Steve B the Groundhopper

12noon 7 February  2026 Premier League Two Reading U21 3 Stoke City U21 0 (att 50) Reading's Bearwood Park training ground has been a challenge to tick off. Since it opened, about six years ago, regular under 18 matches there have been behind closed doors. I'd thought the same applied when it occasionally hosted under 21 games, but I spotted last month that tickets were apparently available when Reading played Leeds at Bearwood. Sure enough, when I phoned during the week, the Reading ticket office was happy to sell me a ticket for a fiver. You'd never know they were available from the club's website or social media though, with the fixture barely given a mention. I was told a maximum of 50 tickets are available for under 21 fixtures at Bearwood, and they come with rules designed to deter all but the most determined. There's no on-site parking, so you need to find a spot in the neighbouring village of Sindlesham and walk, and you have to time your arrival for 30 minu...

3pm 31 January  2026 Western League, Division One Avonmouth 2 Welton Rovers 1 (att 107) I'm still unsure whether I'll finally complete all the grounds in the FA's national league system this season, but I reduced the tally remaining to just four after a visit to Western League side Avonmouth. The club have had a rapid rise in recent years, moving up from local Bristol football, via just a single season in the Gloucestershire County League, to 'step six' of the non-league pyramid. This is their second season in the Western League, and a win against strugglers Welton Rovers keeps them in the battle for another promotion, into the premier division. It was a hard-fought win on a heavy pitch, and one that involved overturning a first half deficit. Welton looked better than expected for a team bottom of the table, although their opening goal, a penalty, was against the run of play. Another spot kick, just three minutes into the second half, levelled the score. Avonmouth...

10.30am 31 January  2026 West Midlands Christian League Brierley Hill AOG 0 Excel NIS 3 (att 10) With nine wins from nine league games, ahead of this, you'd think reigning champions Excel NIS would be a shoo-in in retain their title. But rivals Charlemont Star also have a 100 per cent record, having played twice more. Both sides kept their perfect records intact, although Excel made harder work of winning at Brierley Hill than should have been necessary. They almost took the lead in the opening moments, but a failure to take the chance set the tone for the first half when they often looked dangerous, but were unable to apply the finish. The home side were unlucky not to go in front themselves, when a shot that looked goal-bound came back off the inside of the post. The opening half ended goalless, but Excel quickly took control after the break. They scored six minutes after the restart, then added a second goal with an hour played. Excel's final goal was on 78 minutes. The host...

2pm 24 January  2026 West of Scotland League, Division Four Giffnock Soccer Centre 1 Irvine Victoria 0 (att 57) It's almost two years since I last went to a Giffnock home game. My return was because in that time they've moved their first team games to a new home ground. GSC Auldhouse isn't far from Eastwood Park, where they played up to the end of last season. That was always a temporary venue, used while they brought the facilities at Auldhouse up to scratch. They've done a good job. There's a pair of floodlit 3G pitches, each with a spectator area running the full length of one side, and a number of grass pitches. A centrally-located clubhouse includes a snack bar as well as changing rooms. There's also ample car parking, which was good because, as well as my West of Scotland League fixture - played on 'pitch one' - Auldhouse was very busy with youth matches. Two years ago I was treated to a 10-goal thriller between Giffnock and East Kilbride Thistle ....

11.15am 24 January  2026 Saturday Morning Amateur League, Division One Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers 8 Dean Park 0 (att 13) It took a Google search to discover why an amateur team based in Lanarkshire shares two-thirds of its name with a club hundreds of miles away in south east England. Apparently one of the co-founders spoke to a youth officer at the Buckinghamshire club in the mid 1990s, and at a time when the 'world wide web' was becoming a thing they decided the initials, WWW, was a neat fit. The Wishaw side has grown into a major community-based amateur set up, with many youth teams as well as it's senior side. Until recently Wishaw Wycombe Wanderers had a Saturday afternoon team. Amateur Saturday afternoon football is in serious decline in Scotland, while morning leagues are expanding, and Wishaw have joined the ranks. They're in the third of the Saturday Morning AFA's four divisions, but appear too good for that division. This easy win maintained their 100 per ce...

2pm 17 January  2026 Gloucestershire County League Ruardean Hill Rangers 1 Hanham Athletic 4 (att 34) I had various options for an afternoon game, but on a day of many postponements I settled on this once the club confirmed, via social media, that their grass pitch was playable. The Gloucestershire County League is one of the better competitions to have 'regional feeder league' status from the FA, and clubs based in the Forest of Dean are always interesting to visit. Ruardean Hill is apparently the highest point in the forest, and there are good views from the the village recreation ground. It caters for football and cricket, and the adjacent Ruardean Hill Sports Club provides changing rooms and clubhouse facilities. The sloping football pitch is beyond the cricket square. It's railed off, and on the far side a pair of dugouts are positioned either side of a small covered area for spectators. A few advertising boards complete a neat football ground. This was a crucial fixtu...