Groundhopping24

Following a summer in the North East, I still had a couple of days in Stevenage before flying back to Prague from Luton, then taking the onward journey back home to Brno. The choice was either Stevenage v Crystal Palace U23s or Biggleswade United v Baldock Town, and if I'm being honest, it was an easy decision. This is not a slight on Stevenage by any means, who've been fantastic over the last few years. If anything, I'm kind of frustrated that the only possible chance of seeing them this side of Christmas is up against a B-Team in an ultimately meaningless fixture. Give me a ninth tier fixture featuring my adopted non-league side any day.  Both Stevenage and Biggleswade United were reeling to different extents following disappointing results at the weekend, Stevenage perhaps less so given that it was away to a strong Huddersfield side expected to be right up there come the end of the season. Biggleswade United, however, gave up two late goals to crash out of the FA Cup at ...

For most people, the summer is drawing to a close, and while that is also the case for me, it's also onlyjust beginning. Having spent the last seven weeks teaching in Newcastle, as well as in Brno for the previous four months, I was finally getting something resembling a break. Okay, so there is a move involved in that break, but even so, I'll take it. With all that in mind, however, I wanted to make the last groundhop in the North East (at least for the foreseeable future) a memorable one. Enter; Newcastle Blue Star, who would host North Ferriby in the FA Cup Second Preliminary Round - the final round before the First Qualifying Round, which is actually more of a Third Qualifying Round when you think about it. In any case, it was a battle between two sides who went under and reformed quite recently (more on that later), and it promised to be an interesting affair, with the two sides having never met under their current guises. At this stage of the competition, the remaining si...

This weekend, I came down with a fever. I went to the doctors and everything, but they couldn't do anything about it. It turned out to be a case of FA Cup fever, which only Consett v Redcar Athletic in the Extra Preliminary Round of this season's FA Cup could solve. At the early stage of the FA Cup, teams from Levels 8 to 10 of the English system enter, meaning I was spoiled for choice in terms of groundhopping opportunities. I opted for Consett on this particular occasion, and chances were it would be my only taste of FA Cup football this season unless Stevenage get a massive away tie like Villa again.  I'd always liked the idea of following the FA Cup from its starting point and taking in a game from every round following the team that gets through each time, which if I'd done so in 2020-21 would have led me from Cockfosters to Wembley via Hampton & Richmond, Bournemouth and Burnley. I'll be sure to follow my prospective journey this season too, and if possibl...

Following three friendlies to start my groundhopping season, I had been tempted to take a trip north of the border to watch some Scottish League Cup action between Raith Rovers and Hamilton Academical for my first competitive fixture of the season. I decided it would be more beneficial to save the Scottish trip for East Fife in a couple of weeks. In lieu of that, however, I was still able to find some competitive action a little closer to home this weekend. In all honesty, my game selection technique each Saturday works on a random selection technique which is the kind of thing that would only make sense in my head. To avoid indecision, I let various other factors decide for me. That's all I'll say at this point, lest I be branded a weirdo (again). This weekend, it gave me Bedlington Terriers, who would play host to Billingham Synthonia in the Northern League Division Two (one of the many tenth tier divisions in England). I was quite excited to take in some competitive English ...

This week's groundhop has a bit of nostalgia about it. In my early childhood, we often took trips to Newcastle where my uncle lived for a brief time. More specifically, he lived in Blyth, though of course we took many trips to the towns and cities nearby, which of course included Newcastle. Even at the young age of five, I could see how magnificent the city was. Fast forward a couple of dozen years hence, and the city somehow pulled me in again, even if only briefly for a summer of teaching. Thus far, it's been Hebburn Town and Gateshead, but the fixture that appealed most for this week was a return to South Shields - a beach on which I recall having thrown sand in my brother's face for no reason - sorry Aaron. Well, technically South Shields don't actually play in South Shields, but they play close enough for me to pay another visit there, as well as sample the famous Fish and Chips of the seafront. I also wanted to pay a visit to the illustrious and legendary Tynemout...

A slightly smaller stadium than I'd imagined... On 5th November 2022, Stevenage played Gateshead in the FA Cup, winning 3-2 despite a stirring comeback from the hosts. I had planned to fly to Newcastle from my new home in the Czech Republic, but my visa had not yet been processed. As a result, I was worried that if I'd left the country, I perhaps wouldn't have got back in.  Chances were I'd have been fine, but I didn't want to take any chances. Instead, I watched another 3-2 win, this time for Ceske Budejovice at home to Zbrojovka Brno. While disappointment loomed large in the away end, it was a hell of a weekend that resulted in me passing out on the sofa having thrown up in the hotel bathtub.  To quote octopus Tony Harrison from The Mighty Boosh, when I go, I go large, but that's a once, maybe twice a year deal. All that is beside the point in any case, as having missed out on ticking Gateshead off, I've returned almost two years later for a summer job in ...

No sooner than 2023-24 ends, 2024-25 begins - time being a relentless beast and all. The final game of that season just so happened to be the best, as I witnessed a usually tedious Zbrojovka Brno beat a hapless Kromeriz - who had already been relegated - 4-3. I realise 4-3 doesn't exactly make them sound hapless, but three of Zbrojovka's goals came in the first eight minutes. Kromeriz were able to rouse a stirring comeback in the second half to their credit, but it wasn't to be enough, Nobody left the stadium happy, despite the victorious curtain closer, mainly because Zbrojovka had underachieved massively last season. In any case, though I will occasionally follow the travails of Zbrojovka Brno (and their B-team) next season, a new job has allowed me the opportunity to explore further afield on a more regular basis. With that in mind, you can expect more variety in these blogs moving forward, as I explore towns, cities, stadia et al. in the likes of Czech Republic, Poland,...