The Hop With The Miner Diversion

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 28 October at Brewery Field
Result	Spennymoor Town 1 Chorley 0
Competition	National League North (Step 2)
Hopstats	Ground 623 on the lifetime list and I am here (a nine-hour round trip for me) to restore “The 160”, that’s all current English grounds down to and including Step 2, for the fourth time.  You could argue that there are only 159 at the moment because Gloucester City are still tenants at Evesham United.
Context
Both teams doing well in the league, and only one point between them.  Spennymoor, however, lost their last home league game and Chorley have also been on an FA Cup run which will put them on the telly next Monday night.  The home side will be missing Bradley Fewster, and recent reports have highlighted the goalscoring form of Chorley’s Nick Haughton.  He is on loan from their FA Cup opponents Fleetwood Town.
In one sentence
A forgettable first half but a much better second, and Spennymoor’s defensive organisation got them through for an ugly win in difficult windy conditions.
So what?
Spennymoor and Chorley stay 5th and 6th respectively. The gap is four points but Chorley have played one game fewer.
Match Report
The first half was largely fought in midfield.  The gusty wind had less of an impact than I’d feared, but both sides were forced into some safety-first defending at times. Spennymoor were most dangerous from set-pieces, but Chorley had most possession and arguably the best chance of the first half.  Nick Haughton kept the ball in on the right flank as a home attack faltered, and clipped a good pass using the wind to advantage, putting Marcus Carver through one-on-one.  Home keeper Jordan Porter made a good save and the first half ended with the score at nil-nil.  Chances had been hard to create in the conditions and I wrote myself an interval note that this could end up as the final score. Porter was also very busy in the opening moments of the second half with a number of saves as Chorley threatened to run rampant.  The third one, from Jason Walker, was excellent and that was the game’s “What If?” moment right there.  Spennymoor responded up front and forced Matt Urwin to make his first tricky save. It was suddenly much, much better as a spectacle. The only goal came from a move down the right.  Shane Henry’s pass created a chance that was well saved by Urwin but left a rebound for Andrew Johnson.  Chorley were not finished yet but almost got caught on a left-wing break and David Foley hit the bar.  Haughton was still looking dangerous with the ball at his feet, and another mazy dribble led to a free-kick just outside the box.  When Chorley sent that wide, you sensed that Spennymoor’s defence was going to cope with the other stuff coming their way, and indeed they hung on well enough for three points and a clean sheet. Spennymoor Town (0) 1 (Johnson 62) Chorley (0) 0
Ground Pix
This ground has all the “character” that the newer places have sometimes sacrificed, including a noticeable slope.
Match Pix
Spennymoor are in black-and-white.
Pre-Match Entertainment
This was an unexpected bonus, and everyone under the age of 30 should do this.  The Durham Mining Museum (free entry) is tucked away in the Town Hall, and it is a wonderful collection of artefacts and documents.  Having worked on my own family tree over recent years, I have become passionate that everyone today should have a really good understanding of the challenges and enforced lifestyles of previous generations, certainly since the Industrial Revolution as an absolute minimum.  This collection, staffed by knowledgeable volunteers who have been-there-done-that underground, covers both technicalities of mining and the politics of energy.  If you come for a Spennymoor hop, park the car in the Leisure Centre and spend an hour here first.  The ground is no more than a 15-minute walk away.  Gents, if you read this, thanks for taking the trouble to return my lost lens cap.
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
The colour-naming committee (i.e. me) noted but dismissed Spennymoor’s teamsheet claim for a new shade of green.  It’s green enough, and it beats yellow today with the bonus of a clean sheet.  Here’s the table after 122 games. Results so far: Based on conventional 3pts for a win, 1pt for a draw, but also -1pt for a goal conceded (GC) and +5pts for a clean sheet (CS).  Colours ranked on a points per game (PPG) basis. For new readers the odd .5 was caused by a shocking half-and-half shirt and the .1 was due to a substitute goalkeeper in a different colour.  The Fire Cracker colour was confirmed with the help of the social media team at Dulux UK, and it deserves to be last, trust me.  All of this arises from a comment attributed to Petr Cech that orange is the best colour for a goalkeeper because it changes the behaviour of other players around the box. P W D L GC CS Pts PPG Red 9.0 4.0 1.0 4.0 9.0 3.0 19.0 2.111 Maroon 4.0 2.0 1.0 1.0 6.0 1.0 6.0 1.500 Blue 30.1 12.0 6.0 12.1 47.0 10.0 45.0 1.495 Grey 41.5 20.0 9.0 12.5 68.5 11.0 55.5 1.337 Green 64.0 31.0 8.0 25.0 110.0 17.0 76.0 1.188 Orange 24.5 9.0 4.0 11.5 38.5 5.0 17.5 0.714 Purple 11.0 5.0 2.0 4.0 25.0 2.0 2.0 0.182 Yellow 26.0 7.0 6.0 13.0 49.0 5.0 3.0 0.115 Pink 14.0 4.0 4.0 6.0 29.0 1.0 -8.0 -0.571 Radioactive Bile 12.0 5.0 0.0 7.0 26.0 1.0 -6.0 -0.500 Black 5.0 1.0 3.0 1.0 14.0 0.0 -8.0 -1.600 White 1.9 0.0 0.0 1.9 4.0 0.0 -4.0 -2.105 Fire Cracker 1.0 0.0 0.0 1.0 4.0 0.0 -4.0 -4.000
What Next?
I am now seven grounds short of everywhere-down-to-step-3, (Nominally “The 232” although there are a few groundshares in there) and they are my priorities for the rest of this season.  I am well aware that some of you think that I am something short of something else, to whit sandwiches and a picnic, but I am used to that.  Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter for developments, alongside other randomish stuff about education, politics, puns, science and genealogy.

Hopping Gives Me a Sense of Enormous Well-Being (Parkside)

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 14 October 2017 at Parkside
Result	Aveley 2 Soham Town Rangers 2
Competition	Isthmian League Division One North (Step 4)
Hopstats	Ground 622.  A planned trip to Spennymoor was thwarted by oversleeping and A1 closures, so this fixture caught my eye from the nearer alternatives.  I’ve seen Aveley at home once before, but this is a smart new ground with an artificial surface.
Context
Aveley have a new management team and two new signings this week, and a real “buzz” on Twitter to get my attention.  Soham also have two new signings.  So, I put on my trousers, had a cup of tea, and thought about leaving the house. Parkside.
In One Sentence
Entertaining for the passing neutral, frustrating for Aveley’s new gaffer who’d told his players to see the game out by the corner flag.
So What?
Aveley and Soham are 18th and 16th respectively.
Match Report
Aveley took the lead with a very good finish by Jordan Watson, tucking the ball away across the keeper into the far left corner. About to be 1-0 after 13 minutes The same player was involved into the build-up for the second.  Receiving the ball with his back to goal, he sent the ball to the left flank and the cross was perfect for Adam Bolle to stick out a leg and score with a first touch.  It was all pretty comfortable for Aveley who went into half-time with a two-goal lead. Rubbish photo feat. the scorer's foot and ball hidden behind keeper. 2-0 Soham looked more dangerous in the second half and it was no real surprise when they scored to get back in the game.  A long throw caused some chaos, the ball dropped to the floor and it was buried in the roof of the net by debutant Lee Chaffey.  Game on, better for the passing neutral. Aveley responded and there was a very entertaining end-to-end spell.  There was plenty of neat interplay and approach from the home side.  Any triangle-lovers would have been purring, but they never created the golden chance to make Soham’s keeper work hard.  With the third goal proving elusive, the home bench instructed the team to take a stoppage time free-kick to the corner flag.  They did, but ended up giving the ball back to Soham for one more attack.  The new bosses were not best pleased as a last-ditch equaliser was scored by the other Soham debutant, Craig Gillies. Even so, the chat amongst the home fans heading for the exit was that they’d seen a more promising performance and there will be better days ahead. Aveley (2) 2 (Watson 13, Bolle 21) Soham Town Rangers (0) 2 (Chaffey 60, Gillies 90+)
Ground Pix
This place is smart, and well-set for earning income on non-matchdays.  Grays are tenant groundsharers here too, but with a crowd today of just over 260, Aveley won’t want to stay around at Step 4 for long.  On social media this week, the arrival of new manager James Webster from the level above was being seen as something of a statement of intent.
Match Pix
Aveley in white-and-blue.
After Bins, Dogs, Raffles … Non-League Ceilings?
In search of a new angle for a photograph inside the very smart Aveley facilities.  OK, so I was trying to take a selfie but missed, alright?  Don't judge me...
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats
Green and grey today, and no change in the pecking order.  Full table was in the last post.  Will update from time to time.  After 121 games tracked, Red leads and Fire Cracker (as defined by Dulux) is last. For new readers: All of this arises from a comment attributed to Petr Cech that orange is the best colour for a goalkeeper because it changes the behaviour of other players around the box.
What Next?
Watch @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!  Spennymoor Town will be a priority sooner rather than later in order to restore "The 160".