F.A.Cup 4th Qualifying Round

The F.A.Cup results stolen from Flashscore are below:

I will analyse the interesting scores after you read out line by line .....

	5.10. 15:00	Finished	Alfreton	2 - 2	Gateshead
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Altrincham	3 - 1	Matlock
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Barrow	2 - 1	Tranmere
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Beaconsfield	0 - 5	Brackley
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Boreham Wood	3 - 0	Hendon	(1 - 0)
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Braintree	4 - 2	Bromley
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Burgess Hill	0 - 5	Dover Ath.
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Chesham	1 - 0	Potters
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Dagenham & Red.	3 - 1	Wealdstone
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Eastleigh	6 - 0	North Leigh
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Egham	0 - 1	St. Albans
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Harrogate	0 - 2	Halifax	(0 - 0)
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Harrow	2 - 2	Margate
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Kidderminster	6 - 0	Weymouth
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Lincoln City	0 - 0	Guiseley	(0 - 0)
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Lincoln Utd.	0 - 3	Spennymoor
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Maidstone	3 - 1	Billericay
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Merstham	2 - 1	Ebbsfleet
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Nantwich	1 - 3	Stourbridge
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	North Ferriby	1 - 4	Macclesfield
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Solihull	3 - 1	Kettering
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Southport	1 - 0	Chester
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Stamford	1 - 1	Wrexham
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Stockport	2 - 0	Bishop Auckland
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Sutton	2 - 1	Forest Green
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Taunton	0 - 0	Hemel
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Tonbridge	0 - 3	Dartford	(0 - 1)
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Torquay	1 - 1	Woking
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Welling	0 - 1	Whitehawk
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	Westfields	2 - 1	Leiston
	15.10. 15:00	Finished	York	1 - 1	Curzon

So ,,,, my thoughts are .....

It is good to see Braintree progress since they lost last season's manager to Lincoln.

Dover Athletic were the other minnow vying for promotion last season.

My Weymouth selection got battered away at Kidderminster.

North Ferriby got beaten at home by Macclesfield.

Forest Green are now free to concentrate on the league.

Taunton live on into the first round draw but have to go to a replay against Hemel Hempstead.

There is so much more I could say and I am sure you want to hear it but real life is calling.

Today - Saturday 15th October

I have just listened to the Arsenal TV broadcast as my main team struggled to hold on to a 3-2 lead. It sounds as if Swansea, if they had had a good finisher, would have won the match by several goals. This may be the natural pessimism of football supporters (the match is commentated on by fans) so I shall watch the match later on to determine whether the opinions of the commentators were accurate.

Brighton were at home in the Falmer Stadium taking on Preston North End (whatever happened to Preston Central and Preston South?) and the match ended in a 2-2 draw.

Southend United were also at home and beat Chesterfield 1-0 at Roots Hall.

Exeter City continued a trend which has seen their best results coming away from home. If I were them I would agree to play all matches away. Travelling to Barnet they managed a convincing 4-1 away win which will help to ease their relegation fears.

North Ferriby United were in the F.A.Cup fourth qualifying round so I will leave them until my F.A.Cup review. It does mean that the draw for the first round proper is imminent.

Weston-super-Mare travelled to East Thurrock and got completely stuffed 5-1.

Weymouth are another team that played in the F.A.Cup so you can wait for their result as well.

Tiverton Town beat AFC Totton in the Southern League South & West.

Bridport were taking on Odd Down in a cup match today and I can find no trace of the result on the internet. Such are the problems the lower down the chain that you go.

Exmouth Town were not playing a league match and I can find no mention of a cup match so I have to presume that they were having valuable rest time.

Now I can look at the F.A.Cup. A tournament I do enjoy as the different levels take each other on.

Box Life

I got to watch my first live football of the season today. It is my fault as I have been focussing on the garden and my wife and the television. It was a pleasure to watch Barcelona judging Scottish football and I thought City deserved to beat United. Leicester was undoubtedly the most feelgood factor this week as Bruges buckled under the pressure of Jamie Vardy and his cohorts.

My experience was a treat granted by my company who wanted volunteers to fill their box at St. James Park in Exeter. The original list offered the treat was not the same as the final list of those who accepted as there was a better option available at Sandy Park where Exeter Chiefs were taking on Harlequins. I met some new faces as we settled down to empty the fridge of alcohol and accept the main meal on offer which was acceptable but certainly not restaurant standard.

Following the refreshment we stepped out to occupy our seats. Within minutes the Plymouth attack in the shape of Garity had given deadly rivals Plymouth Argyle the lead. A second goal followed and from that point on the match was never in doubt. Exeter threatened the empty spaces and the fans wide of the two posts but the goal remained completely unassaulted. As a resident here I was embarrassed by the lack of quality that my home team showed.

As far as value for money is concerned I only payed for parking which was slightly more than I would have liked but that is Exeter for you. The experience was a pleasant one ruined only by the performance of my home team. I would probably accept if the offer came up again, but I think they keep a list and my turn will not come for another few years.

I was not convinced that I should pay for the experience.

Life v. Blog

I am sat down watching Torquay v. Lincoln to catch up and see how Danny Cowley is getting on now that he has moved from Braintree to turn professional. As he says himself it is a very insecure existence as he is only six matches from dismissal. His team, however, are already 1-0 up thanks to an early penalty.

My garden now has a new wall and the system I have been testing had its first success on Friday. Life can take over from the serious issue of blogging sometimes and perhaps I should set aside a particular time to keep this site updated.

I may have abandoned you, my reader, but I have set up my spreadsheets for all of the F.A. tournaments, Cup, Trophy and Vase, my selections spreadsheet, I have added the EFL Cup to the list and my team tags (teams attached to leagues) spreadsheet is now down to level 11 (County Leagues).

There is some good quality football being demonstrated at the moment on screen but it is still the first half and the players have not had a chance to get tired yet.

My life is still more important than this blog but I hope to be here more often as the winter nights and winter weather focus my attention more on football and less on being active outside.

I do think North Ferriby have reached the limit of their climb now but it may just be a case of getting aclimatised to the altitude.

Early Season Results

My main team Arsenal start the campaign tomorrow at 4pm but all my other picks have begun;

Brighton have drawn away at Derby County, beaten Colchester United 4-0 in the League Cup and got an impressive 3-0 victory over Nottingham Forest on the TV last night. I may have made a good choice here.

Southend United have started in relegation form. After losing to Gillingham 3-1 in the league they lost to Gillingham 3-1 in the cup. Some might see this as consistency. Today they travelled to Port Vale and lost 2-0. My old home town may have been a bad choice in League One.

Exeter seem to be a cup team at the moment. Between losing 2-0 to Blackpool and 2-1 to Hartlepool they beat championship side Brentwood 1-0 in the cup. My home town team need to buck up although there is a new 15 year old superstar on the scene.

North Ferriby drew the opening game of their season 0-0. Braintree Town have new management but my pick at National League level have to face Lincoln City next.

The team that has grown on me from nothing have started the season well. This National League South club have beaten Whitehawk 3-1, Bath City 2-1 and Welling United 2-0. Keep this up and Weston-super-Mare will be challenging for promotion rather than battling relegation.

In the Southern League Weymouth have beaten Biggleswade Town 3-1, lost 4-1 to Chippenham Town and today beat Redditch United 1-0. A mix of results points at mid table form.

The Southern League South and West Division has seen Tiverton beat relegated club Bideford between two draws with Larkhall Athletic and Bishops Cleeve.

My late choice of Bridport in the Western League lost to Alresford Town in the F.A.Cup and then Buckland Athletic in the League but today managed to beat Clevedon Town 2-1.

Exmouth Town started their South West Peninsula League Premier Division campaign with a 1-1 draw at home to St. Blazey but have since won twice, beating Ivybridge Town 4-0 and Launceston 5-0.

It always takes a long time to set things up at the start of each season so I cannot blame anyone for not following ten teams, but I once again wish to promote BT Sport for covering the National League better than any other provider in the market.

Kick-Off = August 6th

The short close season is now at an end.

The countdown has begun.

The new football season starts for real on Saturday August 6th with the F.A.Cup Extra Preliminary round. My last minute selection Bridport are at home to Alresford Town and it would have been a great way to start but I am visiting family to celebrate a birthday. I may have to look for a match to watch in the area I am visiting.

Exmouth Town are also in action. A home match against Saint Blazey. That could also have been a great start to the season.

In the Southern League Weymouth take on Biggleswade while Tiverton take on Larkhall Athletic.

Another possible great start to the season is at Weston-super-Mare where they take on Whitehawk in the National League South. So many good choices and I am at a family function.

North Ferriby United are at home to Braintree Town in the National League. I fancy them to win as the Braintree management left the club at the end of last season. I wish my choice at this level the very best of luck as they strive for Football League status.

In the league Exeter are away to Blackpool, Southend take on Gillingham at home, Brighton travel to Derby County and we know that the Premier League does not start until next week so I get to watch Arsenal take on Manchester City in a friendly in Sweden.

Let battle commence.

Almost Finalised Picks 2016-17

I had a look at Willand and somehow took a disfancy to them. I could find very little online.

My next job was to look at the Western League Premier Map. It can be found here:

http://www.footballgroundmap.com/grounds/england/western-league-premier-division

As I live in Exeter I looked at the nearest options as I do want to watch some live football this year without having to bust a gut travelling long distances. Those days are gone.

I checked out Buckland Athletic who I followed a while back but their offerings were not much better.

I have, therefore, on the basis that there is some pre-season information, gone for Bridport.


I also had second thoughts about putting a reserve team in my top 10. I think I am missing my own point, which I have not clearly defined, that I want people to get around and see what is on offer in the world of football.

I did not manage to see Exmouth Town last season and as they are neatly positioned at the end of a local branch line I shall aim to get a train ride and live football in this season.

So, with a couple of days to go and nobody to stop me, my selections are now:

1. Arsenal
2. Brighton
3. Southend
4. Exeter
5. North Ferriby United
6. Weston-super-Mare
7. Weymouth
8. Tiverton Town
9. Bridport
10. Exmouth

The season is fast approaching.

Provisional Picks 2016-17

SO.

That is how all modern TV guests introduce their statements SO why should I be any different.

I shall look at fixtures and other stuff and seek out websites and make a final decision soon but I have made a provisional selection of teams for this season:

Premier League: Arsenal (my team)

League Championship: Brighton & Hove Albion
I have followed Brentford for a while and they have done a reasonable job with their web information but they fell into a "form" site and I have no loyalty so my allegiance will change to Brighton, as a facebook friend sometimes goes to watch them.

League One: Southend United (old home town)

League Two: Exeter City (home town)

National League: North Ferriby United
I have been following the rise of this team for some time now and I am so impressed that the northern half of a little village in the middle of nowhere can reach such heights. They must have things well organised and local support must be worth the efforts. They have not been part of my pyramid until this season so I will make every effort to watch them if I go near the area.

National League South: Weston-Super_Mare
Having stated that I do get to watch their goals on social media they do deserve that I go and pay my entrance fee to watch them for real some time. Maybe this season will be the one when I make the time to watch the seagulls.

Southern League Premier: Weymouth
I had a look at a few teams here as I have uncles and aunts in several of these places but I chose Weymouth as I have been inside the ground on one occasion. The Speedway takes place (or did) next door and we were told to use the toilets in the football ground. I probably owe them the cost of a pee.

Southern League South & West: Tiverton Town
This one may have to be my main team for the season as it is half an hour to drive to and as I have mentioned there will be the opportunity to see Hereford and Salisbury as well as Bideford and Barnstaple who were on my list last year. I may yet return to watching live football regularly but I do feel this way every summer and then I remember how cold and wet you get in reality.

Western League Premier: Willand Rovers
Probably the weakest of my choices and based purely on proximity assuming that they play at the Willand that I have found on the map. I know nothing about them so it is a completely fresh start.

South West Peninsula League Premier Division: Tiverton Town Reserves
Why not choose the second team of a club I have put on my list as I may find some of the same players moving between teams and that would build a relationship that I have not had for many a year.

That concludes my provisional pyramid pick. Unless I find anything unpleasant out about these clubs they will be followed with interest throughout the season.

Bardon Hill Sports

I love mysteries, which is probably why I started studying the football league pyramid a few years back. During my time trying to work out what is actually going on I have gone from website to website and the one consistent factor that I have picked up on is that if something is on the F.A. Website nobody else is allowed to publish it on their own website.

Now I have always suspected that the F.A. are out of touch with the modern world, if only by their continued appointments as England Manager of those people who were "good a few years ago". We shall see if Sam Allardyce is another in the long line but I have a feeling that he may just be the man we need because I hate him with a passion. He was one of the first to park the bus in front of Arsenal and get a draw as a result. As England are not the perfect team that the press would have you believe we probably need to start with defence and then gradually build an attacking approach.

The F.A. Website clearly uses out of date processes to update its own systems. I have noticed that when teams change their names the F.A. still use the old name for a season and sometimes longer. I will pick up on name changes as I always try to identify which teams are the same as a similarly named team from the previous season and which are entirely new teams. This is not always easy given the dearth of information online. Often it is only the locals that know.

This season I went through the F.A.Cup draw and saw that Leicester Nirvana are still called Thurnby by the F.A. There must be some rule about cup entry if you change your name. Tower Hamlets were on the site as Bethnal Green but I have just checked the site and somebody has now updated that one. Now that I check again the name Thurnby has been changed to Leicester as well. This proves to me that the F.A. are just a bit slow or stupid. Either that or their processes are restrictive.

The mystery for me was when I found out that match number 66 does not exist on the F.A. Website but I feared not as the F.A.Cup draw, although banned by the F.A. from other websites, appears in various places at various times because enough people care about it. I found a good site where the information showed me that match number 66 is Bardon Hill Sports v. Kirby Muxloe. A quick search of my league tables revealed nothing in the top 10 tiers of the game. What was going on? Where were Bardon Sports? I found a website that referred to the Leicestershire Senior League and there I found them, but why are they the only level 11 team in the F.A.Cup? The mystery deepened.

I had to delve into last year's tables to find the Bardon Hill Sports team that entered the F.A.Cup. There was a Bardon Hill Sports that were relegated from the Midland League Premier Division. That must be the team that the F.A. were referring to. I guess they went through the classic departure of team and/or manager and folded. The club will continue in the Leicestershire Senior League and their second team will become their first team. This is a familiar situation that I went through with my first lower league team, Elmore Eagles.

It would be nice if the F.A. would put out a statement to explain this but they do like to keep everything secret. You are only allowed to know stuff if you are in the know. Match number 66 remains missing but it is possible to work out what has happened because in the Preliminary Round Kirby Muxloe are already in place. As the matches have not taken place this can only mean that a walkover has been awarded. Please you F.A. (change to expletives from definition) put a statement on your website to explain the situation.

This is an interesting time of year for me. I need to choose another (or the same) set of teams to follow at every level of the game for the new season about to start.

Arsenal are a given, but I may change any other team for any reason. I do, though, link up to the websites of any team that I have chosen to follow and some teams do a far superior job of keeping me informed than others. Those are the ones I am much more likely to visit and pay my entrance fee. I must recommend the Weston-Super-Mare efforts as I regularly get to see the goals.

My F.A.Cup spreadsheet is now set up for the season. Only one week until the competition starts.

Non-League Newspapers

So we have had a refreshing break from the incessant continuum of football.

You know when Sky Sports started I thought that at last we would be able to watch the matches that we want to instead of being shown a few highlights of all the matches of the world renowned BBC program Match of the Day. Sky then used their control of coverage to influence the date on which matches are played and prevented the ordinary fan from seeing their team some of the time.

We needed a challenger and Virgin did not step up. Thankfully BT Sports has appeared and they have shown me what a good organisation can do in terms of covering National League football and the two F.A. competitions other than the Cup, the Trophy and the Vase. Kudos to BT and I hope that crowds in the lower leagues increase as a result. It has always fascinated me how something is nothing until it appears on television and then it becomes everything.

These days I can watch football seven days a week if I choose to and I have come close but it is the choice that I want. I do not need to watch every match that is available. My dream is to see all matches live streamed so that all fans everywhere can watch their own team live but "SKY" have put a stop to that as they make more money by denying that opportunity to ordinary people. Advertisers will pay big money if they know they have a captive audience of millions.

Enough of power broker bashing. What did I learn this week as I picked up several football newspapers. The mighty Malmesbury Victoria are moving from the Hellenic League to the Western League. That is positive and I do not hear much positivity about the Western League, that organisation that mops up everything on the far lower left of the country. The Football League Trophy will include invited teams with Category One Academies, an interesting innovation.

The F.A.Cup now requires teams participating to have gained 63 points from a 38 game season. I have not seen how that works if your season is more or less that 38 games. I think the competition was probably getting a bit too big and this exercises a measure of control over the number of entrants.

In the F.A.Trophy preliminary round Salisbury have been drawn against Hereford. Good start!

Did you know that 95 laws of the game have changed over the summer. It seems that most of the changes are merely an attempt to clarify things that are already common practice but need to be defined more clearly in the rulebook. There may be one or two problems next season if a keen eyed referee decided to interpret a newly written rule other than the way it was intended. Remember that is what accountants and lawyers do so why not referees?

I think that will do for now. I must get back to catching up on Game of Thrones.