Rooney and Suarez came to Dartford

Not a lot to say about Dartford FC’s performance over the last months of the 2013-2014 season. Pretty dire apart from a few moments of inspired brilliance.  Dartford couldn’t avoid relegation (and we now know they were recently miraculously now reinstated into the Conference Premier after the colourful shenanigans at Salisbury City). Interesting, today, the Salisbury City FC website is down. Chester were also relegated at the end of the season, finishing above Dartford and they have already been reinstated following the expulsion of Hereford United for financial irregularities.

The current list of clubs in the Conference Premier are:

2014-15 Conference Premier Teams

I was resigned to the team playing back in the South league, and (at the same time) perversely looking forward to the opportunity to travel to a different set of away games, but I can now see there are some ‘new’ venues in the Premier list, including Altrincham, Bristol, Dover and Torquay, so its not all deja vu!

A past season notable game was Friday 7 March’s televised game against Chester FC. Televised by BT Sport (last time it was Premier Sport). The super-star footballers were John Rooney for Chester FC and Mikel Suarez recently signed for Dartford.

John Rooney, brother of Wayne Rooney

Wonder what its like to be a footballer with a name similar to those Premier League Celebrities, and for John Rooney to have the Manchester United forward Wayne Rooney as a brother?

Lee Burns is on the receiving end of a boot in the face

Mikel Suarez

John Rooney

In the event, Rooney proved superior to Suarez in team terms, and Chester took the win.

After England’s disastrous match against Uruguay in the World Cup on 19 June 2014, it seems once again that Rooney battles Suarez. This time, Suarez triumphed. And without biting anyone!

Papers Tigers and more

Hyde’s Tigers started with a roar but slunk out like a pussy cat at the end of a nailbiting second half.

PROGRAMME

Hyde’s first 10 matches of the 2011-12 season saw them win every match, equalling the Tigers’ best ever start to a season dating back to the 1925–26 and also breaking the record for the best ever start to a season in Conference North. On the back of this incredible start, Hyde finished the season as Conference North champions, gaining promotion to the Conference National for the first time and breaking the club’s record for the highest points total in their history with 90 points. However, thus far in the 2013-14 season, Hyde are struggling, clinging to bottom place in the table, having not won a single match so far.

After Dartford’s disastrous trip to Gateshead resulting in a 2:0 loss, and subsequent draws against Salisbury City

Goal against Salisbury City

Matty Godden joins the Darts

and Hereford, Dartford needed a win. Lee Burns led the team onto the pitch, Elliot Bradbrook serving a ban for collecting too many yellow cards.

Lee Burns heads towards the goal

Matty Godden scored twice for Dartford in the first half, but then Dartford gave away an easy goal and a penalty to Hyde, and at half time were 2:2 level.

Hyde gain a penalty goal

Hyde’s paper Tigers couldn’t sustain a 2:3 advantage of another goal in the second half, and Matty Godden and George Monger made sure of a Dartford win (phew) for 4:3.

Sandgrounders sink slowly

Dartford took Southport on and kept a 1:0 win after 90 minutes. The Sandgrounders could not net the ball despite several good efforts.

Despite failing to score, Wright’s team certainly had their chances. As early as the fifth minute Jamie Milligan sent a free-kick against the Dartford crossbar, while Chris Almond, Aaron Chalmers and Karl Ledsham were all left to rue the fact that they should have found the target.

In the end, those missed chances only added to the sense of regret, as the Sandgrounders experienced the frustratingly familiar feeling of a defeat on their travels.

This was a fifth straight away loss for Wright’s team, who find themselves unable to reproduce the winning formula shown in their matches at home.

The referee, Craig Hicks, seemed to be constantly blowing his whistle. There were 3 yellow cards for Dartford (Clark, Bradbrook and Woodyard) and 4 yellow cards of Southport (Akrigg, Brown, Ledsham and Irie-Bi who came on in the second half).

I was reading that years ago, when there used to be pitch invasions, an idea was floated that the pitches should have pipes around them which sprayed indelible ink so the culprits could be rounded up later by the police. The chairman of one lower league club said they would put ‘best bitter’ in their pipes, to attract the crowd in the first place!

Dartford’s attendance was just over 1000, so we need to get the ‘others’ back. Best bitter might not be the answer!

Looking at oddschecker.com it seems that Dartford are 200/1 on a £10 bet to top the league. Poor old Hyde are on 2000/1. Cambridge are 2/1 and Kidderminster are 4/1 (all on skybet).  Our nearest rivals geographically are Welling on 100/1. Interestingly, in the Conference South, both Ebbsfleet and Dover are 12/1 to win.

Carpetmen floored by Dartford

It was one of those Berocca moments, you know, the team, but on a really good day. Right from the kick off they seemed like a different team and it was great to watch. There was a slightly lower supporter turn out, 1,020 rather than the usual 1,200 but given the recent lacklustre performance it’s not surprising. Still, if you are a supporter, you are a supporter through thick and thin and those who came today were treated to a good result that keeps Dartford out of the bottom four. Given that Kidderminster Harriers are a full-time professional team, The Darts should be pleased with their performance.

Jason Prior scores no.1

It certainly showed on Captain Elliot Bradbrook’s face when he scored goal number two.

Y-Elliot Bradbrook celebrates

Kidderminster’s flag bore the text ‘Pride, Passion, Belief’ but it was more like disbelief when they failed to score during the 90 minutes.

Kiddy denied – disbelief

Darts in Disarray

Dartford FC got a bit of a drubbing at Luton Town, losing 3:0. There were a couple of opportunities to score, but the majority of the game went to Luton’s Hatters. I know, I was down the wrong end, so most of the action was out of reach for me.

Luton Town Kenilworth Road Stadium

Luton’s Kenilworth Ground has been there since 1905. It accommodates up to 10,000, and 5,000+ attended the match.

It is hemmed in with little Victorian terraced houses on one side and a new dual carriageway on another. The away supporters gain access to the Oak Road end of the ground via an unusual and well camouflaged entrance.

Bobbers Stand

Oak Stand Entrance

One part of the stadium is called the Bobbers Stand as entrance once cost a Bob! – a shilling for those of you old enough to remember pre-decimalization – and is so low that you can clearly see the houses behind it. In 1986 the Bobbers Stand had its seats ripped out to be replaced with executive boxes that look like unattractive portacabins. Netting has been suspended between the floodlight pylons on its roof to reduce the number of footballs being kicked out of the ground and into the back gardens of the adjacent terraced houses.

Dartford’s attempt at a goal

At Luton Town’s ground there are only a few places you can shoot photos from. Can’t sit along the sidelines because on the large Main Stand side you would obscure the view of the spectators, since they sit fairly low. On the other, the club feels its more important to be able to see the advertising boards and doesn’t want the odd body in the way – but the ball boys are OK! So can only shoot from behind the goal line. There is not a lot of space around the pitch, so I chose to sit behind the boards where there were no immediate spectators.

Packed Main Stand

In the second half, Dartford were shooting towards the end where the away supporters are housed, and because the spectator area is well below the pitch level, I could stand behind the line and shoot over the boards fairly comfortably.

Packed Kenilworth Stand

In writing this entry, I came across a report into the price of non-league football by the BBC.  The report found the Conference Premier’s most expensive offering in the cheapest day out category is at Grimsby, at £25.50.  Alfreton Town price their cheapest match-day ticket at £18. Dartford charge £15.00 as a standard rate.

Aldershot Town’s cheapest season ticket is the most expensive in the division at £322, with Grimsby’s costliest offering the league’s highest at £575. The cheapest season tickets at Aldershot, Halifax and Luton cost more than the equivalent at Premier League Manchester City, whose £299 season ticket is the cheapest in the top flight. (The most expensive is £1,955 at Arsenal, although this includes seven cup matches.) Dartford’s renewal was £250 for the current season and new holders pay £280.

Southport’s £10 match-day ticket is the cheapest in the league, while Wrexham charge the most for a cup of tea at £1.80, with a host of clubs selling at £1.

Kidderminster’s £4 home-made pie is only matched in price in the top five divisions of English football by Premier League Crystal Palace.  No idea what these pricey pies taste like, but I’d be surprised if they are anywhere as good as those The Hairy Bikers tasted when they visited the Globe Arena on the day of Morecambe’s 6-0 win over Crawley and met head chef Graham Aimson who oversees what seem to be the tastiest pies ever.

The Boro’ beat the Darts

In 1889 Nuneaton St. Nicholas were the first team to play senior football within Nuneaton. Five years later they changed their name to Nuneaton Town, and played until 1937 when the club was disbanded. However, two days later Nuneaton Borough F.C. were founded but in 1991, the club ran into financial difficulties and were renamed Nuneaton Borough AFC. In 2008 the club was liquidated, and were reformed as Nuneaton Town – suffering a two division demotion. The club is still known as ‘The Boro’ by locals and by those who support the team. The club play their home fixtures in their home kit of blue & white vertical stripes and their away matches in red.

All on the toss of a coin

In March 2013 it was confirmed that Liberty Way had to undergo several ground improvements to avoid automatic relegation. Turnstiles, Changing rooms and player tunnels all had to be upgraded to pass the regulations.

In July 2013 it was announced that the stadium would be known as the “Sperrin Brewery Stadium” for the 2013–14 season after a local family run business won the naming rights in a golden ticket draw.

When Dartford play at Nuneaton later in the season, no doubt we will be treated to Nuneaton Town FC’s new official mascot ‘Bloo the bear’ for the 2012–13 season, as long as we don’t have a very wet winter, as the ground has been flooded on numerous occasions, most recently in late November 2012.

Boro score the first goal

Nuneaton are doing rather well this season, and played a hard fought game, scoring twice within 15 minutes. Dartford managed a goal, but were denied an equaliser.

Darts attack Boro goal

Somehow the Darts have to up their finishing game and stick the ball in the net.

Keeping your eye on the ball

Keeping your eye on the ball is one thing, putting your hand on it during play is quite another. There was an incident late in the match that the whole stadium saw, everyone except the referee, that is. As Manager Tony Burman said afterwards:

“We should have had a stonewall penalty without any shadow of a doubt but please don’t hide the fact that we put in a poor shift and that’s not acceptable.”

Welling Wings lose out to Dartford

Welling United faced fellow Skrill Premier side Dartford in the Portable Floodlights Kent Senior Cup on Tuesday at Park View Road.

Kent Senior Cup

Entry prices were reduced for the match. Adults £10, Concessions £5, Under 12′s accompanied by an adult were FREE. Despite that, the spectators numbered around 400. Low attendance is not unusual for these early rounds of the Kent Senior Cup, but given two local rival teams at the highest level of non-league, it was a bit disappointing. Both teams fielded a combination of their Reserve team and first team players in a fairly evenly matched game.

Welling Utd’s Wings

Welling’s Wings are celebrating a milestone 50 years. The ground at Park View Road in parts seems to have changed very little since 1963. The old stand on the west side is a sad conglomeration of wood, broken and faded plastic seats and wood and metal even older fold down seats.

Original wooden seats

Broken and battered plastic seats

Detail of wooden stand structure

Welling’s webs!

This old stand may have lots of ‘atmosphere’, but to me looks very much like a safety nightmare. I am surprised the stand passed the standards required for the league. In contrast, the stand on the opposite side is newer and looks smarter.

East stand at Welling

As someone in the crowd described the stadium:

“The pitch smells of stale grass, the food smells of stale cooking oil, the bar smells of stale beer and the bogs smell of stale piss”

The game wasn’t about to set anything on fire, which was just as well for the old stand! I only stayed for the first half and saw Dartford score a first goal. Unfortunately for me, the second half was a bit more lively and Dartford won 3:2.

Dartford’s first goal by Mohamed Eisa

Second half goals from Alex Woodyard and substitute Brima Daramy put the tie beyond Welling, for whom Loui Fazakerley’s stoppage-time strike was merely a consolation.

Dartford will face Charlton Athletic or Folkestone Invicta in the next round when those teams play their match on Monday 9 September, postponed from earlier. Folkestone Invicta were defeated 0:1 so Charlton’s development squad will meet Dartford in the next round.

The Final will be held at Gillingham FC’s Priestfield ground in May. Gillingham were beaten 3:2 by Erith & Belvedere so won’t be playing in the final. The teams that move to the second round in the second half of September are:

Dartford, Charlton, Erith & Belvedere, Ebbsfleet, Sittingbourne, Dover Athletic

Chester get the Blues

Chester FC Badge

Chester FC (nicknamed The Blues, The Seals, City) play at the Deva Stadium, Chester. The name Deva comes from the original Roman name for the fort Deva Victrix, which became the city of Chester, in North West England. Owned by the Cheshire West and Chester Council, the stadium has a capacity of 5,300 and is notable for straddling the England-Wales border. The whole ground is in Wales (Flintshire) with part of the car park in England. Chester City FC were dissolved with huge debts on 10 March 2010, two days after being expelled from the Blue Square Premier League (to which they had been relegated from the Football League the previous season), and as a result the stadium was left without a tenant. In May 2010 the owners of the ground, Chester and Cheshire West council awarded the lease to the newly formed phoenix club Chester F.C

For the 2013-14 season, Chester remains as a semi-professional club (as are Dartford), despite the presence of a number of full time clubs in the Conference Premier. Before the season, there were high expectations for the Blues, with bookmakers making them eighth favourites for the Conference title. However, the season started with the Blues in terrible form, with five consecutive defeats, including a 2-0 home defeat to fellow part-timers Woking after the visitors played the entire second half with ten men. Chester are currently 22 (third from bottom) and Dartford are 16 in the league table.

On 31 August Chester secured their first win against  Wrexham, despite 3 yellow cards and one red card against Chester. Some 6000 fans watched the match in Wales, 800 from Chester. So Chester go into the match against Dartford full of confidence, but unfortunately Chester earned their first point at home this season with a goalless stalemate against Dartford. A crowd of 2,587 watched the match, which I was unable to go to. Regrettably there seem to be virtually no images available for this match. Only came across one pic in a local paper.

Dartford drop to 18 in the league table, above Wrexham and Woking. Some hard work ahead, lads.

Lincoln City Imps make more mischief

Compared to last season’s home game against the Imps, this one was a much better performance. But Dartford still managed to lose out to the Lincoln Green Imps (they wore blue last season). I have to say I think their website is still a nightmare, making you click TWICE to get to the ‘real’ site. Nonsense!

The sun was strong, the shadows more obvious at the west goal end and along one side which made exposures tricky and heavy/contrasty shadows and at times drove the autofocus crazy.

Some heroic and well-timed tackling around the Dartford goal by Kenny Clarke

Some energetic battling to score a goal at the Lincoln City end.

Elliot Bradbrook determined to win the ball.

Kenny Clark in action, voted Man of the Match.

Hefty tackle on Lee Burns

Dartford fans kept the supporters spirits up with lots of chanting and singing and banging on drums.

A strong appeal by many for a handball in the penalty area which the referee ignored, denying Dartford a possible equalizer in the final minutes of the match.

This precipitated a strong protest which almost got out of hand. Shame. Good refereeing is vital to the game. How can the “Respect” program be taken seriously when the decisions taken seem vastly out of sync with the game the rest of the stadium witness.

Kabaddi, kabaddi, kabaddi!

This is a sport I have never seen live before. I came across this info

Got a bunch of people, a big open space and nothing else? How about a round of Kabaddi?

Kabaddi is a game of speed, strength, strategy and, most importantly, lungpower.

First you’ll need twenty-four people split into two teams of twelve. Only seven players per team are on the playing field at the same time. The remaining teammates are reserves that can “sub in” later. The two teams go to opposite sides of the field, which is divided in two equal sections. Flip to see who goes first. That team starts out on offense and the two teams alternate offense/defense each turn until the game is over.

Here’s where it gets interesting. The offending team sends out their “raider” to the enemy side of the field, where he must try to touch as many opposing teammates as possible before returning safely to his side of the court. The catch? He must do all of this while yelling “Kabaddi, Kabaddi, Kabaddi, Kabaddi…” repeatedly and in one long breath.

And the best part is: we’re not making this up! This is a REAL SPORT!

If he makes it back to safety in one breath, everyone he tagged has to leave and the offense gets a point for each of them. In addition, they may “revive” a teammate that was previously tagged out for each enemy that gets the boot. If the raider doesn’t make it back, the defending team gets a point and the raider has to leave the field until he can be “revived”. If a team succeeds in getting the entire other team out, they score a “lona” and get an extra two points. Play then continues by putting all players on both sides back on the field. The team with the most points after two 20-minute rounds wins the game.

Of course the defenders try to hold the poor raider down so that he runs out of “Kabaddis” on their own turf. These larger chaps are known as “stoppers”. To make things more interesting (and fair) each team can only have four stoppers on the field at once, and only one stopper can try to stop a raider at any given time.

Other current variations of the game thrive throughout the world today, including a version called “Gaminee” where players can’t be revived. Instead the game is over when one of the teams is completely wiped out.

As for the game’s history? While there are no actual records anywhere, there is apparently concrete evidence somewhere that suggests Kabaddi was developed about 4000 years ago to help Indian soldiers develop their self-defense skills (not to mention their pronunciation of the word Kabaddi skills).

Today the game is played worldwide. (Yes, there’s an American Kabaddi team.) There’s even an official Kabaddi organization, the Kabaddi Federation of India (KFI), founded in 1950 that regulates play and rules and keeps a bunch of records and stuff. Not ready for the big leagues? Try the Amateur Kabaddi Federation (AKFI).

The 2013 International Kabaddi Cup tournament was held at Princes Park so I went along. Here’s a clip of the televised action.

Video streaming by UstreamI got the gist of the action and it was quick and dynamic.

Kabaddi action

The idea seems to be to send a ‘raider’ to the other team’s half of the circular area and tag one and return to the centre before running out of breath – saying ‘kabaddi, kabaddi, kabaddi’ over and over. The other team attempt to stop him from returning and hold him back until he runs out of breath. A sort of mixture between rugby, wrestling, sprinting.

Kabaddi action

Kabaddi action

Kabaddi action