Exposing the Sham in Amersham Leads to a Rye Smile

On 17 November I hopped to Amersham Town and blogged on their 1-0 FA Vase win over higher-ranked Rye United.  Here’s the link:

http://modushopperrandom.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/stop-amersham-time.html

However, my thanks go to @TravellingFan for spotting the background to the FA’s decision to reinstate Rye to face South Park in the next round.  The text is self-explanatory, it comes from the Hastings Observer, and here is the original link.  Interesting that Twitter is once again part of the story!  I don't watch TV and wouldn't have noticed the "ringer" anyway.

http://www.hastingsobserver.co.uk/sport/county-league-football/rye-back-in-fa-vase-1-4522365

QUOTE

“Rye United have been re-instated in the FA Vase after their complaint to the Football Association was successful.

The Quarterboys found out on Friday that their 1-0 defeat away to Amersham Town last weekend had been overturned after Amersham admitted to fielding a player under an assumed name.

Rye website manager Richard King, who did all the groundwork for the complaint, said: “We found another piece of evidence on Friday morning and that tipped them over the edge. They admitted it to the FA because the hearing was this Tuesday. They had no choice.”

Amersham named Matthew Stone on the teamsheet even though Stone was actually in Coventry and wrote on social network site Twitter during the game. Rye got in touch with Stone, who said straight away that he hadn’t played for Amersham on the day or since the beginning of September.

Amersham admitted to playing Eddie Savage under the name of Stone. Savage, an ex-Wycombe Wanderers player who also played the fictional character Steven Beale in BBC soap opera EastEnders until 2002, wasn’t signed-on for Amersham.

Rye also believe there was a second case of Amersham fielding a player under an assumed name, but haven’t received confirmation of that because once Amersham admitted the first one, there was no need to continue pursuing the second.

Like the 63 other second round winners, Rye will receive £1,200 from the FA’s prize-fund and will host South Park in the last 64 on Saturday December 8. Amersham’s punishment has not yet been announced, although it’s likely to be a hefty fine and ban from the competition.”

QUOTE ENDS

I really can’t argue with the FA decision and as a neutral lover of sport I feel cheated by this club.  I won’t be going back there ever.

Stop! Amersham Time

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Saturday 17 November 2012 at Spratleys Meadow (which, it must be said, is in a very scenic setting!)
Result	Amersham Town 1 Rye United 0
Competition	FA Vase Round Two.  This is a giantkilling as the hosts play at Step 6 in the South Midlands Division 1 and the visitors are in the Step 5 Sussex League Division 1.
Hopping	Number 493 on the lifetime list – the shortest journey to an unvisited ground on the FA Vase rankings today.  I decided not to risk a longer journey today as the overnight weather had been very wet in many parts of the country.
Pre-match preparation
Form book would point to an expected away win – Rye are third in their higher-ranked league and Amersham haven’t won a game since their victory over Flackwell Heath in Round One.  They beat Henley and Carterton in the earlier rounds.  Rye beat Horley Town.  They were quarter-finalists a couple of seasons ago.
This match in one sentence
A splendid victory for Amersham Town and although Rye will rue missed chances, Amersham could just as easily have scored more.
So what?
Amersham Town are in the hat for the next round, the last 64 teams in the competition. UPDATE: At the time of this amendment (23/11/12), the FA website is now showing Rye United at home to South Park in the next round. Rye appealed to the FA and it would appear that the appeal has been upheld.  Tweets from other sources indicate that Amersham fielded an ineligible player.  This match-that-never-was is now unique in my lifetime list and I will have to consider whether this causes me a constitutional crisis.
The drama unfolds
No player names this time - there was no teamsheet on display, or if there was, I missed it. If anyone can help with IDs then I'll be happy to edit the post.  GY The home side started well and I started my scene-setter clip after only 5 minutes.  Amersham are in black-and-white.  I was marginally surprised that Rye didn't object to the officials being in all black.  Skies were grey and the officials asked for the lights to be on from the start.  The first clip is rudely interrupted by the disintegration of the lino's flag, so I took another one soon after to reassure you that he was able to repair it and wave it at will.  Or anyone.  (This blog has been getting too serious, there will be more sentences like that.)  If you dislike football, enjoy the scenery. After 15 minutes a goalline clearance was needed in the Amersham goalmouth as Rye seemed to settle into their pattern of play.  However, the only goal of the game (as it proved) came after 18 minutes.  Amersham's number 6 drifted into the box from the right and was in space to collect a ball dropping to him from the left - he took one touch and finished well a second before being clattered by the outcoming goalkeeper.  The ref "had a word" but nothing more.  1-0 If number 10 had been a bit quicker to get a shot away four minutes later, it would have been 2-0.  As it was, a superb saving tackle by Rye centre-back number 5 saved the day.  The rest of the half was pretty even, with the best chance falling to the visitors' number 11.  His header back across the goal beat the keeper but also fell wide of the far post.  1-0 at half-time The Rye goalkeeper and the Amersham number 6 renewed acquaintance ten minutes into the second half.  The ref was well-placed to make a "no penalty" call as the former came out to dive at the latter's feet.  The officials were also spot-on (I was right in line) to disallow a Rye goal two minutes later.  At the moment of a flick-on from a free-kick there were several attackers offside.  The game continued to be even, with Rye committing more players forward and Amersham's number 8 on particular getting plenty of chances to lead breaks from midfield.  One such went to waste after 70 minutes as his attempted pass ended up looking like a badly pulled shot.  Or it could have been a shot that ended up looking like a pass.  I have no idea, I suspect you need to be UEFA grade B to be able to write about these things.  It missed. As the game became end-to-end, Rye's substitute number 12 did well to use his full-back's run as a decoy before cutting inside and shooting.  The keeper did well to push the fierce shot up and over.  Rye missed a golden chance after 73 minutes.  A neat routine from a quickly-taken freekick caught Amersham asleep and number 8 missed the open net from six yards. It became tense and officials had to consult after one touchline altercation before ... doing nothing much.  Then both keepers kept their sides in the game in successive attacks with decent saves. These two clips are from later in the game as Rye try in vain to equalise.  There is some classic backs-to-the-wall defending to enjoy here.  Honorable mention for Amersham number 4 in this regard. Rye's keeper was called on once more to save a deflection at the expense of a corner.  Amersham tried to keep the ball there.  When one such attempt failed, the ref played a good advantage, a long ball was flicked on and Rye's number 8 again found himself in a good shooting position.  He blazed it high and wide.  The final clips have Amersham holding on for a memorable win.  Final score 1-0 GOALKEEPER OF TRAILING SIDE GOING UP FOR A LATE CORNER KLAXON ...
The programme
I think that should be Molten, actually ...
Something random
The only other "17 November" new ground on my hopping list is from pre-blogging days in 2009, when I watched Atherstone United win 3-2 away at Barton Rovers in the Southern League Division One Central.  I have never seen Amersham Town win before – I saw them twice in 2010-11, losing at Cockfosters and London Colney in the South Midlands League Division One.  Both matches can be picked up from the tag cloud on the right of the page.  Today is the first time that I have ever crossed paths with Rye United.  When I go to their ground I will try to get some pictures of impressively big red-and-black hats.
Hopping for Moorfields Update
108 goals in thirty matches, which is around the halfway point for the season, at an average of 3.6 goals per game.  This is right in line with my initial prediction that a penny-a-goal pledge would be worth between £2 and £3 at the end of the season.  Premier league stars earn this amount in about 30 seconds.  It’s never to late too make a pledge – contact me by DM on twitter or on email at headyapp (at) hotmail (dot) com if you’d like to get involved.  World class research at Moorfields Eye Hospital is not just for Londoners – there are benefits worldwide.  Thank you.
What Next?
Who knows? At this time of the year the weather makes forward planning rather tricky. Follow @GrahamYapp on Twitter for further updates!

Thrillers in the Mist

London Colney Supersub Ricky Perks 

Hopperational details
Date & Venue	Tuesday 1 February 2011 at Cotlandswick
Result	London Colney 2 Amersham Town 0
Competition	South Midlands League Division One (step 6)
Hopping	Venue #370, 30mins away from home for a midweek hop with hopes of seeing another former pupil, Ricky Perks, in action.
This match in one sentence
On a foggy evening, London Colney’s “supersub” Ricky Perks turned the game with an assist and a goal after an even and goalless first half.
This match summed up in the style of: a school assembly (well, one of mine, anyway)
What lessons can we take from this for life?  (Pause.)  The person who was left on the sidelines in the beginning in fact made the biggest contribution!  (Pause.)  Do we always make enough effort to find out what people around us have to offer?
So what?
London Colney are in the top half of the table and Amersham Town are in the lower reaches.
The drama unfolds
The first concern was whether the match would go ahead – it was getting foggier by the minute as I arrived at the ground.  It later turned out that there were several abandoned fixtures elsewhere in the area, so I was lucky to see a game.  Watching from the ends was fairly pointless (as the first clip shows) so I moved to the halfway line. The first half was pretty even and both teams tried to play good football on a very decent surface.  London Colney had a direct attacking style but the final ball was often lacking.  Amersham Town looked comfortable in defence most of the time and did not lack in confidence.  London Colney's #8 came closest with a shot that shaved the post.  His reaction gave away his feeling that he should have scored.  0-0 at half-time. The home side started the second half much stronger and had several near misses early on as they started to find space on the flanks.  The aforementioned #8 finally had the chance to bury the ball into an open net after a flowing move, but sadly he pinged it off the International Space Station passing overhead at a height of 220 miles.  Well, probably. Ricky Perks was introduced from the bench and lumbered out of the mist and into the penalty area for a corner.  He dropped a hint of what was to come by heading over unchallenged with his first touch.  With his second, he turned his defender, got to the byline and pulled the ball back for his teammate to complete an easy finish.  1-0. A couple of minutes later, he rose again to head the ball home and put his side in the comfort zone.  2-0.  A goal and an assist out of the first three touches – that is supersub territory.  He had one more near miss with a back-header that I managed to capture on video, but in the end London Colney held on comfortably enough.  Final score 2-0.
Alternative activity of equal excitement for tourists in London Colney
On this particular day, I reckon that this event gets top local billing.  There is a large M&S / Sainsbury’s shopping centre combination somewhere nearby as I recall, so I suppose the alternative would be to go shopping for pants and prawns, but it would only be as exciting if there was some kind of special offer on edible crustaceans.
A snippet from the programme
The programme contained the players’ names with fixtures and league tables for the first team and the reserves.  With no other “editorial” content, the best snippet I can give you is that one of the assistant referees was B Wright.  Must be a good name for a lino, that.
What I learned today
Ricky was a member of the Beaumont School side that reached the District Cup final and shared the trophy after a memorable goalless draw with Verulam School at St Albans FC.  He went on to play a few games as goalkeeper at Conference South level with St Albans before becoming first choice at Hitchin Town.  More recently he was with Slough Town in the Southern League Division 1 Central, but is now living the goalkeeper’s dream as a centre-forward for London Colney.  Former pupils usually seem to play well when I turn up, so managers take note.
What Next?
I am in the Midlands this weekend, but no decision yet, random or otherwise.  Watch this space!

One 4-1 Exchange

Hopperational details
Tuesday 16 November 2010 at Dacre Field, Cockfosters 4 Amersham Town 1 in the South Midlands League Division One (Step 6).


This match in one sentence
Better finishing and one fluke goal from a cross secured a good win for Cockfosters, but Amersham missed a chance to come back from 3-0 to 3-2 which could have turned the tide and set up an interesting finish.


So what?
Cockfosters edge towards mid-table and Amersham Town will be bottom once the record of Sport London e Benfica has been expunged.  Isn’t “expunged” a lovely word?


Who caught the eye on the pitch?
The pitch itself was understandably tricky and it took both teams a little while to adjust.  I can’t definitely confirm any particular names, but there were two key moments.  Cockfosters’ third goal was an outrageous fluke as a deep cross hit the back post and rolled back along and across the line to general surprise.  Nothing the scorer says otherwise will convince me.  (I scored one like that myself once and understand that critical moment that you have to decide whether to pretend you meant it.)  Amersham got one back and were doing most of the attacking and had a decent chance to get a second.  If that had gone in, we might well have had a 3-3 rather than a 4-1.  Cockfosters #9 (possibly Ben Andreos) always wanted the ball and was involved in most of the attacks, providing the fourth which killed the game off.  Amersham’s #12 (definitely Jack, possibly Edmeads) came on and provided my first snood of the season, which he threw aside before I could get my freezing fingers to secure the photographic evidence.


I also felt sympathy for the very young (and very competent) lino whose flag for an obvious foul was overruled by the ref from a distance away.  He had gradually doubled in weight during the evening as Cockfosters mud accumulated in great clumps on his boots as he ran the line, and he was much better placed to see the incident.  I had been worrying earlier about whether he'd had the chance to do his homework before coming out for the evening, but old habits die hard, I guess.  I hope he didn't get too upset by that and that he keeps going with officiating.  The game is going to need him.  (Memo to self: get on to Dragon's Den with Teflon Lower League Lino Boots as soon as possible.)


This match had the same effect on my pulse rate as … 
… slow cooling to a temperature of minus 270 degrees Celsius, in the hope that cryogenics will have advanced enough for me to be thawed out successfully for the 2066 World Cup Sponsored by Bovril in England, so I can watch manager Theo Walcott grapple with the issue of how to fit Frank Lampard the Fourth into a midfield pentagon.


A snippet from the programme

A minute of silence was observed before the game in memory of Cockfosters president Les Langdale, who died on 28 October at the age of 99.  83 of those years had been as a member of the club, being a founder member and elected to the committee at age 16.  The programme outlines his contributions to the grass-roots game as a player, referee, club official and league administrator.  He received a medal from the FA in recognition of 50 years of service to the game.


“It is impossible to appreciate how much Les was a ‘Cockfosters Man’ and how much he contributed to local football over such an incredible lifetime.  Les was Cockfosters thro’ and thro’, he was a member of our club for 83 years.  Even up to his last days, with failing eyesight, he insisted that our latest match-day programme was read to him ‘cover to cover’.”  “83 Years involved with a single Club - now that’s Loyalty with a capital ‘L’ - it’s come to an end now, but will never be forgotten - neither will Les!”

What I learned today
Nothing to do with football, but while working on my other current obsession, my family tree, I learned through an internet contact that I am directly descended from a Horse Trader in Gloucestershire.  This may explain genetically why I was good at managing secondary school budgets.


Hopper Random Talking Point
The fixture schedule for this division has been abandoned because of the resignation of Sport London e Benfica.  Four of Cockfosters’ fixtures in November/December have been rearranged and they end up with six homes and one away before January.  This is also irritating to say the least for Ben Andreos and Dave Pigden.  When the SLeB records are expunged, they lose four and two goals respectively that they scored in an irrelevant 7-1 win over the strugglers.