Beaconsfield Town

Beaconsfield Town FC is a non-league football club that was formed in 1994, following a merger of Beaconsfield United FC and Slough Youth Centre Old Boys FC to become Beaconsfield SYCOB FC before changing their title to Beaconsfield Town in 2017.

‘The Rams’ are based in the South Buckinghamshire market town of Beaconsfield around twenty four miles west of central London. However, Town aren’t the first club to represent the town or play at Holloways Park, by the M40.

Beaconsfield United were formed in 1921, playing in local competition until 1979 when they joined the London Spartan League. They had a couple of sixth placed finishes while at Holloways Park, which they had moved into in 1971 on land owned by their patron Lord Burnham.

Slough Youth Centre Old Boys entered adult competition in 1947. Again, they competed in local football until 1990 when they became members of the Chiltonian League. The team finished runners up in 1993-94, but to be promoted they needed to share a ground up to standard.

An approach was made to United who were struggling financially at the time, and it was agreed that a merger was the best way forward with the new club taking United's place in the Spartan South Midlands League. The move was a success as the Rams were crowned champions twice.

On the first occasion they were denied promotion to the Isthmian League as Holloways Park was deemed not up to scratch. However, after the title win of 2003-04 promotion was gained to the Southern League.

The team were relegated back to the Spartan South Midlands League at the end of the 2006-07 season, but they regained their Southern League place at the first attempt with another championship under manager Jamie Jarvis. The club rebuilt after the turmoil of losing their manager, coach, several players and chairman to near neighbours Burnham.

SYCOB were given a reprieve from relegation owing to league re-organisation in 2010, from which they turned their fortunes around to end the 2011-12 season in the playoffs where they went out in the semi-finals to Bedworth United.

The team continued to progress under the management of James Pritchard, reaching another play off semi-final in 2012-13 after finishing in fifth place before being defeated away by Rugby Town.

Gary Meakin replaced Pritchard as manager just before the start of the 2013-14, which required another rebuild of the playing squad. A partnership with the FAB Academy was forged, which provided most of the squad. Geoff Warner became the Rams boss as the team ended in ninth position in the 2015-16 campaign. 

Andy Hurley and Leigh Wooldridge took over as joint-managers in 2016-17, which ended in a disappointing league position. However, the club reached the fourth qualifying round of the FA Cup for the first time before Beaconsfield bowed out at home to Brackley Town. SYCOB became Town as Gary Meakin returned in the summer of 2017 while new chairman Chris Coyle took his position.

The changes paid dividends as virtually a completely new playing line up went on to secure the Southern League Division One East title on the final day of the season and secure promotion; where Town were placed in the Southern League Premier Division South.

A twelfth place finish came in the first season up at step three in 2018-19 before the side sat one place of the bottom of the table when the 2019-20 campaign was aborted owing to the Covid-19 pandemic. The summer of 2021 saw the installation of a new artificial pitch at Holloways Park with the ground receiving a further facelift.

Meain departed in February 2023 with Jon Underwood replacing him, prior to the appointment of Garry Haylock in May 2024 after the Rams had been relegated to Division One Central of the Southern League.

Beaconsfield Town FC will compete in the Southern League Division One Central in the 2024-25 season.

My visits

Beaconsfield SYCOB 3 Daventry Town 1 (Monday 25th February 2013) Southern League Division One Central (att: 70)

Beaconsfield had been on my radar for a while, but it was one of those grounds that looked to be hard work to get to midweek. Owing to me taking my eye off the ball at work it transpired that I was on leave for the first week of the new allowance, so I decided that this was as good a time as any to bite the bullet.

I needed a good walk and some fresh air after slumming it the day before and having a good old sample of real ale around meeting pals and watching the League Cup Final after completing my night shifts. 

In the quiet shadows of Wembley Stadium, which was a polar opposite from twenty four hours earlier, I caught a train to Beaconsfield after a quick change at Gerards Cross. Within a few minutes I was on the number 74 bus from Maxwell Road, with the helpful driver dropping me near to the ground and pointing out where I needed to be on my return. 

After a short walk down the lane behind the ground I was soon paying £8 admission plus £2 for the programme, which was a double issue with the previous Saturday's game with Royston Town. 

I was hungry and happy to see a fine snack bar behind the goal built inside the clubhouse facing outside, where I purchased a good cheeseburger chips and a cup of tea. Holloways Park was a better venue that I had anticipated. The large clubhouse and changing rooms building were behind the goal by the entrance. 

A good covered terracing with crush barriers stood in front of it. There was a few steps of open terracing down the left hand side, with a Main Stand with seating on the half way line. The rest of the ground consisted of flat open hard standing. 

The floodlights were quite low, but offered plenty of light. It was a cold night with a wind blowing down the pitch. The Rams took advantage of this against their purple clad visitors when Yashwa Romeo scored with a glancing header from a free kick, after causing the Daventry defence plenty of problems. 

After my usual lap of the ground I was now in the relative warmth of the covered terrace. Daventry and their decent following of fans seemed relieved to be only one down at the interval.

A return to the clubhouse for another cuppa at the break was in order, as it was too cold for beer, and I was trying to keep off it after the previous days activities! The room was pleasant enough with adverts for the Amersham Jazz Club which was staged there on the walls. 

An Italian Serie A game was getting a bit of attention on the plasma TV, while several others were doing the same as me and listening via earphones to the West Ham v Spurs thriller on the radio.

Daventry looked a different side after the restart with the wind advantage as home keeper Sam Southerton was put under pressure. This led to them winning a penalty, which Jamie Gould slotted away. 

This woke SYCOB from their slumber as they came straight up the pitch to the covered end to regain the lead as Ryan Blake scored at the near post after seventy three minutes when keeper Richard Morris should have probably kept it out.

The evening got a whole lot worse for Morris ten minutes later when a cross came in from the right, with him and skipper Guy Sanders colliding. The ball went in off Sanders, but Morris was left with a badly injured leg. 

After a delay of ten minutes he was helped down the tunnel with a defender Kyle Cartwright taking over between the sticks and going on to make a couple of unorthodox stops. Close to the end Ryan Howell smashed a shot against the underside of the SYCOB crossbar, but the scoreline was about right. 

The Rams looked a decent side and more incisive than their reasonable opponents. I sneaked out with seconds remaining courtesy of a gate in the far corner near to the bus stop, which was used to retrieve errant clearances.

I was glad when the bus arrived to get me out of the cold, but I had enjoyed my evening out at a reasonable game at a pleasant venue.

Beaconsfield Town 0 Hendon 0 (Saturday 26^th January 2019) Southern League Premier Division South (att: 161)

It was my day off work, so I was eager for a revisit to Holloways Park to cheer on Hendon who were on a poor run on nine games without victory, but who had drawn the week before at home to Tiverton Town in a vastly improved performance.

Lee Cousins kindly picked Bob and I up at Harrow-on-the-Hill and after beating early traffic we were soon heading through the rather strange route to the ground via the M40 Beaconsfield Services and then onto the A355 and along the lane to the grounds’ car park.

Admission was £10 with programmes being free to download online. Our first impression was of a lovely looking playing surface. The ground certainly looked better in daylight than my visit after dark. A small seated stand had been added at the far end behind the goal.

The bar had recently been refurbished and was very neat and tidy. No real ale was available but the IPA on keg did the job. It was soon time to head out and we decided to go down the open side to avoid any of the wind blowing from the west.

Town fielded former Hendon striker Marvin Morgan as they looked to push for a play-off berth. Recent signings, Charlie Smith, Sergio Manesio and Ryan Hope all started for the Dons with fellow newbies Ogo Obi and Jacob Gardiner-Smith on the bench.

Kick off was slightly put back as the Town officials struggled with the goal net at the bottom end. The netting was drooping from the roof and could have led to injury had a keeper caught his finger on it, but referee Lisa Benn was happy with the situation.

A heavy collision in the first few minutes delayed play as Bajram Pashaj clattered into Dons Luke Tingey. The home player went down and smashed into the perimeter wall surrounding the pitch, which seemed to be very close to the touchlines all around the pitch.

The wails from the stricken player could be heard right across the pitch. It appeared that his shoulder had popped out. Shortly afterwards Louis Stead found himself unmarked at the back post from a wide free kick but put his shot against the upright.

The hosts tactics were to play diagonal balls in the hope of Morgan winning areal challenges or holding up for strike partner Brendan Matthew. Romario Jonas was doing a good job at the back for Hendon who's team gradually grew into the match.

The players began to become more familiar with each other and gained confidence. Lone striker Lewis Toomey was running his socks off but getting very little change out of commanding defender Reece Yorke.

We were happy with the blank score at half time. I thought I recognised a fellow supporter further along. His Zenit St Petersburg top gave it away. It was Barry Gardiner my local MP and father of Dons substitute Jacob.

Jacob had spent a couple of years with the Russian outfit before returning to the UK after injury. I’d seen Barry on TV many times and his secretary lad left me a ticket on request for Prime Ministers Question Time in Parliament. He seemed a very nice man after I introduced myself to him.

His lad, along with Obi would get their opportunity on sixty-four minutes. Before that point both sides went at each other without any clear cut chances being created. Several visiting players including Shaq Hippolyte-Patrick were having their best games in some time.

Manesio was backing up his debut with another fine battling performance in the middle of the park. Danny Boness parried away a fierce long range shot from the Rams Stead as the hosts looked to build pressure. Conversely, this allowed Hendon more space to attack.

The rain which had started to fall near half time became heavier, which made conditions tricky. Mistakes and misplaced passes were aplenty anyway, but the worsening conditions led to even more errors from both sides. It was certainly not a classic.

The ref annoyed home players and fans when giving an indirect free kick in their favour for what they claim was handball by Jonas. The centre back became the third visiting player to see a yellow card with ten minutes remaining.

Referee Benn was making more and more curious calls as the match went on. The nearside linesman was full value, having a laugh with us and discussing the decisions. He even explained why he’d given an offside which we didn’t initially agree with. He was a good fella.

With around five minutes to go Hippolyte-Patrick, who was causing problems when he ran with the ball, approached the edge of the right hand side of the box. He tried to play in Gardiner-Smith. The ball was a little in front of the debutant he couldn’t direct it into the goal with home keeper Ravan Constable beaten.

As play was about to go into additional time Jonas appeared to be pulling back Matthew outside and then in the area. The ref allowed play to continue before booking and sending off Jonas when the attack fizzled out. The Beaconsfield contingent were not best pleased!

Matthew fired off a shot from outside the box which was saved by Boness before the game ended. Hendon were probably worth a point. It meant two games unbeaten and an invaluable clean sheet. Both were essential for building confidence.

While I don’t suppose anyone would be scampering to purchase a DVD of the game, I’d enjoyed it. There’s something special about a back’s to the wall away performance. Mr Gardiner MP also seemed to have enjoyed his couple of hours away from Brexit negotiations.

Lee dropped us back at Harrow and I forwent the opportunity of Saturday night beers to go home and watch FA Cup action and England’s capitulation in the West Indies. 

Beaconsfield Town 0 Harrow Borough 2 (Monday 21^st September 2020) FA Cup First Qualifying Round (att: 220)

There were five cup ties scheduled for the evening, but my mind was made up when Tony Foster, my regular groundhopping mate and driver offered me a lift. He was also taking irregular attendee and regular Middlesex cricket pal Dave Tucker.

After collection at Pinner we were soon making rapid time to the ground, arriving over half an hour before kick-off. The car park was full so Tony parked up in the lane. Admission was £10, with no programmes being produced.

Holloways Park was looking in fine fettle. It’s amazing what a tidy up and a bit of new signage can do to a venue. It was very spick and span. In fact, the club as a whole had an upbeat feel to it with youth players assisting and offering out fixture cards. Three times to us in fact!

The usual food and drink stall near the turnstile was closed, though it looked as though hot drinks were available from the bar, which had made use of the COVID restrictions by making use of the beer garden alongside.

On the fine playing surface, the host defenders played like strangers for the first quarter of the game, by which time the excellent Liam Ferdinand had put Boro two up with fine finishes. He broke the offside trap on eleven minutes after a bright start to fire confidently past Adam Forster.

Kensley Mahoney caught the same custodian off guard with a free kick that hit the side netting before Aaron Minhas missed a guilt edged chance to equalise but put his free header wide and high with the goal gaping.

Beaconsfield were made to pay on seventeen minutes when the impressive former Hungerford Town forward Ferdinand fired home his second from the edge of the box to the joy of the sizeable away support.

Referee, Mr A Cresswell, seemed a bit of a ditherer, with a ack of early command. Home manager Gary Meakin was lectured twice, presumably for making a similar observation. Chinua Cole went on a fine run, but his drag back failed to find any Harrow colleagues.

The excellent Boro right back George Moore went on a run and had his shot saved by the legs of Forster before the game began to become more of an equal contest. It was certainly very watchable for a neutral on a lovely late summer evening.

The introduction of Jefferson Louis, at his fortieth club added further momentum to the Beaconsfield challenge. However, Harrow defended resolutely while continually looking dangerous on the counter.

Former Harrow and Hendon giant midfielder Bayley Brown was putting himself about in midfield for the Rams like I’d not seen before. He and his teammates in red were doing all they could to try and get a goal back.

A shot was deflected over Matthew Hal’s Harrow goal before another good headed chance fell to Luke Neville but went begging as Town tried to get back into the contest, but it was the visitors who deservedly went through.

We were met with the unusual sight compared to previous visits of a congested lane back out onto the main road at full time, with a good portion of the attendance being made up of away fans and neutrals.

A smooth journey back had me home well before 11pm and ready for a rest before work the following morning.

Beaconsfield Town 1 Harrow Borough 4 (Monday 26^th October 2020) Southern League Premier Division South (att: 192)

The chill of winter was in the air for the first set of midweek games after the clocks had gone back an hour. I was wrapped up ready for night shift after the game when Tony picked me up at North Harrow station.

I managed to download the match programme online before departure. It was good to see the tea bar was open on arrival, with another decent crowd assembling, some maybe enticed by the offer of the Rams to give free admission to season ticket holders of Slough Town and Wycombe Wanderers.

Beaconsfield had strengthened their ranks since the FA Cup tie between the sides and had a handy forward partnership of Jefferson Louis and former Boro man and loan signing Dylan Kearney. We were joined on the terrace by my Hendon pal John Rogers.

The game was fairly even in the early stages with both sides probing. Nathan Minhas opened the scoring for the hosts with a low shot that giant former Hendon keeper Dan Purdue may have been disappointed in seeing go past him on nineteen minutes.

Daniel Todd seemed a referee keen on not letting his whistle rust over, judging on the exercise he was giving it. In fairness both sides and the home bench were offering him lots of feedback and decisions to make.

Anthony O'Connor levelled things up quickly as he drilled a low shot past Adam Forster. Gradually Boro began to get the better of things and went ahead a minute before the interval.

Liam Ferdinand was again having a decent game but had already spurned a one on one opportunity with Forster. The keeper stopped another effort, this time with his face, with the rebound being slotted away by O’Connor.

The match followed a similar symmetry to the earlier contest between the sides as Beaconsfield piled on the pressure after the break but couldn’t capitalise on the chances that they created.

Purdue was imperious form to stop anything being thrown at him. He made a couple of stops from Kearney and had a touch of luck when one effort came back off the woodwork while his Boro teammates looked dangerous when on the break. One move saw a silly challenge in the area which resulted in the award of a penalty.

Ferdinand slotted away from twelve yards to make it 3-1. It was all too much for Rams boss Gary Meakin whose constant protestations became too much for Mr Todd who sent him to the stands. His players continued to moan at the official in his place.

Town were given an opening back into the game when awarded a penalty of their own for a push in the box. Louis’ kick was superbly saved by Purdue, who made a name for himself at Hendon as a 16-year old in penalty shoot outs.

Further pressure was applied on the visitor’s goal, but Harrow withstood it and extended their lead three minutes from time when Dernell Wynter was put through to finish with aplomb. As we moved round towards the gate Purdue made another top save.

4-1 was harsh on the hosts, but if you don’t take your plentiful chances and then have a porous defence who play a high line with no discernible cohesion to playing offside, then you’re asking for bother.

It had been an entertaining evening at a ground that had grown on me each time I visited. I headed off for night shift at Ickenham in good form.

Beaconsfield Town 2 Walton Casuals 4 (Monday 18^th October 2021) Southern League Premier Division South (att: 185)

Tony picked me up at our usual rendezvous outside North Harrow station as we headed to see what an entertaining encounter. It cost just a tenner for admission, which included a programme, representing excellent value for money.

There was some interesting defending in front of a watching Stuart Pearce who was presented to the teams before kick-off as the Rams returned home to a very smart Holloways Park complete with new 3G pitch and fencing around the playing area.

 

While it was entertaining, it was also lacking quality at times as Casuals found themselves 3-0 up inside fourteen minutes, as Town’s defence parted like the Red Sea. Shaun McAuley and then a brace from Adam Liddle doing the early damage.

A fine free kick eight minutes before the interval from Scott Donnelly got them back into the game. The gap was narrowed further just after the restart through Oliver McCoy, and for a time it looked certain that they’d at least grab a point from the game. 

However, Walton settled and managed to keep their goal intact despite lots of attacking intent from the hosts. The visitors rounded things off, after earlier striking the post, in the last minute when Bradley Keetch netted.

A wet evening, meaning the second half was spent under the cover behind the goal. Little did I realise that a bloke further along in an AFC Dunstable jacket was BDA_85 of the Non-League Matters Forum and we’d cross paths again within a few hours at the other end of the country.