[Football] The Non-League Football Thread- 2023/24 Edition

mile oak said:

Awful defending set pieces from Worthing.

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stewart12 said:

and finally, ground number 19- the OHOB Community Stadium, home of East Grinstead Town for their all-Sussex Isthmian South East league clash with Burgess Hill Town.

East Grinstead is a town that I've never actually been to before (why isn't it Surrey?!), and....what an odd place. Not unpleasant. It's clean, tidy...but odd.

Anyway, the ground is tucked away right on the edge of the town, quite close to the hospital and in what seems to be quite a residential area. It's accessed down one track and once again, has a rural feel to it.

What I do like about this ground is that it's very much decked out in the clubs colours of yellow and black. Entrance was £10, about normal for this league.

The clubhouse, turnstiles, changing rooms etc are housed in what seem to be reused shipping container type things which is cool. The clubhouse, however, was a bit of a let down, especially considering that there is NOTHING around the ground in terms of pubs etc. It's quite small and just a bit boring- they're missing a trick here. Not a particularly great beer selection either. Compared to Burgess Hill the week before in the same league, it was a bit of a step down in quality.

The ground itself is alright, there is one decent sized seated stand on one side which is slightly raised giving good views of the action. There is also a small covered standing area, both stands feel quite new. In my opinion the whole place feels a little bit unfinished, like they were on the verge of greatest and just stopped. Maybe there are plans to do other stuff perhaps?

Bovril was £1.60, which is slightly above the going rate but was EXPERTLY brewed by the lady behind the kiosk.

The game kicked off late due to the ref's train being late and the home side should have gone ahead fairly on with a penalty which they missed after it being retaken.

After that Burgess Hill unleashed hell and were absolutely brilliant particularly on the break. A very different performance to the one I'd seen the week prior. They were 3-0 up at half time and it could have been more really. The large travelling contingent were very happy.

The home side did improve slightly in the second half, with their left winger, who clearly fancied himself as a bit of a Zaha, standing out (he was the one who missed the penalty also). They brought on a TINY right winger who scored a fantastic goal but it was too little too late really, and with a couple of goals on the break, the visitors won 5-1.

As an aside another "digital programme" here. I get why clubs do this in terms of saving costs but this is a worrying trend.

I'm not sure how I felt about this place, it's fine but I just feel like they're missing a trick, especially with the clubhouse.

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Pogue Mahone said:

A really interesting read as always, Stewart. I am loving hearing about your travels - I feel inspired to visit some of these places - particularly Roffey (I had no idea where Roffey was before this).

What’s up with your camera, though?

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Arthur said:

Crowborough 1-0 Horsham YMCA

Decent game between two even sides who kinda cancelled each other out.

Crowborough had a long range effort which just fizzed over the bar in the first couple of minutes but it was the visitors who probably had more of the possession and spent more time in the Crowborough half without really creating a lot. Their only real chance came due to a Crowborough mistake. The keeper came for a cross and got no where near it which resulted in a bit of a scramble.

Then came the only goal of the game and certainly the best bit of quality football. Cross field ball to Smith (who had until recently been playing two divisions below) who chested the ball had one touch out of his feet and spun burying the ball in the bottom corner from about 20 yards.

YMCA should have equalised straight away. Cross from the left got a slight nick off the Crowborough defender but that set up the forward perfectly but he headed wide from 6 yards when it looked easier to score.

Second half Crowborough looked better but once again it was the defences that won the day. Both keepers had very little to do. 10 minutes of stoppage time made it a bit squeaky bum time towards the end but Crowborough held on.

On the subject of refs, I'm the first to slate them when they are bad so credit where it is due Mr Simon Faires had an excellent game IMO.

And on the subject of refs...... Snodland V Tunbridge Wells was abandoned on Saturday due to Snodland going down to 7 players. 4 players were sent off as were two of the Snodland coaching staff. Will be interesting to see how the league deals with that one.

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stewart12 said:

that SCFL Premier League title race is absolutely white hot

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stewart12 said:

ground number 18 was Chennells Brook, home of Roffey for their SCFL Divison 1 clash with Montpelier Villa.

This was a bit of a treat I won't lie. Completely unexpected.

The ground is right on the edge of north east Horsham, in what initially feels like a very residential area, however somehow they've cultivated a feel of the ground being in some sort of enchanted forest. It's surrounded by tall trees on all sides.

Whilst it's fairly basic, in that it has one small seated stand and a small standing area, the ground is very much supplemented with a really nice outdoor bar area which blends in really nicely with the woodland vibe of the ground. There isn't a clubhouse as such but the general bar area is lovely and I bet its great in the summer.

Once again, the staff and volunteers here are really, really nice and friendly.

Entrance was £6 which included a free programme.

Roffey are romping home with the SCFL 1 title and unsurprisingly won this one 4-0.

What a hidden gem this is though, really punches above its weight as a ground and just goes to show that even small grounds like this can be turned into fantastic places to watch football with a bit of imagination.

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stewart12 said:

that SCFL Premier League title race is absolutely white hot

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Colonel Mustard said:

I was at Eastbourne Town for the 'absorbing' goalless draw with Shoreham on Saturday. A chance missed for Town to put a bit more pressure on Steyning at the top of the table though they’re still in 6th place, only 6 points behind.

First visit to Saffrons and quite enjoyed it despite the lack of goals. Rather a fine setting with the town hall looming above the adjacent bowling green. A fair crowd, possibly swollen by the international break as I spotted a couple of Albion scarves. £7 entry, £1.50 programme, £2 Bovril.

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jackalbion said:

Probably one of the best ground in Sussex. If you can go down on Easter Monday, 11am kick off, Town v United, should be 500+ in there.

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jackalbion said:

Probably one of the best ground in Sussex. If you can go down on Easter Monday, 11am kick off, Town v United, should be 500+ in there.

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Colonel Mustard said:

I’d love to have gone but I’ll be at West Didsbury & Chorlton vs Irlam in the North West Counties Football League. I’m stopping over specially after Liverpool to catch the game on Monday afternoon.

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jackalbion said:

Fair Enough, I still need to do West Didsbury, so jealous you get to tick it off. Good crowd usually down there.

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MattBackHome said:

f***ing SHIT write up.

HOW MUCH WAS THE BOVRIL?!?

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Colonel Mustard said:

I lived in the area for 4 or 5 years back in the 80s without realising there was a local club. Bizarrely, I first heard of their existence on Coronation Street recently when Steve McDonald mused that he was thinking of switching his allegiance to them. I presumed it was a made-up club, some sort of in-joke from the production team. Then I googled it and found they really existed.

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BN9 BHA said:

Definitely a nice ground, and the best location in Eastbourne for football. If I lived over that way i would definitely watch them.

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stewart12 said:

might head to Hassocks for Haywards Heath vs Steyning in the Peter Bentley Cup semi final later

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Dick Knights Mumm said:

Yep - it's a big match. It's a semi-final so likely to be a tight affair. Cue 5-4.

Easter Monday 11am - Shoreham v Steyning should be a good game. The Shoreham manager and a number of players have been at Steyning over recent years. Cycle down to Shoreham on the Downslink - take in a match. Lovely.

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