Barnet had about four inches on Friday and were asking on their website for volunteers to help shovel it away. I had a few options in mind for Saturday afternoon but only Dulwich Hamlet were unequivocal about their match going ahead, so I set off for Champion Hill after lunch. They were playing Hastings United, so it was second v fourth.
Hamlet’s old ground staged an FA Amateur Cup Final and several Amateur Internationals and saw crowds of 20,000. It was so close to the present premises that one of the old floodlight pylons is still within the "new" ground’s boundaries, enclosing a mobile ‘phone mast.
The old Champion Hill Stadium had a huge stand, a covered side and terracing behind both goals. I saw a dozen or so matches there, involving either Dulwich Hamlet or Corinthian-Casuals (with whom they shared for a few seasons), and the pick of them was probably Hamlet’s Amateur Cup tie with Whitley Bay in 1965.
Saturday’s match, watched by 404 fans, had an extraordinary finale. Hamlet were 3-1 up and comfortable with a minute of normal time to go. With still no sign of the portly chanteuse, Hastings managed to score twice. The equaliser came in the fifth minute of stoppage time and their substantial away following were clearly delighted.
I must admit I had planned to visit West Wickham for their AFA Senior Cup clash with Civil Service on Saturday but my attempts to ‘phone the ground in the morning proved fruitless.
One brief conversation went like this:-
The Barber: "Is the football on this afternoon?"
Man on line: "Sorry?"
TB: "Is this the West Wickham football ground?"
MOL: "No, it’s a hairdressers."
The Barber? Hairdressers? No, it was just too surreal.
I had seen a match advertised for Sunday that featured LLKA (London Lesbian Kickabouts) and FC Paris Arc En Ciel, playing for the Lily Parr Exhibition Trophy. When I arrived at Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre, the chap on reception denied all knowledge of the fixture. But by 2.25 p.m. I was one of a 54-strong crowd, including three policewomen, who were present for the kick-off on the Astroturf pitch outside.
It turned out to be seven-a-side, so I won’t be counting it towards my total. In the third minute LLKA’s No.7 put in a left-foot volley that soared miles over the bar and ended up on the first floor landing of the nearby Community Centre. But almost immediately she flicked home the first goal and two firm left-footers from the nifty No.11 later made it 3-0.
Two LLKA teams seemed to be contesting the next match, with the standard a bit lower, and I slipped away at half-time. Last night’s Ryman Premier Division fixture at a very damp Carshalton (1-3 v Horsham) brought me up to the not very round number of 5,239.