Steve B the Groundhopper

2pm 30 March  2024 Aberdeenshire Amateur League, Premier Division Kaimhill United 1 Westdyke 4 (att 20) Having completed all the Scottish Junior and Highland League grounds I turned my attention to the Aberdeenshire Amateur League for a game while in Scotland’s north east. First choice had been a cup semi final at Cove Thistle, but that fell victim to a waterlogged pitch. I feared there might be widespread postponements, but thankfully there were no problems at my plan B. Kaimhill United play, logically, in the Kaimhill area of Aberdeen. It’s basically a playing field behind an Asda supermarket, with two grass pitches and a caged 3G. The home side were promoted last season but are finding the league’s top division a tough challenge. They went into this game winless and pointless, having had the three points gained from draws deducted for some misdemeanour. They started this game well, and if anything it was a little against the run of play when Westdyke opened the scoring. A second...

2pm 29 March  2024 Cheshire League, Premier Division Eagle Sports 1 Garswood United 1 (att 130) I had thought the nearest I'd get to watching live football on Good Friday would be on TV, but that was before I spotted an unusual change of venue for Cheshire League Eagle Sports. With their own pitch apparently undergoing some work they've been allowed to move at least one game to an alternative 'home' ground, giving me an unexpected bonus game. The 3G pitch at Great Sankey Neighbourhood Hub, usually used just for Warrington League football, is typical of its type. It's floodlit and has a spectator area along part of one touchline. It's no doubt fine for most of the fixtures it hosts, but with a three figure crowd for this game it was a bit of squeeze, and a fair few spectators had to settle for watching through the fence. Eagle and Garswood are clearly two good sides, but with a strong and very cold wind blowing across the pitch, and occasional rain, the game stru...

2pm 23 March  2024 Peterborough and District League, Premier Division Stanground Sports 1 Netherton United 0 (att 38) Most Peterborough League matches I've been to in recent seasons have been part of organised groundhops, but latterly they seem to have been dropped from the schedule. It therefore made quite a refreshing change to turn up for a regular Saturday afternoon game and in front of a more typically-sized crowd. Stanground Sports have their sights on the league title. This win moved them just a point behind leaders Uppingham with three games in hand, although it's tight at the top with teams down to sixth place all in with a good chance. If winning games when playing poorly is the mark of potential champions then Stanground look a good bet to finish top. They made very hard work of seeing off a dogged Netherton. It was a scrappy game, won by an untidy goal about midway through the second half. While it wasn't a great spectacle, the outcome remaining in doubt until t...

10.30am 23 March  2024 Derby Church League Beeston Free Church 3 Trinity 2 (att 5) Apart from a cup final, back in 2018, this was my first experience of a regular fixture in the Derby Church League. It's another of the Saturday morning leagues that provide recreational football for clubs who, due to their religious affiliations, wouldn't play on a Sunday. Despite it's name, the single division Derby Church League also includes teams from Nottingham. Two of them, Beeston Free Church and Trinity, are based at Chilwell Olympia, making this very much a local derby. There was little between the sides. Trinity led twice in the first half, but on both occasions Beeston hit back. Having shared four goals in the opening period the second half was quieter. The game looked to the heading for a draw, until Beeston Free Church snatched a win with what was literally the last kick of the game. There wasn't even time to restart after the goal. Chilwell Olympia is an ageing sports centr...

2pm 16 March  2024 Perthshire Amateur League, Division Two Stanley 7 FC Romania 2 (att 30) My options for a second game after Luncarty were already limited even before weather-related postponements and venue changes. Luckily though my first choice match survived. Stanley is just a five-minute drive from Luncarty. The football team uses a grass pitch that doubles as the playing field of the village primary school. The surface was heavy but playable. The home side had an impressive 11 wins and a draw from their dozen league games prior to taking on mid-table FC Romania. The eventual outcome was, as expected, a resounding Stanley win, but they didn't have it all their own way. In the first half Romania twice had the lead, but on both occasions Stanley hit back to equalise. It took until close to half time before the home side finally edged in front. There still appeared little between the sides early in the second half until a penalty, harshly awarded for handball, allowed Stanley to ...

11.15am 16 March  2024 East of Scotland League, Premier Division Luncarty 5 Crossgates Primrose 3 (att 386) Having stayed in Cumbernauld on Friday night I had an easy journey to reach Luncarty, a few miles north of Perth, in time for the organised groundhop's Saturday morning fixture. Luncarty was the only one of the hop's six matches on a ground I needed. Having driven past Brownlands Park several times previously it was good to finally see a game there. Perimeter fencing along the road side makes the venue more enclosed than it was the last time I saw it. It's a three-sided ground, with the far end out of bounds for spectators. All the facilities are behind the goal at the near end. The clubhouse, changing rooms, a food and drink kiosk and a small covered standing area are all on a plateau above the pitch. Morning hop games, in front of larger than normal crowds, can be subdued affairs. This was anything but, with the tone set early on by Crossgates taking a second minute...

7pm 15 March  2024 Saturday Morning Amateur League, Division 1B Greengairs 1 Muirend 3 (att 10) Saturday morning football on a Friday night, which suited me as I was heading north ahead of a Saturday morning 'groundhop' game near Perth and wanted a match on the way. Greengairs is a village in Lanarkshire, between Airdrie and Cumbernauld. They headed to the latter's Greenfaulds High School to stage this fixture. It's a typical 3G pitch, floodlit and enclosed by a high fence. Both teams have been struggling this season and it showed. For much of the 90 minutes the play was frantic, with a lack of composure when chances, or half-chances, came. There was little between the sides, but Greengairs broke the deadlock in the final minute of the first half. The second period ultimately belonged to the visitors, but the game didn't swing into their favour until the closing stages. They equalised after 58 minutes, then had to withstand pressure as the final whistle approached. ...

1.30pm 9 March  2024 Manchester League, Premier Division Govan and University of Manchester 0 Royton Town 1 (att 17) I can be tricky keeping track of which grounds I've been to and when and where I might need to return for a new pitch. I thought I'd visited Govan's base until I read a fellow hopper's report of a match there before Christmas. Govan, who played as Govan Athletic before joining forces with the students, play on an artificial pitch at the university's Armitage sports centre. Having seen a university game there in 2017  I assumed it'd be the same pitch, but it turns out it's not. Govan and University of Manchester play their Manchester League games on 'pitch A', which is close to the entrance and at the opposite end of the complex from where I saw my previous match. It's not a bad venue for a 3G. There's a spectator area the full length of one side, with nothing in the way to restrict the view. If you're prepared to watch thro...