cATCHING uP

 I typed the title in wrong but it makes sense for the theme of catching up.

It has been a while and I have allowed myself to relax. Several long walks have occupied my time over the last two weeks but it does mean spending less time online. When online I have taken to playing more games rather than learning, researching and blogging. What am I becoming?

Last night I watched my Exeter Chiefs rugby union team start the season with a magnificent maximum points performance against Harlequins. The win by 33 points to 3 brought my enthusiasm and passion for sport rushing back so this morning I am ready to report on the football.

Team by Team by Level starting at the top:

Arsenal have had three wins sandwiched between two defeats in their last five matches. A disappointing 1-0 defeat to Leicester was followed by a magnificent if lucky 1-0 win away to Manchester United. Two European wins took place as we beat Dundalk 3-0 and Molde 4-1 in the Europa League. Just before the break we took on Aston Villa at home and lost the match 3-0. I am not sure if that is better or worse than the 7-2 margin by which Villa beat Liverpool but I am calling it better because we only conceded three. It was a painful defeat because we are now in the bottom half of the table but we are TOP of the bottom half. It makes us a mid table team and that is how I see us now. Thanks Kroenke people.

Brentford have had three draws and a win in the last four matches. Norwich City and Swansea City both earned a 1-1 draw at the new stadium and Middlesbrough held us to a 0-0 draw. The only win was away from home which is slightly worrying but it is a new stadium and probably does not "feel" like home yet. Luton Town were the beaten team as my boys won 3-0 at their place. That puts us in 11th place, the same as Arsenal but because there are 24 teams in this league we are still in the top half.

Plymouth Argyle have had four wins and a draw and that is all as the match against Accrington Stanley was postponed. We beat Doncaster Rovers 2-1 at home and Swindon Town 4-2 at home. There then followed the F.A.Cup match away at Charlton Athletic which we won 1-0 to advance to the second round then a 3-1 win at home to Newport County in the EFL Trophy. Back to league action and we were held to a draw by Portsmouth. I watched it on TV and it was one of "those" games where we went 1-0 up and held it to half time. Portsmouth came back to lead the game 2-1 and we equalised at the end so the fans can go home half happy as it was a good start and a good finish only missing the bit in the middle. We are now ninth in the league which is the top half of the table.

Exeter City are showing me a Norwich City coloured spreadsheet. A draw then a win, another draw then another win, yet another draw and yet another win. No defeats is usually a winning formula and if not at least it keeps you in contention. The colours also match perfectly with the home and away games so well done Matt Taylor. What you are doing is working. The yellow stripes are 1-1 at Leyton Orient, 2-2 at Morecambe and 2-2 at Bradford City. The green stripe home matches are 1-0 against Carlisle United, 2-1 against AFC Fylde in the F.A.Cup to progress to the second round and a comprehensive 4-0 victory over West Bromwich Albion Under 21s in the EFL Trophy. We are currently in fourth place in the table which is nicely placed for promotion if we can keep it going.

My old home town team Southend United are bottom of League Two and heading for the National League.

Weymouth have only placed twice since I last reported, both matches away from home. Bromley beat us 3-2 and we beat Stockport County 2-1. Other matches have been postponed due to a COVID report and we will not play today as the COVID regulations remain in place. We are currently in 19th place in the table which is just above the relegation zone so we need to keep that level or improve. I wonder if there is any money to spend on buying better players. If not, the existing ones need to step up.

Bath City have similarly played only twice for similar reasons. We lost 2-1 away at Slough Town and we also lost 2-1 at home to Hemel Hempstead Town. We are also in 19th place which is also just above the relegation zone so a similar report has to be made for both of my National League selections. Carry on as you are or improve and move up the table. It is up to you whether you want a worrying end of season.

The above continue to play football. The teams below are COVID banned from playing. I understand that there are a lot more teams down at this level so banning the game affects millions of people both on the field and in the stands. I have to approve even though I miss watching the matches. We need the vaccine and we need it soon so I hope the Tories do not put money in the hands of the lazy uncaring Tory donors that the money usually goes to.

Tiverton Town had their match against Merthyr Town postponed as the Welsh club are suffering from harsher restrictions than their English counterparts and they feel that they are at a disadvantage so have withdrawn from the league. All of the other planned fixtures were postponed apart from a rather heavy defeat in the F.A.Trophy third round. Salisbury beat us 6-0 to advance in the competition while we sit and wait for real football to resume. We are currently second in the table and we were first but have been replaced by Poole Town who are one point ahead.

Barnstaple have not played a single game since my last report according to my spreadsheet. With this team I sometimes find a match report weeks after the game was played but there has been nothing for me to report on since the 8-2 defeat to Willand Rovers. We sit second from bottom in the table and there is clearly a need for investment in the club as it has been reprieved from relegation twice in the last two years and this cannot go on forever.

Exmouth Town lost 3-2 away at Tavistock then beat Wellington 2-0 at home. The other matches have been postponed due to COVID. We sit in 5th place in the Western League Premier Division four points behind Tavistock in second place. We are, however, fourteen points behind Plymouth Parkway who look odds on to win the league this year. 

Bovey Tracey had nothing but defeats on my spreadsheet until the record win by 18 goals to 1 over Stoke Gabriel. After that they went back to losing but gathered a couple of wins in the middle of October. The last result on October 31st was a 1-1 draw away at Sidmouth Town. Since then the COVID lockdown has prevented any further defeats. We are currently in 16th place in the league and above the relegation zone.

Liverton have only had one match that I have found since the 3-2 win over Teignmouth. My lads earned a 3-3 draw away at Budleigh Salterton. My lads are in 10th place in the Devon League North East Division and playing better than last season it seems so maybe my staying away has helped. I think I will leave them to it until I have had my jab of the vaccine. So, Boris, how soon can I go back and watch the blues in action?

That concludes the Football Pyramid teams and I am going no further for now. I will report on the women either later today or tomorrow morning.