Brentford 1 v 1 Charlton Athletic

Monday 28th December 2009
Football League One
Griffin Park, Brentford
Admission: £21.00 (Bill Axbey Stand)
Programme: £3.00
Attendance: 8,387
Match Rating: 4

Due to the waterlogged/icy conditions that are putting paid to countless non-league matches in the south-east of England at the moment, I decided to play safe today and head to west London to watch the team I support, Charlton Athletic, at Griffin Park, home of Brentford. I was hoping to be able to watch a game in the morning at Bedfont Sports which is located just a couple of miles west of Griffin Park, but this was one of the many non-league games called off.

Griffin Park is located about a ten minute walk from Brentford train station. Before entering the ground, I wandered around its perimeter, to view the four pubs on each corner of the ground which is an interesting and unique feature of Griffin Park. Unfortunately I was not able to get a ticket in the away end before they had quickly sold out, and so was faced with the rather uncomfortable experience of being in "the wrong end" watching the team I support. I had the choice between seating on either side of the pitch, or terracing behind the goal opposite the Charlton end. Normally, as someone who very much mourns the loss of being able to stand at the vast majority football league games, I would have chosen to stand on the terrace. However, I considered charging £20 for a terrace place behind the goal to be extortionate and so opted to pay an extra pound to sit in the Bill Axbey Stand, which was unreserved seating today but I chose to sit close to the halfway line, a couple of rows from the front and so had unimpeded views of the pitch. Small supporting pillars would slightly impede your view if you were sitting further back than I did. As a whole, the stadium certainly earns plus points for being quite individual and unique. Certainly showing signs of ageing and having four different stands not at all fitting in with each other may not be aesthetically pleasing, but give me a stadium like this compared with the modern identikits any day. The 68 page programme was everything that would be expected of a Football League programme, with more than enough reading matter to keep one interested.

Going into this game, an away win may have been expected considering Charlton were flying high in second place and Brentford stuck firmly in mid-table. However, Brentford had won their previous two games and Charlton were ravaged by injury in defence, with all four of their first choice backline unavailable. A further factor would surely be that Charlton had to play 50 minutes with just 9 men just two days previously. Throw in this being a London festive derby and all things considered it would be difficult to predict the result of this game.

On an afternoon that was becoming ever colder, the first half was a competitive affair which Charlton probably edged and spurning several chances, most notably when Chris Dickson, out on the wing, found the home keeper inexplicably charging out of his area to challenge, and was unlucky to see his lob drift wide of the empty goal. Overall, a goalless scoreline at half time was probably a fair reflection on a mostly even first half. The game exploded into life just three minutes after the restart, when sub Carl Cort turned in a cross shot at the far post. Charlton soon took the game to Brentford after conceding and within ten minutes, they were awarded a penalty when Dickson raced clear of the defence and as he tried to take the ball around the keeper, the keeper clipped Dickson's ankles, resulting in a stonewall penalty and a yellow card for the keeper. Charlton's captain, Nicky Bailey, stepped forward to hammer home the penalty high into the net, despite the keeper Lewis Price getting a hand to the ball. From this point on, the game became a real end-to-end affair, and Charlton had a lucky escape ten minutes from the end when a wonderful free kick from Sam Saunders from 20 yards out flew past Rob Elliott but smacked across the underside of the bar. Some fairly desperate defending by Charlton helped ensure the points would be shared, a very fair result on a very entertaining game with chances aplenty at either end, and both sides will surely be happy with a point from the game.

Sheffield Wednesday 0 v 2 Swansea City

Saturday 19th December 2009
Football League Championship
Hillsborough, Sheffield
Admission: £16.00 (Spion Kop End)
Programme: £3.00
Attendance: 18,328
Match Rating: 3

Hillsborough is a stadium that has long been on my wishlist to visit, as traditionally one of the largest traditional stadia in the country, and although the game itself probably did not justify the long trek north in Arctic conditions, the stadium certainly did. As I set out long before sunrise and wading my way through deep snow to get to the train station, I was wondering if I would be able to make the long trip up to Sheffield, although happily the trains were surprisingly bang on time and so I managed to make the coach (for the bargain price of £1 booked with Megabus) for the long trip north. Arriving at Meadowhall Interchange, I made my way to the tram stop for the direct, 40 minute ride through Sheffield Centre to the Lepping Lane stop, which is a short walk from the stadium.

Before entering the stadium, I stopped off at the memorial to the Hillsborough disaster, which is a very subtle and unremarkable memorial which is probably how it should be. From there, I bought my programme for £3 which is everything that would be expected of a football league programme - glossy cover full of information and photos - and was a good read before the match and during the long trip home. I then made my way to the Spion Kop stand clutching my e-ticket which I bought online for the relatively bargain price of £16. Although this form of ticketing will disappoint those who like to have a proper ticket as a memento of their day out (and you can still get one by buying your tickets on the day at an inflated price), you certainly can't beat for convenience the ability to choose your exact seat from the comfort of your own seat and printing off your ticket and take this straight to the turnstiles for admission - hopefully more football clubs will follow suit with this system.

Inside the stadium, I found it to be wonderfully old-fashioned and full of character, which made an excellent contrast to the usual similarly laid out stadia in the top two divisions. I made my way up the steep path from the turnstiles and refreshments area up to the back of the vast Kop stand, and to my seat which was right in the middle of the stand with an excellent unimpeded view from right behind the goal. As for the game, it's fair to say that the omens were not good for an open, entertaining game laden with goals. Sheffield Wednesday were in terrible form. After a decent start to the season, they had mustered just two points from their previous nine league games, lost their previous four games and hadn't even scored in their last five. Perhaps not too surprising then that they had shown their manager, Brian Laws, the door after their last game. As for Swansea, a team I confess to having a large soft spot for having lived in the region for several years and still mourn the North Bank roar at the Vetch Field, they found themselves flying high in sixth place, although as well having the second meanest defence in the Championship, they have also scored the second fewest goals.

As for the game, Sheffield Wednesday started pretty well, backed by a passionate and vociferous support whipped into the mood with a rendition of "Hi Ho Sheffield Wednesday!" just before kick off to the tune of "Hi Ho Silver Lining". However, Swansea scored after just five minutes when Darren Pratley was sent clear and slotted the ball cooly past the Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper, Lee Grant. After this setback, Sheffield Wednesday had most of the possession and made regular forways deep into the Swansea half, without ever really looking like they would score. Swansea then scored a second on 36 minutes, Darren Pratley again the man on target, converting a cross decisively with a crisp finish from 12 yards out. This was fairly harsh on Wednesday, but the proceedings could easily be summed up with Wednesday doing the huffing and puffing, but Swansea were clinical with the couple of chances that came their way. For the rest of the second half, it was plain to see the Wednesday players lacking in confidence and belief against a Swansea side that looked very average - or maybe they were doing just enough to maintain their lead. As for the second half, this was a very disappointing affair, with Wednesday seeming to lose more confidence with every minute that passed and Swansea seemingly more the happy to content to coast to a comfortable away win, and the game duly ended with a 0-2 win to the away side.

After the game, I made my way back on the tram, this time to the city centre and into Wetherspoons for a burger and a beer before catching the train back to London, also £1 using the megatrain service. As someone who has no particular reason to like Sheffield Wednesday, it is sad to see such a sleeping giant of football, with a large, passionate but on the whole friendly support and with a stadium fit for the Premier League, falling on hard times which has lasted too many years now. Judging on today's performance, Sheffield Wednesday need to appoint an experienced manager to raise morale as quickly as possible or another drop to the third tier is surely inevitable. As for Swansea, well it is often said that if you can win when not playing well, that is the sign of a good side, and indeed, all being well and provided they remain consistent enough, Swansea should surely make the play-offs come the end of the season. Although this was a long day out in perishing conditions, it proved to be a relief that I had planned to go to this game, given that only a handful of unappealing non-league games survived the snow and icy conditions in my native south-east.

Lancing 4 v 3 Westfield

Saturday 12th December 2009

Sussex County League Division 2

Culver Lane, Lancing

Admission with programme: £4.00

Attendance: 80 (guessed)

Match Rating: 4

The second, main game of the day for me took me to Culver Road just in time for kick off for this Sussex County League Division 2 match between Lancing and Westfield, bith firmly stuck in the middle of the table going into the game. Considering that the home team have for the most part been stuck firmly in Division 2 for the past twenty years and the general low standard of grounds in Division 2 (so that they couldn't be promoted, as in the case of today's opponents, Westfield), it may come as a big surprise how good, relatively speaking, Culver Road is. However, it is easily explained as it is the home of the Sussex County Football Association. The ground has a modern stand with covered seating, a tea bar and clubhouse inside, whilst the rest of the ground is extremely well maintained with hard standing throughout and the pitch fully railed off. In a peaceful setting despite being surrounded by housing and being fairly central in the town of Lancing, and with the South Downs in the background, Culver Road makes for a pleasant ueban setting for football. Programmes are included with admission and has a very attractive cover and resonable content which provided the basic information you need to know for the game.

The first half of this game was an even affair, with Westfield certainly showing more attacking intent and could count themselves unlucky not to score in the first half, although Lancing did occasionally threaten on the break. A goalless scoreline at half-time gave no indication of the drama that was to unfold in the second half. A couple of minutes into the second half, and Lancing took the lead, which they doubled on 56 minutes. Lancing now looked comfortable. Westfield pulled a goal back, and with them still looking threatening and the game mostly being played in Lancing's half, an equaliser wouldn't have come as a surprise. However Lancing restored their two goal lead on 76 minutes to seemingly put the game out of sight, with Darren Boswell completing his hat trick. But no, Westfield were back within one goal as the clock reached 90 minutes following a goalmouth scramble. Unfortunately in the build up to the goal, Ryan Loversidge of Lancing saw fit to spit at an opponents after taking exception to a strong challenge and who was quite rightly sent off, but not before most ot the players became embroiled in some handbags. 9 minutes into added time and Lancing scored their fourth to surely wrap the points up for Lancing...yet still there was time for Westfield to pull a goal back yet again with 56 second half minutes on the clock, but this time there really was no time for any more scoring. Quite how the referee found so much added on time is a mystery, but that certainly helped add to a second half full of drama and unpredictability.

Lancing United 1 v 1 East Dean

Saturday 12th December 2009
Sussex Intermediate Cup 3rd Round
Crowshaw Recreation Ground, Lancing
Admission and programme: N/A
Attendance: 40 (h-c)
Match Rating: 3
















Today I took advantage again of the winter early kick-offs for those clubs without floodlights to take in this Sussex Intermediate Cup game between Lancing United and East Dean, both clubs from the West Sussex Football League. The ground is located about a 10 minute walk from Lancing rail station, through the thoroughly inspiring town of Lancing. As for the ground, being a recreation ground, there are no facilities to speak of accept for a portakabin type building housing the changing rooms. Refreshments could be sought from the convenience store located next to the ground. However, the Croshaw is a reasonably attractive ground, surrounded by housing but with a stone wall enclosing two sides of the ground and the Sussex Downs visible in the distance.

Although the recent prolonged heavy rain had taken its toll on the pitch, making it very tacky, it was perfectly playable, but the uneven surface threatened to make this a game where passing football was at a premium, and so it proved. On a cold but dry, sunny day, the start of the game was dominated by East Dean, who bombarded the goal in the opening quarter with a succession of corners and shots on goals, but Lancing United defended well to weather the early storm and as the first half wore on, it was their turn to camp themselves in East Dean's half with frequent corners attacks on goals.

At half time, there was little indication of who would progress from this evenly contested game, but on 60 minutes, Lancing United took a lead they just about deserved with an excellent finish from just inside the penalty area, beating the goalkeeper at his near post. Ten minutes later and East Dean were back on level terms, thanks to a coolly taken penalty. A few minutes after the equaliser, I had to leave this ground to make the 10 minute walk to Culver Road to watch the Sussex League Division 2 game between Lancing and Westfield, however this game unsurprisingly went to extra time and Lancing United eventually scored twice to win the tie 3-1 to progress to the fourth round.

RCD Espanyol 0 v 4 Racing Santander

Sunday 6th December 2009
La Liga BBVA
Estadi Cornellà-El Prat, Barcelona
Admission: €45.00
Programme: Free
Attendance: 25,180
Match Rating: 4

For the second Espanyol game of the day, I took the underground train from Verneda across Barcelona to the south-western suburb of Cornella and then a twenty minute walk to the Estadio Cornellà-El Prat, the brand new home stadium of RCD Espanyol, which was only opened in August. I bought my ticket from the ticket office for 45 euros for a seat in one corner of the ground. This was the cheapest part of the ground - a seat along either touchline would have set me back some 75 euros. These prices seemed somewhat inflated for an average La Liga club, making even English Premier League admission prices seem reasonable by comparison. Outside of the ground, 16 page A4 sized match programmes were handed out free of charge, as well as a more informative magazine previewing the weekend's La Liga football.

On entering the stadium, unfortunately but predictably, and to voice a familiar complaint, there was little to distinguish this stadium from most other newly built stadia across Europe, including England. Roomy, comfortable and with good facilities, but little character. Neither team were coming into this game in any kind of form. Espanyol had lost their previous three league games without scoring and losing their last game 0-4 at Atletico Madrid. Racing Santander were in even worse form, losing their last four games, and found themselves second from bottom of the league having won just one game all season. Familiar names appeared on the teamsheets, with Ben Sahar starting up front for Espanyol with Shunsuke Nakamura on the bench, and Luis Garcia, the former Liverpool midfielder, on the bench for Santander.

Espanyol started the game the brighter, having several good chances during the first quarter of the game. Santander came back into the game as the half wore on and incredibly missed the chance to take the lead when Mohammed Tchite ballooned the ball over the bar from inside the six yard box with the goalkeeper out of position. Honours even at half time was a fair reflection of the first half, but there was no sign of the quite extraordinary direction this game would take in the second half. Racing took the lead within a couple of minutes of the restart with a completely free header from Henrique from a free kick, and five minutes later Racing doubled their lead when Sergio Madrazo had all the time in the world to take the ball under control just inside the box, turn and rifle a shot low past the keeper. Suddenly, Racing were comfortably in control of this game, and on 68 minutes, were correctly awarded a penalty for a plain daft challenge on the edge of the box. Tchite cooly converted to make it 0-3 to the visitors, which was the cue for the Espanyol supporters to head for the exits in their droves. However, worse was still to come, when 18 year old Madrazo scored his second and Racing's fourth. For a team coming into the game in such poor form, it was becoming an astonishing performance by Racing, who could and should have scored at least a couple of more goals as Espanyol seemed to lose all heart and confidence. At the final whistle, a thoroughly shocking performance by the home side provoked an angry reaction from the crowd, who waved white handkerchiefs and protested vehemently against the management and board.

Whilst it is difficult to judge a team on one game, despite their respective league positions, the future would appear to be a lot brighter for Racing Santander than Espanyol. Indeed, one certainly fears for Espanyol in their next game, when they will be faced with the little matter of a trip across the city to take on Barcelona at the Camp Nou.

RCD Espanyol B 0 v 1 UE Sant Andreu

Sunday 6th December 2009
Segunda Division B, Group 3
Ciutat Esportiva de Sant Adria, Barcelona
Admission: €10.00
Programme: N/A
Attendance: 1,000
Match Rating: 3

This promised to be an interesting day of football during my brief visit to Barcelona, watching Espanyol's reserve team play at midday followed by the Espanyol first team in the evening. For the first game, I took the half hour underground train ride from central Barcelona to Verneda, in the eastern outskirts of Barcelona, with the Ciutat Esportiva de Sant Adrià, the home stadium of RCD Espanyol B, a five minute walk from the underground station.












The ground is fairly small but neat and tidy, with one main covered seated stand along one touchline, an uncovered seated stand along the opposite touchline, and with standing room around the rest of the pitch. The ground is set amongst several other pitches in a large sporting complex where Espanyol's youth teams also play. I paid 10 euro for a standing ticket from a ticket window outside of the ground (as is customary in Spain)

This game, from the regional third tier of Spanish football, pitched the Espanyol reserve team, newly promoted into this league this season but struggling in the lower reaches, against a UE Sant Andreu team who were flying high in second place in the league having lost just one game all season. Given their successful run and that their team is based just a mile away, it was perhaps unsurprising that Sant Andreu brought a sizeable contingent of fans, who provided passionate and vocal support which made for a surprisingly good atmosphere.

On a gloriously sunny day, which contrasted wonderfully with the wet England I had left behind the day before, the first half was very even, with Espanyol B perhaps slightly edging possession and half chances, but there were precious few goalscoring opportunities for either side and it was little surprise that it was goalless at half time and seemed to have all the makings of a goalless draw. In the second half, Sant Andreu became much the better side and they deserved the lead they took midway through the second half when a corner was headed towards goal, and Máyor struck the ball past the keeper. For the rest of the game, Sant Andreu held on fairly comfortably as Espanyol B resorted to ever dirtier tactics, and so all three points went to the away side, which took Sant Andreu to the top of the table by the end of the day, and left Espanyol B down in 16th place in the league

In my opinion, British football could certainly learn from Spanish (and other countries) football allowing the reserve teams of top professional clubs to play in competitive leagues against predominantly first teams. There is little doubt that reserve team football is not fit for purpose in preparing young English players for top flight football, and so a system where the reserve team can play competitive football week in week out could only be beneficial.

Fulham 1 v 0 CSKA Sofia

Thursday 3rd December 2009
UEFA Europa League Group Stage
Craven Cottage, London
Admission: £5.00
Programme: £.00
Attendance: 23,604
Match Rating: 4

I broke my usual rule of trying not to visit the same stadium twice in a season for this Europa League match between Fulham and CSKA Sofia, tempted by a fantastically cheap ticket price of just £5 for booking well in advance of the game. For Fulham at least, there was much riding on this game. After very unluckily only obtaining a point from their previous two games against AS Roma, Fulham needed to beat CSKA Sofia at home and then would probably to win in Switzerland against Basle in their final game in order to qualify for the knockout rounds. On paper, the first part of the equation did not appear to be too challenging, given that CSKA Sofia were cast adrift at the bottom of the league with just one point from their first four games.

Craven Cottage is certainly one of my favourite top-flight stadia - full of history and traditional quirks but is still a very modern and comfortable facility. The Johnny Haynes stand is a real throw-back to previous generations with wooden seats, the Craven Cottage in an adjacent corner is certainly a unique feature, and the Riverside Stand, where I was seated for this game, has the excellent feature of being able to enjoy refreshments right alongside and overlooking the River Thames. The programme was excellent for this game, providing full information regarding Fulham news, the opposition and the Europa League.

As for the game, it was very much a case of a game of two halves. Fulham were superb during the first half and really clicked as a team. They should have taken the lead on 8 minutes, but one of the most reliable penalty takers in the game, Danny Murphy, ballooned the ball over. Fulham only had to wait another 7 minutes before taking the lead thanks to an excellent header from the Hungarian, Zoltan Gera. Unfortunately Fulham didn't convert their possession and numerous golden opportunities to score into a convincing lead at half time. Inexplicably, in the second half, Fulham were truly awful and Sofia dominated the second half, and as the game reached its conclusion, sqaundered some wonderful opportunities to equalise, but in the end, Fulham held on for a nerve jangling 1-0 victory. After AS Roma beat FC Basle in the other game in this group, Fulham now have their destiny in their own hands. Win in Basle in two weeks time and they will qualify, any other result and they will not.