✔925 Pennypit Park

Preston Athletic 4-0 West Calder United
Pre-Season Friendly
Saturday 20th July 2024




Prestonpans is a small mining town, situated approximately eight miles east of Edinburgh in East Lothian. (population as of 2022 is 10,460)

Preston Athletic formed in 1945, originally as a junior club, entering the senior ranks in 1994, when they joined the East of Scotland Football League and also won the Alex Jack Cup. “The Panners” won the First Division title in 2001-02.

They were founding members of the Lowland Football League in 2013, but returned to the EoS First Division after relegation in 2017.



Pennypit Park

Rope Walk, 

Prestonpans 

EH32 9BN


Capacity 1,500 (313 seats)

Current East of Scotland League grounds visited 33/58

Total football grounds visited in Scotland - 124


Pennypit Park consists of two sports fields, one for association football and the other rugby union, home of Preston Lodge RFC. Construction was over an old coal pit dating back to 1202, the name came from miners in the area who were earning a penny a shift, so it became known as "The Penny Pit" The pitch was planted in the 1950s, then in the 1970s the rugby club and East Lothian District Council paid for a new pavilion and rugby pitch to be constructed.


An entertaining match with a great second half performance from the hosts. 

Preston Athletic 4-0 West Calder United

                                         Neilson Combe 22'

                                             Ben Weekes 57’

                                           Cami Laidlaw 63’

                                           Buster Briggs 90’

Att.58

(plus 5 blokes watching for free over their garden wall)



Spondoolicks:

Admission £5

Tea £1

Chocolate £1

Pin badge £3



#Heedhopper

115 mile door-to-door solo road trip up the A1. The nearest uncharted ground playing at home today. 

Pub visited: Prestoungrange Gothenburg 


924. Sherburn Sports Centre

Belmont United 3-2 Coundon Cons
Pre-Season Friendly
Wednesday 17th July 2024

Wearside League Division One side Belmont United faced Division 3 newcomers Coundon Cons in a pre-season kickabout at Sherburn Sports Centre. Sherburn is a village in County Durham, 4 miles west of Durham city. The ground is full perimeter fence off with a team dugout on each side. Changing room facilities are within the gymnastics club. 

Sherburn Sports Centre

Sherburn Village, 

Durham

DH6 1QX


A good work out by both sides, played in good spirit, with Belmont coming from behind to win it from the penalty spot. 

Belmont United 3-2 Coundon Cons 

Josh Liddle 5                         

                                     24 Jordan Maughan 

                                  52 Callum Teasdale 

Jordan Da Silva Dunn 61                                                

Lamin Bojang 76pen                                        

Att.34hc


✔923.Gradski Stadion Lapad

NK GOŠK Dubrovnik 2-1 NK Neretva

Treća NL Jug 

Saturday 25th May 2024

Dubrovnik is a city in southern Croatia by the Adriatic Sea, known for its distinctive Old Town, encircled with massive stone walls completed in the 16th century. Its well-preserved buildings range from baroque St. Blaise Church to Renaissance Sponza Palace and Gothic Rector’s Palace, now a history museum. Paved with limestone, the pedestrianised Stradun is lined with shops and restaurants.

The HBO TV series Game of Thrones was shot in the town which has resulted in a rise in tourism, especially (as I experienced) visitors from the United States. 


NK GOŠK-Dubrovnik 1919 is a professional football club, who's name comes from the Gruž neighbourhood of the city.  Their full name is Gruški Omladinski Športski Klub, which translated in English as - Gruž Youth Sports Club


GOŠK was founded in 2016 by the merging of NK GOŠK and HNK Dubrovnik 1919. The club has spent all of its time in the 3.HNL/NL – Jug, the fourth tier of the Croatian football league system. 


Gradski Stadion Lapad

Ul. Ivana Meštrovića, 

20000, 

Dubrovnik, 

Croatia


Gradski Stadion Lapad was built in 1919 and has a current capacity of 3,000. The ground is largely made up of terracing, with bolted bucket seats down one side. The changing rooms are at the top of the stairs, behind the far goal. The stadium has an outer running track and has splendid panoramic views of the mountains, plus the Dr. Franjo Tuđman Bridge. 

NK GOŠK Dubrovnik 2(V Skaramuca 20pen J.Listar 62)  

NK Neretva 1(S.Galov 7)

Treća NL Jug Group D Matchday 30 (13th v 6th)

Att.73hc 

Admission 5€

GOŠK came from behind to end their league campaign with a home win. 

The visitors went ahead with a good chest and volley strike from 25 yards by Galov, before the hosts soon equalised from the penalty spot.

The winner arrived just after the hour mark when Listar latched onto a through ball and slotted home a left foot shot into the far corner to make it 

#Heedhopper 

Newcastle - Dubrovnik 

1250 miles airport-to-airport.


The match was on the final day of our holiday. We had a fantastic time doing our usual crack of sun, sea, sightseeing and lots of beer, in probably one of the cleanest and classiest town's we've visited. 

✔922 Eastbourne Community Stadium

Darlington Town 3-0 Richmond Town
Shipowners Charity Cup Final
Saturday 18th May 2024

Darlington Town are the new Wearside League champions and will play in the Northern League next season. They won the division by a clear 17 points and earlier this month moved to a different pitch at the Eastbourne Complex, complete with a seated stand, to allow promotion to step 6.

The club was formed in 2018, taking the place in the Wearside League of Darlington F.C Reserves, who originated out of Horden Colliery Welfare relocating to Darlo in 2016.

Eastbourne Community Stadium

Eastbourne Sports Complex

Bourne Ave, 

Darlington 

DL1 1LJ


The 4G pitch has a seated stand and changing room block at the entrance side. At the far side are two identical covered enclosures named after Arthur Wharton and Lillie Galloway. 

This is the third ground I've visited within this large sports complex. I saw Darlington Cleveland Bridge play on the athletics pitch in 2010 (the first time I met Lee) and Darlington Reserves in their first season on the other 4G they used prior to their recent move across the other side of the complex. 

Darlington Town 3(Woodford 36 Beauchamp 55 Coles 70)

Richmond Town 0

Shipowners Charity Cup Final

2pm KO 

Admission £3

Att. 437


Darlington Town completed the treble and retained their hold on the Shipowners Charity Cup, having already bagged the league title and the Monkwearmouth Charity Cup. 

They went ahead in the 36th minute when Connor Woodford fired in with his left foot, following in on goal after the keeper saved from his own defender. 

James Beauchamp played a neat one-two before firing in a volley from the edge of the box to double their lead ten minutes into the second half, before Ryan Coles headed home from a corner kick to make it 3-0.

The champions will be looking to add a fourth trophy this season in the Durham Minor Cup final against Durham Corinthians next Friday night.

Footnote

The club completed the quadruple with a 1-0 win in the final.