VENUE #80 BRENTFORD Griffin Park

SKY BET CHAMPIONSHIP

Saturday 22nd October 2016

Griffin Park, Brentford

Ground Capacity:-  12,763

Kick Off:-  15:00

Entry Fee:-  £28

Programme:-  £5  

VENUE #80

     Just a five minute walk from Brentford station to Griffin Park.  As you exit Brentford station turn left onto Boston Manor Road and continue until you reach Windmill Road and turn left again. Follow the road round and take the second turning on the right onto Hamilton Road and at the bottom of the road you'll come to a junction Brook Road South, take a right and the road curves past the football which is on the left hand side.  You can enter the ground on New Road which is opposite Hamilton road across the Brook Road South junction.

     Griffin Park was built in 1904 on the site of an orchard which was owned by Fuller's brewery.  The name Griffin comes from the logo of the said brewery who probably supplied the beer to the four pubs situated on each corner of the ground.  As most London football grounds Griffin Park is situated in a residential area encased in houses, flats and of course the two pubs the Royal Oak and of course the Griffin.
     The first game played at the park was a Western league fixture against Plymouth Argyle which ended in a one all draw and was played to a crowd of between 4 and 5 thousand people.
     During the second world war the ground was hit twice by high explosive bombs in 1940 and 41, six matches had to be postponed or abandoned during the blitz.
     Disaster struck in 1983 also when faulty wiring led to a fire breaking out in the Braemer Road stand which caused £150.000 worth of damage to seats, away dressing room, kit store and laundry all went up in smoke as the fire teared through the timber construction.  The players entrance tunnel was moved from the centre to the far western corner of the Braemer road stand in the redevelopment of the stand. 


                                                Today's visitors BARNSLEY:  The Tykes featured in the very first football game I ever saw, it was at Walsall's old Fellows Park ground in the mid sixties where the Saddlers destroyed the team from South Yorkshire 5-0.  The Tykes turned the five goal deficit around at the end of last season when the two teams met in the play-off semi final and Barnsley emerged triumphant beating Walsall 6-1 over the two home and away legs.  The Tykes went on to beat Millwall 3-1 in the final at Wembley and now play in the Championship as their reward.  Barnsley lie in 15th place before this game seven places below their opponents today Brentford but a win would see them level on 19 points with the Bees.

   Braemer Road Stand

     A two tiered all seated stand with the lower tier known as the paddock.  Housed within this stand are the supporters club, dressing rooms and club offices.  Up until recently the dug outs used to be at the front of this stand  This stand has a very low roof which may restrict viewing from the back with supporting pillars which will hamper your view pending on position of seat.

New Road Stand

     A single tiered all seated stand which is also known as the Bill Axbey stand named as a tribute to a long standing supporter who died in 2007.  Previously a terrace and was converted into a stand in the summer of 1996 but still has supporting pillars running across the front.  This stand now houses the dug outs taking over from the Braemer stand.  TV broadcasts are shot from here with the gantry suspended from the roof of the stand.

Ealing Road Terrace

     A single tiered terrace which was previously uncovered with planning permission for a roof being turned down in 2004 but was reviewed and accepted and the roof was constructed three years later.

Brook Road Stand

     A two tiered stand with seating in the upper tier and terracing in the lower.  Built to replace the Royal Oak stand in the mid 80's and because of it's peculiar look has been dobbed the nickname "the wendy house".  This stand has been allocated to away supporters.

BRENTFORD ... 0   BARNSLEY ... 2

     Brentford's 4,000th league game celebrations were tarnished as Barnsley came to spoil the party. A goal each half made the Tykes worthy winners of this contest and puts them on equal points with the Bees in the league table.

     The Bees started brightly and had large spells of the first half camped inside the Tykes half of the field forcing corner after corner but the quality of the balls pumped into the Barnsley box was poor and bread and butter for the South Yorkshire men to gobble up.  Shots at goal were either skyed over the bar or hit straight at the keeper, it has to be said that Brentford's play in the final third was bordering abysmal.

     In the 29th minute the Bees paid for their inadequacy up front when Barnsley took the lead a headed clearance from Yoann Barbet went straight to Adam Armstrong who put the ball into the net via his shin.

     The goal stowed confidence into the Barnsley side who started to believe they could win this game and finished the half on a high.  It was obvious that the Bees manager Dean Smith had to change things if his side were to get back into this game and at half time he does just that bringing on Josh Clarke for Sam Saunders who was having a poor game.

     When the teams came out for the final 45 Barnsley went straight into their warm up routine while Brentford looked as though they wished they were going into the shower and off home but as the half got on the way the Bees once again started the brighter but seemed to tire as the Tykes pressed high up the pitch and had a couple of chances to extend their lead before they finally did in the 67th minute, a one two between Ryan Kent and Armstrong saw the latter canon the ball off the post and straight into the path of Sam Winnall who riffled home from close range.

     Barnsley fans grew even noisier in the wendy house while the home faithful grew more and more frustrated.  Some fans sitting next to me were shouting "F" off back to Walsall which made me wonder how they knew that I was from Walsall and why were they blaming me for this poor performance and then I realised their comments were aimed at their manager Dean Smith who Brentford acquired off the Saddlers last season and by the sounds of things want to send him back special delivery packaged and stamped.

     Home fans perked up a little when Smith brought on Philipp Hofmann for Romaine Sawyers who I must say resembled a cart horse up front for Brentford but the new man also had poor service from the wide men and was unable to make an impact on the Barnsley goal.

     Appeals for a penalty went on death ears when Nico Yennaris was pulled to the ground in the Barnsley penalty area and the ex Arsenal midfielder had a shot well saved by Adam Davies in the Barnsley goal at the death.  Final score 0-2 a fair result.

                            MATCH DETAILS

   

VENUE #79 LEYTON ORIENT Matchroom Stadium, Brisbane Road

SKY BET LEAGUE TWO

Saturday 15th October 2016

@Matchroom Stadium
Brisbane Road, London

Ground Capacity:-  9,271

Kick Off:- 15:00

Entry Fee:-  £22

Programme:-  3.00

Venue 79

      As usual used the train to get to this venue catching the Birmingham train into London's Euston station and fumbling around the underground system to arrive at Leyton which is only a 5 to 10 minute walk away from the ground.  As you leave Leyton station turn right along high road and cross the road at the pedestrian lights and carry on straight up until you come to Buckingham road then turn left and take the first right into Brisbane road and the ground is on your left hand side.

     The stadium seems typical of the London grounds encased in buildings these ones being flats that run around the two ends of the ground, it may be a way of raising capital to update the place but for me it doesn't look like a football ground more like an housing estate or part of                                                                                     one.

     The ground, which many fans still refer to as its original name of Brisbane Road has seen a lot of re-development in recent years, with the construction of three new stands. Finance for this has chiefly come from the proceeds of selling part of the Brisbane Road site to a property developer. In this ground breaking development, the corners of the ground have been filled with blocks of residential apartments, which certainly gives the stadium a unique look. Some other clubs are looking at the scheme with interest and I wouldn't be surprised to see something similar take place at another league ground at some point in the future.

     At one end is the single tiered, Tommy Johnston (South) Stand (capacity 1,336 seats), that was opened in 1999. This stand replaced a former open terrace and is named after the club's leading all time goal scorer. An interesting feature of this covered area is that it is raised above pitch level, meaning that you have to climb a small set of steps at the front to reach the seating area. The old Main (East) Stand, which was originally opened in 1956, has been reduced in

length, but is still a fair size.  This partly covered stand is now all seated after having seating installed on the former front terrace. Unfortunately, it has several supporting pillars and the roof doesn't quite cover all of the front seating. It does though have an interesting gable on its roof which has 'Leyton Orient' proudly emblazoned across it and gives a nice link to the Club's history. 

     Opposite is the new West Stand which was opened for the 2005/06 season. This all seated stand which has a capacity of 2,872, has an unusual look about it, as above the seating area is a tall vertical structure that houses the Club offices. In fact to be honest it looks more like an office block that has some seats installed on a large viewing gallery, rather than a football stand. It also has some corporate hospitality areas, which look a little precarious, as the outside seating area of these overhang the lower tier. If you carry on with the office theme, then you can almost imagine these being used by the window cleaners to clean the office windows. At the very top of the stand is a fair sized viewing gallery for television cameras and press and the roof of the stand contains a lot of perspex panels to allow more light to reach the pitch.

     At the North End is the ground is the most recent addition to the stadium. The North Stand was opened at the beginning of the 2007/08 season and replaced a former open terrace. This simple looking covered all seated stand, has space for 1,351 spectators and looks similar to the Tommy Johnston Stand. The ground also has a set of four modern looking floodlight pylons.

LEYTON ORIENT ... 1   LUTON TOWN ... 2

     I remember a couple of years ago when I visited Luton's Kenilworth Road ground when they played Braintree and needed a win to secure a place in league football once again but things didn't go to plan as they lost the game by 3 goals to 2 but got they're well deserved promotion within the week anyway.  The crowd that day was electric as they were today, the Luton fans can't half generate some noise.

     Both sides missed easy chances early on Ollie Palmer from six yards when it was easier to score and Cameron McGeehan got on the end of a Jordan Cook free kick only to be foiled by Alex Cisak in the Orient goal.

     But it was McGeehan who opened the scoring on the half hour when Jack Marriott won the ball from Jay Simpson in the Orient half his shot was blocked by Cisak but ran cruelly to McGeehan to slot home from six yards.

     Orient were looking for a way back into the game in the second half but fell further behind in the 74th minute when Jack Marriot and Danny Hylton combined to create a chance for Hylton to smash the ball into the centre of the net from twelve yards.

     Ollie Palmer raised the hopes of the home faithful five minutes later when he hit the ball from the right side of the Luton penalty area across the goal and in of the far post but it was a mere consolation as the Hatters held on for victory quite comfortably in the end.

                             MATCH DETAILS

   

VENUE #78 RAITH ROVERS Stark's Park

LADBOKES CHAMPIONSHIP

Saturday 24th September

@Stark's Park, Kirkcaldy

Ground Capacity:-  10,104

Kick Off:-  15:00

Entry Fee:-  £16

Programme:-  £2

Venue #78

      The last time I was in Fife saw me nearly blown off the planet by high winds and I must say it wasn't much better this afternoon which leaves me wondering if this Scots county is the Chicago of the British isles.

      Stark's park is pretty straight forward to find from Kirkcaldy train station just leave the station on platform two exit and turn left down Whyte Melville road until you come to the junction at the bottom with the graveyard on the opposite side of the road then turn right continuing along the B925 until you come to a small painted island then take the left fork and proceed down the A910, you'll come to a big island after about 300 yards just carry on straight across onto Abbotshall road and

follow the road down to the rail way bridge and pass under it keeping on the same road which changes to the B9157 and you should see the ground in the distance from here.  It's advisable to keep to the left hand side of the road for there is no footpath mostly leading up to the ground on the right.  The road changes name again to Pratt street with the ground right in front of you on the right hand side of the road. 

     The club shop is situated in the South stand which is at the far end of the road as you approach from the railway station.  This is where I watched the game which is unusual for me making my viewing point from behind the goal although it seemed that everyone else had the same idea home and away support.  Stewards were not very helpful they didn't seem to know the layout of the ground or where anything was, well, the one's that I asked didn't and so i found that asking Raith fans was more beneficial.

  The ground has benefited greatly from the redevelopment of both ends North & South Stands, are virtually

South Stand

identical. Both are good sized, single tiered stands with windshields on either side and unusual floodlights protruding from their roofs. The North Stand is given to away supporters. On one side of the pitch is the Railway Stand, a small covered, all seated stand, which is currently unused. Opposite, must be one of the most unusual Main Stands in Scotland. It is a classic looking old stand, that only runs for less then half the length of the pitch, but extends around one corner of the ground. It is a covered seated stand, the seating area of which is raised above pitch level and has a number of supporting pillars. Even so, the stand oozes character, complete with a 'RRFC' gable on it's roof. It is just unfortunate that the rest of this side of the ground, is empty.

North Stan

The Main Stand

House adjoining Main Stand

Railway Terrace (Not Used)

RAITH ROVERS ... 3   DUMBARTON ... 2

     The game started lively with both sides making an impression on the opponents box.

 Raith were looking to end a dismal run of 3 straight defeats and looked on course when Kevin McHattie opened the scoring in the 15th minute.  The left back drove home for his second of the season so far.

     Then in the 34th minute Ross Callachan added a second with a deflected effort that found it's way into Alan martin's net.

     A minute later and the goal of the game when Scott Robert's 20 yard thunderbolt looked to put the game to bed entering the Dumbarton goal via the post and Martin's top right hand corner.  This was Robert's first for Raith since moving on loan to the Kirkcaldy club from Rangers.

     

     The second half saw a change of ways and mood for the home support as the Sons of Dumbarton upped their game and made to make their way back into the game in the 71st minute when substitute Ryan Stevenson found the back of the Raith net with a 25 yard screamer.

     Six minutes later and the the home faithful had their heads firmly in their hands when Robert Thomson scrambled the the ball over the Raith goal line to reduce the deficit to one and made the last 13 minutes squeaky bum time.

     Nerves were eased a little as Gregor Buchanan received a second yellow card and his marching orders for the visitors in the the last but one minute of normal time and allowed Raith to hold on to a much needed win.

                           MATCH DETAILS

VENUE #77 LLANDUDNO Maesdu Park

DAFABET WELSH PREMIER

Sunday 28th August 2016

@Maesdu Park, Llandudno

Ground Capacity:  2,000

Kick Off:  15:00

Entry Fee:  £8

Programme:  £2

Venue 77

     Arrived in Llandudno on Saturday afternoon after a horrendous train journey which saw the Wife and myself board the seaside bound train at Wolverhampton.  The train was formed of 4 carriages but was packed full of passengers although we managed to get a seat, well, that is as far as Shrewsbury where we were told that the carriage we were seated in wasn't going to Llandudno and that only the first 2 carriages would be continuing the journey and the back 2 would be uncoupled and be staying at the Shropshire town. So an already cramped train got even more claustrophobic as passengers, including us had to make our way to the first 2 carriages.  Needless to say there were people standing from top to bottom of the carriages in the aisles and crammed into the doorway areas which meant every stop took at least 3 times the normal amount of time to allow people to retrieve their luggage and make their way off the train and of course there were still people trying to get on it.  We managed to get a seat at Chester where a vast amount of people got off but still more wanted to get on.  It got to the stage that people were being declined access to the the train until we passed the main points on the journey, Rhyl and Prestatyn where the train got down to a manageable amount of people till eventually when passed Colwyn Bay and made our way down to our penultimate destination, Llandudno junction where all was seated and able to manoeuvre around the train without stress.  From the junction we caught the train to take us to Landudno a mere 10 minute journey but a good hour later than we anticipated.

     We stayed at the Brigstock B&B which was situated in St. David's place and just a 5 minute walk from the station and shops and was ideally positioned for us both.  It was in a quiet area away from the bustle of the town but near enough to escape to when wanting to look at shops and the promenade was only a further 5 mins. away.  The owner Simon was very welcoming as we arrived and showed us to our room which was just a small twin on one side of the attack space, it had 2 beds an en suite and TV with facilities to make tea and coffee including complementary sachets, sugars and milk etc..  There wasn't much room but as we were only using it as a base for a couple of days it was adequate to our needs.  My Wife was actually thrilled at the prospect of staying in such a room she always wanted to stay in a converted attack and now was her chance but as the night came and the weather changed to thunder and lightning with very heavy rain her thoughts of attack rooms changed dramatically especially as the lightning lit up the room as it flashed above the velux window stationed above our beds. 

LLANDUDNO ... 0   ABERYSTWYTH TOWN ... 1

     

      The Maesdu Park stadium is just a 10 to 15 minute walk from Llandudno station.  As you exit the station turn right along Augusta street following the road round to the left and crossing the road that leads to the back of the station.  very shortly there is a turning to your right called Oxford road, proceed along this road until you come to another right turning which is a narrow looking road called Builders street, turn down here and carry on until the road makes a sharp turn to the left and as it does turns sharply again to the right where it changes it's name to Builders street west.  Proceed just a short distance down Builders street west and on the left hand side of the road you will see a turning that looks like it's entering a coach depot but if you follow the road to the right you will come to the entrance of the Maesdu centre.

Clubhouse End

     Maesdu Park is largely an open ground, with just a few small basic stands in place. However the openness allows it to have a picturesque look on two sides, where it is overlooked by a couple of headlands. Spectators enter the ground at the Clubhouse End with the club shop situated to the right. This end of the ground is filled with a number of white coloured buildings that house the Clubhouse, changing rooms and Club offices. In front of these is a large flat standing area. Opposite is the Centenary Stand, which is a small covered stand, that looks quite new. It is situated directly behind the goal and runs for around half the width of the pitch. It has a mixture of

covered seating and standing areas. On the North side of Maesdu Park, is the largest of the stands, which is the Main Stand. Running from the half way line down to the Centenary End, this covered all seated stand, has only four rows of seats, but at least it free from any supporting pillars. However directly next to it is the base of a large ugly looking telephone mast, that could impair the views of spectators, trying to see the action at one corner of the ground. On the other side of this mast is an unusual looking two storey brick building that houses the stadium announcer and has an executive area.

Opposite on the remaining side the team dugouts are situated on either side of the halfway line. Above the dugouts is a scaffolded raised platform that serves as a television gantry. Towards the Clubhouse End there is a small all seated covered stand, called the MBi Stand, whilst the other side has a portakabin type structure that also serves as an Executive area, with seating out front. Maesdu Park has an artificial playing surface.

In 2015 the stadium was renamed Park MBi Maesdu in a corporate sponsorship deal.

THE MATCH

     As the referee tried to start the game the Llandudno number 23 Lewis

Buckley complained that his socks were not taped up properly and wanted the kick off delayed to address the situation the referee did not agree to his request and was then approached by other players from both sides wanting to sort out problems with their kit that should have been sorted prior to kick off.  Five or so minutes later and the ball was placed on the centre circle spot and played back as the new rules suggest these days the referee blew his whistle to stop the game as Aberystwyth were adjudged to have encroached on the Llandudno side of the pitch before the ball was kicked.

     When play was finally allowed to continue it was Aberystwyth who made the early play with Joe Clarke coming close after five minutes with a shot that was deflected wide.
     It took 10 minutes for the home side to register their first attempt at goal when Leo Riley's curled shot hit team mate Marc Williams and went agonisingly wide of the the Aber post.


     Lewis Buckley pulled his socks up 3 minutes later and intercepted a short

pass from Aber goalie Dominic Richards but the Llandudno striker tried to lob the keeper and sailed the ball over the bar.
     Half way through the first half and Aber's Chris Jones swung the ball across the home side's six yard area and Blake Davies came close to getting a toe on the ball but the ball eluded him and went to safety.
     Buckley had another chance 10 minutes later but curled his effort wide of of Richards's top right hand corner.

     After the break Llandudno looked to be a little sharper and up to the task, now kicking down the slope toward the clubhouse put Aber's defence to the test and winning a couple of early corners.
     Aberystwyth hadn't come to the north coast to be beaten though and came back at the hosts having a couple of penalty appeals waved away by referee Kris Hames.


     In the 68th minute it was Llandudno's turn to cry foal as Marc Williams shot

seemed to hit the hand of an Aber player in the penalty area but the referee once again turned a blind eye.
     Seven minutes later and Dominic Richards earned his corn once more when Leo Riley flicked the ball over an Aber defender and blasted a shot from 25 yards which brought a great save from the Aberystwyth keeper.

     Three additional minutes were introduced and just as it seemed that this game was more for the booze than the football and people were heading for the clubhouse and the exits at the death of the game Aberystwyth were awarded a corner which was lobbed high into the home sides penalty area where Jonathan Evans the Aber sub who'd only been on the pitch 5 minutes rose higher than anyone to nod the ball home and claim all 3 points for the mid west coast team.  And that my friends was the the last action of a not so good game of Welsh football but from what I saw on the day the best team won in the end.

                MATCH DETAILS