Steve B the Groundhopper

6.15 pm 29 March 2023 Wigan and District Amateur League, Division Two East Leigh Juniors 2 Sutton Junction reserves 4 (att 25) With all due respect to the third tier of the Wigan League, this is the sort of fixture that's unlikely to tempt me on a Saturday afternoon. But it's ideal on a midweek evening when the clocks have gone forward an hour. It was an entertaining game. Sutton Junction were ahead early, but the evening's best goal was East Leigh's equaliser not long later. The away side were the better team, and were back in front by half time. They took control of the match, and the points, in the second period. Their lead was extended to 4-1 before East Leigh got some consolation with the final goal a few minutes before the end. East Leigh Juniors, whose main focus is youth football, have a home ground in Lowton. It's a playing field with changing rooms and enough space for several pitches.

7.45 pm 28 March 2023 West Midlands Regional League, Division One Bustleholme 2 Wrens Nest 1 (att 30) The University of Wolverhampton's Walsall site has had something of a makeover since I visited for a BUCS game on a Wednesday afternoon back in 2009.  The grass pitch used then still exists, but is no longer in use. A 3G pitch has been added inside what remains of the nearby athletics track, giving me the opportunity to return for a groundhopping 'tick'. Bustleholme made it their home at the start of this season, but opportunities to visit for midweek games under the floodlights have so far been rare. It's a one-sided ground for spectators, but plus points are that the dugouts are sensibly positioned on the opposite side, and there's plenty of space for a decent view of the action. Both teams are upper mid-table and went into this fixture on the same number of points. Bustleholme pulled three points clear after a deserved but hard-fought win. It was a decent game. T...

2.30 pm 25 March 2023 SJFA East Region, Midlands League Lochee Harp 1 Downfield 6 (att 65) I saw Lochee Harp at Beechwood Park in 2016 , tempted to visit then as the club was planning to move to a new ground. That move has since happened, and Harp now play a few yards away at New Beechwood Park. Like many new venues it has an artificial surface, and spectators can only access one side and one end of the ground. But despite that it's impressive, and a s tep up from their decaying former home. New Beechwood Park's best feature is the steep grass banking which provides a good elevated view of the action. At pitch level there is a small covered enclosure, but the view from there is partly obscured by the dugouts. Harp fans might have been happy with a restricted view of game in which they were very much second best. Downfield are on a good run and in contention for the title. They raced into a three goal lead before Harp pulled one back. A fourth away goal before half time snuffed ...

10.30a m 25 March 2023 Dundee Saturday Morning League, Division One Dundee Social 2 Dundee University Medics 2 (att 14) It's been a few years since I last watched football in Dundee's Saturday morning league. Such was the Friday night rain in nearby Perth I had doubts whether games would be on, but surprisingly every fixture survived. I headed to Fairmuir Park, which was hosting a trio of matches in division one, the second of the league's three tiers. Dundee Social are active on Twitter, and had promoted their game on social media. They were up against DUMS, as the student team are usually known, on pitch number three. It was an entertaining game. The 'home' side (all games are in effect at neutral venues) went ahead with a great goal in the first minute. DUMS levelled shortly before half time when a free kick, which may have been intended as a cross, beat the Social keeper. The medical students went in front after the break but Social equalised. A draw was a fair ...

7.30 pm 24 March 2023 SJFA East Region, Midlands League Letham 4 Blairgowrie 1 (att 60) This is Perth-based Letham’s first season in the Scottish football pyramid, after making the leap from the Perthshire Amateur League. Their decent debut continued with three points against Blairgowrie. A 15th minute goal put them in front. There was little between the sides as half time approached, before two quick goals just before the break extended Letham’s advantage. Blairgowrie started the second period on the front foot and quickly pulled a goal back. They looked capable of getting a second and making it uncomfortable for the hosts, but the goal never came. Five minutes from the end a fourth Letham strike settled the outcome. Letham’s home ground, Seven Acres, has an artificial surface. It was just as well it did, as very heavy rain throughout the first half might have cut short a game on grass. It’s not bad as such venues go. There’s a spacious spectator area on one side, while the dugouts an...

2 pm 24 March 2023 Club Academy Scotland, Performance League Dunfermline Athletic U18 1 Ayr United U18 0 (att 49) I was already planning to head to Scotland for a Friday evening game in Perth when I spotted this fixture, which fitted in well on the journey north. There appears to be three tiers of under 18 football for SPFL clubs, all under the Club Academy Scotland banner. Top sides compete in the Elite League, Dunfermline and Ayr are among those in the second level Performance League, while below that is the Advanced League. Sadly it wasn’t the most exciting of games. The only goal was a well-taken volley from the edge of the penalty area, after a corner, about 10 minutes before half time. Ayr battled in search of an equaliser but rarely looked like getting it. The visiting keeper was the busier of the two. The venue was the Michael Woods Sports and Leisure Centre in Glenrothes, a few miles from Dunfermline. It’s a standard 3G ground, with a spectator area running the length of one s...

3 pm 18 March 2023 Herts Senior County League, Division One Waltham Cross 4 Evergreen 1 (att 8) I was in the south east for the weekend, but plans to see a game on grass were abandoned when potential fixtures began being postponed on Saturday morning. Waltham Cross play on 3G pitch that’s next to the main stadium at Cheshunt FC. A spectator area runs about three-quarters of the length of one side, with dugouts opposite. I rarely see football below the top division of Hertfordshire’s county league, but despite the low level this was a decent game between two sides who played some good football. Waltham Cross particularly impressed. They took the lead in the opening minutes, before defensive errors gave Evergreen chances. They took one to level the score before half time. The second period was dominated by the home side. They scored three times, the goals coming close together, and could easily have added more.

7.45 pm 15 March 2023 United Counties League, Division One Hucknall Town 2 Blackstones 1 (att 170) It feels like years since the first talk of a new ground for Hucknall Town. The move finally happened this season, but even then the wait was extended, after what would have been the opening fixture, against Blackstones in December, was postponed. The RM Stadium eventually staged its first game in January, while the visit of Stamford-based Blackstones was re-arranged for a Wednesday night in March. New floodlit grounds within reach after work are few and far between these days, so I wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity for a midweek match to recomplete the United Counties League. Hucknall's new home, close to their old one, is quite good for a new-build. A main stand runs the full length of the side nearest the entrance, with two seated areas and covered standing. There's a large covered area at one end, while the rest of the ground is open flat standing, with plenty of room fo...