Steve B the Groundhopper

2pm  27 November 2021 Herefordshire County League, Premier Division Hartpury University 2 Ewyas Harold 0 (att 16) I didn't travel far for my second match of the day, although with a hour or so to spare between games I had time to head into Gloucester for food. When I returned players from Hartpury and Ewyas Harold were warming up on 'grass pitch one'. It felt more exposed to the cold wind than the artificial pitch I'd seen the earlier game on, and Ewyas Harold were in for a testing first half after they lost the coin toss and had to play into the stiff breeze. It was always likely to be a tough afternoon for them anyway, as Hartpury had won all six of their previous league matches. The home side dominated the opening stages, but were unable to get past Harold's hard-working defence and impressive keeper. At the other end Ewyas Harold created occasional half-chances, making it a tight but entertaining game. Hartpury eventually went ahead with an unstoppable shot afte...

11am  27 November 2021 EFL Youth Alliance, South West Forest Green Rovers U18 2 Oxford United U18 1 (att 27) My first Youth Alliance match since before the first wave of Covid, and it was a return to a team I watched in the aborted 2019/20 season. Back then Forest Green played youth matches at the Royal Agricultural University in Cirencester, but they've since relocated to the campus of Hartpury University, a few miles outside Gloucester. It has a range of sports facilities and pitches. Rugby appears the dominant sport, but football is well catered for. This game was on a caged artificial pitch, which has a spectator area on one side. Forest Green went into this winless and bottom of the table, but two early goals, the second a penalty, gave them an advantage they spent the rest of the match defending. They had a scare when a second half penalty halved their lead, but despite plenty of pressure Oxford United were unable to find an equaliser.

7.30pm  24 November 2021 North Wales Coast West League, Premier Division Menai Bridge Tigers 3 Gwalchmai 1 (att 54) It's a shame when a club has to move away from its traditional home in order to find a venue that meets ground grading requirements, but at least Menai Bridge Tigers haven't gone far. They have to cross the Menai Strait for home matches now, but their new ground couldn't be much closer to the bridge that gives the club, and the town, its name. The approach road to Treborth Playing Fields is virtually off the bridge itself. The facility is run by Bangor University, and I last visited in August 2019 to see a game on the artificial pitch . Menai Bridge use the grass pitch which is beyond the 3G. It's fairly basic, but floodlights, dugouts and a fence enclosing the playing area make it a proper football venue. There's some hard standing for spectators, but the best view of the match is from the top of a grass bank that runs along one side. This was an ente...

2pm  21 November 2021 Bill Slee Cup, First Round Hemyock 5 Witheridge 0 (att 29) East Devon cups used to be a regular source of Sunday fixtures, but in recent years most matches have been on Saturdays. However, a shortage of referees has meant a return to Sunday scheduling this season. I'm not certain of the criteria for getting a place in the Bill Slee Cup, but it seems to be for teams below the top levels of the Devon and Exeter League. This tie pitted fourth tier Hemyock against fifth tier Witheridge. It went to form, and Hemyock had a comfortable passage into the second round. The home side netted twice in the first half and added three more, including a penalty, in the second. There was some decent football considering the levels the two sides play at, and Hemyock's Longmead Park ground is pretty good as well. A sign on the approach road advertises forthcoming fixtures. Once there, there's a car park and pavilion, with the main pitch on the far side of the playing fiel...

1.30pm  20 November 2021 Wakefield and District FA, Cyril Craven Challenge Cup, Third Round Last Orders 1 Stanley United 3 (att 12) As well as a county-wide FA, West Yorkshire also has district football associations, who each run cup competitions which can throw up interesting ties between teams from different leagues. It's hard to be sure how many divisions actually separate Wakefield League Premier Division Last Orders from Yorkshire Amateur League Supreme Division Stanley United, but there's no doubt that a home win would have been a major upset. Not that you'd have thought that during a first half where Last Orders looked much the better team. If statistics for possession, tackles won and attempts on goal had been available at half time they'd all have been in the home side's favour. Of course the only stats that really matter are goals, and at half time it was one each. Stanley seized on a loose ball in the six yard box to edge in front midway through the half,...

10.30am  20 November 2021 Yorkshire Christian League, Premier Division Mosaic 0 St John's Bowling Eagles 0 (att 14) It's a three way tussle at the top of the Yorkshire Christian League, and leaders Mosaic at home to third place St John's Bowling Eagles looked an enticing game on paper. Unfortunately on a tricky pitch and in windy weather it didn't quite live up to the billing. There was no lack of effort, and it was rarely dull, but neither team could find the net. The visitors always looked more likely to break the deadlock. They will particularly rue missed chances in the closing moments, when more than once they looked odds on to score. A point apiece leaves the title race open, and benefits Armley Christ Church, who began the day in second place. Mosaic play home games at Bequilts Recreation Ground, in the upmarket Leeds suburb of Adel. On a Saturday morning it was a busy place, with lots of children's matches on the many pitches.

2pm  13 November 2021 West of Scotland League, Division Four Kilsyth Athletic 0 Glenvale 1 (att 45) Kilsyth Athletic, along with Finnart, have been setting the pace in division four of the West of Scotland League. But this result means mid-table Glenvale have won away to both in successive matches. The home side were looking to bounce back after dropping two points against lowly Campbeltown last week, but a resilient Glenvale side were in no mood to give them an easy afternoon. There was little between the sides, and in truth little threat of a goal, in a largely forgettable first half. Glenvale's second half goal, which proved decisive, was the game's first moment of true quality. Kilsyth's efforts to get back level grew more determined, and more desperate, as the match went on. By the closing minutes Glenvale were only just hanging on, and it took fine goalkeeping and last-ditch defending to keep the lead intact. Kilsyth Athletic play on an enclosed and floodlit artificia...

10am  13 November 2021 Strathclyde Saturday Morning League, Championship A Blairmore Athletic 2 Gleniffer Thistle 2 (att 15) Having stayed in Ayrshire after Friday night's game at Kilwinning I had the rare pleasure of being able to get to a Strathclyde Saturday Morning League match without having to be up at dawn. I picked this fixture, in one of the league's trio of regionalised second tier divisions, largely because Greenock is a more challenging destination than most for a 10am start from Manchester. Blairmore play at the town's Notre Dame High School, on one of two parallel 3G pitches. This match was played on the furthest of the pair, while a boys' game took place on the other. It's still early days in terms of league tables, but Blairmore went into this unbeaten, having dropped points in drawn games, while Gleniffer were top. A draw was a fair outcome after 90 minutes of very competitive football. The home side were fortunate to get an early penalty which put ...