Wakeup for Great Wakering as Urchins Go for their Nap

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Monday 28 December 2015 at Burroughs Park
Result	Great Wakering Rovers 0 AFC Hornchurch 5
Competition	Isthmian League Division One North (Step 4)
Hopping	Ground 582, and here at my nearest unvisited Step 4 ground after the collapse of a Sussex-Kent double header due to the weather.
Pre-match preparation
Minimal because of the late change of plan, but a glance at the table suggested that the visitors would start as favourites.  The thing I liked most about this venue was that Google Maps started by suggesting "Great Wall of China" when I was a few characters into the search.
This match in one sentence
A dominant Hornchurch performance and a win that was as comfortable as the scoreline suggests.
So what?
Great Wakering stay in lower-mid table and Hornchurch reinforce their promotion credentials, firmly in the playoff places at least and still in the hunt for the top spot.
The drama unfolds
Hornchurch took the lead from their first real attack.  Alex Bentley curled home a right-footer from the edge of the area after a rebound fell nicely into his path.  0-1 after 7 mins 0-1 The second goal was very well-taken, a first time shot from 18yds by David Knight, albeit in plenty of space as my photo confirms.  I wrote down the word “ominous” in my notes.  0-2 after 16 mins ... and 0-2 with a superb first-time shot from Knight Knight produced a baby’s pacifier from somewhere about his person for the celebration.  Maybe he should have kept it in – his direct personal abuse of the assistant ref a few minutes later went unpunished.  I can’t believe it was unheard.  The game continued with Hornchurch in the ascendancy until half-time when I crossed paths with @essexfootie in the tea bar queue.  If you are not following this man on Twitter, then you should be.  0-2 at half-time Great Wakering started the second half brightly but Hornchurch also responded immediately and George Purcell smacked the crossbar.  Their next chance came before too long, though, as more good work from Knight on the left created a shooting opportunity.  Home keeper Adam Seal did well to narrow the angle.  He had no chance with the third as Purcell picked up the ball from a miscued clearance.  He had plenty to do but he held off the defenders and shot low into the left corner.  0-3  after 56 mins Great Wakering hit the bar from a distance with 15 minutes to go, and then the rebound was somehow scrambled away from the six-yard box.  Purcell made no mistake, however, with his second of the day, a direct run from midfield and rounding of the keeper.  0-4 after 80 mins The final goal was pinged off the far post by Bentley after some intricate passing around the Great Wakering penalty area.  A very solid performance from the visitors.  0-5 after 85 mins and at full-time I went off to South Mimms Services for soup and one of the most inedible bread rolls in the history of European cuisine, followed by a Lemsip chaser.  Hashtag living the dream.
Ground Pix
Neat, tidy and cared-for.  Plus a mascot called Rover. Rover just wants to join in really ...
Match Pix
Great Wakering Rovers are in the green-and-white.
Something Important in the Local News
Entertainer Sir Bruce Forsyth has mentioned pleasant memories of childhood day trips to Southend in his new book.  This has led to a full-page celebratory article in the current Southend Echo, with an appreciative quote from a councillor with responsibility for tourism.  There is a beach ball in the accompanying photograph, but sadly nothing on Brucie’s opinions about the Isthmian League.
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Grey thrashes blue and has a clean sheet too.  Full table to follow in the new year.
What Next?
Watch @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!  Taking one day at a time due to manful, which as many hoppers know is very serious.

A Trip to Regent's Treat for Christmas Hopping

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Sunday 27 December 2015 at North Road
Result	Brightlingsea Regent 1 Heybridge Swifts 0
Competition	Isthmian League Division One North (Step 4)
Hopping	Ground 581, and I am here simply because it is my nearest Step 4 unvisited ground today.
Pre-match preparation
11th plays 20th in the league table.  Most of the prep time was taken up with checking travel and weather information!  I picked up a copy of the local paper on arrival, but was distracted by other local matters.  See below.
This match in one sentence
Brightlingsea held on after an uncertain start to take the three points, helped massively by Heybridge’s late penalty miss.
So what?
Brightlingsea climb to 9th, one of several teams in a chasing pack a few points off the playoff places as things stand.  Heybridge stay 20th but will almost certainly drop to 21st because of games in hand held by teams below.  They are still uncomfortably close to the relegation places, but to be fair this is an improvement of late and they only have two defeats in seven.  They were bottom of the table until fairly recently.
The drama unfolds
To be honest I was feeling pretty rubbish by kickoff time so my details are sketchier than usual.  However I must mention a minute of warm applause for a stalwart amongst the club volunteers, tea lady Rita Loates, who passed away this week at the age of 75.  These things matter in the non-league world. The early exchanges on the pitch probably just about favoured Heybridge, but a high ball dropping vertically into the visitors’ penalty area caused defensive panic and a late tackle.  Jake Turner placed a good penalty low into the bottom left corner to give Regent the lead.  1-0 after 28 mins After that, the home side grew in confidence and the match was pretty even.  Plenty of effort and commitment from both sides, and no further goals before the break.  1-0 at half-time The second half was more of the same.  I made a note that I was predicting one more goal, but not committing myself to either 1-1 or 2-0.  Either side looked as likely as the other.  Then the opportunity to share a point was presented to Heybridge by a trip leading to a penalty, with only ten minutes left.  Unfortunately, the spotkick went wide to the right – I was at the other end and cannot confirm the taker.  Things went from bad to worse almost immediately for Heybridge as Liam Thomas picked up his second yellow card, and Regent were able to hold on for the win.  These looked like two well-matched sides to be honest and in particular Swifts look to have decent team spirit and morale as we enter 2016.  Final score 1-0
Ground Pix
Personally, I love the jaunty font, but it's not one for the traditionalists.
Match Pix
Brightlingsea in the red-and-black ...
From the Current Issue of the Clacton Gazette - Honest
“Wannabe Jedi Master Obi-Mark Kenobi has appeared in court for trying to use The Force to clean up the streets of Clacton …” “Kenobi, 44, who changed his name by deed poll … admitted chasing people with a shovel when he appeared (in court) …” “Standing outside the court in his Jedi outfit, he said: “Obi-Wan Kenobi was a great person – a Jedi.  I watch the older films all the time and have been to see the new one at the IMAX in Ipswich.  I changed my name for a new start.  I want to stop the damage being done in Clacton …” “Kenobi (chose the new name) because “it sounds better than Mark Solo or Mark Skywalker” and he can relate to the journey of Obi-Wan, originally played by Alec Guinness.”
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Yellow beat blue and kept a clean sheet too.  Full table early in the new year.
What Next?
Watch @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!  A second dose of manful has taken hold during the day and a sneaky double Bank Holiday hop must be in doubt.  I’m on the Lemsip as I write.  Other delivery methods for paracetamol and caffeine are available.

Trams Derailed by Rams Raiders

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 26 December 2015 at the Croydon Sports Arena
Result	Croydon 1 Croydon Athletic 2
Competition	Southern Counties East Premier Division (Step 5)
Hopping	Ground 580 and the first trip for me (due to work reasons) since September.
Pre-match preparation
None whatsoever.  I was on my way to Corinthian Casuals for a 1.00pm kickoff when the M25 western section scuppered my plans (not for the first time).  Plan B was this 3.00pm kickoff.  I arrived with about 20 minutes to spare to find friendly staff, apologetic about the lack of clubhouse and teabar today.  I took the news well, bought a golden goal ticket, made my usual joke about the certainty of nil-nil, and pulled out the no-score ticket.  Finding out that this fixture is The Trams v The Rams cheered me up slightly.  I watched the game from the main stand.
This match in one sentence
A late consolation goal for Croydon after the visitors went down to ten men, but the result never really seemed in any doubt.
So what?
Athletic up to 13th and Croydon down to 18th.
The drama unfolds
Louis Blake poked the ball home to give Athletic the early lead.  C11 had bought a free-kick from the ref on the edge of the area and the delivery caused chaos in the home defence.  0-1 after 3 minutes They should have scored a second after half-an-hour (Blake shooting over from close range) and another before the interval (Raheem Sterling-Parker caught between crossing and shooting).  0-1 at half-time Croydon played better in the second half but with no real end product.  The visitors’ second goal came from a far-post corner which was not cleared.  The ball came back into the middle to be bundled home from close range by Sterling-Parker.  0-2 after 66 minutes With nine minutes to go, Callum Maclean got a second yellow, and so a red, taking Athletic down to ten men.  Croydon pulled back a late consolation goal through Karl Douglin, and then had the tiniest sniff of an equaliser, but the stronger team held on for the win. 1-2 after 89 minutes, and final score also 1-2
Ground Pix
Croydon play in a ground with an athletics track.  Croydon Athletic don’t.  The area is a building site at the moment and there is nothing picturesque about it whatsoever.  However, all pales into insignificance as I have had to create a new spreadsheet category (alongside planes, trains, ships, buses) for TRAMS! The Trams (blue) and A Tram (green) Unbelievable.
Match Pix
Five Years of Modus Hopper Random
A quick check of the annals showed that my December hopping was messed up by the M25 five years ago too! http://modushopperrandom.blogspot.co.uk/2010/12/sinking-feeling-in-cinque-port-hythe.html
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Orange beats grey and the two colours swop places in the table.  Full table appears in the blog from time to time.
What Next?
Watch @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!  Thanks to everyone reading this after my long break from hopping this season.  Work demands have often left me too exhausted or with too little time to take on the driving and travelling at weekends during term-time, and this may well continue for some time yet.  I am going to try to complete my remaining Step 3 grounds before the end of the season, but that may be about all I can do.  Bear with me!

Rooks In Bad Endgame Position as Phoenix Win, Mate

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 12 September 2015 at The Mayplace Ground
Result	Phoenix Sports 2 Lewes 0
Competition	FA Cup 1st Qualifying Round
Hopping	Ground 579, and I am here because I need to be having pre-dinner drinks in the Isle of Dogs at 6.15pm.  I am so grateful to Phoenix for being in the right place at the right time.  Not strictly random, I admit.
Pre-match preparation
Phoenix needed to win an “away” replay to beat Guernsey in the last round, their point of entry as a Step 4 Isthmian D1 North team.  That replay was held at Lewes as it happens.  Maybe a replay here could mean a team playing two away FA Cup ties at the same ground in different rounds.  Would that be a first?  I suspect not, but I am not sure.  They are in mid-table for their division.  (Note: academic now anyway!) Lewes, of the Isthmian Premier, enter the competition at this point.  They have had an indifferent start to the season but recorded their first win earlier this week, a 4-0 thumping of 10-man Hampton & Richmond.
This match in one sentence
Phoenix fully deserved their half-time lead and were able to add a late second as Lewes were pressing.
So what?
£3000 into the Phoenix coffers and the proverbial name in the hat for the next round.
The drama unfolds
There was only one entry on my notepad after a largely soporific first quarter in the sunshine.  Lewes keeper Dan Hutchings made an excellent save after good combination play from George King and Adem Ramadan down the Phoenix left.  My theory is that the slow start was due to the Robbie Williams “Phoenix from the Flames” dirge that accompanies the players onto the field.  Spend some of the win money on a Basement Jaxx remix or something, guys.  Or go for the instrumental bridge from the Wishbone Ash song from the 70s. Trust me. I correctly recognised @theballisround this time after blanking him at Emley and had an interesting chat as Hutchings continued to get an early grip on the man-of-the-match award with three timely blocks in quick succession.  I took a walk around the edge and noted that “Lewes will be happy to still be 0-0 at half-time” just in time for the opening goal.  It was no more than Phoenix deserved, as finally they found the net.  Ricky Freeman beat his man on the right of the area and set up Jason Goodchild for a close-range glancing header at the near post.  Lewes had not yet offered much by way of attacking threat.  1-0 after 40 mins and at HT Freeman about to be of assistance for the opening goal I messed up the chance to record a flying “save for the cameras” by Phoenix stopper Steve Phillips as Lewes started the second half brightly.  However, Phoenix reasserted themselves and over an hour had gone by before Phillips was seriously tested, making another excellent save.  In the meantime Phoenix had a second disallowed for offside.  Lewes kept pressing and committing players forward.  They had a couple of near misses from headers and failed to make best use of a few set pieces. Freeman sealed the win with another strong run down the right and a neat finish from a narrow angle.  Phoenix managed to hold on easily enough.  2-0 after 79 mins and at FT
Ground Pix
This is one of those grounds that makes a good first impression.  The place looks loved and cared-for.  The club branding is everywhere, the clubhouse is good, and the club’s youngsters were given some attention.  I hadn’t realised how close they are to VCD, and cheers from their match occasionally drifted over on the breeze.  The VCD floodlights are visible over the nearby rooftops (see assist photo above).  They were drawing 1-1 with Didcot in the same competition!
Match Pix
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Blue gets a win and clean sheet, beating Purple.  Updated table at the end of the month.  Red is rarely seen but currently leads on points-per-game with Green in the lead for the mainstream colours.
What Next?
I enter a period of last-minute decisions and missed hopping weeks as the school term gathers momentum.  Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details and announcements!  Occasional nostalgia as I take a look back at how the blog has developed and changed over five years.  One thing that hasn't changed is the appallingly contrived wordplay in the blogpost titles.