the details of this match. They not only confirmed the kick off time and venue, but said they'd be 'delighted' for me to attend and hoped I'd enjoy the game. It's an approach that makes a refreshing change from clubs who treat spectators with suspicion, concerned we might be undercover scouts from rivals plotting to poach their best young players. It wasn't the greatest of games, but I still enjoyed the morning's entertainment, which took place in the impressive surroundings of the Royal Agricultural University on the edge of Cirencester. Cheltenham Town's youngsters won the Gloucestershire derby thanks to a pair of second half goals that overturned a 1-0 half time deficit. Forest Green's goal was a penalty, and the outcome might...

1.30pm  16 November 2019 SJFA North Region, Super League Bridge of Don Thistle 6 Maud 1 (att 52) I stayed overnight in Scotland after the Friday night game in Dumfries, and so took the opportunity to head north to a ground that's just beyond the limits of a day trip from Manchester. Bridge of Don Thistle have had a varied history since joining junior football. As far as I can tell they're on their third different name and their third home venue. I was pleased when they moved into Aberdeen Sports Village as I thought I’d missed the chance to see a game there following the demise of previous tenants Lewis United. It's not a traditional junior football venue. The pitch is inside a running track and viewing is from a modern seated stand built onto the side of a busy sports centre. Aberdeen FC's Pittodrie Stadium is nearby and visible, and Aberdeen East End's ground is next door. The view from the stand is good, despite being separated from the action by a run...

7.45pm  15 November 2019 South of Scotland League Lochar Thistle 1 Bonnyton Thistle 1 (att 12) Dumfries-based Lochar Thistle joined the South of Scotland League a few years ago, but initially played on a pitch I'd already seen a game on. Now they've finally made a delayed move to a new venue, a 3G pitch at the North West Community Campus. Caged artificial pitches attached to a school-cum-sports-centre are rarely interesting grounds to visit, but a Friday evening game was a good opportunity to tick it off my list, leaving just Lochmaben to recomplete the league. All the weekend's South of Scotland League and cup fixtures were moved to Friday night, presumably to avoid clashing with Scotland's dead rubber Euro 2020 qualifying fixture in Cyprus. Ideal for me, but perhaps less so for Bonnyton who had to travel from Kilmarnock. They looked like heading back north with all three points, thanks to a goal about 10 minutes before half time. However, they were denied w...

9pm  10 November 2019 Portugal, Primeira Liga Boavista 0 Porto 1 (att 16,514) The final game of our Portuguese groundhop looked like being the best, and the Porto derby was the only fixture we'd sorted tickets for before arriving in the country. Whereas tickets for other Primeira Liga games had cost around 10eu each - slightly more at Paços Ferreira and we were given complimentary tickets at Aves - it cost us 55eu to get into the Estádio do Bessa. That didn't meant the stadium was full, or even close to it, but probably reflected Boavista's efforts to make sure fans of their cross-city rivals didn't infiltrate areas of the stadium where they shouldn't be. Neighbours in our 'executive seats' were mostly Porto fans, but anyone paying that much for a ticket is unlikely to cause trouble. It wasn't the best of games, settled by an excellent ninth minute strike for the visitors, but the atmosphere created by the massed ranks of Porto fans behind the...

3pm  10 November 2019 Portugal, Primeira Liga Paços de Ferreira 1 Tondela 0 (att 2,041) Paços de Ferreira is a largish town surprisingly poorly served by public transport, particularly on Sundays. To get to it from the morning's match at Penafiel involved a lengthy and hair-raising taxi ride. Having survived a journey of excess speed and reckless overtaking we relaxed with a beer or two in the busy club bar, before going in search of tickets and teamsheets, which were easy enough to obtain. Paços de Ferreira play in a surprisingly modern-looking stadium. I assume it's been upgraded in recent years, as it's been home to the club since 1973. There are large covered seated stands on three sides, but away fans have to settle for seats open to the elements. A well-taken first half goal was enough for Paços to win this, although it took a delayed VAR decision to rule out what looked like a Tondela equaliser. A red card reduced the home side to 10 men in the second ha...

11.15am  10 November 2019 Portugal, Segunda Liga Penafiel 1 Benfica B 1 (att 507) I thought Penafiel might be a sleepy place on a Sunday morning but we arrived to find it was buzzing. Not that the locals were excited by the visit of Benfica's reserve side. Instead it was some sort of wine festival that had people up and about, and arriving by the coachload. While they began their day of wine appreciation, we joined 500 or so more sober individuals at the local football stadium for a second division game. It's a classic old-school ground, with a large stand on one side and three shallower stands opposite. One end is undeveloped but behind the other goal is the away end, consisting of uncovered seats. Three Benfica fans stood there in the rain, man-marked throughout by a trio of police. Benfica's youngsters went ahead but Penafiel equalised in a lively first half. The second period was mediocre by comparison, and I imagine only the most committed armchair footbal...

8.30pm  9 November 2019 Portugal, Primeira Liga Famalicão 3 Moreirense 3 (att 3,912) Rather than risk tight public transport connections after the day's earlier game at Rio Ave we opted for a taxi to take us to Famalicão, where the hometown club has made a bright start following promotion to the top division. Whether they succeed in upsetting the established order in Portuguese football remains to be seen. They way they squandered a commanding lead against Moreirense suggests their title challenge will wane. They were much the better side in the first half, and when a 2-0 half-time lead became 3-0 after the break it looked a question of how many they'd score. Instead it was all about how many they conceded. Moreirense got one back soon after the home side's third, and not long later a second goal livened up the evening. The visitors equaliser was a penalty, awarded after the referee took time to review a video replay of a tackle in the box. He'...

3.30pm  9 November 2019 Portugal, Primeria Liga Rio Ave 1 Vitória Setúbal 0 (att 1,740) Vitória's goals for and against columns in the league table suggested this game might be a banker for a 0-0 draw. From the off the visitors set out to waste time and protect a potential away point. Luckily for us neutrals in the crowd Rio Ave were more lively, and the home side took a first half lead. The goal forced the visitors into a more positive approach, and ensured the game stayed interesting even though there were no more goals. Rio Ave should have doubled their lead, but a second half penalty was wasted. Rio Ave is a river, which lends its name to a football club based on the edge of Vila do Conde, a town north of Porto whose dominant features are a monastery and the remains of a historic aqueduct. The football stadium is less ancient. It's a two-sided venue but just one side was open for this fixture. There's a roof over the more expensive seats to the rear, while ...