One in a Hundred

It turned out that there were exactly 100 unvisited grounds that meet my groundhopping "rules" for Saturday's ties in the Extra Preliminary Round of the new FA Cup competition.

I have been waiting for such a moment ever since this blog started, so that this little beauty could make its blog and life-determining debut:

It's a golfball-type die with 100 dimples.  Imagine one dimple at the "north pole".  There is a ring of six more immediately to the south, and then successive rings of 11, 15 and 17, with the last being just above the "equator".  That adds up to 50 dimples in the "northern hemisphere" so to speak, and the other half is the mirror image so that we have a die that can settle on a flat surface with any one of the hundred dimples having an even chance.

Here's the filmed evidence of my decision - bear in mind that I move the camera in line to look directly down at the die when it has settled.  I wasn't cheating, honest.  It's random, proper random this time!  The train ticket is now booked too, so this will be proper old-school groundhopping.

For the record, here was the full list, edited from the listing on invaluable fixtures section of therealfacup.  Any other tie NOT here will probably be a ground that I have already visited, or a "tenant" in a groundshare.  (I have a landlords-preferred rule!)

Have a great FA Cup day wherever you go, and if you are in the same place as me, come and say hello.

1	ABBEY HEY	v	BOOTLE
2	ABINGDON UNITED	v	AFC HAYES
3	AFC BLACKPOOL	v	ASHTON ATHLETIC
4	AFC BRIDGNORTH	v	BOLDMERE ST MICHAELS
5	AFC DARWEN	v	CAMMELL LAIRD 1907
6	AFC ST AUSTELL	v	STREET
7	ALSAGER TOWN	v	BARTON TOWN OLD BOYS
8	ANSTEY NOMADS	v	HARBOROUGH TOWN
9	ARMTHORPE WELFARE	v	HANDSWORTH PARRAMORE
10	ASHBY IVANHOE	v	QUORN
11	ASHINGTON	v	NELSON
12	ATHERTON COLLIERIES	v	BACUP & ROSSENDALE BOROUGH
13	BARNOLDSWICK TOWN	v	DUNSTON UTS
14	BECKENHAM TOWN	v	LANCING
15	BEDFORD	v	WELWYN GARDEN CITY
16	BLACKFIELD & LANGLEY	v	HALLEN
17	BODMIN TOWN	v	CHEDDAR
18	BOSTON TOWN	v	WISBECH TOWN
19	BOTTESFORD TOWN	v	RADFORD
20	BRADFORD TOWN	v	FAREHAM TOWN
21	BRIDLINGTON TOWN	v	SILSDEN AFC
22	BRIDPORT	v	ALRESFORD TOWN
23	BRIMSCOMBE & THRUPP	v	HENLEY TOWN
24	BRISTOL MANOR FARM	v	GILLINGHAM TOWN
25	BROCKENHURST	v	LAVERSTOCK & FORD
26	BROCTON	v	WALSALL WOOD
27	BUCKLAND ATHLETIC	v	PLYMOUTH PARKWAY
28	CAMBERLEY TOWN	v	COVE
29	CARTERTON	v	HIGHMOOR IBIS
30	CHESSINGTON & HOOK UNITED	v	WICK
31	CHESTER-LE-STREET TOWN	v	GARFORTH TOWN
32	CLEVEDON TOWN	v	ASHTON & BACKWELL UNITED
33	COLESHILL TOWN	v	CRADLEY TOWN
34	CONGLETON TOWN	v	NEW MILLS
35	COVENTRY SPHINX	v	HIGHGATE UNITED
36	CROWBOROUGH ATHLETIC	v	FARNHAM TOWN
37	DEAL TOWN	v	BANSTEAD ATHLETIC
38	DUDLEY SPORTS	v	NUNEATON GRIFF
39	EASINGTON COLLIERY	v	NORTHALLERTON TOWN
40	EAST PRESTON	v	HORLEY TOWN
41	ERITH TOWN	v	SUTTON COMMON ROVERS
42	FAIRFORD TOWN	v	CB HOUNSLOW UNITED
43	FAKENHAM TOWN	v	SLEAFORD TOWN
44	GODMANCHESTER ROVERS	v	GREAT YARMOUTH TOWN
45	HAILSHAM TOWN	v	CRAWLEY DOWN GATWICK
46	HALSTEAD TOWN	v	NEWMARKET TOWN
47	HARROGATE RAILWAY ATHLETIC	v	ALBION SPORTS
48	HARROWBY UNITED	v	THETFORD TOWN
49	HAUGHMOND	v	ALVECHURCH
50	HEATH HAYES	v	BROMSGROVE SPORTING
51	HEATON STANNINGTON	v	WEST AUCKLAND TOWN
52	HEMSWORTH MW	v	RUNCORN LINNETS
53	HENGROVE ATHLETIC	v	VERWOOD TOWN
54	HOLBEACH UNITED	v	SWAFFHAM TOWN
55	HOLMESDALE	v	HAYWARDS HEATH TOWN
56	KIRKLEY & PAKEFIELD	v	WALSHAM LE WILLOWS
57	LEICESTER NIRVANA	v	DUNKIRK
58	LICHFIELD CITY	v	WOLVERHAMPTON CASUALS
59	LIVERSEDGE	v	GUISBOROUGH TOWN
60	LONGLEVENS	v	BEDFONT & FELTHAM
61	LOUGHBOROUGH UNIVERSITY	v	SHIREBROOK TOWN
62	LYDNEY TOWN	v	TEAM SOLENT
63	LYE TOWN	v	AFC WULFRUNIANS
64	MAINE ROAD	v	NOSTELL MW
65	MILE OAK	v	GUILDFORD CITY
66	MONEYFIELDS	v	CHRISTCHURCH
67	NEWHAVEN	v	ROCHESTER UNITED
68	NORTH SHIELDS	v	JARROW ROOFING BOLDON CA
69	OADBY TOWN	v	LONG EATON UNITED
70	ODD DOWN	v	LONGWELL GREEN SPORTS
71	OLDLAND ABBOTONIANS	v	NEWPORT (IW)
72	PADIHAM	v	TEAM NORTHUMBRIA
73	PARKGATE	v	IRLAM
74	PENISTONE CHURCH	v	CHEADLE TOWN
75	PENRITH AFC	v	SUNDERLAND RCA
76	PETERBOROUGH SPORTS	v	GORLESTON
77	PONTEFRACT COLLIERIES	v	RUNCORN TOWN
78	RAINWORTH MW	v	CLEETHORPES TOWN
79	RYHOPE CW	v	PICKERING TOWN
80	SEAHAM RED STAR	v	MORPETH TOWN
81	SEVENOAKS TOWN	v	SPORTING CLUB THAMESMEAD
82	SHEPPEY UNITED	v	BADSHOT LEA
83	SHEPSHED DYNAMO	v	AFC MANSFIELD
84	SHEPTON MALLET AFC	v	WILLAND ROVERS
85	SHERBORNE TOWN	v	AMESBURY TOWN
86	SHILDON	v	BEDLINGTON TERRIERS
87	SOUTH NORMANTON ATHLETIC	v	AYLESTONE PARK
88	SOUTHWICK	v	CRAY VALLEY (PM)
89	THATCHAM TOWN	v	BRACKNELL TOWN
90	THORNABY	v	BISHOP AUCKLAND
91	UNITED SERVICES PORTSMOUTH	v	MELKSHAM TOWN
92	WASHINGTON	v	NEWTON AYCLIFFE
93	WELLS CITY	v	PORTISHEAD TOWN
94	WELTON ROVERS	v	BITTON AFC
95	WEST DIDSBURY & CHORLTON AFC	v	AFC LIVERPOOL
96	WESTFIELD	v	WALTON & HERSHAM
97	WHITCHURCH UNITED	v	CRIBBS
98	WHITSTABLE TOWN	v	OAKWOOD
99	WHITTON UNITED	v	BASILDON UNITED
100	WORTHING UNITED	v	SHOREHAM

Mystic North-East Meets Wild North-West

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 15 August 2015 at Brocstedes Park
Result	Ashton Athletic 2 Maltby Main 2
Competition	FA Cup Extra Preliminary Round.
Hopping	Ground 573 on the lifetime list.  I am here because of the random occurrence of 3, 6 and 4 emails in three inboxes.  These numbers, when multiplied together before adding one, give 73 and this match was 73rd on a list of 103 possible unvisited venues for me.  If it hadn’t been for a Murdoch minion trying to sell me a Now TV subscription to watch WBA v Man City at 4pm, I would have been at Penrith.  The story was told in the previous blogpost and on Twitter.  Where were you?
Pre-match preparation
This is a West v East confrontation at step 5.  The hosts are one of five unbeaten teams in the NW Counties Premier after two 1-0 wins.  The visitors are mid-table in the Northern Counties East Premier after a 3-6 defeat and a 2-1 win.  All of this counts for nothing etc etc.  Now read on and pick a link or two.
Match Report and Other Lovely Linkage
Go to the www treasure trove which is therealfacup.co.uk for the story of the day, including a urinating Yorkshireman, the late Amy Winehouse and Fish Man.  http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/16/aa-2-2-mm/ There will be plenty of other FA Cup stuff there in the weeks ahead, as ever, featuring a number of obsessed contributors sharing the love for this wonderful competition.  So far this season they have Phil Ascough reporting from Bridlington v North Shields ... http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/16/defensive-shields/ ... and Warren Carter from Bournemouth v AFC Portchester http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/16/portchester-pummel-poppies/ ... plus Michael Hudson's overview of the Cup fortunes of Northern League clubs  http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/16/northern-league/ ... and Damon Threadgold from Great Yarmouth v Norwich United. http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/16/the-angry-imperfect/ Update: Glen Wilson discovers his latent groundhopper tendencies at Sevenoaks v Seven Acre & Sidcup http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/17/even-sevens/ Stuart Fuller and I were both hoping to win a raffle at AFC Emley v Parkgate  http://therealfacup.co.uk/2015/08/17/breakfast-at-emleys/
Goalkeeper Top Colour Stats (from Ashton Athletic)
A green and blue stalemate.  A full updated table will appear at the end of the month.
What Next?
Heading for an overnight stay in Wigan before a trip to AFC Emley v Parkgate on Sunday.  Watch @GrahamYapp on Twitter for details!

Forging a Link to the Steel City

Hopperational Details


Saturday 23 October, 2010 at the BT Local Business Stadium, Dronfield for Sheffield 2 Tipton Town 2 in the 4th Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, and this time something approaching a proper match report for my friends at therealfacup which can be found here:


http://therealfacup.co.uk/2010/10/24/sheffield-draw/