Slough Despondent After Double Double-Barrelled Attack

 

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 22 February 2025 at the Truro City Stadium
Result	Truro City 2 Slough Town 0
Competition	National League South
Hopstats	Ground 794 on my lifetime list, which temporarily restores “everywhere down to Step 2 in England” or “The 164” for me, for the time being, at least until the new Everton stadium is officially opened. The first test event has happened there as most readers will know.
Context
Truro City are in the playoff positions and Slough Town are in mid-table.
Match Report
Over 1700 here today on a breezy but sunny day. It didn’t take too long for Truro to take the lead from the first long-throw of the afternoon. The ball was initially cleared but hooked back in and Connor Riley-Lowe scored from close range. Both keepers then made good saves. Truro’s Dan Lavercombe spectacularly tipped over a Slavi Spasov header, and Slough’s Charlie Horlock did well to block a close-range effort from (I think) Tom Harrison (assuming he was wearing number 5). The rest of the first half was pretty even, with enough to encourage visiting supporters that the result was still in doubt. The teams traded half chances in the second half, maybe the Truro ones were marginally better in the world of xG, but Slough did mess up a couple of their better bits of approach play. Another good Horlock block on 72 mins kept the deficit down but just five minutes later he found himself isolated and jumping one-to-one with Christian Oxlade-Chamberlain and the attacker won the duel to make it 2-0. That was it, really. Slough never gave up but Truro were quite comfortable. Time for me to get back to the long and winding road of the A30 with a tick in my groundhopping book.
So What?
Erm … Truro City are in the playoff positions and Slough Town are in mid-table. Gotta love copy-and-paste.
Pix
Truro in red.
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats Update
The background to this, and the latest keeper top colour league table, is here on this dedicated page. Today a notable victory for Purple over the table-topping Grey, with a clean sheet too. Pre-match Prediction based on Keeper Top Colour: Prediction: Away Win Was the prediction correct? No % of correct predictions so far 49% (85 from 173)
What Next?
No idea! Back to work now after half-term with a busy few weeks ahead with all my groups looking towards GCSE and A level exams. I suspect that I won’t get to Everton before next season, hopefully for an important WSL or WFAC game, but I also have a long journey Plymouth Parkway to complete the whole of Step 3, and another 35 grounds in Step 4! Expect last-minute decision-making dependent on the weather.

Gloucester 'Ave A New Manager, Avenue Manage A Point

 

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 9 October 2021 at New Meadow Park
Result	Gloucester City 0 Bradford PA 0
Competition	National League North (Step 2)
Hopstats	Ground 731 on my lifetime list is not random at all. It’s the only current unvisited Step 2 ground on my list. Gloucester City went through many years of groundsharing after catastrophic flooding at their former home, and this is their first season with a home of their own since 2007. This hop restores "The 160" for me, except that it is currently "The 158" after the demise of Macclesfield Town and Bury, leaving two divisions of the pyramid one club short for this season.
Context
Neither side is setting the division alight, and Gloucester have had a recent change of manager after four consecutive league defeats, parting company with ex-WBA player Paul Groves. This is a game of 21st plays 18th but we can be encouraged by the fact that a recent meeting between the teams ended up in a 4-4 goalfest. (Post-match edit: I jinxed it…) Both sides are likely to start with at least one debutant.
In One Sentence
Bradford’s defence is not easily breached, and when it was, the woodwork was in the way.
So What?
It’s now 20th and 18th respectively for these two sides, but still only about one-fifth of the season completed.
Pre-match Entertainment
Firstly, a trip to the Jet Age Museum which is at the boundary edge of Gloucester Airport, a few miles outside the city. The volunteers who run the place deserve a mention. This is another little gem of a collection with both local and national interest, with the artefacts displayed and explained to a high standard. Well worth a visit and a voluntary donation. Flying visits – literally – are possible if you taxi your plane off the runway at the right point!   Secondly a walk around the redeveloped dock area and the city centre. It’s quite possible my great-great-great grandfather Jasper Saul, a horse-trader turned boatman, passed through here working the boats up towards the West Midlands, where he eventually settled on Canal Side Cottages near the phosphorus works in Oldbury.
Match Report
I suppose it is one of life’s inevitabilities that substitutes are more likely to kick a ball out of the ground than the chosen eleven. Just before kickoff, I really felt for the Bradford official (or volunteer) that had to slosh around in the mud puddles on wasteland behind the stand when his team’s hapless subs launched several footballs out of the ground in quick succession. The home side, under the new interim management of Lee Mansell, started well and their first ping of the crossbar came via Leon Chambers-Parillion after only six minutes. However, for the next half-hour the teams largely cancelled each other out. Midfield was congested. Gloucester were slightly more adept at working triangles and reaching the byline, but with no end product. Kevin Dawson completed one such run just before the half-hour but no-one was there for his pull back. At the other end, home keeper Jake Cole was untroubled by Dylan Mottley-Henry’s header as it drifted wide. Neither keeper had been really tested until Bradford’s Jonathan Saltmer had to be alert to push away an effort from close range after a long throw had caused problems. Gloucester were on top for these closing minutes of the first half and it took both a good saving tackle from Luca Havern and the width of a post to deny them. An excellent shot from distance hit the woodwork and Saltmer showed good reactions to catch and smother the rebound. The second half followed a similar pattern but Bradford continued to be well-organised defensively. Again the sides rather neutralised each other in the middle third. A superb flowing move from the right flank led to Gloucester hitting the bar again through Jordan Young. By now I was resigned to a nil-nil scoreline, though Bradford did cause a few scary moments in the closing minutes. At one point keeper Jake Cole was treated by the physios having ended up flat out in the goal net. There were several minutes of added time before the final whistle confirmed a share of the points.
Match Pix
Gloucester City in red.
Ground Pix
Tidy and well-appointed as you would expect, with an artificial surface. Good montage of flags and banners at the T-End. I parked at the Castle Mead Way car park which was £6 for the day. It was close to the docks and centre for my pre-match perambulations and about 10-15 minutes from the stadium.
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats Update
Usually accompanied by a pre-match prediction on Twitter just before kickoff. Working towards being able to compute a respectable statistical significance test by the end of the season. The full keeper top performance table from my last 232 matches is here, on this separate page. Today, two colours from the top end of the table share the points and both get a clean sheet. No change in the positions. Pre-match Prediction based on Keeper Top Colour: Prediction: Home Win Was the prediction correct? No % of correct predictions so far 48% (42 from 87) 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. The odd decimal places were caused either by undeniable half-and-half tops or lower league sub keepers in a different colour.  The Fire Cracker colour was confirmed with the help of the social media team at Dulux UK.  All of this arises from a comment attributed to Petr Cech (and supported by anonymous scientists of some description) that orange is the best colour for a goalkeeper because it changes the behaviour of other players around the box. It is supposedly because of an innate primeval human reaction to the colour and the colour “spreads” more in the vision of a striker at the key moment of decision. Genius or garbage? The evidence is gathering here, and is leaning towards the latter.
What Next?
Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter! As it happens I have only one new ground to restore complete coverage of Step 3, and that is Wimborne Town. My next realistic chance to go there is not until 6th November due to other commitments, so in the meantime I might be able to pick off another Step 4 ground or two by randomish means. On my list, Guernsey is the ground that will need most forward planning (and expense).

 

York City and Its Trains Stay on Track

 This space is where a pic of the programme front cover normally goes. 

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 2 October 2021 at LNER Community Stadium
Result	York City 2 Whitby Town 0
Competition	FA Cup 3rd Qualifying Round
Hopstats	Ground 730 on my lifetime list is the third consecutive game at a ground known as a Community Stadium, following trips to Brentford and Boston United. This isn’t a random selection. It’s a new ground on the way to restore my full coverage down to Step 2, which all being well will happen at Gloucester next weekend.
Context
Predicting FA Cup results is always tricky. The old adage says that league form goes out of the window. The prize money is such that most clubs take the competition seriously in these early rounds. York City, like Boston United last week, need to get their new ground hosting games at a higher level sooner rather than later. They are mid-table at Step 2 in the National League North, and they saw off Hebburn Town comfortably enough in the previous round. Whitby Town are a step below York, in the Northern Premier League, but interestingly their good league position is built mostly on an impressive away record. They won away at FA Vase holders Warrington Rylands in the last round. Much better to rely on the colour of the goalkeeper top as a predictive method (see below). You don’t get that with Opta. Update: it was not a good day for keepertopcolourstats, and not for the first (or last) time.
In One Sentence
A fair result, secured with first-half goal poaching skills from veteran Clayton Donaldson, and a nice loud singing and sweary day out for the Whitby support.
So What?
It’s a cup game so York are in the hat for the next round and Whitby aren’t. Other clichés are available.
Pre-match Entertainment
I travelled up to York by LNER Azuma from Stevenage today, and sat in the LNER Azuma stand. For the morning, the National Railway Museum had my attention. It has been refurbished and extended since my last visit, many decades ago. This was a happy couple of hours in the presence of engineering and logistic excellence with some social and political history thrown in. I managed to walk away from the train sets on sale and then decided to stick to my original plan to walk the 2.8 miles to the ground, which was pleasant enough despite the pouring rain. I need the exercise, trust me.  From an exhibit about life on the Ambulance Trains of WW1
Match Report
My small bottle of water was confiscated at the gate for reasons which are not entirely clear and satisfactory to me, or the stewards (just doing what they are told etc etc) but we laughed. There had been no programmes on sale outside, so I set about finding the sellers inside. There were none. A number of us were clearly doing the same, and a supervising steward told us they were on their way, and she pointed out where the seller would be. Half-an-hour later, still nothing. This time we were fobbed off with the old “not our responsibility” line. I’m irritated by this but not enough to ever go back, but there are some hoppers for whom programmes are a non-negotiable part of the experience. A hasty tweet went unanswered, as is usual for clubs at this level. As I write this late on Saturday evening, I find that it is £1.50 for the online digital programme as a pdf. There is no chance whatsoever that I am paying that, so my collection will have a little gap in it. One steward in particular was very helpful and tried her best to solve the issue for us. Of the other four that I spoke to at various points, three were non-English speaking and didn’t understand the question, and the fourth was on her first day and didn’t know. I gave up, and sat down to watch the game. York took control pretty much from the start. Whitby keeper Shane Bland had already been busy before he watched Clayton Donaldson’s first effort of the day go narrowly wide. The opening goal was just after the quarter-hour, Bland doing superbly well to save Mackenzie Heaney’s shot and Donaldson’s initial follow-up, but the veteran striker kept his composure to slot home the second rebound. Whitby’s first real chance was a good one, and could have changed the game had it been taken. As it happens, it goes in the records as a good one-handed save by Pete Jameson in the York goal rather than a spectacular equaliser for Jacob Hazel. We only had to wait until just after the half-hour for Donaldson’s second, with another element of deja-vu as it took him two attempts to score from Michael Woods’ pass. Woods had broken strongly down the left flank when a Whitby attack had broken down. The visitors’ task began to look impossible, but to be fair their fans kept up their noisy (if not family-friendly) support throughout. They seemed determined to have a good day one way or another. Jameson was called into action again just before half-time and that was the other potential game-changing moment. After half-time, the main question was whether Donaldson would get a hat-trick. York kept pressing, and Whitby stayed competitive for a good while. A goal would certainly have given them hope. Bland continued to have a busy afternoon behind their defence, denying Harrison Hopper and (of course) Donaldson in the first few minutes of the second half. Clayton Donaldson in search of a hat-trick Donaldson had one more chance but the effort was deflected for a corner. Whitby had one more too on the hour mark, but Jameson was in the right place at the right time. The result was secure and there was no further scoring. So, credit to York City for an efficient performance and safe passage to the next round, and credit to Whitby for putting up a fight before bowing out of the competition. As the rain fell, it was time for the second half of my exercise as I set off to walk back to the station. Note to any hoppers doing the same: the riverside path suggested by Google Maps is not sensible in wet weather. It’s a mudbath. Stick to either the Huntingdon or Haxby Road alternative. It takes just over an hour at moderate walking pace.
Match Pix
Ground Pix
Considerable similarity with last week at Boston United. An out-of-town site with modern amenities has replaced a worn-out stadium, and it needs to get promoted sooner rather than later. It felt cavernous today with one side unopened. “Is this a library?” sang the Whitby end at one point, and you could see why. I like the design and the colours, but I was too grumpy after the programme debacle and wet after the walk to really enjoy the experience today, especially when the result was effectively decided by half-time. The ground is shared with a rugby league side, and you can just make out the overpainted markings. The surface, although very wet today, was excellent.
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats Update
Usually accompanied by a pre-match prediction on Twitter just before kickoff. Working towards being able to compute a respectable statistical significance test by the end of the season. The full keeper top performance table from my last 231 matches is here, on this separate page. Today, Pink beats Orange and keeps a clean sheet, in defiance of the league table. For the first time in many weeks, there is a change in rank order as Pink goes above Yellow.    Pre-match Prediction based on Keeper Top Colour: Prediction: Away Win Was the prediction correct? No % of correct predictions so far 49% (42 from 86) 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. The odd decimal places were caused either by undeniable half-and-half tops or lower league sub keepers in a different colour.  The Fire Cracker colour was confirmed with the help of the social media team at Dulux UK.  All of this arises from a comment attributed to Petr Cech (and supported by anonymous scientists of some description) that orange is the best colour for a goalkeeper because it changes the behaviour of other players around the box. It is supposedly because of an innate primeval human reaction to the colour and the colour “spreads” more in the vision of a striker at the key moment of decision. Genius or garbage? The evidence is gathering here, and is leaning towards the latter.
What Next?
Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter! The provisional plan, subject to the usual barriers of life-in-post-Brexit-and-mid-pandemic England, is to head to Gloucester City v Bradford next Saturday as explained above.

Pilgrims' Ambition is More Than a Feeling

Hopperational Details
Date & Venue	Saturday 25 September at The Jakemans Community Stadium
Result	Boston United 2 Guiseley 1
Competition	National League North (Step 2)
Hopstats	Ground 729 on the lifetime list is not a random choice. After my recent attention to The 92 & 115, there is only one sequence of fixtures for ticking off my three remaining Step 2 grounds on consecutive Saturdays to restore The 158, so I am here. It would normally have been The 160, but the combination of Bury and Macclesfield Town folding, alongside the disruption of promotion and relegation during the pandemic, means that the National League, and National League South, are running with an odd number of teams this season.
Context
13th v 15th before kickoff. Both teams have similar mixed records and sit in mid-table. Boston will be looking for a third consecutive home win to follow on from a 6-0 hammering of Corby Town in the FA Cup last weekend. Guiseley also won in the cup, winning away at Colne.
In One Sentence
Workmanlike rather than impressive, but a win is a win.
So What?
A move of one place for each team, up to 12th and down to 16th respectively. Both have home FA Cup ties next weekend. Boston United host East Thurrock United and Guiseley host Blyth Spartans.
Pre-match Entertainment
One of the reasons for taking car rather than train today was to be able to make a morning visit to the nearby Bubblecar Museum in Langrick. What a magnificent collection, with the distinctive and unusual vehicles supplemented by collections of furniture, toys, kitchen utensils and other domestic artefacts. It is well worth an hour of your time if you are ticking off this new ground this year.   As I then drove towards the town centre, clusters of people at the roadside, many with cameras, indicated that something unusual was about to happen. I parked up and joined them, and a discreet enquiry established both that, no, I’m not from round here, and the Flying Scotsman was imminent, on its way to Skegness. Well, I had a glimpse of it last Tuesday evening, and it would have been rude not to wait until it had passed by today.  I then had a pleasant walk around some of Boston’s town centre and side streets. The town has an active port (shellfish, I believe) and an interesting religious and political history with connections to the settlement of what is now the United States. Walking down the footpath alongside the A16 to the ground takes around 30-40 minutes. There is a shuttle bus as an alternative, but I wanted the exercise. It’s perfectly OK in daylight on a dry day – it’s not a walk I would particularly want to do in the rain or in darkness, or with young children. You have to cross and re-cross the busy A16 as you get close to the stadium.
Match Report
Guiseley started well and it was only a superb block by Luke Shiels on Jordan Thewlis that stopped them taking an early lead. Shiels was impressive throughout that first half. Kaine Felix had the visitors’ second chance with a one-one-one breakthrough but a defender got back just in time to disrupt his shot. When Boston took the lead after 14 minutes it was somewhat against the run of play. An excellent trap and turn in midfield by Danny Elliott allowed him to fashion a move down the right flank through Jordan Preston and when the ball came in Jordan Burrow was in position to score. The game entered a spell of mutual cancellation. Patient Guiseley buildup in the modern fashion was met with good Boston defensive organisation, and they themselves looked dangerous on the break. Andi Thanoj sent in a fierce strike, but too high, on one such occasion. The rest of the scoring was completed in a two-minute spell before half-time. With 38 minutes on the clock, a misplaced clearance from home keeper George Sykes-Kenworthy left him out of position and an empty net for Thewlis To roll home the equaliser from distance. However, Boston were back in front almost immediately. Keeper Luke Jackson did well initially to block a shot from Connor Dimaio but the ball bounced up for a free header for Fraser Preston to score what turned out to be the winner. Just after the break, Guiseley hit the post with a neatly-worked freekick routine from the training ground, but as the half wore on, a third Boston goal began to look more likely as the visitors ran out of ideas. A flick from Burrow rolled just wide of the post, at the end of a few minutes of sustained pressure. It was a game that rather fizzled out rather than reached a crescendo, but a win is a win.
Match Pix
During the pandemic I tend to stay in one of the quieter corners of the ground, hence the lack of variety in the pix this season.
Ground Pix
This is a classy new build with features that remind the hopper of similar developments at Aveley and AFC Fylde, for example. Plus Rushden and Diamonds, of course, and Boston United, like the others, will need to get up a tier sooner rather than later. The ambition is clearly there. It’s an excellent playing surface. On balance you can understand why they moved away from their previous town centre position, with a compromise over location. There is scope for further development on the fourth side.  Some groundhoppers talk about “proper” old grounds but for me these are the standards that future generations will rightly expect. You never catch them talking about “proper” old school buildings for their children, to make a comparison with my own field. Hopefully readers will pick up the 1970s musical reference hidden in the blogpost title. It was initially going to be called Transports of Delight but on balance my days out are more about the football than the cars, trains, boats and planes.   The floodlights of the old ground are still there, for now
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats Update
Usually accompanied by a pre-match prediction on Twitter just before kickoff. Working towards being able to compute a respectable statistical significance test by the end of the season. The full keeper top performance table from my last 230 matches is here, on this separate page.  Today, it was two shades of Green facing each other, and neither kept a clean sheet. Once again the league table of colours remains unchanged. Pre-match Prediction based on Keeper Top Colour: Prediction: Draw Was the prediction correct? No % of correct predictions so far 49% (42 from 85) 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. The odd decimal places were caused either by undeniable half-and-half tops or lower league sub keepers in a different colour.  The Fire Cracker colour was confirmed with the help of the social media team at Dulux UK.  All of this arises from a comment attributed to Petr Cech (and supported by anonymous scientists of some description) that orange is the best colour for a goalkeeper because it changes the behaviour of other players around the box. It is supposedly because of an innate primeval human reaction to the colour and the colour “spreads” more in the vision of a striker at the key moment of decision. Genius or garbage? The evidence is gathering here, and is leaning towards the latter.
What Next?
Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter! The provisional plan has been revised to York City v Whitby Town in the FA Cup next Saturday, followed by Gloucester City v Bradford the following weekend. Always subject to weather, roadworks and Covid19 of course, and now also on the availability of fuel for the Yappmobile.