West Riding Double

Saturday 23rd November 2019

709. Rawdon Meadows
Bradford City U-18 0-3 Doncaster Rovers U-18
Youth Alliance - North-East Division
 Apperley Bridge is a village in the north-east of Bradford on the boundary of the City of Leeds. The village straddles the Leeds and Liverpool Canal and the River Aire. It takes its name from the old bridge over the river on Apperley Lane. and the section known as Rawdon Meadows provides the training ground and facilities for Bradford City FC.


Rawdon Meadows Playing Fields 
Harrogate Road, 
Apperley Bridge, 
Bradford. 
BD10 0NR

The ground is directly opposite Woodhouse Grove School, sharing the main entrance off Harrogate Road. The main pitch is at the entrance with dugouts and spectator standing on the thin road which leads to the changing rooms and offices. The pavilion was officially opened in April 2014 by former Leeds United goalkeeper Nigel Martyn. 

Bradford City U-18(5th) 0
Doncaster Rovers U-18(1st) 3(Smith 5 Watson 31 Skar-Conradi 63)
Youth Alliance North-East Division matchday 9v11
11am ko
Att.60hc

Doncaster Rovers strengthened their position at the top of the table with a comfortable win over a young Bantams team which included seven Under-16s in the side. 
The leaders took a fifth minute lead with a fine left foot finish from Martijn Smith, followed by an overhead flick by Jack Watson with half an hour gone. Donny wrapped up the win when substitute Marius Skar-Conradi scored just seconds after coming off the bench.
 

710. The Old Showground
Otley Town 1-3 Salts
West Yorkshire Amateur FL - Division 1

 Otley is a market town and civil parish at a bridging point on the River Wharfe in the City of Leeds metropolitan borough.( population over 13,000) The name is derived from Otto, Otho, Othe, or Otta, a Saxon personal name and leah, a woodland clearing in Old English. It was recorded as Ottanlege in 972 and Otelai or Othelia in the Domesday Book
It is the birthplace of cabinetmaker Thomas Chippendale, who was born in a cottage at the junction of Boroughgate and Wesley Street. His statue stands next to the old Grammar School that he once attended in Manor Square.
Otley regularly appears on TV as "Hotton" in the ITV soap Emmerdale. It has also appeared in Heartbeat where Otley Courthouse is the old Police Station.  DCI Banks and the drama series The Chase have also been regularly filmed in the town.

Otley Town joined the West Yorkshire League from West Riding County Amateur League in 2006. They won the Division 1 title in 2007-08 and their highest finish in the Premier Division came in 2010-11 when they finished fourth. The club also runs a Reserve side,  3rd team and a Vets side, as well as boys and girls teams at different age groups.


The Old Showground
Pool Road
Otley
West Yorkshire
LS21 1DY

Current WYAFL grounds visited - 8
The ground is on the Pool Road where there are three pitches. The main ground is fully railled with a pair of brick dugouts on one side. There is a second pitch which runs parallel where the 3rds were playing at the same time as the first team. 
The changing rooms are next to to the clubhouse in the car park, which is full of character with an array of football memorabilia. 
Otley Town(7th) 1(Unwin 77pen)
Salts(10th) 3(Cunnington,Erangey,Morgan #10 45pen #4 49 #11 59)
West Yorkshire Amateur League - Division 1 matchday 11
2pm ko
Att.43hc
Goalscorers to be confirmed

The pitch was in great condition considering the amount of rainfall. After a tight first half Salts took the lead on the stroke of halftime with #10 firing home the penalty after a foul by the home goalkeeper. The visitors extended their lead early in the second half, mainly thanks to a couple of Otley players being sin binned. #4 scored from close range, followed by #11 latching on to a long ball to fire home at the second attempt after the ‘keeper saved his initial shot. 
Otley pulled a goal back on 77 minutes when Jonny Unwin converted the penalty kick, after another goalkeeper foul in the box. Town finished the match strongly but were unable to grab the second goal which would have set up a grandstand finish. 
#Heedhopper
180 mile round trip drive door-to-door

For my monthly work free Saturday I couldn’t travel too far as I had a date night planned which included a Fat White Family gig at the Boiler Shop in Newcastle. I decided a West Yorkshire double would be the best option, under 2 hours driving time each way and two early kick offs. I picked Katie & Lee up at 8.50am and as we travelled on the A1 through the heavy rainfall, we wondered if we were going to see one match never mind two. We arrived at Rawdon Meadows just after 10.30, with the welcoming sight of both teams going through their pre-match warm up routines. 
We had Headingley lined up as our second game of the day, until we found out at around noon that the match was a wash out. After a quick fixture check, a phone call and a text message, we found out that the Otley Town match was on, one of just a few fixtures that survived in the area.  
The two grounds are just 8 miles apart, so we had time to call into Yeadon for lunch at The Clothier’s Arms, which was a new JDW tick for me, but a revisit for my friends.
After the match our departure from Otley was unfortunately delayed as my car Simon was stuck in the clarty field which acts as an overflow car park. Following a few goes in trying to budge the car forward we had no choice but to push Simon towards the pathway, which we managed to do, so after a smooth journey back north I was back at 100FgC HQ at 5.45pm. (then out on the lash at half-six!)

✔708 Herlingshaw Centre Astro

Middlesbrough Rovers 0-25 Boro Rangers
Macmillan Bowl Round 2
Saturday 16th November 2019

Middlesbrough Rovers were formed at the start of last season, becoming one of several new clubs to join the North Riding Football League Division One for 2018-19.


The Macmillan Bowl is an annual cup competition played between clubs on Teesside. The trophy was first contested for in 1926-27 with West Hartlepool Peser becoming the first holders. Historically the most successful clubs are Acklam Steelworks and Redcar Albion, who have both won the trophy on six occasions. 
MFC Foundation
Herlingshaw Centre, 
Normanby Road, 
Middlesbrough 
TS6 9AE

Current North Riding FL grounds visited 15/24

I visited the Herlingshaw Centre last season when I saw Boro Rangers at home on the main pitch, which you can read about here. 
Today’s match was due to be played on Pitch 2 which is Rovers home pitch, about 50 yards from Boro Rangers home ground, but after another week of heavy rain the game was switched to the Astro surface.
The all weather pitch is found on the other side of the Herlingshaw Centre with access via Trunk Road.
Middlesbrough Rovers 0
Boro Rangers 25(Rose 11,26,28,45,46,55,68,71 Isle 19 Lockwood 24,44,77,81,89 Guy 33,35,36 Large 49,73,75 Burke 54pen,58 McQueeney 57 Woods 86pen Keenan 88)
Macmillan Bowl Round 2
2pm ko
Att.17hc

Rovers have lost all 7 games in Division One while Boro Rangers are unbeaten in the top division, so a major cup shock was never on the cards. In fact we were expecting a personal best record score for an attended match, based on recent results for both teams. 
I'll not give in-depth details of the goals (it would take hours to write up) I'll just say it could have been a hell of a lot more if it wasn't for some terrific saves from Rovers 'keeper Ben Wilson and the woodwork getting struck half a dozen times. It was 10-0 at half time with some clinical finishing by Stu Rose, who scored a hat-trick and a total of eight goals overall. Jack Guy also grabbed a first half treble completing the feat in a four minute spell.  In the second half Daniel Lockwood took his tally to five and Jake Large scored three, becoming the fourth player to fight over the match ball. 
RECORD BREAKERS!
 #Heedhopper
41 mile drive door-to-door

Picked up Lee & Katie on route via the A19 to Teesside where we saw an unbeatable record score line. My previous personal best was more than doubled. 

✔707 Valley Gardens

Whitley Bay Sporting Club 3-5 Heaton Stannington A
Northumberland FA Minor Cup 3rd Round
Saturday 9th November 2019
 Whitley Bay Sports Club started life in the Northern Alliance Division Two as West Allotment Celtic 'A' in 2013. After two seasons they changed to Whitley Bay Boys Club Seniors before changing again to their present name in 2017, winning promotion to Division One as runner-up last season.


Valley Gardens Middle School
Valley Gardens
Monkseaton
NE25 9AQ

Current Northern Alliance grounds visited 35

The enclosed 4G pitch is within the grounds of the school. The ground is just around the corner from Churchill Playing Fields where I saw Monkseaton play as part of Around The Alliance part eighteen in 2017.
Whitley Bay SC 3(Bruce 57OG Blythe 60 Atkinson 88pen)
Heaton Stannington A 5(Ogidan 18,35,89 Wilson 77,86)
Northumberland FA Minor Cup Round 3
1.30pm ko
Att.32hc

Heaton Stan took control of the first half with a well taking double by Usman Ogidan. Whitley levelled through an unfortunate own goal by Layton Bruce and a well taking right foot drive from Liam Blythe to make it 2-2 on the hour mark. The visitors regained the lead when a mazzy run and shot from Ogidan was saved, but sub Josh Wilson was on hand to tap home the rebound. Wilson added his second before the home team again reduced the arrears when Tom Atkinson converted a penalty with two minutes left. Stan booked their place in the next round a minute later when Ogidan completed his hat-trick to make it 5-3. 
 #Heedhopper
12 miles door-to-door

Another week when the weather was okay until Friday, then a day of heavy rain cattle-trucks Saturday's Non-League football, so this meant yet another 4G cage for my football fix. 
I battled my way through the heavy traffic on the Tyne Bridge and Coast Road to arrive just as the players held a minutes silence prior to the kick off. It was a nice surprise to see Lee & Katie in the crowd, after they abandoned their planned trip to watch Plymouth in the FA Cup away at Bolton Wanderers.

✔706 Bull Hill

Easingwold Town 2-2 Thorpe United
York Minster Engineering Football League - 
Premier Division
Saturday 2nd November 2019
Easingwold is a small Georgian market town in the Hambleton District of North Yorkshire, 12 miles north of York at the foot of the Howardian Hills. The town is mentioned in the Domesday Book as "Eisicewalt" 

Easingwold Town FC formed in 1892 and are one of three founder members of the York League still playing within the league. The club’s most successful period came in the early 1970's when they won the Senior Cup in '72 and finished runners up in the top division in 1972-73.  The club has a senior reserve side, a third team in the Beckett League and have a women's team - Easingwold Angels, formed in 2010. They set up a junior section in the mid 1990s covering all age groups for both boys and girls. 
Bull Hill
Stillington Road
Easingwold
YO61 3ET

Current York FL Premier Division grounds visited 6/15

The main pitch used by the senior men’s team is fully railed with dugouts on one side plus a covered enclosure with a bench seat on the opposite side, where you could squeeze in about 25 sitting spectators. At the car park entrance is the pavilion, which opened in 2007 and houses the changing rooms and the clubhouse cafe. 
Easingwold Town(10th) 2(Cryer 46 Crosby 80) 
Thorpe United(2nd) 2(Wileman 68 Collier 72)
York Minster Engineering FL - Premier Division Matchday 11v8
2pm ko
Att.25hc
No admission
Tea £1

After being the better side in the opening half the home team took the lead straight from the restart, when Josh Cryer followed in from close range after an initial effort came back off the post. The visitors turned the match around midway through the second half, when a long kick from the keeper found Eddie Wileman who raced through to equalise, followed by Gary Collier sliding in from a lovely right wing ball to make it 2-1.  With ten minutes left Joe Crosby anticipated a through ball to take the ball past the keeper and finish well for a well deserved point for Town.
 #Heedhopper
Another drive down the A19 after finishing work - 71 miles door-to-door. 
I arrived at 12.50pm, which allowed plenty of time to walk along to the town and call for a bevvy at the GBG listed George Hotel in the Market Place. Easingwold is a quaint little town, with independent shops and cafes plus enough pubs for a decent night out, so a really nice place to visit.