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Rain, rain go away!!!!! We either have none or a deluge!!!

In the Isuzu FA Vase Second Round on Saturday, our 7teams left in the competition went down to 3. Cinderford Town drew 1-1 with Helston Athletic, subsequently winning 5-3 on penalties. Hallen drew 0-0 v Andover New Street away and then went on to win 4-1 on penalties. Slimbridge travelled down to Ivybridge Town and came back with an emphatic 5-0 victory; all 5 goals being scored by different scorers. Corsham Town lost 4-1 away to Bovey Tracey, Roman Glass St George suffered a 1-0home defeat v Hamworthy Recreation, Shortwood Unitedtravelled to Downton and lost 4-1. This was Shortwood United’s first time in the 2^nd round for 14 years, so a great achievement. Thornbury Town were away at Hythe & Dibden, took a 2-0 lead in the first half with all looking good, but a 2^nd half 3 goal comeback ended their chances to progress. The draw for the Third round has already been made with home games for Slimbridge and Hallen and an away game for Cinderford town, all due to be playedonDecember 6^th. I noted there were good crowds at all the games, hopefully the crowds will flock to the next round games as well. 

In the UHL Premier Division on Saturday, Droitwich Spawon the derby v Pershore Town 4-1 with 276 watching, Worcester Raiders travelled to Hereford Pegasus and won 3-0, Cirencester Town continued their steady progress with a 3-0 home win v Tuffley Rovers, Highworth Towntravelled to Cribbs and won 1-0, Fairford Town who have games in hand won 2-0 at home to Mangotsfield United, Royal Wootton Bassett Town v Longlevens finished 1-1and Lydney Town turned the formbook upside down winning 2-1 at home v Westfields. Lydney Town’s win really did bring them back from being cut adrift at the bottom of the table. On Wednesday evening leaders Roman Glass St George put their Vase exit behind them, winning 4-1 at home v Cinderford Town who finished the game with 9men. 

In UHL Division One, on Saturday, leaders Bewdley Townwere held to at 1-1 home draw v Stonehouse Town, FC Stratford won 4-0 away v Woodford United, Redditch Borough won 4-1 at home v Thame United Reserves, free scoring Wantage Town won 6-0 at home v Malmesbury Victoria with Josh Davis scoring a hattrick and claiming the Uhlsport match ball. Cheltenham Saracens v Brimscombe & Thrupp finished in a 2-2 draw in the Glos derby, Chipping Sodbury Town won 3-0 at home v Wellington and Clanfield 85 climbed out of the bottom 3with a 2-1 away win v Ludlow Town. In the Wiseman Lighting (UHL) Floodlit Cup on Tuesday, Newent Townwon 3-2 v Bewdley Town.

In the Alliance East, Hungerford Town Reserves travelled to Penn & Tylers Green United and won 5-0, Headington Amateurs won 3-0 v Easington Sports Dev and there was a 5-goal thriller which saw Banbury United Dev winning 3-2 v Hambleden.  

Bourton Rovers Dev v Evesham United Reserves finished 1-2 in Alliance West. 

The disappointing news in the Alliance West saw the withdrawal of Mangotsfield United Dev, with a lack of commitment and buy-in from the players. Their record will be expunged as per the normal protocol. 

In the Batemans Sports Alliance (Chairman’s) Challenge Cup Hightworth Town Reserves won 3-0 v Clanfield (85) Reserves.  

The UHL Management Committee had their meeting on Wednesday evening where we talked long into the evening. Lots of topics on the agenda which was 15 items long. One of the big ones was: how do we end the season, in terms of the play-offs as well as the cup finals. More will follow on that. From the meeting was the news that clubs no longer have to upload an image for postponed games as they would have been on a video call with either Brian or myself. The respect table was also discussed and some clubs will be invited in to have a discussion given their points tally for respect not being up to the standards expected. I will also be emailing clubs in the next few weeks for interest to host the cup finals – thanks to those whose interest has already been registered. 

Finally, onto this weekend, where we are currently being blitzed by Storm Claudia. Brian and myself are expecting a good few calls and we will both be available from 09:30Saturday morning. A reminder, any Premier Division or Division One club must call Brian and any Alliance club must call myself to arrange a Whatsapp Video inspection. Obviously if things are already looking bad, make contact today and the appropriate decision can potentially be made early. 

Fingers crossed we get a good proportion of our games in as Saturday’s weather looks more encouraging. 

Stay Dry, 

Ian

We got away fairly lightly on the weather front so far, let us hope it stays that way!

 

In the UHL Premier Division on Saturday, Fairford Towngot an 85^th minute winner away v Cinderford Town for a 2-1 win. Cirencester Town picked up 3 points in their 3-0 win v Thornbury Town. Corsham Town won 3-2 in an entertaining game v Slimbridge. Hallen continued their revival with a 3-0 home win v Westfields. Hereford Pegasus v Tuffley Rovers ended 0-0 and Highworth Town v Lydney Town was also a draw at 1-1. Longlevens had a strong 3-1-win v Worcester Raiders. The local Derby between Mangotsfield United and Cribbs was 2-0 toMangotsfield United up until the 87^th minute until 3 late away goals resulted in a 3-2 away win for Cribbs in front of 251 watching spectators. Pershore Town v Royal Wootton Bassett Town ended 1-1 and the top of the table clash between Roman Glass St George and Droitwich Spa finished 3-1 to Roman Glass St George. On Tuesday evening, Cirencester Town and Hallen drew 1-1, Thornbury Town travelled to Lydney Town and won 2-0 and Slimbridge hosted Tuffley Rovers and won 3-0 in front of a watching 174. It is still tight at the top with Roman Glass St George in pole position closely followed bySlimbridge and Droitwich Spa. At the bottom Lydney Town are 4 points behind Royal Wootton Basset Town. 

In UHL Division One, Bewdley Town continued their strong form with a 1-0 away win v Thame United Reserves, but left it late with their winner coming in the 87^thminute. Redditch Borough won 2-0 v Chipping Sodbury Town, Cheltenham Saracens travelled to Ludlow Townand the game finished 0-0. FC Stratford moved into 2^ndplace with a 2-1 win over Newent Town, Stonehouse Town on a good run of form won 3-0 v Clanfield 85 and Wantage Town won 5-1 at home v Wellington with a crowd of 209 watching. Malmsbury Victoria v Carterton was postponed due to an area of the pitch being unplayable. Bewdley Town are currently 5 points in front of a very closely packed top 6 with Thame United Reservescurrently in bottom place. 

There were wins for Banbury United Dev, Headington Amateurs and Marlow Reserves in Alliance East. 

There were wins for University of Bristol (9-0) andEvesham United Reserves in Alliance West. 

There was one game in the Batemans Sports Alliance (Chairmans) Challenge Cup with Bourton Rovers Dev winning away v UDA Glos Dev. 

Golden Glove award winners for October have been announced, congratulations to Ronnie Newbury of Cirencester Town and Kai Lloyd of Bewdley Town respectively who will soon be in receipt of their Uhlsport Gloves. 

Enjoy the football over the weekend, 

Regards, 

Ian

Much needed rain this week, let us hope it knows when to stop!!

In the Isuzu FA Vase First Round Proper on Saturday, the long trips for Lydney Town and Newent Town to Cornwall and Barnstaple respectively ended in 4-0 defeat for Lydney and 5-0 defeat for Newent Town. Hopefully everyone had a good day out. The other games resulted in Highworth Town, Cirencester Town, FC Stratford, Malmesbury Victoria and Droitwich Spa going out. (FC Stratford went out on penalties.) Going through to the next round were Cinderford Town (on penalties), Thornbury Town (on penalties), Hallen, Corsham Town and Slimbridge. Shortwood United’s game away to Street was abandoned after 75 minutes due to a serious injury to a Street player. This game will be replayed and I will cover the next round leading up to the games.

In the UHL Premier Division on Saturday, Worcester Raiders bounced back in style from their recent defeats beating Royal Wootton Bassett Town 7-1, there was a surprise home defeat for leaders Roman Glass St George, losing 2-1 at home to Hereford Pegasus with the winning goal for the away team coming in the 96^th minute. Mangotsfield United beat Tuffley Rovers 2-1 with their winning goal also coming in the 96^th minute. Westfields picked up a good away win at Pershore Town winning 1-0 to move into the top 5 and Cribbs v Longlevens ended in an entertaining 3-3 draw.

In UHL Division One, Carterton continued with their good form winning 2-1 v Wellington, Wantage Town who are in good form themselves beat Redditch Borough 5-2, leaders Bewdley Town won 2-1 away v Woodford United, Clanfield 85 returned to winning ways beating Alcester Town 3-2, Stonehouse Town won 4-1 away v Ludlow Town, and Chipping Sodbury Town had a 94^th minute wonder strike by Lewis Bezer to thank for their 2-1 win v Brimscombe & Thrupp. On Tuesday evening, Clanfield 85 lost 3-2 at home to Malmesbury Victoria and on the same night Ludlow Town won 5-1 at home v Easington Sports Development in the Wiseman Lighting (UHL) Floodlit Cup.

Headington Amateurs v Hungerford Town Reserves finished 4-4 in Alliance East.

Highworth Town Reserves v Evesham United Reserves finished 5-2 in Alliance West.

There were several Vets games played on Wednesday evening with a few postponements as well.

I wanted to pay tribute to Lydney Town’s Roger Sansom, who recently celebrated his 50 years of service to Lydney Town. I have known Roger for a very long time and always think of him as Mr Lydney Town. The club have just bestowed the honour of naming the ground Sansom Park and proudly display the sign. Take a bow Roger and he is to many more years.

Finally, I am delighted to announce the UHL September Teams of the month

Premier Division – Longlevens, Division 1 – Bewdley Town, Alliance – Easington Sports Dev. 

Regards,

Ian

The weather is turning from Sunday so make the most of it!!!! 

The Isuzu FA Vase First Round Proper takes center stage this weekend and we have strong representation with home games for Slimbridge, Hallen, Fairford Town, Cirencester Town, FC Stratford and Malmesbury Victoria. Travelling we have Highworth Town, Cinderford Town, Thornbury Town (to Fairford Town), Droitwich Spa, Corsham Town, Lydney Town, Newent Town and Shortwood United. There are some very long trips ahead, most notably; Lydney Town (who were supposed to be going to Stoke Gabriel & Torbay Police – susequently expelled for playing an ineligible player) and now they are travelling to Helston Athletic in sunny Cornwall and Newent Town travelling to Barnstaple Town. Good luck to all of our teams and keep the UHL flag flying high.

In the UHL Premier Division which kicked off on Friday with Slimbridge v Thornbury Town, Slimbridge continued their pursuit of the big prize with a 1-0 home win v Thornbury Town. It was a late strike in the 87^th minute which sealed the 3 points. On Saturday, fellow top 3 club Droitwich Spa were held to a 0-0 away v Cinderford Town, while top placed Roman Glass St George travelled to Tuffley Rovers and won 3-2. I was involved in this game and it really was an entertaining one. Roman Glass St George were 2-0 up at half time, even though Tuffley Rovers had hit the post twice and had other good chances. Roman Glass St George added a 3^rd goal in the 87^thminute which seemingly put the result firmly their way, only for Tuffley Rovers to score in the 88^th and 89^th minute and no doubt cause some ‘squeaky-bum’ time on the Roman Glass St. George bench. Cirencester Town hit 6 without reply in the home win v Lydney Town, Corsham Towntravelled to Worcester Raiders and won 3-1, Pershore Town travelled to Mangotsfield United and won 2-0 with their 2^nd goal coming in the 92^nd minute, Cribbs won 1-0 at home v Fairford Town, Hereford Pegasus won 3-2 at home v Longlevens, despite being 2-0 down up to the 53rd minute, Hallen v Highworth Town finished 2-2 in a game that Hallen were leading 2-0 at halftime and Westfields v Royal Wootton Bassett Town ended 1-1. On Tuesday Slimbridge travelled to Worcester Raiders and won 1-0 with a 92^nd minute goal scored by Dan Hannson. This leaves the top 3 grouped very closely together with a little gap developing below them. At the bottom sit Lydney Town, but there are still plenty of games to go. 

In UHL Division One, we only had 3 games due to the majority of teams being involved in UHL Challenge Cupgames. The games that did take place included a 7-goal thriller between Shortwood United and FC Stratford which was 3-0 to FC Stratford at halftime. The second half produced 4 more goals with FC Stratford eventually winning 4-3. Woodford United won 2-0 at home v Clanfield 85 and Alcester Town won 1-0 v Chipping Sodbury Town. FC Stratford moved into 3^rd place and Clanfield 85 stayed 2^nd bottom. The UHL Challenge Cupgames included some fixtures that produced a glut of goals. Current D1 leaders Bewdley Town hit 12 goals at home v lower division Evesham United Reserves, Brimscombe & Thrupp hit 10 at home v lower division Kidlington FC Development and Wantage Town hit 6 at home v lower division Ardley United FC Reserves. Carterton appear to be hitting some form and won 3-0 at home v Redditch Borough, Stonehouse Town won 3-1 at home v University of Bristol, Malmesbury Victory won 2-0 at home v Thame United Reserves, Wellington won 2-1 away v Ludlow Town and Cheltenham Saracens and Newent Town drew 1-1, with Cheltenham Saracenswinning 6-5 on penalties. 

On Tuesday night we had Wiseman Lighting (UHL) Floodlit Cup action with Chipping Sodbury Town winning 4-1 away v Brimscombe & Thrupp, Carterton winning 4-2 at home v Kidlington FC Development, Malmesbury Victoria winning 5-1 at home v University of Bristol, Shortwood United winning 2-0 v Bourton Rovers Development, Stonehouse Town winning 2-1 v Clanfield 85, Hungerford Town Reserves beating Marlow FC Reserves 3-2 and Thames United Reserves winning 5-3 v Ardley United FC Reserves.  

Wednesday included Wantage Town travelling to Banbury United Dev and winning 3-0 in the Wiseman Lighting (UHL) Floodlit Cup, 3 x Hellenic Veterans Premier Division games and 2 x Hellenic Veterans Division One Games. 

May the ball roll sweetly for you all, 

Regards, 

Ian

Weather set fair for the weekend!

In the UHL Premier Division on Saturday, Droitwich Spacontinued their stay at the summit by beating Royal Wootton Bassett Town 2-1, Roman Glass St Gerogetravelled away to Pershore Town and won 3-1 to stay 2^nd, Slimbridge were away at Cribbs and were looking defeat in the eyes being 2-1 down up until the 96^th minute when they equalized and then goal machine Jack W Smithscored the winner in the 98^th minute. The top 3 appear relentless in their pursuit of silverware at the present time. Worcester Raiders were held to 0-0 draw away at Fairford Town and Corsham Town won 2-1 v Hereford Pegasus to maintain 5^th place. Highworth Town turned the formbook upside down with a comprehensive 4-0 win v Westfields, near(ish) neighbours Thornbury Town and Mangotsfield United drew 2-2, Tuffley Rovers were beaten at home 2-0 by Cirencester Town and Lydney Town and Longlevensdrew 2-2. Big news of the day though was Hallen claiming their first win of the season by beating Cinderford Town 3-2 at home. They moved out of bottom place as a result. In midweek, Fairford Town v Roman Glass St Georgefinished 2-1 to the home side; with Fairford Town drawing their last 2 games 0-0, they will have been glad to score some goals and win their game. 

In UHL Division One, leaders Bewdley Town continued with a 2-0 away win v Chipping Sodbury Town, Cheltenham Saracens moved 2^nd with an impressive 5-4 away win v Wellington. They led 4-1 at half time, Wellington came back at them, but they held on for victory. Redditch Borough had a 3-0 win v Stonehouse Town to move into 3^rd place, Malmesbury Victory travelled to Carterton and suffered a 5-2 defeat which ripped the current form book up and dropped them to 4^th place. Newent Town’s fantastic start to the season suffered a blip where they were beaten 4-2 at home v Wantage Town,Alcester v Ludlow ended 1-0 to the home team, Brimscombe & Thrupp won 2-1 at home v Thames United Reserves with their winner in the 93^rd minute and Clanfield 85 and Shortwood United ended 1-1 in a bottom 3 battle.  

Both the UHL Premier Division and Division One look set for an exciting season both at the top and at the bottom which is a great advert for the league. 

In the Alliance East, we had 2 games with an away win for Headington Amateurs who scored 8 without reply and a draw between Eversley & California Reserves v Banbury United.

In the Alliance West we had 4 games with all home wins for Mangotsfield United Development, UDA Glos Development, University of Bristol and Wantage Town U23’s. 

I am happy to say our Results Officer Chris L returns to the Results hotseat this weekend. I stood in for him last Saturday and midweek, trying to officiate on a game, rush home and do the results as well as doing my League Secretary role has been a challenge. So welcome back Chris, hope you had a good holiday. 

Another wild Saturday in the Hellenic League saw comebacks, late goals, and enough talking points to keep the clubhouse buzzing. From high-scoring thrillers to gritty draws, here’s how the weekend unfolded.

Hellenic Premier Division

Corsham Town 2–1 Hereford Pegasus

Corsham hit back after the break to turn things around, with Lewis Gilchrist and Nick McCootie cancelling out Rory Thompson’s opener. The game we hear was played in very good sprits.

Cribbs 2–3 Slimbridge

Slimbridge produced the comeback of the day, three goals in the second half and late chaos saw them snatch the win after trailing at the break.

Droitwich Spa 2–1 Royal Wootton Bassett Town

Early goals from Tilley and Moss did the damage for Spa, who held firm as Bassett pushed hard late on.

Fairford Town 0–0 Worcester Raiders

A goalless draw, but both sides defended like their lives depended on it. Clean sheets all round.

Hallen 3–2 Cinderford Town

Five goals and plenty of drama. Hallen edged it with early strikes and some determined defending late on.

Highworth Town 4–0 Westfields

Highworth were ruthless, running riot in a dominant display that keeps their momentum rolling. Westfields had no reply.

Lydney Town 2–2 Longlevens

An end-to-end contest saw the points shared after four goals and some superb attacking play.

Pershore Town 1–3 Roman Glass St George

Laurent Wilson’s double and a late Stoneman strike sealed it for Roman Glass, who were clinical on the road. Pershore grabbed a goal and fought hard.

Thornbury Town 2–2 Mangotsfield United

A crazy finish, goals in the 97th and 98th minutes meant both sides left equally relieved and exhausted. Tired legs may have been a factor in two later goals less than a minute apart.

Tuffley Rovers 0–2 Cirencester Town

An early strike from Harlie Price set the tone before Alfonso Dias wrapped things up late. Solid, professional, job done.

Hellenic Division One

Alcester Town 1–0 Ludlow Town

A single first-half goal from Adam Bourn was enough as Alcester got it done in businesslike fashion.

Brimscombe & Thrupp 2–1 Thames United Reserves

Late heroics from Terry Francis in stoppage time secured the win after a tough battle.

Carterton 5–2 Malmesbury Victoria

Goals, goals, goals! Carterton were flying, with braces from Fullerton and McGhee-Parsons lighting up the afternoon.

Chipping Sodbury Town 0–2 Bewdley Town

Bewdley were clinical, taking their chances well to silence the home crowd.

Clanfield 85 1–1 Shortwood United

A big step forward for Clanfield as they earned a hard-fought point with Tyraiq Hunt’s late equaliser well deserved after a gritty performance, a team that were for sure a team to watch this season after previous seasons performances.

Newent Town 2–4 Wantage Town

Wantage were lethal in front of goal, with Whelan and Crook leading the charge in an entertaining six-goal clash.

Redditch Borough 3–1 Stonehouse Town

A hat-trick from Jamie Install saw Borough cruise to victory, job done in style.

Wellington 4–5 Cheltenham Saracens

The game of the day! Nine goals, chaos, and late drama, Saracens edged a thriller where defences definitely took the afternoon off.

Hellenic Alliance

In the Alliance East, UDA Glos Dev edged Clanfield Reserves 3–2 in the West. Wins too for Wantage Town U23s and Mangotsfield United Dev in a busy day across the divisions.

Another weekend of late drama, goalfests, and a few hard-earned draws, just the way we like it in the Hellenic! Not much planned action midweek, but keep an eye out for the games that are playing. Next Saturday sees an action packed fixture list.

Header picture from @slimbridgeafc << “X” account

Showing the true head in hands moment, a moment that shows the true love for the sport we all play!