Game 9: Calne Town 1.0 Downton (FA Cup) 19.08.09

Got a message from Andy late this afternoon wondering if I wanted to join him in a trip to the FA Cup replay at Calne this evening. After checking that Amy had her keys so there wasn't a repeat of events from when I went to Totton & Eling last season, we headed up across Salisbury Plain to Calne.


Andy had been to the ground before but wasn't entirely sure which road to follow so after a couple of attempts we finally spotted the floodlights. As we drove up to the car park, the driver of the car in front snagged the last programme. At the suggestion of the gatekeeper, I wandered down to the pedestrian entrance and my luck was in - they had 1 programme left!


After indulging in a couple of choccy bars between us and taking some photos of the ground, we found a spot just in front of the tea bar and waited for the teams to come out. Downton were playing in yellow shirts and blue shorts which seemed appropriate given that Matt Holmes was playing for them this evening - his father Nick had worn the same colour kit as a slightly larger venue back in 1976! Declan McGregor, another former Salisbury player, was also in the Downton line up.


The first game had finished 1.1 on Saturday and Paul had been discouraged by the play so much that he decided that having a curry at home was a better option. Andy and I had assumed that he would be at the ground so we could surprise him - instead we had to rely on some text message updates to let him know where we were.


The first few minutes saw some of the best chances of the game. Calne wasted no time in attacking the Downton goal from the kick off and a cross to the far post led to a late header going just wide. Downton had a good opportunity to score with a rising shot after 5 minutes but the Calne keeper got up quickly to tip the ball over the bar. This created the first of four corners in a row for the visitors which culminated in a lob over the keeper coming back down off the crossbar.


In the 9th minute Calne took the lead. The ball was played to the edge of the area and although there were plenty of yellow shirts back defending, they hadn't picked up on the Calne player who received the ball. He ran into the open space in the penalty area in front of him and hit a shot to the right past the dive of the keeper. An easy opportunity thanks to the lack of defensive cover, something the keeper was quickly on his feet to remind his team mates of!


In the 15th minute Calne came close to adding a second goal. A free kick was played to the left hand side of the box and the right back picked up the ball. He ran into the box but was tackled and Downton managed to clear the ball out. A Calne player then switched the ball across to the right flank and one of his team mates picked up the pass and drove forward with the ball. He spotted an unmarked player in the box and played a pacy high throughball which was headed across the goalmouth but ended up just wide of the left post.


Downton were quick to react and created their best chance of the night a couple of minutes later. The ball was played into the penalty area and McGregor clipped a shot past the keeper that came back off the post. He didn't connect properly with the ball and if he had done it probably would have been the equaliser.


The game settled down after that and chances were limited. Calne showed a bit of Brazilian magic just before halftime. A long ball was played through on the left wing and instead of collecting the pass the Calne player opened up the book of Pele, let the ball go past him and dummied the defender into going the wrong way before running around him and picking up the ball. He ran into the box and put a cross in along the 6 yard line to a team mate to shoot. The Downton keeper had kept himself well positioned in the centre of the box and managed to get down to save the low shot. A superb move that really did deserve a goal at the end of it.


We wandered round back to the car at halftime to pick up our jackets as it was starting to get a bit cold now that the sun had gone down. To save us a bit of time at the end we watched the second half from the opposite end of the ground. Downton had the upperhand in terms of possession and chances but were unable to make that count in the final third. When they did get into good positions, the final ball was often not good enough to get past the defense.


There was almost some controversy in the 70th minute. Downton had won a corner and one of their defenders had stretched his legs and gone up to try and get a header in. As the ball was cleared out to the halfway line, the defender stayed down on the ground and it appeared that he had cramp as the keeper was quickly in to try and help him by supporting his leg in the air. With all the players in the way, this turn of events wasn't obvious to Matt Holmes who took the ball forward and fired in a long shot at what he thought was an unguarded part of the goal. The shot flew just past the post and wide - if it had gone in it would have counted as the referee had not blown his whistle to stop play and allow the physio on.


Downton continued on the offensive thoughout the rest of the game and even went to a 4-2-4 formation to try and stretch the game in the last 10 minutes. Despite the vocal support to our left and the number of good chances they created, they weren't able to beat the assistant referee's flag on some occasions or the Calne keeper on others so the £750 prize for the winners went to the home team.

Game 8: Bemerton Heath Harlequins 3.1 Christchurch (WESS PREM) 18.08.09

Drove over to Andy’s on another sunny Tuesday night to see if Bemerton could keep up their 100% start to the season. Whilst Bemerton were comprehensively beating Winchester away on Saturday, visitors Christchurch were knocked out of the FA Cup by Ringwood who are a division below these teams.


When we arrived at the ground was surprised to see that players were allowed to warm up on the main pitch rather than using the outside pitch. Perhaps this will change later in the season when the award-winning groundsmen have to keep the pitch looking good in all conditions. Bemerton have changed their kit from the traditional Harlequin diamond pattern to a black and white quarters shirt similar to the design used by Bristol Rovers.

Bemerton started well and almost took the lead after 4 minutes when a mishit cross that took the ball towards goal managed to lob the keeper and hit the bar before skimming over the nets for a goal kick. Ten minutes later and it was 1.0. Bemerton broke up a Christchurch attack in midfield with a sliding tackle, pushed forward and crossed into the box where a Bemerton player was unmarked. He carefully lined up his shot and slotted the ball low past the keeper.


On 25 minutes it was 2.0 following a similar pattern as the first goal. This time the Bemerton player with the ball ran through the middle of the pitch and played a superb through ball. The ball was picked up by a striker who played a good dummy that put the keeper off his stride. It committed the keeper to going to his right while opening up the goal to his left. The ball was then passed into that unguarded side of the net to give the home team a deserved goal.

Christchurch had played some nice approach play but hadn’t really troubled the Bemerton keeper who really commanded his box well and was winning any high balls played in. They were unlucky not to have been awarded a penalty on the half hour as a player ran into the box and fell under the challenge of a defender. From our angle on the side it looked like his ankle had been clipped to bring him down but the referee had a different view and decided to wave play on. A couple of minutes later and the Bemerton keeper was troubled by a shot but it didn’t cause too much of a concern as it was hit straight at him from distance.


Bemerton added a third goal in the 36th minute. As with the earlier goals, the ball was played into the box and then hit low into the goal. On this occasion the striker was marked and received the ball to feet with his back to the goal. He then span to his left, beat his marker to make space for a cross shot past the keeper. Christchurch should have scored from the restart. The ball was held up on the left hand side and then played into the path of a Christchurch player who had run into the box unmarked. He was leaning back as he hit the shot and it was no surprise to see the ball end up outside the ground. If he had kept it down and on target it would have been unstoppable.


The first period of the second half saw a several substitutions as Christchurch tried to find a way to get through the Bemerton defence. On the odd occasion that they managed to find some space in front of goal, shots were fired up into the trees behind. They did manage to pull a goal back from a corner on 55 minutes. The ball was played short to a team mate standing close to the corner flag and he put an angled cross into the box to keep it away from the keeper. The pass found a teammate in space in the box and he placed a strong header into the top left of the net.


Two minutes later and Bemerton missed a great opportunity to regain a three goal lead. The ball was played to the left to beat the line of Christchurch defenders and two Bemerton players headed towards the penalty area. The player with the ball brought it forward with pace and should have squared it across goal to his unmarked team mate. He didn’t attempt the pass and tried to side step the ball around the keeper, who had rushed out from the goalmouth. This side step failed and the keeper managed to smother the ball to the frustration of the unmarked player.


In the last ten minutes Christchurch had wave after wave of attacks repelled by the Bemerton defence as they tried to pull back another goal. They were unlucky not to score in the 87th minute when a shot on target from a corner looked to have been blocked near the goal line by a Bemerton hand. It wasn’t given and the away bench was up in arms over the decision. The goalkeeper near us continued to make angry comments about the decisions that his team weren’t getting from the officials until the final whistle.

When I got home I checked the FA website to see the other scores. While Poole and Bournemouth had both won and had the same goal difference as the Harlequins, the Wiltshire side were top of the table thanks to having scored one goal more.

Game 7: Raynes Park Vale 2.2 Farnham Town (FA Cup) 15.08.09

My original plan for the Extra Preliminary Round of the FA Cup was to head down to Dawlish but after discovering that South West Trains were offering a £10 go anywhere on our network deal, I decided to head to a game in the London area. I chose Raynes Park Vale's game against Farnham as I haven't been to a Combined Counties League game and this tie had a team from both divisions.


I arrived at the ground at 2 after spotting some familiar signs from my Google Maps search earlier in the day. While the teams were warming up inside, the gate wasn't open for spectators so I wandered down to the neighbouring playing fields where five local matches were taking place. It looked like Chelsea v Inter Milan on one pitch, Tottenham v Man City on another but the Poland v Holland game on the pitch nearest me actually had a team from Battersea.


At 2.45 I decided to wander up the road again and found that spectators were now allowed into the ground. I paid £6 to get in and £1 for a programme - even including the train fare this was less than I would have paid for the Conference Premier game at Salisbury today. The ground itself was a bit dilapidated, surrounded by some posts and netting that have seen better days. Some of the pitchside barriers had crumpled and were held together in places by plastic tags. The pitch itself had a distinct slope down from the top end by the main stand towards the dugouts. A world away from the identikit bowl stadiums beloved by the professional clubs but ideal for a potential FA Cup giant killing.


After the traditional handshakes, the two teams made their way to their respective ends. Consulting the programme, I discovered that neither team were wearing the kit colours described on the back page. I had a minor concern that I may end up writing a report that confused the two teams but fortunately the motivational words being bellowed out by the nearby players identified the home team were playing in blue and the away team in black and white stripes.


Raynes Park had the first clear chance of the game after 5 minutes. The ball was played into the box from a throw and headed across from the right side of the penalty area. A Raynes Park player with his back to goal controlled the ball, then swivelled round and put a shot narrowly over the crossbar although the keeper had the goalmouth covered.


After that Farnham took control of the game. In the 12th minute a well placed throughball allowed one of their strikers to beat the Raynes Park offside trap and run through the centre of the defence. Instead of bringing the ball under control he allowed it to bounce and hit his shot directly at the keeper who saved comfortably.


Farnham continued to press and won a couple of corners a couple of minutes later. The first one was cleared behind and from the second, the visitors took the lead. The ball was floated to the near post and looked to be covered by a defender. He missed the opportunity to clear the ball by mistiming his header and a Farnham head planted the ball to the right of the keeper. The pace of the header was too strong for the Raynes Park keeper to reach and the ball ended up in the back of the net.


Farnham weren't going to rest on their laurels and defend the lead. In the 15th minute they had a great chance to increase the lead with another through ball beating the offside. This time the unmarked striker tried to chip the keeper with an early shot but the ball went over the bar. If he had been more composed and taken the ball down he would have had a better chance to score.




In the 21st minute they came even closer to extending their lead. The ball was played through a scrum of players to the right side of the area and found a Farnham player in space. He looked to shoot but appeared to spin the shot and while it beat the keeper, it hit the right hand post. The ball bounced along the line behind the keeper and bounced out to another Farnham player. Although the goal was empty he managed to mishit his shot as well and the ball ended up spinning up in the air and over the bar.


The pressure seemed unrelenting as Raynes Park were not keeping possession of the ball when they won it. In the 24th minute a Farnham player intercepted the ball and ran into the box. He was chased down by a couple of Raynes Park players and stumbled to the ground when they challenged him for the ball. The referee gave a penalty to the annoyance of the home team. After the appeals had been waved away, the Farnham player struck the penalty low to the keeper's right but fairly central. The keeper guessed correctly where the ball would end up and pushed it wide for a corner.


This lifted Raynes Park and they managed to get the ball to the other end after half an hour. After a couple of attempts, the ball ended up in the penalty area and a low header ended up just wide of the post although again the Farnham keeper had the goalmouth covered. From the resulting corner a header again headed towards goal and this time the keeper didn't have it covered. Fortunately for the visitors they had put a man on each post and one of the covering defenders stepped across to clear the ball off the line.




Farnham won a second penalty on 40 minutes when one of their players was brought down by a mistimed kick trying to clear a highball in the area. This time the penalty was taken low to the keeper's left and although he managed to get a slight touch on the ball, it wasn't enough to deflect it wide and the visitors were 2.0 up at the interval.


The Raynes Park manager made three substitutions at half time to try and save the game. From the start of the half the changes looked to be effective as the team started to play with more conviction, keeping possession and playing simple but effective passes to try and open up the Farnham defence.


The game turned on a Farnham corner in the 64th minute. The ball was played in to the box and shielded well from the defence. A shot was teed up but it was just cleared off the line by a defender. His ball out allowed Raynes Park to break away and this attack culminated in a striker hitting a shot from the edge of the box quickly before the defence could close him down. This seemed to take the Farnham keeper by surprise and he could only stick out his left hand to try and deflect the ball. His wrist wasn't strong enough to achieve this and the change of angle didn't prevent the home team from pulling a goal back to the delight of the spectators in the main stand.


Two minutes later and the sides were level.A free kick was awarded for a foul close to the touchline on the right side. The ball was hit high over the keeper who was unable to get a hand to it and when it dropped down by the far post, a Raynes Park player headed the ball back across the goal and in.


The momentum was now with the home team and they almost took the lead for the first time on 82 minutes. The rightback advanced down the wing and put a great low ball into the box. The keeper couldn't get to it in time but the onrushing striker's slide was just too late to make contact with the ball and prod it into the open net. Raynes Park continued to take the play to Farnham but weren't able to deliver any real end product from their approach play and the game ended as a draw.

Game 6: Laverstock & Ford 0.1 Poole Town (WESS PREM) 11.08.09

With a wealth of local football this evening (Salisbury, Bemerton and Laverstock all at home), I decided on this fixture based on the opposition. Poole won the Wessex League last season only to be denied promotion by ground grading criteria. With the majority of their squad remaining at the club and some useful looking additions, I thought it would be good to see how they would fare against an improving Laverstock team.


I arrived at the ground to find the sun up and not a cloud in the sky. There were about 50 people already at the ground and from a quick headcount during the game I estimated a crowd of 120. There was a sizeable contingent from Poole with their Dolphins flags behind the goal.


The first twenty minutes of the game were fairly scrappy and neither team really settled on the ball well. Poole had a shot from close range over the bar while Laverstock managed a couple of runs at the Poole defence but the shots were hit straight at the Poole keeper. The experience of the Poole team showed - Taffy Richardson earning an opponent a yellow card by hitting a freekick straight into a Laverstock player who was walking away from the ball.


Poole's main threat was their prized striker Charlie Austin and he created the first clear cut chance after 25 minutes. He took the ball down the right wing, beat his man and then went one on one with the Laverstock keeper. The keeper delayed his dive and got the angles right as Austin's shot curled round him but ended up to the right of the far post.


Poole continued to apply pressure and won a freekick on 30 minutes. The ball was played deep into the Laverstock box to an unmarked player but his header came back off the bar from six yards out. Austin's strike partner Russell Cook also had an opportunity to beat the keeper but the Laverstock keeper was quickly out to the edge of the box to win the ball.


Laverstock's new signings from the Eastleigh academy then showed what they could do. A long shot was tipped over the post following a good pacey run down the wing. However the corner was taken too long and was won back by Simon Browne for Poole. He started a quick counter attack and Poole moved the ball superbly from the back and then switched wings. The ball was crossed in and again found an unmarked player. This time the header went wide of the target when the player should have scored.


Lessons were not being learnt by the Laverstock team and another player was booked for not retreating when Poole took a quick free kick. The referee seemed to prefer giving free kicks instead of waiting to see if there was an advantage which was unpopular with both sets of players. Laverstock managed one more shot on target following a mazey run which took in stretches along both the right and the left hand wings. Poole had a couple of shots from distance but they didn't trouble the Laverstock keeper.


Poole came out for the second half all guns blazing. In the 46th minute, Austin received the ball on the right side of the box and played what looked to be a cross intp the box. No-one managed to get a touch on it and it was a surprise to suddenly see the ball rebound off the post and out. Laverstock cleared their lines momentarily but couldn't keep possession. The ball was won back on the halfway line by Dibba and he played a superb through ball for Taffy Richardson to run onto. He beat the offside trap but the ball curled away from him and didn't give him a chance to take a shot before Laverstock could clear it.


As I was making some notes, I suddenly heard a roar from the Poole supporters and looked up in time to see Austin celebrating a goal and the ball in the back of the net. The ball had been crossed in from the right wing and he shot low past the keeper.


Laverstock worked hard and didn't let the goal put them off their stride. They were unlucky not to equalise after 65 minutes when a cross to Heath on the far post should have been converted. Heath decided to hit it with his right foot and it went wide - if he had used his left foot then it would have been on target and would have beaten the Poole keeper. Poole had some chances too but the Laverstock keeper pulled off some great saves, including taking the ball off Austin's feet in the penalty area. They seemed satisfied to keep their lead as the end product didn't match the skillfull approach play.


In the last ten minutes the game boiled over. There had been some late tackles and sledging comments from players on both sides during the second half and this escalated. Laverstock were throwing bodies into the way of the ball and as a result of a challenge one of their players went down injured. Poole played on and didn't put the ball out for a throw so one of the Laverstock players went in with a late high tackle that caught the Poole player and knocked him to the ground. Poole's manager went up to the assistant referee on the nearside as he felt that the official should have spotted the foul and gave him a talking to.


A minute later and another infringement - this time a Laverstock player went in with a high boot on a Poole player and caught the man instead of the ball. Players on both sides rushed in to start a fight but the referee managed to keep control and prevent anything more than handbags. Tommy Killick, the Poole Manager, then had a verbal altercation with a local spectator about the challenge. It was a relief to hear the final whistle before there were any more flashpoints.

Game 5: AFC Portchester 0.1 Verwood Town (Wess 1) 08.08.09

An unusual start to today's game. After I dropped Amy off at Portchester Castle, I drove down White Hart Lane and into Cranleigh Road towards the ground. There was an ambulance blocking the entrance to the car park as it was too big to go under the metal gateway. As there were 30 minutes to kick off, I parked on the verge to see if the ambulance would move and listened to the Radio Solent commentary. A few more cars arrived and had the same idea as me but one vehicle drove straight up behind the ambulance. Turned out that this guy had the key to move part of the gateway and allow the ambulance to turn around in the carpark. Someone on a stretcher had been carried into the ambulance so hopefully they will be better soon.


Once I had parked and walked round to the ground, I paid my £4 to get in but programmes were not available. This was my first new ground of the season and my second to last ground to complete the Wessex League - only AFC Aldermaston to go!


The two teams came onto the pitch shortly afterwards and the regular line up to shake hands took place. Being the first game of the season, there was also the traditional photo line up for the home team.


The first 20 minutes of the game were fairly frenetic but neither team created a decent opportunity. The pre-season games may have increased the stamina of the players but the ball control under pressure was poor and possession was too often lost as a result.


I was expecting Verwood to be the better team but it wasn't until the 23rd minute that they got the better of Portchester. A freekick was played high into the box and headed down by a Verwood striker and into the back of the net. The celebrations around me were premature - Verwood hadn't got the better of the assistant referee who raised his flag for offside. An early one on one chance had been saved by the keeper as the Verwood player couldn't decide whether to shoot or to pass across goal in time.


Portchester then decided to see if they could assist Verwood with an own goal effort. A back header to the Portchester keeper was badly misdirected and was bouncing towards the net before the keeper got back to his line to prevent the ball from crossing the line. This keeper was kept busy. In the 38th minute Verwood won a direct freekick and a superb rising shot was hit from 35 yards out. The shot was on target but the keeper rose up and just managed to tip the ball over the crossbar.


The Verwood management team were obviously not impressed with the first half performance and the way their team were playing. They decided to use the pitch for the half time team talk rather than the dressing room and as I was on the far side, I got to hear the rollocking they were giving the team.


This certainly motivated the Verwood team for the second half. The key messages to use the width, not play to the opposition's strengths, put players under pressure to win the ball back and play simple balls into space were all put into practice. On 48 minutes the ball was played into the box from the left wing into space which allowed a striker in to head the ball at goal. His aim was slightly off and the ball cannoned back off the post. Portchester were content to scramble the ball away but their poor passing meant that the ball kept on coming back at them.


On 56 minutes Verwood created the best chance of the game so far. The ball was taken to the left byline and crossed back into space only for the Verwood player running into the box to mistime his cue and miss the ball in front of an open goal.


Verwood had increased the tempo of the game to put Portchester under pressure and on 58 minutes they finally took the lead. The Portchester keeper ran out of his box to clear a through ball but his clearance was weak and went straight to a Verwood midfielder just inside the Portchester half. He took one pace forward and then hit a controlled floated lob shot over the backpeddling keeper's head and into the back of the net. An early contender for Goal of the Season!


It seemed as if Verwood would settle for this narrow lead as the midfield were quite prepared to play long balls through for the strikers to chase but not support them with overlapping runs into the box. I was surprised that only Portchester were making substitutions as the teams started to tire in the heat. The final Portchester change was to go to 3 at the back and push 5 players into midfield. This almost paid off as they won a freekick in the 72nd minute.


The ball was passed into the penalty area rather than blasted at the wall and then flicked towards the far post by an onrushing attacker. He didn't quite get his angle right and the keeper was able to stretch out as if in slow motion and push the ball wide. In the 76th minute, Portchester started a counterattack run from the edge of their penalty area and the player kept control and made it past three defensive lunges. The fourth tackle was better but when the ball ran loose it found a Portchester player on the edge of the Verwood box. It looked like he would score but his shot was directed towards the keeper which made it easier to save.


Portchester finished strongly as the energy of the substitutes gave them an advantage but they were unable to use this energy to find an equaliser.I did wonder whether the choice of kit would be better for a foggy day - Portchester in orange and Verwood in yellow were very visible under the hot sun and occasional cloud. A good ground to visit in the summer but with no shelter I wouldn't fancy coming here in the depths of winter!