Clapton Community

 

Clapton Community FC is a non-league football club whose formation in January 2018 came about through disenfranchised supporters of Clapton FC deciding to form their own club after a huge fall out with owner of the Clapton, Vince McBean.

Those who formed Community had been regular attendees who created a huge rise in attendance at the Old Spotted Dog Ground. You can read here all about the shenanigans and some of my personal views at the time after a visit to a Clapton game.

Immediately the new club set up a women’s team as well as men’s. The men entered the Middlesex County League for the 2018-19 season where they were placed in Division One (Central and East). They won the league title at the first time of asking.

Home games were played on an outside pitch at Wadham Lodge in Walthamstow, which was adapted and added to and given the name of the Stray Dog. Large crowds congregated to watch both teams in action, with some fixtures being moved to the main stadium on the site. 

The club’s ethos is of being open and democratic with transparency and youth as part of the community. Anyone can become an equal member with a pay what you want admission fee. Solidarity, open access, and education all play a part.

The supporter’s campaign for human rights, and often polarize opinion from more traditional supporters elsewhere. They are known to be left-wing and anti-fascist which led to the sale in 2019 of 11,500 away shirts, 5,500 of which went to Spain, after the kit was based on the International Brigades and the Flag of the Second Spanish Republic.

 

In September 2019 the club signed a lease for the Old Spotted Dog after Clapton FC and Hackney Wick had been evicted for non-payment of rent. They took on the freehold of the site in July 2020, with the huge task of getting back in working order and meeting health and safety standards.

The following two seasons were abandoned owing to the coronavirus pandemic. Clapton Community resumed and finished third in the table in 2021-22. Work on the Old Spotted Dog Ground had been carried out so that the club could return to what many would describe as their spiritual home.

The league title was secured for player-manager Geoff Ocran and his team in 2022-23 as they gained promotion to the Eastern Counties League as members of Division One South. The thriving club by now had several sides of all ages as well as a cricket team. They reached the playoffs in 2023-24 but lost to Wormley Rovers in the semi-finals.

Clapton Community FC will play in the Eastern Counties League Division One South in the 2024-25 season.

My visits

Old Spotted Dog

Several visits were made to the home of Clapton Community in its former condition when occupied by former tenants which can be viewed here and here.

The Stray

Thursday 6^th May 2021

Covid restrictions were about done, and I was keen to head out and get some exercise which was far healthier than straying indoors alone. Amazingly, the authorities never minded me heading to work in crowds, but that’s another story. 

It was time to have a long walk around Walthamstow. I took a couple of trains and alighted at Blackhorse Road and headed off in a northerly direction, ending up going past the Crooked Billet roundabout and visiting a former legendary venue in that neck of the woods.

Walthamstow Stadium, former home of the Greyhound Derby and Blur album covers was now a smart housing development in its own little village, but the façade thankfully remained. Heading off while listening to Tottenham fans moaning about their owner on TalkSport I headed towards Wadham Lodge.

There were decent enough views for me to take photos of the Stray Dog, the name given to the ground by CCC, from outside and through the railings so that I didn’t set anyone into panic mode on the main gate. Clapton had done a decent job with the railed pitch and erected a shelter and personalized the place.

Onward I wandered listening to this time to the woes of Derby County and their ownership problems. It was rather fitting to have visited a fan’s owned club. Walthamstow Market was vibrant enough, but I’d done enough walking for one day.

A bus delivered me near Hackney Central station where a couple of pints and pork scratchings in The Cock while listening to good tunes put the world to right before I headed home by train. An enjoyable rest bite and few hours fresh air completed.

The Stanks (Berwick)

The Stanks is a historical site in the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed in Northumberland close to the border with Scotland. Indeed, the town’s football clubs are members of the Scottish FA and compete in their league and cup structure.

An Elizabethan rampart in the town has a grass area inside them. This is called The Stanks, which means a swampy piece of land or ditch in Scottish language. The area was previously a defensive moat between Brass Bastion and Windmill Mount Bastion.

In the shade, the area would often ice over, providing a perfect area for fishermen to dig out ice they required to keep their salmon at the right temperatures for their journey and to stay fresh before being sold in London.

From 1922 the annual Berwick Infirmary Cup was competed for on the football pitch that is marked out. Unfortunately, it does not meet the required size for FA and SFA regulations to competition is limited to unofficial tournaments.

Several thousand spectators are known to have attended the 1929 final between Eyemouth Rangers and Belford. In 1959 the Berwick Charities Cup, which is competed each year between May and July, with most games kicking off at 6.30pm.

The competing teams are put together from pubs or groups of friends or businesses. The cup was close to being abandoned in 2017 with only nine teams wanting to take part. Fortunately, a publicity drive has since seen an increase in participation, which included the Women's Shield.

Between £5,000 and £8,000 was said to be raised for local charities from 2020 with local dementia, cancer care, pensioners, strokes, and a local school among the beneficiaries in 2023 with the presentation of funds being awarded at the Berwick Bowling Club.

My visit

Tuesday 13^th July 2021

As part of a week off work I decided to visit several places across England that took my fancy and tried to see sport along the way. The previous day I was washed out at Chester-le-Street where cricket was meant to take place.

It led to a long day drinking with good friends before taking the bus to Newcastle where I stayed overnight. Covid restrictions were gradually ending, but not all fixtures were back to full capacity after the pandemic.

I had hoped to see a game at The Stanks, but the Charities Cup had finished a week or so before. Instead, I made do with a good walk around the town and over the bridge to visit the Shielfield Park home of Berwick Rangers.

 

Back in town I had lunch and then settled on the ramparts to relax for a while before taking photos of this most incredible venue where spectators are known to look down on the action from great heights. I would have been down on the level standing for sure.

It was somewhere most photogenic, as was much of the old town, which I enjoyed before taking my train back to Tyneside where there was time for a quick snooze and then fine ales before heading off to the friendly between Hebburn Town and Whitby Town.

Holker Old Boys

Holker Old Boys AFC is a non-league football club formed in 1936, in the northwest port town of Barrow-in-Furness. Initially, they were created as Holker Central Old Boys to provide football for former pupils of the Holker Central Secondary School as under-16 side.

Starting out using playing fields a move to adult competition in the North Western League in 1939, and then a new ground in Thorncliffe Road arrived. The team remained in the competition for several decades before entering the West Lancashire League for the 1967-68 campaign. 

A new ground was sourced in 1971 at Rakesmoor Lane in the northern extremities of town on land which had originally been allotments before the 1972-73 season saw the side going down to Division Two of the West Lancashire League, prior to changing the club title.

Promotion was achieved in 1975-76, followed by another demotion in 1978-79, before Division One status was regained in 1980-81. The 1987-88 season saw Old Boys end as league runners-up. 

The club became members of Division Two of the North West Counties in 1991-92, winning promotion to Division One in 1993-94, before they dropped back down a level in 1998-99. In 2003 a home game against FC United of Manchester was moved to Craven Park, home of Barrow Raiders Rugby League Club and attracted a crowd of 2,303.

That tier was retitled Division One in 2008-09 as Holker ended in third spot in 2010-11 before coming close to going up in 2014-15. They went out in the semi-finals of the play-offs to Hanley Town. 

The NWCL was restructured in 2018-19 as ‘The Stags’ were placed in Division One North. A couple of subsequent seasons were abandoned owing to the coronavirus pandemic before Holker ended as runners-up in 2021-22.

Nelson were defeated before the final was lost at home to Golcar United, before the team ended the following campaign in sixth place. Joint managers Kevin Watkin and David Round took their side to seventh place in 2023-24.

Holker Old Boys AFC will play in the North West Counties League Division One North in the 2024-25 season.

My visit

Wednesday 20^th October 2021

I’d headed to Barrow the previous day on a long journey from London to stay overnight in town and head to the Bluebirds home match against Scunthorpe United. I woke the following day in the OYO Imperial Hotel keen to make the most of my remaining time in town. 

A nearby bus stop allowed me to catch the number 1 service, leaving me a five-minute walk along Rakesmoor Lane to the ground, where I was in luck as a gent was having a tidy up and made me welcome while I took some snaps.

The basic ground had a seated stand in the corner behind the goal and a cover further down the touchline past the changing rooms and clubhouse. It seemed to be an exposed location that I could imagine being very cold during winter.

 

Another bus took me near to the Ernest Pass Memorial Ground on Abbey Road, home to Barrow Cricket Club for a quick look. It was time to get my hiking boots on as I headed to take a look at Furness Park, home of Furness Cricket Club.

A bus transported me back into the town centre where there was time for a look around before a late breakfast at The Furness Railway, the JD Wetherspoon establishment in the chain that continued to save me a fortune.

Soon it was time to head to Durham with delays via the coast to Carlisle and then across to Newcastle in readiness for my evening’s entertainment featuring Crook Town and Consett.

 

 

Solihull Moors

Solihull Moors FC is a professional football club based in the West Midlands town of Solihull. They were formed in July 2007 through a merger between Solihull Borough FC and Moor Green FC, moving into the Borough’s Damson Park home.

Moor Green 

Moor Green FC was a club formed in 1901 by players from the Moseley Ashfield Cricket Club in the Hall Green district of Birmingham, who only played friendly matches until joining the Birmingham AFA in 1922, going on to become champions in 1935-36 after being runners-up on two occasions.

 

They moved to the home of The Moorlands in 1930, going on to join the Central Amateur League, winning the title in 1936-37 and 1937-38 before completing the hattrick in 1938-39. This led to a move to the Birmingham Combination.

The 1954-55 season saw ‘The Moors’ join the Southern Division of the Birmingham & District League, which became the West Midlands (Regional) League a few years later. The club transferred to Division One of the Worcestershire Combination in 1965-66, which changed names to become the Midland Combination from 1968. 

The Moorlands. Image taken from the internet

Moors ended as runners-up in 1974-75, 1975-76, and 1979-80 before finally becoming champions in 1980-81 before another second place followed in 1982-83. This saw the side move up to the Midland Division of the Southern League.

A runners-up berth in 1987-88 under manager Bob Faulkner saw the side promoted to the Premier Division of the competition before dropping back down at the conclusion of the 1993-94 campaign after young starlet David Busst had earned a move to Premier League side Coventry City.

Main Stand. Damson Park

 

In 1999-00 the team went up from the renamed Western Division. Thirteenth place in 2003-04 was enough to secure a place in the newly formed Conference North. A first season of struggle was backed up with an eighth place in 2005-06.

However, the club was hit by an arson attack, meaning a move to share Damson Park. It was deemed financially unviable to rebuild The Moorlands, so Green held discussions with three clubs with thoughts of a merger before applying to the FA to carry it out with Solihull Borough.

Solihull Borough

The club was formed in the market town in 1953 by Joe McGorian, originally playing at Widney Lane in Solihull under the name of Lincoln FC. A change of title in 1969 saw ‘The Boro’ join Division Two of the Midland Combination.

A runners-up spot in 1970-71 led to promotion to Division One, which became the Premier Division from the start of the 1983-84 campaign. Runners-up places in 1984-85, and 1990-91 saw Boro move up to the Midland Division of the Southern League, of which they were champions in their 1991-92 debut season. 

Widney Lane. Taken from the internet

By that time, earlier financial problems had led to the sale of their Widney Lane ground to developers, moving in to share The Moorlands with Moor Green. The team dropped back down in 1994-95 with the lower step being later renamed the Western Division.

A move to play at the home of Redditch United followed in 1998, prior to the club buying the former Damson Parkway Golf Range and developing it into a new home. Promotion to the Premier League was achieved in 2003-04 before the side was demoted once again a couple of years later. 

Boro were given a place in Division One Midlands following the reorganization of the league in 2006-07, prior to Moor Green entering a merger at the end of that season which ended in a mid-table finish.

Solihull Moors

The new club appointed Moor Green boss Bob Faulkner as manager and took his former side’s place in Conference North. Things moved apace with Birmingham City reserves using Damson Park as well as their women’s side. A two-year spell saw Pertemps Bees rugby team use the venue. 

Lower table finishes in their first three seasons came as the club began to build and find its own identity. In February 2011 Faulkner died of cancer. He had been manager of Moor Green and then Moors for a combined total of twenty-five years.

Marcus Bignot, with a wealth of Football League experience, was appointed as manager in the summer of 2011. The team began to make progress while efforts to engage the local community began to pay off as Omar Bogle became a favourite with his goals. 

After a few seasons of building, Moors won the National League North title in 2015-16, going on to reach the second round of the FA Cup the following season before bowing out to Luton Town. By then Bignot had departed to take the same role at Grimsby Town.

New boss Liam McDonald ensured his side consolidated prior to Mark Yates taking over in the 2017-18 season as Moors did just enough to stay up. The manager’s achievements didn’t go unnoticed as he was appointed as manager of Macclesfield Town.

His assistant and former England goalkeeper Tim Flowers was the replacement. He took the side to second place in 2018-19, with dreams of promotion ending in the playoff semi-final against AFC Fylde. The team also had live TV coverage of their home FA Cup second round tie against Blackpool.

They reached the second round again in 2019-20 going out to Rotherham United, while the season was later disrupted by the outbreak of coronavirus after the departure of Flowers. In 2021-22 Moors came close to promotion of the Football League under manager Neal Ardley. 

They defeated Chesterfield in the playoffs before losing to Grimsby Town in the final at London Stadium after extra time, despite taking the lead earlier through giant striker Kyle Hudlin. Andrew Dallas had top scored throughout the regular season.

Ardley departed in the summer of 2023 after a disappointing season to be replaced by former League full back and Banbury United manager Andy Whing. He took the sides to the playoffs in 2023-24 where they defeated Barnet, before losing on penalties to Bromley on penalties after a superb game had ended 2-2, in which skipper Jamey Osborne starred.

Solihull Moors FC will play in the National League in the 2024-25 season.

My visits 

Solihull Moors 0 Yeovil Town 0 (Saturday 30^th October 2021) National League (att: 1,606) 

A bit of a game of snakes and ladders, this Saturday. I was originally intending on a double dose of entertainment as I was heading to Nuneaton Borough v Stamford in the under 21’s league, for the 10.30am kick off with train tickets already prepaid.

On Friday night they swapped the venue to Stamford. This was after the Nuneaton secretary confirmed to me that it would be played at their home. It was as well that I checked Twitter when I awoke after a fine previous evening downtown on the pop. No doubt the previous day’s rain being the issue in the venue change.

I booked a replacement train to Birmingham, as hanging around in Nuneaton in the rain with nothing to do didn’t really appeal, with the greatest of respect to any residents of the town reading this synopsis.

On route to Euston, I received a text to tell me that my booked train from Nuneaton to Coventry to get to the later game was cancelled anyway, so I’d have been left in the lurch. Someone was looking down on me. 

Pre match offerings in The Wellington in Birmingham
It took discipline to leave.

I boarded the fast Birmingham train to find out they had put me in the new premium class, which was most relaxing to get me in a good mood for some lunchtime libation as four magnificent pints in The Wellington followed. What a superb pub it continued to be.

The ever-consistent Oakham Citra, HPA of Wye Valley, BFG of Black Country and Piffle Snonker, sounding like something the PM would call a kid, from Froth Blowers all doing the bizzo. The pub cat took a shine to me. It must have been my skills in talking to the animals at work that attracted it. 

It was a train ride down to Birmingham International which by now saw me in a very merry mood so I took a cab from there, as the buses looked to be running late and I would have been pushing it for kick-off.

What followed was a dull game with very few chances with a sending off for either side being the only remarkable feature. The hosts played better after they were the first side reduced to ten. Solihull fans who like attacking play must have loved me. 

I had now seen them twice in a couple of weeks and both games ended blank. On a personal note, I was chuffed as I completed the top five tiers for the first time. Oh, and I enjoyed listening to England dismantle Australia in the T20 as a backdrop.

I liked the venue too, with it being a work in progress with semi-temporary stands. The people all around the place seemed very decent and proud of their club, if lacking a little in passion. The catering was a bit on the steep side, but it looked to be an affluent area, so that was understandable.

After the match I joined the gathering queue for the A1 bus to the town centre. I was hoping that we would all fit on the double decker, so it was a shock when the small hopper bus came round the corner. We all got on, but only just. I was one of the youngest!

Solihull looked to be a nice town, and I quite liked the ground. A good, if more expensive than intended day out. The game, as often is the case, being the only disappointment. Not even the noisy kids on the train back to Marylebone could keep me awake.