And so to Eynsham Hall Park Sports Ground, and a bonus overnighter (thanks Mark !) to see the Evostik South Division Division 1 South & West curtain raiser between North Leigh and Tiverton Town.
North Leigh is a small village of less than 2,000 inhabitants in West
Oxfordshire just outside Witney. The football club was established in 1908 and
boasts three nicknames - The Windmill Army, Yellows and Nor Lye. Initially
competing in the Witney & District League, they progressed up to the
Oxfordshire Senior League and then the Hellenic League. Fittingly this was won
in their centenary year in 2008, taking them to their current, highest level of
Step 4.
Tiverton Town
also boast three nicknames - Tivvy, Yellows and The Gold Army. The visitors
from Ladysmead were founded in 1913 as Tiverton Athletic, and merged with
Uffculme St Peters in 1921 to form Tiverton AFC. Their first games were played
at the Athletic Ground (now Amory Park) in the East Devon League, moving in to
the North Devon League and then the Exeter & District League. The club were
evicted in 1921 and moved to the rugby pitch at Elm Park, The Elms, in a rather
one sided ground swap with the rugby club. A war battered Elms was virtually
destroyed in World War 2 so the club was renamed Tiverton Town and moved to
Ladysmead, although they had to use a pub ten minutes walk away for changing
purposes.
The club gradually climbed the leagues, joining the Western League in 1973. The
appointment of Martyn Rogers as manager in 1991 saw the club's halcyon days
with the league won in 1994, 1995, 1997 and 1998. Having been runners up in the
FA Vase in 1993, losing to Bridlington, they triumphed at Wembley against Tow
Law Town 1-0 in 1998 and retained the Vase beating Bedlington Terriers by the
same score the following year.
The club was promoted to the Southern League Division 1 West in 1999, and then
the Premier in 2001. 2007 saw the Southern League Cup captured, but the club
started to struggle to maintain its air of invincibility. Tivvy finished in the
relegation zone at the end of 2009/10 but despite a reprieve, Rogers stepped
aside after 19 seasons in charge. It was only a stay of execution as relegation
followed the following season and, despite a brief flirtation with an internet
entrepreneur, they have remained at the lower level. Club legend Rogers was
reappointed manager in May 2014.
So Friday
evening and on to the patchwork M6, and a welcome return of the PIES graffiti -
'PIES - THIS IS YOUR TIME' and 'VOTE PIES'. With long delays forecast ahead, a
detour first into a godforsaken council estate in Stafford (the culprit - you
know who you are !!), and then past the roundabout art in Cannock and bizarre
architecture in Bridgtown.
The Black Country greets us with 'No car cruising - by high court injunction',
and we skirt Walsall cruising past Rostance Edwards FC, an accountancy firm
playing at Step 8, before rejoining the M6. Further smart (?) motorway delays,
with closed lanes displaying 50 mph limits, and an accident then phantom lane
closures on the M40 provide more hold ups before we eventually arrive at the
new housing estate in Botley - pitch black with no street lighting and with
monstrous kerbs. The navigator (you know who he is !) pronounces 'I'm lost, I'm
lost' - never a truer word spoken.......
Saturday brings glorious sunshine and a walk into the dreaming spires of
Oxford. Breakfast is at The Four Candles, and yes it is named after that iconic
Two Ronnies sketch. On the wall are two fork handles and four candles....
Avoiding the cyclists, it's a trip to the Ashmolean Museum, then taking in the
Sheldonian Theatre, Bodleian Library, Bridge of Sighs, Radcliffe Camera and
finishing atop the Castle Mound at Oxford Castle, all the while marvelling at
the historical attractions.
A gentle meander through countryside, stopping only to pay the Swinford Bridge
toll - all of 5p - brings us to Eynsham Park. The ground is set in the
picturesque surroundings of the Eynsham Hall estate, with the landowner
charging the club a peppercorn rent.
Ample parking and a stroll past a faded clubhouse brings us to the ground. The
near end supports a shallow covered terrace behind the North End goal which
joins on to a welcoming clubhouse, Shep's Lounge Bar, and snack bar. Down the
touchline is a pathway for standing with grassed areas overhung by leafy trees.
Opposite the dugouts is the main stand named after George Hazell, the
benefactor who bequeathed the club its floodlights. The stand highlights the
prodigious slope on the pitch - one half having four seated rows above pitch
level, the other only two.
The far end is open, backed by hedging, with two gates leading to a field
occupied by oblivious sheep resting in the shade. In the distance, and just
visible despite being framed by more trees, stands the majestic Eynsham Hall.
The
Windmill Army are in traditional yellow and black, but can name only three
substitutes. The third substitute is wearing a surgical boot and pink vest;
needless to say he does not feature in the game. Tivvy are in change all white,
and have only four substitutes, with no sub keeper.
The game gets off to a lively start with home keeper James Foster making a
splendid fingertip save from Tivvy centre forward, Owen Howe. At the other end,
Morgan Williams finishes horribly from a two on one and only a slight
deflection, diverting the ball closer to the goal rather than corner flag,
spares his blushes. From the resultant corner to the far post, right back Miles
Welch-Hayes heads the ball firmly down. It hits the ground, loops over Tivvy's
keeper and a covering defender attempts to punch the ball over the bar - his
forearm smash only succeeding in pushing the ball into the net for the home
side to lead.
Plenty of banter from the linesman too - during an enforced injury and drinks
break, and with Tivvy manager Rogers encroaching on to the pitch, he asks the
60 year old if he wants to bring himself on....... The reply is absolutely
unprintable !!
Just after the half hour, the Millers' Callum McNish is brought down for a
contentious penalty. Cue apoplexy on the Tivvy bench and then relief as keeper
Rhys Lovett saves Jamie Cook's spot kick. Foster makes another terrific save
from Tivvy's Dan Smith to preserve the half time lead.
The second half begins in similar fashion and six minutes in, Williams motors
down the left flank and sends over a pinpoint cross to McNish. The forward
cushions the ball, swivels to beat his man and crashes the ball into the top
right hand corner for a goal of real quality.
Tivvy must know it's not to be their day when Howe's firm header from a right
wing cross thuds against the inside of the post. Foster remains relatively
untroubled as the away side struggle to break down a resolute Windmill Army
defence, and it finishes 2-0.
Just time for a quick visit to Witney and, opposite the butter cross in the
market square, a pint of Hook Norton's Summertime in The Company of Weavers, a
nod to the town's traditional industry of blanket making. Then, thankfully, a
less eventful journey home !
