Steve B the Groundhopper

1.30pm 23 March  2025 Scottish Amateur FA, Inter League Trophy, First Round Midlands AFA 0 Glasgow and District Sunday Football Championship 0, 5-6 on penalties (att 46) I only spotted this fixture on Saturday morning, and it provided a convenient stopping point on the long journey home from Inverness. Its not easy to find information about the Scottish Amateur FA's Inter League Trophy. It is open to both Saturday and Sunday leagues and, as far as I can tell, this was one of three first round matches played on the same day. The Midlands AFA is a Dundee-based Saturday competition. They hired an artificial pitch at the city's Regional Performance Centre to host their visitors from Glasgow. It's a standard 3G set up, with one touchline roped off to provide space for spectators. The predominant pitch markings are for rugby, which was a little confusing. Having gone nearly a year without seeing a goalless draw this was my second in just eight days. It was a good game though, and...

2pm 22 March  2025 North Caledonian League Inverness Athletic 0 St Duthus 2 (att 43) A weekend in the Highlands and another step towards completing the Scottish football pyramid. Three of the final six grounds I still need are even further north than Inverness Athletic. Athletic play at Ferry Brae Park in North Kessock, which is just beyond Inverness. It's a venue that's been used by various clubs in the past, including some in the local summer league, but has somehow eluded me until now. It's just a pitch, but the playing area is enclosed and makeshift benches are provided for coaches and substitutes. Inverness Athletic went into this match, their final home game of the season, third in the table but with no chance of catching the teams above them. St Duthus, from Tain, are firmly mid table, so there was little at stake. The visitors won it thanks to goals either side of half time. They'd looked the better side before going ahead after 40 minutes, and made it 2-0 just ...

7.30pm 19 March  2025 Gwent Premier League, Premier Division Abertillery Excelsiors 0 Pill 4 (att 65) An afternoon off work gave me a rare opportunity to tick off a floodlit ground that would normally be well out of range for a midweek match. Abertillery Excelsiors are one of a handful of teams at this level who have floodlights, and competitive midweek games are a relative rarity. From a groundhopping perspective it was worth the long trek. The lights aren't great, especially as one of the eight pylons was out of action, but they were more than adequate. Newport-based Pill will have had no complaints after running out comfortable winners. The score was harsh on the home side. Had they not missed an early penalty the outcome might have been different, but the shot was off target. Pill took advantage by going ahead with the first half's final kick. They doubled their lead early in the second period. A third goal, with 15 minutes left, put the outcome beyond doubt, and a late fou...

3pm 15 March  2025 West Cheshire League, Division Three Sutton Rangers 3 Rainhill Town reserves 2 (att 20) After a morning game in Oldham I had the rare pleasure of going home for lunch before venturing out again for my afternoon match. It took me, for the second time in recent weeks, to Ellesmere Port. Sutton Rangers play on a 3G pitch at Ellesmere Port Sports Village. It's not an interesting venue, just a typical facility with spectators accommodated along a little over half of one touchline. It was the final venue I needed to recomplete the West Cheshire League's three divisions though, and looked an attractive fixture with table-topping Sutton needing points as they close in on the league title. All the goals came in an excellent first half. Sutton scored twice in the first two minutes, both coming just before the official kick off time thanks to an early start. Rainhill quickly got a goal back and then equalised with barely a quarter-of-an-hour played. Sutton's third g...

10.15am 15 March  2025 Manchester Saturday Morning League, Division Two Championship Glodwick Dynamoes 0 Davyhulme Park 0 (att 7) My first goalless draw of the season was an unexpected one. Having seen more than 40 matches in the Manchester Saturday Morning League over the years I'm fairly sure this is the first time I've had a nil nil. Not that it matters of course, and unlike at least one groundhopper the absence of a goal doesn't mean I have to return before I can consider the ground 'ticked'. Glodwick did get the ball in the Davyhulme net twice, once in each half, but both were ruled out for offside. They looked the better team over 90 minutes, surprisingly so as they're lower in the table. It took an excellent performance by Davyhulme Park's goalkeeper to earn his side a point. I tried to visit Glodwick Dynamoes at their Snipe Clough home ground earlier in the season, but was caught out by a very early kick off. Thankfully this game began at the league...

2.30pm 9 March  2025 Launceston and District Cup, Quarter Final Pensilva 2 Holsworthy reserves 1 (att 84) The Launceston and District Cup is one of a diminishing number of local competitions for Saturday sides with fixtures played mostly on Sundays. From a groundhopping perspective they provide a good excuse for a weekend away. After staying overnight in Plymouth it was short journey to the village of Pensilva, near Liskeard, who play in division one east of the St Piran League.  Visitors Holsworthy reserves play in the top tier of the North Devon League, which is theoretically at the same level. On paper it looked likely to be a close game, and that's how it turned out. The decisive factor was a red card, early in the second half, for the away side. Before that Pensilva had scored the first half's only goal, coming not long after Holsworthy had what they thought was a goal belatedly ruled out for offside. The sending off was for bringing down a Pensilva player who was well-pl...

2.30pm 8 March  2025 St Piran League, Premier Division East St Dominick 2 Torpoint Athletic reserves 4 (att 34) After my morning game in Bristol I was relying on compliant traffic on the M5 and A38 to make it beyond Plymouth in time for my second match. I had back up options, but a trouble-free journey meant I reached Lovells Park in good time. St Dominick - or St Dominic, the k seems optional - is a small village not far from Saltash. The football ground is enclosed with a roped off pitch, a pair of dugouts, changing rooms, tea bar and a number of strategically-placed park benches. The pitch has a challenging slope and, being high up, the location is exposed. A strong wind didn't help what was often a scrappy game. The first half's one moment of quality put Torpoint ahead, but the home side deserved their equaliser just before half time. Moments later they hit the crossbar, but that was as close as they came to going in front. Torpoint regained the lead from a free kick, and a...