Exmouth Town Report (as promised)

From The Exmouth Journal:

Such was the drama at Street that, in the aftermath of 'the magic moment' it had been thought - indeed reported - that skipper Jamie Dirrane scored what was certainly the 'most dramatic' Town goal, of 2019.

However, once the dust had settled on a memorable 4-3 win at Street it was decided that the winning goal was in fact scored by Jordan Harris.

That means that the Town leading scorer - both in this current season to date and the year of 2019, ended the year scoring twice in each of the final three Town games of the year!

It also means that the Town hit-man has now netted 12 goals in his last eight game s scoring in each of them with the exception of the December 7, 0-0 draw at Southern Road against Hallen.

What's more, it also means that Harris now has 38 goals to his name in 2019!

Town president John Dibsdall, who has seen so many Town games over the years, said post match at Street: "There are usually four of us who travel together to Town away games and, after the match, I said to 'Hilly' (Town manager Kevin Hill) that we have a combined age approaching 300 and moments like the last two minutes at Street are not good for our health!"

He continued: "That said, perhaps those final moments at Street were a fitting end to a year that has seen us fight to the very end in every game and, even in the two league games that we have lost since this season started, we have been the better side from first kick to last in each of the second halves of those games at Parkway and Keynsham."

Results PM Saturday 28th December

I have to be happy today.

I just put all the results in my spreadsheet and there is nothing but GREEN to show.

There was a postponed match at the bottom of the list but the other results were all good.

Broadclyst beat Witheridge 2nds 4-2.

Elmore 2nds beat Beer Albion 2nds 6-2.

And now the results that interest those of you that follow the pyramid:

Exmouth Town travelled to Street and came away with a 4-3 win.
It sounds like a good match and if I find a match report I will let you know.

Weymouth were at home to Oxford City and emerged from the match with a 2-1 victory.

Torquay were drawing 1-1 with Woking at half time but wound up 4-1 winners.

All in all a good day with more to come tomorrow.

Results PM Thursday 26th December

Arsenal travelled to Bournemouth and went a goal behind. This is not unusual nor is the fact that it was Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang who equalised in the second half. The match finished 1-1.

Brentford welcomed Swansea City. Bryan Mbeumo opened the scoring and this was followed by two goals from Ollie Watkins. Swansea got a goal back in return and the match finished 3-1.

Southend United entertained Milton Keynes Dons. The Dons took the lead twice but two equalisers from Jason Demetriou and Rob Kiernan proved that defenders can score to keep a team in contention which they did as the match ended 2-2.

Lee Martin's 14th-minute goal was enough for Exeter City to bring victory at home to Newport County.

Courtney Duffus scored a hat-trick as Yeovil beat Torquay 6-2 to move level on points with National League leaders Barrow. Asa Hall and Ben Whitfield scored for Torquay.

Weymouth were due to take on Havant & Waterlooville but the waterlogged pitch prevented the match from going ahead.

Tiverton Town travelled to Truro City and came away with a 3-3 draw.

Barnstaple travelled to Bideford and twice went ahead before succumbing to a 3-2 defeat.

My current Western League pick Exmouth Town beat my old Western League pick Buckland Athletic 4-2. That sounds like it might have been a good match to watch.

Elmore and Liverton results have not appeared so I assume that they were postponed due to the rain which continues to pour day after day after day. This is more than forty days and forty nights so what does that mean?

Amazon Prime was the service provided today.

Results PM Saturday 21st December = A long day continues

I have the Liverpool v. Flamengo match on in the window beside this one. It is still Nil Nil as I write but Liverpool are peppering the Flamengo goal. Barbosa hits the ball over the bar for Flamengo.

I watched Everton play Arsenal in the match where both defences are considered so bad that we were guaranteed a goal fest. Naturally the match finished Nil Nil. Maybe the threat of the two new managers woke both defences up a bit.

Brentford travelled to West Bromwich Albion and earned a 1-1 draw.

Southend travelled to Bolton Wanderers and went down 3-2.

Exeter were 3-2 down to Walsall at half time but equalised in the second half for a 3-3 draw.

Both National League sides lost:

Chesterfield turned up at Torquay and won the match 3-0.

St Albans City travelled to Weymouth and won their match 1-0.

The Southern League gave me one win and one defeat. You can already guess.

Tiverton Town travelled to Dorchester Town and trounced them 5-1.

Barnstaple returned to form with a 2-0 defeat at home to Evesham Town.

From Exmouth in the Western League down all matches were postponed due to torrential rain.

Rain, Rain, Go Away. Do not return until the end of May.

Reporting AM Saturday 21st December = The shortest day

SO! What happened this week?

Arsenal lost 3-0 to Manchester City on Monday, a match which saw the end of the Freddie Ljungberg reign. Mickel Arteta has now been appointed manager of Arsenal. He has good strong ideas but will they translate to performances on the field. His management of Mesut Ozil will be a key factor.

Tiverton Town travelled to Blackfield & Langley on Tuesday managing a 1-0 win so the Tiverton story continues to be a good one.

Barnstaple took on Larkhall Athletic at home and managed a rare win 3-1. Any more scores like that and I will have to visit the ground and watch them live.

Today we can expect results from:

1) Everton v. Arsenal
2) West Bromwich Albion v. Brentford
3) Bolton Wanderers v. Southend United
4) Exeter v. Walsall
5) Torquay United v. Chesterfield
6) Weymouth v. St Albans City
7) Dorchester Town v. Tiverton Town
8) Barnstaple Town v. Evesham United
9) Exmouth Town v. Plymouth Parkway
10) Elmore Eagles v. Sidmouth Town
11) Liverton United v. Exmouth Town Reserves

The local league matches are mine to follow and nothing to do with you.

Results PM Saturday 14th December

From the lower levels up:

Most of the local league matches were postponed due to this incessant weather. I have checked the wood outside every day for the last two months and although it has partially dried it has not been fully dry since October. The backlog must be huge by now so special measures will be needed and I am expecting to see incomplete tables at the end of the season.

Now;

11) Shock of shocks. They play much better when I am not watching. Liverton beat Topsham 4-1.

10) Elmore travelled to Newton Abbot Spurs and came away 4-2 winners.

9) Exmouth Town took on Bridport away and beat them 3-1. Three wins from three at this point.

8) Barnstaple Town, my weakest club, surrendered to Cirencester Town 2-1 away.

7) Tiverton Town were due to play Farnborough at home but this weather saw the match postponed.

6) Weymouth went to Barnet for their F.A.Trophy matched and lost 2-1 to the team one level above.

5) Torquay were at home to Aldershot Town and won convincingly by 5 goals to 1.

4) Exeter had a good result after losing to Hartlepool in the cup, the beat Salford 1-0 away.

3) Southend welcomed Rotherham United to Roots Hall and gave them a chance to draw 2-2.

2) Brentford took on local rivals Fulham at home and bragging rights go to Brentford 1-0.

1) Arsenal play tomorrow.

Reporting AM Saturday December 14th

Arsenal won at last on Monday night, beating West Ham 3-1 although not before going a goal behind. Fortunately I know that whenever West Ham score they sit back and let teams come at them which is what we did and they paid for it.

On Wednesday evening Brentford continued the current good run by beating Cardiff City 2-1. Goals from Bryan Mbeumo and Ollie Watkins sealed the win in the first half.

Thursday evening saw Arsenal qualify in the Europa League but not without the usual worries on the way. Standard Liege went 2-0 up in the 69th minute and Eintracht Frankfurt were beating Vitoria at the time. We were out. Goals from Alexander Lacazette in the 78th minute and from Bukayo Saka in the 81st minute saw us see off the threat from Liege but as the night wore on Vitoria went and stayed ahead against Eintracht Frankfurt meaning that we were safely through whatever happened. Liege could have gone through with us given one more goal. It did not happen. The match ended 2-2.

The matches this weekend are :-

Arsenal are at home to Manchester City on Sunday.

The other matches take place today:

Brentford at home to Fulham.
Southend at home to Rotherham United.
Exeter away to the new Manchester United, Salford City.

It must be F.A.Trophy Day with no National League matches for my picks.

Torquay United are at home to Aldershot Town in the First Round of the F.A.Trophy.
Weymouth are away to Barnet having beaten Hastings United in the previous round.

Tiverton Town are at home to Farnborough in the Southern League.
Barnstaple Town are away to Cirencester Town in the Southern League Division One South.

Exmouth Town are away to Bridport in the Western League Premier Division.

Elmore Eagles are away to Newton Abbot Spurs in the South West Peninsula League Premier East.

Liverton are at home to Topsham Town in the Devon League North & East Division.

My local league opponents are Colyton, Newtown, Tedburn St Mary, Winkleigh, Sidmouth Town, Witheridge, Chagford, Priory and HT Dons. You need not worry about those. They are for me.

Good luck to whoever you are supporting today.

Mostly defeats for my lot : 7th December

Brentford travelled to Sheffield Wednesday and went down 2-1.

Southend travelled to Bristol Rovers and went down 2-4.

Exeter took on Northampton Town at home and won 3-2.

Torquay travelled to Harrogate Town and lost the match 2-1.

Weymouth travelled to Dorking Wanderers and lost 1-0.

Tiverton had a successful trip to Harrow Borough winning the match 6-1.

Barnstaple welcomed Melksham Town to their own patch and lost the game 3-1.

Exmouth Town had a home fixture against Hallen but there were no goals in the 0-0 draw.

Elmore travelled to Cullompton Rangers and came away having been defeated 2-1.

Liverton (near the bottom) travelled to Exwick Villa (2nd place) and lost the match 10-2.

It does seem that the Liverton 1-0 win last week was a bit of an anomaly.

Last Week and This Week : 1st - 7th December

Arsenal continued the poor run of form with an away draw at Norwich. I realise how lucky I am to support a team where an away draw is a bad result. Pukki gave Norwich the lead before Aubameyang equalised with a retaken penalty. Cantwell then gave Norwich the lead for the second time and we relied once again on Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to earn us a point. "Something better change."

In the Championship Brentford took on Luton and ran out 7-0 winners. Something is very right at my Championship club. The goals came from Mbeumo, Watkins, Jensen, Dasilva (3) and Benrahma. Two late penalties indicate how Luton were feeling by the end of the match.

 Exeter drew 2-2 at home to Hartlepool United in the second round of the F.A.Cup. The Exeter goals came from Ryan Bowman and Nigel Atangana.

Torquay United took on Stockport  County at home but capitulated to their visitors and went down 5-1 which is a terrible result for a home team. Something is wrong at Plainmoor.

Weymouth had to challenge Hungerford Town at the Bob Lucas Stadium (formerly Wessex Stadium). The team achieved the same result as their last home game running out 2-1 winners.

There were two defeats for my teams in the Southern League. Tiverton Town went down 3-2 at home to Gosport Borough and Barnstaple travelled to Highworth Town where they lost 2-1.

My favourite team this season who are doing very well even though they were promoted at the end of last season are Exmouth Town who were at home to Shepton Mallet and ran out 2-1 winners.

Elmore took on Millbrook in the South West Peninsula League with the match ending 2-2. This suggests that the match was an open one allowing both sides to mount attacks on the opposing goal.

My home village were due to take on Exmouth Town Reserves but that match was postponed which is probably a good thing as the match that actually took place saw Liverton beat Budleigh Salterton 1-0 for only their second win of the season. That is enough to keep them just above the two relegation places.

As you now know all my other teams play in the local league, outside of the pyramid, so you are not entitled to know what happened to them. Cronies beat Buckland Reserves in the Devon Premier Cup.
Elmore 3rds beat Bradninch 4-2 in Division Six. All the other results were worse and there were many postponements.

On Tuesday 3rd Southend travelled to Burton Albion in a rearranged fixture and the match ended 1-1.

On Wednesday 4th Exeter fought out a 0-0 draw with Oxford United in the Second Round of the EFL Trophy. Exeter won through 3-0 on penalties.

On Thursday Arsenal produced the worst result in their result bout of bad form. Brighton came to the Emirates Stadium and served up a deserved 2-1 win. Unai Emery is gone but Freddie Ljungberg is continuing the lack of improvement match by match. Defensive coach Steve Bould has to go.

This weekend:
1) Arsenal are away to West Ham on Monday.
2) Brentford travel to Sheffield Wednesday.
3) Southend have gone across the country to Bristol Rovers.
4) Exeter are at home to Northampton Town
5) Torquay are visiting Harrogate Town on the way to mother Shipton's cave at Knaresborough.
6) Weymouth have a trip to Dorking Wanderers before they walk beside the river Thames.
7) Tiverton Town are away at Harrow Borough.
8) Barnstaple are at home to Melksham Town.
9) Exmouth Town are at home to Hallen.
10) Elmore travel to Cullompton Rangers.
11) Liverton United are away to Exwick Villa.
The other nine fixtures are mine to know.

Have a good match viewer.

A Bad Week

Three days and three defeats for my teams this week.

On Tuesday night in the National League Torquay travelled to Eastleigh. Eastleigh secured the game going into a 3-0 lead but Torquay fought back to 3-2 with goals from Ruairi Keating and Jake Andrews.

On Wednesday night Brentford travelled to Blackburn Rovers in the Football League Championship and went behind in the 11th minute. That opening goal was the only goal of the game so Brentford lost 1-0.

Last night (Thursday) Arsenal took on Eintracht Frankfurt, a team that they had beaten 3-0 on their own ground. Arsenal did seem to take them lightly and despite going 1-0 up through Aubameyang then conceded two goals to lose the match 2-1.

Three days and three defeats. I hope this weekend proves more fruitful for my selections.

Arsenal travel to Norwich in the Premier League on Sunday.

The other matches all take place on Saturday.

Brentford are at home to Luton Town in the Championship.

Southend are not playing as they were supposed to win their F.A.Cup match but did not.

Exeter take on Hartlepool United in the F.A.Cup on Sunday.

Torquay are at home to Stockport County in the National League.

Weymouth are at home to Hungerford Town in the Vanarama South (National League South).

Tiverton are at home to Gosport Borough in the Southern League Premier Division South.

Barnstaple are away to Highworth Town in the Southern League Division One South.

Exmouth are at home to Shepton Mallet in the Western League Premier Division.

Elmore are at home to league leaders Millbrook in the South West Peninsula League Premier East.

Liverton are at home to Exmouth Town Reserves in the Devon League North & East Division.

That last match and the local league matches are at the mercy of the weather which has not been kind for the last few weeks. 

Saturday 23rd November

I like rain.

It is good for the garden.

I do not like rain that goes on and on for days and days.

There has been no sunshine and my wife suffers from SAD syndrome. This is not a good thing.

Local league football = Postponed.

Even the matches that were being replayed after being postponed have been postponed.

The F.A. should start allowing more 3G pitches. The F.A. like grass. They are relegating forward thinking teams that have invested in a 3G pitch.

The F.A. also advised teams to take out minimal insurance and that has left Ossett United with a huge bill that means they may have to sell their ground to survive. The F.A. live in the 18th Century along with the fossils that run the F.A.

So, with no football for several weeks at local league level there will be a fixture pile up after christmas assuming that the rain actually stops.

In the Premier Division of the Devon & Exeter League Cronies beat Hatherleigh Town 3-0.

Carrying on up through levels 11, 10, 9 & 8 there were four more postponements.

Tiverton Town travelled to Hendon and came away with a 2-1 win. Winning ways have returned.

Torquay seem to have developed losing ways. They managed a 1-0 defeat away to Chorley.

Exeter City also travelled away but at Crawley Town they earned a 1-0 win.

Southend United have not responded to Sol Campbell who may not last too long. At have to Oxford United Southend managed to concede four goals while scoring none. A 4-0 home defeat.

Brentford beat Reading 1-0 in the Championship.

Arsenal took on Southampton at home and went 1-0 down. Alexander Lacazette equalised. Southampton then scored a second and held on until the 96th minute when Alexander Lacazette equalised. We will have to call him the equaliser.

Saturday 16th November 2019

So, with it being international week the Premier League and Championship have no fixtures taking place. Looking at my list of results many other planned matches did not take place either.

Burton Albion v. Southend United in League One was postponed due to international call-ups. I tried to find out who was called up, although not hard enough as I could find no information online.

In League Two Exeter City fought out a goalless draw with Cheltenham Town. The goalscorers were ....

Torquay United took on Sutton United at home in the National League. Sutton ran out 2-1 winners.

In the National League South the match between Hemel Hempstead Town and Weymouth was called off due to International Call-ups. This definitely needs more investigation. Are England C in action?

In the Southern League Tiverton took on the Metropolitan Police and won the match 2-1.

In the Southern League One South Barnstaple lost again, this time 3-1 away to Sholing. Barnstaple are now bottom of the league and are well worth their place as the strongest team (holding all the others up).

Exmouth travelled to Cadbury Heath in the Western League and won 5-1. This puts Exmouth on 24 points which is ten points behind Bradford Town at the top. Bradford have played 13 matches though and Exmouth have only played 10. If Exmouth win the three games in hand that will put them one point behind the leaders. There is plenty of time once the distractions of the F.A.Cup and F.A.Vase and the Les Phillips Cup have been played out.

In the Walter C Parson Cup Elmore took on Camelford and beat them 4-1 so march on to the next round of that particular cup.

In the Devon League North & East there was a change of fixture as Liverton travelled to Budleigh Salterton and lost by 5 goals to 1. Liverton are now clearly heading for a lower level of football next season.

From Level 12 onwards there were many fixture switches as postponements in the last few weeks have meant that cup matches need to be rearranged. Cronies postponed an East Devon Senior Cup match to play a Devon Premier Cup match. The result was a 2-0 win over Beer Albion.

The best win on the spreadsheet was an 8-2 victory by Broadclyst over Starcross Generals.

Too many matches are being postponed because of the rain. We need more 3G pitches but the F.A. are still governed by sad old men living in the past.

Leasing Dot Com Trophy

There were two matches last week for my teams in the Leasing.com Trophy.

Southend United took on AFC Wimbledon at home.

Exeter City took on West Ham United U21s at home.

Both of the home teams took the lead.

Both of the oppositions then equalised.

Both of the home teams then ran out 3-1 winners.

This was not enough for Southend to progress.

Exeter City have been drawn against Oxford United.

That concludes the Leasing Dot Com report.

Saturday Results

Well, starting with Sunday ... Southend United managed to lose 1-0 to Dover Athletic. An upset. The sad thing is that Sol Campbell did not appear to be that upset on the touchline. I wonder if he has given up on the squad already.

On Saturday Arsenal lost 2-0 away at Leicester. I will not be too critical as Leicester are above us in the table so it was expected. Mind you, Arsenal fans are beginning to expect defeat as a matter of course these days. The defence do not seem to care whether they concede or not. It has to be down to the coaching that the defence looks more like a sieve than a brick wall.

Good news for my Championship side as Brentford travelled to Wigan and ran out 3-0 winners. Maybe the team are starting to perform as it has been a slow start to the season.

Exeter travelled to Cambridge United and drew 1-1 in the F.A.Cup. I might go to the replay here in Exeter but it will largely depend on the weather and it is starting to get very cold these days.

Torquay travelled to Maidstone United and lost 1-0 in the F.A.Cup so that is the cup run over for this year.

In the Vanarama South Weymouth took on Hampton & Richmond Borough and ran out 2-1 winners.

Tiverton were due to play Blackfield & Langley but the match was postponed due to the weather.

Barnstaple actually played their match against Frome Town but that may not be a good thing as they lost 2-0.

All the other matches and many of the local league matches were postponed as the pitches were not fit for football.

The next couple of matches are in the Leasing Dot Com Trophy. I shall report shortly.

Super Sunday

So I wake up and it feels like the flu is waning at long long last.

I go shopping and get everything that I went for including that bulb the shape of which I have never seen before. Things are looking up.

My sporting Sunday is planned with Southend United on BT Sport at 12:00 noon playing Dover Athletic. Sol Campbell v. Andy Hessenthaler has my tastebuds tingling. Sol was a hero when he joined Arsenal from Spurs and took the stick that was necessary back then. He has chosen to manage Southend United, a club formerly managed by Gary Wassock. I shall watch with interest.

At 3:00pm I have to admit to one of my vices. I shall be watching Exeter Chiefs against Bristol in the Gallagher Premiership. Rugby Union was a sport I used to have the soccer AM attitude towards. Why do those egg chasers do it? Then I watched Exeter and they had an inspirational Irishmen by the name of Gareth Steenson who could kick the ball over the posts from all angles but also I watched him pick up men bigger than himself and put them on their behinds. I became hooked (a rugby term).

Tonight our village hall is holding their monthly film club and I want to support the initiative so I shall be out for entertainment with the wife. These things tend to be "use them or lose them" so to keep future options open I need to join in about 50% of the time.

Tomorrow I hope the flu will be gone (I feel a little groggy today) and I will then get my spreadsheets out and check all the F.A.Cup results along with the results of my teams at all levels.

Back to the second half of Dover v. Southend.

Vitoria 1 Arsenal 1

This was an infinitely forgettable match so I will not bore you with any details.

Mustafi scored with a header in the 80th minute, then after the 90 minutes were up Arsenal conceded a goal from a corner, something we do regularly these days. There is no pride in our defence. Individuals just look at each other and shrug their shoulders. We will not win the Europa League unless there is a massive improvement in attitude.

It was very different watching the match at 4pm on a Wednesday but it meant I could head to bed and try to recover from this flu around 6pm. I woke at 7am and things are starting to clear now although it is never pleasant expunging gunge from the body.

Flu Jab

I had my flu jab two weeks ago and guess what ... I got flu. This particular variety is not your three day flu and if my wife is anything to go by (she had the jab at the same time and succumbed quicker) then it is not even two week flu. This one has a constant sore throat, headaches on and off and the most annoying part is a whooping cough that just will not clear. I cannot recommend the flu jab this year, but if the real flu is worse than what I have got now then thousands are going to die this winter.

I have just prepared my spreadsheets again but as I am between sheets let me just tidy up last weekend. Many of the local league matches were postponed because of waterlogged pitches and this persistent rain shows no sign of going away. I remember looking at a weather map a week ago showing a band of rain stretching from South America to Britain and heading in our direction. We may have much more rain to come.

At the weekend Arsenal continued their poor run of results. A 1-1 draw at home to Wolves is not what we should be getting from this squad but we know there are internal problems that still need resolution. Goals from Aubameyang and Jimenez plus an outstanding save from Bernd Leno kept this game tight and we will have to hope that Arsenal pick up in the second half of the season.

So when my leading team underperform I always look to my other teams to raise the mood a bit. What with flu and the following results I have little reason to be cheerful.

Brentford 0 Huddersfield 1

Sunderland 1 Southend 0

Bradford 2 Exeter 0

The one team that did not let me down was Torquay. It sounds like a great game.

Halifax 2 Torquay 4

The next few matches were postponed until we get down to Barnstaple.

They did not make me feel any better.

Thatcham Town 5 Barnstaple Town 1

Would I find any favourable results in the amateur matches?

Nope ... Complete washout!


A bonus match that I had missed was Southend travelling to Portsmouth last night.

Portsmouth 4 Southend 1

So, a miserable week so far in so many ways. I think Arsenal need a result at Vitoria in the Europa Cup, a match played a day early and because of the clash with Champions League starting at 3:50pm.

Check time.

It is now 3:45pm.

Time to leave you and watch the boys.

November starts

I thought I had all 20 of my teams playing tomorrow but there is doubt about number 20. Let me double check them all.

1) Arsenal v. Wolverhampton.

2) Brentford v. Huddersfield

3) Sunderland v. Southend

4) Bradford v. Exeter

5) Halifax v. Torquay

6) Billericay v. Weymouth

7) Tiverton v. Chesham

8) Thatcham v. Barnstaple

9) Bradford Town v. Exmouth Town

10) Elmore v. Newton Abbot Spurs

11) University of Exeter v. Liverton

And then outside the Football Association Official Pyramid :-

12) Cronies v. Okehampton Argyle

13) Thorverton v. Lympstone

14) Sandford v. Elmore 2nds

15) Westexe Park Rangers v. Upottery 2nds

16) Cranbrook v. Colyton 2nds

17) Broadclyst v. Witheridge 2nds

18) Elmore 3rds v. Chagford 2nds

19) Lympstone 2nds v. Culm United 2nds

20) Westexe Park Rangers ... yes, a fixture has been arranged to fill the gap

20) Bradninch 2nds v. Westexe Park Rangers 2nds

Twenty matches to watch. Does anyone have a time machine?

Sunday, Monday & Tuesday

Sunday was Arsenal day.

The early afternoon saw the women take on Manchester City in the top of the table clash. Arsenal battled out a narrow 1-0 win to catch Manchester City on 12 points. The only club above these two is Chelsea who inflicted the one defeat Arsenal have suffered so far. It should be a good season.

The Arsenal goalscorer was none other than Vivian Miedema who has a strong goalscoring record. She ran onto the pass and hit her shot first time to beat the keeper at her near post.

In the early evening match Arsenal men took on Crystal Palace and went into an early 2-0 lead. This is usually the signal for the lads to sit back and allow the opposition to come at us. That was not the case this time and we made several good chances. The winner in this match was VAR. I know I am biased but Wilfried Zaha saw the leg of Callum Chambers hanging and clearly dived over it. The referee correctly booked him but then the Mike Dean of VAR overturned that decision. There was no advice to "look for yourself". VAR got it wrong. Zaha bought a penalty and it will encourage him to continue diving. Watch out for more dives in future.

Arsenal than had two good goals disallowed. The second one saw Callum Chambers jostled by three players and VAR decided that he was at fault. Does Mike Dean really hate Callum Chambers that much? The VAR referee has anonymity so can reverse any decisions and we have no idea who he is or why he made that decision. The original decisions should have stood as there was no clear and obvious mistake. Arsenal were cheated out of a win by a corrupt VAR official and there should be an investigation as to what Mike Dean was doing in the VAR studio.

Rant over we move onto Monday.

Brentford travelled to Queens Park Rangers and went 1-0 up in the first half. I checked the result just after half time and the Rangers had equalised. I then had an early night expecting the home side to go on to victory but I was delighted when I woke up to find that Brentford has won 3-1.

Tuesday saw Torquay in action against Wrexham. This match ended 1-0 to Torquay.

Two wins at the lower levels still do not make up for what I witnessed on Sunday.

Rain, rain & more rain

Most of my fixtures were postponed today thanks to the precipitation.

Only one of my local league matches was played and nothing happened all the way up to Southern League level. So we start in the National League South.

Weymouth beat Braintree Town 3-0 at home.

Torquay United beat Barrow 4-2 at home.

Exeter beat Plymouth Argyle 4-0 at home. A result that will go down well with the locals.

Southend United cannot have pleased Sol Campbell with a 3-1 home defeat to Ipswich.

Arsenal play tomorrow and Brentford play on Monday.

Arsenal women take on Manchester City before Arsenal take on Crystal Palace.

Tuesday, Wednesday & Thursday

The highs and the lows of a football fan are manifold. You're riding high in April, shot down in May.

THREE NIL

This week I was pleased to see Brentford travel to Swansea and come away with a 3-0 win. A goal apiece for Said Benrahma and Bryan Mbeumo sandwiched an own goal to produce this result.

Then I turned to Southend and got a shock. My old mates in Southend were posting up about the worst result of the season. Southend were taking on Doncaster Rovers at home and went down 7-1.

SEVEN ONE

Was it the Sol Campbell influence? This guy is so soft we don't have to put any effort in? Isaac Hutchinson scored from a free kick in the 11th minute but after that it seems that Southend were inviting Doncaster to score which they did with alacrity.

It seems that Gary Waddock was indeed a Gary Wassock and his tenure as manager has ended. The report I read states that Sol Campbell was appointed 30 minutes before the Doncaster match. Maybe, therefore, it was the fact that there was a managerial vacancy that led to the score. I think 30 minutes is insufficient to drill your squad to play the way you want them to. If Sol tried, he clearly failed.

More to the point, the fact that Southend had two men sent off and were playing with nine players is more likely to have predicated the result. Over to you Sol. There is clearly plenty of work to be done.

THREE ONE

Next up came Exeter travelling to Scunthorpe. The ex league leaders seem to have hit a rut and are not winning like they used to. A 30 yard screamer gave Scunthorpe the lead but Exeter quickly came level within 3 minutes. Matt Jay found the bottom corner with his cross shot.

Leaving the English Football League behind we turn to the Southern League.

THREE TWO

Tiverton were involved in a see-saw match at Weston-super-Mare. Weston took the lead from the penalty spot. Not to worry, Josh Key and Jordan Bastin put Tiverton into a 2-1 half time lead. Sadly the second half belonged to Weston and the home side came away with a 3-2 win.

I nearly went to the Wednesday match but my wife booked me in for a flu jab and I was notified when our next door neighbour could not get home that the main road that I would have had to use was closed in both directions. I missed a good one.

FOUR TWO

There is too little information on this match but I did find something on facebook.

"2-1 down to a dubious penalty. Three goals in five minutes see Town to a fully deserved 4-2 win. A brace from Ace a header from Callum and a 28 yard stinger from Jordan."

The last match in this section is the one I was looking forward to as Arsenal took on Vitoria from Portugal last night.

I was able to watch it live on BT Sport and was slightly stunned when Vitoria took the lead. Gabriel Martinelli scored the equaliser before Vitoria retook the lead in no time. Arsenal do seem to have this schoolboy habit of relaxing once they score. For most of the rest of the match Vitoria defended well and Arsenal could find no way through. The introduction of Ceballos and Guendouzi promised some service for the front men but they made little difference although Guendouzi earned the free kick that led to the winning goal.

The star of the show was Nicolas Pepe who came on late and scored from a well taken free kick in the 80th minute. Then, after Guendouzi had won the free kick in the 90th minute repeated his feat from the dead ball situation. At long last, Arsenal have somebody who is a threat from free kicks. I used to wonder why Arsenal always took free kicks quickly and starting passing moved immediately. Now it is obvious. We never had anyone who knew how to kick the ball. WE DO NOW!

So, a week of a mixed bag but it ended Thursday night with a last minute winner. Great watching.

Monday Night

Arsenal lost 1-0 to Sheffield United.

Whilst not wishing to diminish the achievement of Sheffield United in reaching and competing at this level it does seem that since the Kroenkes took over the club has become decidedly Cronky.

I am so glad I have a team at every level that I can support.

I will not attach my emotions to any one club as that can lead to depression in a bad season. A young man needs the highs and lows to experience a full life but I am content to sit back and appreciate the best that football has to offer.

That is very often at the lower levels of the professional game and certainly in the F.A.Cup where the various levels come together to battle it out. A low level team beating a high level team is one of the best experiences any football fan can experience ... but then we are British and we love a plucky underdog.

I have my eyes set on the F.A.Vase clash between Bovey Tracey and Abingdon United on Saturday. That is in fact two teams at the same level competing for a place in the next round and the best football is always experienced when two teams are evenly matched.

So, having said that, what have I watched this season that matches those two experiences?

Exmouth Town beating Yate Town Must be the best of both. I am so glad I saw that game. The two teams were evenly matched although Yate Town had more of the ball being the senior of the two teams and ultimately Exmouth came out on top which must class as a "giant killing" or at the very least "hurting the big guy".

Not having Sky television means that I cannot watch Arsenal as often as I would like to and I have to admit that my support for them has diminished slightly as I am unable to watch. I wonder how much damage is being done to the football support as a result of the big money.

A few matches are happening this week and I look forward to watching my beloved gunners when they appear on BT Sport against Vitoria in the Europa League on Thursday.

Results Service

Friday Night:-

Tranmere Rovers 1 Southend United 1

Tom Hopper chipped Scott Davies for the opening goal in the ninth minute. Southend remained in the lead at half time and throughout most of the second half. Tranmere substitute Paul Mullin scored an 85th minute penalty to level the scores.

Saturday:-

Brentford 3 Millwall 2 (see Football Pyramid on facebook).

Cambridge 4 Exeter 0 (the League Leaders fail miserably).

F.A. Cup Results:

Torquay 3 Boreham Wood 2

Weymouth 1 Dover 2

Southern League Results:

Tiverton 2 Swindon Supermarine 0

Barnstaple 1 Winchester City 6

So far, so 50/50. Win, Loss, Win, Loss, Win, Loss.

Keynsham Town 1 Exmouth Town 0 (sequence broken).

Ilfracombe Town 2 Elmore 0 (second defeat in the pair).

It took a while to track down this next result but I found it on the Devon FA website:

Liverton United 0 Lakeside Athletic 7 (no surprise, except for the fact that I missed it).

The local league matches have a mix of wins, losses and postponements.

See you tomorrow for the F.A.Cup First Round Draw.

F.A.Cup & Other Things

I notice that there is a fixture on my spreadsheet with no team attached. The mystery was resolved when I noted that this is an F.A.Cup 4th Qualifying Round match. The rounds before the First Round are very nearly over now.

So, how did the mystery team get to this point in the competition? F.A.Cup spreadsheet time. Oh No! I need to update it. That explains why I have no idea at the moment. ... Hang on people.

Sorry about that delay, although in terms of you reading this I bet you hardly noticed. I now have the full list of matches for the fourth qualifying round and I was going to work back to the very start of the F.A.Cup but in the case of Torquay United they get a BYE to this round and so do their opponents Boreham Wood so it is two National League teams that meet to determine who will make the First Round proper.

The Weymouth path is more interesting although they take on National League side Dover Athletic on saturday. They got to this stage by beating St Albans City in the last round and Sholing in the second qualifying round which is where they started. Sholing beat Bradford Town in the first qualifying round, Hamble Club in the preliminary round and Tadley Calleva in the extra preliminary round.

In the last couple of nights I have had three of my teams playing.

Ilfracombe Town beat Elmore 2-0 in the South West Peninsula League Premier East.

Yate Town won 2-0 when they visited Tiverton Town in a match I was tempted to attend because I saw Exmouth Town beat Yate Town not so long ago.

Exmouth Town themselves won 5-0 in their match against Street. I wanted to be there but felt too tired after a long day out. Too bad, but I hope somebody recorded the goals and will put them on You Tube for me to enjoy.

Tomorrow night two teams with a long history of Friday night matches meet on a Friday night. Southend United who played to avoid clashes with the London teams travel to Tranmere Rovers who play to avoid clashes with Liverpool and Everton.

On saturday Brentford take on Millwall, Exeter are matched with Cambridge United, Tiverton try to recover from their shock defeat with a match against Swindon Supermarine. Do they make boats? Barnstaple are at home to Winchester City, Exmouth away to Keynsham Town and Elmore travel to Ivybridge Town in the South West Peninsula league.

Liverton are away to Witheridge and I can only hope for a score less than double figures against us.

In my local matches only one team are taking a rest so I will have plenty to check up on come Sunday. I have to wait until Monday for my main team to start playing again. Arsenal are up against one of the newcomers, away at Sheffield United.

F.A.Vase Day

I had made a note on my spreadsheet that I would either go and watch Barnstaple in the F.A.Trophy or Exmouth Town in the F.A.Vase. I chose well and took my Mrs to the Exmouth match.

This was a competitive game and some tasty tackles were the order of the first half. Portland United had brought several substitutes and they warmed up by shooting at an empty net while the main team was being briefed in the dressing rooms. Every single shot found the back of the net and some were at good pace. I decided that we did not want to have to take on any of these substitutes.

The first half proved very entertaining and could have gone either way but the Portland main team missed their chances while Exmouth took two in a hotly contested penalty area. The loud cheer that greeted the second goal must have been a boost for the Exmouth players because they gained strength as time went on.

The second half was not so good but that was about game management and I saw a maturity in this team that led to the corner flag near the end of the match. There were still several chances for Portland but they all flew over the bar and some into the field next door.

I checked the other results when I returned home.

Southend managed to lose 4-1 at home to AFC Wimbledon.

Exeter beat Forest Green Rovers 1-0 in the top of the table clash in League Two.

Torquay United travelled to Notts County and went down 2-0.

Weymouth achieved a creditable 2-2 draw away at Dulwich Hamlet.

Tiverton travelled to Wimborne Town and beat them 3-0.

In the match I wisely chose to avoid Barnstaple went down 3-1 at home to Thatcham Town.

The other matches on my list were postponed presumably because of the recent heavy rainfall.

Three of the nine local league matches were also postponed leaving only six to be played. I am afraid that Westexe 2nd team that I would like to see reach the Premier League have a long way to go. They lost 12-1 away to Braunton 3rds.

Non League Day

Go and watch a football match.

Yes ... even YOU!

Friday Report

There were three matches this week.

Exeter City travelled to Newport County in the Leasing.com trophy and came away with a 2-0 win.

Torquay United travelled to Ebbsfleet in the National League and managed a 4-2 win.

Those two matches took place on Tuesday and on Wednesday Elmore took on Stoke Gabriel on their home patch and went down 2-1.

Three away wins reported on.

Tomorrow Southend take on Wimbledon, Exeter take on Forest Green Rovers and Torquay travel to Notts County where they still play in black and white because they are so old.

Weymouth are away to Dulwich Hamlet, Tiverton are away to Wimborne Town and Barnstaple are at home to Thatcham Town in the F.A.Trophy Preliminary Round.

Exmouth Town are in the F.A.Vase Round One at home against Portland United. I think I will probably go to that one if the rain stops lashing down. Elmore are away to Torrington and thankfully I will not have to watch Liverton lose as they are not playing.

There is a full list of fixtures from levels 12 to 20 for me to check at my leisure after the weekend.

First Bury, now Sidlesham

You learn by reading.

You learn more about lower league football by reading Twitter and Facebook than you ever would by reading the local or national press.

Sidlesham have withdrawn their first team from the Southern Combination Division One. The reason seems to be that their local council have withdrawn permission for them to use the pitch that they have been using.

I tracked back and it seems that they complained about a local farmer spreading his muck so thickly in the field adjoining the pitch that the health of the players was in danger. Some farmers do have undue influence when it comes to their friends on the council and I hope that  this is not the case here but there must be some reason why permission to use the pitch was withdrawn. The club have wisely declined to comment on the matter.

So ... two clubs down in the top ten levels of English football. I expect there to be more.

Note: Level 11 leagues next.

This Weekend

Today (Sunday) I watched as my long time favourite team achieved a "One Nil to the Arsenal" to beat a Bournemouth team that had some good periods and decent shots but no luck. The only goal of the game was a header by David Luiz from a corner taken by Nicolas Pepe.

On a day when Manchester City lost at home to Wolverhampton Wanderers and Manchester United lost away at Newcastle I will take a narrow victory over dangerous opponents. Bournemouth will not go down if they continue to play with the same quality that they showed today.

The other of my teams playing Sunday were Exmouth away at Wellington.  The only information I have at this point in time is that the attendance was 315 but am I being lazy? Hold on while I dig deeper. Aaron Denney tees up Jordan Harris for the first goal (thanks twitter) and Ace High threads it through for Aaron Denney to slide it past the keeper. This side is fast becoming "My Team".

Yesterday (Saturday) my teams achieved the following results:

Nottingham Forest 1 Brentford 0 ... Move on.

Gillingham 3 Southend United 1 ... Simon Cox scored the Southend goal.

Crewe Alexandra 1 Exeter City 1 ... Dean Moxey got on the end of a Nicky Law cross for the goal.

Torquay United 2 AFC Fylde 1 ... The BBC reports:-

Matt Buse scored in added time to seal Torquay's National League victory over AFC Fylde at Plainmoor.

Kalvin Kalala's stunning volley from the edge of the box opened the scoring for the Gulls in the eighth minute.

Fylde refused to lie down, though, and grabbed an equaliser when Jordan Williams rounded Lucas Covolan Cauagnari and converted into an empty net after 52 minutes.

The Coasters thought they had picked up a vital point in their battle against relegation but were undone when Buse headed home in injury time.

Weymouth 4 St Albans City 1 ... Weymouth get through the third round qualifying of the F.A.Cup and are now into the Fourth Qualifying Round draw. One more win and they may get a Football League team.

Tiverton Town 2 Dorchester Town 1 ... The table shows that Tiverton are now top on 18 points.

Barnstaple Town 0 Moneyfields 3 ... Barnstaple continue the losing streak and are now in the relegation places with a goal difference of -18. The next worst goal difference is -7.

Honiton Town 3 Elmore 2 ... The Honiton Town page on Pitchero reported thus:-

Town welcomed Elmore to Mountbatten Park in the South West Peninsula East Division Fixture.

There was nothing to split the teams in the league table and the first half proved this with both teams cancelling themselves out. the teams went in level at half time 0 - 0.

Town came out for the second half and were the dominant side for the first 10 minutes. Owen McCreadie Taylor opened the scoring in the 49th minute when he had his back to goal and managed to loop the ball over the away keeper. Almost immediately after Harry Leisk had a great chance that he hit hard, but the Elmore keeper parried the shot away.

Slightly against the run of play Elmore equalised with a quick break from a Honiton attacked. The attacker managed to get the ball across from the right hand side by line and the ball found its way into the back of Hippos net. Elmore upped their game and grabbed their second in the 64th minute with an almost identical goal, which was tapped into The Hippos net.

Two minutes later McCreadie was through and ended up on the floor, with the home supporters screaming for a foul. The ref just waved play on to the despair of the home side.

Gaffer Doble made a few changes being Billy Knox and Cody Skinner on.

In the 70th minute, left back Blake Freemantle found himself about 25 yards out, with the ball at his feet he hit a fantastic shot which sailed into the Elmore net. 2-2.

Give Elmore their due they pushed on, and Luke Ashford in the Town goal made a selection of great saves to keep The Hippos in the game. Both sides wanted the win. Not to be outdone Elmores keeper made a great save.

Double rolled the dice for the last time when he took goal scorer OMT off and brought on Peter Knox in the 84th minute. As the clock was clicking down, he won the ball on the edge of the 18 yard box, twisting and turning he was trying to find a path to goal. Former Elmore player, Ash Small was free on the right, Knox played the ball across. Small again twisted and turned and slipped the ball into the corner of the net in the 88th minute pass the keeper.

Elmore immediately pushed to try and grab the equaliser, but The Hippos kept them out to win 3-2.

Man of the match for Honiton was their keeper, Luke Ashford, who made a number of excellent saves and also got studs across his chest after a high tackle from an Elmore player, who received a yellow card for his efforts

Town travel down to Plymouth Marjons next Saturday for their next fixture, hoping to put right their result a few weeks ago when they beat The Hippos in the cup.

Liverton United 0 Heavitree United 6 ... I watched my local side and to be honest there was some improvement. The home keeper managed to shout at the defence enough to keep them somewhere near the goal. Unfortunately none of them bothered to challenge the opposing forwards when needed. The absence of a defence is clearly a problem but shooting also needs more practice. The only powerful shot on target was straight at the keeper. I enjoy my football and one day I hope to see this team produce a match winning performance like the one away at Bovey Tracey.

My results from level 12 to 20 are my business.

Missing Teams

It is normally about the end of September when I look through the manifold leagues that I keep on spreadsheets to try and find the first club to disappear. This year has seen a very high profile club, Bury, disappear from League One. The main advantage of this is that when I search for "Bury" I do not have to go via "Shrewsbury", "Sudbury", "Tilbury" and "Banbury" among others.

The football league issued the following statement about the situation at Bury:

In response to recent commentary about the future of Bury FC, the EFL Board would like to provide clarification on a number of relevant points and address suggestions that the Club should be admitted to EFL League Two for the 2020-21 season.

• The EFL Board reached the decision to withdraw Bury FC’s membership in accordance with the Articles of Association as adopted by the EFL and all member clubs. With regret, this action was taken in the absence of evidence of Bury FC’s ability to meet its financial commitments, whether by the current ownership or any other credible buyer for the Club. Withdrawal of membership was a consequence of severe financial problems at Bury FC over an extended period of time, which had recently led to an insolvency event and a 12-point deduction.

• The Board recognises the efforts being made by supporters’ groups, local authorities and political leaders and their desire for Bury FC to re-enter the EFL from the 2020-21 season. However, the only established procedure for entry to the EFL is through promotion from the National League as part of the wider football pyramid. There is no precedent for a Club to enter the EFL directly through an application for admission or readmission following withdrawal of membership.

• In the current circumstances, the process by which a former EFL Club would obtain re-entry to the league system in England is via an application to the Football Association. On consideration of that application, the FA would determine the appropriate League for entry, subject to them meeting the relevant entry requirements of that League.

• Notwithstanding the above, and in acknowledgement of the extreme nature of the problems at Bury FC, the EFL Board had agreed it is appropriate to discuss the matter with member Clubs. This is a complex situation that raises questions of due process, precedent and fairness as well as financial implications. The EFL will consult with its Clubs over the coming weeks.

• Prior to formal consideration by any league competition of an eventual application from Bury FC to return to league football, clear evidence would be required of the Club’s financial viability and its ability to fulfil its ongoing commitments. 

The EFL hopes that this statement provides clarity for the current efforts being made on behalf of Bury FC.

I have read somewhere that when other football league clubs were contacted the end result is that Bury will not be allowed back into League Two at the start of next season. They will be treated like a new club and be placed according to their resources and club facilities. It is no surprise that other league clubs wanted to deny Bury immediate re-entry. They all think of themselves and having a team capable of challenging them is not something they want. It is also a warning to all other clubs that try to live beyond their means that this will not be tolerated.

So ... depending on the generosity of the Football Association look towards the Northern Premier League or even the North West Counties League for the resurrection of Bury football club.

I have so far not found any other missing clubs which is good for this time of year.

Wednesday & Thursday = Recovery

On Wednesday night the Elmore first team travelled to Axminster Town and came away 3-1 losers.  The team is showing inconsistency and may not have recovered from that injury I saw when the game was abandoned back in August. Four defeats and a draw is not good, the two wins coming in consecutive matches against Plymouth Marjon and Holsworthy.

Brentford took on Bristol City and earned a 1-1 draw. The BBC reported it like this:

Bristol City scored a late equaliser to extend their unbeaten run in the Championship to nine matches as they drew at Brentford.

Josh Dasilva's superb curling left-footed effort into the top corner put the Bees ahead with 27 minutes left.

It looked as though Brentford would win back-to-back games for the first time this season until Andreas Weimann's 87th-minute equaliser, the Austrian heading home Jack Hunt's deep cross.

The hosts almost won it in the 90th minute, but David Bentley made the last of several fine saves to tip over Henrik Dalsgaard's deflected cross.

The point sees City move up to seventh in the Championship, a point off the play-off places, while Brentford stay in 15th position.

An even first half saw both sides have chances to score - Bentley saved well from Julian Jeanvier after 17 minutes with Antoine Semenyo clearing Ollie Watkins' effort off the line from the resulting corner.

At the other end, David Raya had to be at his best to save Kasey Palmer's effort after Semenyo had intercepted Rico Henry's pass and started a three-man break just before half-time.

City boss Lee Johnson replaced Semenyo and Taylor Moore with Famara Diedhiou and Niclas Eliasson at half-time, but it was Brentford that took control after the break.

Bentley made more good saves to keep out Sergi Canos, Christian Norgaard and Watkins before Dasilva broke the deadlock.

On Thursday night the depression was lifted as a young Arsenal team took on Standard Liege who put a few good moves together but these usually ended with the ball being passed into touch. Gabriel Martinelli looks like a quality purchase as he scored the first two goals early in the first half. One was a deft flick with his head and the other was a well placed shot into the corner of the net. Joe Willock repeated the shot for the third goal and Dani Ceballos forced the fourth goal home with his studs.

The Arsenal first team appears full of fear but here were the youngsters playing freely and enjoying their football. An odd selection was Ainsley Maitland-Niles picked to play up front. I think Unai Emery has recognised a footballing talent but has no idea how to utilise him.

Monday and Tuesday = Depression

On Monday night Arsenal travelled to Manchester to take on United. We, the fans, were hoping for a good showing against a side that are struggling this season. Instead, we played defensively and let slip a golden opportunity to kick a side when they are down. This is a sign that we lack ambition although you will find we have not lost in the league this season (apart from Liverpool away which is kind of expected).

It remains to be seen whether we take on Liverpool in the Carabao Cup as they fielded an ineligible player in their match against Milton Keynes Dons. If it was a club further down the pecking order they would be kicked out like Bury have been from the league but Liverpool are at the top so they can more or less do whatever the hell they like.

The match on Monday was another one won by V.A.R. Arsenal scored a goal that was given offside. I am pretty sure David De Gea stopped when he saw the flag but Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang put the ball in the net and V.A.R. ruled that the goal was not offside. This earned us a 1-1 draw.

A point away at Old Trafford should be a cause for celebration but sadly it was just NOT this time.

On Tuesday Southend United took on Brighton & Hove Albion U21s in the Leasing dot com Cup. The Premier League youngsters took my League One team apart and won the match 2-0. Defeat.

In the Southern League Cup Barnstaple Town, or Barum as they like to be known , took on Truro City at home and went down by 2 goals to 5. Another defeat for another of my teams.

Exmouth were due to be playing Bridgwater Town in the Western Premier League but Bridgwater were too busy beating Frome Town in the Somerset F.A. Premier Cup to come to Southern Road and be thrashed by an in form Exmouth team. Match postponed. Disappointing.

The one bright spot in my spreadsheet is that Elmore 2nds beat University of Exeter 4ths in Division Two of the Devon & Exeter League. This 4-0 victory is the seventh straight victory for this side. If I want to watch winning football perhaps I should make the effort here.

Tonight Elmore take on Axminster Town away while Brentford in the Championship are at home to Bristol City, while tomorrow Arsenal are at home to Standard Liege and I can watch that on BT Sport. I applaud BT Sport for winning the European contract. The football at this level is simply the best. Serge Gnabry against Tottenham Hotspur was inspirational.

Note: The real reason for depression was the kidnapping of my car for a week to change the clutch.

Twenty to One

Saturday -
20: Devon & Exeter Division Eight: Westexe Rangers 2nds 4 University of Exeter 8ths 2
19: Devon & Exeter Division Seven: Lympstone 2nds 0 AFC Exe 5
18: Devon & Exeter Division Six: Elmore 3rds 3 Winchester 2nds 2
17: Devon & Exeter Division Five: Lapford 2nds 2 Broadclyst 3
16: Devon & Exeter Division Four: Cranbrook 2 St Martins 0 (in the Bill Slee cup)
15: Devon & Exeter Division Three: Not in action
14: Devon & Exeter Division Two: Tedburn St Mary 0 Elmore 2nds 5
13: Devon & Exeter Division One: Crediton United 2nds 2 Lympstone 1
12: Devon & Exeter Premier Division: Cronies v. Newtown (Home win awarded) (East Devon Senior Cup)
11: Devon League North & East Division: Alphington 11 Liverton 0 (Go my boys ... No! Go!)
10: South West Peninsula League Premier Division East: Dartmouth 3 Elmore 2
9: Western League Premier Division: Exmouth Town 2 Cadbury Heath 0
8: Southern League Division One South: Paulton Rovers 4 Barnstaple 0
7: Southern League Premier Division South: Farnborough 0 Tiverton 7 (result of the season?)
6: National League South: Weymouth 3 Concord Rangers 0
5: National League: Stockport County 0 Torquay United 4
4: Football League Two: Exeter City 1 Grimsby Town 3 (failed to make the unbeaten record)
3: Football League One: Southend United 0 Accrington Stanley 1
Sunday -
2: Barnsley 1 Brentford 3
Monday
1: Manchester United v. Arsenal: There may be some interest in this particular match.

The football pyramid fascinates me so I am happy to follow a team at every level but movement between levels is rare. There are many reasons why teams are at the level they are at and it is not ALL about football. Westexe Rangers Second Team for the Premier League!

Saturday almost pre match

Arsenal travel to Manchester United on Monday.

Brentford travel to Barnsley tomorrow (Sunday).

Southend, having won last week, are after the second win of the season at home to Accrington.

Exeter, seeking a record number of unbeaten matches, take on Grimsby at home.

Torquay travelling to Stockport are already 4-0 up at half time. It would take something to lose from there.

Weymouth are 1-0 up against Concord Rangers in a match I had pencilled in until the garage kept my car overnight (in practice for the whole weekend).

Tiverton travel to Farnborough in the Southern League Premier South and are currently 4-0 up.

The F.A.Trophy starts with the Extra Preliminary Round today but none of my teams are involved.

Barnstaple are on the road at Paulton Rovers and at half time they are 3-0 down.

In the Western League Exmouth are at home to Cadbury Heath. This match was another I may have payed to watch.

Elmore travelled to Dartmouth which is a lovely place I could have left the wife and I have no data at this point in the day from this or the previous fixture.

Liverton, my local village, travel to Alphington and as we lost 8-1 at home to them I have no intention of seeing how badly we can perform away from home.

Level 12 to 20 are local league matches so I will not bother you with them.

Arsenal 5 Nottingham Forest 0

At last we had an Arsenal team playing without fear.

Wholesale changes led to a team that performed well with Mesut Ozil contributing his passes although it was only when he left the field that we really took control of the game and scored most of the goals.

Gabriel Martinelli scored his first and second goals for the club by opening and completing the scoring. Kieran Tierney played after his injury break (we bought the player whilst injured) and by all accounts played well showing great speed and delivering well aimed crosses. Rob Holding returned to the fold and scored a well headed goal from a corner.

Joe Willock and Reiss Nelson are building their careers at Arsenal and they scored a goal apiece as we ran out 5-0 winners. Hector Bellerin, also returning from injury, created the chance for Willock by producing a cross with his second touch of the ball. All things positive in this one.

It is only the Carabao Cup and it is only Nottingham Forest but this was a comprehensive victory at the end. I think Forest just ran out of steam.

My only other team in action last night was Torquay who went down 3-2 at home to Eastleigh.

The aftermath

So Arsenal go a goal down to Aston Villa and have Ainslee Maitland-Niles sent off. We get a penalty that allows Pepe to score his first goal for the club and we then let them take the lead again within seconds. I have to be happy that we eventually won the game through a Callum Chambers first to the loose ball chip into the top of the net and a magnificent Aubameyang free kick that suggested to me a poorly set Aston Villa wall.

Arsenal 3 Aston Villa 2 = Happy face.

Moving back to Saturday's matches Brentford drew 0-0 at home to Stoke. The main thing when you play Stoke is to avoid injury and I have not heard of any injuries yet.

SOUTHEND UNITED WON A MATCH

As winning a league match is a unique event this season I have to be happy. The defence seems to have improved to the point where no goals were conceded and they were allowed to practice defence after Charlie Kelman scored the only goal of the game in the 4th minute.

Exeter travelled to Newport County and took the lead early in the match. Lee Martin scored after fifteen minutes but the Grecians conceded a penalty in the second half so the points were shared in this 1-1 draw.

Torquay, like Brentford, fought out a 0-0 draw against Dagenham & Redbridge. Enough said.

Weymouth beat Sholing 3-0 in the F.A.Cup so continue on to the next round.

Tiverton, however, lost their F.A.Cup match against Bristol Manor Farm 4-2.

Barnstaple continued their run of league defeats going down 1-0 at Willand Rovers.

Exmouth seem to be on a high at the moment. The 4-0 away win at Cribbs sees them climb to ninth place although they have played fewer matches than all of the teams above them. Good times.

Finally, I kept the costs down by attending my local village match to watch my Liverton boys score twice. The only problem with that statistic is that Witheridge, the opposition, scored double figures to inflict the worst defeat of the season so far. Once again it should have been more than ten but the keeper made a number of good saves and the Witheridge strikers also wasted some good chances.

I have to advertise: "Come and watch Liverton. You will see a great many goals."

There have been 53 goals in the eight Liverton matches so far. Know any good defenders?

Saturday Lunchtime : Before the Action

Arsenal are at home to Aston Villa tomorrow so I can delay any research until tonight.

Brentford are at home to Stoke today. I notice from the website that I could pay £5 to watch live video streaming from four separate cameras. The idea is tempting but I am going to get some fresh air following my local village team.

Southend United are away at Milton Keynes. Gary Waddock (I accidentally typed that as Wassock first time - time will tell) has asked his team to stop making individual mistakes. Conceding goals is what he wishes to stop. If he is true to his word and the players respond this one will finish 0-0.

Exeter City are away to Newport County which is a pleasant trip up the M5 and over the Severn bridge. Exeter are top of the league so should have nothing to fear but need to maintain their best form if they are to come away with another win.

Torquay are at home to Dagenham & Redbridge. The big news here is that there is a golden ticket to the Princess theatre for one lucky person who has bought a seat in the stand.

Weymouth and Tiverton are both competing in the F.A.Cup today and I am always drawn to that particular competition but I will simply check the results later on.

Weymouth are away to Sholing.

Tiverton are at home to Bristol Manor Farm.

Barnstaple are away at Willand Rovers. I have just checked their website and it seems that manager Aaron Harper-Penman has resigned. This could lead to renewed effort from the players or it could see the side falling away if the manager was achieving the best that the players are capable of.

Exmouth are away to Cribbs today. The website is a week out of date so I cannot provide any news.

Elmore have no match today.

I am now off to watch Liverton who are playing one of only three teams below them in the table. I hope Witheridge prove worthy of their position in the table.

Wednesday & Thursday

I did not travel to a match on Wednesday.

Tiverton took on Merthyr Town and came out 1-0 winners. The fact that it was a River Allen penalty should not detract from a very good defensive performance.

Elmore took on Torridgeside with the result being a 1-1 draw. Sadly their website still talks about this match as if it is in the future.

Arsenal started their Europa League campaign by pretending to be worse than Eintracht Frankfurt. In an open game there could have been a dozen goals but Frankfurt shot high wide and straight at Martinez whose hands were like superglue on the night. Arsenal missed several golden chances of their own but won the match with a deflected Willock shot, a marvelous Saka shot to the corner and a three on one where aubameyang kept the ball to himself to score the third.

Tuesday Night

In league one Southend United travelled to Shrewsbury and came away beaten 4-3. It is back to the red splash on my spreadsheet following that yellow at the weekend when they drew with Fleetwood. I wish to believe it was an exciting match but it seems that Shrewsbury were two goals ahead every time Southend scored.

Exeter took on Port Vale at home and remain top of the league after a 2-0 victory. Ryan Bowman scored a header from a rebound and Lee Martin scored following a deflection off the keeper. When your luck is in keep cashing those cheques.

Barnstaple took on Honiton Town in the Devon St Luke's Cup and managed to earn a 3-3 draw at home but my spreadsheet shows as red because they then capitulated in the penalty shoot out by 3 goals to 2. When you are down on your luck work harder.

Exmouth Town travelled to Almondsbury in the Les Phillips Cup. A brief message suggests that it was an away win by 4 goals to 1. Exmouth Town are flying at the moment and I have enjoyed watching them live.

Tomorrow both Tiverton and Elmore are at home. I have not yet decided whether I will go to either of those matches.

Round Up

Let us start with my village team.

Last week Liverton won their first match away at local rivals Bovey Tracey. The minor disappointment in this victory is that it was Liverton's first team and Bovey Tracey's reserves that were up against each other.

This week my boys took on Braunton from North Devon. Braunton took the lead but Liverton fought back to 1-1. Braunton took the lead once more and again Liverton fought back to 2-2. Braunton scored another and this time Liverton seemed to lose heart. Braunton went on to win 5-2 but that result is not really a true reflection of the match. Braunton should have won 10-2. They missed too many good chances to be title contenders.

Elmore took on Holsworthy in the South West Peninsula League Premier Division East. I think they will be happy with their 5-1 victory. The match report says that Bradley Kelly from the penalty spot, Jordan Casey, Daniel Tapp, Will Pinnock and Harry Butler scored.

Exmouth Town seem to have played very few league matches due to their participation in the various cups. Winning in the F.A.Cup, once via a replay has meant that four of the last eight matches have been F.A.Cup matches. Two have been Western Premier League matches and the other two have been F.A.Vase matches, the latest one on Saturday being away at Cadbury Heath. The outcome is that there will be another F.A.Vase match as Exmouth won 5-1. A comprehensive victory. I wonder who they will get in the next round ... checking ... Home against Portland United on 12th October.

Barnstaple were at home to Slimbridge having achieved a season record of 2 wins and 5 defeats. That record can now be amended to 2 wins and 6 defeats. The team lost 3-0 at home. As usual the Barnstaple website has not been updated so I have gone to the Slimbridge website for the information. Their match report suggests that Barnstaple started and finished strongly but Slimbridge did the ball playing in the middle of the match and scored all the goals.

The Tiverton match report starts with the phrase "The new look management team promised a different brand of football at the start of the season" and mentions that Hartley Wintney scored first. It was the second half performance that earned the visitors the win. An own goal was followed by goals from Jordan Bastin, Jared Lewington and River Allen in the fifth minute of eight minutes injury time.

Weymouth seems to be having a positive season with a single bank holiday blip so far. Travelling to St Albans city at the weekend they came away with a 4-1 win. Their website lists the goalscorers in a strange order but there were two goals in each half. Yemi Odubade scored after 33 minutes. Stephane Zubar scored just before half time. Shaun Hobson scored after 70 minutes and Jake McCarthy scored in the last minute. I love their website name though, uptheterras.co.uk.

Torquay travelled to Chesterfield in the National League. Torquay are mid table and Chesterfield are in the relegation zone so it has to be seen as a failure that Chesterfield ran out 1-0 winners. Torquay take on Dagenham & Redbrige next week and they are in the playoff zone so perhaps the gulls will raise their game for that one.

So to the league and you can do your own research here.

Exeter drew 2-2 at home to Leyton Orient.

Southend drew 3-3 at home to Fleetwood Town.

Brentford travelled to Preston North End and went down 2-0.

On Sunday my main team built me up with a 2-0 lead. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored from a brilliant turn and shot and a simple tap in. I am pleased that he is scoring freely but the ever present problem of the defence returned to haunt the gunners. Sokratis passed the ball straight to Deulofeu and Tom Cleverly finished cleverly. After that the whole team lost it and Watford could easily have won the game but Bernd Leno kept it to a 2-2 draw.

My life has been busy lately and I stayed up late for an online game that my team won. The effort needed did distract me from football. I have to decide where my priorities lie but winning was sweet.

Barnstaple Town

I noticed that Barnstaple have brought their away match at From forward from February 29th next year. The match was played on Saturday 7th September and the result was a 3-1 defeat for Barnstaple.

Remarkably the team are still mid table but they have played one more match than everybody else. Still, the golden rule is to have points on the table rather than games in hand.

Sunday Review

Southend United did not play as scheduled this weekend.

The reason from the Portsmouth website:

READ MORE: Kenny Jackett defends Portsmouth cancellation against struggling Southend

With Pompey set to be missing three players due to international call-ups as well as injuries to key members of the squad, the decision was made to suspend the fixture. 

The Blues would have been without keeper Craig MacGillivray, who has been called up to the Scotland squad, as well as Ronan Curtis, who is away with Republic of Ireland, and Rangers loanee Ross McCrorie, who is on international duty with the Scotland U21 squad. 

The new date has been set for Tuesday, November 5 (7.45pm kick-off). 

So we start with the long trip to Carlisle by my home town club Exeter City.

From the BBC website:

Second-half goals from Aaron Martin and Nicky Law proved decisive as League Two pacesetters Exeter maintained their unbeaten record with a 3-1 win at Carlisle.

Lee Martin had given Exeter a half-time lead which was cancelled out when Olufela Olomola equalised for Carlisle in the 61st minute.

Exeter began with a confidence befitting their league position and Lee Martin could easily have put them two goals ahead inside the first eight minutes when the game turned into a contest between the Exeter forward and Carlisle goalkeeper Adam Collin.

Collin parried Martin's first effort and then used his legs to keep out a low shot that looked bound for the bottom corner.

• 'More to come' from Exeter

After Law himself had flashed a shot across the face of goal, Jake Taylor went even closer with a low shot through a crowd of players that struck the bottom of Collin's left-hand post.

It was no surprise when Exeter took a 36th-minute lead. Randell Williams fed a ball across to Lee Martin, whose curling shot from the edge of the box left Collin diving in vain.

Saves by Collin from Williams and Ryan Bowman kept Carlisle in it after the break and the Cumbrians' equaliser came when Nathan Thomas' shot was blocked and the rebound fell for Olomola to head just inside the right-hand post.

Exeter were back in the lead six minutes later when, from the corner on the left, Aaron Martin thumped home a header from six yards and Law made certain in stoppage time, breaking on the left to fire an angled drive past Collin.

Report supplied by PA Media

Torquay United entertained Harrogate Town in the National League. From their website:

TUFC 4
(Andrews 51′, Lumbombo-Kalala 70′, Reid 73′, 80′)

Harrogate Town 2
(Stead 33′ pen, 58′)

United came from behind twice to secure victory, thanks to a marvellous last half-hour against Harrogate Town at Plainmoor.

Jon Stead’s goals, either side of Jake Andrews’ early second-half leveller, left Torquay with work to do with 30 minutes remaining. However a red card for Stead, coupled with a stunner from Kalvin Lumbombo-Kalala, set up Jamie Reid’s double to seal all three points for Gary Johnson’s men.

Johnson was forced into a number of changes to the side that secured a 1-1 draw at Woking in midweek, with injured midfield trio Asa Hall, Armani Little and Connor Lemonheigh-Evans being replaced by Andrews, Robbie Cundy, for his full debut, and Ben Whitfield, who was making his home bow following his goalscoring debut in Surrey.

United began the game on top, with Whitfield carrying on where he left off on Tuesday by posing a constant threat for the Town backline. One left-foot cross on five minutes found Reid at the near-post, who fired wide.

Torquay’s other new boy, Cundy went agonisingly close later, with his 21st minute from a corner thudding against the post.

The game though, took a twist in the visitor’s favour on the 32 minutes, as Stead went down in the box under a challenge from Cundy, to win his side a penalty. The same player stepped up to send Lucas Covolan Cavagnari the wrong way and give Harrogate the lead.

goal celebrations for Jonathan Stead of Harrogate Town from the spot, during the Vanarama National League match between Torquay United and Harrogate Town on Saturday 7 Sep 2019, Plainmoor, Torquay, Devon -PHOTO: Sean Hernon/PPAUK

United’s frustration at falling behind was evident up until the interval, with Johnson having to do some fine-tuning during the break.

Just as happened last week against Hartlepool, The Gulls levelled things up in the opening stage of the second period, following a fine right-wing move.

Lumbombo-Kalala, on as a substitute, ran at the Town backline to free up Ben Wynter. The right-back delivered a fine cross into the path of Andrews, who fired home with ease to make it 1-1.

goal celebrations for Jake Andrews of Torquay United, during the Vanarama National League match between Torquay United and Harrogate Town on Saturday 7 Sep 2019, Plainmoor, Torquay, Devon -PHOTO: Sean Hernon/PPAUK

After looking to build on this, it was a real sucker-punch when United fell behind again just seven minutes later.

A deep cross into the box from the left from George Smith found Stead jostling for position at the back post, and the experienced striker edged away from his marker to fire home from the angle of the six-yard box.

Just when the former England-U21 striker might have fancied himself for a hat-trick chance, his afternoon took a turn for the worse on 63 minutes.

Having been booked earlier in the match, the referee took a dim view of a handball offence inside the centre-circle, and gave the towering front man his marching orders.

Seizing the initiative on Town’s main outlet disappearing down the tunnel, Johnson’s men started to press Harrogate back against the Babbacombe End, and a moment of real class set United on their way.

Lumbombo-Kalala, clearly in the mood to turn the game on its head, initially looked to be sizing up his options when the ball reached him on the edge of the box, before unleashing a high drive over the ‘keeper’s head and into the roof of the net to drag his side level.

goal celebrations for Kalvin Kalala of Torquay United during the Vanarama National League match between Torquay United and Harrogate Town on Saturday 7 Sep 2019, Plainmoor, Torquay, Devon -PHOTO: Sean Hernon/PPAUK

The French winger instantly signalled for the ball to be collected from the back of the net, as United set about pressing home their advantage.

In the 73rd minute, Andrews, outstanding all afternoon, drove deep into the area before being brought down. The referee wasted no time in pointing to the spot, with Jamie Reid grabbing the ball.

Reid’s penalty was well saved by  James Belshaw in the Harrogate goal, but in true poacher fashion, Reid followed up to send the loose ball into the net to put Torquay in front for the first time.

Penalty for Jamie Reid of Torquay United on the rebound, during the Vanarama National League match between Torquay United and Harrogate Town on Saturday 7 Sep 2019, Plainmoor, Torquay, Devon -PHOTO: Sean Hernon/PPAUK

United weren’t in the mood to let the game slip away now and with ten minutes to go, the points were made safe.

A delightful move across the box ended with Lumbombo-Kalala threading the ball through to Reid, who made space before belting home a left-footed effort high into the net to make it four.

goal celebrations for Jamie Reid of Torquay United during the Vanarama National League match between Torquay United and Harrogate Town on Saturday 7 Sep 2019, Plainmoor, Torquay, Devon -PHOTO: Sean Hernon/PPAUK

With depleted resources and in the face of adversity, United had emerged victorious, in what could prove to be a pivotal game for their ambitions this season.

Next up is a trip to the Proact Stadium next Saturday, as Johnson’s men take on bottom-of-the-table Chesterfield.

TUFC: 28. Lucas Covolan Cavagnari, 2. Ben Wynter, 3. Liam Davis, 4. Kyle Cameron (c), 6. Joe Lewis (16. Ryan Dickson, 66′), 9. Manny Duku (20. Kalvin Lumbombo-Kalala, HT) 11. Jake Andrews (15. Matt Buse, 86′), 14. Frank Vincent, 19. Jamie Reid, 25. Robbie Cundy, 34. Ben Whitfield. SUBS NOT USED: 1. Shaun MacDonald, 23. Louie Slough.

Yellow Card: Davis (18′), Vincent (44′)

Harrogate Town: 1. James Belshaw, 2. Ryan Fallowfield, 3. George Smith, 6. Warren Burrell (c), 8. Jack Emmett (9. Mark Beck, 65′), 14. Brendan Kiernan (10. Sam Jones, 75′), 16. Jon Stead, 18. Jack Muldoon, 20. Connor Hall, 21. Scott Brown, 22. William Smith. SUBS NOT USED: 7. George Thomson, 13. Joe Cracknell, 23. Jack Diamond.

Yellow Card: Stead (40′, 63′)

Red Card: Stead (63′)

Attendance: 2,527 (59 away)

  

Weymouth Town were also at home. They took on Welling United.

From their website:

It took a late strike from substitute Brett Williams for Weymouth to finally get over the line against a highly organised, ten-man Welling outfit, a result that slides them straight back up to seventh place in the standings after ten games.

Exmouth Town could not capitalise on their victory over Yate Town as they travelled to Highworth Town in the First Qualifying Round of the F.A.Cup and went down 4-2. The match against a Football League team must wait for at least another season.

Elmore took on Plymouth Marjon at home and came out 2-0 winners. This puts Elmore onto 3 points and just above the two relegation places. Plymouth Marjon are in one of those relegation places.

In the Devon League North & East my home village team travelled all the way to the village next door. Bovey Tracey may actually be a town but I walked through the village green to get to the ground and then they made me pay. Most Level 11 matches are free but I was asked for £2 as an OAP and I am glad I paid. The facilities are in good condition although the seat next to me had been unscrewed by some bored youth in a previous match. My team then produced their performance of the season thanks to the new players signed after that 8-1 defeat.

The first half was an even contest and Liverton took the lead. This had happened before but now the defence looked organised rather than ramshackle. Liverton continued to create chances but so did Bovey Tracey. I felt that the Bovey shots were better as they wizzed past the base of the uprights whereas many Liverton shots cleared the crossbar by several feet. Nomatter, I am almost a Liverton supporter now and my team had some fight at last. ... Bovey Tracey equalised. I had seen this before. My team were about to fall apart.

I heard several shouts in support of Liverton and we seemed to have more support than the home team. Two coaches (or ex coaches more accurately) shouted at the blue shirts to get themselves organised and challenge for the ball. This shouting was what had been missing at the start of the season. Some of the players responded.

With five minutes to go the score was 2-2 and there were plenty of chances at both ends. This match was entertainment at its best, the result was always in doubt. One of the blue shirts that I gave top marks to shot at goal but it was straight at the keeper. Oh well. Hang on. The keeper got both hands to the ball and still let it slip over his shoulder and into the net. Clearly our striker had put spin on the ball and the keeper was not up to it.

If you have ever supported a team that loses every week you know that special feeling when you win. It may be a one off and I had made my mind up not to bother with the next home match but now I have to consider very hard whether to watch the newly manned team or pursue my selections at other levels of the pyramid. Maybe my bank balance will keep me in Liverton. That is certainly a possibility.

Now let me see how my selections from Level 12 to 20 did. Those results are nothing to do with you though.