Spartan South Midlands League Challenge Cup Final
Recreation Ground, Colney Heath
Admission including Programme: £8.00
Attendance: 182
Match Rating: 3
With league games becoming thinner on the ground now, with most leagues officially ending their seasons last Saturday although extending into this weekend following the poor weather in recent months, it was difficult to find games with much riding on them today. So instead, I decided to take in a cup final, at a ground that is not easy to reach by public transport and so would be easier to reach during the longer days of spring.
The Recreation Ground is about three and a half miles away from St Albans City train station, and although buses are available, I decided to walk it, and a very nice walk it was too on a warm, sunny day like today, most of it being along the Alban Way, a recreational tarmacked path along the former St Albans to Hatfield railway line. Spectators pay their admission fee at a wooden hut, and then walk along a short path to reach one corner of the ground, where various tables and benches scattered around. Next to the clubhouse and partly under a large tree, it made for a very pleasant area to enjoy the warm sunshine before the match. The clubhouse building stretches to about the half way line and is quite pleasing on the eye from the outside, and contains two rows of covered seating to the front. There is just hard standing around the rest of the pitch, and although facilities are relatively basic, the ground has a nice, peaceful and rural location, fairly distantly surrounded by trees, with a second football pitch alongside the main one, a tennis court behind one of the goals and a children’s play area beyond the clubhouse. It is one of those grounds to be really enjoyed on a warm, sunny day, but presumably would be rather uninviting on a grey and damp day in the middle of winter. The programme was quite good for a league final, with plenty of information, about both clubs and how they reached today’s final.
With this competition open to clubs from all three divisions of the Spartan South Midlands League, it was a decent achievement for both clubs to make the final, both from the second tier Division One, and today would be the first time in 24 seasons that the final would feature no club from the top flight. Broadfields United were in fourth place in Division One, which realistically is where they will finish, following 23 wins and five draws from their 37 league games. Risborough Rangers were in eighth place, following 17 wins and 10 draws from their 38 league games, and having completed their fixtures, they may slip two places in the final standings, as the two teams immediately below them are one point behind with a game to play. When the two teams met in the league, Broadfields won their home game in January 3-0, while the game at Princes Risborough in November finished 1-1.
On a lovely warm and sunny afternoon - the total contrast to the grey, damp and cold conditions I encountered at Dorking last Saturday – Broadfields United got off to a lightening start, and gave themselves real daylight within the first ten minutes. On 5 minutes, a cross from the right was met with a bullet header from Connor Spinks to find the back of the net, and four minutes later, an initial shot was blocked, looping the ball towards the other side of the penalty area, and Sam O'Neill struck a wonderful shot on the half volley which saw the keeper arrow in to the roof of the net, above the keeper. Perhaps making the most of playing down a slope, Broadfields almost completely dominated the first half, and perhaps should have had a more convincing lead at the break, among other chances spurned was a close range prodded shot which hit the post.
Risborough really needed to up their game after the break, and that they did. Within a minute, a good low diagonal pass threaded the ball through the defence into the path of the on running forward, but his eventual shot was straight at the keeper. Their much improved performance was rewarded with a goal on 69 minutes though, after a defender got in a bit of a tangle, a fortunate rebound set Martin Griggs clear, and he struck a powerful low shot inside the near post. A close finish was suddenly brewing, however five minutes later, Broadfields were gifted a goal to restore their two goal advantage. A long high ball was played into the area and the keeper completely misjudged the bounce of the ball under no pressure, bouncing over his head and despite desperately trying to scramble back to reclaim the ball, Dene Gardner was presented with an easy tap in from a couple of yards. That put the result beyond doubt, as Risborough never looked likely to score again despite some huff and puff. And so it was Broadfields United who deservedly lifted the trophy on the pitch shortly after the final whistle, marking the end of a very successful week, having lifted the Middlesex FA Premier Cup on Tuesday.
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